Maggie on the Greene family farm.
Photo courtesy AMC’s “The Walking Dead” Facebook
The interesting thing about this week’s “Walking Dead” is the idea of the past, perceptions of what it was and trying to return to that past.
We’ve all been there, reminiscing about the past and yearning for days gone by. I’ll admit, I do it too. Just this weekend, a few buddies and I talked about playing high school football, and it happens almost every time we meet up.
Can you blame us – or in this case, blame the people in the show?
The idea of a warm shower, or a drink among a few friends, seems so foreign in the show that when they do happen, you feel uneasy, like something bad is going to happen right then and there.
But the big problem is moving on from those “comfortable” settings.
In the early days of the show, home was where the heart was; Hershel’s farm for example. Now, home is a small shelter over your head that only lasts a few moments until you have to find a new shelter.
If you can move on, leave the farm and head for the next available shelter; you’ll survive. Get stuck in the farm’s green pastures and you’ll soon be roaming them as a walker.
In order to advance in this new world, you must forget the past.
And now onto the SPOILERS of the show.
Five things to take away from this week’s “Walking Dead”:
Father Gabriel leads our fearless crew through the woods.
Credit: “The Walking Dead” Facebook
1. Lets face it, Father Gabriel is a bit weird. He’s quirky and clumsy with ill-timed humor. The gang just escaped Terminus – a human meat factory disguised as a Utopian apocalyptic paradise lead by a villain so dastardly he’s OCD over how many bullets were used and how clean the room needs to be. Can we be surprised that the group distrusts the shaky-legged Gabriel? Gabriel didn’t do himself any favors, but it shows you how deteriorated this world is when you can’t trust a priest.
Photo Credit: AMC and Facebook user Tyler Wilson
2. Written early in the episode: “Walking Dead” totally trolled me this episode. For years, I feel like I’ve watched this show and had a good idea when people were going to die, not just because I read the comics, but because you can feel it happening. The key for most – talking way too much when a character normally wouldn’t. Bob Stookey totally talked way too much this episode – which lead me to believe that he was going to kick the bucket. In the walker spa at the food bank, when Bob was grabbed by an under water walker, I was certain he would kick the bucket. But when Sasha bashed in the walker’s brains, I realized I was trolled. Way to go “Walking Dead.”
- THE RARE DOUBLE TROLL! Just when I thought Bob was perfectly fine and maybe he and Sasha had a chance, he goes for a night stroll behind the church and gets whacked from behind by a person in a hoodie. Well played, “Walking Dead,” well played. (More on this later.)
- Side note: When a walker is in a pool of water, should we just call them swimmers?
From left: Abraham, Eugene and Rosita leading the group.
3. When Abraham started preaching about going to Washington, D.C., I knew the group was going to be going there. Not just because I’m a comic-reading snob, but because the writing was on the wall. Aside from subtle hints (remember the Washington, D.C., coin Beth finds in the funeral home last season?), Rick’s group needs to advance. While Abraham says “you can return your lives back to the way they were,” the reason Rick decides to go to D.C. is because his group can advance by going to D.C., whether Eugene’s cure works or not. Advancing is not returning a prison or a farm, and its certainly not in Atlanta. So the next logical step is D.C.
4. I hate to say I told you so, but… I told you so. Gareth and his merry band of flesh-eating pals are back and this time with Bob’s leg on the spit. Let’s face it, Gareth is just a whole different kind of villain and, believe it or not, more complex than The Governor. With The Governor, it was simple, he wanted power and if you crossed him, he killed you. Gareth’s group, we’ll call them The Hunters, have so much more depth. I tend to believe him – he didn’t want to kill people, but he needed to in order to survive. I’m not saying I would result to eating humans, but with food supplies running scarce, you have to at least identify that Gareth’s push for cannibalism is one solution – even if not a remotely good one. Here’s an A for effort Gareth.
As if you had any doubt in Carol…
Photo credit: AMC’s “The Walking Dead” Facebook
5. So Daryl and Carol are back on the road and in hot pursuit of the alleged Beth-nappers. I can’t honestly say I know what’s going on with this storyline, but I love when the show can do that for me. I know she’s alive – based on the preseason trailers – but I’m excited to see where this goes. My thought after viewing the episode – and again, some trailers – Beth is at a hospital so I don’t know if I can rule that these people are bad yet. The White Cross on the back of the sedan is a bit of a giveaway to me. Because Beth and Carol are both dead in the comic timeline and Daryl never existed, I can’t tell what will become of this storyline, and that’s never a bad thing.
Volume 13: Too Far Gone.
Image courtesy Image Comics
Snobby “I read the comics” thought: I know many of you may want to hear more about Gareth’s group, known as The Hunters in the comics, but I’ll save that for another day so I know that I won’t be spoiling anything.
A lot of this week’s in-show discussion was about getting their old lives back; with Eugene’s “cure,” a budding romance with Sasha and Bob, and Abraham’s big speech. But as Rick finds out – and argues to Bob while walking to the food bank – is that they may be too far gone. So it’s fitting that I mention the title of the book in which this season comes partially from … yup, you guessed it, “Too Far Gone.” It’s the subtle similarities in this year’s Walking Dead to the comics that make me appreciate this show. If you don’t believe me, go on Reddit where all of the small similarities are pointed out.
Advice: If you ever write your own Walking Dead recap, don’t write it as the show is going on. I started by just jotting down a point here and there, and when I had a complete thought, I put it all together. I’ve changed my points more then a few times and changed thoughts completely. I had to even keep one of them in this post just so you could see how effective the show’s writers are getting (the infamous double-troll).
Bonus Video: Watch Carl the Investigator in action. Courtesy YouTube user Ozzy Man Reviews and AMC.
Next week’s preview, courtesy AMC:
