At Season 5's outset, Mike is upset at Gus' decision not to spare Werner's (Rainer Bock) life, even losing his temper with his granddaughter. He's stabbed on the street and wakes up in Gus' underground hospital in Mexico. Initially still unwilling to continue working with Gus, he's persuaded when Gus tells him, "I'm in a war. I need a soldier. ... I believe that you understand ... revenge."
Mike commandeers a police scanner to help get Lalo arrested and is then tasked with protecting Saul when he goes to fetch Salamanca's $7 million cash bail. In "Bagman," he ends up escorting Saul out of the desert but not before bailing him out twice with sharpshooting under extreme pressure. By this point, he has resolved any moral objection to what he's doing, telling Saul, "I have people waiting for me. They don't know what I do. They never will. They're protected. But I do what I do so they can have a better life. And if I live or if I die, it really doesn't make a difference to me."
Mike then sets about trying to protect Nacho and his father from both being placed in further jeopardy by Gus and retaliation from the Salamancas. Season 6 will no doubt put Mike front and center in lots of stressful situations, and it will be a delight to see him find his way through, whether he uses his rifle or his wits and wisdom.
