The following post contains SPOILERS.
We have two episodes left, folks and it doesn't look like the crew is getting off the farm. The show has wandered into the barn and can't find it's way out. Morality is always front and center when it comes to the Zombie genre. Survival puts our backs against the wall, and there's life and death situations abound; but the writers seem to be staggering in circles. The character development is as disjointed as the undead themselves.
The opening showed Daryl (Norman Reedus) doing his best Sayid. He's a character that still interests me. I feel were as Dale (Jeffrey DuMunn) represents civility, and Shane (Jon Bernthal) represents chaos, Daryl is the middle ground. While Rick (Andrew Lincoln) continues to play tug of war, his failure to step forward after mowing down the strangers at the bar gives Daryl an edge. He's easier, and more fun, to root for. How many times can Rick puff out his chest only to have his defective moral compass cripple him?
With Randall (Michael Zegen) in custody the gang struggles to decide his fate. Life or death? Dale argues that if the latter is chosen then civility no longer exists and the group will be forever changed. He makes it his crusade to convince the others that Randy must live.
We see Carl get more screen time and I begin to fear that Chandler Riggs (Carl Grimes) may not be able to handle a larger load. Carl has decided that not only is he angry, he's also an idiot. Little Carl has unfortunate genes. He has his mother's poor decision making skills and his fathers...poor decision making skills. Ultimately, Carl's encounter with a Walker in the woods leads to the loss of 'civility'. If the group does not see the obvious parallel in Carl's inability to pull the trigger (if they find out) and Rick's inability to pull the trigger, I may eat someones brain.
Here's some thoughts and questions that I jotted down during the episode:
AGAIN...Spoiler Alert, y'all!
*Is it a coincidence that the 'Elder' of the group (Dale) is the only one holding on to humanity/civility?
*Dale states that the group is 'broken'. Did it ever really work?
*The scene between Glenn (Steven Yeun) and Herschel (Scott Wilson) was outstanding. Scott Wilson is a great actor. Glenn later stands his ground against Dale. Did the gift of 'the watch' give Glenn some confidence? Some 'umph'?
*Walking Dead Drinking Game: Every time Rick says "I'm keeping these people safe" or talks about making the "right call", DRINK. Let's add to the rule book.
*Why the lack of T-Dog (Irone Singleton)?
*The group is really bad at democracy. Dale's argument is that if they execute Randall, then they will be no better that the gang they fear Randall will lead back to them if set free. Well Dale, given his story in the opening scene...I'd say the lack of RAPE is a big difference.
*In my opinion, I don't kill Randall...
*Because he dies stuck to that fence, skewered.
*I was wondering who would be the next member of the group to be a zombie snack. Well, looks like it was Dale.
*So, Civilization/Civility dies with Dale. Can we move on please?
*From the looks of next week's episode, nope. Same ol', same ol'.
Stay tuned, folks! On Tuesday we will have the thoughts of NSD writers, Ann Sosnowski and Amanda Lowery, as they weigh on Episode 211 'Judge, Jury, Executioner'. Maybe some other folks moaning and groaning their thoughts on The (Not-So) Daily page, as well. NSD readers/community, post your thoughts in the comments!
-D
4 comments:
I'd like to comment if I may...I also noted that there was a father/son execution problem playing in this episode, maybe even a bit of foreshadowing. Rick's son can not bring himself to shoot the Walker stuck in the mud, and the consequence is the loss of a member of the group. Rick was unable as well to carry out his execution, what consequences is he looking to face? I was glad to see a little more of Daryl this week, he is by far my favorite character.
Exactly, Carl's failure to pop that Walker looks like a direct parallel to Rick clamming up. Let's see where Rick's second thoughts lead the crew. We agree on Daryl as well, the more the better.
Dan, we watched the show tonight but I don't think I can give you what you're looking for here. I am pretty distracted most of the time by how badly their ignoring the books & I'm not one of those people looking for a new telling of the story. I wanna see what I fucking read, because I enjoyed it.
They have killed off 2 people who lived a Hell of a lot longer than a few OTHER people I can name & that affects the character development of other, well, characters.
I really don't know what to say. I didn't hate this episode, I didn't love it. I'm yet to see an episode that I found remarkable in any sense. *shrug* I'll keep watching, because that's what I do. But I'm certainly not holding my breath for any improvement or Emmy nominations.
I feel you, Pie. I like to stay open to the idea that it's a different method of telling the story. There's different writers and a broader audience. With that being said, by killing different people and letting others live you directly affect the story and how it unfolds. My gripe is the lack of motion. The season is stagnate. Since Shane SPOILER.....offed Otis, nothing really has change. Even with SPOILER ....finding and killing Sophia, we're getting nowhere. The devestation of discovering Sophia was a Walker should've driven them onward and out amongst the roadways. Yet, here we still sit.
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