What I Watched Today

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

 

 

The Walking Dead

They say “previously on The Walking Dead,” and I fill in, they killed of any vestige of hope we had, and my desire to root for anyone.

Gabrielle prays, saying he might die, and very likely will. He’s not asking to live, but to be given redemption. He no longer fears death, but fears a fruitless death. He asks God for purpose.

There’s a knock at Gregory’s door. It’s Simon with wakey, wakey, eggs and pancakey, that he made himself. He says a lot of love is on the tray. Gregory did the right thing. He called Simon when things got dicey at Hilltop, and followed instructions. Gregory keeps babbling, and Simon tells him that he doesn’t need to explain himself over and over. He did the right thing every step of the way. He tells Gregory that the reason he was brought there is that they’re not standing on the precipice of greatness, and he said he could solve the problem. Today is the day.

Negan is having a board meeting, Gregory sits at the table, and says thanks for having him. Negan fiddles with Lucille. Gregory says he understands the difficulty of Negan’s position. He doesn’t like killing people any more than Negan does. Negan says he likes killing people. Kill the right people at the right time, and everything falls into place, and everybody’s happy; some more than others. Negan says by killing one, you can save hundreds more. That’s what they’re about; they save people. A light bulb comes on over Gregory’s head, and he says that’s why they’re called the Saviors. Dwight wants to go out for a smoke, and Negan wonders if he doesn’t want to hear the rest. Dwight tells Negan to just tell him where to go and what to do, and he’ll make it happen. Dwight leaves, and Negan asks where they were, saying oh yeah, Gregory doesn’t like to kill and he does, under the right circumstances. Gregory says he likes to stop a conflict before it starts, and suggests he go back to Hilltop. He’ll tell them if they join in this meaningless crusade, they’ll be out on their asses. Negan asks if they still listen to him, and he says Hilltop is his house. He’s still the guy; always has been. Negan wonders if that’s indeed true, why didn’t know about the widow leading an army of his people straight up his ass with Alexandria? Negan thinks he’s playing both sides. Is listening to him the right way to go, or is it the right place and time for something else? Gregory starts stuttering about not being aware of the rebellion until it was in motion. Simon says he believes him; now make Negan believe him. Negan puts Lucille on his shoulder. Gregory says he let a fox into his henhouse, and she and her people took advantage of his generous nature. He sees that now, and will fix it. Simon tells him, lay down the law, and things go back to being copacetic. If not, kill everyone there, and the other communities will get the message. They’ll achieve equilibrium. Negan smacks Lucille on the table, and says people are a resource. People are the foundation of what they’re doing there. He uses Lucille for emphasis as he talks. He asks who the hell do Simon thinks he’s talking to, and if he’s confused as to who’s in charge. He asks if Simon if “we’re” backsliding, and please tell him they’re not. Simon says they’re not. It was a pronounced event in a fragile moment. Negan says, hell yes it is. They need to win it all. Plan A is taking Rick, the widow, and King Assface alive, and making them dead in a public and constructive way, and make them all watch. Kill the right people, in the right way. Negan looks out the window, and we hear shots. He tells Simon they need to have a chat, and he can bring his friend. Negan opens the door, says well, sh*t, sorry, I was in a meeting, and they start to go outside.

Negan and Gabriel are together in a trailer, zombies clamoring at the windows. Negan takes Gabriel’s gun from him, calling him a baby. He says Gabriel “done good,” and made a smart play. The sit together on the floor, and there’s an amazing shot of them, with a silhouette of the zombie hands grabbing at the window in the background. Negan says Rick is an a-hole, and Gabriel says he’s an a-hole. I literally LOL, which I didn’t think was possible after last week. Negan says, yes, he is, but Rick is going to get people killed. Gabriel says, killed by him, and Negan says he killed widow’s husband and the ginger, but he didn’t get them killed. That was Rick; there’s a big difference. He watched Gabriel try to save Gregory, and wonders why he’d stop for that bearded pr*ck. Gabriel says he fears a fruitless death, and Negan asks if he’s kidding; Gregory split on his ass. He asks if the point of his life is saving that d*ckhead, and Gabriel says there’s some reason he did what he did. Maybe he’s there to take Negan’s confession.

Savior Yago is lying by the side of the road, bleeding to death. Rick and Daryl interrogate him. They ask who won at the chemical plant, and Yago says, no one; everyone’s dead. He’s the only one left. Him, the king, his yes-man, and some weird psycho lady. His people, Rick’s people, all gone. He dies, and Rick stabs his eyeball or whatever. We don’t see it.

Negan is sure about one thing; his people think he’s dead. He tells Gabriel that he doesn’t have sh*t to confess. He asks why Gabriel became a priest. Gabriel says he loved God and loved people, and wanted to bring the two together. He wanted to help people through difficult times, and help them through their weaknesses. Negan says he’s been doing that in one way or another his whole life. He says people will start dying in there, because he’s not there to stop it. He whistles.

Regina thinks they can assume Negan is dead. Simon reminds her that they’re all Negan, and they try to form an escape plan. Eugene thinks they’ll be attacked quickly, but Regina says they can use the workers as a distraction. Eugene says that’s no good either. The workers outnumber them. Dwight says he’s right. The workers have the numbers that they need on their side, and there are snipers everywhere. Right now, they have to deal with the other part. Someone in here made everything out there happen. Simon tells him that when they find the subhuman who did this, they’ll kill them slowly in front of everyone, over the course of a few very long days. He looks pointedly at Eugene, and says, good meeting. Make today the best today it can be. At least he didn’t say, today is the first day – oh, you know the rest.

Eugene visits Dwight, He wants to give Dwight his sincere thanks for his support. He also brought cukes from his private stash, and tells Dwight they’ll find a way out of this pickle, pun intended. Dwight shows him a chess game he made. Dwight touches the board and Dwight tells him to be careful; it’s still drying. Eugene says he fully understands he’s being looked at in the Benedict Arnold situation, so he’s doubly grateful.

Gabriel asks Negan if he helped the weak before this. Negan says, kids. If you don’t show them the way, they turn out like garbage; little a-holes become big ones. You have to show them the way because people are weak. Gabriel says Negan is weak; killing the innocent is weak. Negan agrees he’s weak, but that’s not why. A zombie hand busts through the window. Negan thinks they should wait a little longer, and see if his people can pull it together. Gabriel asks why he’s weak. Negan pontificates on how he uses his weaknesses to drive his strength, and he’s strong as sh*t. The last guy in charge at the Sanctuary allowed the people to be weak. He makes them strong, and they make the world strong. Gabriel is going to be his new, special project. He’ll make him strong, and they’ll find his purpose. Gabriel says he’s already strong; he’s killed; he was a part of the satellite outpost mission. Negan tells him that he’s not talking about killing people while they’re sleeping. Gabriel asks again why he’s weak. They might be dead soon. Doesn’t he want absolution and forgiveness? It costs nothing more than saying the truth aloud. Negan says he never killed anyone who didn’t need it. Gabriel says the workers are treated like slaves. Negan tells him it’s economy. No one is a slave or starving. Gabriel asks about his multiple wives, and Negan says no women were pressured into marrying him; everyone made the choice. Gabriel asks if there was a first one, before all this, a wife he made vows with. Gabriel grabs his gun back, but Negan is distracted by a zombie getting through, and beats the crap our of its head with Lucille. He tells Gabriel he took his shot, now it’s time to go,

Daryl and Rick come out of the woods, and see an overturned truck. Daryl asks Rick to give him a hand, and they pull out a container of explosives. Daryl puts them in his backpack, saying can use them to blow the Sanctuary, and let the walkers in. It will be theirs by sundown. Rick says there are workers with families in there. They’re workers, not fighters. Daryl says if they don’t surrender, maybe they’ll all fight, and they don’t have the Kingdom as back-up. Rick says they’re not doing this, and Daryl says maybe he’s not. Rick tells Daryl they have a plan, and they’re sticking to it. Daryl says things change, and walks away. Rick follows him, saying they’re not doing this. Daryl punches him, and says it’s not Rick’s choice. He starts to continue on, and Rick jumps on his back.

Eugene plays video games. The power goes out.

Rick and Daryl continue to fight. Daryl gets Rick in a headlock. The truck starts to smoke, and they both run. Nice going, I think, as whatever they could have used from there blows up.

Rick can’t start the jeep. Daryl rides up on his bike. Rick tells him there’s a plan, and he’s got to see it through. Daryl says they have to win. Rick asks if he’s walking, and Daryl gets ready to roll. He asks if Rick is sure about what he’s doing. Rick says he is, and they head off in different directions.

Negan talks to Gabriel, who went into another room or closet or something. He says he has Lucille to help them get to the Sanctuary. Gabriel has the gun, and he should use it, but most important, they have each other. Negan endears himself to my heart in perpetuity for not saying importantly. He tells Gabriel that people are a resource. He doesn’t want to kill Gabriel; he wants Gabriel to work with him. Gabriel says he’s killed before, but that’s not his greatest sin. He locked his congregation out of the church when it happened. He listened to them die, because he’s a coward. He failed them, and failed God. Every day he works to lessen his failure, and be of service and purpose now. He offers Negan assurance of pardon, penance, and absolution. Show him they’re working as equals. His only way to a future is if he confesses.

Negan says what Gabriel did is horrible, cowardly, spineless sh*t, but guesses that’s what confession is supposed to be. His first wife was his real wife, and only real life; till death did them part. He lied to her, and screwed around. She got sick, and when she went, it was messy. He couldn’t put her down. That’s how he was weak, and what he’ll confess. Maybe they do bite the big one there. Gabriel comes out, and says Negan is free. Negan punches him in the face, and says thank you; he can keep the gun. Negan tells Gabriel that they’re going to have to put the dead’s guts on themselves. He says putrid decaying organs, cooking all day in the sun; how many people have gotten sick from this? Gabriel says he’s from Georgia, which is apparently a joke I don’t get. Negan hacks apart the zombie he killed, and they put entrails all over themselves.

Commercial break. Red Machete. Does anybody care?

Negan says, let’s make some noise. They yell, and he bangs Lucille on the wall. He opens the door, and lets the zombies in. Negan and Gabriel walk out, and we get up close and personal zombie shots. Gabriel falls, and the zombies notice. One tries to bite him, and Negan smashes it in the head. Now attention has been drawn to them, and they start to kill zombies; Negan with Lucille, and Gabriel with his gun. The look up, and zombies are about to jump down on them. I’m wondering if Gabriel got bitten.

At another meeting, Savior Gavin gripes that his deliveries aren’t coming through. Something happened. That Rick guy happened. He’s been hitting outposts. Laura runs in, saying the workers are coming upstairs. They go into the hallway, and the crowd looks like a bunch of angry union workers about to go on strike. Simon tells them that they’re designated to the ground level factory floor and the garden. A worker says it’s too hot inside, and no way are they going outside. Simon explains they need to conserve fuel, and it’s a shared sacrifice. The worker says his tone isn’t working. Dwight says they need time, and the worker says they need water. They’re supposed to be protected in exchange for their work. They need a plan for getting out. One worker wants to know where Negan is, and another asks if he’s dead. Simon orders everyone to return to the factory floor, and a worker says they’re not going anywhere. Regina says, I am Negan, and shoots the woman. She asks if anyone else wants a bullet. They hear whistling, and everyone kneels down.

Negan asks why she had to go and do that. A lot of fine folks thought he was chewed up, never to be crapped out again. He’s not dying until he’s damn good and ready, and right now he’s ready for a sandwich, shower, and massage, maybe all three at once. After that serious business, he has things to attend to, like talking to his right-hand man. They’ll figure how all this happened and why, and then go back to what they’ve always done, save people. A worker says, thank you, Negan, and another says, thank God for you. He looks at Gabriel, and says that’s why he’s the man. He tells the guards to gently take him to number two. Gabriel is led away. He looks at Eugene. Eugene’s bottom lip trembles.

At yet one more meeting. Negan says they need to figure out where the guns came from; find out when they went missing. This came from one of their own. He throws a backpack on the table. Eugene sees that there’s read paint on it, and looks at a paint smudge on his finger. It’s the same paint that Dwight used on the chessboard.

Rick walks along a creek. He looks up, and sees a helicopter. It flies past, and he continues walking.

Negan sees Eugene, and says, yo, Dr. Smarty-Pants, and tells him that he has a big chance here. If he solves this, he’ll make Eugene very happy. But even if tries his best, and can’t figure it out, Negan assures Eugene that he’ll kill him quickly, so he doesn’t have to see the horrific things that will happen when they run out of food and water. In other words, he has Eugene’s back either way. Does Eugene have his? Eugene nods.

Rick keeps walking.  A guard in a tower sees him, and blows a whistle.

Eugene knocks at Gabriel’s cell door. Among other things, he says they’ve eaten dog together, so that joins them in some manner for life. He wants to formally welcome him. He took it upon himself to bring welcome wagon items, in hope of providing some relief. He knocks again. When there’s nothing, he unlocks the door. Gabriel is sweating and shaky. Eugene wants to take him to Dr. Carson, but Gabriel says they have to find Dr. Carson asap. For Maggie.

Next time, Jadis and the trash people (sounds like a group) are back, and Carl finds himself in trouble.

👹 Interesting postscript – on Talking Dead, Lisa Edelstein said she thought perhaps Simon had been in charge when Negan arrived, hence the exchange about Simon backsliding. He’d also talked about what a mess it was when he got there. Very astute. She was obviously paying attention.

😪 I never got a chance to watch Once Upon a Time, but hope I can catch up before the next episode. It was a busy weekend after a truly hellacious week selling on eBay. Seller. Nightmare. Customer.

 👍 An Appropriate Quote

Ah, work — it’s second only to families in forcing us to spend time with people we’d rather not be in close contact with. – Alison Green, Ask a Boss, The Cut

⚡  More Negan Backstory

http://ew.com/tv/2017/11/19/walking-dead-negan-big-scary-u-805/