Category Archives: science fiction

Mar20

March 19, 2017 – The First Ogres War, Plans to Kill Negan are Set in Motion & Random Thoughts

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What I Watched Today

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

 

Once Upon a Time

The First Ogres War. Or what I’m calling the poor man’s Game of Thrones. Medieval soldiers are in the woods using a catapult. One guy wants out, but Beowulf says if they don’t fight the ogres, they’ll kill everyone. He can be known as a hero or a coward. Beowulf hands him a sword and everyone charges forward. The ogres look just like you’d think they would – giant things with spiky teeth, holding clubs. The soldiers shoot flaming arrows at them and get swatted like flies. Instead of being a hero or a coward, the soldier is squashed when an ogre steps on him.

Beowulf is the only one left standing, and says do your worst. An ogre in armor comes out and whacks him with his helmet. Then he explodes into a fireball, leaving Rumpelstiltskin standing behind him with the dagger. Beowulf says Rumpel killed him, and Rumpel giggles, saying he killed all of them.

Hook sits at Granny’s bar in Storybrooke, throwing back shots. Archie sits down next to him, and asks if Hook talked to David. He says he did, and things went well. Archie asks what’s the problem then? Hook says he found out something about his past. He does want to tell Emma the truth, but he thinks she won’t want to marry him after she hears it. Archie says he’s changed and needs to find that out for himself.

Gold looks for Gideon. The Blue Fairy and Belle join him. He says Gideon’s heart is set on fulfilling his destiny, and needs to kill Emma to make himself a hero. He says he’s already lost one son, and won’t lose another.

In ye olde tavern, everyone toasts to Rumpel. His son, Baelfire, asks if he really defeated the ogres. Rumpel says he did, and shows off the dagger. Beowulf asks why they’re cheering, and Rumpel gives him the sword he dropped. Beowulf wonders how Rumpel was able to defeat the ogres, and says dark magic comes with a price; they’ll all pay dearly for this. Rumpel tells his son not to listen; it’s just jealousy talking. Baelfire tells him that he doesn’t need the dagger now, and should get rid of it. Rumpel agrees to no more magic.

Gideon pops into the Sheriff’s office in Storybrooke. He finds the dagger in a safe, but runs into Rumpel on his way out. Gideon says Emma won’t get the best of him again. Rumpel knocks him out with some magic, saying maybe, but he still has some things to learn from his papa.

Robin hides the box of potions that he stole from Regina. Regina finds him, and says she’s there to apologize for pressuring him to be something he’s not. Robin says it’s taking him longer to get used to this world than he imagined. She asks to help him. He suggests they meet later after he’s had time to clear his head.

Gideon wakes up tied to a chair. Gold says he couldn’t take any chances. Gideon says that his father promised to help him. Gold says he took the dark path to save his first son, but never became a hero. Once you give in to darkness, it’s almost impossible to leave it behind. Gideon says what if he steals Emma’s light magic, and that he thought Gold would want to see the Black Fairy defeated. Gold says no one wants to see that more than him, but giving into darkness can only lead to heartbreak.

Back in the day, Rumpel is doing some spinning. Baelfire comes running in all beat up. He says the baker’s son did it, so he’d look like a monster. Rumpel wants to intervene, but Baelfire says he’ll only make things worse. Some villagers come to the door, complaining that they need protection, and Baelfire says that Rumpel can save them without magic. He can show them he can defeat the beast without the dagger.

Forward in Storybrooke, Zelena walks into her house to find Robin in the kitchen. She produces a green fireball, and tells him he’s not getting her daughter. He shows her the box of potions, and says he needs her help. He needs to break out. He says he came there for a fresh start – new people to rob, new places to drink, new women to whatever – but her sister has thwarted his every step. She asks why she should help, and he says she wants out more than he does. She asks when they leave.

Gold wants to know what the Black Fairy did to make Gideon think that killing the Savior is the only way to become a hero. Gideon says Gold needs to trust him, and Gold unties him.

In the enchanted forest, Rumpel and Baelfire look for the beast. Rumpel says he wants to do it the right way, but he’s brought the dagger just in case. Baelfire says it’s like a crutch, and reminds him of a time he put a fire out without needing help. He tells Rumpel one step at a time. Rumpel gives Baelfire the dagger.

In the present, Gideon gives Gold a book, Her Handsome Hero. The Black Fairy had given it to him. She asked if he wanted to be a hero, and said we’ll see about that. She beat another boy and Gideon heard his cries. He had the chance to save him, but just sat there. He didn’t have what it takes, just like Gold. He wants to show his mother that she was wrong about the both of them, and asks for help.

Gold gives Gideon some tea to drink. It’s been mixed with memory potion. His pain will be gone, and he’ll no longer remember what the Black Fairy did. Gideon says he was raised by the Black Fairy, and pulls out the dagger. He says Gold is no different than she is, and he’s going to help Gideon fulfill his destiny whether he wants to or not.

Way back when, Rumpel sees a bunch of dead villagers and takes a sword from one. He and Baelfire go into a cave, where Rumpel finds a horn and blows into it. Beowulf grabs Baelfire, and Rumpel tells him to stay away from his son. Beowulf says the only monster there is the Dark One. Rumpel asks if Beowulf killed the villagers, but Beowulf says Rumpel did. He has the dagger and commands Rumpel to stay. They’ll think he did it.

Back to Storybrooke, where Gold tells Gideon not to let the Black Fairy destroy his life. Gideon holds up the broken dagger. Gold says there’s good in him and not to snuff it out. If he does this, he might not be able to get back. Gideon says sorry, but go away and don’t try to stop him.

Robin is at the Storybrooke border, and Zelena appears, poof! In a puff of green smoke. Robin asks Zelena where she’s been, and sees that she’s brought her pet cobra. She says with so many dank sewers she couldn’t leave her behind. Regina pops in. She says she should have known. She asks if they thought she wouldn’t notice her magic was missing, and chastises Robin for saying he wanted a fresh start. He says he’s been constantly reminded that he’s somebody who can’t live up to the legacy of someone who died for her.

She tells him to try a potion. He does, but they still can’t get out. Regina says Robin doesn’t understand the world out there, but he says he can handle himself. She says if he really wants to go, she’ll figure out how to break the protection spell. She owes it to both Robins to let him find his happiness, even if it means him walking out.

Beowulf duels with Baelfire. He says Baelfire is just like his father; he doesn’t have it in him. Rumpel appears, poof! In a puff of purple smoke. He says that he told Beowulf to stay away. Beowulf says if Rumpel kills him, his boy will see he’s a monster. Rumpel says he’s taking him back to town and telling them the truth. Beowulf says they won’t believe him, and will think it’s only a matter of time before he turns the dagger on them. Rumpel suggests they find a new village, and Baelfire says he won’t let Beowulf do this to them; he’s the monster and should pay. Beowulf tosses him aside and walks away. Baelfire looks at the dagger. He says, Dark One stop him, and orders Rumpel to kill Beowulf. Which he does.

In the Storybrooke forest, Gideon comes upon his fairy godmother, the Blue Fairy. He says she was supposed to protect him as a baby. She apologizes, saying the Black Fairy was too strong. He says maybe she can help now. She tells him that it won’t be like he thinks, and he says he wants her magic. He freeze frames her, and Gold tells him stop. He says he watched one son darken his heart; he’s not watching another one. He says he’ll do it for him, and slices the Blue Fairy’s hand. He takes a drop of her blood, and her magic goes to him. He tells Gideon that they’ll defeat the Black Fairy and he’ll be a hero. He says he doesn’t think he needs the dagger anymore.

Backing up. Rumpel asks Baelfire what he’s going to do with the dagger. He doesn’t know, but thinks the baker’s son won’t bother him again. He says he’s sorry he made Rumpel give up the power, but they need it to protect themselves. Rumpel says he’s right, and gives him some tea. Baelfire says it tastes strange, and Rumpel says it’s a memory potion. He’s not letting Baelfire follow him into the darkness; one of them has to be strong. Suddenly Baelfire doesn’t remember getting out of the cave, and Rumpel tells him that he hit his head. He says Beowulf won’t be bothering them anymore. Baelfire thinks Rumpel killed Beowulf, and asks how he could. Rumpel says he did what he had to do, and Baelfire says the dagger is turning him into a monster. He runs out, leaving Rumpel alone.

Moving on. Belle asks Rumpel what happened to the Blue Fairy. He says it was the only way to stop Gideon. If he hadn’t, they might not ever get him back. He says Gideon has the sword, and he’s going after the Savior. He hopes there’s enough time to stop him. Belle says they will. He darkened his soul, so Gideon wouldn’t have to. Belle says he finally put their son first, and maybe there’s hope after all.

Hook sits at Granny’s, still drinking, his food untouched. He goes home and calls for Emma, who runs downstairs. He says there’s something he needs to tell her. It’s not exactly easy, and he doesn’t know how she’ll react. She says her answer is yes. He asks what the question is. She says she found something she shouldn’t have, and shows him the ring. She asks if he’s mad, and he says he could never be mad at her. She says no walls, no secrets. She knows she ruined the surprise, but he gets down on one knee and asks if she’ll marry him. She says yes, and they kiss. He doesn’t look too happy though.

Regina messes with her cauldron. Zelena says she’s there to return Queen Cobra before anyone notices she’s missing, and to apologize. Regina says it’s her fault, and Zelena says they’ll go with that then. Regina tells her that when she saw Robin, it was a test to see if she could move forward, and she failed. She says she’ll always be paying the price for what she did. Zelena corrects her, saying the cobra did it. Regina lifts the cover off the cage, and the snake is gone.

Robin is in the woods, and the snake slithers down onto him. It bites him, and turns into the Evil Queen. She’s like, sorry, but she needed some of the potion that was stuck on him. She explains that she’s not Regina, and he should recognize a doppelganger when he sees one. He says he doesn’t care if there’s seven of her, he’s leaving. Nothing will keep him in this abysmal hamlet. She says that he hasn’t had the right tour guide, and when she’s done, he’ll have new appreciation of what Storybrooke has to offer.

Next time, the Evil Queen looks for Snow, and she and Regina have a showdown.

The Walking Dead

Maggie practices knife throwing, and gives lessons. Maggie gets a sonogram. Sasha makes plans. Sasha practices knife killing. Maggie goes over some stuff with Jesus. Sasha visits Abe’s grave. Jesus gives her a blueprint of the Saviors’ camp. Maggie brings Daryl coffee. It’s a busy morning at Hilltop.

Gregory is running out of liquor. He watches as some Saviors come in to the camp.

While Sasha is at Abe’s grave, Rosita asks her for help.

Jesus and Maggie chat. He says he grew up in a group home, so he’s used to a lot of people, but it’s the first time he feels like he belongs. She and Sasha helped him to be a part of things. He says he’s bad at relationships, but she says he should try it sometime. Sasha watches as they talk.

Sasha opens a book that has a carved out inside with bullets in it. Jesus and Enid come in, and she says she was looking for something to read. Jesus says she can have it, but asks her not to go. He says they can’t go after Negan without a lot of people. Sasha says they’re not changing their minds. He asks if Maggie knows they’re here, and Enid says Sasha should tell her about everything. Jesus wants to come along, but Sasha says Hilltop has to be ready for afterward, and Maggie needs him. Jesus asks her to stay, but knows she won’t. He tells her to take what she needs, but they should talk to Maggie; they owe her that much.

Sasha tells Enid that Maggie trusts her and has to be protected. She’s the future, along with Enid. She gives Enid a woven bracelet for the baby, and says maybe she can work on it some more while Sasha is gone. Enid says in ten minutes she’s telling Maggie, and it’s up to Sasha what she wants to do with that.

An alarm is sounded. Enid gets Daryl. Sasha and Enid slip into some wooden boxes. Daryl and Maggie hide in the root cellar.

Simon and his cronies walk into Gregory’s place. Gregory says he wasn’t expecting them so soon, but asks if Simon wants some gin. Simon says he’s into tequila now. Gregory tells Simon that he respects that. Simon says it’s just a quick visit. He says they have somebody, and he wants to be pointed in their direction.

Daryl peeks out through the door, and Maggie tells him to get away from there.

Sasha and Rosita tromp through the woods. They try to hotwire a car. Rosita sees the necklace that Sasha is wearing, and says that she made it. (I guess it was Abe’s? Seriously, who cares about that at this point?) They move on to look for another car. Sasha tries to make small talk, but Rosita isn’t having any. Sasha tells Rosita about some buildings where they might have a good shot, but thinks they should stay outside, do it clean, and maybe get out alive. Rosita says if they miss, they don’t get another chance. Sasha says she won’t miss, but if they get caught, they won’t get another chance for sure. They stab a couple of zombies in the head. Sasha says Rosita should think about it.

Enid gives one of the Saviors a basket of vegetables, but he gives them back and she drops them. He wants her gardening tools. She hands them over, and he opens the cellar door where Maggie and Daryl are hiding. He looks around. They watch him from behind some piles of stuff.

Simon visits Dr. Carson. The doctor says he’s already given them all the medicine he has. Simon tells him that’s not what he wants. Negan wants him to come to their camp. Dr. Carson asks why Negan needs two doctors, and Simon says they don’t. The doctor asks if his brother got himself killed, and Simon gives him condolences. Dr. Carson tells Gregory to arrange for medical care for Hilltop. Simon says fair is fair, and they’re not leaving them without medical solutions. He gives Gregory a crate of aspirin. Gregory asks for a word.

Gregory tells Simon that he’s proven he can work with Negan, but has to hang on to his people’s trust. Someone else might not be as cooperative and have crazy ideas. Simon asks who, but Gregory doesn’t have anyone particular in mind. Simon says if he’s having problems of that nature, to come and see him any time. Just tell the guard who he is, and they’ll let him in – as long as there’s no shenanigans afoot. He says Gregory is a good producer and he doesn’t want him to be stressed.

Savior dude starts moving stuff around in the cellar. He takes a basket of something and brings it outside. Maggie says Daryl was going to kill him, and Daryl says he deserved to die. Maggie says he hasn’t said a word to her since he got there. She asks him to look at her. He says he’s sorry, and starts crying. Geez. She says it wasn’t his fault. She says he’s one of the good things in this world, and that’s what Glenn thought. She wanted to kill that guy too. She wants them all to die, but they have to win. She hugs Daryl and asks him to help her win.

The Saviors leave Gregory’s place as Jesus and Enid watch.

Rosita throws a Molotov cocktail into a car to attract some zombies, while she and Sasha climb a fence to steal another car. We discover that even after death, kneeing a man in the groin works wonders. Sasha drives backward like a bat out of hell and through the fence.

Sasha sees Eugene giving instructions about the zombie guards. She and Rosita are holed up in a building across the way. She tells Rosita that it looks like Eugene is ordering people around. She asks Rosita to teach her some knots, but Rosita says it won’t matter soon. What a barrel of laughs she is. I have the feeling that she and Abe would not have made a good match. He was the only character who actually had a sense of humor. Rosita decides to show Sasha anyway, then stands at the window, aiming the gun. Sasha says Rosita knows how to do everything, and they got lucky having her in the group. Rosita tells her about how she learned different things from various guys. She says a lot of them wanted to protect her, and never noticed everything she was picking up. Sasha asks if that’s how it was with Abe, and Rosita says no. She fell in with him because he knew she could handle things, and she never looked back. Only when it was over. She says she thought she hated Sasha, but maybe she just hated that Sasha picked up on Abe first; Rosita never told him how she felt, and it was stupid to waste so much time. She gets weepy. She asks if Sasha was happy, and Sasha says she was. Rosita says it wasn’t his time. Sasha says he wanted to fight, and the a-hole with the bat took that away. She says no matter how it goes down, she has Rosita’s back.

Sasha looks out the window. She sees a truck coming in. She tells Rosita that they’ve brought Dr. Carson there. She sees Negan, and tries to get a bead on him, but it doesn’t happen. They hear Eugene asking for more walkers over the radio. He says he’s chief engineer, aka Negan. Rosita says they’re going inside.

Jesus meets with Gregory. Gregory tells him that there are too many people in his trailer, and gives him job assignments for the newcomers. Jesus says he must be worried if he wants to split people up. Gregory says who knows what will happen with all the Saviors around. Jesus takes that as a threat, and Gregory says they’re not friends. A guy brings Gregory some tequila, and Jesus leaves.

Daryl asks where Sasha and Rosita are.

Eugene tells the guard he’s with that they need a drill on safety protocol. Suddenly, the guard drops dead, and Rosita comes out of nowhere, telling Eugene to get it together; they’re breaking him out. He says he’s not going. He says he didn’t ask them to come, so go. He practically runs inside. Rosita says she’s going in. Sasha tells her be careful; they could be coming back. But instead of letting Rosita in, Sasha goes inside and locks the gate. She tells Rosita to go. She says it’s not Rosita’s time, and they need her. Some Saviors come out, and Rosita runs.

A man with a crossbow is in the shadows.

Next time, Gregory asks why Maggie is still at Hilltop, and the battle begins.

🍸 If you’re not watching Feud: Bette and Joan, you’re missing out. The casting is impeccable, the acting is on point, and it evokes the period perfectly. And I am so loving the behind-the-scenes story of one of my favorite films, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? While there’s no question of a feud, there are moments where you think at another time, these two strong, talented women might have become friends.

🍑 On the other hand, The Real Housewives of Atlanta is same peach, different day. Porsha has acquired no more brain cells, and possibly lost a few, and Phaedra continues to blame Kenya for some of her marital problems. Seriously? Dude was a raving lunatic who ended up in the slammer, and you’re pointing a finger at Kenya? The trip to Hawaii helped nothing. Bravo needs to stop paying for these trips that are so unappreciated, and send me on vacation instead.

 

Mar13

March 12, 2017 – Prince Charming Learns About his Father & Richard Tries to Start a War

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What I Watched Today

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

 

Once Upon a Time

A man enters a cabin in the pouring rain. His wife, Ruth, tries to calm twins David and James, who are crying in their crib. He says he’s failed them. Rumpelstiltskin appears, and offers a deal. He says the king needs a son. They can have one healthy son or two dead ones. The man tells Ruth that they have no choice. Rumpel flips a coin to decide which son he takes. Prince James it is. He tells them the deal must remain a secret, and James is no longer their son. Storybrooke’s David is the remaining baby, and the man is his father, Robert.

In Storybrooke, David tells Emma he’s proud of her, and that with hope, nothing can tear the family apart. They toast to family. David wishes they were all there, and Emma says she’ll break the curse, and they’ll get Snow back.

David steps outside and feels something in the air. His father appears with blood all over his hands. David faints. Hook finds him, and he says he’s fine. Hook tells him to get some sleep. David says if he wanted advice, he doubts he’d take it from a pirate. Geez. Just a little touchy. Hook goes back inside, and David discovers that he’s holding an old coin.

Robin complains about the incessant noise bothering him, and Regina explains the alarm clock. She’s brought him some clean clothes, since he probably smells to high heaven. Snow tells Regina that she doesn’t know who this Robin is, but Regina says there’s a part of her Robin in there. Snow says she’s worried, and Regina says she is too.

Hook visits Archie. He tells Archie that David sees him as he used to be. Technically, he’s still a pirate, but he’s a good pirate now. He thinks David wants something better for Emma, and it’s about to get more complicated. He shows Archie an engagement ring. He wants David’s blessing, but doesn’t know how or when to ask him. Archie says he shows progress in just buying the ring – he has a conscience now. He tells Hook not to wait; life is too precious. If he wants to know what David thinks, ask him.

Snow leaves a video message for David, telling him she misses and loves him. His father appears again, and David says he owes him nothing; he was a drunk, and died when David was six. David asks if he’s there about the coin. He tells Robert that he’s spent his entire life trying to forget him, and asks what he wants. Robert answers, the truth.

Back in the day, Robert is at the pub. The bartender suggests he spend the money on his family, but he hoists another one. King George is announced. The king says he knows what they’re thinking – why is he there? He tells them that his son has been abducted. Anyone with information will be rewarded, and anyone withholding information will be in trouble.

Robert wants to look for James, but Ruth wonders why he’d want to come back to a dying farm. A young David asks where Robert is going, and he says on a supply run. David asks if he’ll be better when he gets back. Robert swears he’s never touching another drop, and David gives him a lucky coin. I guess he’s going to rehab? I get a funny mental picture of a medieval enchanted rehab.

In the present, David flips the coin around in his hand. Hook drops by. David says he needs Hook’s help. He shows Hook a bulletin board with all kinds of photos, maps and arrows, and asks if he sees anything. He tells Hook that he saw his father’s ghost, and no matter what, Robert is still his father, and deserves justice. He asks Hook for help. Hook thinks Emma might be better suited to the task, but David doesn’t want to worry her or Snow. He says Hook is a pirate, and that’s what he needs.

Regina shows Robin the book of their stories. The doorbell rings. It’s Zelena, who asks where Robin is. She wonders if he’s scheming to take the baby back, and realizes that Regina hasn’t told him. She starts to blather on about how Robin can never see the baby. Regina tells her to go home, and she disappears, poof! in a puff of green smoke. Regina goes back inside to find that Robin is gone, and the book is opened to the Sheriff of Nottingham.

Out on the streets of Storybrooke, Robin draws his bow on the Sheriff, aka Keith. The arrow goes into a telephone pole, and Robin crosses the street to attack Keith. Keith tells Robin that he’s not the same person. Regina appears and sends Keith somewhere else before Robin does something he regrets. She needs Robin to promise to stop running away and trying to kill people. He says, all right. Well that was easy.

Emma has taken Henry on a canoeing trip. David and Hook go to her house to borrow some spell ingredients and the book that goes with them. Hook is concerned about sneaking into Emma’s place. David says the one time he needs him to be that guy, he gets cold feet. He tells Hook that he needs the shed key and a lookout. Hook gives him the key and stands watch.

Switching to the past, Robert approaches Rumpel for help. He says James is missing, and he wants Rumpel to help find him. He has nothing to offer, but says Rumpel owes him. Rumpel says that Robert finally grew a spine, but Robert says he finally became a father. He wants to tell his boy that he’s sorry. Rumpel says he could be persuaded for a hair off of Robert’s head. Poof! In a cloud of purple smoke, a crystal globe appears. Rumpel says that James ran away, but it’s to a place that Robert doesn’t want to follow him to. He plucks the hair off of Robert’s head, and gives him James’s location. When Robert leaves, Rumpel tells us that small things can hold great power.

Forward to Storybrooke, David goes through the shed. Hook sees Emma’s yellow VW bug drive up. Her car is really hard to miss. He asks what happened, and she says they forgot lifejackets. Hook says he’s desperate to kiss her. She says she knows he’s lying, and asks what he’s hiding. He says he’s been out of sorts because of Archie; he paid him a visit to talk about her. He says he thought that she was going to die, and it changed the way he thought about things, about them. Behind Emma, David sneaks out of shed. Hook tells Emma that it’s hard for him to share feelings, so consider them shared. They kiss. Emma goes to the shed, and Hook and David jet.

Regina asks if Robin was going to kill the Sheriff. He wonders about her calling him on that, when she’s the one cursing everyone. And he doesn’t mean she’s swearing at them. She says she knows she sounds like a hypocrite, but she’s changed. She tells him that the other Robin had a child, really two, but just one is there – the daughter he had with her sister. She says it’s complicated, and he says everything there is. Regina tells him that she’d hoped to give him a fresh start. He kisses her. Hmm… She was kind of looking around during the kiss and has a disgruntled face. She tells him that she’ll show him more of the town. I guess the kiss didn’t go well?

David tells Hook that the spell should show them where the coin was when his father died. David twirls in a circle, and Hook puts something in the beaker that looks like taco chip pieces. The beaker starts to smoke. David dips the coin in it, and then puts it on a map. It rolls around and lands on Pleasure Island. Hook says he knows it, but has never been there.

Way back when on Pleasure Island, we see a humongous, old-fashioned carnival. Robert wanders among the crowd. He’s offered a pint, but says he’s looking for his son. This is not rehab, but he is abstaining. He sees wooden boy Pinocchio on a bench, and sits next to him. Pinocchio asks him if his coin is worth something, and Robert says it was from his son. He tells Pinocchio that he’s looking for his other son, the prince. Pinocchio says he hasn’t seen him, but his nose begins to grow. Robert says tell him where his boy is.

Robert finds where James is hiding. James says he doesn’t want to go home. His father wants him to hunt, and he doesn’t want to kill things. Robert says he’s not taking him to that home, but the home where he has a brother to play with. He thanks Pinocchio. Two of the shills see him, and they start to run.

In Storybrooke, adult human Pinocchio tells David that this is the coin his father had. David thought he was just a drunk, but Pinocchio tells him that his father was sober. Pinocchio explains that it was a part of his story that he’s not proud of, so he took it from the book, but he wants to help, so he’ll look for it.

David tells Hook that because of him, he’s changed his mind about revenge. Hook says he’d stop him if he could, but David isn’t going to give him that chance. He handcuffs Hook to a bike rack, and drives away.

Rewinding, the king is waiting on the docks. He offers Robert the reward for James, but Robert says that James doesn’t want to go with him. He tells the king to let him lie where he’ll be happy. The king says that Robert looks old and that conscience must be a terrible thing. Robert says he realizes what he did was wrong. James begs not to be taken, but the King tells the guards to grab him, and they can have the reward if they kill Robert and make it look accidental.

Fast forward to David finding the king in a cell. David accuses him of killing his father, and the king plays semantics, saying he only ordered him killed. David says he offered a temptation and Robert withstood it. David throws him a dagger, and says fight for your life if you think it’s worth it. They slash at each other. Hook intervenes, and throws the king outside. David says that the king killed his father. He says that in his final moments, his father resisted temptation, but died anyway. Robert did the right thing, but it wasn’t enough. David goes through a bunch of “what ifs,” ending with what if he loses everything that matters. Hook says to kill the king if it will make him feel stronger, but think about his father. He asks if Davud wants to be a murderer in return. David lets him take the knife.

In the enchanted forest, the guards bind Robert to the cart. They say everyone will believe he was drunk and drove the cart off the road. With him tied to it, there’s no way he can survive the fall.

Back to today, David’s father bids him farewell on the dock. Hook asks if David is okay. He says he thinks so, and owes Hook an apology – he’s the noble one. It cost him more than it should have, and he did the hardest thing anyone can – he changed. He saved David from making a huge mistake, and David doesn’t know how to repay him. But Hook knows. He asks if he has David’s blessing in asking Emma to marry him. There’s silence for a moment, then David finally smiles and says of course. He didn’t realize that Hook was so old-fashioned, but Hook says he is over 200 years old.

Snow and Regina talk. Regina tells her about Robin kissing her, and says it was nothing, like kissing a photograph. It just isn’t him. She says Snow was right. Snow says sorry, she didn’t want to be. Regina says it’s not her fault, but there has to be a reason he made it through. If she isn’t the reason, what is? She wonders who he is and what he wants.

Robin goes to Regina’s mausoleum and takes out an intricately carved box that contains a heart.

Pinocchio finds the part he tore out of the book and gives it to Hook. Hook looks at the pages and sees Pinocchio on the bench with Robert.

The guard tells Robert it’s time to die, but Hook stops him. He and his men kill the guards. He says they’ve gotten a fortune. Robert thanks him for saving his life. Hook asks why he would do that, and Robert tells Hook he won’t say anything. Hook says that’s right, because dead men tell no tales, and runs his sword through Robert. (Although this made me wonder why no one would have realized Robert was killed by a sword, not a fall. It doesn’t take modern medicine to determine that one.) Hook tells his men to take the stuff, hide the cart and this poor, departed soul.

Emma comes out of the house to find Hook out front. He says he’ll be in in a minute. He looks at the ring and snaps the box shut.

Next time, Hook gets more analysis from Archie, Gideon wants Rumpel/Gold to help him with his destiny, and a big, scary giant stomps around.

The Walking Dead

Ezekiel’s men set up a single melon in the back of a truck. No clue.

Carol wakes up and lights a lamp. She smokes a cigarette. Do they grow tobacco or is there just an endless dramatic license supply?

Morgan teaches Benjamin’s little brother how to use the staff. He asks if the kid’s goal is to really knock his brother out, and thinks it’s more that he wants to be like him. He tells little brother that if his feet ain’t right, nothing is.

Carol emerges to a beautiful pink sky. She walks down the road and climbs a tree. She pikes zombies in the head with a street sign. She sees Benjamin and asks where Morgan is.

Carol asks Morgan why Jesus was there. Morgan says he wanted to find out if they could work together. She asks if it’s true that a deal was made between the Saviors and Alexandria, but he tells her to talk to Daryl about that. She told him not to say where she was, so he didn’t. Daryl didn’t find her because of him, and what they talked about was between them. He’ll go to Alexandria if she wants to; she shouldn’t go alone. He asks if she found what she wanted getting away from everyone, or was it too late to get away? A tear trickles down her cheek, and he says they can leave now if she wants to. In true Carol fashion, she says nothing and walks out. Carol’s passive/aggressive crap irritates the hell out of me.

Benjamin asks if Carol wants him to walk with her. He says he’s trying to see what she does with the zombies, and asks If she’d let him observe. She tells him to go do his drop. She sees a zombie in the street that she’d incapacitated earlier, but keeps moving. Someone is watching her.

Richard sees a backpack that says Katy on it, and he buries it.

All is well in the Kingdom. Ezekiel observes. He asks one of his subjects, Nabila, what she’s found. She tells him that many of the plants have weevils, and they’ll have to burn them before it gets to all the crops. He tells her to do what must be done. She says the good part is, that it will all grow back. Sheba Shiva makes a noise, and Nabila says she just peed herself, so she’ll be going now.

Benjamin thanks Morgan again for the book. He says he’s still thinking about it – to injure an opponent is to injure oneself; you get hurt no matter what. He gives Morgan a drawing that he found. Morgan hangs it on the wall. Benjamin says a girl helped him with it, but when Morgan asks who, he gets evasive and leaves.

Richard and Morgan talk about Benjamin having a girlfriend, and Richard says Benjamin is too young to be a father. Richard tells Morgan that before the apocalypse, he had the perfect family and life. He asks what about Morgan, and apologizes about how things have been between them. He knows Morgan is a good man, but they don’t look at killing the same way, and the day is coming when you can’t be that good.

Morgan tells Benjamin that it’s time to go. The guys get in the truck with the produce offering. Morgan asks who the girl is, but Benjamin is still not forthcoming.

Somebody has blocked the road with a line of shopping carts. Richard says it can’t be anything good He gets out with his gun. He tells everyone that they can get out, but keep their guns out. They all look around, scouting the place.  Richard tells them to move toward the building. In the back, they see a hole with a sign that says “bury me here.” Ezekiel says that people have lived through every kind of misery, and this is how they must exist now; it’s lucky they’re not all insane. Benjamin says luck has nothing to do with it. Ezekiel made them another world.

They move the carts. Savior Gavin and company show up. When right-hand goon to the right-hand goon, Jared, is chastised by Jerry for interrupting Ezekiel, Jared whacks Jerry in the head with Morgan’s staff. Gavin says that he appreciates the delivery, but this is making him stressed and he didn’t sign up for being stressed. He asks if they have today’s offering. He wants their guns, but the group draws them and Ezekiel says they didn’t agree to that. Gavin says give them up or try to use them. Richard tells Ezekiel that they should give them over. Gavin gets nasty, and Ezekiel says to give Morgan his stick back and they can have the guns. Gavin says he needs to understand the gravity of what’s happening. He was given a choice; which is it going to be? Morgan says it’s fine. Ezekiel says to give them the guns.

Gavin tells Ezekiel that he took guns because things are getting emotional. He checks out the melons they’ve brought, and says they’re short; he counts eleven. Ezekiel says that’s impossible. Gavin says the problems have to end now. Ezekiel needs to learn the stakes, and they’re going to teach him. Ezekiel says they’ll get double in return, but Gavin says right now is what matters. They haven’t held up their side of the bargain, and they’re going to deal with this now. Jared holds a gun to Richard’s head. Richard says, just do it. Jared shoots in another direction, and we hear, no!

Benjamin has been shot. Gavin tells Jared to give back Morgan’s stick and get in the truck. He tells Ezekiel that he’ll make deliveries on time and they’ll be complete. He’s going to show Gavin that he understands by bringing the missing melon tomorrow. Ezekiel says he understands. They grab Benjamin, and put him in the truck. Concern is voiced about him bleeding out. Richard lags behind and Morgan yells for him to get in.

Carol is planting some seeds, and sees the truck pull up. Benjamin is brought in and put on the kitchen table. Carol tries to stop the bleeding, but she’s not having much luck. Benjamin says, injure the opponent, injure yourself, and dies. He dies. Ezekiel tells Carol that he’s sorry, but they had no choice. Morgan walks out. Carol asks him to wait, but he doesn’t listen. He thinks about the grave. He thinks about killing himself. He thinks about a lot of stuff. He kicks a box.

Richard appears tells Morgan to pick his gun up.

Richard tells Morgan that it was supposed to be him. He was going to give his life to show Morgan, and something else happened, because they’ve done nothing to stop them. Nothing. He tells Morgan about how he was in a huge camp, a city of tarps, latrines, wood smoke, and babies crying. He knew they had problems, but didn’t think they were his to solve. He thought there were smarter and stronger people to deal with it, so he did nothing. There was a fight and a fire, and he lost his wife. He ran for three days, no food, no sleep. Then he lost his little girl. Right in front of him, because he didn’t do something; because he waited. Okay. Let’s all say it together: The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. (Edmund Burke? I know this was up for debate at some point.)

Richard asks Morgan to listen. He says they can use what’s happened. They can show the Saviors that they understand what they need to do. They have to do something to make them believe. When they gain their trust back, they kill them. They can join with Alexandria and Hilltop, and crush them in one fell swoop. This is it; Morgan has to kill, or else he might as well kill himself. Someone had to die. Richard tried to be the one, but that didn’t happen, so he’ll be the one to lead the army to destroy the Saviors. He says they’ll talk to Ezekiel. He’ll tell everyone what he did, and live the rest of his life making up for it.

Morgan meditates. Ezekel comforts Benjamín’s little brother. Morgan meditates some more.

We revisit Ezekiel and the melon in the truck from the beginning of the show. They go to the parking lot to meet with Gavin. Morgan asks Richard if he’s talked to Ezekiel yet, and Richard says he will when they get back. Ezekiel hears them and says let’s talk now. Gavin’s truck pulls up. He and Jared get out. The Jerky McJerkfaces. Gavin asks how the kid is, and there’s no answer. He ponders this, and deduces that Benjamin is dead. He tells Jared to start walking back before he kills him, and don’t say one word. Jared starts walking.

Gavin asks if they have the melon that all this started over. Richard says they get it, and Morgan whacks Richard, knocking him to the ground. He starts to strangle Richard, and everyone just stands there. He pounds Richard’s head into the ground until he’s dead. WTF??? Morgan says he set it up. Richard blocked the road, and it was all him. They had everything when they left. Richard took one of the melons from the cargo. He wanted to start something between the Kingdom and the Saviors. Morgan wanted to show Gavin that they get it; they understand what they need to do and how to go on. Gavin says good, but I think he’s a little freaked. He says, next week same time. Morgan says they understand.

Wow this is f-ed up.

Ezekiel says he did this. Morgan says he wanted to die for them before; he wanted it to be him. Ezekiel says they must take their leave, and Morgan shouldn’t be alone. Morgan says he’ll go. The Kingdom people leave, and Morgan puts a knife in Richard’s head.

Morgan drags Richard’s body and buries it. In digging the hole, he’s unearthed the backpack. He buries that too.

Noisy zombies coming through. Morgan pops them in the head with his stick and does some majorette moves.

Morgan visits Carol. He asks if she really wants to know what happened in Alexiandria. She asks what happened to him, and he says he strangled Richard; he’s the one who got Benjamin killed. He asks again if she wants to know, and she nods. He tells her that Negan killed Glenn and Abraham, he beat their heads in with a baseball bat. He says the Saviors have Alexandria, along with everyone else. Everything they do is for the Saviors now. And they’ve killed more, Spencer and Olivia. Jesus brought some of them there because Rick wants to fight. She wanted to know; now she does.

She asks where he’s going, and he says he’s going to kill them one by one. Carol tells him to wait. She packs her bags, and goes into the Kingdom. She sees Ezekiel planting with Benjamin’s brother. She tells him she’s sorry, and he thanks her. She tells Ezekiel that they have to fight. He says they do, but not today. She joins them planting.

Morgan carves his stick, making a point on the end.

Next time, Sasha isn’t changing her mind, Rosita and Sasha work together, and more zombies! Okay, I wasn’t totally paying attention, since I was looking at the digital guide, and the teeny tiny picture was up in the corner.

 

Mar6

March 5, 2017 – Once Returns, Rick Finds Guns & Feud is Fabulous

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What I Watched Today

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

 

Once Upon a Time

Underneath a bridge, a little girl reads a fairy tale book, then uses the pages to stoke a fire. A young man asks what her story is. She tells him that she ran away and it’s none of his business. He asks her to stop burning the book, and tells her that The Ugly Duckling was his favorite. He says the best fairy tales are about transformation. She says that’s not what it’s about; the duck was always a swan, but didn’t know it. He says it’s about belief; if we believe in something strongly enough, we all have the power to change our fate. He asks if this is the fate she wants.

The little girl tells a desk clerk that her friend brought her there, and her name is Emma Swan.

In the enchanted parallel world, before Emma and Regina can jump into the porthole, Robin holds them up for their jewelry. Some huntsmen ride close by, and Robin jets. Henry leads the pack, and thinks that Emma and Regina crossed the river. Emma tells Regina nothing there is real. The place was created by a wish. Emma thinks she’s found a way back.

David and Hook stroll the streets of Storybrooke. David says they need to give the Evil Queen what she deserves, and he’s not resting until it’s done. Hook says he’s in, but he hopes David knows what he’s doing.

Rumpelstiltskin (as Gold) asks Gideon how this is possible. Gideon says he was in a place where time didn’t move. Gold asks if the Queen harmed him, but he says she toughened him. In all of the dark years, he tried to remember Belle and follow her example. He’s still going to kill Emma though, because he’ll gain her power as Savior. He needs to rid his land of the Black Fairy. He says when he kills Emma, he’ll finally become a hero. He disappears, poof! in a puff of pick-a-color smoke. Okay, I wasn’t looking.

Emma finds Pinocchio, who thought she’d been captured. He asks what happened that she’s in the Enchanted Forest, and she says it’s a long story. He tells her how he desperately wanted to be a real boy, and it only took his father to make it so. He asks what he can do for her, and she tells him to build something to get her out of there. She wonders if he still has the enchanted wardrobe, but he dismantled it years ago. He thinks he can still help. He knows where the grove is that the wood came from, and thinks they might be able to replicate his father’s work. Emma asks Regina what she thinks, but there’s no Regina, only a note. Regina says she knows Robin isn’t real here, but needs to know if he’s better off without her, like everything else in the realm.

Regina looks through the window of the pub, and remembers seeing Robin for the first time. She goes inside and everybody freaks because she’s the Evil Queen. They all run, but Robin asks if she’s going to buy him a drink. He thinks she’s there for the necklace that he stole, but she wants to talk. She asks if he’s happy, and he says she’s a strange one. He tells her that his life is great, he answers to no man and sleeps under the stars. She says he was better off, and he asks why she would care. Before she can say anything, the Sheriff of Nottingham comes in to arrest Robin, and slaps a cuff on Regina. He says Robin comes with a bonus, and tells his men to take her too.

Pinocchio and Emma go to the enchanted grove. Pinocchio checks out his father’s tools, and picks something out. He says that a true wood carver must be in conversation with the tools and materials. Emma pulls out a sword and tells Pinocchio she’s no longer a princess, but a Savior. She explains that her fate is to die while protecting her family.

Hook comes out of nowhere to “rescue” Emma. He’s fat, has grey hair, and looks like an aging Jack Sparrow. Obviously, he wasn’t better off.

In Storybrooke, Gold tells Gideon that it’s lonely. Gideon says that’s his fate. Gold says fate is a tricky business that requires planning. Gideon believes that Gold thinks he isn’t strong enough. Gold says there are things a man learns with time, but Gideon tells him to get lost. He says Gold thinks he knows all about him, but he has no idea. Gold says that Gideon’s life has been full of pain, but if he wants someone to pay, let it be him. He tells Gideon to hit him. Gideon doesn’t do it, and Gold says if he can’t hit his father, how does he expect to kill the Savior? He says he can help, but Gideon says he doesn’t need his help.

Emma tells Hook to let Pinocchio go, and leave the rescue to the professionals. She says she doesn’t need rescuing and Pinocchio easily takes Hook’s sword from him. Hook says there’s a reward for Princess Emma’s return. Pinocchio asks if she knows him, and she says she knows another version of him, and they sort of live together in another world. She knocks Hook out with some magic, and says it’s time to go home and get someone off the rum. Hook disappears, but the tool is broken.

Emma asks if Pinocchio can fix it, but he says he can’t. She says they have other tools, but he says they need magic and he’s not good enough. He says he’s sorry she put her faith in him, and hopes she doesn’t make that mistake again.

Regina and Robin are locked in a cage in the forest. Robin says he’s going to die having accomplished nothing. She says he’s Robin Hood who robs from the rich and steals from the poor. He asks if she’s nuts, and tells her that he just steals from the rich. She finds out that Marion died before they got married. He says there’s no one. She asks if he’s happy. He says if she wants the truth, he hasn’t been happy for a long time. She says he never had love.

The horses begin to rear up and run away. The guards chase them. One approaches the cage and is blown back. Rumpelstiltskin appears. Regina asks him to take the cuff off. He says on one hand she helped him escape, and on the other, the woman he loved starved to death. He dumps out a bag of bones and says that’s her now. Regina assures him that she had nothing to do with that. He says he might not be real, but he has the feeling he can still make her bleed. Yikes.

In real life, David tells Snow he’s sorry he can’t wake her. He promises he’ll find their daughter, bring her home, and fix this. He and Hook try to make a plan. Belle says they’re looking for her son, Gideon. He grew up in another realm, and the experience affected him. She says Rumpel is out looking for him too. David wonders who Rumpel is helping, and Belle says she can stop him, but she doesn’t want anyone harmed. She trusts them, and asks them to trust her. David says when they find Gideon, she can try to get him to listen.

Back in the world of fairies, Rumpel pushes Regina and Robin into a cell, and locks the door. Robin is like, so, I’m living in a fake world created by the wish of a princess who isn’t fake, and I’m a folk hero in another version. Regina is surprised he believes her. He says he doesn’t mind believing that he lives a better life in another world. He asks if he’s a scoundrel there, and she says he’s dead. He asks if the other Robin had a good life before he died. Regina says she thinks and hopes so. He helped a lot of people, and loved his friends and family. And her. Robin says it sounds like a good life, even if it was too short. He tells Regina that he’s not just the world’s greatest thief, and breaks the lock. They leave the cell.

Emma is about to chop at the tree, and spies a carved box with her name on a gift tag tied to it. There’s a carved swan inside. She goes to Pinocchio’s ship and asks him what it is. He tells her happy birthday. He says he always liked swans, and talks about The Ugly Duckling. His father told him that if you believe hard enough in something, you can change your fate. Emma remembers him at the fire, and says, it was you. She says when she was a kid, Pinocchio gave her advice that changed her life. He says she became the swan. She hands him the magic spatula and says he can do this. If he believes he’s a master carpenter, he will be, and his life will change.

Pinocchio chops at the tree. Magic pops out of it, and he says it looks like the swan is going home.

Commercial break. No surprise. It’s for Beauty and the Beast. I’d love to see it on the big screen, but I’ve sworn off any movie below an R rating. The last time I saw something that was PG-13, I felt like I was in the middle of a bus during a field trip, surrounded by the light of phone screens.

Pinocchio builds whatever, and thanks Emma for believing in him. She says his father would be proud. He shows her the finished product – a new enchanted wardrobe. Regina and Robin arrive, and Robin asks if they’re getting back in a tree. Regina tells him sorry for dragging him in. He gives her a feather, saying she’ll have a piece of Robin. She tells him that when her Robin died, there was a feather that was lost. She’d hoped he was in a good place, and thinks somehow, he lives on in this Robin. Emma asks if she wants to bring him as her plus one, but Regina says he’s not real. How can a wish become real? Emma says if Regina believes that any part of Robin is in there, she should bring him, saying that they make their own fate. She did it, and now it’s Regina’s turn. Robin says he’s in. Regina tells him it might not work, but he says it might. She asks if he wants to take the risk, and he says it’s not that great there, so why not go with the woman who was willing to die for another version of him?

Pinocchio opens the door. Emma steps through and Regina thanks him.

In Storybrooke, Emma and Regina come through, but no Robin. Emma says she’s sorry, and Regina asks for a moment alone. While she’s meditating on her sadness, Robin appears. She hugs him. He’d probably hug back, but he has arrows and stuff in his hands. She shows him the town from the top of a hill, officially welcoming him to Storybrooke.

Commercial break. It’s for the Time After Time series premiere. I thought this show had been on already, since there have been ads for it for months. I’m not sure if I’ll get a chance to see it, but I loved the 1979 movie with Malcolm McDowell and David Warner.

Emma strolls down the street, thinking about her vision. Gideon appears and says he’s been waiting. She says she only knows one Gideon, and he’s a lot younger. She asks what he wants, and he attacks her. They battle with their swords. Emma’s sword goes flying, and Gideon has them both. The others run up, and Emma tells them to stay back. Belle tells Gideon that he doesn’t have to do this. He freeze frames everyone. He tells Emma that he’s not going to hurt them, just her. Her hand starts to shake, and he tells her that she’s fated to die. She says not today.

Emma blows Gideon back with magic and holds a blade to his neck. Gold begs her not to kill him. Gideon says he doesn’t need Gold’s help, and disappears. No poof, no smoke, just disappears. Emma is stunned that he was Belle and Rumpel’s baby. They suddenly notice Robin, and Regina explains about the alternate reality. Everyone hugs. We hear a typewriter.

Emma walks in on Pinocchio typing. He says he works in a cabin out there, so his father can sleep. She asks him if he knew it was her when she was little. He says he kept tabs on her for a while. He knew she didn’t belong on the streets, and had to make sure that she did too. Emma sees the book that she was going to burn in a box on Pinocchio’s table. He says when she picked Swan as a last name, it made him happy. He figured she got it, and was on the way to being the person she was supposed to be. She says she thinks she’s on her way to believing she makes her own destiny. He tells her that believing is the first step.

Gold finds Belle on the bridge, and asks if she’s making a wish. She says he succeeded in keeping Gideon from his horrible fate. He says Gideon had the power to make his own choices. He thought Gideon would make the right choice, and even though he was wrong, Gideon may still do it. Gold says that through his whole dark life, he’s sought out light, like her. He doesn’t want Gideon to kill anyone because it’s not the cure for his pain. He doesn’t want that for his son.

Belle says she protected Gideon, knowing what he wanted to do, and it can be easy to rationalize. Gold says, indeed it can. As they’re talking, Gideon is climbing up the stairs inside the clock tower. Belle wonders what they can do. Gold says if there is, they should do it together; not just for them, but for everyone. War is coming to Storybrooke.

Gideon busts out the clock’s face. It shatters everywhere.

Next time, Emma wants to break the curse, David needs a pirate, and Emma wants to know what Hook is hiding.

The Walking Dead

Michonne and Rick comb a house for supplies, gathering anything of value. Down in a van by the river, she thanks him for keeping watch last night. He says they’re getting batteries for the walkie-talkie and getting it to work again. They raid another house, fighting off some zombies. They get busy during a break. Rick is discouraged that all they have are two guns, some dented cans of beans, and some football jerseys, but Michonne says they’re fighting the fight.

They come across a group of Saviors playing golf. They see batteries in the back of their truck.

Back at the van, Michonne tells Rick that they have to get back. Rick wants to stay a little longer, and sounds like a kid who wants to stay up later. Michonne agrees.

Rosita stitches herself up. Tara tells her it’s going to work out. They have the numbers to fight; they just need guns. Rosita asks where they’re going to get them, and says she can’t just wait. Tara says they’ll get the guns and fight. Rosita says it’s not going to be easy; it wasn’t the last time. She says she’s going to find guns.

Rick sleeps while Michonne drives. Rick sleeps while Michonne makes coffee. She sees a deer and tells Rick to shhh! even though he was sleeping. She gets a gun, but the deer is gone. Rick says he owes her a deer. They look around the forest, making so much noise that every deer within miles has disappeared.

They see a fence with a half-fallen tarp on it. Rick bangs on the fence and a soldier zombie stumbles around on the other side. Rick sniffs a bullet casing and they look around. Michonne says something serious happened here a long time ago. Rick says there might be serious guns in there.

Rosita noses around an abandoned house. She starts to go inside, and a Mama June (not hot) type zombie ambles out. She slices mama’s head in half with a machete. She finds a gun, but it’s just a water pistol.

Michonne and Rick go to the top of a building. They see zombie soldiers and civilians wandering around a carnival. Cool! Let’s get those zombies on the Ferris wheel. Rick says there was a fight, and they’re still wearing their guns. Michonne shoots, and ends up doing well at one of the carnival games. Until she and rick fall through the roof. We hear Rick laugh. Because it’s all good when you’re in love.

Rick and Michonne lie there laughing. They look around and find a boatload of food. Some kind off pre-packaged “ready to eat” meals.

Rosita finds Gabriel at the church. She tells him she didn’t find any guns even though she was out there all day. She had a gun, and was going to kill Negan with it. If she’d done it, he’d be dead. Maybe she would too, but who gives a damn? She lists all the people who would still be alive, and says that she’s still there because she was stupid enough to listen to him. She tells him that he doesn’t know sh*t about sh*t, and he tells her she’s right. He told her not to do what she was planning because they needed her, and they still do. It’s easier to be dead, and if it’s his fault, fine, but he did what he thought was right. He says she can blame him for having life, but what is she going to do with it? Anything is possible until your heart stops beating. Since she can’t argue with that, she walks out.

Michonne and Rick open the boxes, pull out the meals, and dig in. Michonne makes a plan to get the others to fight with them and kill Negan, but she doesn’t know what happens after that. They’ll have to reorder the world once he’s gone. Rick says they’ll figure out how to work together. She thinks he should be in charge, but he doesn’t. She says he’d be good at it, if it’s something he wanted. He says he doesn’t think he would, and he doesn’t want it. He says they could work together, and he wants that, if she does. She says she wants that, and they kiss.

Rick says they can take their time. The place is clear, locked up tight, and they found the only way in. He thinks they should get back. He gives her a package of chili and mac and cheese together. That’s love. The zombies stagger about outside, while Rick and Michonne get busy inside. Honestly, I don’t know how busy I could get, or would want to get, with zombies lurking around several feet away.

Tara babysits Judith. She’s torn between telling Rick about Oceanside or not, and uses Judith as a sounding board. She says that the others should just fight with them, but they only want to hide because they fear the world. But if she tells everyone about Oceanside, it might end up proving their point. She wonders what makes their life worth more than the others, because they want to stop the people who want to hurt other people?

Carnival time! Rick and Michonne watch the zombies from behind a truck. Rick wants to block one of the gaps to make it easier for them. He wants to do it quiet with the sword. Michonne makes a noise, and takes out the zombies one by one as they come her way. Rick grabs a gun from a zombie soldier, who’s wedged halfway through the windshield of a car. Rick tries pulling him out by the feet, and the zombie’s foot comes off. Ha-ha! He pulls some more and the guy’s legs come off. Ha-ha! again. Rick finally gets him out of the windshield glass. Michonne joins him and they push the car toward the gap. He realizes that the breaks don’t work, and all of a sudden there’s gunfire from a soldier zombie. Michonne jumps into the trunk, and Rick steers the car to the opening in the fence. Zombies surround the car and claw at it. Rick says it was a great plan, and Michonne agrees that it was.

They jump off the car and behind some ride barricades. They run through the fairgrounds, the zombies trailing behind. They knock over the test-your-strength game, and it blocks the zombies for a bit. Rick asks if Michonne wants to go, but they both think they can do this. Rick goes in front of the Ferris wheel and coaxes the zombies forward. Michonne does the same thing by the big slide. As the zombies get to the gate, they’re dispatched; heads rolling, eyeballs squishing, blood spurting. Rick sees the deer, and jumps onto the Ferris wheel, climbing up to the top. He’s about to shoot the deer as zombies are coming toward it, and he falls off. Oh crap.

Rick is down, but grabs the gun, and starts shooting the zombies. Michonne runs toward him, gun drawn. When she gets there, she sees the zombies circled around something, eating. She looks sick, and tears roll down her face. She drops her sword. The zombies start to come toward her. She backs away, but she’s not herself.

Like Superman, Rick jumps out of a crate, and throws the sword to Michonne. They slice and dice the zombies. They hug, and Rick says he tried.

They gather up the guns. A lot of guns. Michonne has a moment.

It’s quiet on the ride back, but they got tons of supplies. I’d be hiding some of those somewhere. Rick pulls the van into the forest. He wishes they could have spent more time away. He says he hasn’t been sleeping, thinking about what they’ve lost, and the friends he couldn’t save. He says they went through something, and this doesn’t cure it. Michonne says she’s sorry. He says they’re going to fight them. They’re going to lose people, maybe even each other, but it will be worth it. Michonne says she can’t lose him. Rick says she’d asked him what kind of life they’d have by just surrendering, and it would be no life. Fighting the fight is living, making a future for Judith and the others. He says she can lose him. It’s not about them anymore; it’s about a future. If he doesn’t make it, she’ll have to lead, and she can. She asks how he knows, and he says she led him there.

Back at the Heapsters heap, Jadis asks if the guns are all operational. Rick says they need cleaning up. There are over sixty guns, but Jadis says it’s not enough. Rosita suggests they leave and take their guns with them. Jadis says no, and they haggle. Jadis gets to nine and they get the cat back, and Rick says twenty, and they fight together. Jadis says yes, and if they get more soon, they’ll fight. Everyone wanders around looking like they’re doing something important. Michonne tells Rick they have a few more days before what happens next. They’ll figure it out in a few more days.

Back in Alexandria, Tara is looking for Rick. He asks if she’s okay, and if she’s seen Rosite, who hasn’t shown up for her shift. Tara suggests that maybe she went out looking for more guns. She says she has something to tell Rick.

Rosita stomps through the streets, and sees Sasha at Abe’s grave. She says she needs Sasha’s help. Sasha says under one condition – she gets to take the shot. Rosita agrees. She asks if Rosita brought explosives, but Rosita felt that was taking too much of a chance. She has something better. She brings out a bazooka, and hands it to Sasha, so she can take her shot. Rosita says that Rick and Michonne found guns and the Heapsters wanted more guns. She thinks that means more excuses. She tells Sasha that she’s memorized what Carl and Daryl told Rick about the Saviors’ camp. Sasha says she has a map that Jesus drew for her. They discuss how they can’t be caught alive, and it’s a one way ticket for both of them.

Next time, Ezekiel rises up, Carol emerges, and there are lots more guns.

💣 Feud: Bette and Joan is perfection! The casting couldn’t be better, and the topic couldn’t be more current. For all the equality whining going around, not many people talk about how ageist our society is, and the scope is even narrower for actresses in Hollywood. Way back when, Joan Crawford recognized this, and brought the novel, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? by Henry Farrell, to Bette Davis’s attention, thinking it was the perfect vehicle for them both. Being no slouch in the brains department herself, Bette agreed, the rest is history, and their feud is legendary.

While both women are gone from this world, so there’s no one to confirm or deny, this interpretation of their relationship shows an almost softer side. While hating each other on a certain level, neither could deny the other’s talent or their admiration for it. Although “frenemy” wasn’t a term back then, they were the perfect example of it.

The cast is chock full of exceptional actors and actresses, like Kathy Bates, Sarah Paulson, and Stanley Tucci. I was also pleasantly surprised to see Jackie Hoffman playing Mamasita, Joan’s right hand person. I recognized her right away, pointing and shouting “Penny’s mother!” at the TV, as I’d seen her on Broadway in Hairspray.

And lest we not forget one star of any period drama – the clothes and props. So far, I’m enthralled. One of my favorite things in the world are those brocade dresses with matching coats that were so popular in the 1960s. My favorite Barbie outfit will forever be Evening Splendor. (However, I would not have paired the green/blue bag with this.)

barbieeveningsplendor

Feb27

February 27, 2017 – Eugene is Negan, an Oscar Story & a Medicine Quickie

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What I Watched Today

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

 

The Walking Dead

A group of Saviors gathers around Fat Joey’s body. Dwight goes running inside, and finds that Daryl is gone. Didn’t take them too long to make that discovery. Only about six months.

Eugene is brought into the camp. You’d think by now he’d stop blubbering about everything. He’s led to a relatively nice room that has a microwave and refrigerator. Savior Laura tells him, welcome home. Could be worse. A lot worse. He starts looking at the books, and she tells him that there’s a library, and informs him about Daryl’s escape. He says the room is satisfactory, and she asks if he wants something to eat. After finding out one of the few things they don’t have is lobster, he asks for canned pasta – orangey – and chips. They have homemade chips. I’m in.

Eugene locks the door and looks in the fridge, where there’s beer, eggs and produce. He puts the radio on, and it’s that freaking Easy Street song. I start laughing. There’s no escape from it. Given a choice between hearing it over and over again, and being beaten to a pulp by Lucille, I’m not sure which I’d choose.

Dwight finds the note telling Daryl to go now. A bunch of guys bust into the room and beat the crap out of him, while Negan stands there with Lucille, watching.

Negan bangs on the door where Dwight is in solitary. He says they looked around and he realized he was short a wife – Sherry. He asks Dwight if he knows anything. Negan thinks It’s some coincidence that she’s gone just after Daryl is. He says someone must have opened the door, and Dwight says it wasn’t her. Negan asks if it was him. He says Dwight has legitimate gripes, and asks if he’s started to see things differently. He asks Dwight who he is, and Dwight says he’s Negan.

Negan opens the door. Negan says Daryl isn’t like Dwight; he’s emotional. Either Daryl is on his way home or on his way back to kill them. Either way, they’ll find him. He asks if Dwight thinks he knows where Sherry went. He does, and Negan tells him to fix what he can fix.

Dwight talks to Dr. Carson. The doctor thinks Sherri was soft and let Daryl go. He says Dwight was beaten unfairly, yet he stays. The kind of selfless soul that Sherry is, is the kind of person who isn’t expected to stay around anymore.

Dwight goes back to get his coat, and takes a pack of cigarettes out of a mounted fish’s mouth. He gets on his motorcycle and jets.

Laura shows Eugene around. She says they use a point system, depending on what people bring in. She suggests that he get a haircut, hands him a jar of pickles, and takes him out to Negan. Negan asks Eugene’s name, and then asks everyone else who they are. They all say Negan. He tells Eugene he might have to get real close to Lucille, and under normal circumstances, he might have let Eugene get close over and over again. He asks Eugene if he’s a smartypants, and Eugene says he is. He explains about how he taught himself to cast bullets. He says he reads a lot, and if knowledge is dropped, he picks it up. Negan says he’s some a-hole, but Eugene says he is not. He has PhD’s in several fields, is technically a doctor, and was part of the Human Genome Project before the zombie apocalypse.

Oops! Half of an impaled zombie falls off.

Negan says the problem with his system of keeping people out, is that the guard zombies fall apart. He asks Eugene how they can keep them on their feet. Eugene says they already have the means to fix the issue, an operational smelter. He explains how to pour liquid metal over both the fence and the zombies. Negan thinks it’s the coolest thing he’s ever heard – it’s practical and badass. He calls Eugene Dr. Smartypants. He asks if Eugene was doing valuable stuff like this for Rick, and says Rick’s loss, their gain. He wants to give Eugene a bonus, and Eugene says he was gifted some pickles. Negan says he’ll send some of his wives over, but no sex. He can have drinks, dinner, and laughs only. Eugene and his pickles get led away. Looks like Eugene is smiling a little.

Commercial break. Better Call Saul returns Monday, April 10, at 10 pm. This show was better than I expected it to be, and quite funny, although I lost track of it sometime during the second season. You can’t watch them all.

Eugene plays video games while he chats with wives Amber, Tanya and Frankie, although Amber is doing more drinking than talking. Frankie asks if he wants a massage, since she was a licensed therapist before the apocalypse. Eugene says he’s aware that none of them are there of their own volition, but Tanya says that doesn’t mean they don’t want to be with him, and some intelligent conversation would be good. She suggests talking about the Human Genome Project. Eugene tells her that he’s not at liberty to discuss it, and they might not understand. It’s not a dis, he’s just stating a fact. They decide to do a science experiment.

Eugene carts a bunch of stuff outside. Frankie tells him to relax; he’s one of them. Like something you’d see your eighth-grade science teacher do if he wanted to get the class’s attention, Eugene mixes some ingredients, and a fat stream of foam comes shooting out. When this experiment is recreated later, on Talking Dead, I find out that this foam is called “elephant’s toothpaste,” which is a perfect description. And if you decide to try this at home, don’t touch it.

Dwight goes to his old house and calls out for Sherry. Everything is a wreck, and he picks up a pre-apocalypse photo of them from the floor. He takes the Daryl note out of his picket and compares it to something she had written, and the writing looks the same. We hear her reading the note that she’s left him with her wedding rings on top. She reminds him that he’s told her if they got separated, they should meet there, and he’d bring pretzels and beer. She says he’s lucky he doesn’t remember things. He didn’t want to live in Negan’s world, but she made him. Now he’s become everything he didn’t want to be, and it’s her fault. She says she let Daryl go because he reminded Dwight of who he used to be, and she wanted Dwight to forget. Being there isn’t better than being dead; it’s worse. She hopes he gets away, and remembers the good days, but she doesn’t think he’ll ever even read this. She wants to meet him, but can’t. She doesn’t know if he’d run away with her, take her back to Negan, or kill her. She’s sorry she made him into who he is; she loved who he was.

Dwight takes out a cigarette butt with her lipstick on it, and shakes his wedding ring out of the pack, putting it with hers. He leaves a six-pack of beer and some pretzels. Wow. That was kind of sad.

Frankie and Tanya knock on Eugene’s door. They need his help. Frankie says Amber just drinks and cries. They signed up for this, but she didn’t. Her mother needed medicine, and she thought she could live with it, but she can’t. She’s asked them to help her end it. He suggests they find a doctor. Frankie says that Amber wants to go to sleep and not wake up. Eugene says that’s wildly irresponsible, since she’ll turn when everyone is asleep. They tell him that they’ll take care of that end. He’s a good man, and they know he can make things. They’ll handle the rest. He says he’s not good, but he can jerry-rig a lethal toxin. Frankie says that he is good, and Amber will do it with or without them. He asks how much she weighs. If they can get her exact weight, he can cook something up.

A bunch of people are in line to get supplies. Eugene goes to the front and asks for cold capsules. The woman at the desk tells him to get in line. Eugene asks her number, and tells her that he’s now chief engineer who reports directly to Negan, which means she reports to him. He wants the capsules now. She gives them to him. Good for you growin’ a pair, Eugene! He takes a bedpan, a flyswatter, a sort-of sock monkey that he calls Grimblygunk, and the rest of the medication. Double good for you, Doctor Smartypants!

Dr. Carson asks if Dwight found Sherry, and Dwight says that he killed her. The doctor says that before they got there and understood, they were cowards. They don’t get to have big hearts, and Dwight needs to remember that.

Eugene is brought to a gathering of people. Dwight stokes the fire, and Negan paces around with Lucille. It’s face-burning time. Negan tells Eugene to pay close attention, and whacks Dr. Carson. Negan shows him a note that says good-by honey, and says he found it in the doctor’s desk. It’s from the bottom of the note that Sherry left for Dwight. Negan says the doctor left the door open, and let Daryl out so he could be the hero. Dr. Carson says that she’s the one who ran. Negan says she ran because she knew he’d blame her. Dwight told him that after she ran, she got eaten by zombies, and now a super-hot girl was killed because of him. Dr. Carson says that Dwight is lying, but Negan says why would he do that, and if he is, he’ll find Sherry and kill Dwight. He says all Dwight needed was a night in the hole to get his head on straight. Here comes the iron. The doctor begs not to be burned. Negan says he hates this sh*t and just say he’s sorry. Dr. Carson says he did it and he’s sorry. Negan says that’s all he had to say, and drops the iron. Then he throws the doctor into the fire. Amber is distraught, but I thought that was pretty good. Quick too. Negan says good thing they have a spare doctor, and he never should have doubted Dwight. He says he’s sorry, and Dwight say he’s not. Negan says, ice cold, he loves it.

Frankie and the Tanya come back to Eugene’s room. He says he made the pills, but they can’t have them. Frankie says Amber is counting on them. He says don’t insult his intelligence – the pills are for Negan. I’m guessing that he knew by the weight. They would have had to tell him the truth with that, because it would be deadly for them to under-estimate Frankie asks if Negan didn’t kill his friends, and Eugene says they killed his too. Frankie says they’ll tell Negan it was his idea. He says she’s replaceable; he isn’t. She calls him a coward, and he says that’s a correct assessment.

Eugene enjoys a pickle, and as soon as this show is over, I’m eating one. Negan knocks on his door.  He looks pissed. They stare at each other. Negan walks in. He asks how Eugene likes it, and if they’re doing right by him. He says he knows how hard it is to accept change but needs Eugene to understand that he doesn’t make this invitation to everyone, and doesn’t make it lightly. He tells Eugene that he doesn’t need to be scared. He just has to answer a question, a big one. He starts to ask who Eugene is, but before he can finish the sentence, Eugene says, he’s completely, stone cold Negan. He just needed to meet him properly, but he’s Negan.

The next morning, Eugene is outside, giving instructions on the molten metal and enjoying another pickle. Omg, I’m eating a whole jar after this. He and Dwight stand there, watching metal get poured over the zombies. Eugene says, “I’m Eugene, you’re Dwight, and we’re Negan.”

Okay. They might be reeling me back in here. The big question is, is Eugene really on board with the Saviors, figuring this is the safest route, at least for now; or is he a bigger smartypants than we thought?

Next time, Michonne and Rick take a road trip, Rosita can’t wait, and neither can I, because we’re getting zombies at an amusement park. The kind of thing I live for. 🎡

🎟 No new Housewives of Atlanta this week. I guess Bravo didn’t want to compete with the Oscars. I lost interest in the Academy Awards years ago. And no, it wasn’t after the Rob Lowe/Snow White fiasco. In 1986, I knew two of the nominees, one quite well, and the other just in passing. The late William Hickey, who’d been nominated for Best Supporting Actor in Prizzi’s Honor, had been my acting teacher for many years. I remembered him saying that if he was ever up for an Oscar, that he wouldn’t go unless he could bring his dog. I thought this was admirable. However, Bill did go, and I didn’t see his dog there. I’ve always wondered if he was wearing socks though.

The other was William Hurt (the two Bills!), who was up for Best Actor in Kiss of the Spider Woman. I’d done some work putting together charity events for off-Broadway’s Circle Repertory Theatre, and also volunteered to take tickets. During my time there, our paths crossed, as he was doing a fantastic play called Childe Byron in which he was playing Lord Byron. I watched it several times, and although he was already becoming well-known by then, he was very approachable and always kind. I was thrilled when he got the award (Bill Hickey lost to Cocoon’s Don Ameche), but I knew after that, there was nowhere for the Academy Awards to go for me, but downhill. There’s not much chance of me knowing another nominee, and even less of me being nominated, which is the only thing that could top that.

This year, sadly, it spares me from kudos to an industry that has become less about the work, and more about opinion, political and otherwise.

🏥 Married to Medicine‘s Heavenly summed up part two of the reunion perfectly when she called Mariah “dirty, dingy, and dusty.”

Feb20

February 19, 2017 – Rick Gathers Recruits, Porsha Gathers a Thought & a Stupid Quote

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What I Watched Today

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

 

The Walking Dead

Morgan and some of the Kingdomites wait for Negan’s crew so they can hand over the usual plunder. Gavin says the watermelons look light, but Ezekiel tells him to take another look and Gavin is satisfied. One of Negan’s men starts a quarrel with Richard. They stand there like two idiots with their guns pointed at one another. Apparently, the Savior’s name is idiot, because that’s what Gavin calls him. There’s a small scuffle where Morgan gets whacked with his own stick. Gavin says they can’t have this, and Ezekiel agrees. Gavin says things might need to get visceral. Yikes. Morgan asks Idiot for his stick back, but he refuses. Gavin calls Morgan “sensei,” and tells him to read the rules.

Back at the ranch Kingdom, Ezekiel tells Benjamin he’s impressive, but just because he knows how to fight doesn’t mean he should seek one. He tells Richard they’ll talk later. Morgan excuses himself to speak with Daryl. Daryl asks what’s wrong with him, and tells him that he’s bleeding. Daryl says that if Carol saw that, she’d be leading them to kill all of Negan’s people. Morgan says that’s why she left. Man, Daryl could use a shower. I can tell just by looking at him, and I’m glad I don’t have to smell him.

Richard does archery target practice. He tells Daryl they’ll have to start using arrows more, and hands Daryl a crossbow. (Bit of trivia: This is Daryl’s third crossbow so far.) Richard says that they want the same things and need his help.

Richard tells Daryl that if they band together, and hit them fast and hard, they can get rid of the Saviors. Daryl and Richard go to an abandoned area where there are old boxcars. Richard starts talking about a woman who lives alone nearby, and says if she lives out there, she’ll die out there; she has more balls the both of them, but it’s inevitable. If they make it happen sooner, It will show Ezekiel what he needs to do. Daryl asks her name, and Richard says Carol. He says this is how they can have a future. If they don’t do anything, people will die who want to live. They can wait for things to go bad and lose people, or do the hard thing and choose for themselves. Cars begin coming up the highway. Daryl punches Richard out. They both draw their crossbows at one another. Richard says they’ll have another chance, but they’re running out of time. What they have to do requires sacrifice one way or another. Daryl says he doesn’t know who he’s talking to. Richard says that Carol might as well be dead, living on her own. Daryl says if anything happens to her, even if she gets struck by lightning, he’ll kill Richard. Richard says he’d die for the Kingdom, and Daryl suggests that he does.

We see a landfill, where some of the garbage has been made into art, and I get confused, thinking I’m watching Hoarders. There’s an empty space in the middle of the garbage heap, and the group that kidnapped Rick and company gathers. They form two circles around our heroes. One of them asks if it’s a collective or if one leads. Rick introduces himself to a woman who says, we own your lives, and asks if they want to buy them back. Rick says they can talk after he sees Gabriel. Gabriel is brought out. The woman says everything that was taken by him got taken, and they took him too. Rick says they have nothing to buy their lives back with then. He tells them about the Saviors, and says they own their lives. If they kill them, they’ll be taking something from the Saviors, who will come looking. Rick tells her that either they kill you or they own you, but there’s a way out. He asks her to join them in fighting the Saviors. She says no, and Gabriel is led away. Rosita starts fighting with the nearest member of the group, and it starts a mini free-for-all. Rick tells them to stop. Gabriel holds a knife to a woman’s throat. He tells them that the Saviors have other communities, and whatever they want, the Saviors have it. He puts the knife down. He says if they join together, fighting with them will be rewarded. He says Rick can do anything. He says they can get them anything, and to let them show what they can do.

The woman tells them to show Rick shoo-be-doop-wop-op. I didn’t hear what she said, but that’s what it sounded like. Rick goes off with the woman and a couple of the others. Rosita asks Gabriel who these people are, and Michonne asks where Rick is being taken. He pops up on top of the garbage pile with nameless woman and a couple of the others. She says they take, they don’t bother. Things grow harder, times have passed, and things have changed, so maybe they need to change. Maybe. Quite the philosopher, but Aristotle has nothing to worry about. She wants to know if Rick is worth it, and shoves him down the garbage hill. All right, I’m ready for some actual dialogue now.

Rick is inside the pile, and Michonne calls to him through a kind of peephole. He says he’s fine. A steampunk zombie with spikes all over it pops out of the garbage, and roars toward Rick. Rick whacks it with a piece of plastic and pushes it around a little, just annoying it more. Rick gets cut on a spike and now he means business. He climbs up the pile, but slides back down. Michonne calls to him, telling him to use the wall, and he pulls some crap down on the zombie. Then he stabs it probably more than necessary. He asks nameless woman if she believes them now. She drops a rope down, and Rick climbs back up. This would be a good time for her to introduce herself.

Doesn’t happen. She says they need guns and they’ll fight his fight. He says they’ll win. They negotiate terms. She wants half, he says a third and won’t budge. She says only if they keep what they stole from him, and amends it to half of what they stole. rick agrees, and they shake. We discover the zombie’s name is Winslow, although I fail to see why that matters now. What does matter is that we also find out that her name is Jadis.

Rick is all limping around, but proud of himself, and tells the others that they have a deal. He hugs Michonne and bleeds all over her.

Commercial break. It’s for a Lincoln Continental and I laugh, because, Andrew Lincoln. Then I see Matthew McConaughey and groan. I’m tired of him ironically waxing poetic over cars.

Carol emerges from her house. Ezekiel approaches with a few of his guys. She says that she told him no more visits, but he says they were just doing some clearing; he didn’t think they’d disturb her. She tells him they tripped her wire. Jerry gives her a casserole or something that he claims they brought just in case she came out. Carol settles down to read, and there’s a knock. It’s Daryl. She starts blubbering, and hugs him. He tells her Morgan said she’d left, but he saw her. He asks why she disappeared. She says she had to. Nah, these two together does not work for me.

Morgan tells Rick about how he got apprehended, and says sorry the supplies got stolen. Rick says he got them there. Morgan says that he was beginning to lose faith, and gets all misty-eyed about Rick and the gang coming to rescue him. He says they’ll set things right. It will be hard, but they’ve got to hang on. Morgan wonders why Rick is so confident. Rick says that someone showed him that enemies can become friends. Michonne rolls her eyes at how corny that is, but not before I do.

Rosita thinks they should go. Tara says they’re getting supplies and regrouping. Sasha says she’ll go on her own, but Tara tells her that they have to stick together. Rosita tells her to grow up. Geez.

As they’re leaving, Jadis tells Rick, guns. Shoobedoop adds, soon. Obviously, people of few words. Rick grabs a cat made out of wire and presents it to Michonne because they won, and to replace the one she lost. Huh?

Commercial break. Kong: Skull Island looks great and all, but seriously, how many times are they going to remake that thing? I know they want to act like it’s not a remake of King Kong by changing the title, but come on. It’s probably outstripped the Rocky sequels by now.

Carol tells Daryl she couldn’t lose any more; she couldn’t lose him. She couldn’t kill them, but if any more of their people were killed, she would have, and there wouldn’t be any more left of her. She asks if the Saviors came, and Daryl says yeah. She asks if anyone got hurt, and if everyone is back home okay. Daryl says nothing. He finally tells her that they made a deal, and everyone is all right. He asks if you have to be a king to get food around here, and she breaks out the casserole. Daryl says Ezekiel is okay, and she agrees. Before he leaves, Daryl hugs Carol, and tells her to watch out for herself.

Shiva! (I finally looked up her name, but I still want to call her Simba or Sheba.) Daryl sits in front of the tiger’s cage. Morgan says Ezekiel will be impressed. Daryl says any guy who has a pet tiger must be okay, and tells Morgan about seeing Carol. Morgan says Carol told him to say she went away. Daryl says they need the Kingdom and have to make that happen. Morgan says sorry, but it can’t be him. Daryl tells him whatever he’s holding on to is gone already, and to wake the hell up. Morgan says they’re the same, because he didn’t tell Carol what happened, otherwise she’d be there. He says they’re all holding on to something. Daryl pets Shiva, and says he’s going to Hilltop in the morning.

Daryl leaves the Kingdom. Richard and Morgan watch as the gate closes behind him.

Next time, the return of Eugene and Negan, Negan wonders who Dwight is, Dwight ventures out on his own, and Negan says they’ll find them.

🍑 Some of The Real Housewives of Atlanta continue to take the low road. This week, Porsha and Kandi had an argument where the both of them talked at once throughout most of it, causing the audience to hear almost none of it. It was loud, and not just in public, at outside restaurant tables. I forgot to add, it began with Porsha accusing Kandi of having had a six-year lesbian relationship. This led Kandi to say that she’s had no such thing, however, Porsha did proposition her when they were out drinking. The best part of the whole thing was the women at the next table who were dying laughing. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but I think if Kandi had been involved in said relationship, not only would we know about it (remember, Porsha? Kandi was actually famous before she was on this show), I doubt she’d hide it. Oh yeah, Porsha also said that Kandi has a sex dungeon at her house, confusing having a sex dungeon with having a sex toy business. Let’s all be reminded again that Porsha is the one person in the civilized world who thought the Underground Railroad was an actual railroad.

Because It Applies

The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits. – Albert Einstein

Feb13

February 12, 2017 – The Walking Dead Returns & Quotable Dead

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What I Watched Today

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

 

The Walking Dead

Well, here we are again. The show hasn’t even started yet and I feel drained. When they show clips from last season, I think Rick said that he’s either getting out now or he’s not gay now.

It’s nighttime, and Alexandria seems to be at peace. Father Gabriel stands outside, reads a little something, then heads back to town. He throws a bunch of cans into a bag and consults a chart. He digs around looking for some tools, and loads up a car. Looks like he’s headed out.

Gregory tells Rick and the gang that all he has are farmers, and he can’t help them fight the Saviors. Daryl says either he’s with them or he ain’t. Gregory’s viewpoint is that he’s not the one with the problem; he’s fine with the way things are. He says he’s made his position clear, and thanks them for not being there today, requesting that they leave out the back way.

Daryl says they don’t need him anyway. Enid pops out before they get to the door, and tells them to come outside. A girl named Bernie says she owes her life to them, and wants to know if Maggie thinks they can beat the Saviors. She does, and a small group leaves with them. Daryl says maybe they don’t need numbers and can just blow the Saviors up. Rick says geography and distance are against them, and they need to be back before Negan starts looking for Daryl. Jesus shows them a long-range contraption that they can listen in on the Saviors with. He thinks it’s time they met Ezekiel.

Oh look! Our first zombie of the season. It’s sitting there just like a spring crocus too. Jesus brings them to The Kingdom. Richard and another guard ride up on horses and recognize Jesus. Richard asks who his friends are, and Jesus tells him that they’re from a like-minded community, and would like an audience with King Ezekiel. Richard says, like-minded how? and Jesus basically tells him they’re all trying to stay alive. Richard says that they don’t usually allow strangers into their world. Michonne says they’re trying to make the world less dangerous, and he tells them to leave their weapons.

Richard wonders what Jesus is up to. Jesus tells Richard that he’s never seen him smile, but he might for the first time today. Looking around, Michonne says they have the numbers, but Sasha wonders if they can fight. Jesus says they can. Enid sees Morgan, and there are hugs all around. Richard asks how they know each other, and Rick says they go way back. Richard tells them that the king is ready for them now. Before they go in, Morgan explains what happened with Carol, and how he had to kill someone to save her. He says she got help at the Kingdom, and then left.

Simba! Or whatever the tiger’s name is. King Ezekiel asks if Jesus brought him new allies. Jesus introduces Rick, and Ezekiel welcomes them. He asks why they seek an audience. Rick tells Ezekiel that their communities have something in common – serving the Saviors. Rick says they rule through violence and fear, and that Alexandria beat them once. Ezekiel gets ticked off, saying that their deal with the Saviors was a secret, and wants to know why Jesus broke his confidence. Jesus says he wants Ezekiel to hear Rick’s plan. Rick asks Ezekiel to join them in the fight. Michonne says good people have been killed. Morgan asks who, and she tells him about all the people who have died since he left. Rosita adds that Daryl is now a target, and Sasha tells Ezekiel what happened at Hilltop. Jesus suggest that they change the world. Rick says they’re strong, but there aren’t enough of them, and they don’t have enough weapons. Richard says if they strike first, they could beat them, and begs Ezekiel to set things right, saying the time is now.

Ezekiel asks Morgan what he thinks. Morgan says people will die, and not just the Saviors. If they can find another way, they have to, maybe by capturing Negan. Ezekiel says he has much to ponder. Rick repeats a story his mother told him about a dangerous rocky road (not ice cream) that people avoided because there were so many accidents on it, and a little girl who wondered why it was still there after so many people had been hurt and killed. She dug at the road and found a bag of gold underneath. Rick says the king knew that the person who dug it out deserved a reward, and deserved to have their life changed forever. That was a very nice story, Rick, but huh? Ezekiel invites them to dinner, and asks them to stay overnight. He’ll deliver his decree in the morning.

Benjamin tromps through the woods and comes across Carol. She holds a gun on him, and he says sorry. She wonders why he didn’t run, and he says he’s in training. She tells him not to be wandering around after dark. He tells her that Ezekiel doesn’t want to bug her, but wants to make sure she’s okay. He says there’s no use telling him not to, and asks if she wants some food. She tells him she heard him from a mile away, and be sure to be quiet.

Ezekiel tells a bedtime story to a child about being free at last. Benjamin stands in the doorway. Ezekiel asks where he was at supper, and he says he went for a walk, casually mentioning that he saw Carol. Ezekiel asks if she’s well, and Benjamin says they should say yes to Rick. His group will risk everything regardless, and they won’t win. Even if by some chance they do, the Kingdom will be sorry they didn’t help. He tells Ezekiel, if you’re going to be a hero, be a hero. Ezekiel thanks him for his sage counsel. He tells Benjamin that his father would be proud and the king is proud.

The next morning, Ezekiel tells Rick that their idyllic lives came at a cost. He wanted to create more places like this. People died because he sent them into battle when he didn’t need to. Rick says the dead don’t rule them, and some people don’t have it good at all. Ezekiel says that he has to worry about his people. Daryl tells him that he’s not acting like a king. Ezekiel repeats that it came at a cost. The peace they have with the Saviors is uneasy, but it’s peace, and he has to try and hang on to it. Even so, he’s sympathetic, and offers Daryl asylum because the Saviors don’t set foot inside. Daryl asks how long he thinks that will last. Rick and company walk toward the gate.

Sasha tells Rosita that she knew he’d say no, but it still pissed her off. Rosita says just because they had sex with the same dead guy doesn’t make them friends. Geez. Richard tells Rick he’ll come with them. Rick says they only have enough manpower for one outpost. Richard says the more they give the Saviors, the harder they become to beat. At the gate, Rick tells Daryl to stay and try to change Ezekiel’s mind.

The gang hears Howard Stern Negan over the radio, talking about the loss of Fat Joey, and announcing that Skinny Joey will now be just Joey. They come upon a road block of cars. Jesus says the Saviors must be trying to make it hard to get to the outpost. Rick says they’ll move the cars and then move them back. Michonne sees something with the binoculars and calls Rick over. There’s some kind of set up with some cables going across the road, and Carl says he’s seen it before. It’s a trip wire for a load of walkers. They decide to remove the explosives.

Rosita works on the wiring, and on the radio Negan says he needs a search party for Daryl. Michonne says they’ll have to get going. Rosita gets the first part finished, and gives instructions to the others. Everybody does serious-looking stuff with knives and wires. Nothing blows up, so I guess they did it right and Rick has his mojo back. Rosita tells them even though the explosives aren’t live, to be careful with them.

There’s a horde of zombies coming, but Rick thinks they still have time. He wants the cars back the way they were to buy them more. Then Rick blows himself up. Just kidding. The cars are repositioned. Rick tells Sasha and Jesus to run back and tell Maggie it’s all good. The zombies are getting closer. Everyone gets into a single car, except for Rick and Michonne, who string the cable between two cars on opposite sides of the road. The zombie horde hits, and is on top of them just as they get into the respective cars. As they drive, the zombies are slashed to pieces and it looks pretty damn cool. Later, on Talking Dead, Chris Hardwick called it the Slice Capades, and I literally lol’d. They stop the cars and get in the one with the rest of the crew, with zombies clawing at them the whole time. Now who’s going to clean up that mess? Oh, might not have to. As they drive away, an explosion happens.

Michonne tells Rick they made it and they’re going to make it again.

Back home, Rick says they have to get everyone ready, but here comes Simon right behind him. Rick says he thought they had more time, and Simon says (ha-ha!) that they’re not here for a tribute; they’re here for Daryl. He says Carl showed up and Daryl went missing. Rick acts like he has no clue about it, and Simon tells his crew to make a search. He says if Daryl is here, they’re going to see him die. Good move leaving him at the Kingdom, but of course these sh*theads wreck the place anyway while searching.

Simon wonders what’s up with the bare shelves. He says hiding stuff doesn’t go over well. Aaron says they’re still adjusting to the new system and don’t have much. Rick says they were going on a run today. Simon tells them to dig deep, go the extra mile, and take risks. Go, Tony Robbins. He thanks Rick for his cooperation, and says sorry to leave the place a mess. He says if Daryl does turn up, even if it’s years from now, there’s no statute of limitations, and it won’t turn out the way it did for Carl.

Rick is told that the morning after Gabriel was supposed to keep watch, the shelves were bare and his car was gone. Enid can’t believe it. She says that’s not who he is, and she wants to believe he held on to his courage. Rick wonders why he’d leave his books. Rick sees Gabriel’s notebook with BOAT written on the last page, and says he wants to be found. There was someone watching him keep watch.

Aaron packs to go after Gabriel. Eric tells him that it’s going to end up being about more than Gabriel, and asks him not to go. Aaron says Gabriel is one of them, and he has to go. Eric wonders what happens if the Saviors come while he’s gone. Aaron says they could just run off and leave everyone behind, and tells Eric that he wants to keep both of them alive.

No surprise, Aaron joins the others. They go toward the shoreline. Rick calls Michonne over and shows her some tracks. They follow the tracks silently. Rick hears a noise. Suddenly, people with guns surround them. It looks like a bunch of kids from The Warriors. And they do not look happy. Rick smiles.

Next time, the group leader asks Rick if they want to buy their lives back, Rick says the Saviors will be looking, but there’s a way out, and we see increasingly creepy zombies.

A Few Fun TWD Quotes

We made it. We can make it. We can. We’re the ones who live. – Michonne

If I had known the world was ending, I’d have brought better books. – Dale

Look at the flowers. – Carol

 

Dec17

December 16, 2016 – No GH, Lots of Zombies & Four Quotes

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What I Watched Today

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

 

Due to presidential circumstances beyond my control, there was no General Hospital today. Why, why, why is it always at 3 pm? I rushed home from Christmas shopping hoping they were going to reveal who the mystery person is, only to see the horrifying words “Special Report.” It’s my understanding that today’s episode will be shown on Monday, throwing off the entire Port Charles holiday season.

Z Nation

The Man tells Lucy no one is coming for her and she has to think about her future, especially at the rate she’s aging.

Doc tells Addie that their car needs oil. They see a hitchhiking zombie in a sweater that says Grandpa on it. Addie stops the car. Doc thinks he’s trippin’, but Addie says she sees it too. They back up. The zombie comes toward the car, but as Addie is about to shoot, he says, “Lucy.” They bind him with duct tape and put him in the back seat. Doc gives him a pair of sunglasses so he doesn’t look as weird. Addie instructs Doc not to get him stoned.

The Murphy caravan pulls over. Red asks 10K how he’s holding up, and he says he’s just tired. Murphy examines his new KISSish look in the mirror. Kaya gets through to Roberta. She tells Roberta to change course to intercept The Man. She fades out and Murphy starts to freak because they couldn’t hear the coordinates. They get her back and she repeats them. There’s been no word from Citizen Z for the past 12 hours. Murphy tells Roberta he’s counting on her.

Lucy mentally contacts the zombie in Addie’s car. Doc thinks he’s dead, but Addie says he’s receiving and Lucy is transmitting. Doc calls it an apocalyptic GPS.

Red blows the car horn and pulls over. 10K is having a seizure. Sun examines him, and he has an infected wound . Murphy tells Roberta that making the right decision is her strength. She tells Sun they have to keep moving and Red should drive.

Lucy continues to transmit. The Man drives the car into the woods and then into a mountain, where a weird invisible door has opened up. They get out of the car and The Man tells Lucy no talking. They walk through a corridor that’s wet and dark, and includes a zombie banging its head against the wall. It tries to attack them, and The Man shoots it. Lucy tells him that she couldn’t communicate with it. More zombies come toward them. The Man shoots them, but they just keep coming. Some soldiers come out with machine guns, and The Man tells Lucy to get down. The soldiers mow down the zombie crowd. The Man tells Lucy not to be afraid, and that he won’t let anyone harm her.

A soldier asks if she’s infected. The Man says she’s the package. He’s supposed to meet someone from Zona. He needs access to the LZ and a radio to let someone know they’ve arrived. Lucy is pretty frightened, but he tells her it will be all right.

Addie tells Doc they’re running on fumes. They stop the car and get out, bringing the zombie along. He keeps repeating Lucy’s name, and leads them through the forest. They come to the mountain, but Doc says he doesn’t see a doorbell. Addie says she doesn’t think that’s their way in and looks up. Doc asks what about Grandpa and she tells him to stay with the zombie since he’s all they’ve got.

Doc does some Z-weed vaping, while the zombie continues to point. Doc closes his eyes for a moment and when he opens them, sees some parachuters. Soldiers suddenly come out from everywhere. They knock Doc in the head. Doc tells them not to shoot the zombie. One of them says he might be the package. They tie Doc and Grandpa together back to back.

One of the soldiers tells Doc he’s going to answer some questions, but he’s only to nod or shake his head. Every time Doc speaks, he gets a smack. The soldiers are given instructions to sweep the inside and try to make contact with the base team. The soldiers go in and we hear machine gunning. The zombie starts making noises, and the soldier guarding them tells Doc to keep him quiet. Despite his binds, Doc rushes the soldier, but the soldier gets the best of him. Grandpa jumps the soldier though, and he’s toast. Doc and Grandpa look at the entrance to the mountain, and a bunch of soldiers-now-zombies come out.

Doc and Grandpa take off. Roberta appears and yells for them to get down. She shoots the zombie soldiers and then shoots Grandpa before Doc can say anything. Doc tells her that was their guy and he was helping them find Lucy. Murphy says the soldiers are from Zona and their immunity must be failing. Doc tells them that Addie is climbing up. Roberta tells Murphy, let’s go get your daughter.

Addie climbs up the side of the mountain. OMG it’s like the wall in Game of Thrones.

The Man explains what’s happening. He tells the soldiers there might be others coming, and if they get inside, shoot to kill. He starts to leave with Lucy, but she begins to cry. He tells her not to be afraid. She says she doesn’t want anyone else to die. The man says that’s exactly the point; because of her, more people will live. He says that she’s very special and she knows it, and whatever’s left of this world will know it too. She says she doesn’t want to die, and clings to him. He promises to keep her safe. She asks what’s going to happen to her, and he says they’ll find out together. Well, that’s comforting.

He asks her if she’s ready, and they go up a flight of stairs to the outside.

Roberta and the others go into the mountain. Doc tells 5K to stay and keep watch. Sun tells them that 10K is dying. Murphy tells her that he saved him once, and he can do it again. Doc and Roberta split up. Roberta hides behind a pillar and sees a group of soldiers go by. Doc looks out a window and can see the entire coast. They reconvene. Doc tells Roberta maybe they should stash 10K upstairs. Roberta says Lucy is the priority and they’ll deal with 10K when they get back.  They bring him to a spot near the window.

Sun says they have to kill 10K in order to save him, and that Murphy died four years ago. Technically. Murphy is like, I’ve been dead this whole time? Sun says yep, and 10K needs to die too, if he’s going to survive. Murphy says he doesn’t feel dead, and how do they know they’re not all dead, and this is a dream? Roberta slaps him hard, and says if he felt that, then he’s not dead. Sun says someone has to kill 10K.

She tells them, choke, die, bite, inject, in that order. Roberta tells Murphy to get a move on, and he says to give him a break, he just found out he was dead. She tells him to focus. Roberta chokes 10K while Murphy holds him down. Murphy bites him immediately after he dies. Sun does the injection. Nothing happens. Suddenly, Murphy feels something and says 10K is finished. Red says Sun has to save him. Everyone stands around looking helpless. Sun goes to 5K and Doc to let them know. Doc holds 5K.

Whoa! 10K sits up and grabs Murphy, saying he’s not his savior. Murphy says thank God for that. Red is ecstatic, and says she’s glad he’s alive. Roberta says they all are, and Murphy tells her to speak for herself.

Murphy feels something going on with Lucy, and says they have to hurry. Roberta tells Sun to stay with 10K. Red stays too.

Addie is still climbing up the side of the mountain. Her foot occasionally slips. She realizes she has to lose her weapon, because it’s just getting in her way. Reluctantly, she tosses it down.

The Man radios someone, telling them two for transport, and that the deal has changed. Lucy begs him not to make her go. He says it’s not up to him. Operation Bite Mark minus 10K and plus Murphy, keep going up on the inside.

This is the season finale. Waaaaaah! I hope it gets renewed. I always worry about that, because when I really like a show, the chances of it sticking around go down.

A zombie goes by with Addie’s weapon sticking out of its back. Maybe she can get it later. She passes a zombie mountain climber and cuts the rope holding him.

Kaya tries to contact Citizen Z. Nothing. She looks at her Nana sleeping, wondering where he is.

OBM get to where The Man and Lucy are. Murphy is shocked that Lucy is a teenager. Doc tells him that it’s the apocalypse, and none of this sh*t makes sense. Roberta tells Doc to keep her covered. She puts her gun down and walks forward, telling The Man they don’t want any trouble; they just want Lucy. She tells Lucy that this is her daddy, Murphy. Lucy asks The Man if it’s the truth, and he says yes. He tells Roberta take another step and he’ll shoot, but Lucy says no more killing. Murphy shoots, and The Man gets distracted. Lucy runs to Murphy, hugs him, and then slaps him. She asks why he abandoned her, and says he missed her entire childhood. He tells her that a month ago she was a baby, and that he loves her more than anything.

The Man and Roberta fight. The Man gets her in a headlock. He tells Doc careful with the gun. Doc tells Murphy and Lucy to run, but Murphy says, today we fight. The Man and Murphy struggle. The Man says he doesn’t want to kill him, and Murphy says he can’t kill him, he’s already dead. The Man backs up and shoots at Murphy. We see the bullet travel in slow motion, through Murphy and into Roberta.

Roberta falls to the ground. So does Murphy. Doc holds Lucy back. The Man points his gun at Doc. Doc shoots at him, but his gun doesn’t work. The Man picks Lucy up, throwing her over his shoulder. Sun and the rest come up the stairs. Lucy screams.

Addie reaches the top of the wall just as some kind of space ship arrives to take The Man and Lucy away. It says USAF on it. Everyone stares at it, frozen. The Man has set Lucy down, and Addie runs at him, taking him over the edge of the mountain. Lucy follows, and so does 5K, his wings spread. A huge gun comes out of the ship, shooting flames. WTF? Well, they left us hanging with a nuclear bomb the first time, and it doesn’t get much more dire than that.

Yay! Z Nation will be returning in 2017.

Quotes of the Week

There wouldn’t be a parade if there wasn’t Lisa on a bus. — Stassi on Vanderpump Rules

Learn how to be happy with what you have while you pursue all you want. — Jim Rohn

Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty, instead of upon your past misfortunes, of which all men have some. — Charles Dickens

Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1942. — Kim Zolciak’s daughters, while discussing history on Don’t Be Tardy

Dec12

December 11, 2016 – Rick Comes Home & to His Senses

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What I Watched Today

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

 

The Walking Dead

At Hilltop, Maggie surveys the land from the top of the wall. Gregory tells her that people are saying nice things about her and Sasha saving the place, but not to let it go to her head. She says it seems like it bothers him and don’t let it. He polishes an apple and she’s like, are you going to eat that? Eduardo shames Gregory into giving it to her.

Negan shaves while Carl and Judith watch. He tells them to always go against the grain. I’m not sure if he’s being philosophical or giving actual instructions.

At the Sanctuary, Daryl sneaks out of his cell.

Negan makes spaghetti sauce. Is there anything this man can’t do? Tara gives Olivia some lemonade. She tells Olivia to go home and let her take over, but Olivia says she’s fine. She told Rick that she’d watch Judith. She tells Tara to go – they’re about to set. I guess that means have dinner?

Negan is all pleased with himself while Carl sets the table.

Aaron and Rick are at a loss about crossing a lake chock full o’ zombies. There’s a canoe, but it’s full of holes. Rick tells Aaron if he wants to stay, it’s cool, but Aaron is offended by the suggestion. He says they’re both going to see it through.

Everyone is quiet around the table. Negan says he’s not waiting for Rick anymore, and Lucille is hungry, so pass the rolls…please. Lucille eats rolls? Dammit! Jeffrey Dean Morgan Negan is just too cool for school, and so good-looking and weirdly funny, that I can’t get past that and hate him like I should.

Eugene is his usual cheerful self. He watches some Saviors unloading the stuff for Negan that Spencer brought back and giving him compliments. A girl tells Eugene to get out.

On the outskirts of The Kingdom, Carol reads by the fire. Morgan is wandering around outside with his staff, and she calls to him. He offers her some apples, but she says she’s good and just wants to be left alone. He says he was trying to do that, but she called him over, why? She asks how he is, and when he says good, she tells him he can go. He says she’s going soft.

As he’s leaving, Richard comes to the door. He’s glad to see Morgan since he wants to talk to the both of them.

Rick and Aaron paddle like an Oxford rowing team. They hit a zombie clog and whack at the zombies with their makeshift oars.  The canoe is taking on water and sinking fast, but they make it to an aluminum one. A zombie pops out, but Rick manages to pike it in the head. Aaron falls overboard. This doesn’t look good. He sinks. Rick calls to him and he pops back up saying he’s okay. How’d that happen? They both get to the dock in one piece.

Daryl sneaks around. He hears someone coming and goes into a room. Hopefully, that’s not where they’re headed. It looks like a young person’s bedroom. He sees a jar of peanut butter and eats it with his fingers. He changes clothes. He sees some toy soldiers and ponders them. Daryl finishes the peanut butter and takes something he can use as a weapon.

Rick and Aaron go through the house on the other side of the lake. Aaron finds a drawing of a middle finger and says the homeowner was a sore loser. Rick says it looks like the only thing he ran out of was ammo. He tells Aaron that he didn’t mean to imply that he couldn’t do it, but he wouldn’t blame him if he didn’t want to. Aaron says all they’re doing is keeping people living. Rick says Michonne doesn’t think it’s living. Aaron gets that, especially after the way they lived before, but says either your hearts are beating or they’re not; they take what they’re given so they can live.

Someone watches them from the opposite shore.

Still in the car she jacked in the last episode, Michonne asks the woman how long she’s been with Negan and why she was out there alone. The woman remains silent. Michonne says the woman doesn’t know her. She says she’s not going to kill him today; she’s going to find a way that they win. She’s going to change things for her, and that’s why she’s alone.

Maggie brings Enid and Sasha a pie.  Jesus has given Sasha some knives. He left earlier, but Sasha forgot to tell Maggie. Maggie scarfs down pie and leaves. Enid asks why Sasha lied; she knows that Jesus left yesterday. Sasha says it’s for her own good. She needs to do something and Maggie will want to help. She says if there were more people, she wouldn’t feel so responsible. Enid says she’s not the only one who wants to take Negan out. Sasha says they have to keep Maggie safe. Enid says it’s not just her being proactive, but Sasha says it feels like it.

Richard tells Carol and Morgan about all the communities and camps that are gone, but then he found Ezekiel. He thinks they’re under threat from the Saviors. He says they recognized Ezekiel’s abilities, but he didn’t want to fight. In exchange for supplies, they said they’d leave The Kingdom alone. He says sooner or later something will go wrong, or maybe Negan will just decide to stop honoring the deal. When that happens, The Kingdom will fall. Richard says that he had a family he lost to this world, and he’s scared if they don’t do something now, they’ll lose everything. He knows what the Saviors are and what they do and that they can’t be trusted.

Morgan wants to know what Richard is asking. He wants to convince Ezekiel to attack the Saviors first and destroy them.

In the church, Father Gabriel asks Rosita if the bullet is for her or Negan, and she says Negan. He says if he dies, she will too. He tells her there’s no need to lie if it’s their last conversation. She says if Abe was alive they could fight. If Glenn was alive, Maggie would have a father. She lists why it’s important for each person to stay alive, except for herself. He asks about Sasha. He tells her it shouldn’t have to be her or anyone. They’ll win, but they need to wait for the right moment or create it together, and she’s a part of that together. He asks her not to do this. They need her. Tears slip down her cheeks. He puts a hand on her shoulder and leaves her in the church.

Daryl is sneaking around again. He sees a room where guys are playing poker.

Richard explains to Carol and Morgan that the element of surprise is their only hope. They need to do it now before it’s too late. He thinks Carol has never fought, but Morgan corrects that perception. Carol tells them that she doesn’t want to be a part of it. Richard says she just has to convince Ezekiel. She says she wants nothing to do with their lives or their deaths; she just wants to be left alone.

Morgan says he’s only taken a life to save a life. Richard says he’ll have to choose one day, so choose now before it’s too late. He says their blood will be on his hands, but maybe they’re both used to that. Ouch. He leaves, and Carol says Morgan should go too. She says if he sees anyone they know, please tell them she’s gone.

Spencer sees everything trashed in his house. He practices saying “hi” in the mirror. Wha…?

Richard knocks down a no camping sign, and goes into a trailer in the forest. He looks at some bottles and cries. He sits on the floor bummed out. I have no idea if the bottles are significant or not.

Spencer walks past Rosita sitting on the porch, and she asks if he has a hot date. He says he thought they had something good, or at least the beginning. He asks why she ended it, and why she even started it. She says he’s cute, tall, and sometimes sweet, and she used him. Nice. Although at least she’s honest. She apologizes, and he asks if she’d like to meet for dinner, no strings. She says okay.

Sneakin’-around-Daryl gets outside. He goes over to a row of bikes. Fat Joey asks if he needs help. He sees Daryl has a weapon, and tells him he can just walk out. He says he’s just trying to get by like him. Daryl beats him to a bloody pulp. Jesus comes along and is like, wtf, Daryl? Daryl sees that Fat Joey had Rick’s gun and takes it. He tells Jesus it ain’t about just getting by, it’s about getting it all. He says he has the key, so lets’ go.

Spencer goes to Rick’s house. He introduces himself to Negan and gives him some good liquor.

The carjacked woman stops the car and looks out to a  compound inhabited by the Saviors. She says that’s Negan. They’re all Negan. Michonne says, whatever she’s trying to do, she can’t. The woman tells Michonne that she should go home and make the car disappear. Michonne shoots her in the head and turns the car around. Kind of harsh.

Rick gets back to Alexandria. The guard says Negan is in his house waiting for him. Another guy tells him they’ve been waiting for hours and wants to have a look at the goods first.

Negan and Spencer have a drink. Negan says he’s getting himself a vacation in Alexandria. He says nothing better than a game of eight-ball, and Spencer says there’s a table in the garage. Negan says it’s too nice a day to be cooped up though, and has a better idea.

Rick’s truck is unloaded. The note they’d found is in with the stuff. Along with the middle finger, it says, congrats on winning, but you still lose. The guard questions Spencer about the note, thinking it was meant for them, and Spencer says they didn’t do it. Another guy punches him. He tells Rick that Negan is waiting for him, but Spencer has nowhere to be, and they beat the snot out of him.

Negan has had someone bring the pool table outside, and they begin to play. Negan tells Spencer that it’s great being with him; Rick would just be giving him the side-eye. Spencer says he gets what Negan is trying to build, even though he doesn’t agree with his methods. He’s building a network and having people contribute to the greater good. He says that Rick has a history of not playing well with others, and tells Negan about his mother being the real leader until Rick showed up, and now she’s dead. Negan says that’s the saddest story he’s ever heard, but good thing Rick isn’t in charge. Spencer says that Rick has a huge ego, and he’ll do the same thing to Negan that he did with Spencer’s mom. Negan asks what he proposes. Spencer says he can be the leader his mother was. Negan asks if he should put Spencer in charge, and Spencer says they’d all be better off.

Aaron wallows around on the ground, and the guard says point made. Rick helps Aaron up.

Negan tells Spencer that Rick clearly hates his guts, but he’s out there gathering stuff so Negan won’t hurt anyone. He’s swallowing his hate and getting sh*t done, and it takes guts. He says then there’s Spencer, waiting for Rick to be gone, so he can ask Negan to do his dirty work and take over. He asks why Spencer doesn’t kill Rick himself. Negan says Spencer has no guts and disembowels him with a very large, serrated sword. Bye-bye, Spencer. Negan says how embarrassing – he did have guts. Everyone just stands there, stunned. Negan says someone clean this mess up, but there are no volunteers. Negan asks if anyone wants to finish the game with him, but there are no takers for that either. Rosita pulls out her gun and fires.

Rick hears the shot and moves faster.

The bullet has hit Lucille. Arat takes Rosita to the ground. Negan is like, what is this? and shows them the bullet. He says it was homemade. He tells Rosita that she might be stupid, but she showed ingenuity. Arat holds a knife to Rosita’s face. Negan says Lucille’s surface isn’t going to be the same, so why should hers? Rosita says she made the bullet herself. He says it’s a shame to mess up her face, and he’ll ask again. Rosita insists it was her. He says have it her way and tells Arat to kill someone. She shoots Olivia.

Rick and Aaron run up. Rick tells Negan that they had an agreement. Negan says he’s losing his voice from all this yelling, and I wonder if it was an ad-lib. Negan tells Rick that they started the relationship on a bad a note and will never braid each other’s hair or have sleepovers, but he’s reasonable. He tells Rick what Carl tried, and says he brought him home and fed him spaghetti. He says another one of Rick’s people wanted Negan to kill Rick, and he took him out. Another one shot Lucille trying to kill him, and now Rick has one less mouth to feed. Rick tells him his sh*t’s waiting for him at the gate, so just go. Negan says as soon as he finds out who made the bullet.

Rosita again says it was her, but Eugene says it wasn’t; it was him. He starts giving the formula, and Negan says he believes him. He asks Lucille for strength. He tells Rick he’s relieving him of his bullet maker and whatever he left for him, but whatever he scavenged isn’t good enough, and he’s in a serious hole after today. Rosita cries for them to take her instead.

Negan tells Rick his kitchen is a mess and see him next time. Rick is a mess. Crane shot of Rick, the pool table, Spencer, and a whole lot of blood.

Uh-oh Spencer comes back, zombified. Rick stabs him in the head. Good riddance.

Rick is in a cell of some kind. Michonne enters. They hug. She says she found what she was looking for. She wanted to go with him and Aaron, but couldn’t; she had to go her way. When she found it, she realized that she didn’t want it to be her way, but theirs. She says there’s more of them than they thought. It’s not even close; they’re way outnumbered, but it doesn’t change the way she feels. They’re still alive. So much has happened that they shouldn’t have lived through. Despite or because of it, the both of them are still standing. They’ll stay standing, but how do they make it mean something? Michonne says that Rick once told her they’re the ones who get things done, they’re the ones who live, that’s why they have to fight. They have to fight for Judith, Carl, Hilltop, Alexandria, and all of them. They can find a way to beat them. But only if they do it together.

Rick says he knows that now. They kiss.

Maggie climbs to the top of the wall. We’re back where we began. She sees something and smiles. She calls to Sasha and Enid. The group is back. Rick tells her that she was right. She told them to get ready to fight, but he didn’t and couldn’t listen. He can now. Daryl and Jesus are with them. Sasha and Rosita smile at one another, and Daryl hugs everyone. He looks like crap. He gives Rick his gun back. Rick looks at it like he’s never seen one before.

The group walks back into Hilltop.

The stranger who had been watching Rick and Aaron sneaks in behind them.

Next February, Rick gets ready to fight; he’s sure they can beat the Saviors, and asks Ezekiel to join them. It would be really funny if Negan was afraid of cats.

 

Dec10

December 9, 2016 – Charlotte’s Parents Are Revealed, Addie Fights The Man for Lucy & Some Free Quotes

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What I Watched Today

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

 General Hospital

Jason tells Curtis the information had better be good, since he didn’t exactly feel like meeting him.

Nell goes to Sonny’s house. She asks why he needs to see her, and he gives her the necklace she lost. She asks where he found it, and he tells her under the bed. He says if Carly had found it before he did, they’d have a big problem.

Ava tells Julian she hears congrats are in order; he’s being released. She talks about hiring nurses, and he says that won’t be necessary. She wants to hire some professionals, and remain distant and slightly amused at his condition. He tells her that he already has someone who’s perfect for the job.

Alexis puts a vodka nip in her coffee. Best. Takeout. Coffee. Ever.

Nathan tells Griff about his visit to Windemere. He wants to talk with him, thinking maybe they can come up with some more information. Griff gets a call, and says they’ll talk later. Dante tells Nathan that he can’t get ahold of Lulu.

Why isn’t Lulu using her phone? She hears me, and tells Maxie that she can’t get a signal. Maxie thinks Dr. Bellamy is either calling the cops or a total perv. Lulu says the longer they’re in there, the more nervous she’s getting, and they need to get out right now. Maxie opens the window blind and there’s a gate over the window.

On the phone, Dr. Bellamy tells Valentin what Lulu saw in the file. Valentin tells the doctor he’s going to have to clean things up sooner than he thought.

Dante thinks something is wrong. He tells Nathan that whatever the girls are doing in NYC involves Charlotte, not the wedding.

Lulu says no one has done anything to them yet. She says the doctor definitely didn’t buy her story, which means he doesn’t believe why Maxie is there either. Well, I think even if he bought Lulu’s story, he would figure Maxie’s was a ruse to get them in there. Maxie complains about having to go through two exams for nothing. Lulu thinks the doctor must be calling Valentin.

Curtis tells Jason that the footage the police have didn’t tell him anything new, but he realized there must be more footage elsewhere. He chatted up the drugstore manager and voila! He shows Jason a homeless man who probably wasn’t interviewed. Jason sees a guy go behind Julian’s car and then drop a Chinese takeout bag in a trash can. He says they have to find the bag

Sonny asks Nell if they can talk. He says he slept with her and shouldn’t have, and now they have to deal with the consequences. Nell says it’s been rough seeing Carly. She has to brace herself before going into work, so it must be worse for him. She talks about Carly and Sonny’s connection, and says most people don’t have a connection like that. She’s afraid if Carly finds out, the connection might be broken. She agrees they should keep it a secret, and swears she’s not going to hurt any of them. Sonny says he’s figured out a way to resolve the situation.

Ava asks if Julian has vetted the health care professionals he’s hiring. He says she’s been vetted. Ava is like, she not they? She says she hopes whoever it is can double as a bodyguard. Julian says he can’t wait to get out of the hospital. Ava tells him nice try, changing the subject. She says that he’s unusually calm, and she wants to know what’s going on. In the meantime, whoever ran him over is still out there, and he needs to trust the people around him. He says he does, and she tells him to spill it. He says it’s not a healthcare worker at all, but here she is now. Alexis walks in.

Griff tells Dante that Lulu seemed driven, anxious, and determined before she left. He shows Dante and Nathan a picture of Dr. Bellamy on his phone, and explains he had shown it to her. Dante and Nathan leave for NYC.

Dr. Bellamy tells Lulu and Maxie that they’re good hostages. Maxie says it’s not their first rodeo, and Lulu adds that their husbands are detectives. The doctor says she’s probably already figured out that it’s a dead spot, and tells them not to bother screaming; it will just annoy him. Maxie says he’s in trouble, and Dr. Bellamy says they’re the ones who broke in and they need to just sit tight. He leaves, and Maxie tells Lulu that it’s up to them to get themselves out. She starts picking out some surgical instruments for weapons.

Jason digs around in a dumpster. Curtis is just standing there, and Jason says he thought finding the truth was important to him, so get in the other dumpster. Curtis says the way he sees it, Julian was setting Sonny up the whole time. Jason tells him get moving.

Sonny tells Nell that she doesn’t have to deal with it anymore. He says she was working for the school system in Atlanta and even though her position was terminated, he knows people. They have a job waiting for her. He hands her an envelope and says she can start teaching at the beginning of the year and he got her a higher salary. She says he can’t let her go.

Julian tells Ava that Alexis will be taking care of him at Ava’s penthouse. Ava asks how Alexis feels about that. Alexis asks Julian for the paperwork, takes it and walks out. She gives Griff the confidentiality form, so he can tell her what she needs to know to take care of Julian. He doesn’t get it. He says she did everything to put Julian behind bars, and he was under the impression she wanted justice.

Ava tells Julian that Alexis isn’t a nurse, and even if she was, it would be a horrible choice. Ava says he tied to kill her and she tried to put him away. She says no matter how much he clings to the emotional attachment, Alexis doesn’t share it; she hates him. He says contempt is better than indifference. Ava says playing head games with Alexis should be the last thing on his list of concerns. Someone tried to kill him twice, and maybe they won’t fail the third time. All of a sudden, the light bulb comes on, and Ava knows it was Alexis who hit him.

Nell says that Sonny can’t throw her away like garbage. He says he’s not; he’s just trying to help. He thought she could get on with her life. She says she has no friends or family in Atlanta. He doesn’t see how that’s possible. She says where she lives, her qualities aren’t admired, and kindness is considered weakness. Sonny says that’s how he grew up, but Michael taught him that kindness is strength. Nell says that even if she went back, she wouldn’t be able to forget, and it would be a reminder of how she screwed up in Port Charles. She thanks him for reminding her that she has a purpose now. When she met Josslyn, she realized the worst thing that happened to her is the best thing that happened to someone else. She says eventually she’ll forget about what happened between her and Sonny. She wants to continue building her life with the people she cares about, and asks him not to send her away.

Curtis complains to Jason about Julian. He says when he got too close to the truth, Julian terminated their relationship, and no one does that to him. The cop in him wants justice, and if his mom could see him in a dumpster, she’d slap him. Jason asks him to talk less and look more. Curtis finds some old World’s Fair glasses from 1939 that are in perfect condition despite the lack of packing material, and sets them aside. Like any of us would find something that good in a dumpster. Curtis is startled by something and jumps to the top of the dumpster. Jason and I laugh.

Lulu tells Maxie to hide behind the door. She’ll scream to get the doctor in there, and Maxie can jump him. Too late, he’s in already. He says they’re free to leave the exam room, and to put the instruments down; they won’t need them. In the office, Valentin introduces himself to Maxie. He says Lulu must have a lot of questions and she smacks him across the face.

Curtis tells Jason that there was a rat the size of a Doberman. He talks about rats carrying diseases and says now he’s in a dumpster looking for months old garbage. Jason finds a Chinese takeout bag.

Ava is worried about another attempt on Julian’s life. She says he’s making Alexis do this, and they didn’t get along when she was happy with him. She says if Alexis had no qualms about killing him in a public parking lot, why wouldn’t she try in the privacy of the apartment? He says Alexis didn’t try to kill him.

Griff asks how Alexis can be willing to help Julian. She says she’ll answer when he tells her why it’s his business. He says Julian killed his father, which she can’t argue with. She says it’s an emotional situation that’s weighing heavily on her. She would appreciate someone to confide in, and asks if he’s still a priest. He says yes, and she asks if he can keep a confidence.

Sonny says he’s not making Nell do anything. Nell says she understands that he was just sparing her pain. Sonny says just forget about it then. She tells him that she has to get ready for the gala, and asks if he can get her some tea, as she feels light-headed. She promises to never tell Carly about what happened, and Sonny believes her. When he’s out of the room, she listens to what she just recorded on her phone.

The bag Jason finds contains everything you’d need to plant a bomb. Curtis thinks the fingerprints might be preserved as well because of the way it’s wrapped. This doesn’t say much for Julian’s guy, who threw everything out in the same place and in the same bag, while he was being videotaped from several different angles, and left DNA evidence. Seriously, Julian needs to rethink his mob staff.

Valentin says Lulu has every reason to be upset, but he needs to explain. Maxie says imprisoning people it getting to be a thing with him. He tells Dr. Bellamy that he must have a delivery to attend to at the hospital, and the doctor leaves. Valentin asks Lulu to be an adult, because he needs to explain things. She wonders why she should believe anything he says. He tells her that he’s never lied to her except by omission, and there was reason for that. He says it’s awkward, but here they are. He wants to tell her something, but Nathan and Dante bust in. Valentin tells them that there’s something they all deserve to know. How is it possible for these people to travel so quickly? Yesterday, Hayden made it sound like they were close to Niagara Falls.

Maxie tells Nathan that Dr. Bellamy was keeping them prisoner, and wants him to arrest Valentin. Valentin says he knew this day would come, and it’s time they knew the truth. Dante wants to know what happened.

Alexis tells Griff that she doesn’t think her daughters would understand. She doesn’t know how long she can keep it from them, but asks him not to share the information. She says Julian has done horrible things, mostly to her, and she thought she’d hate him forever. When she found out he was in the hospital, she just found herself getting involved. She says the only way she could move on was by forgiving people, including Julian. Griff understands wanting to forgive, but devoting her days to taking care of Julian doesn’t seem like something she’d do.

Julian tells Ava not to say anything, and she says what is she going to do, go to the cops? Julian says it was an accident. Ava says no it wasn’t. He says he knows Alexis is telling the truth, and let’s leave it at that. Ava thinks he’s keeping something from her.

Nell thanks Sonny for the tea, and for finding the necklace. They make small talk. He says he knows what it’s like to fight for your place in the world, and he’s not standing in her way. She takes his hand and promises to stay quiet. Jason walks in. Because he never knocks.

Jason apologizes for barging in. Nell says she’s on her way to meet Michael anyway, and excuses herself. Jason tells Sonny about the security footage. Sonny isn’t paying attention, and Jason asks what he’s missing.

Alexis says she’s sorry that Griff doesn’t’ understand, but he doesn’t have to. He says she’s right, and goes to sign the forms.

Ava doesn’t see how any good can come of this. Julian says he knows what he’s doing and everything will be crystal clear.

Valentin says it’s no secret that Claudette lied about who Charlotte’s father was, but she lied about something else – that she was Charlotte’s mother. He confirms for Lulu that the both of them are Charlotte’s parents.

On Monday, Jason asks Sonny what’s going on, Kiki asks if the offer still stands, and Dillon is shocked about Nina’s new boyfriend. Nina is now consistently calling Valentin her boyfriend, but I find that word odd sounding once you’re past college age. Although I don’t know what other term to use. Significant other sounds clinical. We have to come up with something else.

Z Nation

Addie continues on Lucy’s trail. She sneaks around a marina, hearing laughter somewhere. She sees Lucy playing with a bunch of zombies. She’s also lighting matches near a gas pump. Addie reveals herself, and stomps out a match. Lucy is glad to see her, and shows her how she can play patty-cake with one of the zombies. She says the zombie thinks Addie is her mom. She’s obviously got a connection to them like Murphy does.

Addie asks Lucy where The Man is. Addie tells her that they have to go before The Man gets back, but Lucy says she likes her new friends. Addie says she’ll pike them if Lucy doesn’t get a move on, and Lucy agrees to leave. The Man comes out of nowhere, and says no one is going anywhere. He cracks Addie in the face with a gas can, and she whacks him with her spiked thing. Lucy screams and it carries into the next county.

The Man starts shooting the zombies. He loses his gun and faces Addie. Lucy screams again.

The Man grabs what looks like a metal oar, and they duel, but a zombie comes up behind him. He dispatches it, and then Addie has the same problem. The Man gets her weapon away. He says if she lets Lucy go now, he won’t kill her. Lucy throws a match and some gas is lit on fire. She tells Addie to run, and takes off herself. Addie picks up her weapon and follows. The man walks through the fire after them.

Lucy calls to Addie. The Man follows like Yul Brynner in Westworld, slow and steady, whacking zombies along the way. A zombie pops out of a boat and Addie kills it. The Man tells her she could make things easier and just walk away. She says she could say the same thing for him, and it’s got to do with saving humanity. He asks what humanity has done for her. She says more than some rich a-holes from Zona, and asks what they’ve done for him and why he doesn’t quit. He says everyone has a job to do.

The zombies are accumulating, and Addie gets on one of the boats. Lucy finds an arm and takes a bite. The Man tells her not to eat garbage off the ground. He grabs her and drives away as she screams for Addie.

The fire travels along a rope to the boat. Addie is trapped. The boat starts to fill with smoke, and zombies are gathering. Addie punches out a window and jumps out. The boat explodes as she runs down the pier. She finds her bike, but it’s wrecked. She sees another boat and has an idea. She goes inside and looks for tools, grabbing some liquor too, and eating a piece of discovered chocolate. She goes back out to the bike and tinkers with it. She sees a disembodied arm crawling. Lucy is apparently making the hand point in the direction she’s going in.

Lucy tells The Man he can’t tell her what to do; he’s not her dad. She says they all hate him. She lists their names, and he says he doesn’t know them. She says he killed them, and they’re going to eat him. She sing-songs, you’re gonna die; they’re gonna eat you, and he yells at her to sit down and shut up. She says he can’t make her; she’s a magical princess. He slams into a zombie on the road which distresses Lucy. She sings again, and he runs another one down. After the third time, she says she’ll promise to be quiet. She does that I’m-locking-my-lips gesture and he pretends to take the key.

Addie gets the bike going again and heads north, the direction the arm is pointing. She sees the car in the distance and goes through the forest. The Man sees two cars blocking the road. Were those there or is Addie that fast? The Man gets out, drawing his gun. Someone shoots him. Addie comes out and kicks the gun away from his body. I guess she is that fast. She gets in the car. Lucy tells her The Man is mean. Addie asks which way he was taking her; they’re going to go in the opposite direction. As soon as they’re gone, The Man’s hand twitches.

Doc follows Addie’s trail. She’s left him a message scrawled on the boathouse. He sees the arm and figures it’s talking to him. It points. He says Lucy is a genius, and when a zombie arm tells you to go north, go north.

Addie takes Lucy shopping. She sees no reason Lucy can’t be stylish, and tells her no jumpsuits or overalls. Lucy sees a bra, and Addie tells her it’s a medieval torture device, and explains what it’s for. Lucy asks if her mom wore one, and Addie says probably. Lucy says her mom was a warrior queen, but left her. Addie says she sacrificed herself – she died so Lucy could live. Lucy asks if she’s dead dead and Addie says yes; she was there. Lucy says she doesn’t know everything. Her mom was special, and her dad wouldn’t let her die. As Lucy gets agitated, so do the zombies wandering around. Lucy tells Addie to leave her alone, because she’s suddenly a tween.

The Man comes to. The bullet hasn’t gone all the way into him, and he pulls it out of his chest.

Addie tells Lucy they have to go. Lucy says she wants her mom. Addie says she’s old enough to understand that people die. The more you love them the more likely they are to bite it unexpectedly. Lucy says her father would have saved her mom, but Addie says there were too many zombies even for him. Lucy asks how her mom saved her. Addie says she killed a lot of zombies who were after her. Lucy asks why they always have to kill. Addie says they’re not like her, and if they don’t kill the zombies, the zombies will kill them. Lucy says the zombies just don’t know any better. Addie says they don’t know anything. It’s just a dead body and a virus keeping it going.

Lucy gets into the zombies’ heads, and tells Addie their names. Uh-oh. The Man is suddenly there.

The Man takes Lucy outside, but she takes off running. Addie follows them. Lucy runs to a creek. Addie almost gets the man with her weapon, but he smacks it out of her hand as well as her gun. They fist fight. The Man knocks Addie out. Lucy picks up a rock and throws it at him. Addie recovers and jumps on his back. He twists her arm behind her back and dislocates her shoulder. She grabs him with the other arm. He drags her to the water and tries to drown her. Lucy says she’ll go. Addie stops moving, but I don’t think she’s dead. The Man scoops Lucy up.

Back at the car, The Man tells Lucy to be quiet or he’ll shut her mouth for her, and binds her wrists with duct tape. They drive away. Lucy tells The Man she’s in pain. She smacks him and he stops the car. She breaks the bonds around her wrists. She’s a teenager now, and jumps into the front seat. The Man is like, oh no, a teen, and she starts crying. I think she has PMS. She gets out and he follows. She wants chocolate. Yep, PMS. He tries to grab her, and she tries to bite him. She says she needs chocolate. The zombies start growling and he says, fine. He piggybacks her, and she says next time just do what she says.

Doc bicycles along. He sees a car leaving a trail of fire. It’s a DeLorean. Another Doc and 10K get out, like Marty McFly and Doc in Back to the Future. Future Doc tells real Doc to get in. Doc asks if it won’t mess up the time continuum, and the car disappears. He pulls a joint out of his pocket and smells it.

Addie wakes up on the rocks and sees a zombie. She can’t move very fast, but luckily, neither can he. She gets up and moves along the rocks into the forest. Another zombie joins him, but Addie is having a hard time getting it together. She whacks them both, but nearly faints from shoulder pain.

The Man takes Lucy to a general store and looks for chocolate. She asks what’s wrong with him that he can’t find it. He tells her that it’s the apocalypse and not many treats are left. She says it’s not a treat, it’s medicine; that’s what Addie told her. He tells her to keep the zombies back, and she laughs because he’s afraid of them. All of a sudden, she  says she’s bleeding and dying. She gets up, leaving a blue puddle, and gets hysterical. The Man tells her to stop screaming. He says she’s just growing up. He says she’s fine, and they’ll get her chocolate somewhere else.

Lucy tells him to go. The zombies look at him in a threatening manner, and she tells him to go now.

Addie gets up. She slams her shoulder into a tree to reset it. I feel her pain.

The Man says Lucy is his responsibility, and he’s not leaving without her. He says he’ll kill her friends, and she tells him they’re ready to die for her. She bites one of them and tells The Man not to follow her. She walks out and he’s left with the rest of the zombies.

Addie moves along the creek.

Lucy gets in the car. The zombie stands next to the car, telepathically telling her how to drive. She takes off. The Man comes out to see her drive away. He calls to her and stands in her pathway. She says let’s see how you like it, and runs him down.

Addie is back at her bike, but hears a car and hides. Lucy pulls over. She tells Addie that was awesome. She says that her friends helped her get away. The Man grabs Lucy from under the truck. I say oh sh*t! out loud. Addie tells him not to hurt her; she’s too valuable. The Man says Addie isn’t, and he’ll kill her next time, no matter how much Lucy cries. He drives off with Lucy.

Addie is a mess, but gets back on the bike. It won’t start. She scratchess DXD with an arrow into it. A car comes by and she flags it down. She puts down her weapon, acting like she’s harmless, but draws her gun and says it’s an emergency. The woman says screw you, and tries to grab her own gun, but Addie is faster and pulls her out of the car. She says nothing personal, just the survival of humanity, and drives away. The woman chases the car. Addie sees a little girl in the back seat. She tells her she can’t go where Addie is going, and her mommy will find her. She leaves the girl on the road with the gun.  The little girl immediately shoots a zombie. Her mother comes running to her, but the girl looks nonplussed.

Addie sees Doc. She stops the car and gets out. They look at one another, saying nothing. They both get in the car. The poor zombie from the store stumbles up the road.

Next time, a hitchhiking zombie and Murphy is out to kill The Man.

Quotes of the Week

I love walking in your front door. It gives me a moment in my gown. — Porsha to Phaedra on The Real Housewives of Atlanta – please note that this was at midday

If you don’t read the newspaper, you’re uninformed. If you do read it, you’re misinformed. — Denzel Washington

If God sends you on stony paths, He will provide you with strong shoes. — Alexander McLaren

 

Dec5

December 4, 2016 – Emma Lives in a Dreamworld, Negan Wants to Live in Alexandria & Westworld Lives On for Another Season – But When?

Posted on by
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What I Watched Today
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)

Once Upon a Time

The Evil Queen tells Regina that she wants “the best version of us.” She says the only way for Regina to hurt her is to hurt herself, and tells her that love is weakness. Emma uses her sword to slice the Evil Queen’s cheek and nothing happens to Regina. The evil queen disappears, poof! in a cloud of purple smoke, and Emma says it’s possible kill her.

The Evil Queen reappears elsewhere. Gold tells her it looks like the Savior found a weapon. He says he can focus on finding his son and she can prepare to die. He puts the cuff on her so he can track her whereabouts. It’s like a GPS. He says at the end of the day, if Emma hasn’t done away with her, after he’s done finding his son, hell gladly finish the job.

Snow sleeps. Emma says the Evil Queen needs to die. Hook tells her not to do it. Henry says what if this is how she dies? There’s no face under the hood in her vision, so for all they know, the queen kills her. Emma has a mini vision. She tells Regina to stay with Henry. Hook, David, and Emma set off to face the queen. They hear a cry for help and run into Granny’s. Jasmine is tied to a chair. The Evil Queen says it’s not about Jasmine, it’s about her – always. She can snap Jasmine’s neck before they step any closer. She rubs the lamp and Aladdin appears, poof! in a cloud of yellow smoke. She says she has three wishes. He says they come at a price. She says she’s not going to wish for her, but something someone else wants. She wishes that Emma’s wish to not be the Savior be granted. Emma says no, and charges forward. Aladdin raises his hand and she disappears. No poof or anything though. I just thought. What if you weren’t done with your three wishes yet, and someone else got ahold of the lamp? Does that mean you lose out?

Somewhere, it’s Emma’s birthday. She’s a princess and the palace is celebrating. She didn’t wish for anything, since everything she’s ever wanted is already there. Snow and David are now king and queen, and older. Snow asks Emma what’s wrong. Emma says she had a dream that the queen was successful with her curse and she was the Savior. Snow says that was avoided. Emma says she was in a fantastical land, but David says it was just a dream. Emma says when she woke up, she found this, and shows them a sword that was under her bed – the same one as in Storybrooke Emma’s vision. Henry runs in saying he had been practicing for tomorrow and sorry he’s late. He thinks the sword is for him. Emma says his father would be proud, and he says he wishes he’d known him. They look at his portrait, and Emma says he’s watching over Henry. David says time to celebrate, and Snow tells Henry put the sword away; this family is done fighting. Henry gets a weird look on his face. Or maybe it’s just me reading too much into it.

Back in the future, Hook and David start to argue, and Regina says that’s just what the Evil Queen wants. Regina says she’s thrown a lot of punches, but she knows a way to get her back.

Gold makes magic that includes a strand of his hair. He asks a globe to show him his son. Nope. Didn’t happen.

Aladdin makes a martini for the Evil Queen. She tells him it’s a request though, not a wish. She flirts with Aladdin and he says, eww. Regina walks in. The Evil Queen tells her that wishes can’t be undone, but tells her to have a seat, and tells Aladdin to make another drink. She says there was a time all Regina wanted was to tear Snow and David apart and kick Emma out of Storybrooke, and now it’s been done. She gives a one-sided toast. She tells Regina she’s won and can’t even admit it, but that victory feels luxurious. Regina says she’s right, they are the same person, so she’s not the only master of the lamp.

Regina asks to be sent to the same place as Emma. Aladdin obeys.

Regina is in a beautiful wood. She calls out for Emma. She hears the dwarfs whistling on their way to work, and asks if they’ve seen Emma. They think the Evil Queen is back and Grumpy tells the others to run and warn everyone that the war isn’t over.

Regina sees a statue marking the spot where she was defeated by Snow and David. She sees Emma dancing around, carrying a basket of flowers, and humming Someday My Prince Will Come. Regina frightens her, but she says she’s Emma’s friend and none of this is real. Emma thinks she’s the Evil Queen and tells her that she’s been banished. Regina says she risked her life coming here because Emma is the Savior and her family needs her.

An arrow nearly misses her. David and Snow have arrived. David tells Regina that this is their kingdom now. Snow says they’re protecting their people. Regina tries to convince Emma that this isn’t real, saying some part of Emma must know. David tries to attack her with his sword, and she disappears, poof! in a puff of purple smoke.

Moving forward, David is freaking out. He wants to get the lamp. Hook stops him and says they’re out-gunned and they need a plan. Jasmine wonders what the Evil Queen is doing to Aladdin. Probably not what she’d like to be doing. David says to meet him at the sheriff’s station in an hour. The Evil Queen’s reign ends today.

Somewhere in the Enchanted Forest, Regina goes into a mountain where there’s a prison cell. Rumpelstiltskin is in it, humming the tune of the day, Someday My Prince Will Come. He tells her to come closer and says the apprentice is back to see the old master. Regina says she needs his help. He says she’s his biggest failure, so why would he help? She says she’s not the Evil Queen in this reality, and it’s not even a reality, it’s all fake – he’s fake. She says the world was created by a wish to trap Emma.

Rumpel says maybe he can help her and wants a deal. Regina says he’s not even real. He says he wants his freedom in return, and she says it’s not worth it. He says if the world isn’t real, what’s the harm? She says he has a point, but she knows better than to deal with him in any realm. He tells her that every Savior needs a villain, and that a real queen with purpose can remind Emma that the world needs a savior. Show her inner darkness, and the Savior will be reborn. Regina says they’re just old friends talking, so they haven’t made a deal. Rumpel says she doesn’t know the way back to Storybrooke. Regina wonders how he knows the name of the town she’s from, and he says he can find her a magic bean, but it will cost her. She opens the cell.

He says he needs fresh air and starts to go, but she asks about the bean. He tells her to meet him tomorrow at noon by the lake. He says if she wants to be an Evil Queen, she should look like one. In a puff of purple smoke, poof! she changes into an Evil Queen outfit. He tells her to go be evil.

In Storybrooke time, Gold sees Belle. She says he sped up her pregnancy and the fairies sped up her recovery. He tells her their son is gone; he’s not anywhere. He says he knows his words mean nothing, so he’ll give her actions. He gives Belle a card with Mother Superior’s number, so she can verify his story. Mother Superior isn’t doing too well. She’s been walloped by the Black Fairy who’s kidnapped Gideon.

Where fairy tales happen, everyone gathers for Prince Henry to be knighted. He makes his entrance wearing some really cool copper armor. Snow takes the infamous sword out, and she and David say the stuff you say when you knight someone. Before Henry can be dubbed, Regina as the Evil Queen pops in and says sorry she’s late. She throws the knights aside and freezes David and Snow, saying she vows to destroy their happiness. Emma asks her not to hurt her parents. Regina says hurting them is the point, unless she knows a hero who can stop her (wink-wink). Emma begs for mercy. Regina tells her to look for the hero, and when you find one, you know where to find us. The three disappear, poof! in a puff of purple smoke.

In Storybrooke, the real Evil Queen confronts David. He tries to attack her, and she blows him back with magic. She tells him that he can’t kill her. He picks up the lamp, saying he can do something much worse. He rubs the lamp and Aladdin appears. He tells Aladdin that he has a new master. So back to my original question. She loses the one she has left now? Or is it just postponed? What are the lamp rules?

The Evil Queen tells David not to dabble in forces he doesn’t understand. Aladdin reminds him wishes come with a price. He says the only one paying a price will be her. He wishes the Evil Queen gets what she deserves. Nothing happens. Aladdin says he granted the wish. The Evil Queen says David wasted it. She wanted to tear the family apart and she did. She already has what she deserves. Okay, so doesn’t he have two more wishes now? This is the kind of nonsense I think about while watching this.

David rushes her, and she stops him mid-stride. Hook and Jasmine enter. Hook says they have the lamp and the Evil Queen is lost. She drops David, saying death is too good for him and she’d rather watch him suffer. She disappears, poof! You know the rest.

In the unreal world, the Evil Queen has the Charmings prisoner. Prince David says they always defeat her. Emma shows up with a box. Regina says she knew Emma would find the hero in her, but it’s the key to the kingdom. Emma wants to surrender. Regina says she doesn’t want the key; she just wants Emma to get back to Storybrooke. Emma says that was the name of the place in her dream. Regina says this is the dream, and she’s going to have to wake her. She takes David and Snow’s hearts and says stop her or they die. Emma says she’s not the Savior. Regina says she knows how to fight when she has to and crushes the hearts to dust. Emma starts to weep. Regina says she doesn’t remember and can’t fight. Henry comes in and says the Evil Queen will pay. Emma tries to stop him. He says he has the sword. Regina says she won’t fight, and Henry throws the sword at her. Emma stops it, surprising herself. Regina says she saved her. Emma says Regina came to this crazy land to save her, so it’s fair. She remembers. She asks if her parents are dead, and Regina reminds her that they’re not real. Emma thanks Regina, and says, but it was very dark. She tells Regina let’s go stop the real Evil Queen.

Walking the streets of Storybrooke at night, the Evil Queen says the town is almost tolerable when the peasantry is hidden away. A hooded figure comes out of Granny’s. She asks who the hell are you? and gets blown back. She starts to follow, and the hooded figure turns her into a cobra in a cage.

It’s time for Regina and Emma to go back, and Regina wonders where Rumpel is. Surprisingly, he shows up. He tells her to throw the bean and think of where she wants to go. He disappears, poof! in a puff of red smoke.

At the Charming’s Storybrooke apartment, David is worried that he’s like his brother. Hook tells him to grow up and kiss his wife. Jasmine comes in with the lamp, and suggests that David use it to break the curse with Snow. He gives it back to her, trusting she’ll be wise with it. She says that she and Aladdin have to find Agribah. Henry asks if she’s sure, and she says they have to make the sacrifice. Aladdin gives Henry a pendant for Emma, from one savior to another. Jasmine wishes to go to Agribah and they disappear. Okay, I wasn’t totally paying attention, but it was probably poof! in a puff of yellow smoke.

Grumpy comes in with the snake. He tells them it’s the Evil Queen and a guy in a hood put her in there. David asks if he saw who was under the hood.

The hooded figure comes into Gold’s shop. It’s Gold and Belle’s son, Gideon.

At the lake, Regina throws the bean and it turns into a green whirlpool. She and Emma are about to leap in, when arrows fly past them. It’s Robin. He says it’s a robbery and to give him their jewelry. Regina is mesmerized, seeing him again, and starts to walk toward him. Emma tells her he’s not real, but she doesn’t pay attention. The whirlpool disappears.

In March, a war is coming to Storybrooke where romance, danger and hope collide.

The Walking Dead

Michonne walks along the road, whistling Farmer in the Dell. A zombie lumbers out of the forest. And another. They trail behind her. She drops her bag, stabs one in the head and decapitates the other. She drags the headless one’s body away. Her radio sits unattended.

Jesus and Carl are in the back of the truck with the scotch. Jesus cuts open the bottom of one of the boxes. He opens one of the bottles and leaves a trail, like breadcrumbs. He tells Carl that they should bail and walk the rest of the way. He says to roll with the fall and stay in the blind spot. Jesus goes first and Carl waves good-by. Brat!

The truck stops. A guy picks up the box that Jesus cut, and the bottom falls out. Carl shoots a few people and says no one else needs to die, he just wants Negan. Negan comes out whistling (what’s up with that tonight?) and says he’s adorable. He asks if Carl picked the gun because it looks cool. A couple of people rush Carl and he shoots, but gets pulled down. Negan tells Dwight to back off, saying that’s no way to treat a new guest and he wants to show him around.

Negan tells Carl he has the same stank eye as his dad, but half as good since he only has one eye. What a card! We see the zombie target practice or whatever it is, and Daryl is in with the zombies. Negan asks him how the job is going. I hope it pays well. Carl lets Negan help him up. Dwight takes Daryl out to learn grub prep. Carl asks what he’s going to do to him. Negan tells him not to shatter his image of him as a bad-ass and says screw him if he thinks he’s going to ruin the surprise.

He taks Carl into a warehouse. A bunch of people are there they kneel when they see Negan. He tells them to work hard and play by the rules. He says everyone gets fresh vegetables tonight for dinner – no points needed. They applaud, and he tells Carl that respect is cool.

Eugene and Rosita walk to the gate. She says they aren’t doing anything for Negan. Spencer tells her not to fight it. Father Gabriel says maybe they should all go together. Spencer says they have to produce for the Saviors; it’s like taxes. He tells Rosita not to be pissed at him. He didn’t do this; Rick did. She tells him to pay his taxes from all the stuff he stole and leave her alone. She leaves with Eugene. Spencer gets into the car with Gabriel.

Negan shows Carl his harem. He tells him to knock himself out. He asks Sherry if he can talk to her. They step aside and he asks what happened with Amber and Mark she says what they talk about when he’s not there is none of his business. Wow. She’s brave. He tells her that he heard Mark skipped out on a directive and needs to know if it’s true. He says there are rules for a reason and nothing matters if you’re dead. She tells him to calm down, but he says he’s never hit any of them. She says what he does is worse. He smiles and says, to be continued.

Negan gives Carl a beer. Amber is crying. He tells her he doesn’t want anyone there who doesn’t want to be there. If she wants to leave and go back to Mark, she can. But she can’t cheat on him. He says there are plenty of gals who would like to take her place. He suggests he put her on the same job as Mark and her mom. I’m assuming they’re on zombie duty. She tells him no, and he says she knows what that means. She tells him she loves him and he says of course, and that it will all work out for her.

Negan tells Sherry that he wasn’t hard on her, and she calls him an a-hole. They start kissing. Dwight brings in Daryl, who’s job tonight is serving hors d’oevres. Daryl asks why Carl is here. Negan says what they talk about when he isn’t here is none of his business, and not to make him put the toothpick in his hand through the only eye Carl has. He tells Dwight to fire up the furnace. It’s time for deja vu. Daryl lingers and Dwight pulls him out the door.

Rick tells Aaron they only have today to find something. The climb over a fence that has a sign saying the only thing to be found there is trouble.

Spencer drives with Gabriel. He asks if thoughts are a sin, but Gabriel says they’re just thoughts; it’s our actions that matter in the end. Spencer says he hates Rick, and that his mother served in congress and brought out the good in people. Gabriel says Rick brought out the good in him by inspiring him; he kept everyone together. He says it wasn’t Rick’s fault. Gabriel says that Spencer looks at it a different way, but they’re here now and can look to the future. Spencer says what future? There isn’t any with Rick in charge. He says the only good thing that could happen is Rick not making it back. Gabriel tells him to stop the car.

He tells Spencer that what he’s saying doesn’t make him a sinner, but does make him a tremendous sh*t. Just for now; it doesn’t have to be terminal. He gets out of the car and says he’s going back. Spencer gets out and jets into the forest. He sees a zombie hunter up on a blind.

In Negan’s parlor, Carl asks Negan if the women are actually his wives. Negan says he thought why not make life better? He tells Carl to sit and says let’s get started. He wants to get to know Carl better. He says Carl is smart. He’d expect a kid his age to be moping around, but instead he has a mission. He came looking for Negan, but he’s not going to let things slide. He asks if Carl really wants to piss him off, and asks to see Carl’s non-eye. Carl takes his bandana off and Negan goes on about how gross it is. He asks to touch it. What is he, ten? He says it’s easy to forget Carl is just a kid, and he was just screwing around.

There’s a knock at the door. Fat Joseph brings Lucille in, telling Negan that he left it by the truck. Negan tells Carl that it might not be a hit with hit ladies, but no one will want to screw with someone who looks like him. He asks Fat Joseph if he treated Lucille like a lady. He makes a joke, Fat Joseph laughs, and Negan tells him get out. He tells Carl that this is the sh*t his dad should be teaching him – men busting each other’s balls. I could almost like this guy.

Negan asks what Carl does for fun and if he likes music. He wants Carl to sing. He says that Carl mowed down two of his men, and he wants something in return. Carl is like, no, and Negan points Lucille at him and says start singing. Carl starts to sing You Are My Sunshine. Negan swings the bat around as Carl sings badly. He tells Carl not to let him be a distraction. Carl starts crying and now I want to hit him with the bat. No offense to the teen and tween hearts that are going pitty-pat right now.

Carl finishes the song, and Negan says Lucille loves being sung to more than she loves bashing brains, and mentions how weird that is. It’s weird all right. He asks if Carl’s mother sang that to him, and where she is now. By Carl’s reaction, Negan knows she’s dead, and he asks if Carl saw it happen. Carl says he shot her before she could turn. Negan says no wonder he’s a serial killer in the making, and tells him that was an example of breaking balls. He tells Carl to get up, because it should be ready.

Dwight tends the furnace. The crowd is back in the warehouse. Negan comes in, banging Lucille along the banister. He tells Carl to hold the bat. He tells the people that they know the deal. What’s going to happen will be hard to watch. He doesn’t want to do this, but he has to. Why? Because rules keep us in line. They survive and provide security to others, which is civilization. To the world, they’re the Saviors, but they can’t do it without rules. Rules make it work. It’s not easy, but there’s always a cost. If you try to cut corners, it’s the iron for you. He tells everyone to get up from their kneeling positions.

Mark is tied to a chair and Negan approaches him. Dwight takes a literal iron from the fire. Negan says, sorry, but it is what it is. Mark gets on iron on his face, and even Dwight can’t look. Mark passes out. Negan says it wasn’t so bad. Carl and Daryl lock eyes. Negan says Mark peed himself and tells Daryl to clean it up. He tells the doctor to do his thing.

Negan tells the crowd everything is cool. Let Mark’s face be a daily reminder that the rules matter. He hopes they all learned something, because he doesn’t want to have to do this again. He says Carl probably thinks he’s a lunatic. He says let’s figure out what to do with you, and leads Carl away.

Spencer gets a rope. He jiggles the hunter’s plaform until his weapon falls. Poor dude is just hanging there, and Spencer finally gets him down and goes through his pockets. There’s a note in there that I can’t read, but Spencer finds it of interest.

Rosita and Eugene go to the auto shop or whatever it is. Eugene says he didn’t want to come back here, and tells her no. She says she asked him to make her a bullet and he said yes, so make one. He says he can’t figure out any way it makes sense, and wants her to slow her roll. She says she’s not waiting, and he tells her that she’s being stupid. He’s analyzed it top to bottom, and Abe was right; they have the numbers. He says even if she’s willing to pay the price, it’s unlikely she’ll be the one who pays it. She says he’s not talking her out of it. He owes her and Abe. She says he’s a coward and weak. The only reason he’s alive is because he lied, and people feel sorry for him. She tells him to do something useful and make her a bullet. Eugene gets the bullet-making stuff ready.

Sherry is in the stairwell having a smoke. Dwight joins her. He tells her not to beat herself up about selling out Mark. She says that’s not what happened. Okay, don’t tell us or anything. He says whatever helps you sleep at night. For him, it’s watching TV until morning. She leaves before they get caught.

Carl wants his bandana back on, and Negan says no; he’s not done with him and he likes looking at his rat-ass bad-ass eye. Ha-ha! If nothing else, Negan is colorful. Carl asks why he hasn’t killed him, Rick or Daryl. Negan says Daryl is going to make a good soldier, and Carl’s dad is already getting him great stuff. As for him, they’ll see. It’s more productive and fun to break him. He asks what Carl thinks he should do. Does he kill him, iron his face, chop off his arm, what? Carl says he should jump out the window to save him the trouble of killing him. Negan says there’s the kid he knows and loves. Carl says he’s not doing anything and won’t. He should kill them, but he can’t. Negan says maybe he’s right and decides they should go on a ride. I’m not sure what to think about this exchange.

Jesus is on the top of the truck that Negan and Carl pull out in. Negan calls Daryl over. He says he’s taking the kid home. Daryl says if you do anything to him – and Negan tells Dwight that Daryl needs a time out and to put him in the box for a while. Daryl looks up while he’s being led away. There’s no Jesus on the top when it leaves though.

A note is slipped under Daryl’s cell door. it says go now.

Zombie piles! There’s a blockade of zombies in the road, and a woman has to stop her car. Michone comes out of nowhere and tells her to drop her weapons. She asks if Michonne wants her shoes too. Michonne says take her to Negan. They get in the car. The woman breaks quickly and tries to get the better of Michonne, but that doesn’t happen. Michonne tells her again to take her to Negan.

In Alexandria, Negan visits Olivia. He’s all happy and asks where Rick is. She says scavenging for him, and he says he’ll wait. She says they might not be back today. They’re out of everything and practically starving. He notes her weight and says not really. He’s so obviously mean, it’s funny. She starts crying, and he tells her she has no sense of humor. He apologizes for being rude, and says he thinks it would be enjoyable to screw her brains out if she’s agreeable. She slaps him. He says he’s about 50% more into her now. Okay, I have to say at this moment he made me laugh out loud. He asks her to make them lemonade.

When she leaves, he tells Carl to take him on the grand tour. He plays with the water and a dartboard while we hear a country tune. He sees baby Judith and loves on her, doing the coochy-coo thing.

Rick sneaks around with Aaron. They see a sign with long explaination and warning. It says if they’ve goten this far without being shot, the dude is dead. Maybe. They see a lake or river with zombies bobbing around in it.

Rosita has her bullet. She thanks Eugene and says she’s sorry for what she said. He says maybe the words, but not the intent. She meant it, she felt it, that’s her truth, and he’d like silence now. She got what she wanted and is just feeling bad.

Spencer drives up with a load of cans. He says they got it off a dead guy, and found all kinds of stuff like medical supplies. Rosita says he’s just going to give it to them ? He says that’s what Rick said to do, so that’s what they’re going to do. The gate to Alexiandria is opened, and they see that Negan is there.

Negan is on the porch, rocking Judith. He tells Carl that he likes it there, and might have to stay. He wonders why he’s trying so hard to keep Carl and Rick alive. Maybe he should bury them in a flower bed and settle into the suburbs.

Next time, the mid-season finale…sigh…

👢 Quick Westworld mention. After making a few failed attempts at watching HBO’s new drama, I caught a marathon a couple of weekends ago. It took me a minute, but I decided I’m in. I thought they were a bit heavy on the sub-plots, but let that pass because it’s so damned fascinating. I love me some Ed Harris and James Marsden as well. Obviously, it’s a far cry from the 1973 film, which I probably saw ten times in the theater. I could watch Yul Brynner chase Richard Benjamin around all day, and it was a lot cheaper back then.  (Digression: I was blessed to see Yul Brynner in a revival of The King and I on Broadway in the late 70s. Shall We Dance? is forever burned into my mind as one of my all time favorite moments in theater.) I do have the same desire with the series as I did for the original film – I’d like to see more of the park. It’s touched on by both that there are other worlds, most notably Roman World and Midieval World, but we don’t see much of them. I’d like to see those explored further, and it’s been hinted at that this will happen. Sadly, I also heard that Westworld might not return until 2018. Like Nancy Kerrigan, I cry, why? why?