Tag Archives: Talking Dead

May14

May 13, 2018 – The Story of John & Naomi, Extra Useless Information, Talking About Fear & Mom’s Day

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What I Watched Today

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

 

Fear the Walking Dead

John opens the box with the matching pistols, and cleans and loads them. He sees a zombie wading through the creek. He puts a board over his ditch moat, and whacks it with an ax. Smart move to save bullets.

He lies in bed listening to Billy Bass, who I guess is his alarm clock. He washes up, makes the bed, and plays Scrabble with himself. He says, people, as he washes the breakfast dishes. He runs down a list of various words as he has coffee on the porch. He continues as he does chores. He says platypus, and uses it in his next Scrabble game.  As night falls, he watches DVDs.

There’s a sound outside. John says, not another one, and asks himself where they’re coming from. He finds Naomi in a canoe on the shore, barely conscious, and brings her in. She says she has to get back, and he tells her she’s safe, but injured. He looks at a gash in her side. The good news is, it’s not a bite. He tells her he’ll take care of it as best he can.

The next morning, he finds Naomi looking in the truck for his keys. He tells her they’re on the top of the visor, and she might want to avoid reverse. He says she has a pretty bad cut. She gets in the truck and closes the door. It won’t start, and he says it needs a new battery. He tells her if she wants to go, he might as well set her up with food and water. She should get some rest, and change the bandage on her wound too.

Inside, Naomi looks at her wound. She starts to stitch it up herself, and says she can’t. She asks John to do it, and gives him instructions, saying, just do it.

John makes fish stew for dinner. He tells Naomi, the French call it bouillabaisse, presenting her with a bowl, saying, soup is the blanket of food. He tells her to enjoy, and introduces himself. She thanks him. He says she looks like a Laura, and asks if it’s an acceptable substitute. He tells her about a job he once had, teaching kids at a pea shooting range, and says she can stay as long as she likes. She says she’ll be moving on, and he offers her food and shelter until she’s ready, but the next time she wants something, ask. He wonders if she’s a doctor or nurse, and tells her to take the bed; he only sleeps an hour or two if he’s lucky. She asks how he knew she was a nurse. He says he doesn’t know many people who could stick a needle in their side. He asks if she was a nurse until… and she says, yeah. He says it seems like forever ago, and she agrees.

Naomi is restless. She sees the couch is empty and gets up. John is cleaning the pistols. He hears her but when he turns around, she’s gone.

John whacks some more zombies in the creek area. Naomi comes out, and asks if they wash up. He says, there’s something amiss up river. He tells her that he goes to the store on Tuesday, and she says she’ll come. He thinks she should rest, but Naomi is insistent. He supposes he wouldn’t mind he company, and gives her a pair of boots, telling her there are snakes. She declines, saying she won’t be able to run in them. He leaves them on the porch in case she changes her mind.

They take the canoe down the river. She asks if he’s been there long, and he says, a good while. She asks what he did before, and he tells her that he was a police officer. She wonders why he didn’t bring his guns; she thought all cops have them, but he says they cause more problems than they solve. She asks if he liked being a cop, and he says, at one time. Zombies walk the bridge, and one falls in. Naomi takes out her knife, but John pushes it into the water with his oar, and they go past. He notes that a broken part of the bridge railing needs tending to.

John docks the boat, and they head for the store. He says it’s been in Bill’s family for sixty years. Naomi asks where Bill is now, but John doesn’t know. They closed the road for repair before things went south, and he hasn’t seen him since. They walk into a fully-stocked store, and John tells Naomi to help herself. She gets a knapsack. and fills it, while he gets supplies. Naomi moves some merchandise around, and John asks if she’s rearranging things. She explains that people need splints and dressings, and aren’t always thinking. She’s just doing her part. He tells her how his name is Dorie, like the fish, except ie. 

Outside, he says they’re going to need a ladder. They fix the bridge, and John asks if he can call her Laura. She says that’s fine, but she won’t be staying long. A zombie toddles toward them, and she stabs it in the head.

While lying in bed, Laura hears a movie playing, and comes out. John says sorry for disturbing her (which my autocorrect wanted to change to disrobing her – ha-ha!). It’s usually his movie night, although every night is getting to be movie night. She gets some water, and he says he’ll turn the volume down. He asks if she wants some popcorn. She doesn’t, but she sits on the couch. I’m trying to figure out what the movie is from the dialogue we can hear, but I can’t. He tells her about the snacks he makes on movie night, and suggests concocting something.

John snoozes, and Laura looks at him. He opens his eyes, and she says she lost her child. She gets up, and goes back to bed.

Laura wants John to teach her to fish. It’s a resource, so she should know how. They go out on the river, and he instructs her. She hooks a fish, and gets all excited. He teaches her how to clean and gut it. They have it for dinner, and she thanks him. They play Scrabble.

There’s more fishing the next day, and Laura prepares it herself. That afternoon, John clips her stitches. He says she might have a scar, but nothing too bad. She thinks she should be going, since she’s healed up, but she’ll take a couple days to pack some things. John goes outside, and chops a zombie’s head in half. Laura says they need something stronger to block the opening; a car at Bill’s might still have a charge. She helped him, and it’s the least she can do. He gets wheel barrow, and loads up the zombie he downed.

At the bridge, John asks how Laura learned to hot wire a car, and she asks if he’s going to arrest her. He sees she’s got one of his pistols, and says he asked her not to go through his things. She tells him that they might need protection, but he says she’s good with a knife; the noise from the gun just brings more zombies. She says they’re no good in a box, but he wants them in a box, not out there. He gets out of the truck.

John walks through the zombies, whacking them. Laura gets the ones he doesn’t, and it’s a chopfest. They drive a truck to the opening, blocking it. Laura is on the truck, but outside of the cab, guiding John. The zombies begin to gather, and Laura tells John to shoot them. They’re pushing at the car, and one zombie breaks the window with the machete that’s poking through him, and is now six inches from John’s face. He stabs at it, while Laura keeps yelling for him to shoot. John finally deals a fatal blow, but then won’t stop stabbing once it’s over. He and Laura are both covered in the blood that has sprayed everywhere.

Back at the cabin, Laura scrubs at their clothing. John says he didn’t get bit, but she says she’s seen people get sick from being exposed. He tells her that he didn’t mean for it to happen. She says he had a gun. He says that’s not how he does things, and she says it nearly got him killed. He says, better him than someone else. She asks if what he’s talking about has to do with why he doesn’t want to talk about being a cop. She asks what happened; did he take it or fire it? He says he fired. She says, good guy or bad guy? He says that’s not the way he looks at things, but she’d call him bad. She asks if it was a mistake or intentional, and he says, intentional. It was an intentional mistake. He stopped at the gas station, and a guy was robbing the place. John told him that he was a police officer, and to put his weapon down, but he would not. He tried to clip the guy in the leg. John starts to choke up, and Laura tells him it’s okay. John says, the guy turned, and he hit him dead center in the leg, and he bled out. Laura asks if that’s why he moved up there, but he says, no. People thought he was a hero. She says, it doesn’t matter how many people say it’s not your fault; what matters is if you believe it.

On the bridge, the zombies clamor at the truck. It starts to roll, and they start falling into the river.

Laura and John are sleeping, when John hears a lot of zombie noises. That’s because there are a sh*tload of them coming toward his house. He calls to Laura, and starts to whack them as they come out of the creek. Laura whacks and chops at them with a shovel, but they’re all falling into the moat, creating a bridge for the ones still coming. They’re surrounded, and Laura tumbles into the moat. John suddenly has the guns, one in each hand, and shoots with both at once, doing that twirling-the-guns thing. The last one is inches from Laura’s face and it’s hard to aim, but he does it, and kills the zombie. Holy! Even though we know both of them make it, I was holding my breath.

John surveys the mess. Laura sits next to him on the steps. She thanks him. She says he might not think he’s a hero, but she does. He’s an honorable person, and she’s very, very lucky to have washed up in his front yard. He gives her one of the pistols, telling her, if she’s going, she’ll need it, and he needs her to take it.

They sit on the couch. John gets up, and Laura asks what it is; why won’t he look at her? He says he loves her, but he didn’t want her to know. She asks why, and he says because she’s leaving, and he doesn’t want her to. He says if she wants the cabin, he’ll go. He tells her that he needs her alive. If she’s alive, the whole world feels alive. They kiss. At this point, I’m liking him too.

John wakes up to Billy Bass – alone. He looks around, and calls Laura’s name. He sees her shoes where the boots were on the porch. On the table is, I love you too Im sorry, in Scrabble letters.

Morgan and John sit by the side of the road. Morgan says, she loved you, and John says, yes. John says, maybe if he’d waited to tell her… but Morgan says, no waiting; not in this world. Waiting is how you lose people. John says he believed he had a second chance; it was stupid. Morgan says they still do. Madison, Victor, Luci; they’re still here. They think the only thing left is to fight, kill, or die. John says, maybe they’re right. Morgan tells John to look him in the eye, and tell him that’s what he believes. If he can do that, they’ll go their separate ways. John says he doesn’t believe it. Morgan says, they’re alive. They’re part of the world. Let’s not waste another second.

Morgan gets up, and gathers his stuff. John puts the other pistol in his holster. They walk down the road.

Nice episode.

Next time, John uses the pistols some more, Mel tells Madison to be careful, and Naomi says it’s dangerous.

🐟 Apparently, there’s more than one Dory with a y who’s a fish, and is a John. A white-fleshed sea fish found in European waters, John Dory (also known as St Peter’s fish), is an odd-looking creature with an oval, flat body and a large, spiny head. The white, boneless, meaty flesh is firm and flavoursome and can be cooked in a variety of ways: grill, sauté or poach it. – from BBC.co.uk  – Food.

💀 🔊 Talking Dead was a good one too, the guests being Yvette Nicole Brown and Jenna Elfman. The artistry of the episode was discussed, and it really was beautifully filmed. The scenery was gorgeous, but John’s cabin was also an amazing setting. Yvette talked about how she has an investment in the characters after knowing the backstory. I was with her there, but I’ve always had more investment in the characters from Fear than those in The Walking Dead. From the jump, they were more multi-faceted. TWD needs a charming rogue like Victor, trading barbs and sexual tension with Maggie. I was surprised nobody brought up Naomi/Laura having lost her child, but Jenna Elfman was very cagey about where the story was going next. I wondered if her child was Charlie. Also surprising was the gift an audience member went home with – a canoe. A clip of Garrett Dillahunt (John) talking about filming the episode, gave me a quote that I not only couldn’t resist adding, but could relate to: It’s only been six days but I feel twenty-seven days tired.

🍀 Speaking of Quotes…

👵 Favorite Irish Mammy Sayings for Mother’s Day

https://www.irishcentral.com/culture/craic/top-ten-irish-mammy-isms-according-to-poll?utm_campaign=Best+of+IrishCentral+-+2018-05-13&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=Mailjet

This did not include my own mother’s favorite, this is not a restaurant, which I actually heard come out of my own mouth while babysitting my neighbor’s twins. Although my mom wasn’t Irish, that list looks pretty mom universal.

💖 Speaking of Mother’s Day…

HappyMothersDayAll

💕 And My Best Girl Forever Mom…

Juliet&HerBabies

 

 

May7

May 6, 2018 – Burying Nick, a Variety of Rambling & Creepiness

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What I Watched Today

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

 

Fear the Walking Dead

Everyone is stunned about Nick. Al has videoed the aftermath. We see Luci make sure Nick doesn’t come back by stabbing him in the head, Alicia re-killing Ennis more viciously (somehow, he got rid of the deer head he was impaled on), and Victor covers Nick up. In the van, Victor tells Al, let’s get this over with. Al says it can wait until he’s buried, but Victor says that was the deal. She asks how he ended up there, and he tells her that’s a big question. She says sometimes those are easier to answer. Luci says they could have stopped this from happening.

It’s another one of those back-and-forth episodes. Luci watches a guy, who looks like Riff Raff from Rocky Horror, bring some supplies to the Vultures. Charlie laughs with Ennis. She explains to Al that they had to stretch rations with cattle feed. Victor says it’s an acquired taste.

At the stadium, Victor offers to garnish lunch with maple syrup, and Alicia tells him to save it for the pancakes. He says, for when things get better, and they will. Madison says it’s time to be creative. The need to find places their friends in the parking lot haven’t hit, like maybe a bowling alley.

Victor says it was their first misstep, going on runs that day.

Victor and Cole walk through a greenhouse. Cole says he went to A&M University, and knows which plants are safe to eat. He encourages Victor to tell him something about himself, and Victor says he didn’t go to A&M. They find something edible, and look for a cart. Cole asks how long Victor is going to act like he’s afraid of him. Victor says that’s not the case.

Al asks if he was afraid of Cole, and Victor says, of course not. He says they’re supposed to be talking about Nick, and Al says they’re talking about him.

Cole and Victor fight off zombies in the greenhouse. Cactus zombies. They have quills sticking out of them all over. One gets Cole down. Victor pikes it in the head and helps him up.

Nick takes Luci to a nearby library. His mother once brought him there, and he thinks it’s a sign. Luci says she went with him because Nick thought it would be good for her.

Inside the library, Nick whistles. It’s empty because zombies don’t read. He takes a poster down off the wall, and Luci asks why they’re here. Nick tells her that people need a reason to stick around, and not just food. She says there’s nothing left, but he thinks there has to be something. Luci says it’s about her, referring to Charlie. Nick says she thinks they’re looking out for her and they’re family. Luci says she thought Colonia was a good place to be, but it wasn’t. He helped her.

Al says, but he couldn’t help Charlie. Luci says, she killed Nick. What do you think?

John tells Morgan he used to be a police officer. He knew a guy who drank a bottle of rye every night. One night he survived a close call. A guy stole a garbage truck, and it ended up squashing his patrol car. He went a week without touching rye. John says it takes more than a week to change someone. He thinks Morgan will be on his way after Nick is buried. John is going to find Laura, and wants Morgan with him. He wants them to meet. Morgan just wants to see Nick buried, and he’ll be on his way. He’s better on his own.

Al says they can stop if it’s too much; Alicia’s brother died. Alicia says, yeah, he did.

Alicia and Naomi go to a small waterpark. Naomi sees a van she thinks they should take back, pointing out that it even has a tape deck. She looks for keys, but finds nothing. They head into the park, which looks like something from Abandoned, but with dead bodies all over. A zombie stumbles out, and Alicia stabs its head. Another follows, and Naomi takes care of that one. Naomi says whoever camped here moved to higher ground when the fence came down, showing Alicia a site on a platform at the top of the waterslide. The stairs are barricaded, but Alicia says they can get up there from the slide. They look at the zombies wandering around in the water.

Victor says he wanted to do the right thing in the car. Cole tells Victor that if he doesn’t like him, just tell him. Victor says he does like him. Cole asks why he won’t share information about himself then, and Victor says he doesn’t want Cole to know him. He’s done dumb things, and keeps this to remind him not to be that man. He hands Cole what we both agree looks like a piece of a rock. Victor says, it’s not.

Al asks if going on run brought them closer together, and Alicia says, of course it did. They were the only ones still breathing. She and Naomi wade through the pool, and the zombies. Naomi tries to get up the slide, but keeps slipping back down. Alicia gives her a boost, and tries to follow, but she slips and loses her knife. As they struggle to get up the slide, there’s a terrific crane shot showing the cluster of zombies, grappling at the bottom.

They carefully make their way up. It would really suck to get all that way and slide back down into a mess of zombies. They look at the stuff left behind, and Alicia thinks there’s still some ammo. A zombie toddles out, startling them. They struggle with it, and Naomi falls down to a bowl-like attachment on the slide. I’m guessing you could once slide through it, but now there’s a clog of zombies caked in slime in the opening. Naomi kicks at them, but one is particularly aggressive. Alicia slides down, having grabbed a pipe that was part of the slide. She knocks the zombie in the head, and it slides back down into the clog. I have to admit, I made noises out loud throughout this whole scene.

Al asks when she sharpened it. Alicia says that came later.

Back at the top, Alicia and Naomi go through the stuff. Naomi finds the keys to the van, but says nothing. There’s a trunk of medical supplies, and Naomi tells Alicia to take as much as she can. Naomi gives Alicia binoculars, and suggests she look for what hasn’t been picked over. Alicia thinks there’s a possibility, but when she turns around, Naomi is gone.

Al asks, what happened? Did she run? Victor says, they’re all running.

Victor and Cole go to a parking lot. Cole asks where the hell they are. Victor opens the hatchback of a car, and says, when the crops failed, he gathered things. Cole asks why Victor is showing him. Victor says there’s enough room for two. Cole tells him that people are hungry. Victor says the supplies would maybe feed them for a day; it wouldn’t make a difference. Cole says makes a difference between them making it for another day or not. Victor says so could this. Before, he did things where people got hurt or died. He learned self-preservation. He says famine is on the horizon, and he did it to ensure he survived. He wants Cole to know this is him. Cole shakes his head. He can’t do it. Victor says he didn’t think so. Cole says he’ll drive himself back.

Al asks if he left, and if Victor thinks it’s his fault. Alicia says, it’s not his fault. He wasn’t the only one who thought about leaving.

Naomi starts the car. It chugs to a stop because there’s no gas in it. I’m not even going to say it. Yes, I am. You’d think she’d have checked that first thing. She sure made a good guess those were the right car keys. Alicia is there, and says that’s the second time she ran out since they’ve met. Naomi doesn’t have to tell them anything, but she’s either with them, trying to keep it going, or not. Naomi says she can’t try to keep this going. Alicia tells her that she said the same thing once. She went off on her own; no one could talk her out of it, but wasn’t what she wanted it to be. Maybe she’ll realize that too. Alicia says she’ll go with her to get some gas.

Al asks if Luci thought about leaving. Luci says they all did.

Luci tells Nick that they have to go. He says there could be something there for her. He looks around in the back, and we hear zombie noises. A trail of books leads to a zombie who’s tied up, so it can’t escape. Nick puts it out of its misery, and sees that its wrists are slit. Luci sees a book of maps. Luci say she doesn’t want to end up like that. Nick tells her they know what’s wrong, and they’re going to try and fix it. She says what if they find a new place? Start over. He asks, where, and she hands him the book. She says the first place they open to.

Al asks Luci, what page did it open to? It’s the reason she’s sitting here, isn’t it? Luci says she should have never opened the book.

Madison looks through binoculars at the Vultures. Mel waves and holds up a radio. She gets on hers, and asks if he needs help. He asks if they have relish. She goes down to the parking lot, but I don’t see her bringing any relish. He says they’ve finished it, haven’t they? And the ketchup and mustard. Condiments are the first things to go, in trying to dress up things they don’t want to eat. The dressing up part is true even in real life. I remember putting Italian dressing on green beans and ketchup on mac and cheese at lunch in high school. Mel is cooking hotdogs. He asks where she’s sending people, and she says, why? So they can beat them there? She doesn’t think so. He says every time she sends someone out, they might not come back. Madison says they will; she knows her people.

Mel says before he lived on the bus, he lived like them, in a settlement; his family’s cattle ranch in hill country. It was a nice place to be, but then wildfires kicked up. Madison knows where he’s going. She says, he’s smart, and saw what was coming. He tried to warn everyone, but they wouldn’t listen. So he and his brother left before the fires hit. She says she’s sorry about the rest of his family. Mel says, people are stubborn creatures. He asks if she’d like a weenie, but she’s good. He says if she didn’t come out for food or company, what is she doing there? She says her offer still stands. If they want relish, they could scrounge some up from the concession stand. They can make a go of it, if they work together. He asks if she believes that. She does, and he says that’s why the place is going to fall. His offer also stands. She turns to leave, and he says she was wrong about his story. He told them that they could save the place, and they listened. He and Ennis were the only ones who made it out alive. They could hear them scream as they drove off. Madison walks away.

Al says that’s why it’s so important. They gave up on the stadium.

In the library, Luci flips open the book.

Victor sits in his car.

Naomi tells Alicia that she was a nurse. After a while, she could tell who would make it and who wouldn’t. She says the stadium won’t last. They have to think about where they’re going next. Alicia says she’ll talk to Madison.

Victor says Al thinks she knows what happened that day, but she’s wrong.

Cole drives up to the stadium, and Madison asks if Victor is okay. Victor drives in behind him. Al asks why he came back, and Victor says he got a reminder of what he stood to lose. He looks at the syrup. Al asks what people thought when they found out about his escape hatch. Madison sees all the supplies, and says it looks like they got a break. Victor tells Al that he didn’t tell them the truth. Al asks Luci what page it opened to.

Luci says they’re going north. Nick asks what if there’s another way of looking at this. They bring the book to Madison. Nick asks what if they went further to scavenge than they have before. Madison says they can’t go that far every time, but he says they only need to go once. He tells her they can get seeds and fertilizer. They can replant, and turn the place back into what it was. Madison says okay, because she’s coming from a place of yes this season.

A tear rolls down Luci’s face.

Alicia tells Madison they have to talk. Al asks if Alicia told her about Naomi.

Alicia knocks on Naomi’s car window as she’s starting to leave. She asks if they ever lived when Naomi thought they were going to die. Naomi tells Alicia to let her do the talking, and Alicia gets in, saying, nice wheels. At the stadium, Naomi says if they’re going to make it work, things will get worse before they get better. She’s going to set up an infirmary.

Alicia says instead of fighting to change everything, she should have told them to leave. Luci says they should have found somewhere else. Victor says he wanted to be a better person, that’s why he’s dead. Luci says they could have stopped it all. Al puts down the camera.

Al stops the van, and they get out. Victor says, this is it. They dig, and John asks, why here? Alicia asks what difference it makes to him, and he says he just wants to know. They continue to dig, and dig up a cache of guns. Al says it’s not about Nick. They’re going after the rest of them, even after what happened to Nick. Alicia says it’s what he would have wanted. Al says answers only matter if they’re true. Alicia says it was the truth, and Al says it was served between two slices of bullsh*t. She tells them good luck without her. Victor says they know where the Vultures are meeting up next, and Al says, they needed a ride. John says she’s been snookered. She asks if they’re really going to lug all this, and Alicia says unless she takes them. John says his seems to be the only story that doesn’t end with someone getting hurt or killed. Victor says if Al wants to know how it ends, come see for herself, and Al tells them to load up the van. Morgan asks Alicia if they’re still planning on burying her brother or are they leaving him on the side of the road? Alicia says they’ll bury him there. Morgan says, he liked growing things, right?

In a spot near a beautiful tree, Victor puts the last dirt on the grave. Luci kneels down and touches it. Morgan leaves a bluebonnet.

As they’re packing the truck, John asks where they got some of it. Alicia says it’s just stuff they’ve picked up along the way. He asks for a knapsack, saying it belonged to Laura.

At the stadium, Naomi asks Alicia for a second alone. She takes out a gun that matches John’s.

John takes out the gun. He says, her name was Naomi. She never told him her real name. He asks where she is, and Alicia says she didn’t make it out of the stadium. Things went wrong. He guesses that trip is off, and asks what happened. Alicia says, she’s dead, and he says that’s not true. She’s out there; she’s gotta be. Victor says, there’s the rub, his story did end up with someone getting hurt. Alicia says they did this. Come with them. John asks them to let him be. Al approaches him. She says she’ll find out what happened, and come back for him. Morgan tells them to go; he’ll stay behind. They drive off. Morgan tells John that he’s sorry. John says he was right. We’re always on our own.

Next time, John and Naomi’s story.

👌 I love the Morgan/John pairing. I have more feels for these characters than the ones on Walking Dead. They just seem more well-rounded. Although I probably enjoy Talking Dead most of all. It’s like the day after a convention (sci/fi, horror, Star Trek, whatever, take your pick), when you rehash everything and look over all the crap you bought.

🏯 I’m not really watching Into the Badlands, although it might be one of those things I consume in one bite On Demand someday. I did glance at it though, and it looks awesome. Like a Quentin Tarantino film, but more colorful. The fight scenes are unbelievable – chicks with swords! – and I’ll bet a lot of the actors go home bruised and sore.

🍷 I didn’t really take in too much of The Real Housewives of Potomac tonight, but there was a stand-out quote, brought to us by Candiace: I think I like her better drunk. I don’t know who she was referring to, but I thought of how well it could apply to anyone in the franchise saying it about anyone else in the franchise.

🐎 Was that Walking Dead’s Simon I saw on Westworld?

👻 Sadly, Ghost Wars has been canceled.

https://www.themarysue.com/syfy-cancels-ghost-wars-after-one-season/

😱 🎢 Imagine Zombies Clogging This Up…

Much worse than spiders. I’m talking to you, Stephen King.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA AbandonedWaterslide

AbandonedWaterslide5

AbandonedWaterslide3 AbandonedWaterslide2

 

Apr30

April 29, 2018 – A Lot of Dead, a Little Rambling & Another One Bites the Dust

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What I Watched Today

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

 

Fear the Walking Dead

Nick burns the crops. I guess he’s still not done fighting the weevils. Too bad they can’t feed the weevils to the zombies and get the zombies to do the farming.

Al asks what they did to Nick. She tells him that she’s just trying to help. They’re all breathing, which means they’re on the same team. Victor thinks they should have reached the turn-off by now. Al says she gave them the right directions, just not all of them. She wants their stories, and they want to know where she found the flag. She’s not letting them take her van or threaten them anymore. Nick says this is how it’s going to be, and Al asks if he knows how many times she’s been zip-tied. She manages to grab Nick, getting him to drop is weapon, and tells Luci to pull over. Nick tells Luci not to do it. They see a cluster of zombies, and Al says, change of plans; keep driving. There’s a scuffle, thanks to Nick, and Luci turns, but into a ditch. Nice going. Although a few zombies were creamed in the process.

Nick makes stupid faces as he comes to, and John reaches for the wheel.

Nick is back at the stadium. Madison asks if he’s okay, and tells him she’s going on a run. He says he’s coming; he wants to help.

Nick wakes up next to a pile of zombies, and John trying to get the truck out. Al says they have to get a tow. Then they’ll talk about whatever they have to – or not. They can go on their way if they want. Luci thinks they could use a truck from a service yard she saw. Victor says often the start of a negotiation requires an act of faith. John asks Al if she trusts him, and Al says, probably not. She unties all of them, hesitating when she gets to Victor. She ties Nick to the truck. Morgan says he’ll only slow them down, so he’ll stay. Al asks if he’ll be there when they get back he says if he’s not, something went wrong. John takes the others up the hill. Luci tells Nick they won’t be gone long.

Morgan reads, and Nick asks what he’s reading. Morgan is silent, and Nick asks for something to eat. Morgan cuts his ties, and tells him get it himself. Nick asks if he isn’t worried. He reaches for Morgan, and Morgan knocks him on his face, saying he’s not worried. (Ah-ha! in Nelson voice.) Nick gets a protein bar, and asks if Morgan likes peanut butter. He gives Morgan half, and introduces himself. Morgan says he’s going up to the road and not to move five feet from the truck. Nick picks up Morgan’s book, The Art of Peace, and flips though it.

Nick looks around the truck, and finds the video camera. He fast-forwards through John’s interview, and stops on Morgan’s. Morgan practices with his pokey stick, but his leg hurts. He sees car racing down the roads, and runs – as fast as he can anyway – back to the truck. He tells Nick to get down. Nick sees the car go past, and grapples with Morgan. They cause the horn to go off. It’s stuck, and just continues to blare. Zombies pop out of everywhere. Nick takes off. Morgan asks Nick to toss him his stick, and Nick runs. I’m annoyed that Nick is leaving injured Morgan to the zombies, so he can chase after a flashy old convertible.

We see a close-up of a zombie. Then a close-up of Al slicing its skull. Luci sees a huge wheel of cable, and thinks it would work. John hopes they can get Al’s truck out by sundown. They drive back in a flatbed truck, carrying the wheel. Victor believes Al’s mission is one of benevolence; they’re alive after an aggressive introduction. He asks if she’s doing it for a reason. She says she wants them to clean up the mess they made. He thinks there’s more to it than that, and she says, their stories. He asks, for who? and she says she doesn’t know how it ends. It might be the only thing left. Victor says there will be no one to see it, and Al says, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that it’s captured. She sees a scar on his hand, and asks what happened and why is he trying to hide it? He asks her again, why? She says, the truth matters. That’s the trade; the truth about him for the flag. He says they’re just words, and she says, more than that. Luci joins them, saying she gets it. She says Al knows her sh*t, except for the sh*t about the truth. Victor says he’ll consider the offer.

Nick runs. He looks into the woods and sees some bluebonnets.

Nick and Madison drive past Mel and the Vulture gang. Ohh, the blue convertible is their car. Mel greets Madison, and tells her it’s slim pickin’s unless you know where to look. Madison says they’ll manage. He’s glad to see Nick is back out again. He tosses The Little Prince into their car, asking Nick to tells his girlfriend that Charlie doesn’t like children’s books. They drive away, and Nick says she didn’t stand a chance. Charlie was never staying with them, no matter what. Madison says they’ll get her back. Nick asks how Madison does it, and she says wherever she goes, she tries to look for something good. A ravioli billboard, an armadillo, a sign that people tried to help each other. She always sees something.

Nick picks a flower. This is one of those episodes where they go back and forth in time. I hate that. If I want to watch that, I’ll watch Once Upon a Time. We hear zombie gurgles. Here they come. Nick whacks them with a hammer, but gets knocked down. One zombie comes close, like a few inches from his face, but Morgan whacks it and stabs it in the head. He tells Nick that they need to find someplace safe, and helps him up.

Morgan and Nick ease on down the road. Nick says the others will wonder what happened, but Morgan says they’ll find them. They come to a town where there are a few zombies toddling around, and they kill them. Nick asks if Morgan is okay. Morgan suggest they sit tight. Nick asks why Morgan helped him, and Morgan says he doesn’t kill.

Madison and Nick find that stinking convertible in front of a church, with a bunch of canned goods in crates in the back. It’s Mel’s brother, Ennis. Nick asks if he’s following them, and Ennis says they were there first. He tells them to get a faster car. Charlie comes out of the church, and Ennis says Mel told them she has a knack for finding the good stuff. Nick tells Charlie that she doesn’t have to listen. Ennis says she wants to. He found her, and taught her how to make it. Nick moves toward Ennis. Madison tells him, now is not the time. Ennis says he keeps his family safe. Nick is on him, holding a knife to his throat. Madison tells him to stop. Ennis is bleeding, and tells Charlie, let’s get out of here.

Morgan tapes his leg. Nick asks if he wants help, and Morgan says he’s got it. Nick tells him to lay off the karate. Morgan tells Nick to stop getting himself in trouble, and its not karate. Nick asks what it is, and Morgan says, just not karate. Nick thinks they should find a car before they come back. Morgan says, the El Camino? telling us what kind of cool car it is. Morgan says it’s not going to work out how Nick thinks, and asks what they did to him. Nick says he bets Morgan has killed, and asks why did he stop? Who did he lose? He says he saw the tape, repeating Morgan’s words; I lose people, then lose myself. Morgan says he’s not telling him. If Nick wants to hunt down the ones who hurt him, it’s his business.

The horn on Al’s truck is still blasting, and zombies crowd around it. They see an arrow made out of sticks on the ground, showing them which way Nick and Morgan went. Al says she’s not leaving, and they won’t find out about the flag; not from her anyway. John says Morgan might need them; it’s just a van. Al says she has things in it, and tells him to go; she’ll be fine. Alicia says they’ll get the van out, and Victor says it’s their act of faith. He tells Luci to go find Nick. Alicia tells Al they’re not going to try anything with two of them out there. Victor says why not just tell them; how did she find those people? Al says she’ll answer all of their questions; let her film them doing what they do. Alicia says, deal. They can turn off this horn any time now.

Alicia gets the zombies’ attention, and picks them off, while Al shoots at the others. Alicia hooks the van up to the flatbed. She crawls underneath the truck, and out the other side. She gets in the cab. Victor starts up the flatbed, and pulls the van out.

Morgan sees Ennis, who tells Morgan to keep walking; there’s nothing for him there. Morgan says Ennis needs to leave, and Ennis says, or what? Ennis sees Nick, and says, holy sh*t! He didn’t think he’d see Nick. Morgan tells Nick to walk away, and Ennis says he should listen to his friend. It’s been good to see him, but he has to get some pimentos back. Unless Nick wants to give him a hand. Nick looks Morgan in the eye, and asks if he’s going to do what it takes to stop him. Morgan steps back, and Nick says, didn’t think so.

Nick tells Madison that Charlie saw everything, but didn’t do anything. He would have been trying to do the right thing, but she did the worst thing. Being out there makes him feel more trapped, like who he’ll be is closing in on him and suffocating him.

Nick jumps Ennis.

Morgan walks away, and keeps going.

Nick and Ennis fight. Ennis cracks Nick in the head with a jar of pimentos.

Morgan is like, dammit, and turns around.

Ennis has a knife a millimeter away from Nick’s eyeball. A deer head has fallen down during their scuffle, and Nick pushes Ennis back onto the antlers, where he’s impaled. That’s not good enough, so Nick pushes on him, until he’s finished. Great. A zombie with a deer head attached to it. Just what everyone needs.

John looks at a downed zombie, and says looks like a stick-based trauma. He asks Luci why Nick was worried she wouldn’t come back, and she says one time she didn’t. Al comes by in the truck. John asks if Luci left because she didn’t love Nick. She says she left, but still loved him.

Morgan finds Nick, his hands drenched in blood. Nick asks what he wants. Morgan says it was his wife, his son, and his friends. That’s who he lost before he lost himself. He knows where Nick is; he was there. He didn’t know how to make it stop, or if he wanted it to. He didn’t think he could find his way out. Then he met someone; a man who didn’t have to help him, but did. The man showed him all life is precious, and it helped; It still dos. Nick asks, how exactly? Morgan takes out the book, and says the books is part of it. Nick says, too late, and Morgan says, believe me, it’s not. He puts the book into Nick’s bloodied hands. He says they can talk about it; talk about anything. Nick takes the book.

Sitting on some steps, Nick reads. Al comes with the others in the truck. Al checks through her tapes. She puts one on top that says, The Bog, along with the dates it was filmed.

Nick puts the book in his pocket, and takes out the bluebonnet. He contemplates it.

Madison drives while Nick navigates. She stops by a field of bluebonnets. Nick lies down in the middle of them.

Nick hears a gunshot. He puts his hand on his chest, and realizes he’s been shot. Charlie stands in front of him with a gun. She backs away, and he falls. Luci and Alicia find him. Charlie disappears. Victor tries to stop the bleeding. Alicia tells him to look at her; it’s going to be fine. That’s highly doubtful, since blood is pouring out of his mouth and he’s gasping for air. Nick tries to talk, but he’s never going to talk again. He’s dead. Victor looks at Luci. Morgan is like, damn, I want my book back. Alicia wails over Nick’s body. Luci cries silently, and Victor holds her.

Nick lies in the bluebonnet field.

Next time, Al does some interviews, Mel asks if Madison wants a weenie (spoiler: she says she’s good), and we see the amusement park.

💬 Funny aside. On Talking Dead, during Nick’s “obituary,” it said no one told him, never look at the flowers. Two of the episode writers were guests, and said they liked the idea, but if it was a reference to Carol in The Walking Dead, it was subconscious. They did add that was one of their favorite episodes though. You decide…

🍑 Tonight, The Real Housewives of Atlanta had a 10th Anniversary special. It was fun to see all the wigs gone by, and the pulling thereof. Also the many noses of Kim and NeNe. What’s with Kim anyway? Why does she seem human on Don’t Be Tardy, and she’s a raving lunatic on Housewives? And was she a cast member without a peach this season? That was confusing. Kim is confusing. And why does she want to look like she’s fifty when she’s barely past thirty? So many questions I will never have answered.

⚓ I’m almost caught up with The Terror, having watched a marathon today. My town had a marathon today too, which bounced me out of bed at the crack of dawn, with the base from a loudspeaker blasting bad music. But that’s another story. The Terror is a cool show – no pun intended. The icy scenery is fabulous though, and makes you feel cold just looking at it. The atmosphere is creepy as hell. Like Ravenous, but on a boat, and without the Civil War and cannibalism. No cannibalism yet anyway. Being out in the middle of frozen nowhere, long before we had radios, is scary enough, but with an unknown entity – they keep saying it’s a bear, but no way it’s a bear – that keeps chopping people in half, it delivers what the title promises. I’m through episode five – I think tomorrow is seven – and in it for the long haul. Or short, or whatever the haul is.

😢 Sigh…

WeekendOver2

WeekendOver3

 

 

 

Apr23

April 22, 2018 – Madison Meets New People, Quite the Hat, Film Talk & More Than One Random Thought

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What I Watched Today

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

 

Fear the Walking Dead

Before

Everyone is sleeping like things are normal; like it used to be. Luci makes coffee for Nick, and everybody gets dressed, and ready for the day. All kinds of activities are going on.

Madison asks a little girl about her family, but she doesn’t want to talk. She asks the girl about some of her favorite things instead. Madison says it takes getting used to, but this is home now. She’ll do what she can to make it happen, but needs help. The girl nods. Madison asks where the girl was coming from, and she points. Madison looks out to see zombies wandering around outside the baseball stadium they call home.

Over a loudspeaker, we hear it’s been 365 days. Victor says they’re celebrating, and pours maple syrup over everyone’s breakfast. Madison hammers away at something, and Alicia brings her some food. She tells Madison that they’re leaving in twenty minutes.

The girl talks to Nick about a story that sounds like Faust; a guy selling his soul to the devil. The turnip crop isn’t doing so great, and the girl, whose name is Charlie, asks about food running out. Nick says they’re almost growing enough not to need scavenging.

Madison tells the others where she thinks Charlie is from, but it’s outside the range. Madison says they have to look for her family anyway.

The group gets ready to leave. Nick asks Luci to find Charlie a new book. If she’s reading Faust, hopefully Luci understands to bring back something at a higher reading level than My Little Pony. Luci says Nick should come, but he has a turnip situation. He asks her to make sure Madison comes back this time. Luci tells Madison that Nick has to come out at some point. Madison says he needs to feel safe right now, but he will. Nick finds out it’s weevils causing the crops to fail, and radios the car. They get out of range before he can finish the conversation.

Madison parks, and tells them eyes open, stay close, keep talking. Victor and Luci go through a building that’s been picked clean; even the lightbulbs are gone. Alicia and Madison find a mess and a burned-out car. Madison says it’s lucky Charlie got out alive. Victor realizes the place isn’t just void of survivors, but also the dead. It’s a ghost town without ghosts. (I said that, not him.) Madison sees half-eaten food, and tells Victor that they’ll be there in a minute.

Luci says Madison won’t stop until she looks under every rock. Victor says she wouldn’t stop until she found him. He still hasn’t asked why she helped him after what he did. Luci suggests he does.

Charlie messes with the radio, and Nick tells her it’s okay, they haven’t been gone that long. Charlie knows it’s not a regular run. Nick says if her family is out there, they’ll find them. He asks if she’ll help with the turnips. What is it with turnips? They grow them on The Walking Dead too. Considering my gardening skills lean more toward enthusiasm than actual talent, maybe I should try growing them.

Madison and Alicia look around, but there’s nothing. A woman comes up behind Madison with a gun, and asks for her keys. Madison tells her that she doesn’t have to do this, but the woman keeps a bead on her. Madison signals Victor on the radio. He says, sh*t! and takes off. Madison tells the woman about the settlement. She says they have strong walls, plenty of food, and good people. She says they took in a little girl named Charlie, and asks if the woman knows her, but she says she doesn’t have a kid, and tells Madison to stop. She takes the keys from Madison’s pouch, but runs up against Alicia, with Victor and Luci now behind her. The woman dashes past them. Madison follows.

The woman runs up some steps leading to an oil tank. Alicia asks her to put the gun down, and puts her own down. Alicia tells her to trust them; they’ll give her the car. The woman backs up, and falls into the tank. Lots of falling through roofs going around. It’s dark, and full of oily water. Zombies pop up everywhere. Madison tells Victor to get the hatch open, and jumps down. Victor and Alicia struggle to get it open, but finally do, and oil, water, and zombies flow out. They kill the zombies, and Alicia gets Madison out.

Luci finds a copy of The Little Prince. Well, it’s no Dostoevsky, but better than My Little Pony. Victor wonders why they’re bothering, and Madison says, no one is gone until they’re gone. The woman introduces herself as Naomie. She says she’s sorry; she wasn’t going to hurt her. Madison asks if she has any idea who let the zombies into the tank, but she just got there. Madison asks where she’s from, and Naomie says it’s been a long time since she’s been from anywhere. We hear zombie noises, and Luci says they should leave – now.

Nick burns the turnip crop. A zombie sticks its dead fingers through the fence. Suddenly, music is playing, then fades. Nick wonders if it’s a signal, and he and the others wait to hear it again. There’s just silence, and Nick asks Charlie to open the gate. He gets in a car, takes a deep breath, and rolls out.

Nick remembers being behind a fence, and blowing up the reservoir. Zombies grapple at the car, and Nick runs into something, hitting his head on the dashboard. A sniper from the settlement shoots at the zombies, and radios him to get back. He gets out, and starts walking toward the gate. A zombie starts to come up on him from behind, and in perfect timing, Madison returns and creams it with her car. Luci asks what happened, and Nick says he was out for a stroll. She tells him get in.

Madison wants to talk to Charlie. Charlie says it’s okay; she knows Madison didn’t find them. Madison  tells Charlie that she has to ask another question; not an easy one. What happened at the camp? Who did that? Charlie says nothing, and Madison says they’ll talk later.

Nick gets his wounds dressed by Naomie, who was a nurse, at the ER, then the ICU. Madison doesn’t think it was a surprise to Charlie that they didn’t find her family. Nick leaves, and Naomie says Madison didn’t tell her it was a baseball stadium. Madison says Naomie didn’t believe she had a camp. Naomie asks how many, and Madison says forty-seven; forty-eight if she decides to stay. Naomie says she pulled a gun, but Madison says they’ve all done worse. She thought she’d lost her kids, but found them and found this place. They built it up together. They are who they are because of it. Naomie says they don’t know her. Madison says she doesn’t know them. They’re both taking a chance. She suggests Naomie take a shower, and Naomie is astounded they have one – with hot water.

Victor pushes the car Nick was driving, while another guy steers. Luci radios them to get inside now; ditch the car. They look behind them, where there’s a convoy of large vehicles driving in. They run in, and lock the gate. This doesn’t look good.

A dude rides around on a bicycle, music coming from the boombox on the handlebars. Another guy opens a boxcar, and takes out a ramp. Biking dude leads the zombies up the ramp, and goes out the other side, while the ramp guy locks the zombies in. He puts a flag up that says 12. (In last week’s episode, Al found a flag that said 51, and said she’d seen a lot of those.) A third guy gets out a lawn chair, sits in it, and cracks a beer. Everyone watches. Okay, they have me. I have no clue what’s going on, but obviously these numbers mean something.

Madison walks over to guy sitting down, and asks what he’s doing. He says, having a drink. She asks if there’s a problem, and he says, we’re good, and asks if she wants a drink. She says they have people inside with guns, and he says, that’s a helluva welcome. She tells him that she saw the camp, and the tanks. He asks if she thinks they did that, and she says she saw their flag. He tells her that they had to clean up the mess. The people never thought of what would happen if the bleeder valve got jammed. He warned them, but they didn’t listen. Madison asks what he wants. He wants them to listen. They have a mess of their own. He knows they had a bad batch of turnips, and says to tell Nick to check the other crops; weevils are a bitch to get rid of. Madison asks how he knows Nick’s name. He calls out for Chito, and Charlie walks over.

He tells Charlie, sorry he’s late, but he got her some new records. She smiles, and he tells her to get in the bus. He tells Madison that she’s a good kid. They found her a while back; she has a knack for finding good stuff, and they hit the jackpot here. Madison says they’re not taking anything. He tells her people often say that. They don’t take anything from anyone; not anyone alive anyway. He knows they’re good people, and how many guns they have. He says there’s a natural cycle to a place like this, and they’re due for something to go wrong. They can either give them their stuff and live, or join them. Become one of them, or they wait for them to die, trying to make things work. Either way, he ends up with what he wants. It’s not a threat; it’s the way it goes. He tells Madison that his name is Mel, and holds out his hand. She doesn’t reciprocate, and says they’re not going anywhere. Mel says he’s heard that too. She says they’ve been like them, moving from place to place, and they’re not going back to that life; they’ve found a better way. Mel says they just haven’t been tested yet, but they’re about to be. If she changes her mind, they’ll be waiting. I’m wondering where the women are in this merry band.

Nick toils in the fields. Mel and his friends play more music, country this time. The weevils still rule the turnips. Madison continues to hammer. The others put down their guns, and join her. Takeaway point: Country music makes people do carpentry.

Luci goes out to the bus. Charlie watches from the window as she leaves the book outside. Luci goes back, and joins in on the hammering. Nick remembers working on Jeremiah’s house.

Now

Morgan and John are on their knees, with Madison and her group around them. Morgan says, we’re not who you think we are. Nick rifles through Morgan’s knapsack, and Morgan tells him to help himself. Luci says they must be with them, and holds up the numbered flag. Al asks, who? Victor says, the Vultures. Al has no idea what he’s talking about, and says, if you a-holes would put your guns down, we can help each other. Madison asks who put the flag up, and Al asks what is it to them? Alicia tells Al that she’s going to answer their questions. Al says they found it, and Alicia says show them where.

They get into Al’s truck, and move out.

Next time, Morgan and Nick tussle, Alicia fights zombies, and Morgan says it’s not going to work out how they think. And in case you didn’t know, Naomie is being played by Jenna Elfman.

😸 Ha-Ha!

On Talking Dead, when they say goodbye to those we’ve lost this week, they included Nick’s crop, calling them tur-nopes.

🍸 I barely glanced at The Real Housewives of Potomac, but I did see Robyn trying to have some serious words with Ashley about respect. Ashley was wearing a hat – a fascinator no less – the size of Potomac, and I wondered how Robyn could even keep a straight face, much less discuss anything important. This was during a garden party Gizelle had for a book she was writing (via ghostwriter) about pastor’s wives in the Black church, who are called First Ladies. It’s fiction, but loosely based on her own experiences. I’d definitely read that.

🏯 I was watching a mini-marathon of Abandoned episodes on Viceland this morning (I love that show!), and it led to my leaving the TV on when the original 1980 film of The Shining followed. I’ve never thought it was as good as the book, and thought Jack Nicholson seemed crazy from the jump. I would never let him babysit my hotel over the winter. And Shelley Duvall… well, she was Shelley Duvall. The remake (1997) had more of a sporting chance, since it was a mini-series and had more hours to tell the story. Sadly, although I finally got the topiary animals I wanted to see (Stanley Kubrick couldn’t get them to look right on film in the original, so they were scrapped for the maze), it was somewhat tepid, and lacked the intensity of the original Danny (Danny Lloyd) and Dick Halloran (Scatman Crothers). Which brings me to my point. It was pretty much background noise until Scatman was on the screen. While I love looking at the hotel – sometimes the setting can be one of the stars of the film for me – my favorite scene is when Dick connects telepathically with Danny in the pantry, then explains the shining to him. They just seem so real. That it still captivates me after all these years is a testament to their acting skills. SPOILER – if you’re the one person who hasn’t seen this film. That’s what made it even worse that they killed him off, totally changing the end of the story, where he saves the day. I heard there was supposed to be a third time, again for the big screen. Whether that’s the charm or not, remains to be seen.

🎷🚬 The second episode of Southern Charm New Orleans was on tonight. While Charleston is your upscale country cousin, NOLA is your sultry, mysterious maiden aunt, who never ages, but has a portrait upstairs.

🔌 I saw a commercial for Amazon Echo, and it was a father telling Alexa to announce “ready or not” to his kids during a game of hide-and-seek. How lazy can you get????  Unplug now. Save yourself.

🔮 Danny Learns About His Gift…

🌎 Happy Earth Day! 🌍

Apr22

April 21, 2018 – Double the Dead with Catch-up & a Side of Random Thoughts

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What I Watched Today

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

 

I couldn’t do this last week because the wind blew my internet away. But now, I’m all caught up, and if you weren’t, you will be too. Sorry for the different tenses between shows. It just came out that way.

The Walking Dead

Rick wondered how it happened that Carl got bit. Siddiq explained that his mom believed the dead’s souls were trapped. Carl wanted to honor her to gain Siddiq’s trust, and died paying respects to a woman he never knew. Siddiq had a brainfart, and forgot it was dangerous. Which didn’t exactly answer the question.

Ezekiel told Jerry to justify what they’ve lost, be prepared to lose everything. but they weren’t going to lose sh*t. Daryl still thought Dwight could be setting them up. Morgan got weird, thinking that something was happening, and nearly skewered Henry with his pokey stick. Maggie wouldn’t let the stray Saviors come along for the battle. Morgan insisted on coming, even though Rick was skeptical. Morgan said they were worse than they were, and it was wrong for Rick to have given his word, then double-cross the renegade Saviors. They lost everything good, and can’t go back. Morgan wanted to finish it.

Negan told Dwight that he had nothing, and told his guys to load Dwight up. Eugene personally checked and quality controlled all of the ammunition, and Negan tested it on an effigy of Rick. Eugene suggested a one-fell swooper. Negan decided Gabriel should tag along; he had things to confess.

Negan set up a roadblock, using his own people as bait. He told Gabriel that Rick thought he got the real story. Now he’ll find the map with the time and place, and believe it, because he’s going to kill everyone who could have told him otherwise. Sure enough, Rick kills them all, even the last guy begging for his life. Morgan saw Jared in a vision, and he told Morgan that he should try dying sometime. Ezekiel found the map on one of the dead Saviors, and Carol figured they could get to Negan before he knew what happened.

Gabriel was surprised that Negan wanted to kill everyone; he’d thought Negan didn’t want that to happen. Negan told him it wasn’t about want; it never was. Gabriel bounced out of the moving car, but Eugene helped hunt him down. Negan remembered Gabriel saying he didn’t want to die a fruitless death, and told him you can’t always get what you want, while I got a Rolling Stones earworm. He told Eugene to put Gabriel back in the car.

Jesus tried to explain the conundrum of safety to Morgan, and proposed the pokey end of his stick for the dead, and the blunt end for the living. When Rick and company came out into the open, they heard whistling. It looked like the Saviors had Rick’s people outnumbered by about 300%. Negan said he met Rick’s ambush with a bigger one, and to come out and face them. He wanted to make it fun, so he brought some old friends. He told them that Eugene made today possible; the same with Dwight. He told Dwight he was going to watch them die, and live with that. He was going to clean house, starting with Gabriel. He told Rick there never had to be a fight, if he’d just accepted how things are. Negan started to count down, and they looked like the Jun horde from The Beastmaster coming over the top of the mountain.

They joke was on them, because Eugene had quality controlled the bullets to shoot backward, and they shot themselves. Pretty good trick. Rick announced the charge, and there was lots of shooting, but Negan took off. The ex-Saviors Maggie didn’t want there came anyway. A bunch of Saviors who came out of nowhere, nearly nailed the group, but got blown up by the Oceansiders, who’d decided to join in too. The remaining Saviors kneeled in front of Maggie, and said, it’s over.

Rick went after Negan on his own, but ran out of bullets. They kicked each other’s asses for a while, by the tree where Carl is buried. During a break, Negan told Rick he was bullsh*tting with the eenie, meenie, minie, mo business in the beginning. He just didn’t want to kill a kid’s dad in front of him, but if he had, the kid might still be alive. Negan always makes good points. He told Rick he’s bigger, badder, and has a bat. Rick wanted to talk about the future. He told Negan that Carl said there didn’t have to be a fight. Despite looking somewhat weepy, Negan said Carl was wrong, and Rick slit his throat. Surprising the hell out of me, and probably everyone else, although somehow, it seemed anti-climactic and rude.

Everyone was like, whoa, and then, now what? Rick said Negan was still alive, and told Siddiq to save him. Maggie freaked out, saying they had to end it, and it wasn’t over until Negan was dead. Rick said they were all going home. Negan might be alive, but his way of doing things was over. Anyone who couldn’t live with it would pay the price. He said they were going to live in peace and fairness, and find common ground. The world was theirs, but others would come for them unless they stood together. The new world was going to begin, and there had to be something after. Rosita gave props to Eugene for the sabotage, but punched him in the face anyway for the puke.

Morgan gave Carol his pseudo armor for Henry, and walked off. Rick got teary, as Rick is wont to do these days, and said, mercy prevails over the land. He sat where Carl was buried, and cried.

The ex-Saviors decided to go back to the Sanctuary, hoping to get something out of it.  The guy whose name I can never remember told Maggie that he’d been reading the book, and could make some things. He has a passion for building things, and said she gave him his life.

Daryl took Dwight to the woods. Dwight started crying and saying he knew what he did, and knew he’d have to face it and pay. He was ready; it was enough to see Negan taken down. He cried, saying how sorry he was, and Daryl told him to shut up. He tossed Dwight some car keys, and said to keep going. If he saw Dwight again, he’d kill him. As Dwight walked away, Daryl told him to find her. I assumed he meant Sherry.

Gymboree Jadis was reading at the trash heap when Morgan showed up. He told her that Rick said she could come back if she wanted. He explained that Rick wanted to show people that things can change, and needed all the hands he could get. He told her that she didn’t want to be alone, and everything in life worth a damn, is people. She told him her name is Ann, which was kind of a let-down. He told her he needed to be alone, and go back without him, which made perfect sense considering what he’d just said.

Dwight went back home to the cabin in the woods (no, not that one), where he found a note. it just said honeymoon, with an infinity symbol below it.

In Maggie’s office, she told Jesus that he was right. She had no regrets, but he and Rick were right. Rick wasn’t right about Negan though. She said they had to make it thrive for the people who live there. They needed strength, and the ability to defend themselves better, but RIck was wrong; Michonne too. She said they were going to bide their time, wait for the right moment, and then show him. Daryl came out of the shadows, and said, yeah, they will. I don’t like this.

Negan woke up, his neck bandaged, handcuffed to a bed. Michonne said she needed to tell him some things. They planned on making him watch what happens. Rick said it wasn’t about who he killed, but what he did to so many, making them live for him and putting them under the boot. Negan struggled to say, he saves people, and Michonne put her hand on his throat. Rick suggested they could open his stitches for a while. Rick said Carl pitched something better; working together for something bigger than all of them. Michonne added, being an example. They weren’t going to kill or hurt him, but his fate was to rot in a cell for the rest of his life, evidence that they’re making and getting back a civilization like they had. He’ll get to see how wrong he was about what people and life can be. They’ll show people things changed by keeping him breathing. Michonne said after all this, he’s good for something.

Gabriel went to the burned out church and thanked God. He said he understood, and knew now. He’s been given so much, and now he can see.

Rick wrote to Carl. As he wrote, we saw them in the old days, walking down a road. He told Carl that he forgot who he was, and Carl made him remember. He remembered walking with him, and knew who he was for the first time. They were walking side by side, but Carl was bringing him somewhere. To the new world. He made it real. Rick sees it and remembers. Officer Rick and little Carl continued to walk down the road.

Moving right into…

Fear the Walking Dead

Out in the middle of nowhere, a man stands by a truck. He hears something, and asks if anyone is there. He longs to hear someone else’s voice, and suggests they come out and have something to eat. He talks about his life before, and says he can make popcorn. He also has books. He says, since no one is there, before he goes quiet again for another year, he has a story. He talked to a woman who showed up. He let her stay. They had feelings for each other, and one day, they allowed it. He hoped by saying it, he would see it. He did. It was nice, and there hasn’t been a lot of nice. We hear a zombie. The man shoots it, and we see Morgan just behind. The man introduces himself as John Dory, like the fish. He asks Morgan what’s his story?

Morgan is at the trash heap. Jesus knocks at the entrance. He thought they could continue their acquaintance. He insists Morgan cares about people, and tries to get him to come back.

Morgan is alone again. There’s another knock at the entrance, and this time it’s Carol. She asks him to come back. He helped her, so let her help him. She’s not going to tell him what to do, but he belongs with people who care about him.

Again, Morgan is alone. Rick shows up, and says he can hide, but he can’t run. He wouldn’t be alive if not for Morgan. Rick was hurt, and Morgan brought him in. Morgan wasn’t shot, but he’s been hurt. He asks Morgan to come back, and not to waste another second. He’s alive and part of the world. A lot of people are there because he helped them. Morgan says that’s not him anymore. Rick disagrees, saying he’ll end up with people one way or another. He’s part of the world already, so just come back. Rick leaves.

Morgan packs up his stuff, and gets his stick. He takes a long last look at the trash, and moves on down the road. He thinks about Rick’s words, and starts to run. He hotwires a car, and the gas tank is miraculously full. He walks some more. He sees a group of people, and avoids them. He finds another car, and drives again. He goes into a town and sees a cluster of zombies.

He opens a car to find someone who’s sick and shaky. He starts to leave some supplies, but the guy doesn’t want them. Morgan says, sorry. He thought the guy was on his own. The guy says, we all are. Morgan moves along, and it starts to rain.

Morgan comes up behind a zombie in the woods. A shot rings out, the zombie falls, and we’re back to the beginning. John tells Morgan he’d like company, but Morgan is hesitant. John asks if he’s seen a woman with a pistol like his; he’s looking for her. Morgan says he hasn’t, and starts to leave, but John suggests he stay the night; he can take the back of the truck. Morgan sees the wisdom in a good night’s rest. He slips out later while John is snoring.

Morgan finds a tent with a lantern lighting the inside. He sets down his stick and gets whacked in the head. I jump a mile.

Dude tells Morgan, whatever he’s thinking, don’t. Morgan says keep the food, and he’ll go. Dude doesn’t want him telling no one. Morgan says he has no one to tell, and doesn’t want to know anyone. John is suddenly there, and shoots dude in the arm. He says he’s looking out for his friend, and dude says he has friends too. They’re surrounded, and John says now he got himself captured. He’s reminiscent of Eugene in how he speaks.

A big ass truck drives into the tent city, or whatever it is. The woman behind the wheel asks what’s going on, and remarks they have new people. She likes new people. She has a cake and some Cup O’Noodles, the good kind, and she’ll throw in some Pall Malls. Apparently, dude likes Pall Malls. She opens the hatch of the truck to reveal a couple of machine guns. She tells dude, there’s always a choice, and this is an easy one. Morgan and John get in the truck.

The woman’s name is Althea; Al for short. John asks if she’s an officer of the law, and she says, not exactly. She tells them that they owe her. She didn’t save them out of the goodness of her heart. John draws his gun, but she says she just wants to ask them questions. What they’ve seen, who they’ve met, where they’ve been, and where they’re going. She tells them that she’s a journalist, pulls over, and picks up a video camera.

Al interviews John, who talks about Laura. Al asks how they got split up. He says it’s not a happy story, and gets vague. Morgan asks why it matters; there are no news stations anymore. She says he owes her. He tries to give her some food instead, but she only wants his story. He just wants to go. John gives him some clean socks for the road.

Dude comes back with his friends to hassle Al. They want the truck. Dude asks for Morgan’s stick. Morgan slams him with it, and he and john get the better of dude and several of his guys. John gets his gun back. Morgan jumps onto a truck, and John inadvertently lets a bunch of zombies loose. Dude tries to steal Al’s truck, but doesn’t have the keys. Al flings them away, and dude tries to run for them, but a zombie goes after him. Morgan gets shot in the leg by a sniper, who’s been a bad shot up until now. Morgan knocks him around on the roof. The sniper falls off, but hangs onto the ledge, dangling above a gaggle of zombies. Morgan holds out his hand, and pulls him back up. As thanks, the sniper punches Morgan. This is a good example of no good deed going unpunished. They both tumble through the roof. No surprise, Morgan does not help a second time, and gets the hell out. He throws a grenade or something, ducks, and the room blows up. He goes back outside.

John and Morgan shoot and pike zombies. Dude harasses Al for the keys until John finally shoots him, and leaves him for zombie food. Al gets in her truck, opens up the guns, and kills the rest of the zombies. And they all lived happily ever after. Not quite, but they lived.

Al says Morgan still owes her. He tells her to pull over. She films as he talks about Alexandria and the Kingdom. He says there was a big fight, but he left before he left. She asks why he left, but he thinks she should talk. He asks why it’s important, but she doesn’t want to return the favor. She says one real thing, and they’re even. Why did he leave? He tells her that he loses people, then he loses himself. He starts walking down the road again.

Morgan sees the station wagon the sick guy was in, and sees someone walking in the distance. He follows them, but some zombies, feeding by the side of the road, decide to follow Morgan. Since his leg was injured in the fight, he can’t go too fast, and he falls. They’re on him, but John appears once again, and pikes them in the heads.

Morgan needs to know who it is walking up the road. I guess he’s hoping the guy made it, but that’s a no, and he ends up spearing now-zombie guy in the head with his stick. He says he’ll travel with them until his leg heals, and no asking questions. Al says she’s not going to stop, and he says, no answers then. John says she’s taking him to look for Laura in exchange for more story.

Al sees someone in the middle of the road. Both Morgan and John inform her that they don’t kill. She tells them it’s a great moment to share that information. It’s a girl, hunched over. Al asks if she’s injured, and tells Morgan to get the first aid kit. The girl says there are bad people there, then grabs Al in a headlock. It’s Alicia. Victor, Madison, ♫ and the rest ♫, come out from the forest. Al asks what Alicia’s story is.

And there we have it. Until tomorrow night.

🔎 An Observation…

Andrew Lincoln always looks like a businessman on an interview when he’s a guest on Talking Dead.

🎬 Another Thing I Watched…

Mourning Son is a 2015 documentary about the murder of Dave Navarro’s mother, and how it’s affected him throughout his life. It’s also a glimpse into what an incredible artist he is. I had no idea about his background, but always thought he was a very honest and kind man. When Bill Maher was hosting Politically Incorrect – before he fully turned into a mean curmudgeon, and was just working on it – I saw Dave put him in his place when he was talking out of his ass. I’ve admired him ever since. Even more so after seeing this excellent film.

🎆 Right now, I’m (finally) watching Girl’s Trip, and between this and Star, can confirm that Queen Latifah wears more fabulous wigs than the entire cast of The Real Housewives of Atlanta put together.

🛀 Enjoy the Remaining Weekend Like…

Minions

Mar5

March 4, 2018 – The Dead, Rambling About the Dead & a Comic Book Man

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What I Watched Today

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

 

 

The Walking Dead

Michonne

Michonne looks lost while Rick decorates the cross on Carl’s grave with a gun. She lets off steam by whacking some zombies’ heads off. As I like to do when I’m stressed. She looks at the half burned down Alexandria, and shuts the gate. Making sure to take half a zombie’s face off with it, and stabbing some in the eyeballs first.

Rick asks for some pudding. Just kidding. Nobody is saying anything, and I got bored. Michonne looks at Carl and Judith’s finger-paint handprints on the porch, and gets even more bummed. She goes inside. She tells Rick they have to go. They slip out the back door.

When they get to the car, Michonne grabs a fire extinguisher and runs with it; Rick following with another one. They try putting out a fire in the gazebo, but the zombies are forming a crowd, so they both run back to the van. Nice try. Alexandria has officially been taken over by zombies.

Rick asks what Michonne is thinking. Does she want to stop fighting? She says they could pull over, but he says not yet, not him. He wants to talk to Jadis. They have weapons and people, and they need them. She asks why now? He tells her that they went to the Sanctuary. They were seen, and will be a target too.

They sneak around where the trash pile is. Rick opens the door to go in, and it’s like a Three Stooges prank. A rope is triggered, and all this stuff on the roof above tumbles down. There are zombies all over the place.

Negan

Negan wants his men to check every nook and cranny. The Alexandrians had an escape plan. Rick’s kid is plaguing him; he’s built for this sh*t. Simon asks if he’s heard from Gavin. Negan says, no, but it’s coming. Gavin is perpetually pissed off, but has it together. Simon asks where Negan wants him; he’s not running down Rick. Negan says, the garbage people. Simon thinks it will be worth it to get the guns, but Negan says they may have pulled a triple-cross, but they’re still a resource. A deal with him is a lock, stock, and suck-my-barrel deal. He tells Simon to deliver the standard message. Take one out, and the rest fall in line. Just one. He asks if Simon has anything to say. Simon thinks maybe they should cut their losses. None of them can learn the lesson, no matter how many times they teach it. No one understands the situation one little bit, so maybe they should learn. Scrape the plates into the trash, move further out, and find other communities to save. Negan laughs. He’s doing his best to hold it together right now. He tells Simon to take own advice. The easy way isn’t their way. Saving people is hard, but it works. Simon says (it finally became unavoidable), not lately, and Negan tells him once he clips Rick, everything will be aces again.

There’s a knock at the door. Some guys bring in a delivery. It’s the crate from Hilltop. Negan tells them to get out, and he reads the lid: We have 38 more – stand down. We hear zombie noises from inside. Simon pries open the Crate, and Negan nail guns Dean in the head multiple times. Simon tells Negan that means the rest are from the outpost. They’re killing everyone, and he can’t let them get away with it. Negan tells him he’ll do his job. Simon is obviously not happy, but says nothing.

Enid

Enid and Aaron are shoved into a house by the Oceanside women. Aaron says, let’s talk about it, but they get chained to a radiator. One of the women tells Cyndie that Netanya was her family, and another says she should just kill them. The women leave, and Enid and Aaron are left alone.

Aaron says they’ll get out of it. Enid says it’s not about that. She had to do it. Netanya made her do it, and she’d do it again

Cyndie and her crew come back, and unchain them. They cuff Enid and Aaron’s hands behind their backs, and Cyndie says take them to the beach. Aaron says it’s her decision, but she has to own it (what is this? Real Housewives?), and she’d better have a good reason to kill them, other than making herself feel better. Killing is the punishment, but if Cyndie executes them, some of their people will come looking. They might kill a few more, but eventually, they’ll get wiped out. Her grandmother got herself killed. He tells her not to make the same mistake. Let them go. They’ll keep fighting, and the Oceansiders can keep hiding. Cyndie says, no… they live, confusing all of us

Aaron asks if she wants to know if they win, and she says, yes. He asks her to help them win. She says their contribution was not killing them, and they’ve taken everything else the Oceansiders can give. She tells him not to come there again. Aaron suggests they stop trying to kill strangers. They need to know the difference between friends and enemies. She says, don’t come back. Cyndie and her posse walk off, looking like weird Girl Scouts.

Aaron asks if Enid knows how to get to the car. She says they’re not going to help. Aaron wants to go home, but can’t leave until they join the fight. Enid says Beatrice and Cathy (which, no doubt, is spelled Kaythe) seem open to it, and Aaron thinks he can convince both. He tells Enid to go back and tell Maggie what he’s doing, but not to come. Enid thinks they’ll kill him if he goes back there, and he says he won’t go back there. No matter what happens, he’ll be okay. She makes him promise she’ll see him again, and he makes her promise she’ll be okay. They hug, and he tells her to go.

Commercial break. Talking Dead has a surprise guest. That usually means someone significant dies.

Simon

Simon is going to the landfill. He says, no worries, grabs some dudes, and they head to the heap.

Both the Saviors and the Heapsters draw their guns. Simon asks Tardis Jadis if they’re not friends, and she gives a nod. He says the bottom line is they need an apology – genuine. He knows she had a side deal with Rick, despite their preexisting arrangement. She saw them, and tried to kill them. By now, she’s had time to prepare a heartfelt act of confession. He tells her to feel free to use notes. Jadis says, no deal with Rick. They delivered him, brought him to the Saviors. Simon calls bullsh*t, but says no need to worry. They’ve cut themselves a big break. Negan is graciously willing to forego punishment. If they agree to revert to the agreed upon terms, all is forgiven. However, they will be taking all guns and ammo the Heapsters currently have. Jadis says danger is everywhere, and they need guns too. Simon tells her not when they have the Saviors. The Saviors will provide guns when they need them. Jadis nods because she’s used up her words for the day. The Saviors take their guns.

Simon asks about painting, if she learned it before or after. She says you don’t learn, you just know, which I kind of agree with. He asks why the dump? There had to be a better place to call home. Jadis says, our place. He wonders what the deal is with the helipad and solar panels (which is a clue to something, according to Robert Kirkman), and asks what it was before. She says, a dump. Simon laughs, but he’s not buying it. He wants to know if she understands they have guns and a deal, and he wants the full definition of an apology. What he got was a transgressional acknowledgment, and the guns as restitution, but no remorse. She says, there is remorse, and he shoots Brion. She repeats, there is remorse, and he shoots Tamiel. (Her two main people. I got their names from Talking Dead.) Jadis punches Simon, knocking him down, and says, there is remorse, you SOB. He says, no, no, no. He doesn’t think she means it. He says, light it up, gents. Everyone starts screaming, and they shoot… everyone? I’m not so sure Negan is going to like this.

Simon returns. Simon tells Negan that they got guns that and then some. Negan asks how it went, and he says the standard mess and delivery. They showed and told him they had remorse. There’s a call for Negan on the radio. It’s Rick.

Jadis

Michonne and Rick knock off the zombies at the trash pile. They climb up, since zombies aren’t good at climbing. Jadis is there. Michonne asks what happened, and Jadis says, Saviors. Rick asks how they get out, and Jadis says the same way they got in.  Jadis starts to talk, and loses her woman-of-few-words shtick as she goes along. She says they weren’t heaps. There was just trash far as the eye could see. She would go there to find things to paint on – metal and fabric. When everything changed, she realized the whole place was a canvas, and they were the paint. They could create something new, become something new, and they did. This was their world, apart from everyone else in every way. Rick says, you did this because of you.

Rick picks up a car door, and twirls it around. He bends some pieces of it; he’s going to use it as a shield. Jadis says she’s coming with them until they’re gone. Rick says he’s done with games. She can’t help them anyway. He goes down, and uses the door to knock some zombies around, and shoots some others. Michonne shoves the stuff in front of the door out of the way. Jadis asks them to just let her get out, but no deal.

All is quiet at the trash piles. Jadis pounds on the ground, and the zombies come toward her. They’re stopped by a chain several feet from her. She flips a switch, and a grinding machine turns on. I assume it was once used to crunch up trash. It’s between her and the horde, and she releases the chain with a stick. As they continue forward, they fall in and get chopped up. Cool. She watches as people she knows fall in. She cries. It churns out chili con zombie. When all of the zombies have been dispatched, she shuts off the machine.

Jadis digs a file cabinet out of one of the trash piles. She takes out a box that says apple sauce. I think it must be something else, and just says that to throw people off, but it’s apple sauce. She eats some, and I reflect on Carl’s pudding, and eat a piece of beef jerky, which somehow seems appropriate.

Rick

Rick tells Michonne he shot above Jadis’s head; he saw she made it. He didn’t want her dead, just gone. Michonne says they have a choice. He stops the van, and says he needs a second. He gets out and walks through a field next to the road.

He takes out Carl’s letter to Negan, and looks at it. I guess we don’t get to know what it says, but Rick looks like he has a headache. He radios Negan, who asks where he is, saying they should talk face to face. Rick says Carl is dead, and Negan is visibly shaken. Rick tells Negan that Carl left some letters, and wrote one to him. He asked Negan to stop, and asked Rick to stop. He asked them to make peace, but it’s too late. Even if Negan wanted to deal, it doesn’t matter. He’s going to kill Negan. Negan asks how it happened. Was it them? The grenades or the fire? Rick tells him that Carl went out to help someone, and got bit. Negan says, goddammit. He says he’s sorry, and I totally believe it. He’d wanted Carl to be part of things; he had plans. Carl was the future. Rick says the only future is one where he’s dead. Negan asks why Rick is making this hard. Carl is dead because he couldn’t leave sh*t well enough alone. Maybe he would have died anyway, but in this case, he’s dead because Rick wasn’t there to stop him from doing something stupid. He set the course; who’s next? Rick says, Negan is. Negan says, someone is. He stops people from dying. He’s the answer. It might be a hard lesson to hear, but it’s time. He tells Rick not to let another sh*t decision cost him the people he loves. That garbage sticks with you forever, like Carl will. He’s feeling it, and will for a while. He could have let Negan save all of them. That’s why he killed them in the first place, so Rick could say he’ll kill him when he won’t. He’s failed as a leader. He should just give up. He’s already lost.

Next time, Gabriel is up and running, Dwight says it’s too dangerous, a swamp full of zombies, and Eugene makes something.

👂 Although I’ve long grown weary of this show being so one note – now Rick even seems to have perpetual tears in his eyes – I actually got something out of the episode. Negan’s methods need some serious tweaking, but he makes sense to himself, and is better leader than Rick, especially at this point. Rick should have waited a hot minute before going against Negan, since he was originally taken by surprise and didn’t have a plan. Instead, he went on his emotions. It seems odd that now he doesn’t want to take a stab (no pun intended) at making Carl’s vision a reality. What spoke to me, is that Carl had a revelation of an idyllic new society, and instead of trying to make that happen – which seemed to be his original plan – Rick has put up his own road block. It made me think of how we often get in our own way of attaining what we say we want. Of course, zombie stories are rarely really about zombies. I just wish this one were more balanced. To be fair, I doubt Carl’s dream could be achieved. It’s like socialism. Great in theory, but there’s always somebody who is going to want more. And in this case, that somebody is Negan.

📡 As much as Walking Dead annoys me, I love Talking Dead. It’s nice to see that nerds are finally getting a voice, and not just on the Sy – we can’t spell – Fy channel. I’m sure The Big Bang Theory made a big contribution to that. Along with Comic Book Men, this show is a nerd’s dream. Lots of getting deep into things that are pretty much meaningless. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a nerd myself, and labeled myself as such long before it was fashionable. I used to stand out at Star Trek conventions. I’d probably just blend in now. Anyway, Chris Hardwick fooled us. The surprise guest was Enid (Katelyn Necon), who did not die. There was some discussion as to whether Rick did the right thing not helping Jadis get out. The general consensus was that he did, because she’d screwed him over. I’m of two minds on that. Yeah, there is that, but she got left alone with a load of zombies after she’d just poured her heart out to him about her art – and probably used more words than she had in the past two years. On the other hand, while I don’t think her wanting to get the best deal for her people was that horrible, Rick might have done her a favor in having to be on her own, and rely on herself. Who knows? Maybe she’ll end up at Oceanside. The highlight of the show for me was when they had the factoid segment. According to his portrayer, Steven Ogg, Simon is a multi-layered persona, who is a bit of a bully, but loves musical theatre. Who knew?

🏥 Speaking of Comic Book Men, glad to hear Kevin Smith is on the mend.

https://pagesix.com/2018/03/02/kevin-smith-mistaken-for-kevin-james-as-he-recovers-from-heart-attack/

✌ The Two Kevins…

KevinSmith    KevinJames

 

 

Jun26

June 25, 2017 – A Live Walker, a Little Dead Talk & Preacher Returns

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What I Watched Today

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

 

 

Fear the Walking Dead

An old man asks if his wife is okay. Nope, she’s not. She’s a zombie. She tries to bite him, but her teeth are in a glass next to the bed, so he dances with her. I guess she’s not a very good dancer, because he shoots her and himself in the head. They tumble into a lantern, and it starts a fire.

A commotion is going on at the ranch. Madison and Nick run outside. A building is on fire, and a crowd of people try to put it out with buckets of water. Jeremiah tells them to save the water; everyone inside is gone. He tells them to let it burn.

A soldier asks Madison if she’s up for the rescue mission. He calls her “sweetheart,” and tells her if she isn’t scared, she’s crazy, and she should know what she’s getting herself into. She tells him she survived the wasteland without him and his guns, and she’ll do fine. Nick wants to come, but she tells him to stay and take care of Alicia. Troy starts beeping the truck horn to get her moving. Nick doesn’t trust him, but she says he won’t hurt her, and the more they know about his family, the better.

At the food station, Jake quotes Ecclesiastes to Alicia. He says she should know it, since she’s been to Bible study three nights in a row. He starts to tell her something, and touches her hand, causing her to drop her coffee cup. She gets super annoyed, and Jake leaves. Gretchen tells her that the people who were in the fire were one of the first to be there, and were co-founders of the community. She asks if Alicia wants to party, but Alicia says she’s had enough for now.

Nick brings Luci breakfast. She says the couple’s death was sad, but beautiful; they were together until the end. She thinks they should leave, but Nick says they can’t just walk to Tijuana without a plan. Luci says that she knows people who are closer. Nick says they’re probably gone, but she tells him that they would have hidden in the prohibition tunnels. She thinks he doesn’t want to leave his family, but says she can’t live there. Nick says he won’t force her too, and she tells him that she wants him to come with her.

Victor tells Daniel that he’s impressive. Daniel wants to go into the hotel, guns blazing, but Victor says he’s a negotiator. He also doesn’t know what’s happened since he left. Daniel tells him to drive through the line of zombies blocking their path now.

Alicia goes to Jake’s house, and asks what he was going to tell her before she acted stupid. He says he’s happy that she came there. She tells him that she’s sorry about Russell and Martha, the couple who died. She wonders what happens now, and if they’ll ever be normal again. He asks if she’s okay, and she kisses him. Well, that beats what happened when Russell asked that question.

Troy sees some prisoner zombies in orange jumpsuits wandering around an overturned Department of Corrections truck. He wants to wipe them out, but one of the soldiers points out that they’re on the clock. Troy tells them it won’t take long, and no guns; it’s too much noise. Madison gets wrestled to the ground by two of the zombies, but the soldier who questioned her earlier shoots one with an arrow, and she’s able to pike the other one in the head. When the zombies are all dispatched, Troy says it’s a beautiful thing, and they did it in record time. The soldier takes back what he said about Madison.

Nick looks through the fire rubble, and finds a picture of the couple.

Alicia looks through Jake’s books as she gets dressed, and finds out that he’s a writer. Apparently, there’s no afterglow, because she says she has to leave. He wants to lend her a Charles Bukowski poetry book. She says she used to be into all of that, but now, what’s the point?

Nick is cleaning up the mess from the fire, and Jeremiah says that he’s part of the community now. He tells Nick that the house was once the only building on the property, and it used to be his home. He says Jake was born there, but his second wife wanted something bigger. Nick gives him the picture he found. Jeremiah picks the gun up out of the wreckage, and calls it a work of art. Nick says Troy calls them tools, and Jeremiah says Troy is trying to figure himself out. He tells Nick that every home needs a gun, and he’d given it to Russel. He says if Nick is going to do this right, he’s going to need help.

There’s no helicopter at the crash site. Madison says somebody hauled it away. One of the men finds a spent shell and says there must have been a gunfight. Troy says whoever attacked them probably went to the outpost, and they have to go after them right now. Madison is gung-ho about that, thinking about Travis.

Troy blasts death metal as he drives. Madison says seeing where it happened made it real, but he tells her that there’s no time for grief. She asks what if it was his father, and he says that the best you can do is take out the a-holes who wronged you. She says it’s a game for him, and he says it’s his calling.

Victor asks Daniel how he got out of the fire, and Daniel says something spared him. Maybe the devil wanted him to stay there with Victor. He asks why Victor left the hotel, and Victor says he wanted to broker a deal with Dante. Daniel calls him selfish, and Victor says he would have brought the others – he’s not the same man Daniel knew. He’s getting tired of Daniel’s animosity, and tells Daniel if he wants to kill him, do it, but Daniel just wants to get going.

Jeremiah tells Nick that Luci is okay, and Nick says that she thinks the monsters here are worse than the ones outside. Jeremiah says she should go, but Nick says he thought it was us against them. Jeremiah tells him that Luci should go because she can’t get right with what happened. He tells Nick about how he locked Troy in the basement after a tantrum when he was a child, and then forgot about him. He ran downstairs and found Troy just standing there, repeating, “I’m sorry, daddy.” He felt badly, but not bad enough to stop drinking. He says that Nick’s mom wants to stay, and his girl wants to go, but what does he want? Nick asks what made Jeremiah finally quit drinking, and Jeremiah tells him that he decided to go deer hunting when he was drunk, and nearly shot his privates off. And he didn’t mean the kind in the military.

The convoy goes to the outpost. It looks deserted, but like everyone just disappeared in the middle of what they were doing. They go through the place, guns drawn, ready to shoot. Troy smells something. They follow a trail through the dirt and find a pile of burned bodies.

They hear someone talking, and find one of their men sitting in a chair, rambling a poem. A raven is perched on his shoulder, pecking at his brain, which is exposed. One of the men throws up. Madison puts a knife through the guy’s skull which is easy since part of it is missing. She tells Troy that they have to go. A Native American man is suddenly there and asks why, since they just got there.

Troy calls the man Walker, and asks if he’s lost his mind. Walker says they were only defending their land, and Troy tells him that he’s dead. Walker tells him to lower the volume and put down the weapons. He’s surrounded. Madison tells him to give the order. Walker says they’re taking their guns, vehicles, supplies, and boots. He tells Troy to tell his people to get ready for justice. They want their land returned. Troy says it’s not going to happen. Madison says they need water if he wants them to get there with the message. He says she’s joined up with a lost cause, and she says it became her cause when they took one of hers, meaning Travis.

Jake visits Alicia. He tells her that he wants to show her something, and takes her to a tranquil lake. He says the ranch wasn’t set up for the end times, but it’s not hopeless, and they still need things like poetry. They need something greater than guns to live for.

Victor and Daniel reach the hotel. Daniel asks Victor why he’s hesitating. There are no guards or guns, and Ofelia is waiting. Victor says it’s not good, and no she’s not. They get out of the car, and Daniel tells him to stay close. They go inside. and the place is a bloodbath. There’s no electricity, and Victor thinks they should wait until daylight. We hear zombie noises. Daniel rings the desk bell, and asks where she is. Victor says he doesn’t know; she left them. Zombies come pouring in from the other room and Daniel leaves Victor, saying let’s see how he gets out of this one. Zombies swarm Victor.

Well, he does get out of it, but Danial takes the car. Victor runs down the avenue, whacking zombies with a makeshift weapon.

Nick brings Luci to a moonlight picnic at the burned out house, which is now fixed up somewhat. They look at the stars, and Nick tells her about the people who lived there. He thinks with the right work, the place could be great. He asks her what she’s thinking, but she says nothing.

Troy curses his life while walking barefoot. Madison thinks they should stop. She says the men are tired, and Troy says so is he. She tells him that Walker is going to beat them there anyway. Troy asks if she thinks Nick could handle it, but she insists they’re not going to make it. He barks orders to keep going, and Madison says they listen to him out of fear, not respect. Taking Troy aside, she asks him if his father would make this move, and if he wants to be a mama’s boy. She says even at the end when he cared for her, she still didn’t love him. She tells the men that Troy said to rest up. Troy says they’d better be ready at first light. He’s the only one who knows the way, and he’ll leave them.

Madison wakes up with a knife to her throat. Troy tells her to be quiet. She says he’s better than this. Troy struggles with himself, making all kinds of weird faces, but finally takes the knife away and books. The guy sleeping next to Madison sees what happened, but turns his back to her.

Nick wakes up alone. Luci left him a note on a napkin, but we don’t see what it says. She walks along a border wall. The convoy marches on. Alicia stands at the edge of a cliff. She jumps.

But it’s into the lake. At first, she seems refreshed, but then she looks worried.

Jeremiah brings Nick the gun from the house, now cleaned up, and pats him on the shoulder.

Next time, Troy gets aggressive, Gretchen says the ranch isn’t safe, and Madison shoots someone. Vague, I know.

#WhereIsOfelia

🔊 During Talking Dead tonight, we found out that Colman Domingo (Victor) and Ruben Blades (Daniel) had a discussion about how no one goes to the bathroom ever on television dramas, and then how they would accomplish the mission to include it in an episode. Now if they could just do something about people never saying good-by at the end of a telephone conversation on soap operas.

🕍 Preacher started its new season tonight after FTWD, but will repeat on Monday night at 8 pm, with the second episode airing in what will be its regular slot at 9 pm. Based on a graphic novel character, it follows the adventures of Jesse (Dominic Cooper), a preacher with otherworldly talents who is looking for God, who has disappeared from heaven. He’s accompanied by his girlfriend, Tulip (Ruth Negga), and Cassidy (Joe Gilgun), a modern-day vampire. (That reminds me, I guess Being Human is never coming back, and I loved that show.) I watched most of the first season, and Preacher is a lot of fun. The dialogue is clever, the characters are original, and the action is weird and wonderful.

👦 Ryan Serhant (Million Dollar Listing New York) has ditched the beard. Thank you.

Preacher