The Walking Dead SPOILERS

[crowschmo]

Kids in the zombie apocalypse = dumb as rocks.

[crowschmo]

SOMETHING had better happen on the damn finale. This season was a lot of nothing. Sure, Carl died and now Simon (anticlimactically), but other than that - eh.

Do you think Eugene is totally on the Saviors' side now, or do you think he will still do something to help Rick and Co.?

And, oh - so Simon was responsible for Oceanside massacre, are they trying to make Negan more sympathetic? C'mon. He killed Glenn for sh*t's sake.

[Mod City]

Apr 9, 2018 15:46:34 GMT -5 crowschmo said:

SOMETHING had better happen on the damn finale. This season was a lot of nothing. Sure, Carl died and now Simon (anticlimactically), but other than that - eh.

This series used to propel itself forward from one episode to the next, but you're right, this season has been slooooooooow. Even the emotional moments, like the Carl flashbacks and whatnot, have not had the impact they should have.

Honestly, I've hated the Negan/Saviors story line since the second they introduced it (with the exception of that great lead up to the death of Glenn and Abe - great tension there). Some of that was because the comic fans would go crazy with ecstasy every time Negan's name was even mentioned, but wow, as antagonists, I thought they were weak. The Governor had more menace than these guys.

I like Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and I think he's done about as well with that character as anyone was going to be able to do. I don't blame him.

Let's be honest, the show is close to a decade old. Nothing keeps up the high quality they had forever. It's just flat-out tough to do.

Still looking forward to see what happens with Morgan and the FTWD crossover. The fact they're doing the TWD finale and the FTWD premiere on the same night is actually kind of cool. Looking forward to it.

[crowschmo]

It's that old, stuff-that-works-in-comics-doesn't-necessarily-work-in-live-action-shows/movies syndrome. If they had shortened Negan's and the Saviors' story lines and had let Rick et al actually deal intelligently with that threat and had conquered them sooner, and had not actually been the ones to get so many people killed, maybe it would have worked.

I know they are going for, it's a gray area, and not everyone is all good or all bad, and people make mistakes - and as they've said on Talking Dead, if we had started with Negan's story from his point of view, we would be rooting for him - BUT, I think in shows like this, we need some good things to happen for the people we've embraced from the beginning and they need to win without completely compromising who they are. It just has dragged on too long with our "heroes" making dumb moves and seemingly dying in vain. They needed to speed up the win over the "bad guys" and move on to another story.

[crowschmo]

Quite a bit of foreshadowing with the Eugene thing, so I wasn't surprised, but I'm glad that went down. That was a hell of a lot of Saviors dropping because of it. Woot!

I did NOT like the fight scene with Rick and Negan. I know they did something similar in the comics where Rick tries to talk to Negan and Negan lets his guard down a bit and Rick sucker punches him, albeit with a shard of glass. No. I wanted Rick to actually BEAT Negan in an actual fight, not get knocked down AGAIN and have to resort to low blows. It would've been MUCH more satisfying.

And Daryl really doesn't have a purpose on this show anymore does he? Maybe because of that other show with the motorcycles he wasn't as available on set, but, I wanted him to wail on a few Saviors some more. He just is kind of there. Same for Carol. I wonder where the show goes from here and if these characters will actually DO something?

Will they have Dwight and Sherry running toward each other in slo-mo across a beach or something?

[Phantom Engineer]

I think I'm done. It was a satisfactory enough wrap up for me. Kind of cinematically predictable, Eugene pulls a switchero, the Oceanside women show up like the cavalry arriving in time. But I'm OK with it and can walk away now. I don't want to watch this show forever.

[crowschmo]

RIP Scott Wilson. The actor who played Hershel.

[crowschmo]

*rant* Another do-nothing episode. Oooh, they hanged Gregory. Big deal. Are we just seeing Maggie is getting radical or something? So, what? She's leaving the show anyway. I'm guessing the only reason they let it be known that Maggie and Rick are leaving the show is so folks actually WATCH it, out of curiosity. Their ratings are dwindling at an alarming rate.

I didn't remember or know who "Ken" even was, so I really didn't give a rat's ass that he died.

I seriously hope, because of Andrew Lincoln leaving, that they are not going to make Negan a focus again. Just throw him to a bunch of Walkers already.

And to top it all off, the show is mostly commercials anyway. Why are cable bills so high when they have so many advertiser dollars?

I hate everything. *rant*

[crowschmo]

R'uh r'oh.

[crowschmo]

WHOA! The WD universe is about to expand. Will it get good again? Time jump! Bad Ass Judith! Whisperers? (Or Talking zombies?) (Edit: def. Whisperers). And Rick lives! I called it! Somewhere on some video I made a prediction on a comment section that Rick would be about to die and the people from the helicopter would come and take him away. But, come on - did no one else see a big, noisy helicopter hovering around and taking off again? These people are very unobservant.

So, we're getting made for TV movies and whatnot. Different areas of the world. Wow, they are milkin' it.

But, if it gets good again, I'm all for it. I hope at some point in the future, Rick goes back to Alexandria and re-unites with the originals. Even for a time.

This just got interesting.

PS: It was sad to see Scott Wilson there for a final time. Good to see Shane and Sasha, too bad they didn't have Beth, Abraham, and Glenn. And Lori, come on. I know why they didn't show Carl: they fired the kid and that probably would've been awkward to ask him back for that one episode.

Also: Is Andrew Lincoln going to film his movies in the UK? That would be good for his family. That's a show going above and beyond for an actor if that's the case. Pretty rad.

Another edit: Does anyone think Negan was faking his anguished speech so Maggie wouldn't kill him? (I'm sure on some level he does feel that way, but, maybe in his twisted mind he thought he was just buying himself time and didn't really mean it).

Poor Daryl. He blames himself for Glenn's death, and now he might blame himself for Rick's (presumed death).

[Mod City]

That was as good an episode as TWD has had in awhile. I liked how they handled Rick's departure. It was great to see those characters in his visions. I'd forgotten how good Bernthal could be in that role, and of course seeing Scott Wilson was a little heavy. Still, I was guessing right up until the end as to what would happen.

At one point I started to worry that Rick would turn into a walker. I knew he was leaving the show, but suddenly I really did not want that to happen. Glad it turned out differently, and really, who knows where it will go from here?

[crowschmo]

AAaaarghhh!!!!! Did anyone else watch it from a DVR and have it cut off RIGHT AT THE CRUCIAL MOMENTS? The last scene I saw was Alpha in the theater sitting next to Lydia. I thought that was where it ended and that they were going to show what happened NEXT week. Then I saw an article talking about the pike scene, and I was like, WHAT?!


I read that a lot of other people missed the last 15 minutes or so also. (And were rightfully pissed). I caught some of it on a reaction video on YouTube, I guess I'll catch the full thing on a rebroadcast or something (people say the "On Demand" version is also cut off). Someone suggested to watch the first few minutes of Into the Badlands as that was the show that immediately followed, instead of Talking Dead. Of course. My DVR is also set up to watch Talking Dead, so if that had followed, I would have seen the last bit. Maybe it's a ploy from AMC to get people to watch Into the Badlands.

I'll comment more on this ep when I've ACTUALLY WATCHED THE DAMN THING. Grrr.

(But, anyway: RIP Tara and Enid and Henry, and - those other random folks).

I wonder if Carol will get all badass again? I would love to have her kill Alpha. And, are they going to turn Negan into some kind of hero? Maybe facing off with Beta? (Since Daryl didn't finish the job). Though, maybe they'll have Lydia have to end up killing her mom.

[Mod City]

I heard about the DVR issues. I watch TWD on Sling and don't have a DVR hooked up, so I have to watch it live. I think the full reveal of who's on the pikes is out there on YouTube just as a clip, not a reaction vid. If you don't know everyone who died you could check that out if you want.

I knew there was a "heads on pikes" scene in the comic, but I wasn't expecting it to come up here. And I was genuinely surprised when we saw who had been killed. Enid started the really rough part, and then Tara and Henry. Seeing Enid and Tara really, really made it sink in, and while I like Henry, it was more the reaction from Carol (who along with Daryl had a return to their moment from when Sophia walked out of the barn) that really kills it.

The worst for me was the realization that most of these people got taken without us seeing/knowing it. Not seeing them die and just revealed on those pikes. What sick pit-of-the-stomach feeling that was.

I don't know what they have planned for next week, but I'll be stunned if Alpha doesn't survive the season. They're gonna milk the hatred for her a bit longer, I suspect.

Other thoughts:

* I had a bit of a thing for Tara when she first came on the show. I remember her rejecting the Governor when he killed Herschel with Michonne's sword. She said something like "He chopped that guy's head off...with a sword!" It was then you knew she was gonna cross over to Rick's team. And she's one of the severed heads at the end. Ugh.

* I was starting to like and trust the Highwaymen, especially Ozzy. Shoulda known. At least they, and the rest of the crew, went down swinging.

* Tammy Rose fighting the Whisperers with a shovel. Damn. The first time I saw that character, I thought, wow, that's a really good performance. Didn't realize it was Brett Butler. It was cool to see her. I understand she's had a rough life at times, cool to see her get a nice role and give it hell.

* I didn't think I could hate a character as much as Negan, but wow, Alpha is terrifying and a horrible person. Samantha Morton is one hell of an actor. When she comes out of the crowd and stares down Henry in that flashback, not sure someone's blood can run much colder than mine got. And I already knew he was dead.

* My choice for who gets Alpha in the end is in this order: Carol (she's a killer, Henry was a particularly personal kill for her and she's already gone through so much), Daryl (Rick's former lieutenant, and along with Carol our longest-serving survivor), Lydia (another great actor, that would be a hell of an emotional showdown) and finally, Negan. Don't know they'd do that, and I still don't forgive him for what he did. Maybe that's the point. He still needs to find redemption, if that's even possible for him.

* Or how about this - Negan and Daryl f*ck up Beta but good, while Carol ends Alpha. And Melissa McBride brings the freaking crazy. Now that's something I'd watch.

Whatever they decide, it's been a pretty darn good season. The show can be so damn uneven sometimes. But when they nail it, the show is still pretty darn good. Great episode.

[crowschmo]

I did watch the last 15 minutes, it was fine on On Demand. I just can't care about a lot of these characters as they weren't really a focus for a while or not very well fleshed out. (Heh, fleshed out). It's just not the same investment, emotionally, as it was in the first few seasons with the core characters. And, no, TWD producers, severed heads STILL do not make a noise without lungs. (Maybe snaps of teeth when they open and close their jaws). Even though Ezekiel is over the top, I'm still glad he wasn't one of those who was piked.

I wonder when they are going to show the Rick trilogy. Maybe they are still filming it. But it would be great if he somehow gets back to Alexandria after years of TRYING to get back, and ends up killing a few foes, riding in with, maybe, a cavalry of militants or something. Maybe killing off the rest of the Whisperers (if they are still the main foes at that point) or maybe the remnants of that large Walker herd. Then, maybe Michonne will go off with him somewhere. (And Judith and their son, of course - forget the son's name).

[crowschmo]

They're freezing. Everything's falling apart. What is this, the first stinking winter they've ever experienced? What about every other friggin' year they've been in these communities? How stupid.