TWD Season 8 Episode 8: How It's Gotta Be

Well kids... I had heard some rumors, read some potential spoilers, and listened to other fans of The Walking Dead comment on what might happen in tonight's mid-season finale. While I know that anything is possible on this show and none of the characters are safe, there are certain members of the Grimes gang that I didn't think would be on the chopping block before the end of the All Out War. I'm still trying to process this episode, which really should have been titled "Reasons We Don't Deviate From The Plan," and given we have until February 2018 for part two of the season, seems like I will be processing for a while. What were the traumatic events in this last episode of 2017? Here's what went down in "How It's Gotta Be."  

The Storm Keeps On Twisting

We pick up right where we left off last week with Rick and Das Sound Machine the garbage people arriving at The Sanctuary to find it eerily quiet and no longer under attack. Jadis is realizing that Polaroid pictures don't mean shit in the post-apocalyptic world, and I assume she is eager to shoot Rick in the head for leading her and her people into this opposite day scenario. Luckily(?) the Saviors start shooting at everyone from the upper levels of the building and the garbage people run away before taking action against Rick. Carol, the badass that she is, pulls up in an SUV with Jerry and gets Rick out of there. The question is - where do they go now? The Saviors are somehow out and on a warpath in Alexandria, Hilltop and The Kingdom. Time for these guys to split up and try to salvage what they can. 

Before we get to any that, we first flash back to the season premiere right after Rick fired shots over Siddiq's head at the gas station. Carl is pissed that his dad dismissed the stranger so quickly and he tells Rick that this war is about people working together...not just killing people. It's not feasible to think they can take out every Savior and the kid is looking for more than hope at this point. "What, are we just gonna kill all of them? Finding someway forward, that's order. That's something more. That's how it's gotta be."

Jumping back to present day, we see Carl sitting in the corner of his bedroom...writing his dad a note. He looks at the paper Enid once left him that says "just survive somehow" and he is very emotional. What's going on with this kid? Later on in the evening Michonne finds Carl near the sewer entrance in Alexandria. He's a bit out of breath and tells Michonne that he's been helping a traveler. Siddiq is hanging out in the sewer? Michonne is just about to ask for more information when there is a commotion at the gate. More to come on that front.

Vultures And Thieves At Your Back

Gavin leads a group of Saviors into King Ezekiel's community, letting the people there know that they will be housing the Saviors until The Sanctuary can be repaired and fortified. The folks from The Kingdom will be responsible for both, and the Saviors are going to give them just enough food and supplies to survive while this happens. Gavin also demands (unsuccessfully) that the people give up Ezekiel's location because the Saviors have searched the entire town and have been unable to find him. Gavin doesn't want to have to punish everyone - but the king needs to taken to Negan. Ultimately Eziekiel creates a distraction to get what's left of his community out of The Kingdom, allowing himself to be captured in the process. Carol arrives just as Ezekiel is closing and locking the gates, leaving his subjects outside and he and the Saviors inside. Carol begins directing the community members toward the house she used to occupy and Ezekiel calls out to her: "save them like you saved me." Ezekiel is then captured and that's the last we see of him tonight. 

As Gavin works to take control back from The Kingdom, Simon is on the same mission in Hilltop. Jesus and Maggie are en route to The Sanctuary, unaware that the original plan has been ripped to hell and they will not be arriving to a crumbling compound with Ezekiel, Rick, and Jadis. Maggie sees a tree down in the road ahead and has immediate deja vu back to the night that Glenn and Abraham died. Before she can turn everyone around and head back to Hilltop, Simon and his douchebags roll up with a pretty badly beaten Jerry in tow. He plops a box against Maggie's truck and says that Alexandria and The Kingdom are back under Negan's control. Simon is still pissed at Gregory and offers Maggie a chance to lead Hilltop (under Simon's control), because the Saviors need Hilltop's farming and supplies to flourish regardless of the rebellion. Otherwise he'll have to put her in the box and take her back to Hilltop and kill her in front of everyone...only to then have her put on a spike and displayed at The Sanctuary. Just to show Maggie how serious the situation is, he shoots and kills Neil (a Hilltopian that I barely remember) and Maggie gives in. She asks if she can take the box back to Hilltop with them so they can bury Neil in it, and off they go. 

Maggie and her entourage arrive back at Hilltop and she's not actually looking to roll over and begin farming for the Saviors. She instead seeks immediate revenge for Neil's death, choosing one of the Savior prisoners (Dean) and shooting him in the head. Maggie then puts his body in the box she brought back from Simon with a note that says: "We have 38 more. Stand down." For a moment I think Maggie might have completely turned dark in this course of action, but when she walks away by herself, we see the wave of emotions on her face as she comes to grips with everything that just happened. This chick is having a hell of a first trimester. 

May You Find Some Comfort Here

Eugene is still having trouble sleeping. Can't imagine why. It's not like he turned against his former community, had a chance to do right by them, but now enabled the Saviors to go on a slaughter mission or anything crazy like that. Is he still wondering what "the right thing" is? Apparently so. While remaining loyal to Negan, Eugene does grant what he assumes to be Gabriel's dying wish and clears a path for Gabriel and Dr. Carson to get out of The Sanctuary and back to Hilltop...via giving the guard on that side of the building an unimaginable case of diarrhea. Ha! That's pretty awesome.

There is a car waiting for the doctor and the priest and Gabriel asks Eugene to join them. The mullet man declines, opting to stay in Negan's world and hopefully rest easier knowing Dr. Carson would be able to care for Maggie. But would he? I mean...as soon as Negan finds out the doctor is in Hilltop, won't the doctor just be kidnapped again? Eugene knows that Negan's main plan is to collect Rick, Maggie and Ezekiel and kill them, right? Prenatal care is fairly useless in that scenario. 

We see Dr. Carson and a very weary Gabriel make their way safely to the car and get out of the area. Not sure if/when they make it to Hilltop or if it's before shit is hitting the fan with Maggie, Dean, and the coffin, but I imagine that's enough for Eugene's conscience for now. We also do not find out in this episode whether Gabriel succumbs to his illness and eats Dr. Carson en route. Wouldn't that be a kick in the head? 

Waiting For That Second Chance

Catching up with Aaron and Enid on their completely unplanned side mission, we find out that they are heading to Oceanside to enlist the help of the disgruntled women there. Makes sense - take a two person team with zero clout to a community that hates you because you took all of their guns and try to get them to boost up your numbers. I'm sure this will go well. 

Enid has the idea of stopping by a distillery so they can bring gifts to Oceanside, because there's totally time for a side mission to the side mission, and she and Aaron drive a big ol' whiskey truck to the outskirts of the community. That night while they are snoozing in the front seat of their armored car (yup, they're just waiting for trouble at this point), they see a figure approaching the truck. My palm is already at my forehead when Aaron goes to check things out and we hear someone knock him to the ground. Enid, instead of assessing any part of the situation, shoots the person who attacked Aaron....killing NATANIA in the process. Cyndie arrives just at that moment and yells at Enid to drop her weapon, which she does. Cyndie starts crying "grandma! grandma!" and I let out a very loud groan. Congrats Enid. Even with all of the dumb shit that has gone on in the past few weeks - you're still the worst character on the show. So much for building an alliance with Oceanside. 

Escape One Last Time

While we now know that The Kingdom has fallen and Hilltop is putting themselves in a hell of a standoff, the people of Alexandria are still in "it's time to go to meet everyone at The Sanctuary and wait for surrender" mode. Daryl returns and Michonne is glad to see that he's made it back unharmed He's super happy with himself and tells her his planned worked. Dude. How could you possibly know that the plan worked if you dipped out of the garbage truck before it hit the walls and you guys fled the scene as soon as the Walkers entered the building? For me "the plan worked" would entail "I crashed the truck into the building and a bunch of people started waving white flags from the rooftop, begging for us to save them." Michonne, at this point, is just eager to reunite with Rick and she says goodbye to Judith, promising to come back with her daddy. 

Smokin' Hot Rosita is also preparing to leave for the big surrender when Tara approaches. Tara tells her that Daryl's plan worked, again with no information on how exactly the plan was successful, and I really just want Rosita to punch her in the face. Instead she asks Tara to help her load the trucks, and she gives Tara more than an armful of supplies to carry. I'll take the small laughs where I can get them tonight. 

Imagine everyone's surprise that evening when Negan is calling out to them from the other side of the gate. Negan, who is supposed to be either dead or on the brink of surrender somewhere else. Negan, with a good portion of his army that is not tearing itself apart from starvation due to the zombie herd surrounding The Sanctuary. Negan, with a solid supply of "blow shit up" weapons at his disposal. We're back now to Carl and Michonne's sewer discussion and we see Carl take charge of Alexandria. He tells everyone he will go talk to Negan to distract him while the people of Alexandria either escape through the sewer or in vehicles. Tara says they should fight to keep Alexandria (can someone please punch her in the face now?) and Michonne kind of agrees but wants to let the young Grimes man run the show. He is the future that they are fighting for after all, right?  

Carl climbs on top of the wall and addresses Negan, telling Negan they can still work things out and end the war. When Negan launches into one of his tiresome narratives about rules and punishments, Carl says, "Kill me...if you have kill someone, if there has to be punishment, then kill me. I'm serious." Negan stops in his tracks. This surprises him. He asks Carl if he actually wants to die and Carl says "No, I don't...but I will." Carl then shakes his head as if he is already defeated and says "it's gonna happen."    

Pulled From The Wreckage

Meanwhile, a series of Alexandria trucks plow through a very weak barrier Dwight has set up in the back of the community. Negan realizes his conversation with Carl has been a diversion and the Saviors invade and unleash explosives throughout Alexandria. We see Carl through puffs of smoke here and there as he makes his way toward the back of the community, but shit is getting blown up all around him.

Dwight leads the Saviors right into a trap as they chase the Alexandria trucks. He drives his group into an ambush area where Daryl, Michonne, Tara and Smokin' Hot Rosita are waiting to shoot the cars and Saviors inside. Dwight opens fire on his own people as well and Laura, who is one of the few remaining kickass women in the Saviors, calls Dwight out and shoots him in the arm. Pretty sure she would have killed him if gunfire hadn't caused her to run away. The jig is up now - she's heading straight to Negan and Dwight's only chance at living is with the mercy of Daryl and company. Daryl takes back his vest and asks Dwight if what he did (you know, that reckless garbage truck through the wall bit) was the reason the Saviors escaped the compound. Dwight only says that Eugene was able to get them out, but I seriously think Eugene was able to get them out because of the BIG GAPING HOLE IN THE WALL OF THE COMPOUND. We don't get any other info on the Saviors' escape in this episode, so I hope we get some sort of recap in the 2018 premiere of how that all happened. 

Dwight follows Tara, Daryl, Michonne and Smokin' Hot Rosita to the sewer to hide in safety until the Saviors leave. With no sign of Carl and a shit ton of explosions happening in the town, Michonne goes back toward the houses to find him. Rick has also arrived back in town and I can't even imagine what's going through his mind at this point. This is just not how the day was supposed to go. When Rick gets to his house, Negan and Lucille are there waiting for him. A fight ensues but this is not the showdown viewers were probably hoping to see tonight. Negan throws Rick out of a window and Rick chooses to cut his losses and get the hell out of the neighborhood rather than go back inside the house and listen to more Negan bullshit (don't blame him). He runs into Michonne just as she's chopping up a Savior with her sword and together they head to the sewers.

The final sequence is beautifully shot, yet incredibly heartbreaking all at the same time. Rick slowly walks through the sewers searching for his loved ones. Judith is there happy and safe, but the other normally friendly faces Rick is passing either won't look at him at all, or look at him with tears in their eyes. Shit. Finally Rick and Michonne reach the end of a corridor, where Siddiq is sitting. We hear a voice say "I brought him here" and the camera pans to Carl. The kid is alive and looks relatively unharmed...but then Carl tearfully lifts up his shirt to reveal a Walker bite on his side. My first thought is: "Damn it, Carl!" But my second thought...that the rest of the characters share is: "There's no coming back from this." 

Memories Seep From My Veins

Whew. That was quite the emotional roller coaster. I had heard that Carl would be a casualty tonight but I still sit here surprised. He has sooooo much story left in the comics, especially involving Negan, and I really I didn't think the show runners would go this route. I will say that Carl has annoyed the hell out of me over the years. He's made some very dumb moves and done more whining than I can keep track of....and that hair pushed me over the edge quite some time ago. I'm not super broken up about his departure, but man am I hurting for Rick and Michonne... 

I assume Carl's bite happened last week (which I think is yesterday in TWD timeline) when Carl was battling Walkers with Siddiq, who quickly proved he is not someone I'd ever want to partner with in a zombie apocalypse. So Carl is dying after helping the guy Rick shot at to drive away. Carl was thinking ahead to the future while Rick was worried that every stranger they encountered was a Savior. Carl was on his own path of trying to "do the right thing" while Rick was in his undies in garbage land, forming an alliance (again) with people who would ultimately leave him high and dry. And Michonne? Michonne was blind to Carl's side mission because she, for whatever reason, haaaaad to go see The Sanctuary. She realized her vision for the future wasn't so different from Carl's only after she was thisclose to executing Daryl's stupid idea. Rick and Michonne both wanted to win this war for Carl, Judith, Glenn and Maggie's baby, and the other young lives that represented the future. This is a massive blow for both of them - Carl is Rick's successor and his only flesh and blood (I think we can safely assume Judith is Shane's daughter), and Michonne's bond with Carl really brought her out of the funk she was in after losing her own family. The episode where she looks at him and says "Bam! Crazy cheese." will always be a standout for me.  

When the The Walking Dead returns in 2018 our heroes have to deal with the aftermath of what should have been named "Reasons We Don't Deviate From The Plan." In addition to the ways Michonne, Rick and even Carl might be second guessing themselves, Daryl and Tara will have to determine exactly how stupid they were when they went rogue. Aaron and Enid will have to determine exactly how stupid they were when they went rogue. Morgan will have to determine how stupid he was when he went rogue (you get the picture). Eugene will have to determine if he really is Negan or if part of him wants to reunite with his former friends. Ezekiel will have to determine what kind of act to put on now that he is captured by the enemy. And Maggie will have to determine what to do with the weight of the world on her shoulders. Hilltop is the only community in the trifecta that still has a chance - all eyes are on her now to keep hope alive. Speaking of hope, I assume now that the delightful Rip Van Rick sequence from the season premiere was wishful thinking just like the big family dinner scene we saw with Glenn and Abraham after the two of them were killed by Negan. It's hard to tell when there might be any happy times ahead for these folks now, so we will just have to sit on all of these feelings through the holiday season and regroup again in the new year!

  

TWD Season 8 Episode 7: Time After Time

Tonight's episode of The Walking Dead is mostly centered around Eugene as he and others continue

to make decisions that piss me off. We catch up with a few additional familiar faces as well, but the mullet man's moves drive this hour as he tries to save The Sanctuary from the herd of Walkers closing in. Is he successful? Does he realize he is now part of the losing team? Does he stay loyal to Negan or cut his losses and retreat back to the Grimes gang? Here's what went down in "Time After Time."

If You're Lost

Stage "WTF Do I Do Now?" Eugene tells Dwight he knows that Dwight is the mole working with Rick. He promises not to say anything to Negan as long as Dwight ceases and desists all forms of backstabbery. Dwight grabs him by the shirt and shoves him into a chair. He tells Eugene that The Sanctuary is going to fall and all Eugene has to do to be on the winning side is...nothing. Just let it play out. Eugene is interested in staying safe and keeping the people inside the walls safe. If Dwight can promise he won't do anything to harm the folks inside The Sanctuary, Eugene can promise to keep his secret. There's really no affirmation from either gent before Eugene leaves the room. 

Was the lighting in this scene a sign?

As Eugene makes his way down the hall, he hears Dr. Carson call to him from the infirmary. Gabriel has an infection from all of the Walker guts he donned on his way into the compound and he is getting worse. Dr. Carson says it's only a matter of time before Gabriel's organs start shutting down, and he asks Eugene to stay with the priest while he tries to find some herbs in the market that might help with the fever. Gabriel asks Eugene again if he will help get Dr. Carson back to Hilltop and Eugene tells him that he's looking out for himself and no one else. Gabriel says "I just want you to do the right thing," and when Eugene asks how to know what the right thing is, the priest replies: "It requires faith and trust in yourself. Believing that God is inside of you, guiding you." Eugene is a man of science and says that whole thing is absurd, but Gabriel maintains that Eugene will know what the right thing is when the time comes. 

Eugene heads back to his room and Tanya, one of Negan's wives, knocks on the door. Apparently Eugene had promised her he'd fix her boombox and it's taking too long (I guess she doesn't give a shit about what's happening outside), and she doesn't want to give him the wine that was supposed to be part of the trade. When he tells her wine helps him sleep, she reminds him that their situation could have been totally different if he had helped the wives kill Negan when they asked for the death pill. "But you took care of you, and now you gotta live with that."  

I Will Catch You

Eugene meets with Negan and Negan mentions that the mullet man is running out of time and people are going to start dying. "Not me of course. I'm living no matter what. I am too good at this shit." Negan says he has faith in Eugene though because he knows the guy is smart...hence the "Dr. Smartypants" nickname. Negan reaches out for a handshake and Eugene mistakes the gesture. He leans in to kiss Negan's hand instead and I get my only real laugh of the evening. Negan says a handshake is a sign of mutual respect and he's clearly trying to ensure Eugene is still 100% Negan. I'm pretty sure this was one of those "you had me at 'hello'" scenarios. 

With his newfound motivation, Eugene collects Sasha's iPod from the coffin (how does that thing still have juice?) and he dismantles Tanya's boombox to make a drone. His plan is to use the drone music to lead the Walkers away pied piper style. It's a great idea until Dwight sneaks up behind Eugene on the roof and points a gun at him. He tells Dwight he is attempting to save the people inside, and though he is usually only concerned with himself, Eugene decides to take his chances at gunpoint and send the drone sailing over the Walkers. Dwight can't bring himself to shoot Eugene (why?) and instead shoots the drone down. 

Confusion Is Nothing New

The Walkers are at a point where they are probably a day from breaking completely into The Sanctuary and Morgan is outside with a sniper rifle ready to thwart any Savior plans to drive the Walkers away. He sees Daryl, Tara, Michonne and Smokin' Hot Rosita roll up in a garbage truck and he goes down to talk to them. In order to speed up victory, Daryl and Tara want to drive the garbage truck through part of the building they believe does not have any workers, even though Rosita and Michonne expect Rick and the other community leaders to show up at any moment and ask for surrender. Morgan is on board with this plan because he just wants everything to be done. Michonne and Rosita want to wait since, you know, THAT'S THE PLAN, but Daryl and Tara insist that things have changed now that Ezekiel's army is gone. Rosita says they will need to proceed without her...that seeing Sasha recklessly storm the building only to end up walking out of a coffin as a zombie has changed her thoughts on taking huge and hasty risks. She grabs one of the extra cars and heads home, but Michonne stays even though Michonne has to know this isn't what Rick would want.  

As Daryl, Tara and Michonne get ready to execute this ludicrous plan, he separately asks Michonne if she's up for the task. After giving it some thought, she believes they need to trust that what is currently working will continue to work. "What we're about to do...it's not worth risking us." Daryl says it's worth the risk to him and Michonne tells him she can't go through with it. She hops out of the truck (and I assume catches up with Smokin' Hot Rosita) and Daryl proceeds on his own with Tara and Morgan covering him. He jumps out of the truck at the last second and makes his way to safety. The workers inside the building, however, are not safe. There were still plenty of people just on the other side of the wall and many of them become Walker food in front of Eugene's eyes. The Saviors are having a hell of a time keeping the Walkers on the first floor and something will need to be done quickly. 

Dr. Smartypants is furious. He goes to Gabriel's room and essentially says the whole "do the right thing" message was bullshit because people died anyway. Eugene tells him he's going back to looking out for number one and approaches Negan, saying he has a solution to the problem at hand. He's just about to out Dwight as well, but then Dwight arrives with a Walker update and the conversation ends.  

I Fall Behind

Turns out Rick isn't completely naked in the garbageland canister. He's got his undies on and when Jadis finally opens the doors, he tells her his offer still stands. Jadis has other interests at the moment though. Who wouldn't? First she takes pictures of him with a fancy camera (where is the nearest one hour photo?), then she has one of her garbage men sketch the scantily clad hottie. Why? So they can sculpt him "after."  Rick asks "after what?" but Jadis has already said more than a couple of words so it's time to move on. 

Later Rick is brought to the center of what I assume is the major garbage heap and Jadis arrives with another specialty Walker in tow. Apparently "after" translates to "death by helmet-head Walker" which is really, really stupid. Rick hits the ONE guy holding him down and knocks over the ONE other guy with Jadis. He decapitates the helmet-head Walker and only THEN does Jadis take her gun out to shoot Rick. He pins her to the ground next to the still chomping Walker head and THEN the rest of her people arrive and aim their guns at him. Jadis tells her people to stand down and then says she will join Rick in his endeavor to kill Negan for a portion of the Saviors' supplies.  

The episode ends with Rick and the garbage people arriving on the outskirts of The Sanctuary. When Rick can't get anyone to respond on the walkie talkie, he climbs the water tower and realizes the yard is empty of Walkers. I assume he also realizes that Daryl completely mucked everything up and the garbage people might quickly turn on him again. Better get ready to pose for that sculpture, my friend.

I have to say that I'm sitting here just kind of baffled after this hour. If the plan was for (I assume), Rick, Maggie, Ezekiel and Jadis to show up to The Sanctuary united and give the Saviors a last chance to surrender, then whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy did we need to crash a truck into the walls to get them to surrender? Why did Rosita speak up on this before Michonne? Why would Tara be okay with this? She was good with letting Dwight live long enough to become a mole but she can't let the workers live long enough to....live? WTF is up with Daryl? If someone else had gone totally rogue from a plan everyone had agreed on, he'd be the first one to lose his shit. I just can't wrap my head around this turn of events. Rick goes off to the garbage people, who he can't trust, to help drive the final nail in Negan's coffin, but the people Rick can trust have ruined everything. Ugh.  

Next week is already the mid-season finale and though we've seen quite a bit of slaughter so far in these first 7 episodes, I do believe we are gearing up for a major or majorish death by the end of episode 8. Will Gabriel succumb to his Walker guts fever? Will Negan throw Dwight into the incinerator? With Maggie and others on the way (I assume Ezekiel is sitting this one out), are we bound to suffer a loss of one of the remaining long term characters? Is this where we catch up with the two graves and the red-eyed Rick we saw during the season premiere? We have only a short time to wait until we find out, but in the meantime... Daryl, you've got some 'splainin' to do. 

TWD Season 8 Episode 6: The King, The Widow, and Rick

Tonight's episode of The Walking Dead circled back with just about everybody in the Grimes gang as our heroes try to figure out the next steps to defeat The Saviors. Losing Ezekiel's entire army was never part of the plan, so it's time to regroup and check in on everyone...even if they are not making good decisions. There are no major deaths in this hour and some characters that have been long overdue for screen time finally get their chance. Here's what went down in "The King, The Widow, and Rick."

Signed, Sealed, Delivered

The episode opens with Maggie, Rick, and Carol all reading letters from one another regarding the state of things in their locations. Word is traveling very quickly for a land of no phones or email. Maybe Ezekiel also has some connections with the owls from Harry Potter. Anyway, even though The Kingdom's warriors are finished, Ezekiel won't face any of his people, and Hilltop has a hostage situation and Dumbass Gregory issues to deal with, Rick says the plan is working and they must move forward. He makes no mention of the helicopter. At all. 

Rick's next stop is garbageland where Das Sound Machine Jadis and a few of others are doing metal work in the nude, as people often do. For a second I'm hoping that "Unchained Melody" would play and Rick would sneak up behind Jadis and help her, but the man on a mission has no time for pleasantries. Rick arrives and talks about making another deal (because it worked so well last time) and he shows Jadis the polaroid pictures of The Sanctuary and outposts in shambles. It's another one of those "do this or you and your people will end up dead" sort of speeches and Jadis is having none of it. She gives him a simple "no" and has him locked up...in the nude. I have to laugh when she says. "He talks to much." Indeed...sometimes less is more. 

The last time we see Rick in this episode, he is a captive in a dumpster/cell. Jadis writes a big letter "A" in chalk on the outside, much like the Terminus captive facilities. Huh? Were the garbage people once affiliated with Terminus? Are they cannibals? Is that why they're not concerned about maintaining fresh food in a dump? Are they looking to have a Rick Rump Roast? Ramen Rick? Rick Risotto? I could go on (I'd like to) but I won't.

You've Got The Future In Your Hand

Maggie has quite the stressful situation on her hands at Hilltop. I think Aaron showing up with baby Gracie is well timed for Maggie's nerves...and to remind us that Maggie is pregnant because she still doesn't look like she is. Maggie has temporarily allowed the Savior prisoners to sit just outside the gates at gunpoint while she figures out what to do with them. She finds Jesus feeding them part of the turnip supply (which Jesus says is excess) and somehow Dumbass Gregory is right by her side. He suggests building a gallows for these guys instead of protecting them and Maggie shoos him away. She's not happy with the situation Jesus has put them in and he tells her that when all is said and done "we have to make sure what's left is worth what we lost."

That night the prisoners hear some construction going on inside the gates and they assume Maggie has decided on hanging them instead of feeding them. Jesus tells them not to worry and one Savior in particular, Dillon, is super chatty and friendly. He's also kinda dreamy. Dillon mentions that the Saviors asked him to help build a fence and now he's sitting against one waiting to die and Jesus says no one is innocent. Could love be in the air here? I'm still hoping for an Aaron romance but this exchange has been very interesting. 

When morning comes and Enid beckons for Jesus to bring the prisoners inside the walls, Jesus looks worried. Maggie hasn't built gallows - she's built a holding pen for these guys. She tells Jesus that she may need these prisoners to trade to the Saviors in case some of their people get captured. She's not guaranteeing she will let them all live, but for now they are going to be taken care of under lock and key as long as they cooperate. Dumbass Gregory is livid and tells Maggie she can't let people they can't trust run around inside the walls. Maggie agrees....and she has Gregory thrown in with the prisoners. HA! That's fantastic. This is all still a lot for Aaron and his grief though, and he takes off on a side mission (not part of Rick's plan that he says is working) that isn't really explained, and he lets Enid go with him.  

Not Ashamed To Cry

The community members of The Kingdom are deep in grief. Ezekiel will not come out of his throne room, even when Carol bangs on the door and says they need to gather everyone who can fight. Are there still people there who can fight other than her and Jerry? Young Henry is nearby doing his best Morgan impression with a stick (where is Morgan?), and he tells Carol he wants to go with her and help. She shuts him down immediately, just like she did with Benjamin. Similarly, Carol finds Henry out in the woods by himself trying to take out Walkers. She scolds him, saying kids who wander around in the woods by themselves "never get seen again, and if they do, they're monsters." Awww. My brain just immediately went back to season 2 and Sophia's little Walker legs coming out of Hershel's barn. Henry just wants to be trained so he can avenge his brother's death, and Carol ultimately hands him a gun with the safety on and tells him to stay close as they make their way back to The Kingdom. 

Fun fact - the kid who plays Henry is Macsen Lintz...younger brother of Madison Lintz...who played Carol's daughter Sophia! Isn't that awesome? I've been thinking lately that this boy looks familiar, and it's pretty much because he and his sister have the same face. The fact that Carol looks at him and says what she did about kids becoming monsters is brilliant...and really sad all at the same time.

Carol and Henry arrive back in The Kingdom and Carol is ready to blow through the door of Ezekiel's throne room in order to finally get him to talk to her. Jerry tells her the door is unlocked and I laugh out loud. Carol enters the room and finds the king sitting slumped against his throne, holding onto Shiva's chain. He tells Carol he can't be a king anymore and says she needs to lead the people. He asks to be left alone and Carol turns to leave...then she turns back and asks Ezekiel why he came to visit her when she moved into the little house nearby. "You just make me feel real. Not fiction. Real." Carol tearfully tells Ezekiel that he is real to her and to The Kingdom and says his people need him. "And if you can't be 'the king,' then do what you do best and play the part." Ezekiel whispers... "I can't" and this bums me out.  Do it for Shiva!

I've Done A Lot Of Foolish Things

It's been quite a while since we've seen Michonne, one-eyed Carl, and Smokin' Hot Rosita, and we finally have some time with them this evening. Michonne is restless and wants to be part of the All Out War that seems to be happening without her. She takes Smokin' Hot Rosita and her resting bitch face on a mission to see The Sanctuary, which by the way is also NOT part of the plan Rick says is working. Both women are still healing from the big fight in Alexandria last season, so I'm not sure how this is a good idea...but what do I know? During their drive they hear opera music (you read that right) coming from the woods and they take a detour to check out the source. Turns out two Saviors in the midst of strapping a speaker to a truck to play loud music and lure the Walkers away from The Sanctuary. Well there you go, ladies! Just when you thought you were useless in this big plan.

Michonne and Smokin' Hot Rosita follow the Saviors into the random building they are using as a workshop, but they're a little rusty on this attack and kill thing. Michonne accidentally kicks a tennis ball, alerting the Saviors that they are not alone, and Rosita drops her pistol. Good grief. Eventually Rosita picks up a missile launcher and blows one of her enemies to pieces, but the noise distracts Michonne's fight with the other Savior and that bitch hops in the singing truck and takes off. 

Just as we think the truck is getting away, Daryl and Tara come speeding in with a garbage truck and crash through the Savior's vehicle. The speaker mission is destroyed and Daryl's interception game has been pretty amazing lately. His current attitude might be dangerous but at least he told Tara they could both kill Dwight when the war is over. Sharing is caring. The four friends regroup and head toward The Sanctuary, where it seems like Daryl is going rogue. He tells the ladies when they arrive that he's going to end this.  

I Went And Stayed Too Long

Meanwhile Carl and his inexplicable haircut are wandering through the woods (Carol's speech would never work on him anyway) and he finds the guy that was looking for food and water in the season premiere. You know, the guy Rick shot at but only over his head. Carl feels bad about what happened and he has brought this man, whose name is Siddiq, food and water. Carl also asks him the standard 3 questions people must answer before joining the Grimes gang. Turns out Siddiq has killed 237 Walkers and one person, but only because the person was attacked by Walkers but didn't die right away. Siddiq kills as many Walkers as he can because his mom told him that maybe killing the Walkers would free their souls. He says "you gotta honor your parents, right?" and Carl accurately points out that if he was honoring his dad, he wouldn't be there giving food and water to Siddiq. 

On their journey back to Alexandria, they have a close call while trying to put down some Walkers, and given Siddiq's combat tactics, I have no idea how he's survived so long by himself. Siddiq doesn't want to become a burden on Carl - after all, Rick didn't want anything to do with Siddiq, but Carl tells him, "sometimes kids have to find their own way to show their parents the way." Welp, Rick could sure use someone to show him the way out of garbageland right now. 

The look on their faces says it all. 

The episode ends with a shot of the "A" container holding Rick and while it seems like a lot happened in this hour, we're really not any further along in the war than we were at the end of last week. Or the week before. My biggest takeaway from the episode is Rick thinks shit is working, but somehow his people are participating in opposite day. Michonne and Rosita? No, don't stay and protect Alexandria like you're supposed to. Go to the Walker infested Sanctuary instead "just to see it." Daryl? No, don't take losing the dynamite as a deterrent for doing your own thing. Go rogue anyway and take revenge-driven Tara with you. Aaron? Though Maggie could really use your help right now, go ahead and leave Hilltop to do something that probably won't help given your right hand is Enid. And Carl? You should totally ditch Alexandria as well (poor Judith) and offer protection to a guy who likes to stop and kill every Walker he sees. Sigh. Going into the final 2 episodes of 2017, I'm wondering when what's happening in The Sanctuary and what's happening in the communities will all come together again. Will Daryl somehow blow a hole in The Sanctuary walls to let the Walkers inside the building? Will Ezekiel move past his "I'm no king" nonsense and lead his people? Is Jesus going to stop whining and be helpful? Is Morgan going to reemerge batshit crazy? And finally, who is going to save Rick from what I assume is a very smelly itty bitty living space? His reserves are all doing their own thing at the moment and obviously did not heed the messages in the Harry Potter owl mail.  

TWD Season 8 Episode 5: The Big Scary U

After last week's traumatic loss of Shiva the tiger, I'm going into tonight's episode of The Walking Dead looking for moments to celebrate. I really don't get any in this hour, but we do finally catch up with Father Gabriel, whom we haven't seen since Dumbass Gregory left him for dead in the season premiere. What's he been up to? How are the rest of our heroes progressing? Here's what went down in "The Big Scary U."

Give Me Another Chance

We flash back to The Sanctuary just prior to Rick and company showing up to shoot way too many precious bullets into the building. Simon is delivering breakfast to Dumbass Gregory, who is not necessarily living in luxury at Negan's compound, but he's certainly not living like a prisoner either. Simon is proud of Gregory for coming to see him when things started to get out of hand at Hilltop and he says today is the day Gregory will solve the problem. 

Dumbass Gregory sits down for a meeting with Negan and his lieutenants - Dwight (heh), Eugene, Gavin, Simon and Regina and he discusses what he calls "The Big Scary U," which he says is the unknown. Gregory doesn't like to kill people, but Negan assures him that sometimes killing 1 may save 100. "And that's what we do. We save people." Negan honestly believes this. Dwight is already bored and leaves to take a smoke break. Gregory promises Negan he can convince his people to abandon Maggie's crusade and then none of the Hilltop residents will have to die. Negan accuses Gregory of playing both sides, but Simon sticks up for him. Why Simon sticks up for him is beyond me. Simon suggests they back Gregory when he lays down the law, and if all doesn't go well..."we kill everyone there." Negan is pisssssed. He says people are the foundation of what they are trying to build. "Are you confused about who we are? Are you confused about who's in charge? Are we backsliding, Simon? Please. Tell me we're not backsliding." Eugene looks terrified and Dumbass Gregory may have just peed his pants. Negan doesn't like Simon's "Plan A." He says Plan A will be taking Rick, Maggie, and Ezekiel alive and killing them in a very public way. Negan doesn't completely finish his speech though because armored cars are arriving outside.

So Gone, So Wrong

Changing gears a bit, we join Rick and Daryl after they intercepted the weapons vehicle coming from one of the Saviors' satellite sites. Carol may not have been able to prevent the jeep from leaving the lot, but Rick and Daryl prevented it from getting far...in the midst of fighting, the vehicle crashed. Turns out the driver is still (barely) alive and Rick and Daryl question him about the chemical plant he just came from. The driver says everyone there is dead except some psycho lady and the boys immediately know he's referencing Carol. Then he dies. 

Rick and Daryl start unloading the Saviors' jeep and come across quite a bit of dynamite. Daryl suggests using it to blow a hole in the walls of The Sanctuary (not sure how he thinks he will make it to the wall), telling Rick the people in there will either surrender or die at that point. Rick doesn't want to put the workers and families at risk but Daryl isn't looking for Rick's approval. He says he will take the dynamite to The Sanctuary anyway. The two get into a fistfight and Rick tosses the bag of dynamite at the crashed jeep...everything blows up and they lose all of the weapons that would have been helpful. Rick's own jeep won't start at this point either, but Daryl leaves him behind to walk back to wherever they were going. What a freaking waste. This whole exchange reminds me of the day they met Jesus and wasted a whole bunch of time with bullshit rather than get the supply truck back to Alexandria as quickly as possible. 

We see a super exhausted Rick making his way on foot slowly but surely down a path in the woods. He's stopped in his tracks by an odd sound. Walkers? A truck? The Saviors with more weapons? Rick looks up and sees a helicopter flying over head. A HELICOPTER flying over head! Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!? The helicopter must not have seen Rick because it keeps on going, and Rick makes no attempt to try to flag it down. He'd probably attract a shit ton of Walkers in the process anyway. We don't find out where the helicopter came from in this hour, but I sure do hope the show runners don't put this little gem on the back-burner for several episodes to come. 

These Are My Confessions

In another scene pre-Sanctuary mission, Gabriel prays in his church in preparation for battle. He says he does not fear death, but he does fear "a fruitless death." All he asks God for at this moment is a purpose. 

We now catch up with Gabriel and Negan in the trailer, trapped together as a herd of Walkers bangs on the walls from outside. Negan tells Gabriel that Rick is an asshole who is going to get a lot of people killed. Negan says that even though he killed Glenn and Abraham, he's "not the one who got them killed." Kind of a fair point, especially considering Negan believes his kills are for the greater good of everyone else. He asks Gabriel why on earth he'd risk his life for Dumbass Gregory and Gabriel mentions that he does not want to die a fruitless death. He thinks that his purpose might be right there in the trailer with Negan. "I think I'm here to take your confession." 

Negan says he doesn't have shit to confess and asks Gabriel why he became a priest. "I love God and I love people. I wanted to bring them together...to help people through their difficult times...to help them through their weaknesses." Negan smiles and says he himself has been helping people through their weaknesses his whole life. He briefly mentions that he used to work with kids (wish we could get more on that) and tells Gabriel that people are going to start dying inside The Sanctuary because he's not there to stop it. He says he makes his people strong which makes this world strong. Negan calls Gabriel his new special project. "I'm gonna make you nice and strong too. Gonna find your special purpose. Hell yes we are." 

If I'm Gonna Tell It Then I Gotta Tell It All

The Walkers are starting to bust in now and Gabriel makes another play for Negan's confession. He says Negan has killed innocent people, but Negan maintains he didn't kill anyone who didn't deserve it. Gabriel says Negan treats the workers like slaves, but Negan says it's an economy where some people win and some people lose...but none of them are going hungry. Gabriel brings up the women Negan has pressured to be his wives, and Negan's face changes. He says each lady made their own choice, but I think he knows Gabriel's got him on this one. 

The trailer is starting to fall apart and Negan suggests the ole Walker guts ensemble to get them into the compound. He doesn't want to kill Gabriel - he wants Gabriel to work with him. Gabriel chooses this moment to confesses to Negan that he locked his congregation out of the church when the apocalypse hit. "I failed them. I failed God. And every day I work to lessen that failure. To be of service and purpose. Now I offer you the assurance of a pardon, penance, and absolution. I will go with you. I will show you that working together as equals is the only true way to grace." Negan then confesses that he did have a first wife - a real wife before the world went to hell in a hand-basket. He says he cheated on his wife, even when she was sick. She finally passed away when the Walkers started dominating the area and Negan couldn't bear to put her down. "That is how I was weak. That is what I will confess." Gabriel tells him he is forgiven and they prepare for escape. 

As Negan begins tearing up Walker parts, he asks Gabriel if anyone he knows has ever gotten sick from dousing themselves with guts and Gabriel's only response is "We're from Georgia." Ha!  They lather up and walk slowly through the herd, but we all know that this plan has often backfired. The Walkers do attack and the guys have to fight their way into the building. 

Be A Man And Get It Over With

Negan's lieutenants resume their meeting after getting back inside the compound safely. They argue over the next course of action, hoping to get a group out of the compound to go get help, not realizing that their 3 outposts have also been compromised. Gavin wants to focus the conversation on how Rick and company knew the outpost leaders would all be in a meeting with Negan today. He's looking to Eugene. So is Simon. Dwight jumps in and takes control, saying he'll lead the Saviors out of the compound safely, and somehow the meeting temporarily ends. Eugene goes to Dwight's room and thanks him for his support, but I didn't hear any kind of plan come out of the discussion. 

The lieutenants meet again and this time the workers are outside the door and restless. They want to know where Negan is, when they are going to get more rations, and what the plan is for getting everyone to safety. There are a whole lot of workers and not a lot of lieutenants. Simon acts like a total dick, Dwight tries to calm the crowd, and Regina puts a bullet in one of the loudest workers. Just then they hear Negan come around the corner with Gabriel. Everyone kneels including Gabriel, and the priest is dismayed as the workers yell things like "Thank you, Negan. Thank God for you."

Negan showers and meets with his lieutenants, most of whom still say a rat is living among them. Negan pulls Eugene aside and tells him he needs to find a way to solve the problem outside. If he succeeds, Negan will make him a happy man. If he does not, Negan will kill him quickly so Eugene won't have to witness what happens when the compound runs out of food and water. Eugene  continues to look terrified and goes to visit Gabriel and give him a warm welcome. He finds Gabriel leaning against the wall in his room/cell, sweating and sick. Eugene wants to go grab Dr. Carson and Gabriel is barely able to say, "Dr. Carson is Maggie's doctor. We have to get him out of here."

The episode ends there, as does the first episode of Season 8 without a ton of action-packed scenes (which I am totally fine with). There are many cliffhangers going into next week though. What's the deal with the helicopter? Where did it come from? Who's flying it? It can't be connected to the Saviors or the lieutenants would have thrown that escape idea out to the group. Does Eugene know Dwight is Rick's inside man? Is Eugene somehow in cahoots as well? What's happening with Gabriel? Was he bit or did the tainted Walker guts make him sick? He may very well have served his "purpose" at this point but I'd hate to see him go. Gabriel is one character that I never thought would grow on me, but now that TWD has introduced people like Dumbass Gregory, Gabe is definitely on my good side.

TWD Season 8 Episode 4: Some Guy

Overall things seemed to be going well for our heroes in their kick-off of the All Out War against the Saviors. With some losses here and there, the Alexandria/Hilltop/Kingdom trifecta was unstoppable for a while, but all good things must come to an end. Tonight on The Walking Dead the losses are far more severe, and morale is shattered for what's left of one of our groups. I'll say that my morale is also low after the season's fourth episode. Who is able to survive this sad hour? Here's what went down in "Some Guy." 

Times Are Gone For Honest Men
The episode opens with King Ezekiel preparing his group to go on the mission we've been watching these past few weeks. We see the both the men and women warriors saying goodbye to their spouses and children, and we see a less flashy version of Ezekiel become "king" as he completes his hair and wardrobe for the day ahead. As he watches the folks in The Kingdom pack up the trucks and suit up, he does not resemble the "we will lose not one of our ranks" confident leader that has been making Carol smile. He looks uncertain as he begins to head out of his home.

With Shiva by his side, Ezekiel marches toward his army, stopping to tell Henry (Benjamin's little brother) to be brave in their absence. He then addresses the crowd: "We will fight. We will bleed. And yet I smile." The speech continues and the troops are definitely rallied to defeat the Saviors and find the glory their king has promised them. "You trust the King. We will win! I smile. I laugh. I rejoice this day. For on this day we are joined in purpose and vision. We are a singular heart and mind. On this day, we are ONE!" The crowd goes into a massive group hug with Ezekiel, and hell, even I'm inspired by this display of teamwork. 

The Sun In My Disgrace

But now we catch up with the warriors of The Kingdom where we left them last week. After believing they had come through the battle at one of Negan's satellite sites unscathed, Saviors in upper levels of the building opened fire. The group hug has become a group pile of dead bodies, with Ezekiel surviving thanks to the number of followers who threw themselves in front of gunfire for him. He climbs out from under the casualties and realizes he's the only one alive. His smile is gone. My first thought is, "get the hell out of there before all of those people turn!" And then I wonder, where is Carol? And then we see all of those people turn and I forget about Carol. Ezekiel, cry later. Right now GTFO! The king is nearly devoured by his own ranks...all of which he lost...and he has to start shooting them all in the head, which has to be (figuratively) killing him. Finally he finds another survivor and it's well timed - Ezekiel has a hell of a leg injury and there's zero chance he can outrun the herd. 

Just when Ezekiel and the last man standing in his army think they are out of danger, another mass of Walkers is coming their way. And then there's the Savior who sneaks up from behind and kills the last man standing. So much for that. Why this Savior resembles a 1990s pedophile/serial killer is beyond me, but this asshole says he is supposed to bring "the king" to The Sanctuary alive. See, Negan wants to kill Ezekiel, Maggie, and Rick and have them join the Walker army that is chained to his front fence, to serve as an example of what happens when people betray him. I guess he isn't aware of Michonne's leash method of transporting people.  

As Ezekiel hobbles along as best he can, the Savior gives him a bunch of shit, saying he knows Ezekiel's background and how Ezekiel "played" the people in The Kingdom. He jokes that even in death they are still following his bullshit. Ezekiel is able to cut this asshole, but he throws the king to the ground and stands on his hurt leg. He starts talking about bringing Ezekiel's head back on a pike and leaving the rest of him for the Walkers, but much like Morales last week, he's also a dumbass and talks way too long...long enough for Jerry (yay! he's alive!), King Ezekiel's loyal teddy bear Samurai, to spring in and literally cut the guy in half. Bye 1990s pedophile/serial killer Savior. The reunion between king and subject is only momentarily a happy one as the herd of Walkers is still upon them. They are at a dead end and Jerry isn't able to break through the fence with his ax. Shit. 

In Disguises No One Knows

Carol has made it inside the building at this point and avoided the massacre. She takes out some of the Saviors inside but others escape to the parking lot with artillery. Carol tries her hand at taking them out as well, fakes a surrender and then takes one of them at knife point. The rest of the Saviors don't give a shit and start shooting through the guy to get to Carol. She is able to hit the button to open the parking lot gate and ducks as a bunch of Walkers step inside to attack the remaining Saviors. Carol yells that they need to stop fighting each other because the Walker problem is getting worse and one of the remaining dudes tells her she can simply walk away. Carol doesn't want to leave without all of the guns and ammo the Saviors were loading into a truck...but then she sees Ezekiel and Jerry fighting for their lives on the other side of the fence. What to do... save your comrades and give up on weapons you know are dangerous in the hands of your enemies? Or pursue the weapons knowing that this war will have causalities anyway? Carol goes with the former and the artillery truck gets away. Well, momentarily gets away. Daryl and Rick make a cameo in this hour and intercept the truck. All's well that ends well? 

I wish I could say the episode ends there. I do. But Carol, Ezekiel and Jerry are still trying to make their way to safety and the Walkers are coming at them from all sides. Ezekiel tells Carol and Jerry to leave him and he sets off to fight the herd on his own. Jerry says he will not leave his king and Ezekiel turns and screams "I am NOT your king! I'm just some guy." Just then Shiva springs in and starts slaughtering the Walkers. She fights them off bravely but is ultimately Walker food...the poor tiger that Ezekiel once saved and saved proudly, dies a horrible death paying back the favor. I can say with all honesty that I almost threw up as this was happening. 

The episode actually ends with King Ezekiel hobbling back into The Kingdom and making his way past his subjects without saying a word. No rousing speech. No words about losing a battle but winning the war. No requiem for the fallen. Just...nothing. 

This hour just about did me in. I'm going to mourn the loss of a CGI tiger more than several of the main characters we've lost on this show. And damn it, The Kingdom warriors were so close to victory and Carol was so close to looking happy again. The massacre alone was enough to send Ezekiel into a downward spiral, but I can't imagine his devastation with Shiva. He has said himself the tiger made him who he is. With no army...and no tiger...what kind of a leader will he be now? Will Carol have to step in? Can Alexandria and Hilltop pick up the slack now that The Kingdom army has pretty much been wiped out? Will we see the return of Oceanside? The garbage people? I at least hope that when they made their alliance with the Saviors...the deal included showers for all. 

TWD Season 8 Episode 3: Monsters

Tonight on The Walking Dead our heroes are faced with more "savagery vs mercy" decisions as the groups are finishing up their side missions and reconnecting with each other. There are moments in this hour to celebrate, moments of sadness, and definitely moments of frustration as the action of Season 8 continues. Who are the casualties of the All Out War in this third installment? Here's what went down in "Monsters."

You Sold Us Down The River

Catching up with Jesus and very pissed off versions of Tara and Morgan, the group is doing a slow march on foot back to Hilltop. The prisoners are tied together in a chain gang (but with rope) and the douchebag that killed young Benjamin is there. He taunts Morgan and Morgan eventually aims his gun to shoot him. A very large group of Walkers attacks just then and a number of prisoners are eaten, while many of them make a run for it. Morgan takes off after them and starts shooting. Jesus knocks the gun out of his hands and I'm about done with him. Morgan says they will continue to try to escape and Jesus says they will continue to stop them...but they are not going to kill them. The two men then get into a fight, with each one landing some decent punches and kicks on the other, and I will say that Jesus' hair looks amazing through the entire confrontation. Morgan finally tells Jesus and company that he's leaving because he can't be a part of this plan that will backfire at some point. Tara tells him he's right as he walks away, but she does not follow him. Jesus, Tara and Diane continue on to Hilltop with the prisoners.

All is quiet at Hilltop until a car pulls up to the gate. Dumbass Gregory thinks his people should let him back in to the community and Maggie is super pissed at him. She asks how he got Gabriel's car and he pretends not to know what happened to the priest. He starts talking about how he built Hilltop and all Maggie did was show up...and those pregnancy hormones are turned on their head and she starts yelling. "Shut your damn mouth! You're really gonna stand there and pretend you didn't try to sell us out, sell this place out to the Saviors?!?" Dumbass Gregory says that he was working toward peace and thought he could save lives by going to The Sanctuary. Maggie tells him goodbye and he pleads with her. He says he went to Negan because he was scared Maggie would lead Hilltop into a losing battle. He tells her he sees now that fighting the Saviors is the only way. "I was wrong. I made a mistake. And I'm sorry." Ultimately Maggie lets Dumbass Gregory in, probably not realizing this is not the only "do I or don't I" decision she'll need to make today. 

Jesus, Tara, and Diane roll up soon thereafter with a whole bunch of Saviors, and Dumbass Gregory flips out. He says those "monsters" are not coming in and tells Maggie she would be risking everyone's safety. Tara agrees. Jesus suggests locking them all up in empty trailers out back with 24 hour guards. He says they can't kill them because they surrendered. The way Maggie says "Jesus" after that makes me wonder if she's talking to him or letting out an exasperated "Jesus" the way the rest of us would. We don't see the final decision on the matter in this episode. 

Enough Is Enough

We resume the Rick and Morales face-off, and Morales explains he's not shooting Rick is because the Saviors were told not to kill him, the widow, or the king unless they absolutely have to. "Why are you here, Rick? I know you. Just like before, you're always the guy willing to rush in...but why?" Uh, bro, I don't think you can really say "I know you" to Rick. You guys hung out for what, a week maybe before the Walkers destroyed your camp and half of its inhabitants? Rick responds with an inquiry about Morales' family and Morales says they never made it to Birmingham, which was their destination when they left the camp. He scoffs when Rick tries to offer his sympathies and Rick mentions he lost his wife too. He then rattles off the rest of the list that Morales would know: Shane, Andrea, Glenn...and then he tells Morales that Negan killed Glenn and Glenn's pregnant wife is "the widow" Negan referred to in his instructions. Rick doesn't understand how Morales could be part of Negan's gang. 

Morales gets increasingly more tense as the conversation continues, with his nose wrinkling and his head tilting back and forth. He's starting to annoy the shit out of me. He tells Rick that when he lost his family, he lost his mind. The Saviors found him and it gave him a sense of worth again. "So yeah, I'm Negan. To make it this long and this far, I had to be. I had to be something. Just like you."  Rick tries to reason with him some more but Daryl ends the conversation for them (thank you - I feel like this has gone on forever). He sneaks up from behind and shoots Morales in the head as Rick starts to yell not to. When Rick tries to tell Daryl who he just killed, Daryl says he knew already and shows no remorse. 

The Saviors arrive and Daryl and Rick have to essentially dance and shoot their way through the hallways to secure their safety. They don't leave the building with heavy artillery, but hey, they found a baby. Rick takes some Polaroids of the bloody victory scene and I'm not entirely sure why. Documenting his kills for Negan? 

What About Us?

Back in Aaron's sorely understaffed group, the shooting continues as the zombie Saviors are devouring their own. Aaron has helped his wounded boyfriend away from the fighting and they sit near a tree to assess his wounds (any time a gunshot victim is sitting against a tree on these shows, it never ends well), and Aaron starts to cry. He apologizes to Eric for convincing him to fight. Eric is starting to cry as well and tells Aaron he needs to get back to the very not stacked group of fighters because they need him. Aaron doesn't want to leave Eric by himself, but Eric puts a hand on Aaron's face and says, "You know I love you. You know I'm right." They share what I assume will be their last kiss and Aaron runs back to the action. 

When all is said and done, Aaron's group is victorious and he rushes back to the tree. Eric's gun is there but he is not. Aaron cries and follows the blood trail...and he sees Walker Eric leaving the area. Poor guy. Aaron breaks down and is ushered away by a comrade and doesn't follow Eric and put him down. Kind of surprising, but there are more Walkers in view so maybe best not to cause a snot-crying commotion in their area. 

The show, er, war must go on though and Aaron meets up with Rick and Daryl. Rick introduces him to Gracie and Aaron offers to take her back to Hilltop. He says he and Eric had planned to go there anyway to update Maggie and he thinks Gracie will be safe there. Well yeah, no one pays much attention to Judith in Alexandria. God knows what would happen if another baby showed up. Aaron chokes out, "Please? I have to." He's breaking my heart. Rick hands him the baby and Aaron heads out. Daryl and Rick start to head out too when they are faced with more gunshots. Rick calls out to the lone shooter behind the tree and promises the guy he can leave unharmed if he gives up the location of the guns. Rick says, "I'm giving you my word. There's not a lot that's worth much these days, but a man's word has got to mean something, right?" The Savior steps out into the open and says the guns were sent to Gavin's outpost the day before. Then Daryl shoots him. So much for Rick's word. 

We Can See In The Dark

The episode opens and closes with the fighters from The Kingdom on their path "to certain victory." King Ezekiel addresses his people after they realize the Saviors know their location. Their surprise attack at a satellite sight was ruined by a scout but Ezekiel isn't worried. They continue on through the woods with a surrender strategy. Some of The Kingdom warriors allow themselves to get caught while the others flank the Saviors and shoot them from the sides. At the end of this battle all of Ezekiel's folks are still standing and he is still smiling. Hell, he even has Carol smiling! 

Ezekiel and company make it to the satellite location after another round of sneaking up and taking out Saviors, and and they dispose of the enemies outside the building pretty easily. Almost too easily. They realize once again that everyone in their army is alive and accounted for, and Ezekiel is starting to make a believer out of Carol. She smiles and says she's going to sweep the compound, and when she leaves...the Saviors open fire from the top windows of the facility. Ezekiel and his group are sitting ducks. 

The episode ends there and we're starting to get somewhere...I think. Eric honestly lasted longer on this show than I thought he would, and Morales annoyed me so quickly that I'm really glad Daryl took him out as soon as he did. While the followers in The Kingdom may have thought their "we will lose not one of our ranks" mantra would get them continuous victories, the rest of us know that in TWD world the ranks would suffer greatly. How many armored soldiers will survive? Will badass Carol save the day (I love it when she does that)? Will Jesus' plan of keeping the surrendered Saviors alive literally come back to bite him? AND are we going to find out what the hell happened to Gabriel? I never thought I would care so much about his whereabouts, but I loathe Dumbass Gregory and would actually like Gabriel to come out of this one unscathed. I've come a long way from agreeing with Carol's "leave him!" cry when the Wolves attacked Alexandria.

AHS Cult Episode 11: Great Again

Well kids, we have reached the final episode of American Horror Story: Cult.  When we last left our cast of questionable characters, Kai's cult was full steam ahead and one way or another there was going to be some sort of showdown. Kai vs Beverly? Kai vs Ally? Ally vs Beverly? I'll say that some of the events in this hour surprised me, some made me roll my eyes, and a few even caused me to cheer from my couch. Who emerged victorious when it was all said and done? Here's what went down in "Great Again."

Was It Something You Said?

The episode opens in 2018, where Kai is at a maximum security prison playing pinky power with a female guard and convincing her to show him her titties. Classy. Gloria and her titties have bought into the "divine ruler" bullshit, as have a ton of the inmates in this prison. Kai has built a new army of different ages and races, many of whom don't seem to realize exactly how expendable they are. More on that later, but how the hell did Kai get here?

We flash back now to 11 months earlier with Ally confronting the mole from the man army. He explains that he wears a recorder and is working with the police...but only because the police had been investigating Detective Jack. There were rumors that he was a crooked cop. How bout that? This guy was only supposed to expose that Jack was on the take, but low and behold he ended up as a mole in a cult! When Ally realizes the mole wears a recorder only and not a live wire, she kills him. She then breaks the news to Kai and he realizes Winter was innocent after all. No shit, Kai. You strangled her for absolutely no reason. He has an emotional breakdown (better him than Ally) and Ally comforts him, saying Winter's death doesn't have to be in vain. She tells Kai he can honor her by becoming the man she always believed he could be and I gag. 

Kai goes into the living room of his house/headquarters where the man army is ready for their next round of instructions. The group has gathered to execute the "bigger and better than Manson" plan and each dude has a pre-made backpack of items to send them on a killing spree. The victims? One hundred pregnant women. See, the Manson Family killing one pregnant woman wasn't big enough. Kai wants his cult to slay 100 and explains exactly how the women should be stabbed in order to impale both mother and child. Really? Beverly stands in the kitchen shaking from head to toe. When Ally approaches, Beverly begs Ally to kill her. She tells Ally, "If Kai had told me to, I would have killed you...and gotten a cheeseburger right after." Ha! Please Ally, don't kill Beverly. She's too priceless and most of the comic relief disappeared with Meadow and Harrison. Ally asks her to just hold on for a little while longer, and I'm hoping this means Ally is about to do something useful. 

Don't Leave Me Hanging

The "night of 100 Tates" arrives and Kai and the man army are ready to roll out. Ally starts to leave the house and tells an inquisitive member of the man army she's just going to get some snacks, which is the worst excuse ever. I'm surprised she isn't seized right then and there, but she walks out to a truck full of FBI agents and a raid begins. This had been building for a while - the FBI had their suspicions after Meadow's assassination attempt and they approached Ally to become their inside informant while she was in the psych ward. Neat. Through the haze of a smoke bomb we see some of the man army members killed by the FBI. Some kill themselves. Others are taken out by a now stoic Beverly and I cheer her on. Kai looks to be the last man alive and when he is ushered to the truck, he realizes Ally betrayed him and goes apeshit as he is driven away. Beverly is handcuffed as well and appears relieved as she makes her way out of the house. 

Several months later we see Ally running a very thriving restaurant, as her popularity has rejuvenated interest in The Butchery. Ever the humble hostess, Ally declines taking photos with patrons who refer to her as "one of the most inspiring women of our time" because she's just trying to put everything behind her. Oh for god's sake. Haven't we heard this shit before? Why don't we just have her on the Lana Winters Show at this point like Lee Miller in Roanoke? Suddenly Beverly is there (how on earth is Beverly there?) and she tells Ally that Kai pled guilty to everything and isn't going to trial. Like the rest of us, Beverly doesn't understand how she wasn't arrested, and Ally says she told the FBI Beverly was a victim and did not have a direct role in any of the murders. And plus, as a black woman she didn't fit the profile. Beverly still looks confused and I don't blame her. She casually says the only murder Kai didn't claim was Ivy's. Ally maintains that Kai killed her wife in front of her and her last words were "I love you, I'm sorry." You've got to be fucking kidding me. Beverly maintains her "you're full of shit" look, but really Ivy is a passing thought at this point anyway since Ally has been banging the new chef, Erica, for 8 weeks now. The lovebirds invite Beverly to Oz's upcoming birthday party and she accepts. 

Oz seems to have taken to Erika and she seems to be right at home with Oz and Ally. The birthday party is successful and it's nice to see that Oz still has friends after the crazy shit he and his moms went through. The phone is ringing off the hook these days and Erika screens the calls. At one point she mentions that Rachel Maddow's people called again, but Ally doesn't want to give any interviews about what happened. Too worried people will figure out you're a murdering liar, Ally? Erika encourages her to do the show since Maddow is "a legit feminist icon" and looks to Beverly to back her up. Beverly's response is, "If she turned down Lana Winters, why would she talk to Rachel fucking Maddow?" AMAZING! I was only (half) kidding earlier when I mentioned Stupid Lana. I get a really good laugh out of this. Ally says all she wants to do is be a soccer mom and a small business owner, and the conversation is interrupted by another phone call. Ally answers this one and it's a collect call from Kai. She accepts the charges and... wait. She accepts the charges?!? I'm at a loss. Ally wants to put it all behind her but sent him Oz's real paternity results. Why? Kai tells Ally that her status as the mother of his child was the only thing keeping her alive, but all bets are off now. She gloats that she's doing great and he'll spend the rest of his life in prison, and Kai threatens her some more and just about breaks the phone before he hangs up. 

All This Time You Were Pretending

The next time we see Ally, she's announcing her candidacy to unseat Senator Jackson...exactly what Kai wanted to do in 2018. Oh. My. God. Kai is banging Gloria when he sees this on TV and he notices Beverly is right by Ally's side. I hope Gloria likes it rough, because that's totally what she's getting tonight. 

Ally runs her campaign using her cult experience and trauma to gain support. One of her videos shows her kneeling at Ivy's grave. Anyone else notice the dates on the headstone say April 14th, 1984-2017? Was that special dinner also a birthday dinner or does Ally "just not recall" what day Ivy died? Anyway, Ally is trailing in the polls due to her lack of political experience, though she tries hard to spin that by saying she's a woman who will go to Capitol Hill and "take a sledgehammer to their antiquated system of oppression." She still goes into the debate against Senator Jackson with the odds against her. But wait... Beverly has news for Ally just before the debate starts. She says Kai was found dead in prison, his face mutilated beyond recognition. Riiiiiight. What Kai actually did was convince one of the inmates that kinda, sorta resembles him to get matching tattoos and pretend to be Kai while Kai makes his escape with Gloria's help. What dude doesn't know is Kai's plan was actually to stab him to death and make his face unrecognizable. He's coming for you, Ally. 

I mean, really?

Ally and Senator Jackson are trading insults on stage in front of a packed audience when Ally thinks she spots a familiar face in the audience. He approaches the mic in the aisle to ask a question and he introduces himself as Councilman Kai Anderson. Wowwww. The audience panics and Kai grabs a gun from Glora and climbs the stage. Senator Jackson steps in front of Ally and Kai hits him with the gun and knocks him to the ground. He tells Ally she's not a hero - she's a symbol he created. "You symbolize the hope that women will one day win an argument with their husbands...that they won't be cat called when they walk down the street...that their bosses won't talk about their tits anymore...that they'll make just as much money as the men make...that the fight is win-able! When I kill you, they'll see that there is no hope." Speaking of hope, where the hell is Beverly in all of this? Security guards? Anyone? Kai raises his gun to Ally's head and says women can't lead and women can't win. He pulls the trigger but the gun is not loaded. Kai turns to Gloria, who is now standing and smiling. She had been in cahoots with Ally for quite some time and the whole thing was strategically staged.  Just as he and the rest of us realize he's been had, Ally addresses him. "There is something more dangerous in this world than a humiliated man - a nasty woman." Beverly steps up from behind then and blows Kai's brains out. 

So Much For My Happy Ending

There's no big surprise when Ally wins the election and she puts Oz to bed that night with a huge smile on her face, telling him she is going to try to make the world better for him. He cuddles an elephant stuffed animal (reminiscent of Ivy's clown costume) and Ally hands him a Twisty toy to snuggle with and says she has to go to a meeting. When her son asks why she would need to go to a meeting at night she says she is meeting "some very special, very powerful friends who are going to help bring about that better world we were talking about...Women. A group of powerful, empowered women who want to change the system." Before Ally heads off to this meeting, we see her put on a black cloak. My first thought is: "Holy shit! Am I going to get Fiona Goode and Madam LaLaurie after all? Is this a Coven crossover?!?" But then I watch the scene again and realize this is a SCUM cloak and Ally is resuming the work of Valerie Solanas. 

And with that, Season 7 of American Horror Story is over. I'll say that when Cult started I was very much into the killer clown posse, the weekly reveal of who the members where, how the members became Kai followers (that Emma Roberts pet adoption event scene is one of my absolute favorites), and why those members began to turn on one another. With a theme centered around cults, the man army made sense, as did the bedtime stories and test of true loyalty in the kool-aid episode. But Cult took a turn around the time of the "Valerie Solanas invented The Zodiac Killer" hour and the season struggled for me a little after that. The most loyal allies became dispensable, Ally went from basket case to wife-murderer in a snap, Kai killed his two siblings when his bond with them seemed unbreakable, and instead of mystery and suspense, we mostly got repetitive rhetoric and gore during the second half of the season. Don't get me wrong - I like a gruesome death as much as the next viewer (is it even okay to say that?) but how Kai went from saving the innocent captives in the Judgement House to unleashing a slaughter on so many innocent people is still a gray area for me. His motivation was...Trump? Babbitt? Manson? The captivating power of manwiches? An All-4-One messiah baby? I'm still not entirely clear on the point of it all...other than allowing Sarah Paulson to get the best of a serial killer once again. Maybe I just need to think on it more. 

I will say though that the majority of the performances were fantastic. I feel like Evan Peters often takes a back seat to the women of AHS each season, but this was his year to shine, hands down. He was amazing. Billie Lourd, Alison Pill, Billy Eichner and Leslie Grossman were all great additions and I hope they return, especially if we are going to continue on without heavy hitters like Jessica Lange, Kathy Bates, Lily Rabe, Denis O'Hare, and Angela Bassett (though she did some directing this season). Not sure what American Horror Story holds in 2018, but here's hoping we get back to the supernatural or even extraterrestrial next year. Until then I will probably go back and watch Roanoke, Hotel, and Coven to remember the good ol' days.