What I Watched Today

(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)

 

The Walking Dead

I swear, every time I see that warriors wanted ad for the Army that comes on before the show, I think the show started. It irritates me that it’s exactly what they want me to think, so that I look at it.

The Whisperers walk with the zombies. Lydia is without a face skin, and Alpha asks if she took it off, but Lydia says they took it from her. She tells Alpha that she acted like she needed help. Alpha asks if he touched her, but she says, no. Alpha asks if Lydia told them anything, and Lydia says she told them there were only a few of their kind. She lied to get him to trust her. Except for one thing – she said they shouldn’t cross Alpha. Alpha stands in front of Lydia, inching her face closer to Lydia’s. She asks what Lydia found out, and Lydia says it’s mostly farmland, some supplies; their weapons are basic. She doesn’t think they have anything to trade. Alpha wonders what she gets in return for Lydia’s release. Lydia says it’s all she’s got, and asks if the only reason Alpha came get her was to get information. Alpha says, stupid question.

Michonne asks, who else knew? Gabriel says Eugene and Rosita were the only ones. They would have told her if anyone else was out there. Michonne wonders who else might have been listening. She says Eugene and Rosita went out to set up this relay, and almost died because of it. Jesus did die because of it. Negan got out since Gabriel was distracted because of it. She can’t have a council if she has no information. Gabriel says they gave her the option to veto security concerns, but it seems like everything is a security concern now. Their votes don’t matter anyway, unless Michonne agrees. She says putting themselves out there when they don’t have to is dangerous. Gabriel says, so is cutting themselves off from everyone else. Who do they turn to when they need help? They can’t worry so much about their enemies that they lose their friends. Aaron says they already did lose a friend. They had the best intentions, but it doesn’t change what happened. There’s an enemy out there; the kind Michonne was afraid they’d find. He doesn’t regret the time he spent out there – maybe what happened would have happened anyway – but they can’t pretend they don’t know what’s out there now. They put Michonne in charge of security for a reason. She’s saved them time and again. Siddiq says, at what cost? Carol asked for help with the fair, and Michonne turned her down. Gabriel says, she spoke on behalf of Alexandria? Michonne says, the fair is old business, but Siddiq says they have new information. He says, the fair starts day after tomorrow. It’s not too late to reconsider. Carol says the Kingdom is worse than Ezekiel is letting on in his letter. They’re too isolated, and need the trade. Carol wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t serious. A woman makes a motion for a second vote, but Gabriel says, why? Michonne will just veto it. Michonne says she would. The roads are broken, and a dangerous group dressed as the dead are trying to kill them. She wishes she could help them. They can vote, and she’ll open their doors to their friends like they did with the Sanctuary, but Carol made it clear that Ezekiel isn’t ready to give up the Kingdom, and she’s not ready to risk the lives of Alexandrians for this. Siddiq asks what it means to survive if the Kingdom falls. Michonne says, it means Alexandria survives. She’s obviously not a team player, and leaves on that note.

Rosita can’t button her pants and gets frustrated. Gabriel comes in, looking pretty gloomy. Rosita says, looks like it went well. He says he’s the leader of a council that’s not really a council anymore. She asks what Michonne said, but he’d rather not talk about it. He knows he’s being difficult. He’s not trying be, but it’s a lot. She says, it’s okay. She’s sorry too. He asks, what for? and she says they were just getting started. He didn’t sign up for this. She didn’t either, but it’s happening. It’s a blessing, but if it’s too much, and he wants to walk, she gets it. He asks what she wants, and she says he knows what she wants. The ball is in his court.

Lydia sits under a tree and finds a spool of cord or wire or something under the dirt. Henry watches from a distance. A Whisperer comes up behind him, and he fights it off with his pokey stick, but Beta grabs him from the other side, tosses the stick, and pulls him out of the ditch he’s been hiding in. Beta tells Alpha that Henry has been tracking them. She asks if there are others, but he says, just him. She asks who he is, and Beta twists his arm. Alpha says Beta can break it, then other one, then his legs. They can feed the hungry ones. Henry says, okay. He’s from Hilltop, but they didn’t send him. He came for Lydia. Lydia walks up to him, and punches him, knocking him to the ground. Alpha says he’s coming with them. She tells them to keep their eyes open; where there’s one, there’s more than one. They begin to walk again. I guess she’s supposed to be smart, but talks like she didn’t even finish high school. How come Lydia can communicate just fine?

Eugene visits Gabriel. He’s brought a chart listing the pros and cons of Gabriel staying with Rosita and raising another man’s baby. He says happiness shows growth in the long term. Gabriel thanks him. Eugene also brought along the evaluating criteria. Gabriel is like, thanks, but no thanks. Eugene says he’d be a damn fool to let her go. They’ve been through the stew, and Gabriel never gave up on him, even when he gave up on himself. Gabriel saw things he didn’t. Rosita is the best thing that happened to Gabriel since this sh*t storm started. He should think before he throws the proverbial baby out with the bathwater. Gabriel says, he’s not the father. Eugene says, it’s not his decision; it’s all hers. It’s not for him, Eugene or Siddiq to say. Eugene doesn’t understand it, but Rosita loves Gabriel. He needs to put his hang-ups on the back burner. He and Rosita love each other. Stop wasting time. It’s all they have in the end. Gabriel says, time or love? And Eugene says, both. He hands Gabriel a tote bag, saying, it’s a peace offering from Gabriel to Rosita. He found some pantalones with super stretchy waistbands for her soon to be expanding breadbasket.

Alpha asks if Lydia knew her friend was following them. She says he’s not her friend; he was in the cell next to her. Alpha asks his name, and Lydia says, Henry. Alpha says she didn’t mention him, and Lydia says, he didn’t seem worth mentioning. Alpha says, he thought it was worth risking his life chasing after her. Lydia says she acted helpless, and he fell for it. He’s dumber than she thought. Alpha laughs, and says, don’t be so sure. Maybe she’s just a good liar. Alpha asks if Lydia knows why she trusts animals. They don’t lie. Well, they don’t speak English either, so how do we know? She tells Lydia that she has to lie. So do they; it’s what they do. It’s just words, air, nothing more. Remember that. She hands Lydia an apple, and Lydia takes a bite.

They see another Whisperer/zombie group in the distance, and Alpha says Lydia is back where she belongs. Beta pushes Henry onward. They reach a camp where people are behaving somewhat normally. Henry asks Lydia if it’s their camp, and Beta shoves him. Alpha tells Beta to get Lydia a new skin. Two dudes are getting meat off a deer or something. Yay. Real food.

Negan tells Michonne, welcome home. She says she wants answers, and was told he’d only give them to her. Why did he come back? He tells her it isn’t entirely Gabriel’s fault that he escaped. You can’t keep a big dog locked up. Sooner or later, he runs. Michonne says, he came back. What kind of dog does that make him? He’s glad she asked. He was in her home. He could have waited there, and bashed her head in; a whole lot of heads, but he didn’t. She says he’d be a dead man. He’s an a-hole, not an idiot. She thinks he decided to take his shot out there, and out there spit him out, so he dragged his pathetic ass back. He says, the world has changed, but he’s changed too. She asks what he wants. He says if she’s not going to kill him, trust him a little. She laughs. She says just because he chose self-preservation over revenge doesn’t earn her trust. If fresh bullsh*t counts as change, congratulations on being a new man. He says she’s keeping him to show how merciful Rick was, but he can be helpful. She had a good thing going, but it’s slipping through her fingers, and it’s only a matter of time before she loses control. His cell is outside the meeting room, and he hears things. She says he heard wrong. He tells her, all he’s saying is that he knows a thing or two about keeping people in line. He can be a sounding board; leader to former leader. She says she’s not their leader, and Negan and I roll our eyes. He says she wrote up a constitution that gives power to the people, yet she makes all the decisions. It’s one helluva racket. She says, it’s not a racket; he knows nothing about this place. He says he knows a good leader uses everything to their advantage. She says, if that’s why he came back, he should have stayed out there. They’re going to tie him up while they fortify the lock, and she wants the windows closed. She sees something outside the window, and leaves.

In the woods, Daryl and Connie look for Henry. Connie looks at the ground, and writes, he caught up with them. Daryl says, there was a struggle. Dog sniffs around, and brings Henry’s pokey stick to Daryl. Daryl says, they went that way. Two real zombies toddle up, and Connie gets them with her slingshot before Daryl can even shoot an arrow. He says, nice. Dog barks, and retrieves Daryl’s arrow, after he’s bitten it in half. Connie laughs, and Daryl says, bad dog. I hope we don’t lose Dog, since we can never have anything nice on this show.

Beta skins a face. Alpha talks to Henry, saying he wonders why they hide among them; why they become them. Henry says they’re not them; they’re not dead. Alpha says, the weak die, like nature intended. A man approaches, and asks if that’s what today was; her letting the weak die. She always says they’ll go back for the lost, but they never do. They gave up two of theirs for her girl. He doesn’t like the math. Alpha says, they know who they are and what they have. The trade was worth it. If he has a problem with her as their leader, he knows what to do. He says he challenges her. She’s not fit to lead anymore. She laughs, and asks if he thinks he’s the man to replace her; the new Alpha. Beta grabs him from behind, which seems to be Beta’s specialty. The man says she’s changing the rules again. Alpha says anyone has the right challenge her leadership at any time, and she has right to defend it. A woman is also there, and Alpha says she saw her plotting with her boyfriend. They have a staring contest for a moment, and the woman says, the boy is a danger. His people have killed some of theirs. Where’s the payback? They haven’t failed her; she’s failed all of them. Alpha says they follow her by choice. She makes them strong, and keeps them alive. The woman says she doesn’t want to fight Alpha. Alpha slinks around behind her, saying, too late, and slices her head off with a wire. Henry is just a little freaked. Alpha holds the head up. The boyfriend takes it from her. Lydia looks bored in the background. Alpha pushes dude’s hair back tenderly, then stabs him. I’m fairly certain Henry is thinking, great. Why did I decide to do this instead of making horseshoes for the fair?

Michonne asks Judith how practice was, and Judith says, fine. Michonne says she must have gone late, since she was standing near the jail an hour ago. Why was she spying? Judith says she wasn’t. She went to see Negan, Michonne been talking to him? Why? Judith says she feels sorry for him. Michonne says he’s not her friend, and Judith says, obviously. Michonne asks why she’s talking to him. Judith says he listens to her; not everybody does. Michonne doesn’t want her near him again. Judith asks, why not? and Michonne says, there’s a reason he’s in a cage. He’s a monster. Judith says, no, he’s not. He’s a human being. Michonne says, he’s done monstrous things. He’s killed people, people she cared about, people her dad cared about. If they let him out, he could start over again. Judith says, he did get out. He’s not like that anymore. Michonne gets why Judith wants to believe that, but people don’t really change. Judith says, she did. D’oh! Michonne tells her to go to her room. Judith asks, why? and Michonne says she needs a minute. Judith sighs, and goes to her room.

Lydia looks at Henry. She picks something up and moves on. It looks like that’s all they do at the camp. Pick things up and move them somewhere else. Alpha washes her hands, and tells Beta take off her mask. He unlaces the back. She says, it’s been years since that happened. It felt different this time. Beta says the pack believes in her. They’re alive because of her. It’s good to remind them. She says she turned her back on Lydia once, when she was three, and found her in a closet tangled in dry cleaning plastic. It was in Lydia’s mouth, and she stood there watching. Lydia was turning blue, and she tore the plastic off her face. When Lydia’s breathing steadied, she asked if she was okay. Lydia nodded, then Alpha hit her hard so she would remember to never do it again. You have to do whatever it takes to protect what you love, even if it’s from themselves. Beta says, they need to be protected from the outside too. They need to be ready for when they come for the boy. Beta says, if Lydia feels something for someone like him from somewhere like that, she needs to know. Alpha says, let’s find out.

The bodies of dude and his headless girlfriend are dragged into a field. This looks like the most boring life ever. Lydia was probably trying to kill herself at three, rather than exist in this boring vacuum. The zombies feed on headless chick and her boyfriend. Connie and Daryl watch from a distance.

Gabriel approaches Siddiq outside his house. Rosita comes out on the porch, and they smile at one another. The three of them go inside. Eugene watches, teary-eyed. Aw, what I did for love.

Michonne asks Grace if her dad is home. Aaron comes to door. Michonne wanted to thank him for his support. She’s sure it wasn’t easy, but he says, it was. They all agreed on the rules and to live by them. It’s easy forget why they had them in first place. The way things have gone down recently made him remember. She appreciates that. It’s why she wanted to tell him first. If the council wants a re-vote about sending a delegation to the fair, she won’t veto it. He says if they cross the Whisperers, they’ll be risking lives. She thinks it’s a terrible idea, but the people can weigh the risk and choose. That’s their right. It’s what the charter they agreed to and swore to protect says. It’s also for the Kingdom. Aaron hopes she doesn’t regret it. Michonne does too.

Everyone gets things together, putting supplies and trade on wagons to head for the Kingdom. The cheese Michonne sits alone.

Beta grabs Henry, and drags him over to Alpha and Lydia. Alpha throws down a knife, and tells Lydia, pick it up. Take it, and kill the boy. Lydia looks panicked. Alpha says she wasn’t gone long, but maybe long enough. Lydia says, for what? and Alpha says, to forget the side she’s on. Lydia looks like she might cry. Henry says, please. Alpha tells her, don’t be weak. She knows what happened to the last guy. Kill him or Beta will kill them both.

Suddenly, people are yelling, and there are zombies overrunning the camp. Lots of biting, and blood spurting everywhere. Daryl pulls on a mask, and finds Henry. He tells Henry to put his head down; they’re leaving. Henry won’t go without Lydia. Lydia hesitates, but Henry tells her that they need to go. They run, along with Daryl and Connie.

Next time, Carol says it could be their last chance, Ezekiel wants to gather every fighter, and Daryl sets up camp at a hotel to watch for the Whisperers.

🚴 This week on Ride with Norman Reedus, Norman took Austin Amelio (Dwight, TWD) on an adventure through Arizona. They visited an awesome, weird zoo oasis, where they had fun with ostriches and ostrich eggs, which are surprisingly strong and make humongous omelets. They also spent time with Ron Halford, lead singer of Judas Priest – ♫ Breakin’ the law! Breakin’ the law! ♫ – who was sweeter than you might think, and a very well-balanced individual. An Airforce base was also on the agenda, where they participated in a practice rescue mission, and saw where old planes live that are used for parts.

👎 I’d been looking forward to seeing the film Slenderman on HBO, and got my chance this weekend. I’m not sure what I wanted from that movie, but I know that wasn’t it. I got more excitement from reading about it on the internet, and the special effects were cheap.

🍻 Here’s To a New Week…

Which has to be better than my last one. Right? Right?