[Kim meets with Howard to resign from HHM]
Again, thanks for taking the time-
You can just go ahead and rip off the Band-Aid. I have a pretty good idea why you're here.
[Kim nods and hands Howard her resignation letter. Howard glances at it before putting it down]
So, you're going with Schweikart & Cokely?
I heard through the grapevine.
I'm not going to another firm. I'm starting my own. I figured I'd try giving it a go as a solo practitioner.
[relaxes] Well, I, uh... wow!
I realized it was something I needed to do.
The week Jimmy exits Davis & Main, you decide to leave us? That can't just be happenstance.
...It's not. We're gonna be sharing expenses; one office, but two separate practices.
Smart. On several counts.
Howard... I want you to know that I appreciate my time here. I'm grateful for everything you and the firm have done for me, especially the financial help with my schooling, and I'm ready to write a check for the remainder of the loan. I just need accounting to get me that figure.
No need. Our gift to you.
...I don't know what to say. Um, thank you.
You earned it. Tell you the truth, I'm kind of envious.
Something about a fresh start. Back in the day, right out of law school, I thought long and hard about hanging up my own shingle.
Yeah. Oh, I was ready to take on the world, make a difference. [pause; smiles] Dad talked me out of it - wanted me to join the ranks here, throw another H in the firm's logo. [pause with smile frozen on his face] Things work out the way they're supposed to, I guess.
[Howard gets up to let Kim out of his office. Kim follows suit]
Kim, I want you to know that I always pushed you harder because I knew that I could expect more from you. Good luck to you.
[pause; shakes Howard's hand] Thank you.
[Kim steps out of Howard's office and hears Howard's voice through the door]
Get me Kevin Wachtell at Mesa Verde, cancel everything I have lined up this morning.
[Kim takes off sprinting for her cell phone]
Hi, Paige! It's Kim. Yeah, hi, just checking to see that we're still on for lunch on Monday. Great, and Kevin too? Good. Well, before we meet, there's some news you need to know about.
Well, I expected a round of documents an hour ago. You know we've got a filing coming up.
I know, Chuck. It's very possible... it's likely that we're losing Mesa Verde.
Losing them?! We just got them! Why, where are they going?
They're going with Kim Wexler. She left the firm.
Kim left? Oh, Howard... well, where is she going? Is it Rich Schweikart? Or did Reeves and Green get her?
No, not another firm. She's going into private practice.
What?! Well, that's completely... how is she going out on her own? Why is she going out on her own?
Well, the "why" is the why. The "how" is that she's pooling her resources... with Jimmy.
...Kim and my brother, partners at law. [shakes head] He's Svengali. The man is Svengali.
At any rate, back to Mesa Verde: I'm gonna try one last Hail Mary. Chuck? Mesa Verde?
I managed to get a meeting with Kevin Wachtell. He's coming in this afternoon, but compliance law is not my strong suit. So, if you have any details, any arguments, bullet-point them for me now, because I've got about an hour before I have to get back. [Chuck starts walking away] Chuck? I really need your help here!
[Chuck goes through his Mylar-lined suits before picking a regular one]
I'm going to that meeting.
Chuck, I don't know if that's a good idea.
I can do it! Force of will, and I've been getting better.
I know you have, but the message that we want to send-
I know the message! That we appear professional and not crazy! I'm going to the meeting, and the lights stay on. Everyone keeps their phones. Everything stays, for lack of a better word, normal. I will make it through.
[Chuck goes with Howard to negotiate keeping Mesa Verde with HHM]
Don't worry. I'm not here to extol the virtues of HHM. I'm guessing you've already had to suffer through Howard's hard sell first time around. So you've done your time, as far as I'm concerned.
What hard sell? It was enthusiasm. I gave them cookies.
Cookies were good, as I recall.
No, I'm here to put your minds at ease. Kim Wexler is, indeed, the right choice to handle Mesa Verde. She's the obvious choice. She's young, she's brilliant, she's going places. Let's face it, Howard. She's the future. Two old guys like us, we're the past.
Well, that's a sad thought.
Sad but true. [sighs] Banking law... needs to be exciting. It needs the next generation to come along and give it a big, old kick in the seat of the pants. Really wake it up. Let me tell you how boring I am: I read FEC and ISO reports for entertainment.
He does. I can attest to that.
Well, I try to stay up on things. The rules are changing all the time. With everything that's happened with Enron and WorldCom, the government is extra vigilant. These days, the penalties for even the most honest of errors can be devastating. You need a sharp, young eye to catch that stuff. I mean, when you've specialized in this kind of work for decades on end, you tend to get kinda...
Stale. You get stale. You forget about things like, oh, I don't know, the Community Reinvestment Act. Any bank such as Mesa Verde looking to open a de novo branch is definitely going to need to show a healthy portfolio of CRA compliance. Duh. [chuckles] Obviously, you guys have all that covered, I'm sure. Riegle-Neal Interstate Banking and Branching Efficiency Act... there's another mouthful, huh? Boring! Still, if you were to run afoul of it, it could hold you up in court for years. And by the way, uh, if that were to happen to you folks as you go forward without us – which it will not – um, Howard has contacts at the Fed who could help sort things out.
Mm-hmm. And then there's the SEC's interpretation of Section 302 of Sarbox. Blah, blah, blah! [chuckles]
Well, navigating that correctly could mean savings of several hundred thousand dollars.
They know that, Howard. [Howard chuckles] Oh, I apologize. When you reach your golden years, you tend to get a little long-winded, ramble on and on about details. My point being... your bank is in excellent hands.
Look, I take your point. I do. But I have to say, I have complete confidence in Ms. Wexler.
You should. She was part of our team. She learned from us. You won't find better than Kim Wexler. But no matter how talented one individual may be, the needs of Mesa Verde are too big to handle alone. I wouldn't handle your coming expansion alone... which is why you should consider, once again, enlisting a team of professionals.
[Jimmy, his camera crew, and what appears to be an elderly veteran in a wheelchair meet with an Air Force captain in front of the "FIFI" B-29 Superfortress]
Major Theodore "Fudge" Talbot. His mom used to deliver him care packages of fudge during the war and then share them with his friends. So that's the story, right guys?
BCaptain Bauer
Well sir, this must certainly bring back some memories for you.
["Fudge" mumbles]
Too many to count, he says.
BCaptain Bauer
I got to say, Major Talbot, it's a privilege. So thank you for your service.
["Fudge" mumbles again]
BCaptain Bauer
Oh. Well, um, boy. [to camera crew] I envy you guys. I mean, the stories you must have heard. You remember any good ones?
CGCamera Guy
Uh, bombing stuff.
SGSound Guy
Bombing stuff.
CGCamera Guy
Bombing stuff.
SGSound Guy
Like, like the war.
BCaptain Bauer
Did he fly over the Hump, or did he take off out of India?
[Jimmy grabs Fudge's shoulder and makes him feign a cough]
Doing okay? You need some water? [Fudge nods] Yes. Yes, sir. Nuts, I forgot his water.
BCaptain Bauer
Oh, hey. I can run back to the office, get him a bottle.
You could? Fudge, the captain's going to run back to his office, get you some water. Okay, sir? ["Fudge" mumbles] Alright, that's great. There's no rush, he'll be fine.
BCaptain Bauer
I'll be back ASAP.
[Captain Bauer runs across the airfield. After he's gone, Jimmy and the camera crew begin removing Fudge's breathing apparatus.]
[to "Fudge"] I thought I told you not to say anything. Go stand by the front...nose, whatever.
[Jimmy and Fudge stand in front of "FIFI" while the camera crew sets up their equipment to shoot Jimmy's commercial]
CGCamera Guy
Where the hell did you find this guy? You couldn't get a real war hero?
Yeah, like they grow on trees. So this guy owes me. I defended him a while back when he couldn't pay.
CGCamera Guy
Defend him for what?
What, you want to be a lawyer when you grow up? Just fix—
?"Fudge"
Public masturbation. Total bullshit.
Alright, keep your voice down. You do not possess the power of speech. [to his film crew] Okay, let's go! Let's go! Chop, chop! [to Fudge] Alright, hands on hips. Alright, looking strong, looking proud. Alright? See the bomber, okay? The bomber's the main point, so see it.
CGCamera Guy
[sitting in the wheelchair] I see the freakin' bomber. You couldn't just plop the dude in front of a flag? Why's we have to come here?
Production value, showmanship. You rolling?
CGCamera Guy
Yeah, rolling.
Okay, start the dolly. [Sound Guy pushes the wheelchair] Action. [to Fudge] You're part of the Greatest Generation. You fought the Nazis.
?"Fudge"
Fought the Japanese.
[makes cutting gesture to stop filming] What?
?"Fudge"
Fought Japanese. I fought the Japanese. This machine was used in the Pacific, where the Japanese are.
Why don't you shut up and learn to take some direction?
?"Fudge"
[indignant] ...Japanese.
All right, fine. You fought all the... dirty... Axis Powers.
[Chuck wakes up to find Jimmy after he'd doctored the Mesa Verde documents]
He emerges. Good afternoon.
Is it afternoon? Where's Ernesto? He was supposed to stay with me.
Don't get mad at Ernie. He spent the better part of a day watching you do your impression of a baked potato. I told him to go home, get some shuteye. You hungry? You want something besides crackers?
No, I'm fine. I'll fix myself something after my stomach settles.
Really doing a number on yourself... spending so much time out of the house. You just had to do it, huh? Couldn't stand to let Kim have Mesa Verde, you had to swipe it from her?
I didn't swipe anything. We retained our client.
You and Howard never even heard about Mesa Verde 'til Kim brought it to you on a red velvet pillow.
[gets up] I need a shower, and I've got a ton of work to do. So if you're looking for a fight, Jimmy, I just don't have it in me. [beat] Jimmy. Thanks for staying with me. I know we have our issues, but... if things were reversed, I hope you know that I would do the same for you.
