The Walking Dead: 30 Days Without An Accident

When we last left the zombie apocalypse survivors of The Walking Dead, the sometimes dirty and mostly unshaven inhabitants of the prison welcomed the remaining Woodbury folks.  Having lost T-Dog, Lori, Andrea, Merle and Hershel’s leg, the Grimes group has already been through their fair share of heartache in the short time they had called the prison “home,” and God knows what will happen with all of these new residents. The Governor is still at large, much to the disappointment of many fans (myself included) but as long as Michonne and her katana stick around, it’s tough to be disgruntled. Here’s where we are after the Season 4 premiere.

 

It’s a Farmer’s Life

When the episode opens we see scruffy Rick surveying the land outside of the prison. I assume he is going out on patrol…but he’s actually heading out to his crops. Yup, Rick is now a farmer. Color me surprised. While digging and sifting through the dirt around some sort of green goodness, he comes across a handgun. Rick looks up at the Walkers gnashing their teeth at the fence, tosses the gun parts into his wheelbarrow, then continues his work.

 

You know who also knows a ton about farming? Hershel, because Hershel pretty much knows everything about everything. Our resident wiseman/doctor/patriarch gives Rick some planting advice before making fun of him…telling Rick he needs some overalls, a weed sticking out of the side of his mouth, and a bigger ass. Ha! Hershel and his fancy new “Lieutenant Dan” leg are quite spunky today. Hershel gets serious pretty quickly though as he also advises Rick to bring his gun when he goes to check the traps. Apparently the way Rick dismissed the gun he dug up earlier was telling – he’s not interested in using them these days. He and claims his knife keeps him safe enough, but Rick eventually humors the old man and takes his gun with him on his quest.

Carl is pulling his weight as a farmer as well, though he is very concerned about one of the pigs –one he calls Violet. Rick scolds him for naming the pig, reminding him that the animals are food, not pets. My mind immediately goes to “fish are friends, not food!” Anyway, Carl is also trying to be a normal pre-teen…or teen…I’m not really sure how old he is supposed to be at this point given the actor who plays him has definitely hit puberty. He’s into comic books and seems to be trying to balance out that who “kill or be killed” upbringing.  Good for him.

Fancy Meeting You Here

Rick notices on his excursion to check the traps that the animals in the woods, whether trapped or not, are dying or dead anyway. There are no Walker bits or anything – they are sick with most likely the same thing that is ailing Violet the pig.

Rick doesn’t have a lot of time to think on this though as a creepy ass woman comes into view also checking on the animals. She asks for help getting a dead pig home, saying she and her husband have not eaten in days, which I totally buy given how she looks. Knowing that the pig is bad news, Rick offers her a sandwich instead. The woman tearfully asks if she and her husband could leave with Rick, and he cautiously says he needs to meet her husband first.  Rick has three questions for him.

He follows Clara, the creepy ass woman, to her humble abode as she explains how she and hubby Eddie came to be out in the woods. Her story resonates with Rick and he softens as she tells him how Eddie taught her the unfortunate ways to survive…eating carcasses and questionable food, leaving people behind, and hiding from people who needed their help. Wow. Farmer Rick is wayyyy nicer than beginning of Season 3 Rick.

The two finally make it to Camp Creepy and to Rick’s surprise, Eddie won’t be answering any questions. Eddie is pretty much just the head of a Walker. Clara was hoping to feed Rick to Eddie but Rick pulls his gun on her. She tells Rick that she can’t be without Eddie. She then decides that she wants to also be like Eddie. As Clara grasps her knife, she begs Rick to let her become a Walker then stabs herself. As she dies, Clara asks Rick to tell her what the three questions were. Rick asks how many Walkers has she killed?  Clara states Eddie killed them all. He asks how many people has she killed? Clara says “just me.” When Rick asks why, she tells him that you can’t come back from the things you’ve done. She then dies. Rick honors her wishes and lets her become a Walker. Clara is next seen approaching the fence of the prison. I hope this decision doesn’t come back to bite him….literally.

Please Won’t You Be My Neighbor

The people of Woodbury treat Daryl like a rock star, and why not? Dude is a badass. Nerdy Patrick alone seems to melt when Daryl shakes his hand. I would too…but for totally different reasons. As far as new character introductions go, Nerdy Patrick is joined by Karen (Tyreese’s new girlfriend, Zach (Beth’s new boyfriend) and Bob…who seems to have some medical experience. Uh oh, watch out Hershel.

There are many other new prison residents as well, and they are lending a hand, killing the Walkers at the fence, cooking, etc. The children, however, haven’t seemed to found their niche yet though. Carl and Nerdy Patrick find them talking to the Walkers as if they are watching cartoons on TV. Two sisters in particular started naming the Walkers as well, receiving a quick lecture from Carl. He tells the girls the Walkers are not pets and shouldn’t have names because they’re dead. Sister #1 responds “They’re not dead…they’re just different.” Well, yeah kid. They’re different because they’re dead.

When we next see the sisters, they are taking part in “story time.” Carol reads to Woodbury children, a guy who seems to be there for security, and Nerdy Patrick. You would think she is trying to help them retain their innocence, but when the security guy leaves, Carol begins another lesson. She teaches the children about weapons. Nerdy Patrick can’t handle it and leaves just as Carl arrives and catches Carol showing the kids how to hold a knife. D’oh!

Scavenging

How awesome is Michonne’s episode entrance on the horse? Just when I think I couldn’t love her any more, she arrives with comic books for Carl and an electric razor for Rick. Thaaaaaaank you. Seems she spends most of her time on the hunt for The Governor. She sure likes to keep busy.

 

The sword wielding phenom goes on a run with Daryl, Glenn, Tyreese, Sasha, Bob and Zach. Bob sees a shelf of alcohol at the store and holds one of the bottles like Gollum clung to “precious.” I guess it’s safe to assume he has a drinking problem. He also has another problem – when he forcefully puts the bottle back on the shelf, the whole thing collapses on him…serving as a dinner bell for the Walkers. Way to go, buddy.

There is a hoard of Walkers milling about on the already unstable roof and as they make their way to the scavengers, the roof caves in and this run turns into an air attack. Glenn has a close call, and I’m thinking that Bob is a goner for sure, but ultimately Zach is the causality here.

Daryl approaches Beth’s “bedroom” when the group returns. He tells her about Zach and waits for her to break down. Instead, Beth goes to the sign on the wall that says “30 Days Without An Accident” and removes the 3.  Damn.  Beth and Daryl share a hug in the doorway of her cell, as Nerdy Patrick makes his way to the showers…vomiting and then dying. The episode ends with Nerdy Patrick becomes Zombie Patrick.  

 

Wow. This was quite a kick off to Season 4 with some unexpected turns. I was not expecting Rick to become so peaceful in the wake of the new tenants. I had thought for sure he would be even more paranoid than before (where’s ghost Lori?). I was also not expecting this mystery illness that is taking out the animals and now possibly Nerdy Patrick. Man, if I were to survive a zombie apocalypse only to die of the flu, I would be sooooo pissed. We’ll see how this plays out soon but here’s hoping our favorites last for the duration…or at least close to it.