Episode 69 is here, after a longer-than-usual delay, we are finally back to talk about the season 4 finale of
AMC's the Walking Dead. The crew from the prison find themselves AS prisoners after finally completing their journey to
Terminus. We talk about what we thought of the episode and hint at what we do and do NOT want to see when season 5 returns in the fall. Listen in to that and to the other media we've seen since the last show. Let us know what you thought by sending email to
mail@z-realm.com or by posting a message on our
Facebook group.
Another good episode. The finale was not a letdown.
ReplyDeleteYou correctly predicted the central twist last episode, but the structure of the episode still surprised me. I thought the episode would spend more time following the group that arrived at Terminus at the end of the last episode. Partly this was because my expectations were colored by Telltale's "The Walking Dead" video game, which has it's own version of the cannibal plot. In that version of the story, the cannibals spent more time trying to win the trust of the main characters. In the show's version, the inhabitants of Terminus, it seems, only try to be ingratiating to outsiders until the first moment when they can get them off guard and toss them into a boxcar.
That Rick's group ran into the Claimers wasn't surprising, but the way it went down was shocking and brutal. Apparently, when Andrew Lincoln read the script, he asked Scott Gimple (the showrunner) if that scene was going too far. Though I guess that scene wasn't nearly so surprising for readers of the comic.
The scene with the rabbit snare was a bit heavy on the foreshadowing, but I guess it worked well. I like that the main characters notice that they're being herded instead of directly shot at halfway through the trap closing, but figuring them out doesn't help them. It's hard to plan when you're being shot at, even if you know it's a trap.
When Rick pulled his gun at the barbecue, I thought he'd taken one look at the meat, and figured everything out (recognizing human bones due to his police skills or something?). The explanation the show actually gave made more sense, though.
I liked the structure with the flashbacks, especially in how that reminded viewers of the significance of that pocket-watch.
I agree that it would be terrible if season 5 began with some deus ex machina. A flashback to Rick and Co. meeting Tyrese and Carol and making some sort of plan is too incoherent to even consider. There's no indication that the end of the episode is anything but Rick's group falling into a trap. Meeting Tyrese and Carol would just be too significant to not react to at all, even if baby Judith wasn't there!
Is Rick going to realize Lil' Asskicker is still alive only to see her killed / kidnapped / turned into a delicious baby sandwich? How bad can things get for absolutely everybody? Tune in next season!
Love the baby sandwich picture!
ReplyDeleteIt was only on the second viewing that much of the nuance of the episode revealed itself to me. My main takeaway on this entire season is just how GOOD it was for the most part. I am hoping this is a trend that will continue next season.
I think the scene where the Claimers meet their end was shocking to comic-readers because they probably expected the TV show to go a little softer, if they even dealt with that section at ALL. I was certainly surprised, pleasantly, that the producers and writers strode in there as confidently as they did.
If I had a drink in my hand right now, I would raise a toast to season 4 and plead with the Gods to give us a season 5 that continued to raise the bar.
-Marty