Maybe listening to Carol isn't always a good idea Rick
*Spoilers for the episode follow*
"You can't just put it off or wish it away because your in here. If you don't fight you die and I don't want you to die" Was just one of the many amazing lines that came out of this episode and it was hard to pick one to start this off with but when it came down to it that line is one of the most important to this arc. It might not seem like it right now but as next Saturday comes around I think that Ricks message to Jesse will become very clear and the people of Alexandria will realise just how right he is. Try was perfectly represented in that boat with the red balloon. As that string began to loosen and strain trying to stay attached to the boat and not drift apart from it, so did the group with the people of Alexandria Try was about them having tried to fit back into civilisation as it once was. But Rick put it perfectly in his little monologue that they don't live in that world anymore and the quicker they realise that then the easier it will be for all of them to get along. This second half of the season has been setting all the nails in place for the "uprising" which I will talk about in a separate piece as I go into spoilers from the comics. But if this wasn't already brutal then next weeks brutal finale is something to look forward to.
Can we just talk about how great opening the episode with "Somewhat damaged" by Nine Inch Nails was, because it was easily the best opening from Walking dead that I've ever seen. After last weeks episode you knew that tensions were going to be high but Somewhat damaged just really put the nail in the coffin (no pun intended sorry Noah) as Deanna came to the decision that was obvious from last week that she didn't trust Ricks group anymore. Which is really understandable isn't it? I mean they have only been there a little while and in that time they have gotten two people killed, taken over the authority on the wall building group and have Daryl out on runs for new people with Arron. Deanna burning that note from Carol was amazing because it was less a were sorry to here about your loss as much as it was a peace offering. I think it would have been better if she just really hadn't have bothered to be honest because those eyes as she burnt that note showed pure hatred for them. Which I can't hold against her its one persons word against another at this point and her son died and in this world that sort of stuff sends you mad. Also isn't Deanna just a brilliant character, she's the ultimate crazy old woman that I wanted from this show if she just starts going mad next week as things start going to hell then I will be a happy man. But back to the song it just really represented everything about the episode from start to finish as relations between the two groups became more damaged, and the nails were no longer sitting on top of the coffin. But I feel were slowly being banged into the coffin throughout the episode with the final one being put in place with that final scene.
Look at those crazy eyes!
So those crazy eyes were brought on by the events of last week because of that coward Nicholas who did exactly as I said he would last week and I don't think anyone thought he would do any different really. He tried to save his own ass and make himself out as the victim because Glenn was to busy trying to take over the job and save himself and his group instead. Nicholas said something that stuck with me those "Their not like us!" which he is right they aren't like them because they have learned to survive out in the world because they had to. Glenn up until this season was one of my most hated characters on the show because I always just found him quite annoying but in the last season he has just really come into his own. That scene where both of them recounted their stories of what happened were brilliant because if I hadn't watched last weeks episode if I'm honest I couldn't tell you was telling the truth because both sounded believable. Its very much so he said she said at this point and I feel Deanna dismissing Nicholas was accountable to that because she can't believe what Nicholas without getting all the facts. Also come on she must know how much of a coward he is and that its because of him that those four other people died before. Either that or I'm just giving her way to much credit and its about time that Alexandria came under knew management. Am I wrong in thinking that those graves that she was standing by in the episode was the people that Nicholas had gotten killed before, so maybe just maybe she knows that it had nothing to do with Glenn at all.
But when Nicholas and Glenn had their little chat it really did terrify me for a second because I was sure that Glenn was about to kill him and leave him there in the truck. He was mopping up the blood anyway and you are never going to get that truck to the same condition as it was so why just add to it more. Nicholas did show genuine fear in as Glenn did basically threaten to kill him if he let it happen again and because of that he wouldn't be going out on a runs again. Which then led to us finding out who had stolen the gun from the blender that Carol and Rick had left just incase it was Nicholas. So now Nicholas has a gun also things are getting ready to just explode next week as I think more then one confrontation will come to loggerheads next week. I mean Nicholas is stupid enough to go after Glenn and try and kill him so which could mean the end of either of them, or now hear me out what if he accidentally shot the gun and ended up shooting Maggie instead which in turn makes Glenn go bat shit crazy and kill Nicholas. Probably won't happen but it would be great for that to be the way things go next week because when we have been promised a brutal finale then thats what I think we expect. But I will be writing a what I expect from the finale piece after I've finished this one so expect that soon.
Carl and Enid next time you choose to hide from walkers choose somewhere that isn't a tight space like a tree because as nice a moment as it was to watch you to get closer you really had no where to go if they caught you. But that whole thing between them to has been on the cards since Carl started following her outside of the walls. Now I have my own little theory about who she really is but I will save that for another piece because its something that I could go into much more detail by itself. But it was a nice change of pace from the brutal nature of the rest of the episode as we watched a couple of kids being kids in this world. They were getting closer and did I see the sparks of young love there? I think that I did. Also credit due to Enid for that use of the timer to lure the walker away that was brilliant little touch that showed a kids way of surviving in this world. She's a strange little one is Enid but I like her character so far and hope that its something that we get to go into more detail because she's interesting.
Enid next time find a hiding place that isn't a tree
But while it was nice little moment to watch them both be kids again and enjoy that moment together it felt like filler, just as much as Sasha story felt like filler this week. While Michonne and Rosita were out looking for Sasha and it was meant to be about her I felt that it was actually just about Michonne. It was all about giving Michonne a reason for giving Rick a right-hander like she did, which was beautiful by the way because she knocked him the f**k out! But watching her have all the flashbacks to when she was living outside with her pet walkers and what it was like out there helps her realise just how much she doesn't want to go back to that. She desperately wants this to work out and if punching Rick and maybe even having to banish him is what she has to do just to get back to normality then thats what she will do. Michonne hasn't been part of this uprising group thats been happening between Rick and Carol and Daryl for a little while but even he's starting to get used to the thought of living there. So to see her basically go full on crazy when she punched Rick isn't surprising but I think right now we think that she's punched him to save Alexandria from him but what if its all just part of a plan and she starts shooting up the place. What if Michonne has just gone as crazy as Sasha and she's just playing into their hands to start an uprising?
But back to Sasha if you have read the comics then her sitting in the watchtower is basically a nod to Andrea the annoying blonde woman from the show that had a relationship with the governor. Yeah her but she is such a cooler character in the comics and I feel like Sasha is starting to take up that role for the show. Having her in this episode means that we don't forget about her and seeing as she has basically been living in that watchtower, we could be looking at her being tempted to shoot Michonne next week because she has a grudge against her now. As everything comes to a head next week I feel that the safest person right now will be Sasha up in that watchtower but at the same time she is going to be the most dangerous individual having that higher ground. Plus seeing as she is taking shifts between her and Abraham could we see Sasha going crazy up then and Abraham having to go up there and take her out before she does anymore damage. I dunno make I'm just think to much into it. Also you felt how awful she felt and the pain she was going through over Noah's death because she told him that he wasn't going to survive out there. It was hard watch as she started to blame herself for something that was out of her control and the anger took over and blinded her to what she was doing. Losing everyone she cares about to the walkers is something thats been a big part of her arc this season and its done exactly what the walkers did to Carols character changed her and made her stronger. But at the same time its unhinged her a bit and made her much more dangerous.
Has Michonne made an enemy with the wrong person?
Now I don't wanna say that I was right about the wolves or who the wolves are but I feel like I'm on the right track going off of that poor woman tied to the tree. Seeing Arron and Daryl out doing their thing was great this week because they really work well together out there and seeing them completely unaware of anything happening at Alexandria is great. Mostly because what will happen when they come back and see these things that have happened and the people that have died. Will Daryl then go through with the plan set out by Rick and Carol because I feel like thats something that will play out next week.
But these Wolves signs were being thrown out there a lot more this week and the biggest sign of just plain danger was the woman tied to the tree and how much close they were to it happening. If they had gotten there any earlier then they would have stumbled upon them in the middle of tying this woman to the tree. Now when they saw the light in the distance and they started heading for it and the next time we see them it was day and there was body parts all over the floor and a woman tied to a tree made me wonder why it took them so long to get there. I mean I know that it was far away from them but it was bit crazy that they took that long to get to this light in the distance but thats just me being picky.
But now those body parts on the ground I have gone back a couple of times and had a look at the way that they are placed and I was sure that they were placed to make a word. While that doesn't seem to be the case it does seem like they were placed there to ward off people and scare anyone that came closer into their lands. If you haven't read my piece on what the"W" on the walkers heads mean then I suggest checking it out because it will make more sense now for what we saw in this episode. My feeling on that they have entered their territory makes more sense having watched this episode. It also feels like to me that this isn't the first time that they have done this to someone and that its something that they do on a normal daily basis. Its used as a way of expanding their territory and warding off anyone that might come to far into the forest. The reason that they have just left the arms and legs and taken the torsos and heads from that pile of body parts is a mystery but I feel we could be finding out next week. Now they have started to bring the gore back to this show over the last couple of episodes and that naked woman tied to the tree wasn't as gore factor as last week but is still keeping in that great direction. Walking Dead is a horror show and lately they have gone back to those routes of it being horror and having the walkers such a big focus has been brilliant because I feel the show lost its way for a while.
So something just made my mind explode that light that Daryl and Arron saw in the distance was a small group of people that were camping in the forest. So when they made it to where that light came from and all that was left was body parts and the woman tied to the tree that was all that was left of the group after the wolves got to them. So that woman that was tied to the tree may have been their leader and you can all speculate on the reason that she was naked because they could be savages and rapists but I feel that they aren't as crazy or mad as that. They are protecting their territory and unfortunately for this group they distanced just way to far into their territory and it cost them. Now this is all just speculation and I could be completely wrong about that but it feels like something that could have happened because it makes the most sense for why there was so many body parts around there. But like I said the torsos and the heads will probably be made clear for whats being done with them next week. Effigies everywhere in there territory thats all I'm saying.
What have Daryl and Arron stumbled upon?
Now lets talk about the royal rumble that was the fight between Pete and Rick because something that this show has always managed to do brilliantly was fight scenes and this is one of the best. But first can I just say Carol is maybe just the worst person to get advice off of because every since she said that Rick would have to kill Pete things have just started to go wrong for him. Now Rick and Pete's tensions really started off this week after Rick chillingly told Pete "Keep Walking" because his eyes just said it all that your going to die if your not careful. Which while he's not dead "yet" remember I said yet because I feel that Pete's days are numbered now, not even days maybe just hours if Rick gets his way because we saw crazy Rick come out again this week. Now I don't feel that Rick really wanted to kill Pete at first and wanted to do this as civilised as possible and in a way that wouldn't hurt Jessie as much as possible. But obviously Pete wasn't having any of that and it all just swung back to something that Deanna said earlier in the episode that well what if Pete doesn't go for that what are you going to do? And Rick gave a clear answer of that I will kill him if it comes to that because thats the only way that you can deal with situations like this now because what if they did let him go. They let the governor get away and he came back and destroyed the prison killing Hershel and nearly killing Rick in the process. Pete and Rick aren't very different they are both loose cannons and will snap at the first sign of something that they don't like and will snap when things don't go their way.
But then why does Deanna keep Pete around because she made it clear this week that she has known for a while about everything that he has been doing to his wife and kids. So why does she keep him around well because of the obvious reason that he's a surgeon and he's the only doctor that they have and he's the only one thats keeping Tara alive at the moment. Probably the only reason that she is still alive which does surprise me really because he always seems to be drunk whenever you see him. I certainly wouldn't be letting him examine me or work on me when he's permanently drunk all the time. It scares me to think that there is so much that Deanna knows about and the dark secrets that Alexandria is hiding beneath its heavenly like expression it gives to newcomers that I wonder just what else their hiding from people.
Ricks speech didn't really go the way he hoped...
Now back to that fight those because if you had to choose a winner of that fight for the most part Pete was more or less kicking Ricks butt throughout. Now that might seem crazy to some people because you think of the other people that Rick has thought in the past such as Joe who's throat he ripped out or Gareth when he hacked at him with a machete. But for the most part that was all just luck of the draw that they managed to get the upper hand on those people for him to do that because when he thought the governor he was more or less on the brink of death if it wasn't for the fact that Michonne stabbed him with a sword. Rick is a bad fighter when he's heading into things on a head on head fight because he's had to rely on his luck in the past. Plus to look at both of them Pete is the bigger of the two of them and so to see him get the upper hand on Rick throughout wasn't really a surprise to see. But the shock was to watch his punch off Carl who tried to stop him and you could blame it all on the heat of the moment but Rick does going into a state of rage in those moments. But the thing that changed it all for him was when Pete punched Jessie and Rick just went full on rage mode and the adrenaline started pumping and he basically had him dead on the floor if Deanna hadn't stopped him. Now I will say that I am not a supporter of Pete and think that he's a massive douche for what he's been doing to Jessie and the kids but killing him isn't the answer to their problems. But maybe that is the way now for Alexandria to go now because the way that they were doing things hiding everything under the rug just isn't working for them anymore.
Carol has played a massive part in this whole kill Pete off because I know what it feels like to be in Jessie's shoes fiasco and I can understand why she would want to help her get out of that situation. But so far Carol has just been standing on the sidelines letting everyone else get their hands dirty while she plays peacekeeper for the most part. Actually saying that where is Maggie in all of this because surely as general "government" member for the group shouldn't she have at least been there wondering what the hell is going on. But I hope that Carol gets her hands dirty and helps sort this mess out next week because she has been to docile up to now while being there. Plus that line "I wouldn't be here if those walkers hadn't got it" was a brilliant line this week from her and really is the pinnacle of the new Carol. It changed her as a character and for Carol, Rick and Sasha the crazy ways that they are now is because of the walkers and I don't think we would have them any other way.
Rick did come over as the mad man from the outside with the gun at the end and its certainly not done him any favours seeing as he was already low down on peoples respect list anyway. His speech to everyone that felt like he was repeating the same point over and over that they can't survive this way anymore acting like it wasn't happening out there. But my problem with his speech was that he did just sound like the mad man crying wolf everything was just hysterical crap to them quite frankly because the people of Alexandria don't know about any of this because they haven't had to survive on the outside world like he did. Andrew Lincoln was amazing this episode giving that speech face covered in blood and gun in hand he really did look like a complete and utter mad man which was great to see that nutty Rick hasn't really left he's just been kept under wraps for a while. But now all I ask myself is well what are they going to do with him now because theres a lot of people that will be against him being thrown out. Next weeks finale is going to be a good one from the way that they have set it up and if the Wolves don't make any appearance then I think it won't matter because theres enough going on at Alexandria to deal with first.
Try was no where near as brutal as last week which I think it would have been hard to capitalise on that but having 9 Inch nails in the opening to the end fight made for a great episode none the less. Will Sasha go mad up in that watchtower? Will the Wolves finally make an appearance next week? Will Michonne agree with Rick being thrown out and more to the point where the hell is Morgan in all of this…. All questions I hope are answered in next weeks finale but were in for a treat either way because brutal is what their promising and I feel brutal is what were getting.
No comments:
Post a Comment