Tag Archives: horror

May24

May 23, 2021 – Teddy Reveals What the Key Unlocks, Jumping Dead, Traveling Beyond, the Skinny On the Dead & Telephone

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What I Watched Today

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

Fear the Walking Dead

We hear the news on the television saying that patients no longer have their faculties, and the hospitals will no longer offer medical care, because the patients aren’t in their right minds. We see Teddy in a Department of Corrections uniform, writing notes. On the walls on his cell are news articles about him, and John Dorie Sr. arresting him, along with a picture of his mother. He hears someone yelling, no! and the guards drag a guy down the hall. Teddy tells him, don’t be afraid. Remember, the end is the beginning. He’s about begin a new life. A guard asks if Teddy actually believes all that bullsh*t he spews. Get it all out. He’ll walk this walk soon enough. Teddy sets aside his dinner tray, and goes back to his notes. Alarms sound, and all the doors open. Zombies come through the hall, and Teddy looks out, then goes back in his call. Chaos begins, and as they go by, an inmate attacks a guard, then a guard attacks an inmate. A zombie walks into Teddy’s cell, and backs him against the wall. Teddy holds the zombie back, and stabs it in the head with his pen. It drops to the floor and he looks at his mother’s picture, saying, he was right. He just needed to be patient. He tells his mother’s photo, it’s not bullsh*t. It’s revelation. He scoots past the mayhem, and out.

A loudspeaker says, you have been here before. You have lived this moment before. We don’t want to believe it. We don’t want to accept it. We are in a loop. Alicia lies on a mat on the floor, while the recording repeats. The world wears it’s ugliness on its sleeve. It has told us who it is… Riley comes in and asks if she’s ready to accept his word. She just looks at him, and he tosses her a can of soda. We hear, we must break it, or we are doomed to repeat it

Teddy comes in, and Alicia is sitting at a table. She said he stopped sending his errand buy, and he says it wasn’t his preferred method of abduction for her. She says, locking her up like a prisoner? and he says he was locked up once. He thought it was the end of the road, but it was the opposite. He’d hoped it would hold the same revelation as it did for him. She says, sorry to disappoint him, and he says he brought good news. They’ve found a new home. They’re packing up as they speak. The Holding served its purpose, but they needed something safer and sturdier, where they can truly begin again. Before they take those first steps together, he needs assurances that she’s dedicated and committed to what they’re doing. She says he’s not going to get them, and he asks what he is going to get. She says she doesn’t know. Probably something he doesn’t like. Riley says he’s wasting his time, and aims his gun at Alicia. Teddy says, Riley… and Riley says, leave her behind. Teddy grabs Riley’s balls from behind instead, and says, no. She’s coming with him. He tells Alicia, it’s surprising what pick up on death row.

Teddy puts gas in the truck, and Riley asks where he’s taking Alicia. Teddy says, it’s a personal matter, and he wants her to accompany him. Riley says, why her? and Teddy says he’d like to get to know Alicia better. He has the feeling she’s going to be critical for their new beginning. Don’t question him about her again. A school bus arrives, and Teddy applauds. Alicia asks, who are they? and he says, new recruits, picked up while they were scouting. He says, welcome, and tells them to come and see their new home. Alicia says, Dakota? and Teddy asks if Dakota is a friend of Alicia’s. Alicia says, that’s not the word she’d use. Dakota killed someone she knew. Teddy asks, why? and Dakota says, it was something that had to be done. Teddy asks if Dakota came alone, with no family, and Alicia says Dakota actually tried to kill her own mother. Teddy asks if she succeeded, and Dakota says, someone else did. He tells her, hop in; she’s coming. Alicia says she’s not going anywhere with Dakota, but Teddy says she’s not at liberty to make that call. Alicia says, if he was smart, he wouldn’t bring her, and Riley says he shouldn’t bring any of them. Teddy puts his keys around Riley’s neck, and says if they don’t show by tomorrow, he knows what to do.    

Dakota tells Alicia, this isn’t what it looks like, and Alicia says, it wasn’t the last time either. Dakota says, this time it’s different. They went looking for Alicia, and she came there to help. Alicia says she doesn’t want or need Dakota’s help, and Dakota says Alicia left before she heard what happened. It was getting bad. Morgan tried to bring them together, but she thinks it’s worse. She wants to make up for what she did. She needs to, whether Alicia believes her or not. She’s heard what’s taking place. Teddy has a place stocked so they don’t have to step outside for years. They can kill him. He’s scary as hell, but he’s old. He’s stupid for not believing who we are. Alicia says, there is no we, and there never will be. Just stay out of her way. She wants to know what they’re up to and where they’re going. And why Teddy has those keys. Dakota asks what Alicia is going to do, when Teddy comes back, and they get in the truck.  

As they’re driving, Alicia says, it’s not going to work, and Teddy says, what? She says, bringing her out there. It’s not going to break her. Cut the sh*t. She knows Riley heard their recordings, and told him about the stadium where she used to live. He says, the place where her mother grew crops? It’s no coincidence she’s there. The universe sends signs, and it’s up to them to interpret them. Dakota says, like what? and he says, it’s no accident they’re there; the timing and reason for their arrival. Things can reveal themselves.

They go to a cemetery where there are several crypts, and Teddy opens one. He asks for a hand. They applaud. Just kidding. Alicia helps him pull out a casket, and he opens it. He says, hello, mother, and pets the corpse’s head. Alicia asks how she died, and he says, she was taken way before her time, but that doesn’t mean she can’t be a part of the new beginnings. When they’re finished, all this will be gone. I assume by that answer he means he killed her.

They drive with the corpse in the truck bed, and Alicia asks if that’s why Teddy brought them, to dig up his mother’s corpse. He says all three of them lost their mothers, and he wanted them to help him accompany his to their new home. Dakota asks, why? and he says he’s wanted to do this for a long time. He told his mother he was going to do it, and he ended up in a prison cell, condemned to death. He thought he’d failed. Every night, he looked at this. He shows them his mother’s picture, and says he was disgusted with himself. He thought was wrong, and what he’d done was all for nothing. Then he realized he wasn’t wrong. He just needed to be patient. And then it happened. Alicia says, what? and he says, the world changed, and with it his freedom. He had a chance to reshape the world, and everything in it. He could preserve what he loved, and destroy what he didn’t. Alicia asks if he thinks he can do all that with a pair of keys, and he laughs. She asks what it unlocks, and he says, their future. Dakota says he’s sounding like her mom, when the front tire hits something, and they careen all over the road. The corpse falls out, and Teddy stops the truck, yelling, mother! He gets out, and opens the blanket covering the body. He kisses her cheek and says, it will be all right. He asks Alicia and Dakota to please help him get her back on the truck. Please. They lift her, and Dakota sees that a bunch of zombies are about to approach them. Teddy is about to shoot, but Alicia says the sound will just draw more. Even without the sound, more are coming. Dakota picks up a chunk of hard wood, and she and Alicia smack TF out of the zombies’ heads, as Teddy stabs them. Suddenly, the zombies who are still on their feet are shot. Alicia says, Cole? Cole says, Alicia? She says, is that you? and he says he was about to ask her the same question. She goes over to Cole, and Teddy asks, who the hell is that? Alicia says, an old friend, and Teddy asks, what kind? Cole says, Alicia’s mom is the only reason he’s not a skinbag, and Teddy says, how’s that for a sign?

Teddy picks up the walkie talkie, and radios Riley, saying they’re in need of roadside assistance. Does he copy? He gets no response, and says he’ll see if he can fare any better up the road. Dakota goes with him, and Alicia says she can’t believe it’s Cole. Has he been on the road all this time? He nods, and says, a long time. They spent weeks looking for her, and finally figured she’d died in the fire at the stadium. There are some others still around, thanks to what her mom did. He asks how her brother is, and Alicia doesn’t say anything. He says he’s sorry, and she shakes her head. She tells him, Luciana is still alive; Victor too. Cole asks where they are, and she says Luci is living in the same place she is, and Victor went his own way. Cole says, he always does, and he asks what they’re doing out that way. They’ve come far, and have a lot of gas. You don’t see much of that these days. Alicia says, Teddy has been stocking up for a while, and Cole asks who Teddy is. What’s his deal? She says she’s still figuring it out, when Teddy comes back and says he can’t get a signal. He doesn’t suppose Cole knows where they can get a new car. Cole says there’s an old auto parts shop nearby, but they shouldn’t go there on their own; it’s not safe. He’s seen them set zombies on people as they’re passing through. Dakota asks who they are, and he says, unsavory types. A lot of the dead they see, they killed them. Some of them look like Swiss cheese after they take what they want. He can get them where they need to go. He knows the roads they need to take. Alicia says he doesn’t have to, but Cole says he believes he does. Lead the way. Teddy says he’ll need Cole’s gun, and Cole says he’s not handing Teddy anything. Teddy says, fine; hand it to Alicia. He’s beginning to trust her, and wants to make sure she trusts him. Cole gives Alicia his gun, and tells her, it’s all right. Teddy stabs one last zombie in the head, and they walk off.   

Dakota asks how long Teddy was locked up, and he says, almost 30 years. She asks what he did, and he says killed the people who got in his way; who didn’t see the world the way he did. His mom had him locked up. He did what he could to get away. She asks if he knew the people he killed, and he says, some of them. She asks if he feels bad, and he wonders if he detects some guilt. She says she only killed when she had to, and he asks if she knew them. She says, one more than the others. They were starting to become a family. He asks if she feels bad, but she says, no. She didn’t have much choice. People look at her like they’re scared of her, but it’s just the way things are. Teddy says, if they’re frightened by what she’s saying, it’s because it’s the truth. She’s right. That’s the way things are.

As they walk ahead, Cole says, Alicia has his gun. They could take Teddy out, but she says they can’t, He says, it doesn’t seem like much of a worry if he’s gone, and she says, he’s a guru. If he doesn’t do it, his people will. Cole asks if she has any idea what it is, and she says, no, but it’s something big. He has followers, and a bunker with enough food for years. Cole says Alicia could join them after she finds out what it is. They have it good. She says she can’t, and he says he’s been looking for a way to pay her mother back for the favor she did. Maybe this is it. Maybe he found it. They arrive at the auto parts place.

Teddy watches Alicia, and she asks if there’s a problem. He says she reminds him of her, and she says, who? He gets teary, and says, his mother. Has she decided yet if she’s going to join them underground? She says, no, because he’s wrong. Suddenly a bunch of people come in, wearing bandanas bandit style, and carrying guns. Cole cocks his gun, and says, those unsavory types he told them about, he’s one of them. They take their bandanas off, and Doug says, sorry, Alicia. Next to him, Viv takes off her bandana, and Alicia says, they’re kidding her. Cole says they’re not, and Teddy says, after her mother saved their lives? and Cole says, maybe she should have let them die.

Alicia asks, what happened? and Cole says they were looking for a place to hole up and regroup. They looked for her, Nick, Victor, and Luci. They went to a motel off 78, and people were waiting for them. Most of them were killed. Alicia asks, who’s left? and he says, she’s looking at them. She says, so they decided to do the same thing to whoever else they crossed paths with? Teddy says, that’s what he’s trying to get her to understand; the patterns of the universe. It’s the people like Cole in the world, who they need to destroy. Dakota says she’s not proud of what she did, but it was all she could do. Alicia says, they had another way, and Cole says, they know how that ended. They tried to find a way to do things that was more than looking out for themselves, but most of them are gone. So they found this way, and they’re still standing. Alicia says, they became the people they’d been fighting off, and Cole says, there are always bad people waiting to make things go south. For you, not them. Teddy says he knows how to fix that. Get rid of Cole. Cole says, that will be hard to do when Teddy is on that end of the shotgun. Teddy laughs, and Cole says, keep walking, gramps.

Doug fixes the tire on the truck, and Teddy approaches Alicia. He says he doesn’t want to rub salt in her wound, but he knows what she’s thinking. She says she highly doubts it, and he says, she’s thinking her mother died for something. She’d thought the people her mother saved went off to live meaningful lives, but most of them are dead. Those that aren’t, are living like bottom feeders. Alicia asks if this isn’t what he wants, and he says he doesn’t want to see her in pain. He wants her to understand they’re both after the same thing. She can fulfill her potential more than she knows. He’s confident that she’s the person he’s been looking for. She says he’s delusional, and he says she doesn’t know what he’s set out to do. She says she’s been trying to figure it out for weeks, but has no clue. Just tell her. Cole comes over to them, and asks, what about a gun pointed at them makes them think they should take a break? Alicia tells him, take the truck. Take what they want, and let them walk out. Cole says, and they’ll never bother them again? but Teddy says, he doesn’t make promises he can’t keep. Cole says he tried Alicia’s way, and nearly got killed. Teddy’s place sounds nice. Tell him where it is. There’s got to be a map in the truck. Teddy says they won’t find anything in there, and Cole aims his gun at Teddy, saying, he’ll be more than happy to open it. Alicia says, Cole… and Cole asks why she’s protecting this a-hole. Doug calls to Cole, and tells him, they’ve been way too long, and Viv says, forget it. They have the truck, gas, and food. It’s more than they had this morning. Cole says, Teddy has a place stocked with supplies. They have water and power. They’ll be safe there; they can live there. He asks where it is, and Teddy says, go ahead and kill him. He’ll return to the earth, and live on. Someone else will finish what he started. Cole says he knows how to get Teddy to talk. Move. He pushes Teddy along.

Cole pulls the corpse out of the truck bed, and on to the ground. He says he saw upset Teddy was when the body went flying out. He shoots it in the chest, and Dakota says, what the hell? Cole says he’ll blow her head off, and Teddy says, go on. Cole asks what kind of psycho Teddy is, and Teddy says, Cole is the one shooting a corpse. Dakota says she’s sorry, and Teddy says, don’t be; that’s not his mother. His mother is buried on the family farm. Alicia says he lied, but he says, no; he showed her the truth. She was right; he confesses. Her journey was not a coincidence. He was hoping to find proof that the people who her mother saved were dead, but he didn’t suspect to find a living one. It proves his point even more. Cole says they’ll take the truck and tells Alicia he’s sorry. He really is. He knows what her mother did for them, so he’s going to do something he normally wouldn’t. Come with them. Alicia says she can’t. She has to find out what they’re doing. He asks, why? and she says, people will die. He says, who? Victor? Why isn’t Victor out looking for her? They have a truck and gas. They can get the hell out, and drive smart, far away. Whatever they’re doing, Victor is doing the same thing. He’s got to warn her. If she doesn’t take him up on it, he’ll have no choice but to kill her too. Alicia nods, and says she guesses that makes her decision easier. Go to hell. He cocks his gun, and tells her to get on her knees. He’ll make it fast.

Dakota and Alicia kneel, while Teddy sits cross-legged in the road. Cole says, one more chance, old man. Where are you going? Teddy tells Alicia and Dakota, everything he’s planned will proceed without them. Alicia asks if Cole is really doing this, and Cole says he gave her an out. He’ll put her down, and bury her. She sarcastically says, thank you, and he says they can be a warning to others. They hear zombie noises, and Doug tells Cole to get it over with. They’re about to have visitors. Alicia says, it doesn’t have be like this, but Cole says he’s heard that too many times. Sorry. Teddy says, these people don’t know what they know. They’re killing people off, but don’t know the difference between a weak and good thing. They don’t know him. Cole aims his gun at Teddy, but Alicia jumps up, and pushes the barrel away. The zombies arrive, and chaos happens. They eat Doug and Viv, and I think, it couldn’t happen to nicer people. Teddy laughs, as he slices away, and Cole shoots some of them. Alicia comes toward Cole, using a zombie as a shield, and aiming a gun from under the zombie’s arm. Teddy says, shoot him; do it. Instead, she shoves the zombie on Cole, but he shoots it. He and Alicia stand face to face, aiming their guns at each other. Alicia says, her mother died so he’d have a chance, and Teddy says he knows she doesn’t want to get rid of her mother… She tells him, shut up. She’s not talking him. She tells Cole, he was supposed to make it mean something, and threw it all away. Cole says, maybe in time she’ll listen to her friend… Maybe in time she’ll let go… She shoots him in the head. She says Teddy knows he’s wrong. They don’t have to destroy everything to make it better. Just people like Cole. Teddy smiles.

Zombie Doug gets a knife in the head from Alicia; ditto with zombie Viv. Dakota says, it’s not as hard as Alicia thinks, and Alicia says, for Dakota. Dakota says, not just for her. It’s how the world is working. She tried to explain to John, so he’d see it the same way we do. Again, Alicia says, there is no we, and Dakota says she had to do it. Alicia says she believes in something better, and Dakota says, like Alicia’s mom did. She never had that. No one gave her anything to believe in. Alicia says, that’s not true. She tried, and Dakota threw it away, like Cole did. Teddy says he’s proud of Alicia; she let go of the past. He laughs, and says she isn’t afraid to change. Alicia says, that doesn’t mean she’s going to fall in line behind him, and he says she’s not afraid to question him. She reminds him of his mother. Alicia asks if his mother thought he was a nutjob too. He says when he was at mortician school, he was trying to figure out how he could change things. He read about it in journals, but they only saw part of it; why they need to end everything. His mother thought he was sick… no, disturbed was the word she used. She threated to call social services, and have him committed. She said she wanted to put an end to his sick thoughts about new beginnings. She never knew how right he was. Alicia says she takes it his mother didn’t listen, and he says he killed her. (Points for me.) He buried her body on the farm, and waited through fall and winter. He was worried someone would find the body, but when spring came, the strangest thing happened. The most beautiful morning glories bloomed over her body. He realized, it wasn’t enough to change things – that was the first part. They needed a new beginning where people like his mother could thrive, free of the patterns of a broken world. Alicia asks how he plans to destroy the world, and he says she earned the truth today. The key will launch a missile from a beached submarine ashore in Galveston. That should do job, doesn’t she think? Alicia says she thinks – she takes the walkie talkie out of his hand – that Cole is not the only person they need to get rid of to make the world better. She aims her gun at him, and behind her, Dakota aims hers at Alicia. She says, Alicia will have to get rid of her too.

Alicia asks, what happened to making things right, and Dakota wanting to make a fresh start? Teddy says they’re not going to stop what he’s doing. He wants Alicia alive. Alicia goes up the road with the walkie talkie, and Teddy says, it’s okay. Alicia radios Morgan, and asks if anyone is there. She sees Riley coming with the others, and backs away. She asks if anyone can hear her, and Victor asks if she’s okay. She asks if she can trust him, and he says, of course. What’s wrong? She says  she knows what they’re going to do. There’s a beached submarine in Galveston. Dakota is part of it, and they need to get themselves far away. Riley draws his gun, and Teddy says Alicia is what he’s been hoping for. Alicia asks what he means, and he says she’s the right person for what’s to come. One of Teddy’s followers grabs her, and Teddy follows them to the car, along with Dakota.

They go to a hotel, and get out of the car, Alicia with her wrists bound. Teddy says, in the 1950s, Uncle Sam built a bunker beneath the resort for government officials to wait out the country’s inevitable destruction. It was long forgotten, but Riley found a mention in the newspaper. Uncle Sam was smart about what was coming, just not when. He asks Riley what it’s like, and Riley says, better than The Holding. Teddy says he supposes he should thank Alicia for burning down the other place. Alicia asks if his followers know, and he says, they know they’ll live in a well-stocked new home. He wants to show Alicia around himself. He tells the others to wait there. He’ll be all right. There’s nothing to worry about.

Teddy and Alicia go inside, and he says he wanted to get to know her, and he’s glad he did. She’s the one who can finish what he started. She says she’s not finishing anything, and he says, it’s nearly the end. He’s the ending, and can’t be the beginning, but she can. She asks, what makes him think that? and he says, she’ll do what needs to be done without losing sight of the one thing that will be in short supply when this is over. She says, what’s that? and he says, hope. He opens the door to the bunker, and Alicia says, she told them what he’s doing. They’re going to stop him. He locks her inside, and says, he knows it’s hard for her, but it’s what’s happening. They’re going to rebuild the world from there. He and Alicia are alike. He was ahead of his time, and while he was inside, the world changed to be perfectly suited for him. And that’s exactly what’s going to happen. She shakes her head, and he tells her, good luck. Alicia yells that she will not make the world the way he wants it, but he says he knows. That’s what he’s counting on. She watches him leave.

Next time – two episodes left – Teddy says things are about to get started, Dakota asks if everyone knows they’re going to die, Morgan and Victor go to the beach in Galveston, and Morgan asks if Victor is ready to do this.

🕰 Jumping Time…

I don’t mind a time jump, as long as there aren’t several within an episode. That makes me dizzy.

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/fear-the-walking-dead-season-6-finale-time-jump-season-7-nuclear-missile/

🗺 New Places…

Oh, so they mean it will be more like Z Nation? Yes, I’m still bitter about it being canceled.

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/the-walking-dead-world-beyond-season-2-crazy-different-places-new-locations-rick-grimes-scott-gimple/

⚰️ Everything…

Absolutely all you need to know about Season 11 of The Walking Dead, coming to you on August 22nd. This year.

https://www.tomsguide.com/news/the-walking-dead-season-11-release-date-cast-episodes-rick-grimes-return-and-latest-news

🌃 Calling It a Night…

Whether the Sunday scaries are back for you, you have nothing to be frightened of, or everything freaks you out, stay safe, stay environmentally conscious, and stay preserving what you love, but not by destroying anything.

May17

May 16, 2021 – June Meets a Surprising Stranger, Connections, New John In Town, Speculation, Something Silly & Zombie Music

Posted on by
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What I Watched Today

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

Fear the Walking Dead

A zombie steps on a birds nest, then gets impaled on a spike because zombies aren’t too bright, and that’s what you get for stepping on a bird’s nest. Outside the gates of Morgan’s town, June walks up to Morgan. She asks, how’s she doing? and he says, she’s holed up. She won’t see anybody, him included. The baby might be alive if they hadn’t had to come to her. She says, it wouldn’t have made a difference, but he says, don’t say it. Grace has already gone there, saying the only reason the she’s alive is because the baby absorbed the bad sh*t in her body. June says she has to make sure Grace is okay, but he says there’s nothing she can say or do to make any of it okay. She tells him that she’s the closest thing they have to a doctor, and has to examine Grace, but he says he’s not letting her come in. June says, Grace needs see her, and he says, Grace does, or she does? She couldn’t do the one thing John wanted. She couldn’t stay, so why is she there when she’s not needed? Tell him again how she’s there for Grace and not herself. She turns around, and marches out.

A zombie crawls through a field, and June stabs it in the head. We see The End is The Beginning painted in huge letters on the road. June puts an X on a map, and puts it back in her pouch. She takes out John’s letter, and almost opens it, then puts it back. She checks gas cans in truck beds, but they’re empty. She hears something, and turns, drawing her gun, but it’s Dwight, who says, easy there. He tried to radio, but there was no answer. She asks what he’s doing there, and he says he could ask her the same question. He thought she had a hospital to build. She says, they can manage. She’s doing her part to figure out what they’re up against. He asks if it has something to do with what Morgan said to her, and she says, he heard it? but Dwight says, the man is hurting; he didn’t mean it. June says Dwight didn’t have to follow her to babysit her, and Dwight says, she’s the only reason he and Shari are still breathing. He couldn’t stand the idea of her out there all alone. She says, Morgan was right. She did the one thing John didn’t want her to. He didn’t want her to cut her hair, and she did. Dwight says, John was worried, and she says, John asked her to leave with him before they even got there. Dwight tells her not to do this to herself, but she says she should have just listened to John. He’d still be here. Instead he went with Ginny, and it didn’t make much difference in the end. He says, they’ve got company. She sees Shari, and says, you two…? but he shakes his head, and says she asked to come when she saw him leaving. June asks, why? and he says he’s not sure. Shari hasn’t said much. Shari says, don’t let her interrupt, and checks the gas cans in a truck bed. Dwight says, horses don’t take unleaded, and June says, there’s nothing there. They probably took the gas when they painted the messages. Dwight asks where June is going, and she says, Jimmy is on the run, and if anyone knows what they’re up against, it’s him. She asks if Dwight brought more company, and someone shoots at them. They duck down, seeing a man up on the hell. Shari says she’s going to take him out, but June says, they need him alive. He might have information. She kicks the mirror off the car she and Dwight are behind. She looks into it, and the guy shoots the mirror. Shari shoots back, and June repeats that they need him alive. Zombies are coming down the road, and June tells Dwight to cover her. He tells her, be careful, and shoots the zombies. June goes up the hill.  

June sees a trailer, and slinks around it. She tries the door, but it’s locked. She covers her gun with a blanket, and smashes the window, pulling herself up and into the trailer. She pulls out a flashlight, and looks around. She sees a bulletin board with a map and Polaroids of places where The End Is The Beginning has been written. She hears a gun cock, and turns around, seeing Keith Carradine. He asks why she’s there. Is she one of them? She says, who? and he says, the folks painting the slogans. She says she might be on the same team as he is, and he says, if that’s true, her and her pals need to kick rocks. He knows what they’re capable of, and trust him, she wants no part of it. She asks what knows, and he says, the trail ran cold. If they think he’s going to catch them, and he’s getting too close, they’ll have to move up the plan. She asks, what plan? and he says he’s going to get to the bottom of it. She asks if they shouldn’t share information. She and her friends have been searching for days. He says he’s been searching a lot longer, and she says, let her help. He asks how she can help, and she says she didn’t realize the tags went that far south. He missed one; at the orchard. He says if she wants to help, and says they’re on the same side, prove it. Bring him to the orchard so he can see what he hasn’t. If she’s lying, and wasting his time, and it’s not them, he’ll put a bullet into her. She says she’s not leaving her friends, but he tells her, drive.

Keith Carradine keeps his gun on June, and she says, it’s not necessary. She wants them as bad as he does. He  tells her, keep your eyes on the road, sweetheart, but she tells him not to call her that. He asks what he should call her, and she says, anything else. He says he didn’t ask her to gum up his investigation. She’s burning his time and resources. So with all due respect, sweetheart, shut up and drive. She jerks the RV all over, and he falls. She takes out her gun, and he sees the handle. He asks where she got the gun, and she asks why she should tell him. He says, because they belong to him. The JD on the handle, that’s him. He’s John Dorie. (But he is really Keith Carradine.)

Shari and Dwight ride, and Shari stops to pick up an empty gas container. She throws it into the woods, and Dwight says he wants to find June as bad as she does, but if they keep running the horses like this, she’s going to kill them. Even if the container was full, they’d only get six miles out of it. She says she just wants to find June, and be done with. She asks why he’s really there. Is he playing detective, or did Morgan tell him to keep an eye on June? He says, neither. When he was out looking for Shari, things got desperate. The trail got cold, and he was tired hungry and thinking about ending it. Not just the search; everything. The only reason he’s there is because John and June changed everything. She asks, how? and he says he doesn’t know. Seeing two people together, two people separated like them, made it seem possible. He thought maybe he and Shari could find each other again. Does she want to tell him why she’s there? She says, there’s no time, and gets back on her horse. She rides off, and he follows.

June looks at the gun, and says, the way John talked, the times he did, she thought he was dead. John Sr. says, as far as his son was concerned, he was. She asks when he last saw his son, and he says, he doesn’t know. He couldn’t been more than twelve. She says, he should know, John was good at sharpshooting, and he says, if his son was a good shot, it had nothing to do with him. She asks if he doesn’t have any questions, and he says, about what? She says, where his son is, or what he’s been up to for the past 40 years? He says he already knows the answer. Why else would she be there with that look on her face, and a gun on her hip? And she’s wearing two wedding rings. He was cop; he notices things. She says, so was his son, and John Sr. says, he became a cop? He thought his son would learn better from his old man. She says, oh no, and looks outside. She tells him that she lost her jacket, and needs to go back. He says she can have one of his, but she says she has to go back. He says he’s not wasting time on a jacket, but she says, it’s not the jacket. There’s a letter in the pocket. He asks what’s in it that’s so important? but she says, she doesn’t know; she hasn’t read it. He says, it must not be that important then. She’s welcome to go back, but the RV is only going in one direction; that’s forward. She gets in the driver’s seat, and starts it up, but it makes a weird sound. He says, kill it, and they listen. He says, sh*t; they have a stowaway. He looks underneath, and there’s a zombie stuck in the undercarriage. He crawls underneath and says, goddammit. She probably ran it over during her little maneuver. She asks if he has something to pull it out,  and he says he does. He tells her to rev the engine a tiny bit; look for his signal. Nice and easy. She starts the van up, and he says, whoa! Cut the engine. The zombie is shredded, but still making zombie noises. She says, anything? and he says, that ain’t just blood, it’s transmission fluid. She probably nicked the line when she hit it. She asks if he can fix it, but he says, this thing is toast, thanks to her.

Dwight and Shari gallop along. Shari goes way ahead, but when Dwight catches up, he finds her on the ground, next to her horse, who’s also down. He says he told her to slow down. The horse’s heart is giving out. She shoots the horse, and says, let’s go. He asks, what’s going on? This isn’t about those cult a-holes. Why are they chasing gas cans? She says she’s going back home to Virginia. She needs to take out the person who’s really to blame for all of this. he says, Negan? and she says she’s going to find him, and put a bullet in his head. That’s why she asked him to come with her. She wanted to find the right way to say goodbye. He says he gets it. Lord knows, he’s done things he’s not proud of. He hopes they find June, and hopes they get out of there. She tells him that he said that before. Does he mean it this time? He says he does, but they’re going at his speed. He’s not running the horse into the ground. She says, all right, and they walk as he leads the horse.

Shari rides behind Dwight, and they see June’s jacket hanging from a tree branch. Dwight takes it off. 

June looks at a newspaper article on the bulletin board about Teddy getting life in prison, and John says, he has them all up there a certain way; don’t go messing them up. Ha-ha! He sounds like me if someone touches something on my desk. She asks if this is him? and he says it’s when he arrested Teddy Mannix, the psycho killing preacher mortician, and put him away for life. He was supposed to be anyway. She asks what he means, and he says, The End Is The Beginning. He spouted the same thing back in the 70s. She says, Teddy is the person responsible for all this? and he says he should have killed Teddy when he had the chance. He guesses it’s not too late. She asks if John is sure it’s him, and he says, when he was foraging, he spotted The End Is The Beginning, and it was like a punch in the gut, seeing it after all this time. He went to the prison hoping to find a rotting corpse, but Teddy’s cell door was open and he was nowhere to be found. His life’s work wasn’t good enough for that SOB. When he put Teddy away, he wasn’t exactly clean. He did the wrong thing for the right reasons. She says, he framed Teddy? Did anyone find out? He says, people looked at him like he was a hero. He couldn’t sleep, and started drinking. His life was a lie. He was angry all the time. It was hard for John Jr. too. He thought the best thing was for him to get as far away from his family as possible. They thought he abandoned them, but they didn’t understand. She asks him to explain how, after 40 years, he checked on the man who ruined his life, but not his son? He says it was best thing did for John Jr., not showing up at the cabin. She says he may not have wanted to go before, but they can go now. It’s a lead to Teddy. He says he’s not going, and she says, it’s the best lead they’ve got. He says he has better leads; the orchard, Teddy’s childhood home. She says, Hill will be at the cabin, and he might have information. He has no time to take a short detour? He says, it’s where he left his boy 40 years ago. He won’t go back. She says she met and lost her husband at that cabin. The table has medical supplies on it, but she didn’t get the chance to save him. She’s finding Hill. What he knows will save a lot of lives, and he has something of hers. John asks, what’s that? and she says, John’s other pistol. He says, the guns. They do belong together.

John stabs a zombie in the head, and tells June, that’s Teddy’s doing. She asks how he knows, and he says, embalming fluid. Same as the first time, back when they dead stayed dead. They keep walking, and she asks what Teddy wants. John says, the same thing he’s always wanted; destruction. Teddy is spouting the same circle of life mumbo jumbo as he did before she was born. She asks, why embalming fluid? and he says, it’s how he keeps out the young horde. Preservation prevents folks from moving on to the next world. Teddy is crazy as a pet snake, but he could sell ice to Eskimos. His followers are armed and highly motivated. She says, they’re not the only ones, and he says, he doesn’t doubt it. June sees his hand is bandaged, and tells him that she’s nurse. She could take a look. He says, there’s a bait shop nearby, and she says, Bill’s. He says, she knows it. Were she and John married before or after? She says, after. John used a candy wrapper. He laughs, and she says, it was the best he could do at the time. He says he proposed to John’s mom the same way, but it was a Juicy Fruit wrapper. He was still at the Academy, and didn’t have a dime to his name.

Shari and Dwight look at John’s bulletin board, and tells Dwight, it looks like he’d been hunting for a lifetime before world fell apart. She can’t believe he’s John’s father. What are the odds? Dwight says, he never thought shooting at  June and John would lead him to her, but here they are. She says, June left a note; Hill is at John’s cabin. He’s a Ranger, and she bets he has a truck. Dwight says, there’s a good chance there’s gas in it too, and she tells him to point her in the right direction.   

John Sr. and June walk into a general store, and John says, the place has changed since he was last there. They used to eat ice cream on a bench outside. John Jr. has a sweet tooth… had. She looks on the shelves for supplies, and he sees the movie rental list. He says, John always loved movies. He warned his son that he’d wind up with square eyes. He watched Bullitt over and over. He puts the list back, and unwraps his hand. June sterilizes his wound, and asks him to tell her about the guns. She knows they were in his family for generations. He says, six. The first John Dorie brought them on the trail out west. The second JD shot Dead Eye Driscoll from Blackwater. Got his picture in the paper. His son was a good shot too? June says he taught her, and worked at Humbug’s Gulch on the weekends as a trick shooter. That’s where they were married; all their friends were there. He says, it sounds a nice affair, and tells her that his son wrote his initials on a wall in the back room. He wonders if they’re still there, and they walk to the back. June goes in first, and he closes the door, putting a bar across the handles. I had the feeling he was going to lock her in there. She asks what he’s doing, and he says, she and Junior shared a life. She’s not blood, but she’s the closest thing he’s got to family. She says, so he’s doing to her like he did to John? and he says, that’s not what this is. She says he think he’s protecting her, but he’s just punishing himself. He doesn’t think he deserves this. He says she’s the one carrying a letter she hasn’t opened. She can come at him all she wants. We all got ways of protecting ourselves. She says, she knows he thinks he’s doing the wrong thing for the right reasons, but they need to work together. He doesn’t hear her because he’s already gone.

At Bill’s, Shari checks out an old truck, and gets it started on a second try, but it dies. Dwight says, she got the engine to turn over, and she says, barely. She wonders if it’s the same truck her grandpa had, but Dwight says, her grandpa had a ’69; this is older. She asks if he remembers when they got the truck stuck in the mud on their way to the bonfire; and he says, they gave up, and drank beer in the car until they passed out. Is she sure this is what she wants to do? She does it, then what? . She comes back? Shari says, that’s the plan. She doesn’t know what’s going to happen. Is she really ready to say goodbye? She listens, and asks, what’s that?

John Sr. enters the cabin, and looks around, no doubt flooded with memories. He sits down, but hears something, and he cocks his gun. He goes out back, and hears a zombie. He puts the gun in his waistband, and stabs it in the head. A man comes up behind him with a gun and says, you picked the wrong cabin to rob, old timer. He gets distracted by another zombie, and John Sr. knocks him back against a tree, takes his gun, and shoots the zombie. He keeps the guy pinned against the tree, and says, this is his son’s cabin; that makes him a trespasser. The guy says he’s John’s old man, and that’s John’s gun, and John Sr. says, tell him all he knows about Theodore Maddox, or he’ll blow the guy’s head off. The guy asks who the hell Theodore is, and John Sr. says, he’s the one behind the spray paint. The guy asks what the hell it matters to John Sr., but John Sr. says that’s his business. The guy says, all he knows is, whatever they have planned, it’s big. John Sr. asks, how big? but the guy doesn’t know. He could never get anyone to talk. All he knows is, they want to kill everybody. John Sr. says, he’ll give the guy five minutes. Get his sh*t, and get the hell out of there. The guy says he lives there now. The previous occupant moved out permanently, in case you didn’t hear. He tries to get John Sr.’s gun, and they struggle. They both fall to the ground, and John Sr. knocks the guy out with a punch. He sees his son’s grave marker, a cross that says John Dorie, and gets distracted. The guy shoots him in the back, but then someone shoots the guy from behind. John touches the marker, and June runs to him, telling Dwight and Shari to help get him inside.

John opens his eyes, gets out of bed, and walks outside. He sees June with Shari and Dwight, and hears June thanking them for her jacket. John sits in the old truck, and June says he shouldn’t be out of bed. She just took a bullet out of him, and he lost a lot of blood. He says, they meant to fix the old girl up together. It was going to be his son’s first car. He didn’t run because he didn’t care. He did it because he does care. Just like he did with June at Bill’s. She says she knows, and he says, she was right. He was punishing himself, and also punishing his wife and boy. He did come back that summer. He went to Bill’s to fill up the tank, and saw John Jr. there. He looked so content eating his ice cream. He looked so happy. John had this light about him… Of course she knows. He was afraid he’d snuff it out, like the Teddy case did him. He decided to leave John Jr. there. His son would be better off without him. He went back, put the pistols on the porch, and never looked back. He never even said goodbye. June says, it’s not too late, and takes out the letter.

They stand at John’s grave, and June says, it was right there when she first met him. She was broken, and he sewed her back up with fishing line, butterscotch brittle, light, and love. She opens the letter. June. This is the hardest decision of my life and I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me for making it. For leaving you behind to save an innocent person’s life. Knowing I may not see you again, I believe you’ll forgive me one day, the same way I forgave… my dad for leaving. It took me a few years to see it from his shoes, but I forgave him. He was a good man, and in his own way, he did what he did because he loved me. Like I’m doing what I’m doing because I love you. No matter what happens, sure as the sun sets, I’ll never stop trying to get back to you. Back to those early days in the cabin – she starts to cry – and the pretty lady who washed up on my shore, and my life was forever changed. You’re the most amazing woman I’ve ever known. You rekindled the light in me, and brought me back to people. In believing in goodness, and doing good for what’s worth fighting for, like I fought for you. If I die, I will die knowing life was worth living because of a nurse by the name of June. You’re the light guiding my way. I love you, Junebug. She cries, I cry, and everyone looks sad. John Sr. puts his hand on June’s shoulder.

Dwight tells Shari, whoever did the work on the truck, did a good job. She should make it as far as Louisiana. She looks at the article about Teddy, and he asks, what is it? She says she’s not ready for this to be goodbye, and he asks what she means. She says, the man John Sr. has been chasing, he’s been chasing for how many years? He’s missed out on his entire life. She can’t let that happen to them. She’s been using Negan as an excuse for why they can’t be together. Dwight was able to change, and get back to who he once was. She thinks that’s what she’s afraid of; she won’t be able to do that. He says, he’s changed, but he’s not the same person he used to be, and she doesn’t have to be that either. She says she won’t be that for a while, and he says she’s probably right. They were young… Why don’t they just start over? He’s willing to give it a shot if she is. She says, yeah, and they hug.   

June and John Sr. load up the truck. June takes off the rings, and gives them to Dwight. She thanks him for letting her borrow them. He says she doesn’t have to, but she says she wants to, and John would too. She’s giving them back to their rightful owners. He takes them, and puts around his neck. June takes a last look at the cabin, and she and John Sr. get in the truck. Dwight and Shari get on Dwight’s horse, and ride off.

June brings John Sr. to Morgan, who apparently lives his life standing at the entrance of his town. She says, there’s someone she’d like him to meet. This is John Dorie, John’s father. Morgan shakes John Sr.’s hand, and says, pleased to meet him. Morgan asks June, how? and she says, long story. Morgan says John Sr.’s son saved his life in more ways than one, and John Sr. says, his wife just did the same for him. He thinks he’ll stay a while, and Morgan says he’ll be a welcome addition. June says, John Sr. is looking for the man who attacked Morgan and Grace. He knows everything about him. They can help each other. Morgan says, it looks like they already are. June takes Morgan aside, and says she knows she can’t change what she did… He says she doesn’t have to say it, but she says, it’s what John wanted. Now she has a chance to do the same there. Morgan says, he might have been wrong when he told her there was nothing she could do or say to make things better. June asks if she can please check on Grace, and John Sr. says they can put their heads together, and man up against Teddy. He knows Teddy, bow to stern. If he’s doing now what he wanted to do before, he’s not going to stop until they’re all dead. Morgan says, let’s get to work, and they go inside.

Next time, Alicia and Teddy go on a road trip, Teddy needs assurances before he takes the first steps, Alicia is surprised to see someone, and a zombie attacks Teddy.

🍳 Hunt For the Eggs…

On Talking Dead, Keith Carradine marveled at all the nerdy things hidden in tonight’s FTWD.

https://ew.com/tv/fear-the-walking-dead-jd-keith-carradine-aisha-tyler-john-dorie-deadwood/

🐎 Another Day, Another John…

Surprise! It’s John Dorie.

https://www.cinemablend.com/television/2567496/fear-the-walking-dead-keith-carradine-surprise-role-john-dorie-history-with-cult-leader-teddy-garret-dillahunt

⚰️ Quite a Stretch…

Perhaps it’s wishful thinking, since we pretty much saw her get eaten, but who knows?

The Return-Of-Madison Speculation Heats Up Again For ‘Fear The Walking Dead’

👠 A Real Doll…

Trixie is getting around. First Overserved, now this.

https://ew.com/tv/trixie-mattel-crank-yankers-clip/

🧍🏽‍♀️ Toddling Off…

The Shahs of Sunset are back, but choices had to be made. I’ll have to catch up On Demand or on rerun. Until we meet On Deck tomorrow, stay safe, stay respecting others’ personal space, and stay not being so fast to judge a guy in an RV who’s shooting at you. It could be Keith Carradine.

May10

May 9, 2021 – Through Grace’s Eyes, Showrunning Fear, New Dexter, Prequel To Come, Goodbye To a Legend & Dreams

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What I Watched Today

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

Fear the Walking Dead

This was one of those weird episodes that’s even worse than time jumping. We were jumping from the real world to… something else. I hope it’s easier to follow than it was to transcribe. Although nothing was as bad as that episode of Z Nation where they were in the crates that kept moving around. And so…

Birds circle overhead. Grace lies on her back under trees in a forest that has pink foliage. She opens her eyes, and a zombie jumps on her, snapping at her face. A knife pokes through its eye from behind, and a young girl asks, what’s wrong, lady? Are you trying get yourself killed? Grace thanks her. The girl battles with several zombies, whacking and spearing. When she’s done, she holds out her hand, and helps Grace up. Grace asks where she learned to fight like that, and the girl says her dad taught her. He’s going to kill her; she’s not supposed to be outside the wall alone. They’ve got to move. There’s a clinic where she lives, and the doctor can check Grace out. Grace asks what her name is, and the girl says, Athena, like the Greek goddess. Her mom gave it to her because she thought it would make her strong. Athena asks Grace’s name, and Grace tells her. Athena starts to walk, and says they better get Grace to the clinic. Grace follows her.

The girl says, right there; that’s where she lives. It’s Morgan’s place, and Grace says, impossible. How long as she been there? Athena says, since she was born, and Grace asks how old she is. Athena says, sixteen; why? Grace sees Morgan’s pokey weapon, now rusted, where he left it outside, and the greenery is pink instead of green here too. She sees Athena talking with a grey-haired Morgan, and Grace says, Morgan? He asks if she remembers Morgan, and we hear zombies outside the wall. Morgan tells Athena to go inside, and he and Grace follow.

We see horses in a corral, and Morgan says he and Athena will talk later about how she’s going to muck out the stables for the next month. He asks Grace if she’s okay, and she says, it’s everything they wanted it to be. She asks if he doesn’t recognize her, and he says his memory isn’t what it used to be. Does he know her? She says, it’s her, Grace, and he says he doesn’t know what she’s trying to do, but… She says, it’s her. This place was different. If it’s not her, why does she know about riding the carousel with him? And how he and Duane used to race cars? It’s her. He says, Grace? And she cries, flashing back to the past. He says, this isn’t possible. She can’t be there. Grace asks, why?

We see Grace’s gravestone, and Grace asks if he’s sure it’s her. He says he buried her himself, and she asks how she died. He says, the labor took a lot out of her, and the radiation had made her sicker than they thought. He’s sorry. They tried to do everything they could. She says, and her baby? Did he make it? He says, she. Grace already met her. Grace says she should have known. Is she okay? She spent so much time reading about how babies can absorb radiation… He says, she’s fine; trust him. Before Grace passed, she said she had one wish; to see what her child would be like grown up. Maybe that’s why there. Sometimes things happen that we can’t explain. Grace says she’d love meet her, but if Athena asks about her, there’s only so much she knows, and only so much she can tell. She thinks she should hold off, at least until they know what’s going on. June comes by, and tells Morgan, she usually tries to keep them out of the grave; don’t scare her. He introduces June as Dr. Dorie. June says she was a nurse before, but Morgan insisted on the title change. Athena told her what happened. She looks Grace over, and says, no sign of concussion or brain injury. What’s the last thing she remembers? Grace says, she was traveling on a road with someone, but then it gets fuzzy. June tells her, stay, and get some rest; it will come back. She introduces Charlie as her apprentice, and Grace says, Charlie. Charlie says, her parents thought they were having a boy. Grace says, so did she.

Morgan tells Grace, a lot of things have changed. She sees Daniel cutting Victor’s hair, and he says she doesn’t happen to be a barber, does she? He’s getting too old for this. Victor says, they all are. Maybe the next one will give a decent haircut. Morgan asks Dwight how the harvest is going, and Dwight says, it should be ready next week. Dwight sees his little boy, and says that kid is more of a hellraiser than he was at his age. Shari comes by, carrying a baby, and says she’s not so sure. Morgan introduces Grace to Dwight and Shari, and Shari says, the baby is Keena and her boy is John. Grace says, it’s nice to see a happy family living there, and Dwight says, they got lucky. He and Shari leave, and Grace asks Morgan when they got back together. Morgan says, not long after Athena was born. She asks about Alicia and Al, and everyone. Morgan says, Alicia started a place of her own at the burned out stadium where she used to live, and Luci went with her. Al left a while ago. She said she was chasing a story, but he thinks she was chasing somebody. Grace says, she never told him before, but she didn’t think it would happen. The way they fell out with each other, and what they were facing; what brought them together? Morgan says they were struggling. They didn’t know who was painting the graffiti, or what to do about it. They couldn’t even agree on how to face it. Then she had Athena, and he lost her. Everybody forgot their differences, and rallied around the child; they still do. He’s sorry she didn’t live long enough to see happen, and she says, her too. He thinks there’s a way for her to get to know her daughter without having to explain. He calls to Athena, and asks if she wants to go on a run.

As they walk, Grace looks delighted. Athena tells Morgan that she knows what he’s doing. He thinks if he takes her on a run to the feed store every once in a while, she won’t sneak out. He asks if she thinks it will work, and she says, it might. Grace hears Athena singing In Dreams, and asks what she’s singing. Athena indicates the Walkman on her belt, and says she never goes anywhere without it. Grace asks if she can see it, but Athena says, no. Her mom wanted her to have it; it’s the only thing she has from her. Grace says, maybe not, and Morgan says, hold up. Eyes and ears. They see a car off the road, and Grace walks toward it. The End Is The Beginning is painted all around it, and Grace says, she remembers this. She’s seen it before. She tells Athena they were attacked before she born, and the people would leave messages like that. Athena says they have to warn everybody, and Grace tells Morgan, she’s seen this before, but he says, it was probably a long time ago. She says, no; she’s seen this before. She says, it’s just like the… and the car blows up.

Grace hears Morgan saying he needs her wake up, and she sees the car in flames. She screams Morgan’s name, and Athena says they’ve got to get out. Zombies are everywhere, and Grace asks where Athena’s dad is. They run, and Grace asks, how far? Athena says, a couple of miles, and Grace hears Morgan ask, where are you? His voice sounds very distant, and she says, right here. Athena stabs a zombie and tells Grace, come on. Morgan fades away, and Grace asks where he went. Please. She misses him. She hears him say, come back, and she says she’s right there. Athena says they have to keep moving, and Grace says she can hear him. A lone zombie toddles up, and Grace says, she remembers something. Athena asks if Grace can hear her, and stabs the zombie. Grace says she heard Morgan, and Athena says she’s going to get them both killed. Grace stabs another zombie, and Athena says, the wall is just ahead. They need to get back. Grace starts to walk in the opposite direction, saying, it’s this way. Morgan asks, what’s going on? and Athena tells Grace, the wall is this way. The scene repeats itself, and repeats itself. Finally, Grace turns her back on the lone zombie.   

Grace lies on ground in the pink forest. Morgan says he’s got an idea, and goes toward the graffitied car. It blows up, and Grace is back where she was. Athena says, come on; they’re almost to the wall. Grace says, the car exploded like it did before. She must be unconscious.

Grace lies on the floor in the stables, and Morgan says he’s right there. He tells her that he needs her to wake up, so they can think about the baby. He can’t do this without her. She’s with Athena again, and hears him. Zombies clamor at the stable door, and Morgan says she’s got to wake up.

She tells Athena that Morgan is trying to wake her up, and asks if he can hear her. Athena says they’ve got to get her to Dr. Dorie; they’ve got to warn everyone. Grace says, Athena’s not real, and Athena pokes Grace with her stick, asking, does that feel real? Grace says Athena is in her head, there are fragments she’s trying make sense of. She wanted it be real; she wanted Athena to be real. Athena says she’ll be wishing something else is real soon. The car explodes again, and Grace says she’s hearing Morgan. She snatches the Walkman from Athena, and Athena says, that belonged to her mom, and Grace says she knows. She brought it so she could listen to it while she was in labor. Athena says, she has a kid? and Grace says she doesn’t know. She puts on the headphones, and says, come on, Morgan.

In the stables with Grace, Morgan says, June, can you hear me? June asks where he is, and he says, there’s no easy way there. She won’t make it. They were attacked on the road. There was an explosion, and people came after them. June asks, who’s after him? but he says, Grace is unconscious. She needs to tell him what to do. June asks how Grace’s vitals are, and he says, she’s breathing, but her pulse is weak. With Athena, Grace listens, and says, what? No. Athena asks, what’s the matter? and Morgan says, she needs to wake up. She’s in labor. June says, tell her where they are, and Morgan says, they’re in the vet’s office; the junction at 77th and 28th. June isn’t sure if she has enough gas, and says she’ll come on foot. Don’t worry. On the road, Grace talks into the recorder, and says she’s right there. How does she get him to hear her? Morgan tells June, he has to go; they found us. Grace asks, who found them? and Riley fires shots through the door.

Grace wonders, what the hell is going on? Morgan says, guys are shooting; they’re in trouble. Athena says, of course Grace isn’t there; she’s here. Riley breaks into the stables, and says Morgan is a hard man to find. He knows they’re there somewhere, and they have something he wants. Grace takes the headphones off, and says, no, Morgan. Athena takes the Walkman, and says Grace broke it. It’s all she has left. Grace says, it’s not working because Morgan shut it off. They have to find something else to connect her to him. She asks Athena if they’re near 77th or 28th, and Athena says, it’s not much further, and Grace asks, where’s the vet’s office? Athena says she’s not doing it, and Grace says, take her there, or she’ll break the Walkman.

In the real world (such as it is), Morgan tells Grace, sorry. He’s going to have to move her. Grace tells Athena, keep moving. They have to get to the building. At the stables, Riley says, it will all be over, and Athena asks, who’s that? Grace says, Athena heard it too? and she says, why wouldn’t she? Who are they? Grace says, the people who blew up the car. Grace suddenly falls to the ground in pain, and so does Athena.

Morgan wheels Grace in a wheelbarrow, and tells her, it’s okay; it’s just contractions. On the road, Grace cries out. Riley comes over to her, and says she has something they want. He takes out a knife, and Grace holds his hand back. Athena tries to get up, but can’t. Grace turns Riley’s hand and he stabs himself in the throat with his own knife. She stumbles over to Athena, and tells her, it’s okay. She thinks they’re contractions. She wonders why Athena is feeling them too, and says, she was wrong. Athena is real. It’s the only thing that makes any sense. They’re connected. Athena doesn’t understand, and Grace says, I’m your mother and I need to wake up so you can be born.

Athena asks why Grace didn’t tell her sooner, but Grace says she didn’t know how to explain it. She didn’t think Athena was real. Athena says she is real, and Grace says she’s sorry she took Athena’s tape recorder. Athena says she’s sorry she poked Grace with her stick, and Grace laughs. Athena asks, what happens when Grace wakes up? and Grace says she thinks all this goes away. Athena says, it’s not fair; she just found out about Grace. There’s so much she wants to know. She’ll have to ask her mother. Grace smiles, and says, right. She’ll just have to wait. it’s happening this way for a reason. She needs to wake up so Athena will be okay. Athena says, it will take hours on foot; it’s too far. A white horse gallops out of the woods. A very well trained and saddled horse. They get on, and Athena asks why her dad was singing that song, and Grace says, it was one of his favorites. She says she’s talking about Athena’s biological dad, and Athena asks what he was like. Grace says, his name was Matthew. He was kind, and handsome, and smart. And a big Roy Orbison fan. Athena asks, what happened to him? and Grace says they worked at a power plant together. They were exposed to radiation, he got very sick, and she lost him. She’ll always be grateful for what they had. Athena asks what they had, and Grace says, her.   

They travel down the road, and Grace says, it’s working. They’re close. Morgan says Grace has got to wake up. There’s not much time. Riley tells his men, get in there. Morgan sets up a blockade, and tells Grace to wake up. Grace tells Athena, the stables. They’re here. She opens the door and walks in. They see a zombie busy looking at the ceiling and poking at something, paying no attention to them. Athena looks around, and asks Grace, what’s wrong? Grace says, this may be the only time she has with Athena before… She didn’t tell Athena everything. The reason why they’re here is that Grace’s subconscious created this place. Out there in the real world, she’s sick. She was exposed to radiation like Matthew. She survived long enough to grow Athena, but doesn’t think she has much longer. She doesn’t think she’ll have a chance to get to know Athena. Athena says Grace can get better, but Grace says, you don’t get better from the kind of stuff she was exposed to. She knows why they’re here. She was scared for Athena to be born into a world that didn’t deserve her, and wanted to protect her, but she knows Athena will be okay. She’s strong. Athena starts to cry, and Grace says Athena is going to bring everyone together. She’s going to be the hope they need. Grace takes her hand, and Athena says she knows the reason she was at the wall when she found Grace. She was worried about her dad – about Morgan. She thought if she went out looking for seeds, he wouldn’t have to. She didn’t want to grow up without him. Grace says she won’t have to. He’ll raise her. Everyone will raise her. In the stables, Riley says, they have nowhere to go. How about giving him what he came for?

Morgan tells Grace, wake up; they’re going to find us. Now zombified Riley and his group of zombies break in. Grace tells Athena to get behind her. They have to get through and inside. Athena says, this might be all the time she has with Grace. She’s going to fight for every second. Zombie Riley and his group come closer.

Morgan stands ready, and Riley and his men break in. Morgan tells Riley, turn around and leave now, but Riley says, hand over the key, and it all goes away. He’s been looking for the key for a while. He hired someone to find it, and they didn’t deliver. He sent two friends after the first guy, and they didn’t come back. He’s guessing Morgan had something to do with them not coming back. Morgan says he’s going to do to Riley what he did to them, and Riley says, the key will change everything; he’s not leaving without it. Morgan moves forward at the same time Grace and Athena do in Grace’s mind. Morgan fights Riley and his men, while Grace and Athena fight zombie Riley and his zombie men. In reality, now it’s just Morgan and Riley, and Morgan spears Riley in the shoulder. Riley says Morgan can’t stop them, but Morgan says he thinks he just did, and Riley runs out.    

Grace sees the key around Athena’s neck, and asks where she got it. She says, her dad… Morgan. He gave it to her when she was little, to wear as a reminder. Grace says, a reminder of what? Athena says something about peace that I don’t quite grasp, and Grace asks what that means, then falls to the ground.  

Morgan tells Grace, hang on. Athena asks, what’s wrong? and a zombie grabs her. Morgan says, she’s not breathing; he’s losing her. Zombie Riley tells Grace, she’s already dead; they both are. Morgan does chest compression, and says, come on, Grace. Grace sees Matthew, and then the carousel. Zombie Riley says he knows they thought it would end differently, and handles the key around Athena’s neck. Morgan continues to do chest compression, and zombie Riley says, that was just a dream. Morgan says, he’ll never give up, and zombie Riley is stabbed by old Morgan. Old Morgan holds out his hand to Grace, and says, they don’t have much time. She takes his hand.  

Morgan is still doing chest compression, and old Morgan asks if Grace is ready. She says she doesn’t want to say goodbye, but she has to. Morgan says, stay with me, and Grace hugs old Morgan. She says, even if she’s not there, she knows he’s going to build everything they couldn’t. Morgan listens to Grace’s chest, and says, please come back to him. Grace hugs Athena, and tells her, remember this when you get older. Athena says she will, and hands Grace the recorder, saying, she can make sure. Record what she wants Athena to remember. Morgan says, listen to him; please come back. Grace says she loves Athena, and always will. She kisses Athena’s hand, and Athena says she doesn’t want to lose Grace. Grace says, she won’t; she never will. She doesn’t have to be afraid. Grace will always be with her. You can let go, my angel. Grace backs away.

The door opens to a bright light. Grace opens her eyes, and Morgan says she’s awake. He thought he lost her. She says she had to come back. It’s a girl. They’re going to have a girl. She tells him that doesn’t think she’s going to make it, but he says she doesn’t know that. She says she does; she saw it. He says, saw what? and she says, the future… our future. Everything is going to be okay. They have a daughter.

Grace says she recorded a playlist of songs when she left. She hopes when Athena listens to it, it makes her smile. it will make her feel like Grace is there with her because she will be. Morgan tells Grace, he got the water, and she thanks him. He says, that’s for… She says, Athena. Morgan tells her that she kept saying that name. What happened when she was out? What does she think the dream was? Grace says, she knows when someone is close to their last moments, like she was, sometimes they see things they can’t explain. Morgan says, the near-death thing, and she says, it felt real. She thinks it was Athena. That’s how she knows everything will be all right.

A truck barrels through the door of the stables, taking part of the wall with it. Riley gets out, holding a gun, and tells Morgan, drop the stick or he’ll shoot him. Morgan drops it, and Riley says he told Morgan that he’d get what he came for. Morgan says, something tells him that Riley is getting less, and Grace asks what they’re talking about. Riley says, the key. Morgan knows what to do. Riley aims the gun at Grace, and says, give him the key, and he’ll walk away. Morgan asks what it opens, and why Riley wants it, but Riley says, it doesn’t matter. It’s inevitable, no matter what Morgan does. Grace tells Morgan to give Riley what he wants. The key isn’t their future; the baby is. This baby is going create a future where people like Riley never win. That is inevitable. He already lost. He just doesn’t know it. Morgan hesitates, and she screams, do it! He takes the key off, and tosses it to Riley. Riley surprises us all, and instead of blowing them away, says, good luck, jumps back in the truck, and squeals away.

Morgan asks if Grace is okay, but she tells him that he doesn’t have to worry. The baby is going to bring everyone together. She’ll give everyone something to fight for. She knows it. Morgan says, okay. He believes she will.

Grace breathes between contractions, and Morgan bathes her face with water. Roy Orbison’s song In Dreams plays, and Grace listens. Grace pushes the baby out, and Morgan takes it. She takes the headphones off, and asks, what’s wrong? Why isn’t she crying? He says, come on, and I don’t mean to judge, but he isn’t being very aggressive here. He places the unmoving infant on Grace’s chest, and she cries. Morgan says he doesn’t understand, and she says, they weren’t her last moments; they were Athena’s. He nods, and she says she thought it was going to be different. It was just a dream. She cries.

Yeah, Grace, we all thought it was going to be different.

Next time, June’s journey; Morgan tells someone, there’s nothing they can say or do to make it okay; Dwight and Shari reunite; and someone asks June why she’s there.

⚰️ Explaining the Dead…

The showrunners talk Fear.

https://ew.com/tv/fear-the-walking-dead-holding-crm-showrunners-interview/

https://ew.com/tv/fear-the-walking-dead-in-dreams-grace-athena-showrunners-interview/

🩸 Reviving Dexter…

Choose your teaser.

https://ew.com/tv/dexter-revival-teaser/

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/countdown-dexter-reboot-heres-scheduled-031648451.html

🐉 Fanning the Flame…

The prequel is coming… along with winter.

https://ew.com/tv/2019/10/30/house-of-the-dragon-thrones/

https://ew.com/tv/house-of-the-dragon-first-look-photos-cast-game-of-thrones-prequel/

https://ew.com/tv/house-of-dragon-cast-game-of-thrones-prequel-production-photos/

🥀 Farewell, Sweet Vixen…

I admired Tawny Kitaen for her bravery in coming out about the health hazards that breast implants cause women. May she dance on the clouds the way she danced on the hood of that car.

https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/9569450/tawny-kitaen-dead-obituary/

Tawny Kitaen Dead: Cause of Death Not Clear for ’80s Music Video Icon

🌉 Slipping Into the Night…

I have to finish some copywriting for the www.MupoEntertainment.com weekly interview show, Mupo and Friends, which can be found on YouTube. Glorious YouTube. Where would we be without it? Okay, maybe there are some hours we can’t take back looking at puppies, but it was worth it. The upcoming interview is with scream queen Brooke Lewis Bellas, and I think she’ll be a lot of fun. Check us out. I also write articles for the magazine at the website. Now that I’m done with plugging myself, until we sail away tomorrow, stay safe, stay well-informed, and stay in one world or another. It’s too confusing to commute.

May3

May 2, 2021 – A Visit To The Holding, Lucky Twice & May In Austen

Posted on by
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What I Watched Today

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

Fear the Walking Dead

We see people working in an underground greenhouse, and a voiceover says, death, destruction, decay. What’s happening to the world isn’t new. The world has been breaking down since its inception until now. Everything is winding down, including us. Death is inevitable, but from death comes new life. The decaying body feeds the soil, which in turn feeds the plants, which feed us and the creatures who sustain us. That’s the way it’s always been, and the way it will always be. People see death everywhere, but if they looked hard enough, and with open eyes, they’d see life. It’s not their fault; they don’t know how. They’re seeing the way they always have. We know the truth and they don’t; we can see, they can’t. It’s incumbent upon them to help others to be unafraid of what’s to come. Do you know truth? Can you see? Can you help them be unafraid?   

A woman stares at a part zombie, part tree. Riley tells her, hurry up. They have new arrivals coming. They’re going to be hungry. She says she was trying to see like Teddy, but it hasn’t happened yet. The zombie tree reaches out.   

Riley asks where the new recruits are. Teddy says they’re in bad shape. The elevator doors open, and Alicia, Al, Wes, and Luci are there. Riley tells them, it’s okay. He knows they’ve been through a lot not. No one’s going to hurt them. Welcome to The Holding. He thinks they’ll like it here. They come out of elevator into what looks like a community room. Wes asks if Al is sure this is the place Virginia was talking about, and she says, yeah. Wes sees a tree painted on the wall, with the end is the beginning written above it.

A mic and recorder are set up. Alicia asks why Riley is recording, and he says, for Teddy. She asks who Teddy, and Riley says he’s the reason they’re all there. She asks if he’s there now, and Riley says, his presence is always with them. She says, he’s dead? but Riley says, no. He’s very much alive. When you cannot see, he guides you, and when you can’t walk, he’ll carry you. They’re lucky to have found them when they did. She says she’d like her weapon back, but he says, no outsiders are allowed to carry. He learned that lesson the hard way. He asks what they were doing on the road, and she says, scavenging.

He asks where they came from. Wes has replaced Alicia, and says, a place where they’re never going back. Riley asks, why? Teddy is interested in the path that led them there. Over the loudspeaker – which is always going – we hear, we found you, and helped you to see the truth. People look around up there, and see death everywhere. They gaze not on what’s really there. If they truly looked with open eyes, they would see life.

Wes asks, how many people live there? Al asks, are they allowed to leave? Luci says, she’s lived in a place like this before, but Riley says he doubts it. She asks how he can be sure, but he says, there is no place like this. There has never been a place like this.

Zombies are being ground up in a machine, and Al asks how long it takes to break them down. Riley says, a couple of months. They take the bones out for chicken meal. She asks if it’s safe, and he says, this is how all living creatures have decomposed from the beginning of time. Al says, food, water, power, impressive. It also feels like they’re preparing for something. He says they found the group at the right time. He thought he’d let Teddy tell them when he returned, and they can figure out if they want to stay. She says, there’s no reason they shouldn’t know now, and he says Teddy will be closing the doors soon for good. Alicia asks, why? and he says, so they never need to go topside again. That’s the old way. This is a new day. This is where life is beginning again. Ali asks how many people have been allowed to leave, and he says he’s more interested in what she has to say. One question in particular he likes to ask. She says, what is it? Can you see?

They stand in front of the zombie tree, and Riley says, it’s the simplest one there is. What does she see when she looks at it? She says, he’s see joking right? He says, no. Take a good look. Exactly what does she see? She says, a walker who should be in the ground, and he says, anything else? It’s okay. Nobody gets hung on their first try. He asks, what’s troubling her? Be honest; Teddy will know if she’s not. She asks, why would he have something to say about how she feels? and he says, Teddy can look in your eyes and see the truth in a way no one else can, not even her. Her answer will go a long way gaining Teddy’s favor.

Luci asks, what kind of trick is this? and Riley says he’s trying to gage how much she has left to learn. She says, it feels like a trick, and he says, she’s a skeptic. She keeps answering his questions with questions. He likes skeptics. When they’re won over, they’re true believers. As everyone there is.

Al asks what she’s looking for, and Riley says, there is no right or wrong answer.

Wes says he sees an eater, and Riley says, look closer. Wes asks, who painted the trees? and Riley wonders why he’s asking. Wes says he used to be a painter, and Riley asks what he painted. Wes says, all kinds of things. He started copying his brother. Riley says Wes has a brother? and Wes says, had. Alicia says, his name was Nick. Luci says, Pablo. Al says, her brother was her best friend. Wes says, he wanted be just like his brother. Why does Riley ask? Riley says, it’s about family. Teddy says, their survival is dependent on it. Each generation gives way to the next. Riley says, it looks like Alicia is being reminded of something, and she says, her mom grew crops in the place where they used to be. He asks, what happened to her? and Alicia says, she gave her life so they could live. Riley says, her end was your beginning.

The group reconvenes, and Al asks if they found out anything. Alicia says they have to gain The Holding’s trust, and Luci says, and Teddy’s. Has anyone seen him? None of them have, and Alicia says, in the meantime, they’ll find out what they can, why Virginia was scared sh*tless, and get the hell out. Luci says, it could be a long time before the people there get out. Riley joins them, and says, the others have returned. It’s time for them to meet Teddy. They wait by the elevator, and when it opens, Wes’s brother Derek comes out, and asks if they missed lunch. He’s starving. Riley asks where Teddy is, and Derek says, he’ll be back later. Wes walks forward, and says, Derek? Derek says, he’s alive? and hugs Wes. Wes says, Derek is alive, and Derek says, so is he, and they hug again. Alicia says, they found their way out.

Derek and Wes sit at a table, and Wes says, he doesn’t know how long it’s been since he was thinking Derek had been torn to pieces. Couldn’t he drink black coffee? Derek says, is Wes seriously mad because he went looking for creamer? Wes says he doesn’t know, and Derek says he’s sorry; he really is. He found some condensed milk, a whole crate of it, but when he went outside, he got cornered. He ran into a shed, and the eaters were clawing at it. He passed out, and thought that was it, but when he woke up, he was there. They saved him, just like they saved Wes. Wes asks if Derek thought to look for him, and Derek says he did, but Wes was gone… and so was his bike. Wes says he couldn’t stick around, and Derek asks, what happened? but Wes says Derek doesn’t want know. Derek says, it seems like Wes is running with good people. Wes says, things were a little bumpy at first, but they’re headed in the right direction. He says it looks like Derek is still painting, and Derek says he’s just trying to help people see what he does. Wes asks, what’s that? and Derek says, he saw people painting things on trees like, if you’re reading this, you’re still here. That wasn’t going to change anything. They meant well, but it didn’t mean anything. Teddy helped him see that, and now what he’s doing there means something. Wes asks, what exactly is Derek doing, but Derek says he’s not sure Wes is ready for that. Wes asks when he’ll be ready, and Derek says, when Wes sees like he does. He has to do a shift in the garden; he’ll catch Wes at dinner. Derek leaves, and Wes looks at the tree painting. Luci joins him, and says, be careful. Wes says no one is going to hurt him, and she says, what about Tanktown? What they did to everyone. He says, Derek doesn’t know about that, and Alicia says, did Wes ask him? Wes says, there’s no way Derek would do something like that, but Luci says, when people are desperate, they start believing things, and doing things they never thought they would. She did. He shakes his head, and says, Derek is different.  

Gary walks to his shift, with the ever-present loudspeaker going. Al asks what Wes’s brother said, but Wes says, not much. He said he wouldn’t tell him anything until he can see, like Derek does. She says he’s probably waiting to see if they can be trusted, and Wes says, maybe they’re not the threat Virginia thought they were. Maybe it wasn’t about them. Maybe it’s about Virginia. Maybe they were trying to take her out, or maybe she was trying to make us paranoid. Al says, what happened at the tower; they set that up. Wes says, there’s only one way to find out. He’ll ask. Derek sits down, and asks how they’re settling in. It takes some getting used to, not knowing if it’s day or night, but the food makes up for it. He tells Alicia that Wes said she pulled him through a rough patch after he left, and she says Wes helped her out too. A guy comes by, and says something to Derek, and Wes asks, what is it? Derek says, nothing. He has to go topside for a bit. He suggests they try the rhubarb pie. He leaves, and Luci says, what the hell was that? Al asks if Wes knows where Derek’s bunk is, and he says he does. She says, let’s get to work then.  

Al asks if Wes found anything, but he hasn’t. They continue to look through Derek’s stuff, and she asks if Wes hears that. We hear a rushing, gurgling sounds, but Wes encourages Al to keep going. Al says, there’s got to be something, and Wes picks up a can of condensed milk. The lid comes off, and he sees papers inside. He pulls out some things with the three circles on them, and calls Al over. Al asks how the hell Derek got this, and Wes asks, what are they? she says, stuff he shouldn’t have. She opens a floorplan, and says, this about more than Ginny. His brother and everyone there are trying to do as much damage as they can. He says she doesn’t know that, and she says, what about Tanktown? He says, that doesn’t mean anything, but she says, this does, showing him a log. Logs of when Virginia was sending people to Tanktown, and they were keeping track. Of other places too. She’s not saying Derek knew Wes was there, but he knew what they were doing. She’s sorry. He says Derek thinks these people helped him to see more clearly, but they’re not. Maybe it’s time for him to see things another way. Al asks how they’re going to do that, and Wes says, they’ll have to get Derek out of there.

Wes watches as Derek paints. Wes says, Derek did it. Those places he set up for attacks. Derek puts his brush down, and asks how Wes knows that. Wes says, the maps. Why did he do it? Derek says, Wes won’t understand; he’s not ready, and Wes says, why not? Derek says he told Wes; he can’t see. It’s okay; Derek couldn’t either. Not until he met Teddy. Wes says Teddy convinced Derek that killing is the right thing? and Derek says, they have to start over. They can’t until everyone and everything is gone up there. Wes asks if that includes him, and Derek asks what Wes is talking about. Wes says he was at the oil fields. He shows Derek his scars, and says he ate shrapnel. He never felt so much pain. He almost died, and lost friends, people he cared about. Derek says he didn’t know. He would have gotten Wes out. Wes says, but Derek would have killed the rest of them. Derek says, it’s what Teddy wants, but Wes says he doesn’t give a damn. People died. Wes killed people. What does he think about that? Good, innocent people; he killed them. Wes knows this ain’t him. Come with them. Derek says, those places up there are about how they used to live. This is how he wants to live now. Wes says where he lives isn’t about the past. It’s about how and where things are going to be. They won’t make Derek do anything he doesn’t want to, like this Teddy. Derek says Wes is thinking like Morgan, and asks, what about Virginia? Wes says, she’s dead. Morgan helped bring her down. Derek asks where Morgan is, and Wes says, come with them. Derek asks, where? and Wes asks, what does it matter? These people aren’t helping Derek see; they’re blinding him. He’s so lost, Wes knows Derek probably won’t come. To do what he did. The things… Wes is his brother; Derek just has to trust him. Derek looks around, and says, if they catch him trying leave, they’ll kill him. They’ll kill all of them. Wes says, then let’s not get caught.

Derek joins the group, and they go down in the elevator. Al says, when they get out, they’ll travel off the main roads. Alicia says, they’ll need weapons and food, and Al says, there was an emergency drop outside the city. Alicia asks what’s in Derek’s bag? and he says, maps, coordinates, places they were planning to hit next. She says, he’s bringing them? and he says, so nobody else gets hurt. She pops him in the nose, and grabs his gun, aiming it at him. She says, after what happened, they’re not taking any chances. Wes says he’s not leaving his brother. Just because Virginia screwed them over, doesn’t mean Derek will do the same thing. Alicia says, they can come back for him, but right now they have everything they need to take them down. They know the places that are going to be hit. Let’s go. Riley steps out with a bunch of his men, and says, they’re not going anywhere.

The group is pulled into a room with a lot of equipment, and Wes asks where his brother is. What are they doing to him? Alicia asks where the hell this is, and Al says, it’s embalming equipment. It’s a funeral home. Riley says, they won’t decay, and they can’t return to the earth, but it doesn’t have to be like this. Where’s Morgan Jones? Alicia asks how Riley knows Morgan, and he asks, where’s the place Morgan set up? He knows it’s not out of Virginia’s settlements. Who’s first? He nods at Wes, and a guy turns on a machine. Wes struggles with one of the men, and Riley says, his brother thought he’d be more cooperative. Derek comes in and says, answer him or he’ll kill you, and Wes says, Derek planned this. Derek says, only when Wes said they were with Morgan. They’ve been playing them. Wes says, they’re trying to help get Derek out, but Derek says he doesn’t want to leave. What he’s doing there means something. Wes says he’s trying to understand, and Derek says, this is where he needs to be. He saw the truth, and believes Wes can too. Let’s go find out. Wes leaves with Derek.

Back at the zombie tree, Derek asks Wes to tell him what he sees. Wes says he needs to ask one question first. They had people in the oil fields reporting back; it’s the only way they could have pulled it off. Did Derek know he was there? Derek says, people are people. Now tell him what he sees. Wes says he sees someone just like him. Someone walking, even though he’s dead inside. Derek says that’s exactly how he felt, but Wes says, he wasn’t talking about himself. Wes tries to grab Derek’s gun, and they struggle. Wes is almost shot, but gets the better of Derek, shoving him into the zombie tree, who (which?) bits him. I say, well, this isn’t good, and Wes says, I love you, man. He lowers Derek to the floor, cocks the gun, and says again that he loves Derek. We hear a shot.

Riley hears the shot, and says, what the hell? Do it. His men grab everyone, but Wes comes in behind Riley and grabs him, holding the gun against him. Wes says, let them go, and Alicia realizes Derek isn’t there. She tells Wes that she’s sorry, and he says, him too. He tells the men, back away, and keeps Riley in front of him as a shield. He says, he’s the one who thought people were capable of more than saving their own skin. They go through a door, Wes last, leaving Riley behind, and they shut the door behind them. Al says, they have a couple of minutes, tops. They shine flashlights around, and see they’re in a room of zombies hanging from the ceiling. Al says, they’re all involved… Their jaws are wired shut. Riley and his men bang on the door, and the group walks through the zombies. Riley says, break it down, and Luci calls to Al. Al tells her, go ahead. One of the zombies is wearing a uniform like Isabelle’s, and is wearing a headcover. Al pulls it off, but it’s not Isabelle. It breaks the wires in its jaw, and Al slices open its throat. Instead of blood, green embalming fluid pours out.

The door opens a crack, and Luci says, now. Alicia says they’ve got to take this place down, and Al says, embalming fluid is flammable. She starts to slice the zombies’ throats open, but Alicia says, go; she’s got this, She takes over, and Wes says, let him, but she says he has to get the maps to Morgan. He told her people can do more, and they can. He says, they can’t leave her, but she says, they can; she’ll be right behind him. He runs, and she stabs the rest of the zombies as she moves through them. The door is almost off, and she lights a match. As the door opens completely, she drops it. Nice.

Morgan says he thought Alicia would be fine. Al says, she might have, and Morgan asks about the rest of them. Al says, some got away. He asks, how many? but she says, all they could see was fire. Morgan says, they were planning something, and Luci says, something big. Big enough keep them there for a long time. Al says they knew who Morgan was, and were trying to find him. Morgan asks if they have any idea why, but Al says, no. A woman says, whatever they were doing, it’s not going to happen. They’ve got to stop them. Morgan says, they’ll do what they can for Alicia, and Dwight asks if there’s any gas left. The woman says, no, but the horses are fed and watered. Dakota says she wants to help, but Morgan says, no. She says she wouldn’t be there but for Alicia. She’s the reason they went there, and she wants to do it for Alicia, for all of them. Morgan says he appreciates what she’s done, but they’re not there yet. They’ll start with the parking garage, and track what they left, He and Luci leave, but Al stays behind.

Dwight says he appreciates what Al has done, and asks if she’s all right. She says, the places that they’re targeting, the maps have drop safes all over them. If they had a chopper, they could take out a lot of people. He says, and her lady? Al says she has to find her and warn her. She’d thought she lost her. Dwight says he gets it, but if Al doesn’t check in, in a couple of days he’s going to come looking for her.

Alicia looks through stuff in the embalming room, when Riley comes in with another guy. She asks, what the hell was this? Why is keeping her there? Riley says, bodies feed the soil; the soil in turn, feeds the plants. Death brings new life. For most, but not for her. They’re going preserve her as she is. She tells the guy, don’t come any closer, and Riley says, get her ready. He has the feeling Teddy will want to do this himself. He leaves, and the guy turns on the machine. He says, it will go faster if she cooperates, and gestures to the table. He comes toward her, and she stabs him in the eye with a knife. She tries to get out, but he grabs her, and they roll over the table. He grabs a knife, and tries to stab her, but misses, stabbing the ground. He pins her down, but she sticks her thumb in the eye she stabbed, and grabs the embalming fluid needle, and stabs him in the neck. I laaagh. She scoots away.   

Someone walks in with Riley, but Alicia’s vision is blurry. We assume it’s Teddy. He stabs the newly dead guy in the head, and wipes the blade off on the guys shirt. Yep it’s John Glover Teddy. He tells Riley to give them a moment, and Riley leaves. Alicia says, so he’s the king of crazy, and he says, she’s Alicia. She asks how he knows her name, and he says he’s been listening to her voice. Riley made a recording of her when she first arrived. He moves closer, and she tells him, back off, but he says, if he meant her harm, they wouldn’t be having this conversation. She gave herself up so her friends could escape. They left her. She says she made them, and he says, they obliged. Some family. Family should be sacred. It is the beginning of every one of them. Did she sacrifice herself because she’s noble, or is she punishing herself, or following in her mother’s footsteps. Alicia shakes her head, and says she doesn’t care what he thinks or says. Whatever it is, get to it. He says, it’s okay; he’s a bit of mama’s boy himself. There’s a lot they can learn from each other. She says she’s not buying any of this sh*t he’s selling. What’s next? Does he want to kill her? That’s not going to happen. He says, she and the folks she came here with destroyed years of work, years of sacrifice, literally and figuratively. They destroyed it. Someone else in his position might find that unforgivable. He laughs, and says, if one lives by the sword… She knows how it goes. From every end springs a new beginning. She asks what he wants, and he says, to save her. Now it’s her turn to laugh, and she says she doesn’t need saving. He says he knows she doesn’t believe in this, or in them… yet, but she will. He’s been looking for someone like her for a long time. He holds out his hand and smiles.

Next time, Riley finds Morgan, Riley tells Morgan that he has something they want, lots of zombies, and a fire.  

⚰️ When Soaps and Dead Collide…

He’s doubly lucky, having played Lucky on General Hospital, and now he’s lucky to be in the final season of TWD.  

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/the-walking-dead-final-season-11-casts-soap-star-jacob-young-deaver/

🤸‍♀️ Gotta Split…

Moving on to another Monday. Whatever that means anymore. Hopefully, your vaccination is behind you, or will be soon. Either way, stay safe, stay moving forward, and stay not living by the sword. You know how it goes.

Apr26

April 25, 2021 – Morgan Calls a Meeting, the Award Goes To & Care

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What What I Watched Today

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

Fear the Walking Dead

Daniel says, beachball… elephant… grape. Should he go on? We see him sitting in a cell, and he says, they asked how he felt when the day began. He felt hopeful.

Daniel is playing a Traveling Wilburys record, and everyone is happy and building stuff. You know that won’t last long. Daniel serves soup, and Morgan says, nice lunch. Daniel asks if this is the way Morgan imagined it, and Morgan says, it’s getting there. He guesses he has Daniel to thank for it. Confined Daniel says, if he hadn’t kept everyone in the dark, he wouldn’t have been there. Now they’re all together. Grace walks up, and Daniel says his wife ate this soup all the time she was pregnant with Ofelia, but she says she doesn’t have much of an appetite today. Morgan asks if she’s all right, and she says she’ll be fine. They walk off together, and confined Daniel says he was glad to see everyone together. It felt as if everything he’d done was beginning to pay off.

Charlie says, they’re here, and Daniel says, go tell Morgan. She rides off, and Daniel looks through binoculars, seeing the tank coming. He goes out to meet them. Bald guy whose name I don’t know, and Shari get out of the tank, while Sarah rides up on a horse. Bald guy says, it’s been a while, and Sarah asks if there’s any chance of them sharing fuel. If they do, Wen can join her on the runs. Shari says, if they share with her, they’ll have to share with everybody, and they’re running on fumes as it is. Victor rides up, and says, greetings. Sarah asks how everyone has been, and Victor dumps out some empty spray cans. He says their foes from Tanktown persist. He thinks the meeting is long overdue. Morgan joins them, and Sarah says she’s looking forward to see what Morgan has done. Morgan says, it’s come a long way, and says it’s nice to see Victor. Victor says, it’s nice to see Morgan too. It’s good to know they can lend a hand in these troubled times. Morgan says, there’s a threat to their existence. Something Virginia didn’t think she could handle, and he thought they shouldn’t face down on their own. That’s why he called them. Can they work together and pool their resources, put their differences aside? Can they face the thing that threatens all of them? He only has one rule – the same one he made when they gathered there the last time. Anybody breaking it – anybody – will not be welcome here again. He tells them, come on in. We’ve got work to do. Confined Daniel says, they can see why he was hopeful. Then, everything changed.

Daniel feels Grace’s belly, and says, he is strong. Grace asks if he’s sure they’re not contractions, and confined Daniel says, the last time he felt something like that was when his wife was pregnant with Ofelia. That was the moment he decided they should move to L.A., and decided to change everything. He wanted to give his daughter the life he thought she deserved. He supposes he wanted this place to be the same, for Grace’s baby; for everyone. That’s why they didn’t take chances. Everyone checked their weapons at the door, for all of their safety. The weapons were logged and locked away. Only he and Morgan had the keys.

Victor puts his gun on the table, and Daniel says, and the knife? Victor laughs, and takes off his jacket, unbuckling the sheath, and putting it on the table. Daniel says, anything else? Victor puts a pet carrier on the table, and Daniel says, Skidmark! I laugh, and Daniel asks where Victor found him. Victor says Virginia had him at a station to hunt rats, but all he does is sit around licking his unmentionables. Daniel says the cat hasn’t changed a bit, and thanks Victor for the peace offering. He says, Victor understands why Daniel couldn’t let him in on it, and Victor says, they’ve both played games. The better man won. Kudos. It appears Daniel’s gambit paid off. Confined Daniel asks, why did hearing that mean so much to him? There’s a good reason, but they’re not there yet. They need to understand like he did.

Victor asks where Alicia is, and Morgan says, on a supply run. Victor asks if Alicia knew he was coming, but Charlie runs up, and says they need Morgan. It’s Grace. He leaves, and Daniel locks up the weapons.

Sarah is with Grace, and says, June will take a day to get there. It’s either Braxton Hicks or contractions. Grace asks how they know, and she says, they wait until the baby gets there. Morgan asks how they know the baby is okay, and Sarah tells him that they need a fetal monitor. He says he knows where he can find one. He had one in the place he had set up before this place. Daniel says he’ll get it, but Morgan says, it’s off the beaten path, and not easy to find. Morgan takes Grace’s hand, and says he’ll be there and back in a few hours.

Confined Daniel says, Morgan gave the keys to the rabbi just in case. He asked Daniel to keep the peace until he returned. Get the conversation started. Everyone sits at a big table, and Sarah asks what Dakota is doing there. Daniel says, they’re going to share information, and Morgan says, no one was closer to Virginia than Dakota. Victor says, they’ll have to take whatever she says with a gargantuan grain of salt, and Sarah says Victor was no better, lining them up to be shot. He says, if she recalls, he turned the guns the other way at the first opportune moment, but she says, only when he saw which way the wind was blowing. Daniel tells them, they’re not here to rehash the past; they’re here to protect the future together. Daniel asks Dakota if Virginia ever said anything about these people, and Dakota tells him, the last thing Virginia said about them was that they were laying low. The other stuff was just about the messages. Dwight says, the last time they listened to Dakota, someone ended up dead, but Luci says, one of those people could have become one of them, without them realizing. Charlie says, or one of them could have been turned into one of those people, and everyone starts talking at once, and arguing. Confined Daniel says, he didn’t want to believe one of them was a traitor, but he’d lied to everyone about losing his memory. They’d all lied at some point. Now when they needed each other most, they couldn’t trust each other. Something blows up outside, and everyone ducks. They go out to look.

One of the buildings in progress is gone, and Daniel explains they were using the dynamite to clear the field. A rock must have fallen, causing the explosion; it was an accident. Luci looks at Dakota, who asks why Luci is looking at her. She was sitting at the table with them. Shari says, they’re not the only ones there. She thinks the attack was from the inside, and Daniel suggests they take a break. Confined Daniel says, he wanted to believe it was an accident, but didn’t have time to make up his mind.

Zombies tumble down the hill and head toward the town. Dwight says, the explosion must have drawn them, and Shari says she wants her gun back. Daniel says, not unless it’s absolutely necessary, and Victor says he thinks this qualifies. Daniel says their weapons will only kill a fraction of the dead. Morgan is coming back with the truck and its guns. They’ll wait it out; the walls will hold. Confined Daniel says, he did think the walls would hold, but when it comes to the dead, they had to be prepared in case of a breach. He unlocks the gun shed, and Charlie asks what he’s doing. He says, what he has to do to be prepared, in case the gate doesn’t hold. They go inside, and confined Daniel says, when he saw the guns missing, he knew the explosion was no accident. Someone wanted to trap them inside, draw the dead, and leave them defenseless. The only question was, who?

Zombies keep coming, and Grace wonders what she does now. Daniel asks if she feels well enough to travel, and she laughs, and says, no, but he says she’s not safe there. He’s going to fix that, but until he does, she’s better off somewhere else. There’s a fishing shack nearby. He’s marked it on the map. He’s put the map in a bag, along with food, water, and a first aid kit. He wouldn’t ask her to go if it wasn’t absolutely necessary. She says, okay, and confined Daniel says, the reason Morgan found this place was for Grace’s child. Now it’s not safe for him. He needed to find those weapons. Charlie goes through backpacks in one of the tents, and bald guy looks in. He asks if there’s something he can help her with, and she says, no. Sorry, she… Daniel calls to her, and asks if she found the hammer he asked her to look for. She says, not yet, and tells bald guy that she didn’t realize it was his tent. She thought it was Mike’s. He tells her, anyone touches his sh*t again, they’re going to have a problem. Confined Daniel says, he lost Ofelia. He wasn’t going to lose Charlie too. He sent her away to meet Grace, where she’d be safe. So he could do what he needed to do to find out who stole the weapons.

Zombies clamor at the gate, and a few toddle into the town. Luci says they have a breach, and she and Sarah fight the zombie with metal buckets and chairs, whatever they can grab. One gets Dwight down, and he fends it off by putting a handsaw in its mouth, but another is getting close. We hear shots, and the zombies are dead. Daniel says, it was Victor, and Victor asks what Daniel means. Dwight wonders how the zombies got in, and Daniel says he let them in. Dwight asks, why? and Daniel says he needed to figure out who stole the weapons. Now he knows. He locks Victor in a cell, and asks where the weapons are, but Victor says he didn’t take them. Daniel says Victor is always lying. He doesn’t think Victor can tell the difference anymore. Victor says, this, coming from a man who hid what he’s been doing for months, but Daniel says he did it to free them from Virginia. Victor is doing it to tear them apart. What was Victor offered to betray them? Lawton? The opportunity to be a big shot? Victor says, he wasn’t offered anything. He’s there for the same reason Daniel is, but if he hadn’t kept his weapon, someone would be dead. Daniel says, Victor continues to give him every reason to hurt him.

Confined Daniel says, it’s not what he wanted. Morgan was right, if they do things in there the same way as they did them out there, nothing’s gonna change. Nothing will be different from before. Victor asks if Daniel is hearing him, and Daniel says, before more dead get inside, they need the weapons. He leaves, and Victor calls to him.

The zombies push down the door, which didn’t look all that sturdy to begin with.

The zombies get to the inside gate, and Daniel says, it’s not built to hold that much weight. Victor was with them during the explosion, so he couldn’t have done it on his own. Whichever one of them is working with him, he’s giving them a warning. A betrayal of those closest to them will come with a cost. It will come back to haunt them, and there will be consequences. Where are the weapons? He tells Dwight, they’ll search the tents, and Shari wonders where Grace and Charlie are. Daniel says, they’re not a part of this, but Sarah says Shari has a point; Charlie was on the other team. Luci says, that was a long time ago, and bald guy says he caught Charlie going through his sh*t earlier. Daniel repeats, Charlie is not part of this. They’ll have to take his word. Shari says, maybe the whole thing is a scam, and Morgan wants to keep them there. Dwight says she doesn’t believe that, but Shari says they don’t know, and need to look out for themselves. Sarah says, if they work together, they stand a chance of reinforcing the gate, but Dwight doesn’t think it will hold. Luci is right; they need the need weapons. They try to shore up the gate, and Daniel takes out the one gun he has. Sarah says, that won’t be enough, but Daniel says, yes it will.

Confined Daniel says, Morgan left his ax at the gate. Daniel thought he could be the man he once was outside too, but it wasn’t an option. He tells Victor, no more games. Where are the weapons? Victor doesn’t say anything, and Daniel says he doesn’t need to remind Victor that you can survive a shot to the face. What Victor doesn’t know is what it does to you later. He takes a plate out of his mouth, and shows Victor. He says he winces every time he takes a sip of water. You have to eat soup the rest of your life, and learn to hide the pain. You wheeze when you breathe at night, but most of all, you’ll never forget who did all of that. Where are the weapons? Victor says, forgive him. Daniel has to forgive him. Daniel points the gun at Victor, and asks again, where are the weapons? Victor says, please, he doesn’t know, and Daniel looks crazed. There’s machinegun fire outside, and Daniel goes out.

Zombies lie everywhere, and smoke obscures everything. Daniel sees someone, and says, Morgan? Morgan asks, what the hell happened?

Morgan asks if Daniel found the weapons, but Daniel says, not yet. Daniel asks if Morgan has heard from Grace; they should almost be there. He asks Morgan to let him know if he hears from her, and goes back in to see Victor. Victor says, it’s just a matter of time. He’ll wait for Daniel’s apology. He asks if Daniel meant it, and Daniel says, what? Victor says, what Daniel said about his jaw; the pain it caused him. Daniel laughs, and says, no. Victor asks what Daniel wants, and Daniel says to stop Victor, and whoever he’s working with. Victor asks why Daniel cares so much about this place working. When he found Daniel, he was happily living alone in a warehouse with a cat. He doesn’t know half of these people, and Victor is willing to bet Daniel can’t stand the other half, but he almost shot Victor in the face to protect them. Why? Daniel says, it was a fair question when Victor asked him the first time, and it still is. He couldn’t answer it then, but thinks he can now. He thinks he knows why it means so much. When he was cutting hair in Lawton, and pretending he didn’t remember anything, it’s not different from when he was in the barbershop, pretending the past didn’t exist. Ofelia never knew who her father was. Their relationship was based on a lie, a deception. Morgan’s idea made him believe he could help create the home he wanted for Ofelia. It could be a place where you didn’t have to pretend to be what you weren’t. He hoped by doing that, he could redeem himself from all the lies he told, for Ofelia’s death, but it doesn’t seem to work that way, does it? Morgan radios, saying, he’s at the shack, but Grace isn’t. Daniel says, she should be there, but Morgan says, she’s not. Where is she?

Morgan and Daniel are in the woods with some of the others, and Morgan radios Grace, but there’s no response. Sarah suggests fanning out, and Daniel asks if Morgan is sure Grace isn’t there. Morgan says, it didn’t look like anyone had been near the place in months. He tries the radio again, and Jacob says, they can’t be far. Maybe they had to leave. Maybe they heard the gunfire, and they’ll be back. Morgan tries again, but gets nothing. He says, you don’t think they suspected? but Daniel says he doesn’t know. Grace finally comes over the radio, and Morgan asks, where is she?

Grace and Charlie have joined the group; Grace sitting on a log. Morgan asks if she’s all right, and she says she thinks the contractions are getting closer. Daniel says, he told them, the shack. What happened? She asks what he’s talking about, and he says, the shack in the woods; he marked it on the map he gave her. She says he told her to avoid the shack; it wasn’t safe. Daniel says, no; he told her to go there and wait for him. Morgan asks, what’s going on? and Daniel says, Charlie says she was there. Charlie says he told her to go to the old caverns, and told Grace the same thing. Daniel asks why he’d send them there. They haven’t surveyed it yet. Grace says, he did, and she shows him the map. The caverns are clearly marked, and Grace suddenly cries out. Sarah says they have to get her back, and Morgan says they can figure this out later. Luci radios, and says, they’ve found the weapons. Morgan asks, where? and Luci says he’ll want to see for himself. He says they’re on the way.  

Luci takes the cover off of a small wagon, and reveals the weapons, saying, they found this in Daniel’s shed. Morgan asks how they ended up in Daniel’s shed, but Daniel says he doesn’t know. He locked them up like he said. Morgan asks if this is everything, and Dwight says it matches everything in the log. Daniel says, someone moved them, and Luci says she had to break the lock to the shed where the weapons are kept. Daniel says, then it was Victor and the Rangers, or whoever is working with Victor. Morgan asks, what’s going on? and Daniel says, someone is trying to make him look bad; make them go against each other. Morgan says, first sending Grace and Charlie to the shack, and now this? Is Daniel sure he didn’t make a mistake? Whatever is going on, he needs Daniel’s help to understand. Daniel says he knows what he did, and Morgan says he’s just asking; is Daniel sure? Look at him. Is he okay? Is he feeling all right? Daniel says he’s not sure. It’s confusing. Morgan puts his hand on Daniel’s shoulder, and says, it’s okay, but maybe Daniel should talk to somebody. Daniel tells him, okay.

Daniel says, now he’s talking to them. He moved the weapons, and didn’t remember. Then he sent Grace to a dangerous place. Why? June says, it’s okay. They’re going to get to the bottom of whatever is going on. She promises him that.

Daniel draws a clock, and the numbers are correct. June asks if he can tell her the words he remembers from the beginning of the session. He says, beachball… elephant… grape. He wonders what that has to do with anything, and she says, it’s a test. It’s not neurological. He asks what it is, and she says she thinks it’s psychological. He asks what that means, and she says, symptomatically, he’s experiencing memory loss and disassociated thinking, but there’s no underlying physical cause, which is good. He asks why this is happening now, and she says he’s finally slowed down, and has something to lose. Is he worried about something happening? He says, they all were, and she asks if that’s why he moved the weapons. Did he think they were a danger where they were? He says he’s spent his whole life giving people reason not to trust him, and now he can’t trust himself. He deserves this. She says, this kind of thing is far from her area of expertise. Let her educate herself, and she’ll come back. She leaves, and outside, Morgan says it’s good of her to be there for him. She says, she came as soon as she could. She’s going to check on Grace, and Morgan asks if there’s any chance Daniel is… She says, faking it? She doesn’t think so. They’d get people in the ER from time to time who were just as confused. It’s hard to fake. Morgan asks if Daniel needs anything, but Daniel doesn’t respond.

Victor says he hopes Morgan understands him taking his leave, and bald guy says, just because Daniel was wrong about this, doesn’t mean they don’t have to worry about who’s out there. Morgan says he saw graffiti on the water tower about ten miles south. If they’ve been there, they know about the town, especially after the explosion. Victor says, all the more reason to leave, and Morgan says, if they know about them, they know about Lawton. Victor laughs, and says, then he’d better get back. Shari says she’s making the same call, and Dwight tells her to be safe. She thanks him, and he gives her a lingering kiss on the cheek. Dakota says she thinks she can help. She’s been thinking about everything Virginia said about the people painting the messages. She heard Virginia telling Hill that they went underground. Dakota thought she meant they were laying low, but what if it was for real? Wes asks what she means. Like are they living in a basement, or storm tunnel? She says the last place Virginia scouted was two days south of Tanktown, and Dwight says, that’s Dallas. It’s where they found some graffiti. Morgan says, they can start there, and Luci thinks they should send out scouting parties. Morgan says, then they’ll come back together, and make a decision.

Daniel walks out with a horse, and Charlie asks if he’s leaving. He says he has to go; he can’t stay. It’s not safe for him to be there. He’s not worried so much about himself as about them. He let the dead in, and would have shot Victor if Morgan hadn’t returned. He put Grace and the baby in danger. He thinks for a while, and says, the last time things happened in his mind, he set a place on fire. He can’t risk that happening now. Charlie asks where he’s going to go, and Daniel says, the warehouse, if it’s still there. (BTW, he is taking Skidmark.) Charlie says, if not? and he says he’ll find a place. Victor tells him, come to Lawton, and Daniel asks, why go there? Victor says he’ll have a better chance at survival. He can keep Daniel safe, and everyone around him. He’s not doing this for Daniel. He’s doing it for Ofelia. Daniel can lead an honest life. So…? Shall we? Victor heads for his horse, and Morgan asks if Victor is really going to help Daniel. Victor wonders what Morgan thinks of him, and Morgan says Daniel just put a gun in Victor’s face; he has a right to ask. Victor says he thinks Daniel would be better off with him, than there with Morgan, or wherever else. Morgan says he’s going to hold Victor to this, but Victor says Morgan doesn’t have to hold him to anything. He said what he said. Victor gets on his horse, and Daniel tells Morgan, it’s for the best. Morgan shakes Daniel’s hand, and tells him to take care of himself. Daniel says he’s sorry, and Morgan says, it’s okay. Charlie hugs Daniel, and says, he’ll get better. He says, he promises, and tells her not to worry. He leaves with Victor, and we’re all sad.   

Next time, the end is the beginning, Dakota wants to help, a zombie tree, and John Glover joins the cast. I’m psyched.

🎭 The Envelope Please…

The more important stuff, like the fashions, tomorrow, but for now, here’s the list of winners.

https://ew.com/awards/oscars/oscars-2021-winners-list/

🛶 Rowing This Boat Ashore…

Hope you were able to change it up a little for the past two days, or what we once called the weekend. Are we back to that yet? Until the sails on tomorrow’s yacht unfurl, stay safe, stay uninhibited by convention, and stay leading an honest life.

Apr19

April 18, 2021 – The Dead Stands Alone & Teeth

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What I Watched Today

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

Fear the Walking Dead

June digs a grave for John. In the background, Ginny yells for Morgan on the radio. I wonder if June is thinking of whacking Ginny with the shovel. June looks at the blood and dirt on her hands, and pushes John into the hole she’s dug, taking his gun. A Ranger tells her to put it down unless she wants to join him. Ginny asks, what the hell is going on? and the Ranger tells Ginny that June took it off the body. Something tells him it wasn’t for sentimental reasons. June asks why Ginny’s sister killed her husband. She saved Ginny’s life because of what Dakota meant to her; it’s the only reason Ginny is still breathing, and John isn’t. Ginny says she doesn’t know why, but June thinks she does. Ginny turns away and goes inside, and June covers John’s body with dirt.

Daniel, Luci, Sarah, and Grace are forced to kneel in a line outside. Victor tells everyone, keep calm, and it won’t escalate any further, and Sarah says she’s going to escalate her foot up his ass. A Ranger asks if Ginny wants the rest, but she says, no. She’ll keep them as insurance in case this batch doesn’t work out. She asks where June is, and June is pushed into the line. Luci asks how many have to die because of Ginny? and Ginny suggests Luci tell her. Daniel starts to get up, and gets whacked with a gun butt. Ginna asks where they’re hiding him, and Sarah says, who? Ginny says, who the hell does she think? Morgan Jones. Well? He couldn’t have been out there all on his own. She goes up to Daniel and says, you know, old timer? Daniel says he doesn’t know anything, and she tells him, he’s always saying that. She takes out her gun, and Sarah says, he doesn’t know anything, but Ginny holds the gun to Daniel’s head, cocking the trigger. She says, he doesn’t have to know anything, but somebody does. Where is he? Where is Dakota? She points the gun at Luci, and then Grace, saying, Morgan must have some kind of hold over her. What is wrong with people today? She sighs, and says, okay, if that’s how they want it. She puts her gun back in the holster, and radios Morgan. She says she knows he’s listening. It’s very important that he hears what she’s about to say. He’d better bring Dakota back right now, or some very bad things are about to happen. If he doesn’t start talking, she’s going to blow Grace’s brains out in front of everyone. If he doesn’t believe her, ask Grace himself. She puts the radio in front of Grace, and Grace says Ginny won’t kill them. Ginny says, yes she will, but Grace says, without them, she has nothing. Ginny tells her, that was a stupid thing to say, and points the gun at her. She tells Morgan that he’s holding up the baby’s future, and Morgan rides in, saying, he’s right there. If she harms Grace, she’ll never see her sister again. The same goes if anything happens to his friends. She asks if that’s supposed to scare her, and he says she should be scared. It’s over for her. Everything she is, was, and had is going to get stripped away, and that’s scary. He knows because it was over for him once. She says, by her count, he has one, while she has a bunch. Tell her where her sister is, or she’ll start going down the line, killing them one by one. Morgan says they all need to hear the truth. Virginia is a liar and a hypocrite. She has rules about destroying anything that threatens their future, and all she’s building, but she wants to destroy it. She doesn’t follow her own rules. Janice didn’t kill Ranger Campbell, Dakota did and Virginia covered it up, framing Janice for his murder. Ginny tells Victor, if they blink, start with the old man. She says she gave Morgan a warm bed and fed him, and Morgan says she’s continuing with her lies. John paid for her lies with his life. She tells the others not to listen, and tells Victor, shoot the old man. Morgan says, there’s no future in this place with her. She sells them on a future that never was. Victor says, Morgan is right. If they follow her, they’ll end up dead like Campbell. Next time, it could be one of them; it could be him. He turns on Ginny with his gun, and she tells him, put the gun down. He says she told them to get ready for a big show. He is, and so are they. Some of the Rangers turn their guns on Ginny, and Victor says she entrusted him to build an army. She should have been careful who he used it against. She says, tell her where her sister is, but Morgan says, she’s not calling the shots. Where he’ll put Dakota, Ginny will never see her again. He’ll put her where Ginny put Janice. They can do it the easy way or the hard way. It’s her call. He puts his fingers in the air, and she pulls out her gun. He shoots her, hitting her in the shoulder. He tells the others, stand down, but Ginny grabs Grace. Shooting starts, and Morgan tells everyone, get down. It’s hard to tell who’s on whose side, and June dives under a car, motioning for Luci to follow. Ginny still has Grace, and a Ranger grabs Daniel. They all go behind a car, and Ginny shoves Grace in the back. She tells the Ranger, there are too many for now. They’ll take Grace and Daniel. As long as they have someone, they still have leverage. He pushes Daniel into the car, and gets in the driver’s seat. He drives slow, Ginny walking alongside, crouched down, so she can’t be seen. She drops back before he’s gone.

Victor’s guys start to go after them, but Morgan sneaks up on Ginny, and tells her to call them back. Ginny says if he kills her, and Grace and Daniel will be killed, not to mention the baby. He says if he lets her go, she won’t last long enough make it there, but she says she has Grace, Daniel, and the Rangers. Morgan will keep her alive if he wants Grace breathing. Victor says, don’t do this, but Morgan tells Ginny, get in the car. He gets in the driver’s seat, and Victor says, they’ll find him, but Morgan peels out. Victor fires a half-hearted shot at the car.

In the fallen, now decrepit, water tower, Morgan nurses Ginny’s wound, and she acts like a big baby. He wants her to prove Grace and Daniel are okay. That’s why she’s still alive. He held up his end of the deal; call them. She radios, asking if Grace is okay, and the Ranger says, she’s fine. Morgan says he wants to hear it from Grace, and Grace says she and Daniel are safe. Ginny says she’s in a water tower close to Grit. She’ll check in soon. Morgan takes the radio, and says he’s stopped the bleeding, but the bullet is still there need. She needs medical attention, or it will kill her. He takes a stuffed toy out of her backpack, and she says, it was for Grace. She took good care of Grace and the baby. He says, that doesn’t change anything. He doesn’t want the baby growing up near her. She says he wants to kill her, but he says he can’t. She has Daniel and Grace, but it doesn’t look good for her. She asks if he’s survived something worse, and he says he has, but not for the reasons she thinks. She asks what he means, and he says he finally found out who saved him in the gulch. Ginny asks, who? and he says, her sister. She says, that’s so bullsh*t. There’s no way Dakota could have gone out there. He says, she did. Does Ginny know why Dakota saved him? Ginny says, because of her, and he says, yeah. Dakota thought he would kill her. Ginny asks how he knows, and he hands her the letter, asking if it’s Dakota’s writing. She looks at it, and he asks what she did to that child. She cries, and says, she has to see Dakota, and she’ll release Daniel and Grace. Morgan says, no; sorry. He’s got to see Grace first. She says, it’s not going to happen. She wants him to take her to Dakota, but there’s something she has to tell him. She struggles for a moment, and finally says, Dakota’s not her sister; Dakota is her daughter (shades of Chinatown!). He asks if that’s the truth, and she nods. She says, she was young, and her parents were ashamed. They… He gets up, and looks out. He asks if she can run, and she says, is he kidding? He helps her up, and says, they don’t have a choice. He shoves her toward the car, as a tank comes through the woods. It shoots at them, as they speed off.  

Morgan asks if Ginny is okay, and she says she’s aces. The tank continues to follow them, and Ginny asks, who the hell are they? He says, people not good enough for her settlement. She doesn’t think the fuel will take them much further, and he stops the car. He asks if she can run, and she wonders if it’s a question this time. She gets out, and he pulls her along, saying, let’s go. They run, and the tank stops. People wearing masks get out, and follow them, spreading out. They shoot, and Morgan and Ginny split up. Ginny falls, and crawls under a big log, coming up on the other side. A zombie ambles toward her, but a masked woman kills it. Ginny says if the woman is going to kill her, at least show her face. Shari takes off her mask, and Morgan runs up. Shari says, what the hell? and he tells her, if Ginny dies, people they care about will die. Shari says they’re done waiting for him, and Ginny asks if Shari is from one of her franchises. Ginny doesn’t know her. Shari says she knows Ginny, and points her gun, but Morgan knocks her down. He says he told her, people will die, and she says, that makes him just as bad as Ginny is. He says, her time will come. Ginny will get what she deserves, but that time is not now. Morgan tells Ginny, they need to move, and pulls her up. Shari gets up, but doesn’t try to stop them.  

Ginny cries out, and Morgan helps her along. He asks if she told him the truth about Dakota, and she asks why she would lie. He says so he would take Ginny to her. She saw how it moved him, and knows he has a son. She says she wouldn’t lie about that, but she needs to see Dakota. She asks where Morgan is taking her, and he says, to a place he built. She asks how he found it, and he says, he didn’t; Isaac, one of her Rangers, did. She says, everyone is turning on her today, and he says, Isaac died, but his wife Rachel is there. As they walk, Ginny says, let her and Dakota go away together. Find some place far away. He asks, what makes her think Dakota would want to go anyplace with her? He could kill her without anther thought. She took all of them away. All of them. She shot him, left him for dead, and sent a killer to chop his head off. Her daughter killed his best friend, so yeah he’d like to kill her if he could. He’s had some time to think about what to do, and he could do what Dakota wants, but he won’t let it be the reason he survived. Ginny should have finished him off. She says, some part of him that will risk everything for one person, reminds her of her and her kid. He says, they’re not the same, but she says, we’re all the same. He says, let’s just go, but she suddenly stops, and says, you have been busy. We see the concrete wall that Morgan’s new world lies behind.  

Alicia asks why Morgan brought Ginny there, and Ginny is shocked to see Al and Dwight on top of the wall. Morgan says, Ginny has Grace and Daniel. He had to agree to swap for Dakota to get them back. It was the only way to save them. He brings Ginny through an entryway, and she sees people gardening. She says it reminds her of her grandparents farm outside Temple. He takes her further, until they come to a little town. She asks what he calls this place, but he says, it doesn’t have a name yet. Rachel approaches and says, Isaac wouldn’t have wanted this, but Morgan says Ginny isn’t staying. He asks where Dakota is, and Alicia says, the church. Al radios, saying, Victor is there, and he brought company. Morgan asks, how many? but she says she doesn’t know; at least a dozen, mostly Rangers. Victor sits on his horse, alone, outside the wall, while the rest are up on the hill. He says he knows they’re in there. His people have grievances… and they’re not the only ones. The tank drives along the hill, and stops, the occupants getting out. Al says, people in masks are there too.

They begin to yell for Ginny, and Al says they have some itchy trigger fingers out there. What’s their next move? Morgan asks what they want with Ginny, and Al asks what they want. Victor says, it’s simple – justice. The genuine article not the version Ginny has been doling out. Morgan says, they’ll never get Grace or Daniel back if they do that, and Alicia says, what happens if they don’t turn Ginny over? Al asks, and if they don’t? and Victor says, they’ll take her. Al asks if Morgan heard that, and Alicia says, they’ll never get through. Dwight says, but people will still get hurt; Shari is out there. Alicia says, even if they can’t get through, they’ll do everything they can to destroy the place, and Morgan asks if she has a better idea. Ginny says she does. They’ll change the deal. She’ll go, and let him keep the place. He asks what she wants in return, and she says, Dakota gets to live there. She gets a second chance. What Dakota did to John wasn’t her fault; it was Ginny’s. Morgan says they’ll kill her, and Dwight says, If they don’t, Shari will for sure. Ginny says she thought Dakota needed her, but maybe this is what she needs. Morgan says, talk to her first, but Ginny says she can’t. He can’t make her do that. It will be easier if she just goes. One more thing. He asks, what’s that? and she says she is willing to die, but it looks like they want to twist the knife; she feels it. She doesn’t want to give them that. What she’s asking for in return for releasing Grace and Daniel, and making sure no one gets hurt on her watch, is that he do the honors. Dakota thought the reason he survived was to kill her. Kill her, and the fight ends. He secures the future of this place. He thinks for a moment, and holds out his hand to Alicia. She gives him the radio, and he hands it to Ginny, telling her, make the call.

The door is opened and Alicia comes out, followed by Ginny and the others. Victor sits there on his horse, while the others watch from above. Ginny says, before she dies, she wants them all to know that everything she did was to keep them alive. Victor says, ha! and she says, like she’s doing now, taking her medicine, with Morgan serving it up. Victor says perhaps Morgan misunderstood.  They want satisfaction. Morgan tells them, Ginny said that she’d let Grace and Daniel go if he did this. They’ve got to let him. He stands on a mound of dirt and says, here, pointing to a rock with his battleax pokey weapon. She kneels down, and bows her head. I’m almost touched. She takes off her sling, and puts her head on the rock. Morgan takes a stance with his weapon, and everyone waits. He thinks about everything that’s happened, all the horrible things Ginny is responsible for, and chops… but he doesn’t. She tells him, don’t get cold feet, and he sees the note on the ground near her. He says she told him what she was doing was for the future of her kid. What the hell are they trying to do? He repeats himself, louder, and she asks what the hell he’s doing. Hurry up, goddammit; let’s go. Come on. They want him to do it. He says he knows what they want, and what he’s trying to do. But if they start like this, they’re no better than her. He yells to others, if they start like this, they’re no better than her. There’s no satisfaction here. If they want satisfaction, they should make her feel it. Make her tell the truth. He says Ginny is going tell the truth, and pulls her back inside. I’m confused.

Alicia leads Morgan and Ginny to Dakota, who asks why Ginny is there. Why didn’t Morgan kill her? Victor comes over the radio, saying, if they don’t hand Ginny over, they’re coming in. Ginny says there’s something she needs to tell Dakota, and Alicia says she stuck her neck out for Dakota. If she tries anything, she won’t get another chance. They leave Dakota and Ginny alone, and Dakota says, with everything she did to get away from Ginny, now she’s there. Ginny says she knows what Dakota thinks of her, but she needs to tell… Dakota says she doesn’t want to hear Ginny’s voice. She doesn’t want to see Ginny. She just wanted a normal life. Ginny says, that’s what she tried to give Dakota, and Dakota says, then why didn’t Ginny treat her like she cared. Ginny says she doesn’t know. She didn’t know how. Dakota says Ginny killed their parents, and Ginny says, they weren’t her… She cries, and Dakota says Ginny murdered them. Ginny says, they weren’t her parents. She’s not Dakota’s sister; she’s Dakota’s mother. Dakota shakes her head, and says, no. Ginny says Dakota has got to listen. None of this was her fault. Dakota’s grandparents didn’t protect her, and Ginny had to get her out. Dakota asks if Ginny is saying she killed them for her, and Ginny says she did all this for her. Everything she’s done, everything she’s built, she did it so that nothing like what happened to her would happen to Dakota. Dakota asks why Ginny didn’t tell her, and Ginny says she thought not knowing would protect Dakota. She tried to turn away the ugliness of the world, so that Dakota didn’t have to see it for what it was; ugly. She always loved Dakota, and thought she’d found a way to secure Dakota the second chance she deserved. She deserves this place, but she has to want it. She’ll have to work for it. Dakota says, they’ve both killed people. Why even bring her into this world? She shouldn’t have been alive. None of them should. Ginny tells her, don’t say that, and Dakota walks away, refusing to look at Ginny. Ginny can’t follow because she’s on a chain.

Daniel and Grace head for Morgan’s village on horses, and Daniel says, hey, Victor, what’s going on? Victor says, Daniel remembers him, and Daniel says, it’s a conversation for another day. He asks where everyone else is, when Morgan comes out, and Victor asks where Ginny is. Morgan says, inside… if she’s still alive. John said the ground they were standing on is soaked in blood, and he was right. It took so much killing to get them there, to get them to win, and they have won. John just wanted the killing to stop, and so does Morgan. Doesn’t Victor think they can start by making her live with what she’s done? Morgan chucks his pokey weapon into the ground, and says, it stays there until they need it again, and he prays to God that they don’t. Shari says, it’s not his call. It’s not good enough. These people have suffered because of her. Bring her back now. She starts to move toward the doorway, but Dwight stops her. He says, just because Virginia caused damage, it’s not worth the people causing more. Victor says he hopes Morgan knows what he’s doing, and walks away. Morgan says, anyone who’s ready to abide by the law their foundation is laying down, is more than welcome to stay. He asked them to live before – just live. He hopes today is the day they start doing that, and that they do it there, June ponders, and gets off her horse. She takes John’s hat, and her doctor bag, and goes inside. Morgan sees Grace walking behind Sarah and Rabbi Jacob, who’s appeared out of nowhere, and goes to her. He asks if she’s all right, and they hug. He says he’s sorry, and she asks, why? He says, for taking as long as he did, and she says he doesn’t have to apologize. She wouldn’t be here if he hadn’t fought the way he did for her. He wouldn’t be here. She touches her pregnant stomach, and Morgan says, a boy? She says she doesn’t know for sure; she just has a feeling. She says, what he did up there… He’s still the same man she knew. He says he doesn’t know about that, and they walk inside.

June stands at the door, and Jacob walks in. He has a letter in his hands, and tells her, John wrote this when he thought he wouldn’t see her again. He thought she should have it. He gives it to her, and she puts in her pocket.

Dwight goes to Shari, and asks if she isn’t coming in. She says she won’t find what she’s looking for in there, and he asks what she’s looking for. She says he was right. She had a shot to kill Ginny, and it didn’t feel like she thought it would. It didn’t feel like she was putting the past behind her, but she won’t do it in there. He says she can, and she says, it didn’t feel like she was putting the past behind her, but it felt like a start. She’s not where he is. She thinks she’ll find it with them before she finds it with him. He says, okay, and she leaves in the tank. He watches until it disappears.

Alicia asks where Victor is going, and he says this place isn’t for him. She says he asked her not to forget who she is, and she’s doing that there. He says, they’re still out there. The reason why Virginia was putting together an army. They’re still a threat, and he’s getting ready for them. Whatever is coming, they can do this together. She says she wanted them to do this together. He made it clear he didn’t want to. Why should she believe him now? He says she doesn’t have to; he’ll show her. He’ll give her the reason to come join him. He rides off.  

A dog licks Dakota’s face, and she opens her eyes to find June there. June says, the bullet is out. In a few days, she’ll be fine to go. Dakota says, that’s the second time June saved her life, and thanks her. Morgan says they’ll have to talk, but he’ll let Ginny do what she has to, and then Ginny and Dakota will take their leave. June says, this place doesn’t need her; she needs this place, and Ginny says she gets it; they’re gone. He tells her that he knows a path through the mountains to a place where the Rangers won’t know where to find her. He’s not doing this for her; he’s doing it for Dakota. June says, she needs to change Ginny’s dressing, and stays behind. When the others are gone, Ginny says she owes June any number of apologies, but June says it has nothing to do with Ginny. It follows her wherever she goes; some kind of punishment for her past. She had a daughter. Her name was Rose. She was sick, and June tried to protect her. She ended up getting every survivor in her camp killed, and of course the love of her life was killed by someone’s daughter they were trying to protect. In some ways, it’s what she deserves. Ginny says, June was trying to protect her kid like she was, and June says, did Ginny know when they were back in Lawton with Cameron? Did she know what Dakota was capable of and protect her anyway? Ginny says she’d do anything for her daughter, and June takes out her gun. She says, it’s the gun Dakota killed John with, and points it at Ginny. She says she didn’t protect her daughter after she killed someone. She’d asked why Dakota killed her husband, and Ginny said she didn’t know. Is that true? Ginny stammers, and June says, that wasn’t true. Ginny is evil, and always was. June shoots her, and walks out.    

Morgan sees June, and asks, what happened? but she puts on John’s hat and keeps walking. Dakota runs in, and sees Ginny dead. Morgan calls to June, who wipes the blood off her face, and continues on. Everyone watches, and June looks like a gunslinger who is done with her job, as she walks out, into the sunset.  

Next time, more building in Morgan’s town, Morgan says there’s a threat to their existence and they have work to do, Grace goes into labor, and there’s an attack on the town.

💬 To Be Continued…

Calling it an as not-as-late night. Until we meet at the Hospital and/or on Deck, stay safe, stay composed, and stay not causing more damage to repair the damage already caused.

Apr12

April 11, 2021 – John Looks For Meaning, a Dead Morsel, Joining the Fear, Dead Info, Anniversary Of Thrones & Gloomy

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What I Watched Today

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

Fear the Walking Dead

John cleans his gun while he watches Meet John Doe. He loads the chambers with bullets. He messes around with some Scrabble letters, and sees a zombie outside. He shoots it through the open door from where he’s sitting, and takes a slug of whiskey. He spells out goodbye June, and puts the barrel under his chin. He shoots another zombie, and takes another drink. He repositions the gun, and says he’s sorry. Yet another zombie toddles along the shoreline, and he shoots it. He puts his head down on the table, and bangs the table with his fist, scattering the letters.

John paddles a canoe under a bridge where a bunch of zombies are contained by blockades. They look down at him like they’re watching a parade. He takes a look at the blockades, then walks to a boarded up gas station. He sees a few zombies bouncing against the side of the building, and shoots them. He looks inside, then opens the door. He says, I don’t want no trouble, but it’s trouble you want, I got some for you. Cowboy talk. He quietly walks through the mini-mart. It seems empty, but he sees some blood on the floor near the restroom. Dakota comes out, and he asks what the hell she’s doing there. She says, running from her sister; him? He guesses he could say the same thing, and asks if she passed the crowd on the bridge. She pushes open the restroom door, and John sees Morgan sitting on floor. He says, hey, John, and Dakota asks how John found them. He says the path to the bridge kept washing up to his cabin. The river has a way of bringing people back to life. He tells Morgan that he looks better, and Dakota says she put up the barricades, and patched Morgan up as good as she could. She heard shots, and didn’t think they’d make it. John says, neither did he, and she asks how he survived. He says he had help. He doesn’t know who, but when he came to, he was patched up and they’d moved on. Somebody else helped him later, and now he has to add Dakota to the list. Dakota says, it wasn’t hard. Somebody stocked the shelves with everything they needed. (Trivia: It was June a long time ago.) Morgan says, it’s good to see John, and John says, he feels like he’s looking at a ghost. Morgan says, Virginia sent the Rangers after them, and they ran. He, Alicia, and Charlie got separated by the herd. He should get back on the road. John says Morgan’s not going anywhere, not like that. Where is he going? Dakota says, Morgan has a place he’s rebuilding, and they hear something at the front of the store.

Dakota moves toward the front, taking Morgan’s battleax pokey weapon. John pulls her back again, and Ranger Marcus walks in. He says, anybody home? but they stay quiet. Marcus walks toward the back, grabbing a candy out of a dish as he walks past. He looks at the old VHS tapes, and looks at a chart on the wall. He sees John’s name, and gets on his radio, asking Hill, does he copy? He’s not going to believe this. He thinks Ranger Dorie has been there. He tells Hill, stand by. He’s coming for higher ground. John motions Dakota to go further back, and Marcus leaves.  

John tells Morgan, he’s gone, and Morgan gets up. Dakota says John should have shot him, but John says he didn’t need to. Morgan says, he’d be like the men they’ve tried hard not be, and John suggests they get out of there. They’ll be safer in his cabin.

John gives Dakota and Morgan dinner, and Dakota asks how John learned to cook. John says he spent summers there when he was a kid. When in Rome… He tries to replace the door with a new one, but it doesn’t fit right. Morgan says, the place they’re going is in a dry river bed. There’s water nearby, and plenty of fish. They need someone who knows how to cook. John says June cooks better than he does, and Morgan asks, how long has John been there? John says, a couple of weeks, and Morgan asks, where’s June? Why isn’t she with him? John says, it’s not worth talking about, and asks where the place is that Morgan settled. Morgan says, it’s 40 miles north, and John says, that’s a ways to go on foot, but he has enough gas in the truck to get them there. Morgan says he was hoping John would come. They could use somebody with his skills. John says, what might those be? and Morgan says, the plan keeps shifting. They can’t make clean trade with Virginia, but she’s going to want her sister back. Dakota asks if he wants to use her as bait, but Morgan tells her not to worry; he’s not going to let Virginia get to her. This means a fight. John says, it’s going to be difficult… Oh, that’s why Morgan needs him. Morgan says, it will be different this time. They’ll be fighting on their own turf, and on their own terms, for their family. Dakota holds up a piece of something, and asks what it is. John says, nothing, and she says, it looks like blood. He says, it’s part of a knife handle, and she asks, what knife? He says, the one that killed Cameron, and Morgan says, the Ranger that Janice was with? John says he thought if he could find the rest, it might lead to who killed Cameron, but he couldn’t find it. Dakota asks why he still has it, and Morgan says John is doing it again. John says, what? and Morgan says, what John told him that he did before, when he was a cop. He hid himself away. John says, the world is different this time, and Morgan asks, why is that? Ginny’s voice comes over the radio, asking if Morgan is there, and John says, don’t answer. Grace says, it’s me, and Morgan says he’s there. Ginny says she thought that would do the trick, and he says he wants to talk to Grace. He asks if Grace and the baby are okay, and Grace says, she’s okay; so is the baby. We see Ginny has a gun on her, and Grace says, it’s been about seven months. She thought he was dead; they all did. Ginny takes the radio back, and asks if he heard that. Grace is fine. Morgan tells her, call the Rangers off. She’ll get everyone killed, including her sister. She says the Rangers are going to find him, but in the meantime, she wants to know her sister is safe. If anything happens to her, it’s not just Grace and the kid; it will be the whole damn coop. We see Sarah, Luci, and June in some kind of jail, and Ginny says, they’ll talk soon. Morgan tells John and Dakota, they need to get out of there. Get to Virginia before she does something. June washed up the last time John holed himself away; now they did. If that’s not the universe telling John to come back, Morgan doesn’t know what is. John says he doesn’t care to kill anyone, and Morgan says, call him a ghost, and he is, but he’s only there to free Grace. He wants to give this baby a chance in the next world, where life might be precious. He thinks they can do it. It won’t be the way they want it, but they can end it. John says, it ain’t right; it just ain’t. He’s sorry. He can’t do it, but he’ll help them cross the bridge. It’s the only way. Morgan tells Dakota, they’ve got to pack up.

They load truck, and Dakota asks if John has enough ammunition to kill all the chompers. He says her guess is as good as his; there’s only one way to find out. Someone shoots at them, and Morgan slides under the car, while John and Dakota fling themselves into it. Morgan comes back out, and sees it’s Marcus on a horse. Before Morgan realizes it, he’s lassoed and being drug through the woods, bouncing behind the horse and rider. John tells Dakota to turn the car around, and shoots at Marcus. She tries to start the car, but says she thinks a bullet hit the engine. John shoots again, and Marcus falls from his horse. John and Dakota run to Morgan, and John asks if Morgan is all right, then checks on Marcus. Marcus looks dead already, and John shoots him in the head. No zombification for you.

John buries Marcus, and Morgan says he’s sorry. John says, what for? Morgan is the one who got dragged through the woods by his neck. He’s racking up a lot of miles, and almost got killed. Morgan says, but he didn’t; John stopped it. John says she should have taken a shot at Marcus earlier. Morgan says, but he didn’t. John has to know why Morgan needs him. He needs John to keep them from becoming like Ginny. John says, that’s not the only reason, and Dakota says, they’re going to need another car. John says he saw another vehicle by Bill’s, but Morgan says, not with the Rangers looking. There might be more when Marcus doesn’t check in. He points, and says, what about that one? and John says, it’s been collecting rust since he was a kid. Morgan uncovers an old truck, and Dakota asks where it came from. John says, it belonged to his dad. They were going to fix it up together. Morgan says he’s spent time in one garage or another making cars in worse shape than this run again. It needs a battery and a distributor cap, but he thinks he can get it running. John says, it’s not too late, and Dakota asks what he means. He says, it’s something his daddy used to say. It’s not too late to learn something, to do the right thing, to fix a mistake, and apparently, it’s not too late to get an old Chevy truck running. Morgan says he saw some cars one cabin over. It’s less likely the Rangers will be there. Morgan tells John to take Dakota, but John says he can handle it. Morgan says he’s not sure if he can. If Virginia comes looking for Dakota, and brings more Rangers, he might just get everyone else in trouble.

Dakota sits on the roof of the truck, while John fiddles with the engine. She asks if John got his tools from the warehouse, but John says they belonged to his pop, who sent them to him the summer they were supposed to fix the Chevy. Dakota asks why his dad didn’t bring them, and John says, he never showed up. He moved to a cabin of his own up north, away from everybody. John got the occasional birthday and Christmas card, and a phone call once in a blue moon, but John never saw him again. He asks her to hold the battery, and she asks why John’s father left. Did he kill someone like John did? John says, no. He did the wrong thing but for the right reasons. She says it seems like his dad was punishing self, and John says, may be. She says, just like him. Morgan is right, isn’t he? That’s why John is there. John tells her, come on. He’s got to get one more thing. He calls her a know-it-all, and she says, what happened with Janice… He doesn’t have to feel bad about how life is now. People kill; people die. He says, it should mean something, and she asks, why? He says, if it doesn’t mean something when you die, it didn’t mean much when you were alive, and she says, so? He says he’s glad Morgan is taking her to that place. She’s starting to sound an awful lot like her sister. They get to a big shed, and John knocks on the door. When he doesn’t hear anything, he opens it. She says there’s nothing in there they need for the truck, and John says, who told her that he needed something for the truck? She asks why he needs a door if he’s coming with them, and Morgan appears. He says, John isn’t coming; is he right? He shows John the Scrabble letters, and says he found these. There are only so many words they spell out. John says they weren’t meant for Morgan, and Morgan says he knows they were meant for June. John says he was going to tell Morgan after they cleared the bridge. He’s going to keep his word, and get them across, but then he’s coming back. Morgan says, because of what he had to do to Marcus? but John says he doesn’t know why he didn’t kill Marcus before. He doesn’t know why he’s not meant to live in this world. If he’d only kept his nose out of it, Cameron would still be alive, and so would Janice. Morgan says, it will be okay. John went looking for a door to shut himself away, and found them. Does that tell him anything? Like the man who walked halfway around the world and found himself at John’s campfire. Morgan found John, and everyone he thinks of as family. He found Grace, and that wouldn’t have happened if John hadn’t insisted he sleep in the truck bed that night. John gave him a family, and has to help him get back. John says he will, the best way he knows how. He’s going to get them across the bridge, and stay out of their way. Morgan says there’s no door that’s going to keep them away, not him or June, and John says, it’s not a door to keep people out. It’s to keep the past from getting at him before he does what he needs to do. He just wants it to be over.

John sits with his gun, and Morgan comes in. He says he got the truck running, and John says, that’s good. Morgan sits, and says, it wasn’t that long ago, he was in a place like John is now. John says, when he works himself up to it, the past washes up, and steals his nerve. Morgan says it’s not John’s time; it’s not how should go out. That night at the gulch, whoever saved him, left him that. He shows John a note that says he still has things left to do. He says, it wouldn’t mean anything unless it was all of them. If he’s going to get everyone there, he had to make a change, or he’d lose all of them. John knows he’s not his dad. He doesn’t have to make the same mistakes his dad made, but he can come with them. Morgan found his way to keep going, and thinks John will find his. John says, don’t count on it, and shoots a zombie through the open door. He says they better get up there, and he and Morgan start to go outside. John sees the discarded doors, and says they might need the doors after all.

At the bridge, we see the front of the truck is rigged with the doors to keep the zombies at bat. John says, they could get tangled in the wheels, and asks if Dakota can get it across. She says her daddy let her drive in the church parking lot on Sunday afternoons, and he says he’ll talk her through it. He leaves her a gun in case the zombies get lucky. John goes to the truck bed, and Morgan unties the blockade. John says, ready, and Morgan opens it. John shoots the zombies as they come through, and Morgan runs back to the truck bed. John says, now, and Dakota starts the truck. She drives to the blockade, pushing it down. Zombies clamor at the car windows, as John hits them back with the butt of the gun. He and Morgan get as many as possible, and John tells Dakota keep going. She continues on, and Morgan gives a zombie a nice spike though the mouth. The doors help shovel them back, and John tells Dakota, pretend it’s one of those Sunday drives. Morgan pushes them back, and the truck stalls. Dakota asks, what’s going on? and we see a zombie wedged under a back wheel. John tells her to put it in first, and clear it. Now the zombie’s arm is getting ground into the wheel well, and John shoots it. The rest of the zombie follows its arm, and is now wedged above the tire. I say, oh, fu…dge.  

Dakota asks what’s wrong with the engine, and Morgan says, it’s the alternator. He’ll go. John says, Morgan is in no shape, and moves to the front of the truck, while Morgan whacks stray zombies away. John gets between the doors and fencing attached to the front, and opens the hood. He says he’ll tell Dakota when. We can see Morgan is in pain, but he still fends off the zombies. One gets near John, and pins him half into the engine. Dakota grabs the gun, and tells John to move. She shoots the zombie through the windshield, and John pushes it onto the ground. He jumpstarts the engine, and tells Dakota, now. The truck starts, and John closes the hood, jumping on top of it. He shoots whatever zombies get through, but one pulls at him, and he smashes it with the gun butt. There are two clingers on the car, and Dakota tells Morgan to get down. She takes off, telling John to hang on, and hits the side of the bridge, knocking the zombies into the river, John kicking the last one off. Brilliant scene. Morgan stabs a few stragglers in their wormy little heads. Success!

They look back at the zombie carnage on the bridge, and John says, that is ugly mustard. Morgan says, yes it is, and they sit for a moment. Morgan gets out of the truck bed, and comes around the front. He tells John, when he was working on the truck, he found something. He hands John a photo of a little boy with a grown man, and Morgan says, that’s John isn’t it? And his dad. John says, his dad was more in his life than he cares to admit. He wonders why his father didn’t come by that summer, but thinks he’s starting to get it. He’s not coming. Morgan says, then John is stuck making the same mistakes as before; the same mistakes his father made. It’s like a loop. Morgan takes out the radio, and John asks what he’s doing. Morgan asks if Virginia can read him, and Virginia asks, what’s the plan? Is he ready to talk? He says he is, but not like this. He wants to meet in person. There’s a general store called Bill’s… John tries to grab the radio, telling Morgan, stop it. Morgan says, there’s a cabin John told them about, and Ginny says, she’s been there; John has terrible taste in movies. Morgan says he’ll wait there for her. He tells John, now he can’t go back, and John says Morgan had no right to do that. It’s not his choice to make. Morgan says it wasn’t his choice to have John chase him down the road when he had a busted leg, but John did it all the same. He’s alive now because John did. John can hit him if he likes, but he’ll be damned if he’s going to stand by and let his best friend kill himself.  

Morgan says he’s going to try and get a signal; hear where Virginia is. He doesn’t want to cross paths with her on his way out. John continues to work on the engine in silence, and Dakota says he’ll have to talk to Morgan eventually. John says, the clip that was holding the wire fell off. That’s why it stalled. He wants to fix it before they get back on the road. He tells her, it’s a little red clip, and they both start looking. She picks up his hat, hands it to him, and thanks him. He asks why she’s thanking him, and she says, for letting her drive, and trusting her with a gun. She doesn’t feel like she needs to be behind locked behind walls all the time. She casually kills a zombie, and says he should come, but he says, it’s not a good idea. She says she thinks it would be; she likes being around him. He can’t go back to the cabin. He says, sure he can, but she says her sister will be there. He says if Morgan leads her to the place he’s working on, it could get messy real quick. He can be waiting for Ginny, and end this. Dakota says he can’t do alone, but he says Ginny won’t be expecting it. Dakota says, she would; she is. She’ll have Rangers with her. Even if John kills her, the Rangers will kill him. He says, then his death will mean something. He finishes the zombies off who aren’t quite undead dead, and says, as it should. Dakota sees the red clip on the ground, and says she found it. She picks it up, and a zombie grabs her ankle, causing her to fall. She stabs it with a knife she has handy, and tells John, it’s okay; she’s got it. He sees the knife, and asks, what is it? What is she hiding? He walks over, and pulls the knife out of the zombie, and asks where she got it. She shakes her head, and says she found it, but he says, don’t lie to him. Oh my God. She killed Cameron; Virginia was covering for her. Dakota says she didn’t know Ginny was going to kill Janice, and John asks why she pushed him to investigate. She says she knew Ginny wouldn’t let it get back to her, and if it seemed like Ginny was hiding something, people would start to doubt her. John asks why she killed Cameron, and she says he figured out how she was sneaking in and out, and he told Ginny. He took away the one way she had to get out of Lawrence. John says, and she thought he deserved to die for that? She says, it’s no different than what everyone else is doing to get what they want. It’s what her sister does; it’s what the Rangers do. He understands. John says he doesn’t understand, but she says, it’s how things are. She can’t. She turns the gun on him, and says he ruined this for her. He says he’s not going to tell anyone. He’s not going to hurt her. He puts his gun in his waistband, and she says he’s lying. He says he knows she’s been through a lot. He gets why she wouldn’t believe him, but give him a chance to show her they can get past this. He can help her. Morgan said he needed a reason to live, to keep going. Maybe it’s her. Put the gun down; she doesn’t want shoot him. She doesn’t want to do that to herself. She doesn’t want to live with that. It’s not what he wants for her.

To the surprise of all of us, she shoots him, and he staggers back. She says, she’s sorry. It doesn’t always have to be something. She pushes him off the bridge. What a fu…dge.

He’s going to live somehow, right? Right? And am I wrong that this was totally out of character for what we know about Dakota? A hot minute ago, she was telling John that he needed to make up with Morgan, and she liked being around him.

John hits the water, and we see blood run from him. He floats to the bottom, and there’s a song part. I feel cheated. He sees the photo on the floor of the river. and picks it up. He looks at the sun above the water, and swims up. He pulls himself onto a door floating in the water, and says, not today. He floats down the river.

When Morgan comes back, Dakota turns the gun on him. He asks what she did, and she says she didn’t want to do it; she had to do it. He asks where John is, and she starts to cry, because she’s an a-hole. He asks her again, and she says, John is floating down the river with a bullet in his chest. Morgan sees the knife in Dakota’s hand, and says, it’s her knife. She killed the Ranger. She says he’s going to take her to the place he’s building, and let her be a part of it, like he was before. He grabs her, and puts his battleax pokey weapon up to her throat. She says he’s not going to hurt her, but he tells her not to be so sure. She says she’s the reason he’s alive. She saved him at the gulch. He says, that’s not what happened. She says, Virginia left him to die, and he dragged himself to the church. The dead followed him, and were on top of him, about to eat him, but she was there. She killed them. He says, that’s not possible, and she says she followed Ginny and the Rangers to the gulch. That’s a good thing, right? She fixed him up, and stopped the bleeding. She gave him antibiotics and painkillers. He says, no more lies, and she says he doesn’t know her, but she heard his message. He needed to do this thing. He still has things left to do. She wrote the note and left it for him, and she was right. She’s seen it. He has to. She had to do it. He says, now what? and she says, he has to kill her sister to have the silly paradise he has to build. He’s grieving because he’s the only person left who can end her. He says, that’s not what he’s about, and she says, it is. It’s the  only reason he’s still there.

Ginny gets to the cabin, and says they cleaned the place out. Where the hell are they? She asks June, where? but June says she doesn’t know. A Ranger asks if she’s sure she doesn’t know their whereabouts, when Morgan radios Ginny. She tells him that he’s late, and he says, John has been hurt, and needs help. Her sister did it. June asks where John is, and Ginny asks where her sister is. Morgan says, John is coming down the river. Help him if Morgan can’t find him first. He’s trying to get to him. Please help. Then they can talk. Ginny tells her Rangers, find Ranger Dorie.

Alicia is walking with Charlie and Dwight, and says, this is it. Morgan comes over the radio, and tells Dwight, get the damn wall ready. They might be bringing the fight with Virginia to their own doorstep. He needs to get Shari. They’ll need all the firepower they can get.

June tells Virginia, send more Rangers, and Ginny say she already has. June says, if Virginia wants her to help, she needs to know what happened. Morgan comes on the radio, and June grabs it. She asks, what’s going on? June looks out the door, and Ginny grabs it back. John has washed up on shore, and June runs out, calling to him. She stumbles, and falls to the ground just as she gets to him. He pulls himself along, and we realize his eyes are milky. He reaches for her, and puts his hand on hers. She stays there a moment, then stabs him in the head with a knife. I guess that’s love?

This season, Virginia says, bad things are about to happen, Daniel says it’s not safe, we meet a new group, John Glover joins the cast, and says Alicia doesn’t know what he’s setting out to do. He looks kind of like a mad professor.

👌🏻 Interesting tidbit. Jenna Elfman was on Talking Dead tonight, and said because of the pandemic, they had to sit on this episode for a year and half before it was actually filmed.

📰 Latest Additions…

New blood will be coming to FTWD this season.

https://www.cbr.com/fear-walking-dead-john-glover-keith-carradine-nick-stahl-cast-season-6/

⚰️ Dead News…

What’s to come in season 11.

The Walking Dead Season 11: The Commonwealth, Reapers, and What Else to Expect

What came last week with Here’s Negan.

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/the-walking-dead-season-10-finale-recap-heres-negan-origin-backstory-1022/

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/negans-last-name-revealed-on-the-walking-dead-heres-negan-smith-robert-kirkman/

🐉 Celebrating the Game…

HBO has plans.

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/game-of-thrones-iron-anniversary-hbo-celebration/

🎉 After the Party’s Over…

Whether you called it a weekend, or just another two days on the calendar, I hope you changed it up a little. Until it’s time to sail away, stay safe, stay keeping it simple, and stay making sure it all means something.

Apr5

April 4, 2021 – Here’s Negan (the moment you’ve been waiting for) & Amazing Mahalia

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What I Watched Today

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

The Walking Dead

In a voiceover, Negan says he had a deal with Carol. She said if he did this for her, he would be thought of differently. So he disappeared, and wore a flesh mask. It was sick as all hell, but he gained Alpha’s trust. He found a way to steal her kid, and brought Alpha’s head back. He helped take out Beta and the horde, but nothing changed the way Maggie sees him. He understands; he really does. Some things can’t be forgotten.

Maggie walks with her son Hershel through Alexandria, and they chat. She asks if he remembers the song they used to sing, and he sings You Are My Sunshine. Negan looks at them, but Maggie ignores him, saying good morning to the woman working alongside him. Carol watches from the window.

Negan sees Carol in the woods, carrying a dead rabbit she’s trapped. He walks with her, and thanks her for getting him the hell out of Dodge. Things with Maggie are tense. He doesn’t mind lay low Negan, but there’s only so far he can go to get out of her way. He’s thinking maybe Carol could put in a word for him. At least get the ball rolling. Given their recent history, he figures she owes him that much. He follows her to a cabin outside of the town, and he asks if she knows this place. She says, mm-hmm, and goes inside. He says he sees he’s moved in, and she says, Daryl helped. The council voted to banish him. What he wants isn’t going to happen, and she knows it’s not what she promised, but given their less recent history, it’s better than he deserves. He says, it is what it is. If she doesn’t mind him asking, is it that the council banished him, or is it more like Carol is seizing the reins? She smiles, and says the rabbit is for him.

Negan looks into the fire, and has a drink. He hears, little pig, little pig, let me in, and sees himself sitting in a chair with his bat Lucille. He turns away, but illusion Negan says, it’s all right. He knows Negan can hear him loud and clear. Nobody likes to hear an I told you so. He must be a bit masochistic. The sad part isn’t that he ended up there. Face it. It could be a helluva lot worse. The sad part is, he thought for a second those folks would see him for anything except who he truly is… which is me. He’s a clown, a cultive personality with no cult. Negan can call him names, but he wants Negan to admit that he got further with a kind word and Lucille than just a kind word. It’s time to face the facts, old man. He’s nothing without her. Negan smashes the glass against the now empty chair.

We see the tree where the stained glass panels hang, looking a little worse for the wear. Negan remembers telling Rick that Carl said they didn’t have to be fighting, and Rick beating him down near the tree. He flashes back to being in his cell, telling Michonne that he needs to see her, and Michonne saying they don’t have his bat. He’s brought a shovel with him, and starts digging near the tree. He sees a zombie in the distance, shakes his head, and keeps digging. He digs in another spot, and another, and pretty soon, the area is full of holes. The zombie is closer, and he digs some more. He finally hits something, and scrapes away the dirt. He smiles, and pulls out Lucille, turning the bat in his hands.

Twelve years earlier. Craven from the Valaks Vipers biker gang walks over to a guy tied to a chair wearing a hood. Craven removes the hood, and the man is a younger Negan. Negan says Craven has to let him go. His wife has cancer and needs that. Craven  takes an IV bag out of a cooler filled with the medicine, and takes a bag out. Negan says, keeping him here, kills him and her, and Craven says he knows; Negan told him. His heart goes out to Negan. He can’t imagine what Negan is going through, just wondering if she’s ever going to get her treatment. He handles the bag, and says they drove out to where Negan told them the doctors gave him the stuff, but they weren’t there. Negan says it’s not his fault. He told them, the doctors move around, but Craven says, they were never there. It was so overgrown, they couldn’t get the pick-up down the road. He can’t get this stuff just anywhere; somebody took care of this for a long time, and probably has a lot of other stuff too. Tell him where he got it, and Negan can take it to his wife. Otherwise, he’ll pour it in the toilet, and make Negan watch. He punches Negan in the mouth, and Negan says, please put it back in the cooler. He’ll tell Craven what he wants to know; please keep it safe. He tells Craven, the medical part is true, and Craven says, they have a facility, right? and Negan says, they have a stockpile. Craven asks where they keep the drugs, and Negan says he doesn’t know where the stuff came from, but he’d been tracking them for weeks. He found them…

Two or three days ago. Negan hides behind a tree in the woods, holding a gun. He takes a quick look at a couple of trailers, then jumps out. He startles a man outside, and sees another one on the roof of a trailer. He says he doesn’t want to shoot, but he will, and the man says, take it easy. Negan’s vision is getting blurry, and the man says, don’t! A woman hits Negan over the head, knocking him out, and the man says she didn’t have to do that. (FYI, it’s Laura who will become one of the Saviors later.)

Negan is handcuffed to a chair inside the trailer. He tells the man that his name is Negan, and the man says he’s Franklin. Franklin takes out a key, and asks if they’re going to have any problems. Negan says, no sir, no problems, and Franklin uncuffs him. He gives Negan some pasta, and Negan wolfs it down. Franklin says, Negan is exhausted, add malnutrition, and no wonder a guy like him is in the state he’s in. He’s trying to rob a bunch of doctors with an empty belly. Negan says his wife has cancer. She was under treatment when the world went to sh*t. They’ve been trying to keep it going. Franklin asks if Negan is a doctor, and Negan says he’s a high school gym teacher. Franklin asks what he means by keep it going, and Negan says the doctor gave him a calendar of what was needed when. All he had to do was find it, and figured out how to do infusions. Franklin says, a doctor taught Negan how to give chemo? and Negan says, it’s not complicated, unless something goes wrong. Franklin asks if something went wrong, and Negan says, yeah, you could say that.   

Six weeks earlier. Negan goes to the refrigerator, and takes out a bag. His wife Lucille digs in a box, and says she’s trying to figure out what James Bond movie to watch. He tells her, the generator makes too much noise, and we hear a zombie outside. She says he’ll have to kill it, but he says if he turns the generator off, they lose interest; they always do. He puts two IV bags in the freezer, along with a thermometer. He goes outside to turn on the generator, but sees a zombie clamoring at the fence.

Back in the house, Negan reads out loud from Pride and Prejudice, and tells Lucille, this book sucks; he can’t do it. She says he won’t let her watch James Bond, so read. We hear the zombie again, and she says he’s got to take care of it. Outside, the zombie bangs on the house, and Negan comes up behind it, but as soon as it sees him, it grabs him. He swings a hammer at it, but it gets the better of him, and pins him against the house, snapping at him. He stabs it in the eye, but the knife doesn’t go deep enough to even slow it down. He says, seriously? and a shot rings out, the zombie slumping to the ground. Lucille stands there holding a gun, and still attached to her IV. He asks if she’s all right, and she tells him, turn the generator on so she can watch a movie. She goes back inside.

Negan tries to syphon gas out of a car, but gets nothing. He goes inside the car, and looks around. He finds a pouch, looks in it, and smiles.

Negan asks his wife how she’s doing, and she says, good. He says he’s got something for her. He found a stash. It’s a little dried out, but it will help with her nausea. She says he has to go out further every time, and he says, they need gas, and the place has been picked over. That’s what’s keeping them safe; there’s nothing there anyone wants. She wonders about reaching out to other people, but he says, it’s too dangerous out there. She says, that’s her point, and he says, they have three treatments left. That’s it. When they get her strength up, he’ll strap her to his motorcycle, and they’ll go wherever she wants; wherever she dreams up. He promises.

They lie in bed, and Negan sings You Are So Beautiful to her. We see them goofing around in wigs, and him giving her treatments. A zombie makes noise outside, and Negan says, dammit. She says, it’s not like killing a person. It’s kind of like killing an animal; don’t let it bother him. He says, it doesn’t. He’s just worried he’ll get used to it. She says, okay, then turn the generator on. He continues to eat, and asks, how’s her dinner? She says, really good. If she’d known dog food could taste like this, she would have been eating that sh*t all along. He laughs, and she tells him, happy anniversary, handing him a gift bag. He asks if she actually knows what day it is, and she says, no, but they had one coming up. He takes out a leather jacket, and says, holy sh*t. Where did she get this? She says, it was in the crawlspace the whole time. She was so mad that she couldn’t return it, she hid it. She’s sorry. If she’d known all this was going to happen, she wouldn’t have cared about the stupid credit card. He says he knows, but he doesn’t deserve anything from her. She shouldn’t be apologizing to him. He should be apologizing to her, for the man he was, and the pain he put her through… He lies awake at night wondering how he got so lucky she stuck with him. She laughs, and sits on his lap. She says she stuck with him because she’s always seen the man he is now, even when he wasn’t. And that a-hole really had it coming. He says, yes ma’am, and she suggests they go to bed. He says, no, and she asks if he has to go to work tomorrow. He asks if she’s sure she’s okay, and she kisses him.

They lie in each other’s arms, and Negan wakes to the sound of dripping. He jumps out of bed, and says, no! He runs to the refrigerator, and opens the freezer. Water pours out, and he looks at the thermometer, which is in the Fahrenheit 40s.

He looks at a map, and asks if she remembers a guy and his family who came through. Their kid had leukemia, and they were looking for a group of doctors who travel around. He showed Negan his map, and said they travel the same route, and make the same stops every time. He thinks he knows where they are. If he leaves now, he could catch them. She says, they could be dead, and even if he finds them, he has nothing to barter with. He starts to argue, and she says, stop. She has something to tell him.

Seven months earlier. Normal life is still happening. Negan is playing video games, and says, don’t be a p*ssy. You’ve got to take it. Lucille comes in, and asks if he’s playing with children, and he says they’re mostly over ten. She looks at the credit card bill, and says please don’t tell her that he spent $600 on this Happy Days bullsh*t. He says he’s got two leads, one of which is going to pay a lot. He’s celebrating early. She says he’s telling her about leads, but he can’t be a gym teacher anymore. He’s being charged with misdemeanor assault, and he refuses to go back to school. Tell her all about the job that’s going to pay for his legal bills. He doesn’t say anything, and she says she’s returning the jacket. He says he threw the receipt away.

We see Lucille on the phone with a friend, who says talks about it being cute when he was younger, but not now. Lucille says, it feels wrong to give up on him. He wasn’t in a good space. He loved his job and the kids. The friend says he put someone in the hospital, and Lucille says, that a-hole had it coming.

Negan and Lucille have dinner in silence. He asks how the food is, and she says, good. Did he do something different? He says he used rosemary instead of oregano, and a white wine reduction for the chicken sauce. She tells him that she has a 2:15 appointment tomorrow, and he asks, what appointment? She says she’s getting an MRI, and needs him to drive her home. He says he can’t tomorrow. He has a meeting with his probation officer. She’ll probably have to sit for three hours for them to tell her everything is fine anyway.

Lucille sits in the waiting room, and thinks about hearing, if it’s caught early on. She stares into space, and the doctor asks if she has someone to drive her home.

She gets in her car, and calls Negan, but gets voicemail. She tries calling her friend Janine, and the call also goes to voicemail. She calls the probation officer, and says, he should be there. He said his appointment was at 3; he should have been there 20 minutes ago. The parole officer says, sorry. He doesn’t know what to tell her. He’s not on the calendar for another two weeks. She cries quietly, and looks at her phone, she sees the call to Negan and Janine both went to voicemail at the same time, and realizes they’re seeing one another. She slams phone down, and pulls out, blasting rock and roll. I think AC/DC.

Lucille sits at home with a gun by her side. Negan comes in, and asks, what’s going on? What is it? Her hand moves slightly on the gun, but she throws cancer treatment pamphlets on to the table instead. She says she’s got cancer.

Back to where we were before, and Negan says, she knew about them the whole time? Just so she knows, he broke up with her as soon as they got the diagnosis. He never saw or talked to her again. He cries, and she says she knows. He says he doesn’t understand why she’s telling him now, and she says she wants him to know he made up for it. If he really wants to help her, just stay. He says they’re so close. It can work; the doctors said it could work. She says, no, they didn’t. Now it’s time for him to go on without her. Live life for her. Stay. He says, no. They’re not giving up. They’ve made it this far, and they’re going to see it through. He’s going to find the doctors, and they’re going to kick the cancer out of her. They’re not giving up. Not ever. She kisses him, and I’m feeling very sad.

About six weeks ago. Negan tells Franklin, he scavenged along the way, but it was worse than they thought. Then they had a problem with the dead, and here he is. Franklin says he sent his daughter Laura to the warehouse to see if they have what he needs. Laura comes in with a cooler, and says they had it all. Negan tells them, he doesn’t know what to say, and Franklin says they have a lot, and just want to help.

Outside, Negan says he came threatening their lives, and they patched him up, and gave him the first decent meal he’s had in weeks. They gave him everything he asked for, and haven’t asked for anything in return. Franklin says, what goes around, comes around, and Laura asks if the gun is Negan’s only weapon. He says he broke his knife on the way there, and she says, take this, handing him the bat. He says, the bat she hit him with? Damn, that girl packs a wallop.  

Craven tells Negan, enough. Tell him where he got the drugs. All Negan has done is told one stupid pointless story after another. First, he wouldn’t talk, now he’s begging Negan to shut up. Storytime is over. Tell him where he got the drugs, or he’s going to pull the trigger. Then Negan’s wife dies, and she’ll think he ran out on her. If Negan doesn’t start talking, he swears to God… Negan says bring him his map. Another man unties Negan’s hands, and he circles a spot on the map. Craven asks, what about security? and Negan says, it’s light. It’s just a guy and his daughter. The guards on top of the RVs are decoys, and there could be a couple of others, but they have no guns. Craven says, if they’re not there for literally any reason, he’ll come back and kill Negan, no questions asked. He tells the other guy to keep Negan locked in the storage room.  

Negan is told he’s good to go. He grabs the cooler, and runs outside to his bike. I feel sick. The trailer is in the parking lot, and Negan hears Laura saying, no! Stop! He gets on his bike, and rides out, taking one last look. There’s a scream from the trailer.

Negan arrive back home, and calls for Lucille. He heads for the bedroom, but the door is closed, and written on it is, please don’t leave me like this, with a heart. He opens the door, and hears zombie noises. He looks at the bed and cries. Lucille has restrained herself, and there’s a plastic bag tied on her head. She makes zombie gurgles, and reaches her free hand toward him. He takes out the bat. He’s obviously in anguish, but she’s nothing but a monster now. He comes closer, and we hear Joe Cocker singing You Are So Beautiful. Negan rips the bag from Lucille’s head, and cries some more, getting as close as possible.

He sits against the bed, and she reaches for him, still chained down. He rolls a bottle of scotch around in his hands, and looks at the cooler.

Outside, Negan cuts barbed wire from the fence, and wraps it around the bat.

He pours gasoline all over the house, stands in the bedroom, and lights a match. He drops it, and the room begins to burn. He looks at Lucille through the flames.

He busts out the front door with the bat, and leaves the house. He drives away on his bike, knocking the mailbox (which says Smith) down with the bat as he goes by.

The house burns.

Craven pummels Franklin, and laughs. He says, it’s been a long day; he didn’t get much sleep. This is the last time he’s going to ask. Tell him where they keep the good stuff or he’ll bring out the girl. She’s a little young for Franklin, doesn’t he think?

The other guy sits outside, and Negan comes back with his bat, and bashes the guy with it. A guard comes out of the trailer, and Negan shoots him.

Hearing the shot, Craven asks, what the hell is going on? Another guy says he’s checking it out, and Franklin works at the same screw in the chair that Negan did when he was in it. At the time, I thought it insignificant, since nothing came of it. I should have known better. There are more gunshots, and Craven ducks. He gets on his radio, and asks, will one of you idiots tell me what the hell is going on? He hears shots come closer, and looks scared. Franklin unties himself, while Craven is preoccupied with aiming at the door. Franklin gets free as Negan walk in and shoots Craven. Craven crawls for the gun, and Negan whacks him with the new Lucille. Franklin asks if there are any more of them, but Negan says he got all of them. Franklin says, damn, and Negan hands him a gun, telling him to take it and find his daughter; make sure she’s okay. Franklin leaves, and Negan pulls Craven up to his knees.

Negan sits and says, look at us; here we are again. Last time, Craven said he talks too much. The bad news is, he’s got stuff to get off his chest this time as well. This time, Craven best hope he never stops talking. When he does, something terrible is going to happen to Craven. He never killed a man before tonight. He came close once. There was a bar that he and his wife used to go to; it was their favorite bar. It was their favorite because it had their favorite jukebox that played their favorite song; You Are So Beautiful, by the one and only Joe Cocker. The greatest love ballad ever written; he’s sure Craven agrees. There was this guy there who had one of those voices you can’t unhear; it was like Negan’s brain had been hijacked until he couldn’t hear anymore. Their song was playing, and the guy was talking and laughing, so Negan’s wife Lucille goes over to where the guy is, and politely asks him to keep it down so she can hear her song. Let’s just say he chose poorly. So now, Negan has to get up, and go over. He says the guy owes him 50 cents, so they can play the song again, and he can shut the hell up so Negan’s wife can enjoy her song. Now here’s the important part – the part where he really wants Craven to pay attention. You know when people say they’re so angry, they see red? That sh*t is actually true. The a-hole comes at him, and all he sees is red; it’s like he’s looking through blood. He wailed on the guy until he wasn’t moving, reached out, grabbed his wallet, and took out a dollar. They played the song twice. It turns out, the pr*ck had kids who went to school where Negan taught gym. Needless to say, the school was unthrilled. He got fired, the guy sued him, and since he had no job, his wife had to pay the guy’s medical bills. The point of the story is, there are consequences to him seeing red. Seeing red meant bad things then; he was a bad man then. Now, nobody is suing anybody, nobody got fired, and nobody’s keeping score. Now seeing red is a question of what Negan is capable of. He hates to break it to Craven, but he’s starting to think he’s capable of damn near anything. So this is for not killing him. He beats Craven with new Lucille.

In the present, the zombie has finally reached Negan, and he whacks it twice. He looks at looks at the bat, breathing heavy.

Negan is back in the cabin, sitting in front of the fireplace, holding the bat. He says he’s sorry. He was a coward. He couldn’t face the pain he was in. He ran away, and made himself not feel anything. He didn’t want to feel shame; shame was the one thing he still felt. He’s sorry she went out like that; he should have been there. He’s sorry he named the baseball bat after her, and sorry for the pain he put her through. He hopes she found someone in the afterlife, and is screwing her brains out… Not really, but fair is fair. He misses her. He loved the sh*t out of her, and he’s going to do her fighting for her. He puts a cloth over the bat, and puts it in the fireplace. He watches it burn.

Negan walks back into town. Carol and Maggie see him, and Carol walks over to him. He asks where the A-team is off to, and she says, an Army base. If they find anything, they’ll bring something back to his cabin. He says, that won’t be necessary. The situation isn’t going to work out. Carol says, if Negan stays, Maggie will kill him. Carol didn’t want his death on her conscience; now it’s not. He says, fair enough. He keeps walking, and looks at Maggie as he goes by. He smiles, but with Maggie, it’s more like, if looks could kill…

This was the finale, and Fear the Walking Dead starts its new season next week.

This had to be the saddest episode ever.

💐 Happy Easter…

Hope you enjoyed whatever it is you enjoy on Easter Sunday, or if Easter is not your celebration, enjoyed whatever you enjoy on any Sunday. See you tomorrow for Sailing, and until then, stay safe, stay seeking wisdom, and stay not judging those who carry baseball bats covered in barbed wire. You might not know their whole story. Although then again, you might want to non-judgmentally run.

Mar29

March 28, 2021 – Carol Needs To Fix Something, What’s To Come, Behind the Scenes, Psychic Dive & Visualizer

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What I Watched Today

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

The Walking Dead

In a voiceover, Carol tells us that she didn’t plan on surviving. She was going die with the horde, but her family pulled her back; they always do. The Whisperers destroyed Hilltop, and she had to tell Maggie that she’d sent Negan to be part of them. They’re working tirelessly to rebuild in Alexandria, but the Whisperers destroyed their crops. The return of Maggie, along with more people, meant more mouths to feed, and she and Daryl found that the horde had killed everything worth hunting. Every tough decision Carol made was to protect them, and she’ll do whatever it takes. She’ll do what she can to make things right.

Carol walks with Daryl and Dog on a path through the woods, Daryl gives Carol a knife to open her canteen (I find out later on Talking Dead that it’s Leah’s knife), and they share some water with Dog. Carol says she wishes they had more to show for their trip. All the new mouths to feed… He says she’ll make it work. She always does. She says, he’s not coming back? and he says he’s staying a while longer. He asks if she wants a ride; his bike isn’t far. As they walk, he says, hey… and she says he doesn’t have to apologize. He tells her that he was just going to say good luck. She says, good luck to him too. They walk in opposite directions, and Dog is conflicted, but goes with Carol. Daryl says, fine.

Daryl pushes his bike out of woods, and starts it up. He drives off.

Carol returns to Alexandria with Dog. Dog pokes at a ratty scarf on the ground, and Carol picks it up and keeps walking. She goes into where she and Daryl stay, and gives Dog a bowl of water. Funny, I see Dog drink a lot of water, but never see him pee. She tells Dog, for the record, she didn’t need an apology from Daryl. She knows what he said – an apology is just a truce. It doesn’t fix anything. She pets Dog.

Carol walks through town, and sees Jerry. She says she was thinking of working on the north gate post, and if that works out, she’ll clean the dead fish from the fishery, but Jerry says Rosita already has a crew fixing the gate post, and the fishery has been cleared out. She says, it doesn’t smell like it, and he says it’s being used for fertilizer. He asks how the trip was, and she says, good. He asks if she need help, but she says, no. She has to figure something out. He asks what she’s got in her hand, and she says she found it in the street. Somebody must have dropped it during the evacuation, and she thought she’d mend it. She just wants to fix something. Tell her how she can help; anything at all. He says he’s thinking, and his stomach rumbles. He says, food is important to thinking. She says she’s sure she can whip up something from what she found, and he tells her, a bunch of people are crashing in Michonne’s kitchen, and the solar panels are messed up; Whisperers probably. They also had to throw out a bunch of grain. Carol asks, why? and he says, rats. She says, anything else? and he asks what she’s going to make. She says she doesn’t know; maybe soup. She’s got a couple of fish, nuts, and mushrooms. She’ll make it work. He says she always does, and she asks if he ever heard the story of Stone Soup. They used to read it in school. (I actually remember having that book as a kid.) A stranger came to a village, and had nothing to trade but rocks. He convinced the people that he could make stone soup. Then he told one person that he needed to borrow some salt, and another, a little bit of onion. A little bit of this, and a little bit of that from everyone in the village, until there was real soup, and everyone was happy. Jerry says, it doesn’t sound very tasty. Maybe Ezekiel and the others will bring help soon, and she won’t have to make soup out of rocks. She says she hopes so.  

Daryl is riding along the path, and his bike stops. He checks something, takes up his crossbow, and begins to walk.

Carol checks out the pantry/garage, and finds a few things. She cuts some mushrooms, and chops up some fish. She puts some salt in the pot, and throws some over her shoulder. She hears Dog growling, and runs into the living room where Dog is attacking a blanket. She says, hey, and he grabs the scarf. She picks up a book that belongs to Daryl, The Golden Age of Piracy, and says Dog is being a bad dog. He knocks over a lamp, and she tells him, back off. Take it easy. She rights the lamp, and sees the cord has been chewed. She looks down and sees rat droppings. And tells Dog, it’s okay. It’s a rat, She hears it too. Dog takes off through the house, and knocks the pot over in the pantry. She says, bad dog. Go. She tells Dog not to look at her like that. This is serious. They need that food. Go. Dog goes back in the living room, and Carol closes the door. She looks at the spilled ingredients, and says, dammit. She devises a trap, and sets it on the floor, saying, see you later, a-hole, and leaves.

Jerry sees Carol, and asks how the soup is coming. She says, great. She needs a couple more ingredients, and she’s going to see what she can rustle up. He tells her, rustle up some stones too, and she laughs. She walks around a field, gathering some greens. A zombie toddles along, and more come out of the woods. She asks if they think she can’t take them herself. She says, first, you, and stabs the loner in the head. She points to the others, and says, then you, you, and you, and you.

We hear zombie noises, and the sounds of zombies being whacked in the head. We see the wildflowers in the forefront, while Carol dispatches zombies in the background. Carol picks up her greens, and continues on.

Daryl walks through the woods on the path. He sees an abandoned car, opens the hood, and pulls something out. How convenient! He sees a truck, and goes underneath, taking something else. It’s like a mini graveyard of cars, and he sees another with a decrepit zombie inside. He opens the hood, but can’t find what he needs. He puts down his stuff, and slides under the car. I say, don’t do that, but he doesn’t listen. The zombie moves to the backseat, and the car moves, nearly squashing Daryl. He tells it, stop moving, and the car rocks as the zombie scrambles to the front. Daryl grabs some wires, and slides back out. He bangs on the window, picks up his stuff, and says, thanks, buddy.

Jerry sees Carol coming back with blood on her, and asks, what the hell happened? She says, nothing, and tells him that she got some greens for tasty nutrition. He asks if she’s sure she’s okay, and she says, yeah. Back to it. She returns to her place, and dumps out the greens. She checks the trap, but nothing yet.

Daryl goes back to his bike. The music is tense, so I wonder what’s going to happen. He checks his pockets, and remembers handing Carol his pocketknife. He takes out a bigger knife, and screws around with something on the bike. He walks the bike out onto the road.

Carol rights a solar panel, and strips the ends of the wires. Jerry comes by with a wheelbarrow, and asks if she’s got it. She says she’s good, and he says, let him know if she needs anything. He keeps walking, and she says, sure will. Then she single-handedly fixes the solar panel. On his way back, Jerry sees the panel, and just looks at her. She goes back in, and tries the light switch. The light comes on.

Daryl continues to walk alongside his bike, and pushes it up a hill. He comes to railroad tracks, and sees some zombies in the distance. He takes out binoculars, and checks them out, seeing one wearing military camo. He puts his backpack on the bike, takes up his crossbow, and walks toward the zombies.

Daryl gets his bow ready, and walks toward the zombies. He steps on a twig that cracks, and it captures their attention. He walks faster past them, and they follow. He aims his bow at a zombie in camo caught in a tree near the edge of a hill. I guess he figures, why waste a shot? since he puts the bow down, and tries to reach for the zombie. He slips, and the zombie goes sliding down the hill along with him. He manages to throw it off of him, and gets on top of it, grabbing for the knife on the ground. He stabs its head, and goes through the zombie’s stuff, pulling out what he needs. He hears the others coming, and sees them at the top of the hill. He sidesteps, and one slides down, the rest following like lemmings. He heads back to his bike. He messes with the engine, and a zombie crawls toward him. He’s like, enough already, and shoots it with his crossbow. He takes the arrow out of the zombie, and goes through its pockets, finding some good stuff. Too bad there isn’t an engine in there. He says, nice, and fiddles some more with the bike.

Carol tells Dog, come on. Dog sits, and she says, don’t make her beg. She tells him, good boy, and he comes into the pantry with her. She puts the greens in a pot, and tells him, if he’s good boy, she’ll save him some scraps. She lifts the trap, and is startled by the rat, who gets away. She chases it all around the pantry, knocking things over, and Dog is like, WTF? She yelled at me for doing that. The rat runs into a hole in the wall, and she stuffs a towel into it. She tells Dog, what? Are you two friends now because I yelled at you earlier? She says, screw it, and unplugs the pot, saying, she’ll make soup tomorrow. She goes into the bedroom, but dog hesitates. She tells him, come on, and he jumps on the bed without any coaxing. He lies next to her, and she says she feels the fight coming out of her. Dog misses him, doesn’t he? Don’t worry; he’ll come back. He always comes back. She doesn’t though, does she? She asks if Dog thinks they should scram, and get out of everybody’s hair. They could. Dog gives her kisses. I love Dog.

Daryl does an elaborate fixing of the bike, using a multitool, and holding a flashlight in his mouth.

Dog stirs, and wakes Carol. He makes a small bark, but she tells him, shh, and gets up.

Daryl tries the bike, and it starts. He drives off.

Carol goes downstairs, lighting the way with a flashlight. Dog goes ahead. I also constantly worry about Dog. She looks around the pantry, and hears Dog making noises near the wall where the rat was. She pokes through the wall with a knife, and makes a hole. She listens, and waits. She slashes at the wall some more, and waits again. She goes back another time, and makes more holes in the wall. She knocks over a shelf, and starts bringing down the wall by hand. She leans against what’s left, and slides down to the floor. Dog looks worried, and comes over to her, lying next to her. She puts her hand on Dog and pets him, because dogs calm everyone down and make everything better.

Carol cleans up the pantry, sweeping up the mess. Jerry knocks at the door, and she slides it open. She says, hey. He looks inside, seeing the wall, and she says, it’s fine; she’s fixing it. What’s up? He says his cover story is that he’s coming by for soup, but no poker face. He’s going to fess up. He’s just checking on her. She asks if he thinks she needs checking on, and he says he does. Ezekiel would agree with him. She says she can’t argue with that, and Jerry says he wishes he could check on Ezekiel too. She says she’s sure Ezekiel is coming back as fast as he can. He likes checking up on people as much as Jerry does; it’s pathological. Why can’t they just let people like her suffer in peace? Jerry says, it’s a real problem, and she says, yesterday wasn’t her best day. It was a bad day. He says, the wall is all busted up. Ezekiel would have a saying for this kind of thing. She says maybe she just needs to fix what she broke. He says, a friend thinks you’re perfect even when everyone thinks you’re broken. He noticed Daryl didn’t come back with her, and two plus two equals eureka. She says, what if you’re broke, and your best friend realized later than everyone else? and he says, Ezekiel probably has a saying for that too. He just doesn’t know what it is. She asks what he would say, and he hugs her. The rat walks out the door, and goes around the corner. He says, was that… and she says, yeah. Come on in. The soup is almost ready.

Daryl drives into Alexandria. Carol is putting the wall back together. She starts to put on the scarf, looks at it, and says, sorry, throwing it in the trash. She goes over to close the door, and Dog runs out. He runs to Daryl, and she asks, what the hell happened to him? He says he was going to ask her the same thing. The usual. He says, yeah, same, and she asks if he found anything. He says, yeah, and asks if Dog was good. She nods, and wonders if he’s hungry. She made soup for everyone. He says he’s all right, and thanks her. She says, sure, and tells him that she forgot to give him his knife back. He tells her to keep it, and she says, really? He nods, and she puts it in her pocket. He says he’s beat. He’s going to hit the sack. She says, her too, and he goes off with Dog. Carol goes back inside, seeming lighter.

Next time – the finale – Here’s Negan. Negan’s backstory, and the birth of Lucille. Hilarie Burton Morgan – Jeffrey Dean’s real life wife – will be playing Negan’s wife, the first Lucille.

🧨 Here He Is…

A preview of what’s to come in the finale.

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/the-walking-dead-heres-negan-sneak-peek-season-10c-finale-jeffrey-dean-morgan-hilarie-burton-morgan/

⚰️ Drama in Deadland…

A little gossip, a little news.

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/the-walking-dead-creator-robert-kirkman-defends-former-showrunner-scott-gimple-fan-ruined-show/

🩹 About That Splinter…

Showrunner Angela Kang does a deep dive into the psyche of Princess.

https://ew.com/tv/walking-dead-princess-angela-kang-showrunner-splinter/

🚕 You Don’t Have To Go Home…

The weekend has come to a close, so back to the same old after two days of the other same old. Whatever same old it is for you, stay safe, stay being open to opportunity, and stay thinking your friends are perfect, even if they’re broken.

Mar22

March 21, 2021 – Princess Removes a Splinter, The Commonwealth, the Eleventh Season & the Top

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What I Watched Today

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

The Walking Dead

In a voiceover, Eugene tells us that he, Ezekiel, and Yumiko embarked on a journey to look for another civilization, and met Princess along the way. We flash back to that, and he says, arriving at the railyard, it appeared they’d missed their rendezvous. We see what look like a group of stormtroopers grabbing them, and Eugene says they found themselves in a nefarious pickle.

They stand back to back, hands up, and the soldiers take Yumiko. She tries to run back, yelling for them to leave Princess alone, but they grab her again, saying it’s her last chance. Yumiko yells, don’t hurt her, sh*theads! but they drag Princess away in the other direction. She’s thrown into a wooden boxcar so violently that she whacks her head on the far wall. She hears noise outside, and yells, what’s going on? She looks around, but the car is empty. She looks up to the ceiling, and sinks to the floor.

Princess tries to pry the door open, but no luck. She walks back, counting her steps in Spanish. She sees shadows of people outside, and remembers what happened. She recites the state capitals, and breathes a sigh of relief that she can still do it. She looks under an old tarp, but there’s nothing. She tries to look out the slats, but can only see part of the soldiers walking by.

She goes to the other side, and manages to pull off part of a slat, cutting her finger. She hears a voice say, Princess, are you there? and says, Yumiko? Yumiko tells her, shh. It’s her. She’s in the next car over. Princess says she’ll try to get to Yumiko, and asks her to move closer. She says she feels terrible, but she’s going make it up to Yumiko. She’s just got to find a way through the wall. She suggests Yumiko get the soldiers to come over there, so they can talk to them, but Yumiko says it’s a terrible idea. Princess says she has to do something. She says Yumiko sounds a little groggy. Did she hit her head? Yumiko says she did, and Princess asks, how bad? Is it bleeding? Yumiko tells Princess to calm down, but Princess says she can’t sit while Yumiko is hurt. Yumiko tells Princess, just do what she says, and Princess agrees, saying, sorry. It’s just that it’s dark and small. Can Yumiko still hear her? Yumiko says, yeah, and Princess says, stay awake. She’s going to try and get help, but keep talking. Princess picks at the wall, and tells Yumiko about an infection she got when she was 14, and had to stay home from school. There were some cool kids at school, and a girl who totally changed her life. Princess wonders where she is now, and blesses herself. She asks if Yumiko is still with her, but gets no answer. She says she nagged her mom, and her mom sent her back to school, but her finger got infected again. It swelled up like a birthday balloon; she felt like a swamp monster. Her stepdad wouldn’t let her eat at the table. He was mad, but she said he couldn’t push her away. It was her house first. He smacked her hard across her jaw. She told her mom, and asked if her mom was going to do something. Don’t send her out to eat by herself. Her mom said, don’t eat. She calls to Yumiko, but doesn’t hear anything. She tells Yumiko, wake up. Answer her. She hears someone, and yells that her friend needs help. She hears them come into Yumiko’s car, and asks where they’re taking her. Are they helping her? She’s told to shut up, and she starts to recite the state capitals again.

The soldiers walk outside of the boxcars, and Princess calls for Yumiko, asking if she’s back. There’s no response, and Princess walks the length of the car. She sees light coming through, and says, no way. She sees a loose board, and takes it off. There’s an opening bug enough for her to slide through, and she sees Eugene in the next car. He tells her, stop. Get back in. They’re making frequent checks. She tells him, they took Yumiko, and he suggests their potential benefactors are giving Yumiko assistance. Princess asks him to come with her, but he says, not a good idea. They’ll see what’s going on when they clear the process. Their metal is being tested. He’s sure the soldiers are required to keep them in good enough shape to talk. Princess says, this is bad sh*t, and he says, stop it. The soldiers walk past, and she slips around the back of the car, and watches them. They keep going, and she goes back to Eugene. He says, if they catch her, it could be disastrous. They’re in the middle of a fierce battle, and he’s being counted on to be a cross between Santa Claus and a guardian angel. They have to present themselves as being in allegiance. There’s no room for miscalculations. Don’t make things worse. She goes back into the car, and covers the opening.

The door opens, and a soldier tells Princess to come; hands up, move slow. She asks where they’re going, but he just says, walk.  

Princess is naked, and asks what they’re going to do to her. A soldier tells her, turn around, and she says, if he’s looking for bites, she doesn’t have any. She does have a splinter that’s driving her nuts. Can they take it out? She sits at a table, and works at the splinter, while the head soldier watches her from the other side. She says, please tell her why she’s there, and he says, start with her name. She doesn’t say anything, and he asks if she doesn’t know her name. She says, Princess, and he asks if she thinks this is a joke. She asks how her friend is. They’re helping her, right? He asks, how old is she? and she says, 28, 29. She could be 50. She’s lost track. He asks where she’s from, and she asks where she is. He says, okay, fine. Where was she when the fall happened? She asks why any of that is important? then says, Pittsburgh. Just tell her if they’re alive. He asks why they came there, and she says her friend hurt her head. He tells her that she’s avoiding the questions, and she says her friend might have a concussion. Just let her see… He says tell him about her friends. Start with the one she’s worried about. What’s her name? Princess asks why she’s there, and he says, the others; what are their names? She says, can’t he ask them that? and he says, tell him why they’re there. Where are they from? He gets up, and she asks what he wants. He says, they’re done. She says she gave him answers. Why can’t she see her friend? He says because she’s being a bitch, and Princess says she wants to see her friend. He whacks her across the face, and she falls to the floor. He says she should have answered.

Princess is back in the boxcar, and looks through the slat. She says, Yumiko? She’s so sorry. She tried to do like Yumiko said, and didn’t tell them anything. They kept grilling her, and asking what she knew about them, like she’s some kind of narc. Her friends… They used that word. She hears something, and listens where the opening is. She takes the board away, and slips out again. She looks into the next car, but Eugene is gone, and all she sees is his dousing rod on the floor. She hears the soldiers coming, and slips around the side, going back in the car, and replacing the board. She tries to get the image out of her head, and the car roof opens. Ezekiel looks in, and puts his finger to his lips. He drops down, and tells her, it took some maneuvering not to be spotted. She hugs him, and says, they got him too. He says, not the most fun interview he’s ever had. He tells her, they’ll be here soon, and she asks if he has any idea where the others are. Yumiko and Eugene are gone. He says he doesn’t know, but they’ll figure it out. They have to get out of there. She says, right now? and he says, no; next week. Yes, right now. She says she thinks they took Yumiko, and she didn’t do them any favors during the interview. He asks what she did, and she says, nothing… She got a little bit upset, and she might have… She hits her palm with her fist, and he says, the inquisition was aggressive. These people are toying with them. He tells her, let’s go, and asks, what’s wrong? She says she doesn’t think running will help, but Eugene said these people would help, and Ezekiel says he doesn’t know if they can be trusted. She asks if they can find a way out, but he doesn’t know. He tells her, it will be fine, but she says, nothing is fine. He can see something is wrong, and she says, d*ckhead nailed her over an old fracture, and she nurses her jaw. He examines it, and she says she’ll be okay. It healed fine every time before. He says, no one is going to hurt her anymore. Not while he’s there.

Ezekiel tells Princess, he’ll keep watch at the top for when they change the guards. She asks where Eugene is, and says, they can’t leave the rest of them. He asks if she thinks he doesn’t know that. They’re his friends. She says he doesn’t have to be an a-hole about it. She knows how to be friends with people, and was just trying to be helpful. He says, fear brings out the worst in them, as it just did in him. He apologizes, and they sit on the floor. He asks, what if Eugene trusted the wrong people this time? and Princess says, people suck. He says, they say one thing, and mean another. They tell you they love you… She says, and don’t act like it. People are a-holes, especially family. He says, not all families, but she says, most families. She just wants to do the right thing. He says he knows. They need a better plan. The door suddenly opens, and Ezekiel somehow makes himself scarce. A soldier brings in a plate of food, and Princess says, sorry about before. She didn’t mean to be difficult, but this is a little scary. The questions, the guns, the whole get-up. Ezekiel comes up behind the soldier, and knocks him out. Princess asks what the hell he just did, and Ezekiel closes the door.

Princess wonders what’s going to happen to them now. What about Yumiko and Eugene? This is not a better plan. He says, the opportunity presented itself, and he took it. Who cares? He’s here now. He takes the gun, the soldier rouses, and Ezekiel tells him, quiet. What did they do with their friends? The soldier says they don’t have to do this, and Princess tells Ezekiel to let her do the talking. She says, she just needs to  know her friend is okay. His boss said she’s getting help. Is she? He asks why she wouldn’t be. She’s probably with a medic. Ezekiel asks if they’re supposed to believe him, and the soldier says, for the benefit of all; and for all who seek solace. It’s what they stand for. She says they beat up her friend, and he says she doesn’t know that. What if it’s possible they’re not the bad guys? Just stay calm. She says, they’re locked in cars, and he says they can help. They have access to things that are valuable in times like these. She says, like food and medicine? but he tells her, he’s not saying yes, and he’s not saying no. They’re organized. Let them help. It’s why they came, right? She tells him, let’s say they’re actually helpful, even though they look like scary action figures come to life. What’s the point of messing with them? He tells her, this just standard protocol. They have paperwork to fill out. The place where they live is a good place, and it’s their job to keep the good people who live there safe. They have to be careful; they have a lot to lose. She says she gets that, but she still needs answers. Like a good will gesture. Where are her friends? He says he doesn’t know. His orders are to keep then fed until they’re ready. She says, for what? but he says he’s just a grunt. Three squares and a uniform. She has to believe him. He’s so green, the gun isn’t even loaded. He’s on probation, and this is going to get him fired, being snatched up by some chick. He tries to get away, and Ezekiel jumps him. He starts to pound on the soldier, and Princess tells him, stop. She says Ezekiel is going to kill him. Ezekiel keeps punching, and says, no one is going to hurt them anymore. Princess looks down, and sees the soldiers blood on her hands. She flashes back to everything that’s happened in this episode, and realizes she’s alone with the soldier.   

The soldier handcuffed in the car, Princess takes off running with his gun. She tries crawling under a fence, but the gun gets caught, and hangs her up. She remembers her friends, and turns around. She hears Ezekiel say, come on, girl. Get your sh*t together. Don’t be so hard on yourself. She looks back at the fence, and sees Ezekiel, standing between two zombies. He says, time waits for no one. They say we start dying the day we’re born. He tells her to come over there, but she says she doesn’t think she can. What about her friends? He says she met them a week ago. She says, that’s lifetime in apocalypse years. He says she’s learned to trust her instincts by now. She knows better than that. She looks at the splinter in her finger, and he says, she’s good on her own. She says she’s a superhero on her own. He says, so go on, and she says she wants to. He says, believe him. He knows it makes him like her like mom. She says her mom was a survivor, and he says, she was a monster. There are always monsters. She says she’s scared, and he says, everybody gets scared. His mom was like hers. They had to learn their lessons the hard way, and take their freedom. She says, not everyone is bad. Travis… She smiles, and says, Sammy and his people, and them. Ezekiel says, there are the stories you tell yourself, and then there’s the truth. She says, maybe, but they came back for her. She walks back to the cars, and we see there are only two zombies on the other side of the fence, yoked together, guarding it. She goes back into the boxcar.

She says she gets stressed at times, and the soldier asks who she’s talking to now. She says, him. She’s not crazy, if that’s what he’s thinking. There is the ADHD, anxiety, depression, crushing loneliness, an over-active imagination, and PTSD, but it helps her cope. Maybe it’s the only sane response to an insane world. Small dark spaces do bad things to her head. She doesn’t like them. He says, who does? and she says, screw him for judging. He says, he didn’t say anything, and she says, sorry. She doesn’t want mess anything else up. He says, then don’t, but she says she’d like to hold onto the gun a while longer, if it’s all same to him. He says, can she at least…? and holds out hands. She undoes the cuffs, and says, the splinter came out. He gets up, and she thanks him for not screaming. He says this isn’t exactly going to look good for him, and she asks if he’s really going to get busted. He says, what’s it to her? He’ll have to explain this, and he needs his rifle. She says maybe he could say he slipped, but he says, no. He screwed up, and he has to face the consequences. Then she and her friends can go back to whatever sh*tty part of the world they came from. She says there’s got to be a way they can help each other out, and he says he’s listening. She says, what if she answers his boss’s questions. Could she see her friends? He says, it’s not his call, and she says, fine. She just met them, and doesn’t now how old they are. Who cares? If you’re alive during the apocalypse, you’re 150 years old anyway. She doesn’t know where they’re from; nowhere and everywhere probably, like everyone else. She’s from Pittsburgh by way of San Juan. Do days and countries exist or even matter anymore? They had been on the road for a week. They had wheels for a while, then walked; that’s how they got there. He asks why she’s there, and she says, to be with them. Their names are Eugene, Yumiko, and Ezekiel. He already knew her name; it’s really Princess. He says, good, and  thanks her. She gives him the rifle back, and he says, see? It didn’t have to be hard. The rules are simple, and the questions are routine. People complicate them. They just need to know she can play ball with them. He puts his helmet back on, and she asks when she can see her friends. He says, right now, and yells he’s got her; let’s go. He opens the door, and she sees Eugene, Yumiko, and Ezekiel kneeling, flanked by soldiers, and wearing hoods over their heads. The soldier slips a hood over Princess’s head.  

Next time, another Carol and Daryl adventure. Daryl tells Carol that he’s staying a while longer, and they wish each other good luck. They go in different directions, but Dog goes with Carol.

🏙 Friend Or Foe…?

What role with the Commonwealth play?

https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a35875268/walking-dead-commonwealth-season-10-villain/

⚰️  All About Eleven…

Teasers…

https://bleedingcool.com/tv/the-walking-dead-season-11-teaser-god-needs-to-beg-for-forgiveness/

Spoilers…

The Walking Dead Season 11 Release Date on AMC : Cast, Spoilers and Everything Else

And Mercer.

https://ew.com/tv/walking-dead-season-11-mercer-explained/

🌠 Here Comes Another One…

I hope the weekend brought you something different, or you at least binged a good show. I checked out Showtime’s Your Honor (On Demand), and it was well worth it. Bryan Cranston stars as a judge who has to make a tough decision about his son, who’s been involved in a hit-and-run. It will make you question the lengths you’d go to protect someone you loved. As we move on through March, remember to stay safe, stay attentive, and stay giving a sane response to an insane world, whatever that may be for you.