Do you ever really feel tense when watching The Strolling Lifeless anymore? Does the TV present ever really shock you anymore? I’m fairly certain it’s been fairly some time since TWD made me really feel like a personality was in actual hazard or did something that made me marvel what was going to occur subsequent. Tonight’s episode, “Religion,” was a fairly egregious instance of The Strolling Lifeless’s persevering with failure to do both.
what? I do confess, I used to be mildly shocked at tonight’s episode once I realized that the “chain gang” working to clear off railroad tracks was being stationed at night time at Alexandria. When the group was separated into two, I believed one went to the chain gang, and the different to Alexandria. Nevertheless, my huge takeaway from it was, “Effectively, a minimum of they will free all people sooner to allow them to transfer alongside to combating the Commonwealth.”
On the chain gang, Ezekiel and Negan and some others (we get to see Magna, Princess, and Annie are additionally working there this time) are monitoring the actions of the guards on a makeshift map. It’s nearly instantly discovered, and the warden drags in Negan for having a “chief” vibe. Negan finds this laughable, given what number of of his supposed folks hate him, however he doesn’t discover it humorous when the warden says to determine what their plan is or say goodbye to his spouse.
We’re clearly purported to imagine Negan will betray Ezekiel or any individual for his spouse’s sake, and the episode hammers this house by Ezekiel getting one other likelihood to inform Negan how a lot he hates him. However the present has gone out of its manner again and again to painting Negan as a modified man. It might be ridiculous for the present to all of a sudden give him a heel flip at this level. (Not that TWD hasn’t made even its “heroic” characters do despicable issues with no penalties, so a heel flip wouldn’t be stunning both, simply obnoxious.)
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As an alternative, Negan says he’s the ringleader or some such—it’s off-screen—so Commontroopers drag him to Alexandria’s windmill to face a firing squad. Negan appears so fantastic with the state of affairs the foreman drags Annie to be executed with him. As Negan performs the “we each have households!” card with a trooper the foreman foolishly informed wasn’t allowed to see his sick brother, Ezekiel steps in entrance of the firing squad’s weapons, and is adopted by many of the different characters with names. Ezekiel offers an inspiring speech about doing the fitting factor or some shit, and the foreman orders all of them be shot.
Right here’s what sucks so dangerous about this: Final episode, Negan promised Ezekiel he would do one thing to offer a “spark” that Ezekiel may use to steer the opposite prisoners to beat their captors. That is precisely what occurs, and even (most of) the guards decrease their weapons, however nothing about any of this was deliberate. Nearly no part was ever below Negan or Ezekiel’s management. The map was unintentionally discovered. The foreman grabbed Negan due to his chief vibe. They couldn’t have recognized Annie would have all of a sudden been added to the execution. Nor did anybody converse to anyone about the best way to deal with the state of affairs. And the factor concerning the one guard being so vulnerable to household discuss that he switched sides was pure likelihood. It’s very lazy writing.
The foreman grabs and holds Kelly hostage, solely to be stabbed within the again by Daryl, as a result of he and Connie have snuck into Alexandria by way of the sewers, whereas Maggie and Carol have snuck in elsewhere to search for the kids who had been taken. In a really handy coincidence, Hershel is discovered by his lonesome, however all the opposite children are lacking. A distraught Rosita feeds the dying foreman to a zombie when he refuses to say the place they’ve been moved.
In the meantime, again within the Commonwealth, Eugene has his trial. As you, me, and everybody on the present anticipated, it’s rigged and Eugene is sentenced to be executed himself. However regardless of being a forgone conclusion, it eats up a lot of screentime so Pam can fake-cry, Yumiko can ask Mercer to testify in opposition to Pam which in fact he refuses to do, and Eugene can provide a stirring speech about how one individual can change the world, a message which has completely zero relevance to his trial. On the best way to the electrical chair (I feel it’s a secure wager to say the Commonwealth has an electrical chair) he’s intercepted and freed by Mercer, who has determined sure, he want to assist save the person his sister is in love with, free the Commonwealth from Pam’s tyrannical rule, and make it a greater place. All these many, many instances earlier than he mentioned he didn’t? That’s simply extra screentime, child.
Not less than Mercer’s final line offers me hope one thing fascinating will occur subsequent week: “Let’s fuck some shit up.” Sure, please, Mercer. I would really like you to fuck some shit up. Even just a bit little bit of shit! I’m begging you right here. As a result of shit has remained totally unfucked with for what looks like ceaselessly.
Though the episode’s title is “Religion,” certainly that needs to be interpreted as a message from the showmakers to themselves, as in “Let’s have religion we’re telling a great story.” Perhaps they’ve one thing they’re going to drag out within the remaining two episodes of the sequence that’s—not going to make all the things that’s occurred thus far retroactively fascinating, however would possibly make what’s coming fascinating. However believing that requires religion in The Strolling Lifeless, and that’s one thing I simply now not have.
Assorted Musings:
- Aaron’s group randomly encounters Luke (Dan Fogler) and Jules (Alex Sgambati) who had been final seen within the season 10 finale, which aired again in October 2020. Fortunately, they inform the others that Oceanside’s been conquered by the Commonwealth, and Aaron realizes both one thing modified, or she had no intention of liberating the communities within the first place.
- Yet one more Commontrooper patrol stops by and practically finds the group, so that they use the “smear guts on your self to stroll safely among the many zombies” shtick to cover. Three issues about this: 1) Nobody put any blood on their faces, which was very dumb for the reason that Troopers had been scanning lights into the zombie crowd. 2) Why the hell did the Troopers imagine anybody dwelling could be strolling round with zombies? We have now no indication they know the heart trick or have encountered Whisperers earlier than. 3) This scene went on for thus goddamn lengthy I believed I used to be going to lose my thoughts.
- What the hell occurred that the Commontroopers separated Hershel from the opposite children, tied him to a chair, and positioned him below armed guard?
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