In a culture where shows like Jersey Shore, Keeping Up With The Kardashians, and Here Comes Honey Boo Boo engross TV viewers everywhere, it's important to acknowledge programming that engages audiences with clever writing and stimulating material. Every so often the networks get it right and support a series that is a breath of fresh air with clearly developed characters, perfectly cast actors, and a luring and often intricate plot. In appreciation of such shows, I have started this commentary.

Tuesday, November 29, 2016

TWD Season 7 Episode 5: Go Getters

At long last we have made our way back to Hilltop, Jesus, and most importantly Maggie, as she struggles with losing Glenn and carrying her baby to term as safely as possible. This episode is frustrating (as I'm sure it was meant to be) and I'm hoping for better things for the...Hilltopians? Hilltopites? Hilltopees? Not sure exactly what to call them, but here's where they stand after "Go Getters." 

Get Me Through The Day
Maggie wakes up in Dr. Carson's office in Hilltop and she looks much better than she did the last time we saw her. He tells Maggie the placenta is detached from her uterus which is usually caused by some kind of trauma. Ya think? The baby is okay for now but Maggie needs to take it easy to keep the baby healthy. He suggests Maggie should stay in Hilltop until the baby is born so he can monitor both of them. 

Sasha is waiting outside and is glad to hear Maggie will be okay. Maggie asks Sasha "Where is he? Where are they both?" Sasha takes her to two fresh graves and hands her Hershel's watch. It had been in Glenn's pocket and she wanted to make sure Maggie got it. Abraham only had a cigar in his pocket which makes me smile. Sasha says she will stay in Hilltop with Maggie just as Jesus approaches (yay Jesus!) with fresh flowers for the graves. It's a nice moment until Gregory arrives. He is seriously the worst leader ever. He still doesn't know anyone's name and he's pissy because "Rich" and his group did not defeat the Saviors. Gregory wants Maggie and Sasha gone as soon as possible and tells them they can stay the night but must leave in the morning. He's a dick. I hope a Walker eats him soon. 

Later in the day Sasha confronts Jesus about Gregory and wonders why Jesus isn't leading the group. I laugh when she asks "What do you want, Jesus?" He says he just wants to help and Sasha replies that maybe he should do more than that. Jesus reaches into his pocket then and pulls out a necklace. It was Abraham's. Smokin' Hot Rosita made it for him and he left it behind in Hilltop the first time he visited there because all he could think about was Sasha. Smokin' Hot Rosita is going to be thrilled when she see's Sasha wearing it. 

I Can Hardly Breathe
The ladies are startled that night to see the Hilltop gates open and mini fires sprawled out at the entrance. There's also music blasting. It's like someone rang the Walker dinner bell. Sasha and Jesus spring into action and start taking out Walkers while Maggie hijacks a frigging tractor and mows a bunch of them down, along with the car whose radio is out of control. I'm glad someone knows what the hell they're doing. Where was Gregory in all this? Did the Saviors set this up?

The next day Jesus is trying to reason with Gregory to let the women stay at Hilltop. No dice. He wants them gone before the Saviors arrive but it's too late. Simon and many Saviors roll up and Jesus hides the women quickly. Simon informs Gregory that the group Hilltop sided with has been silenced. Gregory plays dumb and in addition to being the worst leader ever, he's also the worst liar ever. I will say the "I just pissed my pants" look he has on his face is my favorite part of the episode though. 

Simon pulls Gregory into his office and tells him they staged the Walker attack the night before to show the dangers just outside of Hilltop and how helpful the Saviors are in protecting them. The thing is...the Saviors didn't have to come in and protect Hilltop at all thanks to Maggie, Sasha and Jesus. I'll refrain from trinity jokes there. Gregory says his people must have learned some skills from the Saviors and that's how they were able to "clean up the mess" themselves. I don't think Simon buys that...he goes on to talk about the new group of people working for the Saviors now. "They are real go getters." Simon asks Gregory if there's anything else he should know about and Gregory takes him to the closet he thinks Maggie and Sasha are in. Instead, Simon finds that Gregory has been sitting on a plethora of scotch which has become his own personal stash in that closet. He's outdone Spencer by a mile. Simon takes all of the bottles and begins the "we take half of everything" search that the Saviors are so well known for...right after he makes Gregory kneel before him.  

When the Saviors finally leave the house, Jesus brings Maggie and Sasha out of a different closet and they are not happy. Jesus tells Gregory the women are definitely staying and that Gregory shouldn't be in charge anymore. Gregory says he made progress with the Saviors today and they can actually be quite reasonable. Maggie punches him in the face and I start clapping loudly. She just noticed that Hershel's watch is in Gregory's pocket...she had attached it to the rocks on Glenn's grave earlier. He tells her it would be a shame to leave a watch like that out in the rain. Dick. Maggie tells him this is their home now and he better learn their names. Jesus thanks Maggie and Sasha and apologizes for Gregory's nonsense. He promises to make it up to them. Sasha pulls him to the side and tells him he can do so by finding out where Negan lives. 

When You're Gone
Back in Alexandria, one-eyed Carl and his inexcusable hair are throwing darts at a dart board. You read that right. As you can imagine, it's not going well. Rick and Aaron are getting ready to go on a run and ask Carl to go with. He refuses because he knows most of the supplies Rick gathers will go to the Saviors during their next visit. Carl takes his whiny ass to the window and sees (surprise!) Enid is leaving. He's pissed, though I'm not sure why. Enid is ALWAYS leaving. She needs to see Maggie and Carl tells her he isn't going to save her anymore. She climbs the wall and my brain starts to hurt. 

Enid travels via bicycle (guess she had one hidden outside of the walls?) and she inexplicably gets off the bike when she sees a Walker approaching...so she's 100% back to being Stupid Enid. A car speeds by her then and runs over the Walker, and of course the driver is Carl. I'm not sure if he hit the Walker by accident because he's as accurate of a driver as he is a dart player, or if he's abandoned the "I'm not saving you anymore" thing in all of five minutes and decided to accompany her on her journey. 

I guess the car is out of commission now because the two kids continue on foot...but do not really walk near each other. Carl sees a backpack on the side of the road and finds two sets or roller skates in it. The backpack doesn't seem big enough for that, but the two start skating happily down the road toward Hilltop. As much as one-eyed Carl and Stupid Enid annoy the shit out of me, it's nice to see them actually being kids, even if it is short lived. 

They arrive at Hilltop just as the Saviors are packing up their truck. Carl tells Enid he plans to kill Negan and though she won't join him, she wishes him well with a smooch. Enid makes her way into Hilltop and attaches green balloons to what she thinks is Glenn's grave but is actually Abraham's. Maggie approaches just then with Hershel's watch to put back on the grave...but she gives it to Enid instead. "We don't need anything to remember him by. We have us." At first I think the hour is going to end on that touching note, but instead we see Jesus stow away on one of the Saviors' trucks. He takes a swig of scotch (heh) and then notices Carl is there too. 

The episode ends there, and as mentioned, there were elements that were infuriating. 1) Someone needs to take Gregory out. He sucks. 2) Someone needs to take Simon out. He's not as much fun as Negan. And 3) I think Carl could do both with the right set of darts if he stood just a foot to the right of where he thinks he should stand. Just sayin. I do, however, think this episode was a nice kick-off to Maggie taking over Hilltop and being a true leader. She was on the verge of becoming a huge influence as Deanna's right hand in Alexandria, and I'm excited to see what she has in store for the folks who have to understand that Gregory is a useless dick. Having to depend on a useless dick in a zombie apocalypse is beyond adding insult to injury....hence the reason I still believe Spencer will never have Smokin' Hot Rosita in his bed again. Zing! 

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