Caution: spoilers ahead for Better Call Saul season 6, episode 3
Gustavo Fring and Mike Ehrmantraut plot the demise of Nacho Varga in Better Call Saul season 6 - here's a full breakdown of everything that goes down, and why Nacho deviated from the script Fring provided. Ever since he caused Hector Salamanca's heart attack in Better Call Saul season 3, Nacho has been desperately dodging the inevitable. In "Rock & Hard Place," destiny finally catches up, and Nacho shockingly shoots himself during a fiery desert confrontation.
As anyone who's ever seen a gangster movie can attest, there's no such thing as work-life balance when the mob pays your bills. Nacho's downfall ultimately began with a foolishly optimistic wish to keep his father from the cartel's reach. Hector Salamanca wanted Mr. Varga's upholstery company as a legitimate front for his drug business, so Nacho slyly made an attempt on Hector's life. Figuring out what Nacho had done, Gus Fring was then able to blackmail the enforcer into becoming his personal mole, culminating in Better Call Saul season 5's finale, where Gus ordered Nacho to let assassins into the Salamanca compound.
Better Call Saul's final season sends Michael Mando's character running from a wave of vengeful, heavily-armed Salamancas. Come episode 3, he's given up any hopes for survival, and is dead by the end credits. Why did Nacho have to die? What outcomes did Gus and Mike want? And why did Nacho go off-piste in his final moments?
When Better Call Saul season 6 begins, the whole world believes Lalo Salamanca died, and the infamous drug family are gunning for Nacho - the man who betrayed them. Against Mike's advice, Gus Fring believes this situation works advantageously. If the Salamancas are shooting at Nacho, they're not shooting at him, after all. Plus, the mole's death is one less loose end for Gus to fret over. Mike is even ordered to lend the Salamancas a hand by pointing the cartel toward Nacho's motel hideout (the phone number in the replacement safe), while Gus installs a man of his own to keep watch on their trapped rat.
Unbeknownst to Gus, however, Lalo Salamanca is very much alive, and plotting with his Uncle Hector to find proof of the Chicken Man's guilt - proof that'll turn the entire cartel against Gus. Upon finally deducing Lalo's survival from the smirk on Hector's face, Gus is panicked. The Salamancas murdering Nacho in a bloody hail of vengeance is one thing, but if Lalo catches the mole and makes him squeal (if, indeed, moles squeal), Gus Fring could be exposed as orchestrating the entire assassination. This revelation of Lalo's survival prompts Gus & Mike's Nacho strategy to switch from letting the Salamancas kill him in Better Call Saul season 6's opening episodes, to the daring search-and-rescue of episode 3.
Gus Fring's version of "bringing Nacho in" involves kidnapping his father, presumably as insurance in case the mole decides to become loose-lipped around some Salamancas. Again, Mike advises a carrot-based approach, refusing to drag Mr. Varga into the equation, and after a timely phone call with Nacho himself, Gus wisely decides not to make the mistake of ignoring Mike Ehrmantraut a second time. Instead of using the promise of violence against his father, Gus strikes a deal with Nacho that's mutually beneficial. And in this instance, "mutually beneficial" means Nacho sacrifices himself and Gus Fring is slightly inconvenienced...
During his phone call to Gus in Better Call Saul season 6's "Rock & Hard Place," Nacho realizes no version of his future is a happy one. If the Salamancas find him, he dies. If Gus Fring finds him, he dies. And if he somehow manages to elude both, they'll use his father as bait. Once upon a time, Nacho hoped he and his old man could run away together (the fake IDs in the safe), but not only would the stubbornly moral Manuel Varga inevitably refuse, he'd forever be in danger.
As one unattractive option after another runs through his mind, Nacho makes peace with the fact he will die, but one small bargaining chip rests in those oil-drenched pockets - Gus can't kill him directly without drawing Salamanca suspicion (hence the motel trap from Better Call Saul season 6's first two episodes).
Since Nacho promises he'll sing like Gale Boetticher if the Salamancas catch him, Gus is left with only one good outcome - Nacho gives the Salamancas a false confession, claims he was working for someone else, then takes a bullet to prevent Lalo getting his "proof." The price Nacho demands for cooperation in this matter is the safety of his father - a promise for which Mike Ehrmantraut acts as guarantor, pledging personal assurance Mr. Varga will remain safe. Having come to know Mike as a man of his word (and a quasi-father figure), this proves satisfactory.
Once Mike Ehrmantraut has successfully smuggled Nacho into Gus Fring territory (using the hidden compartment of a supply truck, no less), their plan is made clear. Gus has contacted the cartel to inform them of Nacho's successful capture (hence the need for Mike to rough their prisoner up a little). When interrogated, Nacho will blame a rival Peruvian gang and an "Alvarez," claiming to have worked as a double agent for 12 months. Nacho's lie will likely be supported by the documents Mike planted in his safe, discovered by Juan Bolsa back in Better Call Saul season 6, episode 2. As well as the motel phone number, the envelope also contained bank transactions, which Gus has no doubt manufactured to corroborate Nacho's fictitious tale.
What should happen during Better Call Saul's fateful desert meeting is that Nacho pins the Lalo assassination on Alvarez, then fakes an attempt to escape. In reality, Nacho's flight provides the perfect excuse for Victor (Gus' trusty henchman) to shoot Nacho in the back. In doing so, the Salamancas can't extract any further information or cross-examine Nacho's story, and Gus can have his mole executed in a way that isn't remotely suspect to onlooking colleagues. Needless to say, things don't go to plan...
Despite outwardly supporting Gus Fring's plan in Better Call Saul season 6, episode 3, subtle clues suggest Mike Ehrmantraut secretly envisioned the desert meeting playing out very differently. Mike's clandestine scheme begins with a glass. When Nacho first arrives at Fring's compound, he's given plastic cutlery alongside his death row meal, and Better Call Saul's camera deliberately lingers on these harmless utensils because, obviously, Gus wouldn't hand Nacho anything that could feasibly be employed as a weapon. Strange, then, how two drinking glasses are left in Nacho's cabin... Neither Mike nor Gus is prone to such a sloppy mistake, meaning the glasses were perhaps left deliberately by someone hoping Nacho would know how to use them.
Next, Mike entreats his boss for permission to be present during the meeting. Mike agrees to watch from afar (holding a massive sniper rifle) for the sake of "insurance." Gus buys this excuse because, like everything that comes from Mike's mouth, it's entirely logical. However, Mike's real reason for overseeing the desert confrontation could be to help Nacho, and a potential sense of mutual understanding can then be felt in the final nod between them after Mike exits the van. On the outside, Mike and Nacho's silent show of respect is a simple farewell, but to them the gesture might be Nacho saying, "I've got the glass, I know what to do."
Gus Fring pulls up to the meeting with his preferred henchmen, Tyrus & Victor, who drag Nacho into position. Juan Bolsa is present for the cartel, while Hector and The Cousins represent the Salamanca family. Bolsa threatens Nacho with a painful death if he doesn't talk (there's some kind of incinerator or contraption in the background), and following some feigned resistance, the prisoner name-drops Alvarez as per Gus' plan.
Nacho then takes a wild detour from Gus Fring's script, stabbing Juan Bolsa's leg with the broken glass, grabbing the gangster's gun, and holding him hostage. In this moment, Mike utters, "Do it," seemingly confirming this was his design all along. Maybe Mike simply wanted Nacho to enjoy a taste of revenge before bowing out, but his readiness with a sniper rifle implies Mike intended to aid Nacho's escape by providing cover fire. Unfortunately, we'll never know. Instead of killing Juan Bolsa, Nacho shoots himself.
Whether or not those aforementioned Mike breadcrumbs line up, Nacho's leg-stabbing antics bought him a perfect opportunity to escape, or at least take some measure of revenge. Why didn't he seize it?
Nacho knows any crazy choices he makes here could potentially blow back upon his father. The only way Nacho absolutely ensures his dad's safety is by dying, fulfilling his arrangement with Gus, and trusting Mike remains true to his word. This knowledge probably quells Nacho's rage as he holds Juan Bolsa's life in his hands. It's also possible Nacho wanted to protect Mike. If the glass really was planted intentionally and Mike helped Nacho escape, his rebellious actions could've potentially triggered a full-scale gang war. Nacho already endangered his actual father; by refusing to follow Mike's plan (if it was his plan), he also refuses to make that same mistake with another paternal figure.
By not killing Juan Bolsa or reneging on his pact with Gus, Nacho finds his perfect Better Call Saul ending. Since Michael Mando first appeared in the Breaking Bad spinoff, violence has increasingly consumed his existence. With the gun stolen from Bolsa, Nacho could've gone down swinging, but in his final moments, he willfully turns away from the path of bloodshed. Instead, Nacho's revenge comes in the form of a legendary tongue lashing, as he dedicates those precious last breaths to verbally berating Gus Fring and the Salamancas. Nacho lays everything on the table, even casually admitting culpability for Hector's heart attack. This is revenge enough for Nacho, who makes peace with death to protect the ones he loves. Commandeering the situation - rather than merely allowing one of Gus Fring's lackeys to pull the trigger - allows for a modicum of agency and defiance as the reaper finally catches up.
Better Call Saul season 6 continues Monday on AMC.
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