18 Best TV Episodes Of 2017 (So Far)

3. Chicanery - Better Call Saul

Better Call Saul's third season was its best yet, one that should eviscerate any lingering doubts (not that there should be any) about its place in the Breaking Bad universe. It's centrepiece was episode 5, Chicanery - the series' best yet.

Although the show revolves around two lawyers, it focuses so much on their rivalry - not to mention Jimmy's trickier ways - that this marks the first time it has truly gone into full blown courtroom drama territory, and it utterly nails it.

It's a tense, slow-burning delight to watch this drama methodically unfold, going back-and-forth as Jimmy and Chuck go head-to-head in a battle of brotherly wits, each thinking themselves the likely victor. The true genius of the episode, and the show, is that there is no real winner, and by the time we get the big reveals its a heartwrenching, sombre moment of tragedy for all involved.

With taught direction from Daniel Sackheim you spend almost the entire episode right there in the stifling courtroom, completely gripped even with a lack of action, and it as - as ever - one of the most well shot series on TV. Bob Odenkirk and Michael McKean somehow manage to reach new levels with their respective performances here. McKean in particular is astonishing, bringing so much nuance to Chuck's illness and villainy, with shocking results. The heart of Better Call Saul is the relationship between Jimmy and Chuck, and Chicanery takes a knife straight to it.