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Fuck you Tails  :D

So Abraham and Glenn....Discuss.

I thought it would be one of those but not both, Why couldn't it be Coral, the little prick.

What happens next? They're not just going to back down and be "owned" by Negan, that would be boring, but as they said, there's too many of them to fight them.
I hope this season doesn't go stale.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan it fucking awesome.

Remember in the ads there is the dude with the tiger, they will submit for a while but expect it will be a good season, neagan is a fucking brute!

Was up there with the red wedding from GOT. So brutal

I predicted Glenn and then thought I was happy to be wrong...and then BAM!

I can see them playing along for a bit and then giving up Alexandria to go guerrilla style to get Daryl back and fuck up Neagan.

I can see this happening, surprised about Glenn though, but he rode his luck big time last series.

Hopefully they can keep the tension going through this series

In some ways awesome episode. Rick is a broken man, Negan is a bad ass.

In another it feels a bit 'here we go again', super bad ass baddie that will, at some point, get his comeuppance from Rick..

lather, rinse, repeat.

Seemed somewhat unnecessarily brutal in some ways. More plot, less popping eyes

You could argue that pretty much every long running television show in history is 'lather, rinse, repeat'.

I must admit that I thought it bordered on the unnecessarily brutal at times but it was brilliantly tense and uncomfortable TV.

I thought the first 20 minutes was crass and an exercise in cruelly manipulating the viewers - brutality as a show of power. We were Rick to the producers Negan. It all felt as though the intention was to shock rather than develop a plot.

The same impact and effect could have been delivered with more subtlety instead of shots lingering a little too long on what seemed to be some kind of homage to Gaspar Noe.

After that, the episode improved somewhat but it's all very predictable again.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan was incredible though.

You could, but if it goes on too long it's doomed to failure. The problem for me is it's very hard to shock or do something new now and has become formulaic.

there are plenty of directions it could go in away from baddy of the season, hope they do that.
----
that said negan  seems in a different class to those that came before.

Don't worry, it'll soon devolve into a bore-fest again. Walking Dead seasons always do.

That was fucking brutal.

I'm glad Daryl and Michonne survived the killing and I agree with Chubbs that it was a shame Coral didn't get offed.

I get what Sonic says about them manipulating us viewers, and they were (they also milked it), but I still found myself on the edge of my seat and feeling rather tense. And Glen did genuinely shock me.

I think the brutality was almost necessary because it illustrated Negan's character and left us slightly unsettled and very aware of the total hopelessness of the situation. I also agree with others that Negan was immense, as was Rick.

It might turn into a "baddy of the series" like Batch says, but at the moment I'm still liking it. Having given up twice (maybe 3 times?) before though, I know I'm more than capable of doing so again.

I get that feeling too. Its bound to end with Rick getting his revenge and taking control again. Will be interesting to see how this other group plays out that Morgan seems to find his way into to though.

If any of you guys read the Graphic Novels (ok comics for grown up kids like me), you'll have noticed that there is a lot of foreshadowing in TWD television series. It also explains (in the show) why key moments like Glenn & Abraham's exit had to be as brutal. That's Negan. He's a brutal, sadistic, psychopath who isn't as stable as your average calculated serial killer...but then who would be in that world.

It's a changing of the guard, it had to be done that way and Greg Nicotero is "the Special FX guy" who directed brilliantly as always. Yes they milked it a little and it was horrific, yet we have to remember the key genre is Horror here.

Where do I think it will go....? I read the GNs so I have an idea of key moments going forward. Yet they still manage to surprise me in the show.

I'm looking forward to King Ezequiel (and his pet tiger Shiva) and all the others in The Kingdom, where Carol and Morgan are currently. Anyone remember Jesus? I think we'll see him more as we only had glimpses of him in parts of S6. He's part of The Hilltop. For me, he has more to play and seems a relatively equalled character. Erin is holed up at Alexandria (Maggie locked her in the cupboard) along with Rev. Gabrial and obviously a few others.

There are lots of ways this could go but in a nutshell we have now three groups. Negans The Saviours, The Kingdom & The Hilltop. As well as Alexandria (which I think will be given up). Don't forget that Eugene was formulating plans to run The Foundry to make munitions. This could still happen and may be pivotal (they all need ammo in this world) could be a masterstroke for him as will be a massive trade off.....if it happens that is.

One thing is for certain...not necessarily this season, but in a season Rick will die at some point. That's not a spoiler, that's just a common fact.

I see....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6l8MFdTaPE (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6l8MFdTaPE)

I know odds and sods of the comics, mainly through speaking to my friend who is a big fan. I'm looking forward to learning more about King Ezequiel, though the thought of him having a tiger like that seems very silly. Where the fuck did he get a tiger from....

I fear this season may go stale if they aren't careful. There are theoretically 3/4 story lines that have to be followed as mentioned above and for me, when they've done this previously I've found myself loosing track due to the constant chopping and changing, and in turn loosing interest.

As long as Coral gets it before they end the show, i'll be happy.

A zoo?

OK Smartarse. Maybe the question should be how the fuck did he get a tiger?

The zookeeper became a walker. Or he was the zookeeper. That's my preferred theory

I agree there are a lot of plot streams to follow. Think Alexandrians and The Hill top will merge and the main focus will be on Negan and The Saviours, along with King Ez and The Kingdom. Will "our" group separate further and join one of the three main groups (Daryl for instance, although enforced).

See what you mean about the Tiger being a bit silly (like in LOST with the Polar Bear, but they were all dead so anything goes) but the source will be revealed soon. For me it just makes me think how are they sourcing Shiva's food supply? hmmm :hmmm: :hmmm:

Yeah I thought Coralll is overdue some personal misfortune and thought it was going to happen in S7 E1, however this could be foreshadowing something else...Also when you watch the opening credit and Jeffrey Dean Morgans name flashes up, tell me what you see.

The show for me is really clever at times, even if it gets hammered for its writing, which considering it's essentially a comic I think it writes better than any soap and most shite that's out there alongside GoT and BB. All three though are completely different  so I never know why people try to compare them. Why not compare GoT with Sharpe, LOTR. compare BB with Trainspotting, Limitless, Pulp Fiction. Compare TWD with World War Z, Zombie Nation, DoTD, DayOTD, NoTLD etc.

ok, i got ya.

I've never actually seen it... keep getting told that I should!

I don't get it.  Have looked at the opening credits and can't see what you see..  Maybe I am just dense..

I'll PM you if you want, I mean I don't know if what I see means anything but it could be a potential spoiler.

The whole thread is a fucking spoiler thread  ;)

I get that, but to spoil something that hasn't happened yet, i'm not that mean.

Can we have 1 rule, no comic book spoilers ?

I agree, the thread was made to talk about episodes that have recently aired that not everyone has had a chance to see.

Talking about parts of the comic that have been shown on the TV and comparing the two is ok though.

Do it!!!!

I want a tiger

Not really much to talk about this week. A very tame episode giving a bit of an insight into "the kingdom" .

The tiger is still stupid.

They do seem to have these filler episodes every so often. I suppose they can't all be brutal gore-fests.

I really enjoyed that episode but I've always preferred the slower episodes and Morgan is my favourite character

The tiger is stupid....until you find out how it came about. Tbh though, on entering the Kingdom, it'd be the first thing i'd ask.. "Where'd the fuck you get that?"

Expect to be mentally pulled to pieces in the next episode..The Cell

Anyone else got "Easy Street" as an ear worm today ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoQ4GidQP-k

Oh aye! It was stuck after like the third play  :cry: :cry:

I didn't, until now.

Was nice to get a bit of back ground on Dwight and Negans relationship. Its very clear Negan has taken a shine to Darryl, but I think we all know he's not going to crack.

Question is though....How is that dynamic going to play out. Even the casual viewer will have worked out Negan is a totally detached psychopathic serial killer, who doesn't do "bonding". I feel Dwight is partially hoping Daryl concedes to Negan as he wants free of being his dogsbody. Nice reference to "what happened to Dwight" too :)

 The episode was really good and was a mental torture. Just goes to show how great it is as they don't even need the "Walkers" all the time. As the saying goes....."Fight the dead, Fear the living."

Its was a good episode, didn't really progress anything other than to confirm Daryl ain't "negan"

Do think Dwight will ultimately be Negan's downfall, maybe not the one to do the deed (if that happens) but instrumental in his comeuppance.

I love Rosita

She's a fucking bad ass.

 :blowkiss:

(http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/538184538497638402/9kp_rHmm.jpeg)

(http://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/ce/d5/a3/ced5a3c8bd6dc605e71ccc925f646ca4.jpg)

Couldn't agree more.

I'd rather she shot Spencer than Negan tbh

I'm starting to find Jeffrey Dean Morgan's over-acting a bit tedious now.

Don't think it helps having had an entire episode focused on him. Broken up between that and The Kingdom would have made it less obvious I feel.

me too, he's getting right on my tits

He needs a bit of conflict now. Three episodes of 'I'm a smart arse bad guy' is wearing thin.

I think he's excellent.  Your supposed to hate him, which is obviously working for some..

I don't hate him, I just want to see him tested. They've spent three episodes emphasising their ruthlessness.

LET'S GO!

I want to see some people get shot! Namely Coral!!

I was hoping it was going to happen last night.  Bit of a let down!  ::)

I hate him, but its not his character that I hate so much, its the portrayal. And the feeling of deja vu

Glad its not just me then. He was beginning to annoy me this episode.

Well now there's Darryl, his bike, and his crossbow in the same place at the same time..

Now we have another settlement. Will Tara keep quiet about it? How long before the saviours find it?

Don't you mean "Terror"?  :D

found last nights right down there with Fear The Walking Dead. Hoped one of the Fulci zombies would eat her and what's his face and save us the tedium.

as you can guess, don't really care about Tara.

oh and another settlement we'll probably see in 6 episodes time, come the mega battle with the saviours..

still, mid season break soon, so they'll have to get it interesting again now.

Why does everyone hate Coral so much?

he's a bit annoying and has shit hair as far as I can tell.

he's that kid who give its the tough act but when it comes to the nitty gritty he ALWAYS and i mean ALWAYS has have his ass saved. He's a liability to the group.

This series has been pretty crap. The last series wasn't very good. Maybe its had its day.

I liked that episode. I'm already bored of Negan.

needs a new direction/focus or an ending. they need to ditch being tied to the comics, even as loosely tied as they are.

 you can only keep going for so long on the bad guy, kill bad guy, new bad guy cycle.

Case and point, just kill the fucker and be done with it.

Man this series is shit.

Tonight's was shite. Watching Mars to get over it.

I thought tonight's was better than the last two weeks.

Negan is still a tad OTT

I haven't read the books so have no idea what happens in them but it looks like Dwight and his ex-wife might be planning something big for the mid-season finale.

I'd have thought negan  will do something coral related that'll result in him (Rick) finding a pair again.

Viva la  resistance.

I don't think they'd write out Carl so it'll more likely be Judith. There was a trailer for next week at the end of the episode last night and it ended with Rick doing his 'someone just got their brains smashed' face again.

Thats the problem with some torrents, they end before the "next time on TWD" get shown.

I can't see them writing Judith out, not in a gruesome way anyway. My money is on Coral...

or maybe Spencer.

I actually enjoyed last nights episode. Especially as we finally got to see the "iron" in use. Thought it was Dwight who was the fall guy for this every time but obviously it's going to be used on any "saviour" and anyone else.  Thought Negan was comedic in the darkest of ways. Just as you start to laugh at him picking on Olivia for saying that they are starving....he then goes completely ruthless and right there openly tells her he's going to rape her. Obviously this guy "does what he want's" as a dictator, as that what he is, I think he's using Coral as a protege which will destroy rick. There were moments in that "give me the tour" scenes where Coral was enjoying being alongside Negan. Impressionable would be the term.

The "eye" scene was fantastic and it wan't just "hey lets see your eye" it was a brutal reveal, with the highest intimidation. The prosthetics were great, as always. Then Negan turned almost sorrowful for a second which showed us yet another side of this psychopathic schizo.

I love the show, I'm biased, but i'm not immune to errors or "bad" story plots. The season has been a little too fragmented, a bit like when the prison was untenable and they all split. Maybe not as severe, as they all still  (for now) have Alexandria/Hilltop as their base. Although we need to know what is happening with all the characters it's touched on too briefly to give any depth. In film making this is hard to do and there are 4/5/6 plotlines and then they throw in the Oceansiders and Then Boathouse guy Leslie William.... I caught...who may or may not be dead.

All in all E1 was a hard ep to follow. E2 showed us the key split but there was no real detailing. However we needed a rest from E1 (forgivable), still answers needed from The Kingdom though. E3 The Cell was great one man acting from Daryl as we saw him become 90% broken and thats hard to hold an audience when it's mainly just you in the majority of an episode. E4 was a little bit of a let down. Yes Negan had to come back to Alexandria and "take half of their shit" but it never fully got interesting, even the side plot of Michonne and the guns. E5 Was good. To get back to the Hilltop, see Jesus (who I thought would feature more tbh), Maggie and Sascha overthrow Gregory as he was weakening to the Saviours. It was a warning to anyone though that these Saviours are prepared to do anything and Simon is great....he's much better than Dwight. E6 Swear (Tara/Heath) we needed to know of Tara's whereabouts, but a whole episode...i'm not sure. The beggining threw me though which was good as I was like...where are we, what show am i watching? Although like the "JDM Iron foreshadowing" the credits could have told me Tara was Oceanside as "Alanna Masterson" appears on the crashed boat she is in towards the end of the episode. I like it though, it's a nice touch. However maybe they should've focused on the Oceansiders community more and suspended us with say them showing us Tara kidnapped by them later in the episode? Will we see them again? If not it was pretty pointless including them in the show, even if it gave us indication of Taras whereabouts....hmmm tricky one.E7 i've spoke about and I thought it was good although it fragmented by showing us where several of our survivors were. E8 is going to be pretty interesting as I can't really think how they're going to bring them all together. Carol is bound to show up, for sure?

One thing that got me about last nights episode was where the fuck did Jesus go after being on the roof of Negans truck? As they pulled away Daryl glanced up as if to have noticed him and then the shot went back to the van pulling away and he had gone....surely it was too "Saviour heavy" for him to jump of at that location?

Apologies for the long reply/review. So I await the abuse  :D :D :smack: :suicide:

Nice review.

RE: Jesus.

During the episode 2 saviors were waiting in their van for the  walkers to disperse. As they continue to drive back to Negan Jesus as Coral are in the back of the van. Jesus suggests they should jump out and follow the rest of the way. Coral says "you first" so Jesus jumps but Coral stays in the back of the van never intending to jump and waves goodbye to Jesus.

Or did i miss something from this weeks episode?

Cheers.

Naa not that bit. When Negan takes Coral for a "ride" back to Alexandria. Jesus is on the roof of the van. The camera pans down and we see Negan and Coral. Daryl is at the gate along with other Saviours and he says something to Negan, To which Negan gives him the bird. Daryl then looks up towards the roof of the van (as if he's aware of Jesus presence (oh the irony)).  As they pull away, the camera pans up again but Jesus is nowhere to be seen....Where the fook is he? haha.

yeah, I think he'll take him back to Saviourland (whatsitcalled?!) with him. That'll start Rick on the  road to a war footing.



Massively. They introduce the Kingdom, then leave it. They leave Carol in a shack. The spend a very dull episode on Hilltop ( ac couple of important events aside). Then they out dull themselves with an entire Tara episode.

If you don't keep spinning the plot plates its going to go wrong eventually.

-

Can only assume in the back of the van..

I agree in part. The beauty is...there is plenty of material to work with. This was a better episode tbh. Mind you we've been spoiled by the quality of this over a long time. I have enjoyed every season for different reasons and taken them with an open mind (after all it is probably the most realistic fiction on tv). There is also a lot of garbage (hasn't there always been) on tv so i'm not ready to walk out on one of the best long running shows, just yet. If all the soaps can run as long as they do then i'm certain TWD has it's own large niche that'll cater for years to come. Sooner know about the lucky son of a gun Eugene slowly getting close with Rosita, than about Rita and Norris's sexual fantasies....aaanyway :)

Naa he would've been spotted  getting from roof to inside the van by The Saviours at the gate as the van pulled away.

think i missed that bit. I remember negan giving the bird, must have looked away

We'll see (probably in about 8 episodes time:)). I think you are giving TWD writers too much credit. There were spotters in the building behind the van too, they should have seen him...

Forgot about the reference to Omar Comin' at the start of the episode yesterday.

(http://i.imgur.com/rdlXgjT.gif)

Meh

Had a feeling Spencer would get it.

Such a predictable episode, as much as i'm fed up with it, i can;t give up watching as I've got this far. The same happened with Lost.

I did enjoy Negan this episode mind, he had stared to grate on me a little but he was very good this episode.

Actually, this sums it up better than " meh". Pretty much exactly how I see things.

Can't believe they'll off Negan so soon mind, listen very carefully I shall say this only once : suspect this is the start of a resistance and intelligent way to take Negan out. Can't see them having the numbers and hardware to defeat the saviours in a straight fight.

Admittedly, I saw the "Spencer" moment coming. However, not as brutally and was expecting him to be ordered shot. The Olivia kill was good though and I think this was foreshadowed in the previous season when Denise got shot in the eye/brain with an arrow. Spare a thought for the Special FX guys though. That was some great/gruesome gut spillage!

 I actually liked this episode because it tied up a few scraps, without going full cliffhanger. This shows confidence from the show that they don't need to end every mid-season and season finale with a huge cliffhanger. I think they quickly learnt this from the ending of S6 (while it was an awesome finale, it grated with the more die hard viewer/long term viewer, as they didn't need to leave us wondering. However, when the wait was over, they did make an incredible S7 premiere, so I couldn't complain after that exhausting, brutal episode....enough of that.) and that's a good thing. One thing about TWD is that they do listen and respond to the fans, after all we make any show a hit simply by watching.

What intrigued me more was, lets call him/her "boot guy" that left more questions. We saw "boot guy" twice. At the lake when Rick and Aaron were leaving the boathouse and then right at the end after the credits (if you missed it, youtube TWD S7 E8 end credit scene). "Boot guy" is basically seen spying on Alexandria at night as Fthr Gabriel is being night watchman. The clips ends as "Boot guy" makes footing inside Alexandria's walls. The only distinguishing features we have is...The have a strange pattern on one of the boots on the toe cap. They have a bandana of some kind on. My guess and it's only a guess, is that it could be Boathouse guy is still alive and possibly wants his guns back. Maybe boathouse is more integral to the story and with everything else going on, we've dismissed it as a new character lead? I could be barking up the wrong tree here but i'm certainly interested to find out who he/she is? What are your thoughts on this?

MuMy initial thoughts on boot guy is that its the boathouse guy. But who knows. It could be anyone.

True. I shall be discussing this no doubt, with whoever will listen. There are many ways they could take this next half. We know a battle is building (again), but who's battle will it really be, and for whom?

Its clear to all that there will be a battle with Alexandria, Hilltop and the Kingdom Vs Negan and the Saviors,

As already mentioned, its highly unlikely it will be an all guns blazing blood fest due to the saviors inferior arsenal of weapons. One option already discussed in the trailer for ep 9 was to just bomb the place but this was discounted due to there being a lot of people being held by Negan against their will. So we're looking at something more intelligent.

We didn't see Dwight this episode. Are the producers trying to throw us off the fact that he is getting more and more frustrated being Negan's right hand man and in my eyes he will be instrumental in Negans eventual demise.

I can't help but think the Oceanside camp is being left out for a reason, will they play a part in taking out Negan and a saviors? Its very likely, which also brings me back to the boot man/woman. I think the producers want us to think its a man, but its very likely it could be one of the women from Oceanside.

There are many ways the second half of this season can go. From the little i do know from the books there is still so much to be uncovered, such as more camps and groups but who's to say they will even make an appearance in the TV show , this season or in the future.

Pretty decent episode to come back to. Slow start but picked up mid way. That smile at the end by Rick, to me says, he's just found his army. But something tells me its not going to be a straight forward as he might think.

Who were the group at the end? They are not saviors, and they are not Oceanside. I've read something about a group called the whisperers, but i don't know much more than that.

Another through was with Gabriel and the food, where did he go? Has he got something to do with this new group?

Too many questions, not enought answers

I thought they were the Oceansiders. oh well

I reckon Gabriel has gone with the guy from the boat that Rick and the gay fella looted

I believe the guy is a gal from what I've seen. Anyway, Gabriel must have known she was in the car as she stuck her head up just as they drove out of Alexandria. The message Gabriel left also makes me believe they're working together.

The only reason I can think of is that Gabriel is trying to protect what is left?

Oceanside is women only. There were plenty of men in this new group.

I didn't catch that bit in the car, but that would make sense.

This gets filmed where I live, my wife went to go see "Alexandria" last week, watched my first episode this week, it was ok.  Will see if being close by causes any insight - they do offer extra's roles to the locals.

You live in Crewe now Rob? :D

That would have been a bad move!  Newnan (some of it is filmed here), which is next to Senoia (where Alexandria is filmed).  Pinewood also have studios nearby where they film most of the Avengers stuff.

Hi, welcome back to S7 of TWD to the small group of people ion here that contribute.

Yeah a good mid-season opener and i'm with Chubbs that although it started slow, the show again proved it doesn't have to go "Full Metal Jacket" every time. It should basically have been called "Forces Recruitment" because that's pretty much what Rick was trying to convince people (namely the Kingdom) to do. The fragmentation has pulled together a bit quicker too and there is a sense of solidarity building again. A Kingdom ally in Richard will hopefully convince King Ez that the Saviours are just one threat away from an all out carnage. King Ez knows this, but he obviously wants to play Peacemaker (pretty much like Morgan, but they're both being tested more and more).

The episode ended with a new group of people and Rick throwing a smile...had he found his army? Were they connected to "Boot Guy/Woman"? Are they a sect of the Saviours (do not discredit this theory for a moment, that could be the big plot spin)? I guess we'll find out in E10. The cumulation of the episode did leave us with just enough questions. I think questions without enough answers initially is good because it means we're talking about the show and the story, instead of if the show is boring us. E9 definitely wasn't boring :)

*********Update***********
So onto E10.

First off I'm really jealous of RobertT. If you invite me to yours, just so I can be an extra in TWD then i'll pay you in Luke Williams interviews for life.....That's fair yeah? :)

E10 was also pretty good. The fragmenting has eased even more and the plot is focusing on the main task at hand "overthrowing  Negan". We have a solid base and as revealed in this episode Rick now has his army led by the eerily "Star Trek" humanoid looking Jadus. She evidently has an overwhelming "Negan like" control over her group. What's scary is that they are all inherently calm about it. To me this makes Jadus more interesting than Negan. While the true Negan character is somewhat erratic and totally detached, acting on impulse. Jadus  (only of what we have seen so far) seems to be able to get what she wants but without a bloodbath. This could take the show to a more intelligent, interrogating level (Which I hope it does). Even though, she has tasked Rick with getting them "Guns & Jars" I have a feeling the Negan overthrow will be more of a Kidnap/Ransom/Capture/Painful demise. That's not Graphic Novel related btw...I know what happens to Negan in that initially and I don't think the show is going down that route.

The next episode will fragment partially, as shown in the end credits we have a Clip of Negan and Dwight, and also Eugene. Is Eugene now making arms/bullets for Negan at the Foundry? or will Ricks group get him back and use his intelligence to create the arms needed for Jadus? Eugene is a massive power play here. I fear it could end in his death...

Back to E10 and the reuniting of Daryl and Carol was handled brilliantly. They are true soulmates per se and not necessarily lovers. Just an understanding that goes way beyond. Great play by Daryl again not letting Carol know that Glenn and Abe had been brutally murdered by Negan and all the associated psychological shit that came with that. He knows she's currently in a really broken place mentally and she doesn't need that information right now. They handled that pretty well and again it shows a more deeper side to the show. I think so anyway!

The episode threw up enough drama, tenseness and intrigue to keep even a newer viewer interested. As a long term viewer it was enough to bring everything back together and start building towards taking out Negan. What are your thoughts on last nights episode? Boring, Good, Average, Intriguing, Interested? Whatever, let us know and all constructive criticism is welcome. I await the abuse :)

Probably going to give up on it. Last series was shit and so is this one. Shame I really enjoyed the earlier series but it's past its sell by date and trading on former glories.

Quite enjoyed the first two episodes since the break, if not the Battle Royale/Negan plot.

Perhaps Rick can become King of Kings and we can move on from this endless "bad group of the season" for a bit and move in a different direction..

I love reading your write-ups.

Finally watched ep10. It seems like they are working toward a big blow up next episode. From the trailer It looks like Dwight will feel the wrath of Negan for allowing Daryll to escape.
There was a clip of everyone congregated in the foundry again, could this mean someone else is getting the iron? Maybe Eugene? Personally i don't think they will hurt Eugene, but as already mentioned be made to work and make ammo.

This new group interest me, they almost look like extras from Stargate-SG1. What was with that walker in the pit? That's something i would expect to see in a Resident Evil game, which coincidentally is about Zombies so i'm not quite sure where i'm going with this. It all just looked a bit out of place

The big question is will Tara give up the location of Oceanside to Rick of will she keep it quiet?

Chubbs, Yeah I'm considering doing a Youtube TWD Episode Vlog. There's a few that do them but thanks man, I appreciate it!

I think Tara (Terror) will lead Rick et al to Oceanside, whilst we're viewing the scenes at the Foundry. I imagine Negan will start to get really pissed and someone will take punishment for it. I'm kind of hoping he goes top end brutal as his character is such an out and out unforgiving psychopath. So my guess is we will get a Foundry/Eugene/Dwight Ep. next. Then a revisit to Oceanside led by Tara. Possibly back to Hilltop and The Kingdom where Carol will be reunited with everyone and convince King Ez to go to battle (she's the only one who can). Back to Jadus group for delivery of weapons etc. Have no idea about Ep15 soapy tit wank. Then S7 Fin will be some kind of battle/stand off or maybe this is where my prediction that Jadus group will turn out to be a Saviours sect and our survivors will be well and truly fucked :D

Be interesting to see how wrong I am. But i'm kinda getting ahead of myself here!  :suicide: :suicide:

I'm really enjoying the second half of this series, it's not been fast paced by any means but everything is clearly setting up for a climax. It's fascinating to see more of the interpersonal relationships of the group and get to know other characters better.

The Eugene assimilation and Dwight silent rebellion is extremely intriguing, the final scene with both of them in the compound with Dwight only mustering a 'yeah' in response to Eugene's declaration was understated but vital. I can see Negan being overthrown from within.

I'm enjoying this season, seems to be building up nicely to the inevitable war against the saviours.

Really enjoyed this recent episode, seeing Eugene adjust to life with the saviours. As SY mentioned, it does seems like there may be some sort of bond forming with him and Dwight and i think Dwight knows its only a matter of time before he is on the receiving end of Negans wrath.

Will Dwight double-cross Negan with Eugenes help? It would seem thats the way its going.
 

Hey guys, really enjoyed that E11. As predicted it was back to the Foundry for the Negan/Dwight/Eugene Ep. Really liked the way Eugene integrated himself and feel he is becoming an underestimated power. Negan, while knowing Eugene has knowledge also thinks he's weak which is Negans downfall.  Also remember that all the stuff Eugene said to Negan about being a Dr and the human genome project is a lie. Arc back to S5 E5 (I think) when he told Abraham the same, then later confessed. Yeah i'm sure he's clever and knows some basic science tricks but this was a clever play from Eugene and he has Negan fooled. Also makes me think of Goldstein a little so clever use of the character forename there :)

I enjoyed Negan more in this episode as he dropped the almost grating "woopsy daisy"act and was out ans out back to his brutal self. 

The two "Negan Wives" were great, can't remember their names though but you can see they are desperate and I think the dark haired one could get with Eugene.

I think Dwight will double-cross Negan as his time is running out. I really hated the coward at first but knowing the character more you understand him and his plight/predicament. I would love to see him finish Negan. Looking forward to his Ex wife turning up somewhere too.

The second half of S7 is doing itself justice after a slack few in early S7, namely E5 and E6 detracted a few viewers but the mid-season premiere apparently attracted over 15mil viewers in America so its still the top show, and it must be doing something right still. Anyway, I don't care for ratings much. 9 or 10 mil tune into Xfactor and I can't stand it.

So what are your thoughts for E12? Will our survivors head to Oceanside with Tara or will Rosita start making bullets at the place where Eugene showed her. Still so much more to come this season and it's really shaping up!

wank episode this week....

That was really bad. The Rick/Machone montage was cringe-worthy, especially the sword throwing part at the end.

Looks like the guys will be paying a visit to Oceanside very shortly.

what was with the clichéd nostalgia stuff? falling through the roof, Rick's 'glen' escape, etc...

hope they explain why the rubbish people are odd, perhaps it's whats left of the Mad Max appreciation society.

yeah, Oceanside, might move on  to be better next week.

I must be becoming a proper fan or some kind of apologist as I quite liked it.

having a different opinion... heretic

Of course.  :girlgiggle:

As I'd read your comments before I watched it, I think you'd just lowered my expectations. I imagined an episode like the fly in breaking bad.

How funny, a colleague just said the same thing to me about the fly episode.

I liked it. Not a lot happened. Felt a bit like old times.

I think Michonne is gonna die.

If Sasha and Rosita go through with their plan to secretly go after Negan, i dont think that will end very well for them.

A lot of people are gonna be written out I reckon, there's almost too many characters now - how much have we seen of Maggie for example?

I have a feeling you're right. I don't recall seeing Coral much of late.

I think it's pretty much been confirmed that at least Sasha will die, she has signed up for some sort of Star Trek series that is coming down the pipes..

good, shes fucking annoying

Annoying or not, I'd stick it in her.

Not, no no no.
Rosita on the other hand

Afternoon.

So did anyone watch E13 then?

I thought it was a better step up from E12 to be honest. I too didn't really enjoy the Rick and Michonne "love in" or "honeymoon"it was a little pointless Rick saying "lets just stay a couple more days.." there wasn't the best logic to it and considering it was a Greg Nicotero directed episode it disappointed me even more. I'm going to say it was the worse episode he's directed on TWD. There were still some great Cult Zombie references though, especially the "Creepshow Walker" in the ticket stall at the carnival. Did you spot it? Well, I don't know, maybe i'm just too much of a Zombie geek but I love those references.

Admittedly the Catana slo-mo throw was very cringey to me. I get the nostalgia effect but TWD (esp. Nicotero) should know by now that they don't need to do this to keep people interested. However there were some good zombie kills by the lovestruck couple, which satisfied even my partially pacifying, satanist mind (is that a thing?). Aaanyway...

Onto E13, So yes did anyone actually watch it? I was pretty surprised Richard was killed in this episode and I wasn't really expecting Morgan to regress to his days of "Clear". I thought  Lennie James played his scenes really well and it was a testament to his acting skills. He's come a long way since Snatch. The whole Melon thing was a little far fetched but I guess Richard had, had enough and wanted to start something. We all know the Saviours run a tight ship.

It was a shame Benjamin had to die but this was always going to be inevitable at some point. He won't be missed too much in all respect. The bit about the episode that got me the most was when Carol came to tell King Ez that "We need to fight" and he agreed but with the precursor  "but not today" and it cuts to her joining him in tending to his vegetable plot! Ok maybe they don't need to fight there and then, but i'm sure there are more important things like; Where the fuck is Jesus? Is Coral still an integral cast member? Did the show just write Dwight's ex-wife Sherry out the show or will we in fact see her again? Is the Junkyard going to end up being a pointless distraction, like the people at the Hospital in S5? Fucking cabbages or carnage, I know what I prefer in TWD (well I like a really good plot*) but each to their own!

I think the episode on the whole geared us up ready for the finale but we've two more episode before that, I'm really hoping this episode throws up a game changer/small plot twist/extremist Neganism/Rick red mist but I just have a feeling that like the last two, they'll be a bit "fillerish". I really hope i'm wrong and it's not an episode focusing entirely on Alexandrians long running survivor and once Carol comforter Tobin, and Aaron's lover Eric. I'm sure it won't be. Surely after the Junkyards Jadis, previous rejection of Ricks weapon offering (careful), Tara HAS to take a few survivors to Oceanside and explain their plight?

What were your thoughts on the episode? Did you enjoy similar elements or something else? Was it "totally wank" or "really enjoyable" or a bit "yehh-mehh".

Once again, await criticism and beration as standard.

Cheers,

Kev


*Definitely not a Cabbage plot

It could've been better. Especially off the back of the previous slow episode. I've decided to wait until the series has finished and then download then all so I don't have to wade through Lost like filler.

I've gone back to the start as I have no life to speak of. It's interesting how the characters have developed

For sure, I've also no life and regularly rewatch the pilot season and season 3 & 4. The pilot episode was such a gripping introduction.

btw tonight's episode 14, was a bit more back on track and tense at times. I enjoyed it. This was more the kind of "average to good" episode. I'll stop because i'm not going to spoil it before the episode has aired here :) Enjoy.

2 awful episodes sandwiching an ok one sums up the last 3. enjoyed last weeks much more

it's a shadow of its former self

I've done this too.

Current series like the previous few has been a bit meh.

When its good, its fantastic but the rest of the time it can be really dull.

I find myself caring less and less about each character now. They should just finish it with Carol terminating everyone in a fit of rage.

They have taken too long to build it up this time that's been the big problem. I think the last 2 episodes will be quite action packed though and we will get the usual end of series cliffhanger.

No, w won't get a huge cliffhanger like the end of S6. Scott Gimple, Gale Ann-Hurd and Robert Kirkman have said as much. They've said (well Gimple) that what happens in the S7 finale pretty much sets us up for the next 100 episodes (S8 E1 is the 100th ep). That's some statement of intent.

I think you're right in the length of time to build up though. Not so much E14, but E12 and E13 were very filler orientated. There was still good stuff in them but i get the frustration. E15 should be pretty tense one, which ultimately lingers on Sasha either getting killed or being saved by Daryl and Rosita.....possibly Dwight too. Then the onslaught will ensue. I think the Finale will be good and more like S3 finale, which wasn't a cliffhanger but led us on a S4 route that showed a broken Governor find his confidence again and come back at S4 MSF even more brutal. Damn I miss those times! Thought they were on track again with Negan and 'i hope I'm proved wrong.

Trouble is, the show came under a lot of complaints in both America and the UK for the graphic scenes of the S7 premiere (the US cut is even more gory in "those opening scenes" than the UK cut) so they have had to cut certain scenes from several episodes. I believe the Carl eye reveal and the Spencer kill were nearly pulled too.  Also, we all kinda hate Negan (we're supposed to) but the character has become more "loveable rogue" as the season has gone on. The truth here is, Negans comic character and many of the Saviours are total rapists too. The scene last night where Enid takes the fruit to distract the Saviour from finding Daryl and Maggie was supposed to be lets say a lot more horrific than dropping a few veggies.

 So maybe they feel like they have had to hold back in some areas, which reflects on the show as not shocking us as often as they have in the past. Come on TWD, fuck the complaints and show the real grittiness and shock of life in the twisted power driven psychopathic world!

Last 3 eps haven't been great, its clearly the calm before the storm but just a bit tedious.

Question in my head is how did Daryl get to Sasha and Rosita so quickly? Even on a bike it seemed a bit rushed.

Eugene surprised me but not wanting to escape but it does seem like he's got a good gig there so maybe he thinks he's safe.

Its been 2 episodes since it was suggested that Tara was going to give up the location of Oceanside so that story-line is still to come back.

I agree with bamboonoshoe in that i'm hoping for real grittiness in the final episodes. Whilst the rape bits can stay in the comics i really want to see loads of blood and guts in the finale.

assuming it is Daryl

Hey man,

For sure it's the calm before the storm to war :)

Eugene didn't surprise me one bit, but I thought he may have buckled at the sight of Rosita, but yes I agree, he's got it cushy for now I guess. Win-win for him.

Yeah surprised they haven't touched on the "Tara/Oceanside" yet, it must be included in E15 surely? Before they all assemble and go ahead with the plan, even though Rosita and Sascha have inadvertently put a spanner in the works. Then again it could be a good smokescreen as the Saviours won't realise so much  that the "Two woman attack" is just the first wave of a building Tsunami!

I wasn't implying they show full on scenes like that (see The  Last House on the Left, Ted Bundy, and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (original vers.)), but an inclination that something horrific has taken place. Just so we're clear on how evil this group is meant to be, and consistently so. As awful as storylines like that can be to follow/see unfold it's a brave and good writer/producer/director that goes through with those ideas. Even some soaps approach those subjects and do it really well, in fact it helps raise awareness. I think we're all not naive enough to know that in a world like TWD, a lot more evil types would be more prominent and things like abuse would be more at the forefront of culture, after survival, quite simply because there would be no real process of stopping it. Except for someone in a group murdering the said abuser. Capital punishment, because in TWD it's either that or you get away with anything.

One other thing, who babysit's Judith now Olivia is gone and everyone else is preparing for war? Tobin? Eric? The ghost of Deanna? (sorry, i'm being a knob).  :suicide: :D :D

Pretty certain it is Daryl as his only real line in the show was "Where's Sascha and Rosita...?" and then he was gone. I tell you what though, if Norman Reedus doesn't play the role of Batman one day then the film industry needs better casting agents. He'd be perfect for it.

I was in bed streaming it low def on my iPhone and i could still tell it was Daryl.

 :D :D :D :D :D (sorry Batch)  :soapy tit wank:

Tbf to Batch though, the only other person it could be (who has a bow) would be Dwight....  :cupid:

yes i meant it could be Dwight.

She seemed to shit herself when she saw whoever it was. which would be an odd reaction to Daryl..

It was dark, maybe she saw what the audience saw. a silhouette. Nothing is ever black and white with this show, so anything is possible. maybe CORAL has come back to fuck things up as usual.

I thought it was Dwight.

The preview for the next episode suggests they pay a visit to Oceansiders...

Ahh my stream cut off before that. Normaly i head over to youtube to check it out but it was late.

Yeah, that's not Daryl, it's Dwight.  This will be the beginning of him defecting to Rick's gang..

Pretty generic TWD related question but do any of you guys watch The Talking Dead? I used to but haven't watched as many as I usually do. For some reason it's been really hard to find a TTD related link which is bizarre. I know the shows popular in America...as it's live. Almost as popular as TWD itself. Chris Hardwick is ace, in the sense that as well as being a fan/geek/nerd his humour is different to that of most american chat shows. I feel he presents well to the UK viewer.

Anyway, I'll post about S7 E15 later if any of you can bare to read it. FWIW...I thought it was a good episode.

Good episode, with the Dwight reveal at the end that we knew would come. Oceanside stuff was OK too, they have what they need for the mad max group to enter now.

Get the impression the whole Negan thing is going to drag and fill up the whole of the first half of the next season though, I'm bored of it.

Completely agree.

Simply can't see how they resolve the whole Negan problem in a whole episode. There's been no training, no planning, nothing. Are they just going to rush his camp en masse?

Can't help but think the sniper idea that Sasha wanted to do is the answer to be honest. When she scoped him so easily it made every other plan look silly.

i can only see the ending of the next episode being the coming together of all the groups with a war face, tooled up and ready to fight.

wouldn't be surprised if somebody double crosses Rick.

all speculation, not read comics/spoilers

Again agreed.

TWD is capable of throwing a random twist in, so maybe something unexpected will happen. It'd be kind of good/funny, if Sasha simply slips him the poison and he's gone before anything happens.

Yeah I watch the talking Dead, it's on Fox an hour after the Monday night showing of the new episode.

Oh sorry Berni, I understand its on FOX straight after but I'm cheap (usually watch it at bro in laws) and when I'm not watching it elsewhere I tend to find a stream of it just like TWD. It just seems harder to find TTD streams as opposed to TWD streams due to it's increased popularity.

Well!! S7 Finale... Not to be missed.

That's some serious rose tinted specs there, imo.

I thought it was annoying, predictable and another exercise in milking the viewer. I won't be rushing for the next series.

Not rose tinted at all. I don't think for a minute they milked the viewer (ok, very, very slightly). Actually thought they learnt their lessons from the last finale and did as many fans asked in not leaving us hanging. A finale will always throw up some kind of hanging element but they didn't go all out to leave us wondering. They are however allowed to give a compelling, humbling and reflecting episode without being bashed for it. Then again when you're at the top a lot of people want to find ways to bring you down. It's all about opinions I guess and I respect yours.






Cunt.

I absolutely respect yours.

I think what annoyed me is we had all that build up and then what felt like a bit of a cop out. I hate the way Negan, predictably I suppose, got out scot-free. And every time someone's near him they seem to let him live. I hoped it'd be a simple bite from Sasha. Then I hoped the tiger mauled him, in more than a Hull-fan's way. Then I hoped Dwight offed him...

I get that the writers/producers wanted to make us feel that, but they ALWAYS make us feel that. I suppose we're gluttons as we keep coming back and they know it. I think what I find most annoying, is this series has been like a few in the past where it's all build up and then nothing really happens.

And Negan could be so much more if he actually displayed something more substantial in his character than petty-rogue. I don't even understand how he rules over so many when he doesn't even come across as particularly unhinged or intimidating. And he has almost no protection. He walks everywhere without a care in the world.

He could be a properly evil villain. He started well, but now he's just a smug twat that's not scary, does nothing particularly bad, and is as annoying to watch as Hershall was. Countless people could, and should, just knock him off.

That was utterly terrible. Was it me or was the audio all over the place. I found I had to keep adjusting the volume on my TV.

I really enjoyed that. I wasn't expecting a resolution but that was an excellent piece of TV and demonstrated that it's possible to create tension with threat and not outright gore.

Next season should be interesting.

Well, I didn't see any of that coming. What a massive surprise.


Oh wait. Yes I did. It was all fucking obvious.  But not only that they put tedious bits with Abraham and Sasha in it.

Good bit: Sasha the zombie. The double cross wasn't who I'd thought it would be. Eugine.

Everything else was obvious and turd. And the tiger, don't get me started on the tiger. How the fuck did they train it to only target the bad guys amongst all the others. FFS. Oh and 'badass' Michone suddenly forgot how to fight too.

Ran out of patience now, may just binge watch the next season. That way I don't have to suffer weeks of frustration to get rid of the utterly pathetic pantomime jeffrey dean morgan.
-----
yes some of the sound was a bit mumbley. Assumed it was my cloth ears.

I'm with Batch. Really disappointing series and in the next series we can look forward to Rick fighting Negan with other groups taking sides or ducking out or double crossing each other so essentially more of the same. Would have been better to have it done and dusted this series and move on.
Its a bit like Dr Who - loved it and still in love with the concept and feel a bit dirty criticising but its been crap for a while and the signs are it ain;t going to change - hold on a bit STFC like as well.

On the whole, I thought the episode was a bit shit.  Haven't watched this week's Talking Dead yet so haven't heard their explanations of what the thinking was behind some of the dafter bits.  Missed large chunks of most of the one-to-one dialogues because the sound level was so low during those parts. Had to keep turning the volume up to catch any of it!

One of the explanations I may have missed was why, if Dwight was just doing a simple double-cross and then left Alexandria on his own to meet up with Negan's lot, did he bother going to the trouble of cutting down those trees to block the road?

i suspect he's still genuine on taking down negan, but is maintaining his cover.

which was probably your point..

He also left that message for Darryl written on the toy soldier - "didn't know"

Ooooh, that's what that was. Meant to google that, then forgot all about it. Cheers SY

Yeah, last season Dwight was seen making these little wooden soldiers when Darryl originally met Dwight in the woods with his Mrs.  I guess this is why he thinks that Darryl will put 2 and 2 together without him risking dropping himself in the shit if Negan found it..

Yeah actually think they are handmade chess pieces. In the S7 E2: The Well, in the opening scene Dwight is seen playing a board game with one of the Saviours women. Not Sherry, but some other woman. She then downs a shot of something but when I saw the figure and "Didn't Know" I was like...ahh clever (some may think different, but I like those little touches). Not massively significant but reduces continuity errors (i'm aware every show/film/production has them though, intentionally or unintentionally).

It wasn't a perfect episode but I did enjoy it and as Sonic Youth says, it was good they could show a finale without going all out gore. I'd like to know if Junkyard actually were already an offshoot of The Saviours, and I'd still like to know why they still talk like some retarded being/ alien lifeform. Also why didn't Jadis just shoot Rick on that platform (I mean headshot)??

Ok so the general main characters have to remain so this can make a "faceoff" situation seem a little farfetched but like any series we already know that this is the constant. It's when a lead or supporting lead gets killed that makes you sit up. Like Glenn and Abe.

Wasn't too fussed by the Abe/Sascha bits but it was only to depict her drifting in and out of consciousness, so I'm neither annoyed or overjoyed. Unlike Tyreese when he drifted and died, which I really enjoyed as I didn't want Tyreese to go. You could say as siblings Ty and Sasch had similar exits with the flashbacks/conscious loss etc. Maybe that was intentional but whatever i'm drifting haha.

The thing that actually threw me was I was expecting something to happen with Negan in this meet up and nothing happened to him. I'm not going to say what but if it does mirror the comics then they will probably do it at S8 MSF.

However, S8 SP is the 100th episode, so I imagine Kirkman has saved much of the story or action for that (we know what TV is like and hyping up for numbers etc. Which imo is the biggest shame. Just write and produce, but it's a global brand now), I don't really like that element of any show but the price of success sometimes mean you have to tow the Production Company line, AMC in this case. Hopefully it doesn't get too lost in it's own success. I can see why some of you are concerned/pissed off/annoyed with how it goes at times but even GoT, Prison Break, BB, and such like are all guilty of having a bad Season. I don't think this was a particularly bad season overall. Just a slightly stagnant at times season, a bit like the pond where the boathouse was.

Apologies Berniman, because I've hacked an answered quote and turned it into my "weekly TWD" post. Anyway, so if you was annoyed or peeved at some of the episodes this season, what would you like to see in S8? How would you like it to pan out? Not what you think, but what you'd like? How would you like to see events unfold from the mini aftermath of S7 SF, in the 100th ep, S8 SP? There are still major players to enter stage left in the Seasons and it's a really interesting group, how this all pulls together, i'm not sure but i'm certain the show still has plenty to keep us interested for a while yet. It's almost like a relationship and it's the longest one i've held down so i'm going to keep on for a while longer :) ;D ;D

Keep the faith guys, being Town fans, nothing is ever going to be easy. I await the usual derailment of my musings, but as always, any of your comments or response are appreciated, even yours Barry Scott ;) Plus I enjoy reading everyone else's opinions on the matter as a) I have no life and  b) well i'm just an out and out TWD geek. Which probably explains my single status too  :D :D :suicide:

No problem from my side, I enjoy your posts on this, you obviously study things a lot deeper than me.  I'm glad you corrected my error on the making the wooden soldiers, I was going on what I thought I remembered rather than what you say, which is way more likely to be correct than my memory.  The basis is still the same though..

My answer as to why no headsot?  Junkyard had obviously done a deal with the saviours, and Negan always said that he would never kill Rick as he needed Rick to keep everyone else in line.  If he killed Rick then he risked losing the rest of the group.  The way to effect Rick was to threaten or end one of his family.  This would say to me that Negan would have said "help me double cross them, I will reward you, but nobody kills Rick"

It was actually S7:E3 The Cell (Daryls Episode), so apologies but you're right the basis is the same.

Ahh that figures more. I was just thinking in the moment, as that seemed like their plan had gone tits up a bit but I guess if that was the deal struck then she stuck to her word.

Thanks though :)

I think i'm more pissed of with Coral getting a reprieve AGAIN!!  Just die already.

Well, there's been no talk for a while so I thought seeing as the new season started last night (or early monday am for some of us...Ahem...) and there's been no mention so far from the small group of us. Maybe you're waiting for me to do my TWD Weekly? Surely not?

So which of you watched the 100th Episode, A.K.A S8:E1? Season 8! Wow. How did you think it went? Stop reading now if you have no interest of hearing my opinion on this ;)

Ok, so for the 100th episode I'll not lie. I was expecting something a bit more dramatic or shocking. That's not to say though that it wasn't good, because it was good. Good enough to lead us into this season? Yes. One of the best episodes? Certainly not.

The episode opens (as most of us will now know) with the aftermath of betrayal by the Junkyard/Scavengers and leader Jadis. As far as we know, most of the Junkyard/Scavengers have scarpered/been eaten/killed but no one really knows where Jadis may be. Rick leads a rallying call to his trusted allies (Hilltop/Kingdom/Alexandria) to launch an attack on the remaining Saviours at Negan's compound, The Sanctuary. All the work is going towards this battle so The Hilltop are busy forging weapons, armour, etc. Rick is formulating a strategy to divert Saviour outposts and King Ezequiel is mouthing prose somewhere like a heavenly preacher (his role is starting to grate me a little). We then have a very advanced, or what seems like a very advanced "flash-forward". We see a glimpse of rick surrounded by light and a greyer, longer beard. Is this a future foreshadowing of how the whole compendium will end? Who knows but it was designed to intrigue, and intrigue it did!

Ricks plan of attack goes to...well err...plan and the allies make it into The Sanctuary, form a defence wall with their armoured vehicles and some strategic explosives. All good so far, albeit a little dragging for a SP and 100th episode (Robert Kirkman did say it would be an "explosive" episode so technically he wasn't lying but mehh). They draw Negan out of the compound and to me, Jeffrey Dean-Morgan's entrance to the latest season is as ever comical, sadistic and carefree as any socio-psychopath that he has been throughout. To me he's a love to hate character and that's what he should be. His delivery is good 95% of the time. You're just sat there waiting for him to snap, go into psycho mode and randomly bash someone to bits. He's so unhinged which is what makes him great. "shitting pants" Quality. We'll comeback to that.

Negan listens to Rick and with his cocky charm then springs a deserter onto the Allies in Gregory (the former and ousted Hilltop leader). We all know Gregory is a coward so there was no shock on my part. However several of the Hilltop must've been torn at this moment. Thankfully Jesus opens up and replies with "The Hilltop stands with Maggie". As leader elect, she then backs Jesus' comment and then Rick takes his opportunity to open up on them with a very nice AK-47. Exchanges ensue and then we're left with Negan cowering behind a burnt out vehicle and Rick trying to shoot him. Gabriel stops Rick and then as they're about to leave, Gabriel see's the cowardly Gregory and takes pity on him, telling him to wait until it's clear. The obvious happens and Gregory gets into Gabriels car and drives off, leaving Gabe surrounded by walkers. Gabe makes it into some kind of portacabin and has a chance to breathe. At this point he thinks all is fine...

Just a reference back to the flash-forward, a little later in the episode there is another one and Rick is wearing a robe, has a stick and is with Michonne  as they share a kiss. With Carl present, Rick has managed to become an old man. Seemingly in this flash-forward the world is back to normal and people are living their lives as they were in pre apocalyptic times. This is more likely a myth/screen for something else but i'm not sure exactly what at this time? Some other writers/bloggers have said they think this could be foreshadowing  how this all ends (as a dream etc. but Kirkman has said he'll never end it that way) but none of that really adds up for me yet. If it was that then it wouldn't include Michonne as he would've most likely never have met her in real life!That's going to be a running curveball that will drive us all nuts this season. What's your theories on this? or can you extract form the comics some similarities what may be about to come?

...Gabriel thinks he's found a temporary safe haven and then, out of the shadows, the sadistic smirk and laugh of our familiar foe becomes evident as Negan emerges to the frightened rabbit of Gabriel with the awesome delivery of "I hope you've got you're shitting pants on...cos you're about to shit your pants!" The camera pans away and out from the portacabin and the end credits roll.

How was the S8 SP for you guys? Did you enjoy it? It was a slightly slower burner for me be it wasn't crap. What will become of Gabriel? Will Negan pulp him to bits? He has become a liability again and he stopped Rick from eliminating Negan (kind of glas in a way, the show does need him). Will Negan convince him, through fear, to join up with The Saviours and give him all the perks of living in the Sanctuary? What next for the Allies? Do they have a follow up plan or was that it? It worked to a degree but they've only pissed of a very erratic wasp in Negan who is sure to attack soon. Maybe Negan will send Gabriel back in a box in not as great a state as he arrived in? and what of the flash-forwards, what is your feeling about that?

 It's hard not to question the TV series route with all this and where it may lead. There are still plenty of other groups to make an appearance and significant characters, if the writers decide to include them from the comics. However there are so many open and unfinished paths that I hope it doesn't get too lost in a ravell of plotlines. To me they need to close certain ones left open from S7 and keep to the main and work on the detail just as it once always was. However we do know that Kirkman has said there will be a crossover of TWD & FTWD either at the end of S8 or start of S9, so if they're going to tie up loose ends within TWD then they'll have to be quick about it. I just don't think they have the time to; a) run and develop this season; whilst b) tying up loose ends; to c) merging/crossing over with FTWD. That's another thing to think about though and we'll talk more about that as it happens, I guess.

So give me your thoughts and theories about the SP of TWD and what you think may be in store for the season ahead! As always, if you got this far...thanks so much for reading/listening/watching. Now give me that TWD feedback in your own words.

Cheers, Bamboo!

I'm not going to go into too much depth here.

tldr version: underwhelming.

Firstly I and the entire internet I'd wager really didn't buy into the writers "Thick Rick". There he was, with a fuck tun of guns, all of the lieutenants and Negan lined up in a row. Does he unleash a firestorm hell, nah, he talks to him and gives him an ultimatum and a countdown. The Prick.

The Gregory twist was quite good, up until the writers unleash "thick Gabe". Gets duped. Then ends up in a shed carrying an automatic weapon with Mr OTT and his shiting pants rubbish. And will he shoot him...place your bets.

Daryl was cool though. King Azazel was alright. Carole was OK. The tiger would make a nice rug...

And the "flash forwards/sideways/fantasy shots"....was convinced Rick was dreaming them recovering  having been hurt as the plan failed. But nope. Most odd. Had Micchone/Carl aged at all?

So yeah. Underwhelmed as a season opener, as an episode and particularly as a 100th episode.

I've lost the "must see at all costs" element of the walking dead somewhat. But I'm in now, I can't leave it. They've "Smallvilled" me. I have to know how it all ends.

I admire your unblemished honesty. I too have certain reservations that I mentioned above. I am a considerable geek of this show. Yep, they've got me by the balls but i'm still very able to criticise the show or it's direction. However like yourself I have to keep watching until the "end end". It was a decent episode, I hope it just means it'll build and get better. Morgan was good but Lenny is a great actor and will always get good work.

The flash forwards are them living in a rebuilt Alexandria. I must admit, I ended up confused so I googled it. Apparently (regarding the flash forwards) all will be revealed in episode 8 - 9.

As Batch already said. Why didn't rick shoot negan when he was stood on the balcony.

And I think therein lies my issue. I'm getting bored with baddy of the season/season(s)...its getting a bit stale for me. Predictable. And its drawn out much much too long, the pacing is too slow. Plus I can't stand Morgan's portrayal of Negan.

For me it now needs an overarching endgame. Maybe they just figure Rick will die when the series gets canned. Maybe they have some safe haven, cure  or something else. Maybe they have this.

The FTWD crossocer better be that the FTWD group get annihilated, because while I have a few issues with TWD, they are nothing compared to that turgid poopfest. I gave up on it mid season 2.

Its a vicious circle. Once Negan is gone, another bad group will appear and then another. Its getting too repetitive.
They have to finish this soon.

I feel the trouble here is, as many of you have said, Negan could be an awesome villain. It started with the bar pushed so high, however many American viewers could not handle the violent scenes shown on S7:E1. The Day Will Come When You Won't Be (aka The Season 7 Premiere). They were shocked, maybe this forced AMC's hand (from a purely ratings and viewing numbers POV) and edited/scaled back other violent scenes and felt they needed to lighten the vibe. I think I may have touched on this before.... I'm well aware that the scene with Olivia (S7:E7) was edited and scaled back to be less graphic. However that episode did include the spilling of Spencer's guts! Olivia then met her untimely death in that very episode too. It also seems many American viewers can't handle the word "Fuck" in a final production so many scripts have had it changed to "screwing" or "messing" etc. That's not to say a reason or excuse for a lack of quality in delivery but sometimes certain scenarios need certain words to make them more real. Especially if you're realllly angry. There are other scenes that have been dropped (thanks to our american friends), "Negan's Harem" have cut out brutal scenes that are, quite rightly, designed to make us feel uncomfortable.

My last point (as I know i've rambled) is this; I find it ironic that certain viewers find the word "Fuck" offensive and other scenes  like when Abe & Rosita got it on and Eugene watched (It's the end of of the world as they know it, surely he can be forgiven?), whilst they were on their way to Washington D.C (later Eugene reveals his cure theory is all a lie). Yet they can be quite happy to see someone get their jugular ripped out or have their leg chopped of with no anaesthetic? I guess that's not all Americans but could be said for people the world over. A bit like Hallow'een and people then going to Church the following day as if it's normal to dress as "something from hell" but they play "Saint Peter" on Sundays!

I've said my piece. I hope this coming Monday's episode is just a little better, a little more gruesome, a little more "wow, wasn't expecting that!" and maybe answer a few questions lingering from the S8P. I'm going to be disappointed aren't I? I hope not :)

Its JDM's delivery of Negan that annoys me more. One dimensional..

Yeah the cut graphic nature could hammer home how horrible he is, but we get that. An iron on the face isn't a picture of a bed of roses.

This is not a criticism and his delivery does grate on me at times but you do realise he is playing the role of a psychopath? He's meant to be enjoying what he is doing. JDM is a good actor but I wonder if it's the show edits that's denying us true representation of this? Unfortunately we will probably never be privy to know this :/ Don't get me wrong though, I'm as disappointed as you are at times because I want the old gritty tense TWD back.

8x02

Well, if last weeks was a bit meh, this weeks was a total fucking confused mess.

How do you fuck up an action episode. Here's  how
 - Start off by making it feel like you missed an episode
 - add two sets of randoms + Aaron in a shootout and leave the viewer to work out WTF is going on and who is who.
 - Add Carole, Aza and the fucking tiger chasing hand grenade man, in case he tips off the Saviours they are attack. You know, the ones that have already attacked earlier.
 - Turn  morgan into Robocop. Actually this but was good fun and given he think he's immortal not too stupid
 - Turn Jesus into actual Jesus, forgiving everyone.
 - Send Rick and Daryl into somewhere on some vague plan or other to get guns from what I though was the main Saviours hold, but wasn't, even though it looked like Daryl's cell. And then get Rick blindsided by non other than.......thingmy dude that was in it ages ago that .... er.. wait...let me google who he is again while we wait for Daryl to save the day.
- Obviously don't mention what hapened with shitting pants and Negan.

Now I'd imagine all this will be explained, drawn out over some episodes, and I'll go aasaaaah. But as a standalone episode it was confused and poor. The director should be fed to the walkers.

I went down to Senoia on Sunday, place was packed with people on walking tours.  Popped into a local bar, got talking to some locals and ended up getting four free pints.  I still have only ever watched one episode.

Fucking this. Didn't follow this episode at all.

I had to check they hadn't stuck another episode on before that I missed!

Agreed. That episode was a cluster fuck. It was one of those that on previous occasions would have had me throwing in the towel.

Missed this. I wish to second Batch’s Negan thing.

We know he’s a apparently a psycho, but like I’d said previously, he doesn’t actually come across as a psycho. He comes across as an annoying twat.

Apart from when he battered Glen, he’s not really done anything remotely intimidating and some how manages to be tantamount to invincible.

He’s such a shit “baddie” that I don’t even want him dead, I don’t hate him, he doesn’t make me fear for characters, I’d just rather he fucked off so we don’t have to watch and listen to his pathetic theatrics anymore.

S8E2:

Well, what can I say. I agree with Batch for a fair part here. There were however some decent reveals and good elements. It was, on the whole though frustrating in certain scenes. I'll start with the Director.

Rosemary Rodriguez directed only her second ever episode of TWD. Her first one being.....from S7 episode, Sing Me a Song. That wasn't a terrible episode but it was the episode where Negan befriended Carl, showed him around the Sanctuary, made him take off his eye bandage, and took up residence in Alexandria for the day. He was almost just a regular nice guy and revealed a few more layers of Negan. In this latest episode, S8 The Damned, things however get a tad convoluted.

It starts with a weird face montage which I don't know what the show was trying to achieve but it appeared pretty cringy. So Tara, Morgan & Jesus start ambushing the observatory that they had cleared of Saviours before (S6:E11 or 12). Morgan, as Batch says, seems to have become this immortal being. It's not fully out of character though, Morgan does just need a focus. See the episode clear where Rick see's Morgan for the first time and he is just "clearing" every Walker that comes through, almost in delirium. He's with two other guys, infiltrating the quarters when they're shot at and we're meant to think all three have been killed. We later find Morgan is still alive. Tara and Jesus split from Morgan where they find a man who's pissed his pants and begs for their mercy. Tara wants to kill him, Jesus says no (no pun). This is the most frustrating and infuriating part of the episode for me. Just fucking kill him. You know The Saviours "ethos" you know they don't give a damn about anyone and considering the brutality our survivors have been through (although you could argue that Jesus & Tara weren't in the line-up that witnessed the psychologically altering, skull smashing of Abe & Glen). It just didn't wash and this was definitely way wide of character. Did it make them seem more human? No. Not in that scenario and not how we've seen both characters develop. For the purposes of the show, the guy the ended up tying up, was a total unknown to them so there was no emotional attachment of sorts. Just get rid of him. It was a pointless scene. The other bit with the remaining Saviors, who down weapons and Morgan, after coming round and killing some more Saviours appears bemused that they all seem to have met a peacekeeping agreement was ok and Lennie James again acted his parts well (even if he is now Robocop/Terminator).

The other part which annoyed me and this character is increasingly grating on me as the episodes recede is the whole "stature" of King Ezekiel. To be honest his character even admits to Carol, in the episode annoyingly "Fake it till you make it...babyyy."
It was their pursual of one, yes one guy from a Saviour controlled pharmacy lab that was frustrating as they again wasted ammunition (which incredibly King Ez, says to not waste because fucking Shiva ends him anyway!). In the aftermath of him letting off a smoke bomb/chaff grenade and unleash walkers that had been trapped within the building, he gets his come uppence from the ammunition depleted Shiva (everyone's favourite house trained Tiger). They continue on in the direction the man led them after following his blood trail, to the next Saviour outpost thinking it's all jobby dunny, however The Saviours know they are coming.

The other bits do kind of make sense and weren't as confusing. If you'd been looking at the notes that Dwight's been sending it's pretty much intel on Saviour outpost. That's the continued plan to take those outposts ermm out and weaken Negan's army, to gain control or at least take Negan hostage (just a guess, I don't know if they will or not).

So while Aaron & Eric attack a Saviour warehouse which was quite clever strategy in shooting so many, drawing the others out but holding their position. Retreating slightly, drawing the other Saviours closer knowing full well the "dead" Saviours would turn and start to attack/eat/distract the remaining Saviours. It was a clever play so those scene didn't fuss me too much. It obviously ended with Aaron carrying a shot Eric away.

Then their was the Rick and Daryl mission, again it was fine as part of the plan, after all Dwight's intel had informed them of a Saviour gun stash hidden there. No real confusion as such but when it's found to be empty they split up which I found ridiculous. Just search each room out together and cover each other. Standard two man rule. The predictable happens and Rick fights a man who he ends up spiking on a shelf bracket. He shortly finds, behind a concealed doorway a baby in a crib who we know as "Gracie". Rick spirals into regret as he realises he's still a human being after all and not just a post apocalyptic killing machine. I found that more real than the "Tara & Jesus" scene, as we've seen Rick break down before after reflecting on his actions. In truth this shows the true decency of the character we remember at the beginning and somewhat even before the apocalypse began. I liked that bit even if he should've been more on guard in that moment. The photograph he was looking at is then revealed  in real life as Morales. Me being me, I liked this reference back to Morales. Yes I did remember who he was and if I'm right, we first saw him in S1:E3 after doing an Atlanta mission with Glenn? But I think he and his family parted at the end of the next episode which I always remember the name of, Vatos. It's the one where they come across a gang who are actually looking after oldies in a Nursing home. Anyway, I think the reintroduction of Morales was a good call. The fact he's joined up with The Saviours is interesting twist and I wonder if his family are still alive?

Final irks for me, which mirror Batch's comments are;

They've left us hanging with no reference to Gabriel & Lord of The Shitting Pants. They could've ditched the Tara&Jesus scene and done a small two minute scene of either Gabriel begging for mercy or a small battle ensuing between Negan and himself.

We've not seen any true closure yet(probably thankfully) of the Scavengers/Junkyard. We know Jadis is still alive and surely some others escaped. I think they were a poor plotline from S7 but if we're not going to hear of them anymore, especially Jadis, then it needs to be written out and presented to the viewer. Just so we can say, thanks but goodbye.

The episode did make you feel like you'd missed one from between (1a or whatever). Are they trying to do what the Stranger Things writers have done with their S2E2 whereby the episode bears no real relevance to the story as a who? Ok, TWD wasn't that extreme but I did feel like I'd missed a week.

All in all my guess is S8E3: Monsters, will have to be a fairly brutal or shocking episode. If Negan is true to his character then he's going to be seriously pissed off with the attack on Saviour outposts. Can he just eliminate Gabriel and also Gregory while he's at it, as these two are now pointless characters only holding the pace up. There was a time when I thought we'd find out Gabriel was a former criminal or had a shady past and had found God but alas they never developed his character, it's time for him to go. Gregory is just an annoying and predictable coward. Someone would've killed him along time ago as he'll just betray whoever to keep himself sweet. The development of Morales will be interesting but they have to ramp the season up otherwise the ratings will start to drop more. We can take the odd one or even two poor episodes and while this wasn't an awful episode, it just felt disjointed and detached from the core of the show.

Still looking forward to E3 but it really needs to be a good one, followed by another one in E4. That'll take us to the quarter nicely and build for the MSF. Just stop dancing around and give us the real TWD back. We shall, as always, see.

Strike up your opinion on my comments here, I'm always up for hearing your thoughts on TWD whether they differ or mirror mine. I'm a big fan of he show still but I can also be it's worse critic. Thanks for reading/listening/viewing and I'll have an installment once again, this time next week!

Cheers, Bamboo

I'm done with it. It's a shame. Was fantastic now rehashing the same old shit. I want to be entertained, I couldn't give a shit how clever they are introducing a character you might have seen for 2 seconds 5 years ago. Like others before it, its got it's head up its own arse.

Well Bamboo, its clear you are dedicated fan. I say that with respect not derision.

Straight after the episode I had to look up what happened and found most of what you wrote above. While that can be quite rewarding at times it is a bit tiresome too.

Another issue I didn't mention is that its become a bit too 'big' in plot and I think its suffering. I think that there are too many characters, and like plates on a pole you have to keep spinning them. At some point you forget which one is at what stage and one falls down. Maybe Negan is suffering from this, bad...vanishes for a bit...bad...vanishes for a bit...Similarly Rick's group suffer, you become less emotionally caring because they aren't in it much anyway!

I do have a bit of sympathy for the writers. They are probably loosely bound by comic plot (no spoilers please) and it couldn't stay small group v zombies or we'd get bored of that. But its their job to get the balance and pacing right, and they ain't.

I'm surprised it still has the following it does. I think that might largely be down to the fact that it's quite novel for a TV series. Or maybe through the popularity of the comics? I dunno. What I do know is that it's been dire for some time. I think the first series was OK but that was about it, it was some of the most boring TV I have watched for a long time.

I have found this time and time again with shows that start well and go stale, no matter how annoyed you are with the show you can't stop watching it because your come this far and you refuse to give up hope.

The same happened with Lost, Heroes, Prison Break, to name a few...Its like a journey, and you've come this far its hard to turn back.

Oh, I found it easy to stop. When they were at the prison, I asked myself why on earth I would want to watch such mind-numbing crap when there's other things to do. Boring characters acting out boring, predictable plots. I actually found it to be a chore, it was an unpleasant way to spend my time. I still get a gist of what's happening as the wife watches it, and other people talk about it, other than that I've not watched an episode since. From what I can gather it's only got worse since.

I'm not really a big fan of TV anyway, though. I'm normally quite happy to abandon a series when it turns. I think the only one I've watched to completion in recent years is breaking bad. I still found the walking dead to be one of the worst, though. I can't think of anything that comes close.

Has everyone given up? Watched 8x3 last night, it was late and i was working so was relying on a write up from bamboo.
Poor show bamboo.

Was much like last week, still not even a tease of Negan and the Father. Lots of gun fights to fill up the hour.
What i did like is that notable change is some characters personas. You had the confrontation with Jesus and Morgan where Morgan is becoming ruthless and want's to kill everyone but Jesus remains sympathetic and doesn't believe in doing so.
You also saw a similar clash with Rick and Daryl on 2 occasions, first when Daryl saved rick from the guy who no one remembered from the prison and at the end of the episode when Daryl popped the kid who was hiding behind the tree. Rick didn't look to impressed at all.

I'm with Daryl and Morgan. Take no chances. The saviours are masters of deceit. Showing them sympathy will end badly.

Ahh apologies. I've had Birthdays galore in the family, whilst helping my brother in law with his recently late Dad's boat. We have another Birthday do and my old man's 60th doo tomorrow.

I will try and get a bit of a write up done later this afternoon (if anyone is fine with my ramblings?) Time for some lunch now though and photos to edit. It's seem I do have a life outside TWD after all...

I'm just messing mate.

I welcome your ramblings. At the end of the day if people don't like it they don't have to read it.

I have now. I’ll consider watching it when this series ends, I’ve just had enough of what feels like filler.

As filler goes, it was alright. I quite enjoyed it. But I quite enjoy moaning more so
   1. Why the fuck has Rick has a personality transplant. They spent ages building him to be someone who did what it takes to survive*, then he gives Daryl the evils for doing the same.
   2. Jesus saves...Really. Also psycho Morgan has become shit at fighting all of a sudden. What?
   3. Why leave the Negan storyline so long.. And where the hell is Stigella of the dump in this fight?

The group is fractured, Rick and Daryl (for how much longer?), Maggie at the hilltop, Carole with the cgi tiger.

* I guess Rick will replace Negan at some point and the Saviours aren't going to be overly willing to follow another ruthless murderer .

Sorry it's a late one!

S8 E3: Monsters

So you guys found this one a bit "fillerish" and a tad slow/lacking progress at times? Although it was a touch better than E2 right?

First off the title Monsters didn't really conclude much and i'm still waiting to have a sniff of the Negan storyline along with our favourite priest who is, buy all accounts, shitting his pants. I'll admit, I was expecting more of a twist on the Morales plot. As always, when the episodes are directed by Greg Nicotero, you can expect one thing for sure and that's great prosthetics and attention to detail in blood splatter expertise. Having plied most of his trade under the recently late, cult zombie Director; George A. Romero, I always look forward to these details during Nicotero's Directed episodes of TWD. RIP to Romero, who passed away in July.

This episode only really let me down in the new constant of Jesus suddenly becoming all out peacemaker. The fight scene though with Morgan and Jesus I enjoyed and it showed us just how Morgan is struggling psychologically in this world. I still refer to the "Morgan" episode of Clear, a few seasons back, where he had issues dealing with the post apocalyptic world. It was a little later where he met the former Dojo (S6:E3 maybe it was 4? anyway I can't remember his name i'd have to Google it) and learnt his self defence skills with the staff. I'll highlight Batch's comment (sorry, i'm not singling you out, you raised it and it's perfectly relevant) about "why is Morgan suddenly a shit fighter?". Truth is, he hasn't become shit, however he's never had to fight Jesus. When we first met him(also S6), we learnt he was also very skilled in martial arts and hand to hand combat. I think here it's just a case of Jesus being the better "Ninja" and most probably more experienced. As far as we know, Morgan only knows in depth self defence recently from Dojo guy in S6. I really like the growing tension between Daryl and Rick, where will that lead or am I just exploring a non story here?

If no one minds, I'll recap a few key parts of the episode. On the whole I think it was ok, if a little bit filler.

So we pretty much open as we ended the previous with Morales, holding Rick at gunpoint. Morales and Rick talk about how things have panned out for them both (all under tension) and it's revealed Morales lost his family. Rick informs him about the losses of Lori, Shane and the brutal murder of Glenn at the hands of Morales new "owner", Negan. Ok so at this point he calls Rick a monster and that is the only reference I can find that refers to the title episode. As stated above I was expecting a twist for this episode. Damn! As predicted, Daryl kills Morales with almost shock from Rick, who seemed to think he could talk Morales round. They leave the building and hear calls from Aaron as his team of fighters close in on this Saviour outpost. Later we conclude that Aaron's boyfriend Eric may not have made it. Thus prompting Aaron to take care of Gracie. The baby Rick find's after suspectedly killing her Father.

We then have the scenes of Aaron going back to where he left Eric (with a gunshot to the stomach) against a tree. This for me harks back to S1 ((I think it was Jim or Dale?) basically he was left against a tree after being bit in the stomach to reanimate).  Eric is no longer there and Aaron believes he sees him walking off in the distance but i'm not 100% convinced he's gone? Maybe I misheard but i'm sure I heard a character say something to Aaron like "He's not there/dead". Also we didn't actually see the "turned" Eric and we all know most characters that leave TWD are bestowed this grand exit. The only true character that didn't have it was "The Governor" but he went out in style after his brutal beheading of Hershel. Anyway, I don't think Eric is dead yet or they want to show us the zombie Eric next episode? We then learn that the guns that Rick and Daryl were after have been moved, this is after a Saviour is discovered behind a tree. Daryl kills him without thought and yet again Rick looks at him like "what the fuck bro".

I'm not even going to talk about Gregory because that dude just pisses me off now. Why the fuck would Maggie let him back in? Just rid of him, he's becoming TWD jester. It's shit. I want him gone before midseason, if not the next episode.

Somewhere wedged in all this we have King "still I fucking smile" Ez and Carol almost cockily cruising their way through the woods. It's just a continuation from last episode until they close in on the next Saviour outpost. As predicted the Kingdomers get shot at and some of them try and create a human shield for King Ez. Maybe they'll not be as ridiculously cocky next time?

There's the detailed recap and also keeps anyone on track if they missed an episode (intentionally or not). I'm going to throw a curveball in now, just to maybe get us talking a little more about the further future of the show, so here goes. What are your guys theories on how the show may end, eventually? I have a theory and i've posted this theory on other social media and forums. I'm interested to hear your thoughts on this. I don't know if it's occurred to any of you but for me, part of last season and the start of this season appear to be produced in a more arcade/computer game style? Now this could be a huge miss on my part but i'll be smug af and picking up several c*nt points (in TEF fashion I hope some of you already have given me a vote of "c*nt" :) ) if I get close to this huge story arc, which could lead us to the start of the endgame for TWD. My theory is that instead of a shitty "Rick wakes up, it was all a dream" end. I think that the whole concept of TWD is merely an 8/16 bit arcade game. All the places they've visited have been different levels. The "Bosses" Rick has had to defeat. The far fetchedness of some scenarios, where they've been saved just as an aggressor is about to deliver a final blow. Not without drama, losing many comrades along the way....and so on.

I can envisage a final, final scene and for me it would be Rick getting shot or beaten in the FPV, background noise of "Finish him" or similar (for those familiar with arcade Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat) and the screen blurring with "Game Over" appearing on the screen. As the camera pans out it becomes apparent it's an arcade game and the camera shows the "gamer" as a young Carl walking away and leaving the arcade, set around late 80's/early 90's scene. For me this would explain all the FPV moments in the show when we have blood on the screen and the ridiculousness of Shiva as well as a few other whacky groups. I feel they are slowly producing the characters in the show as more comic book/fictional characters (which of course they are) and opening us up to this concept that they may well just be that. Fictional and not one bit real. Previously with had more attachment with characters with more drama and tenseness. I don't feel that as much anymore so I do wonder if they are leaning to this concept or similar. More than likely i'm just talking complete bollocks!

If you'd like to give me your own theories, as this could throw up some impressive ideas probably much more impressive (and concise) than mine, then please do. I look forward to hearing them. As ever I look forward to your responses to my post and your own take on the recent episode as a whole. I'll try to do my review for the next episode (incidentally called "Some Guy") a little earlier next time. For your sins that could be up as early as next Tues. Enjoy.

Once again, cheers for reading/listening/viewing. I continually enjoy TWD but I'm still hungry to get my show back like it was before. Let's hope a big plot twist arises sometime after we've known Gabriels fate and a few other loose ends are tied up like The Scavengers and Gregory. Knowing the comics marginally. That twist could be at the mid season finale or mid season premiere. I could also be wide of the mark here too.

I await the impending criticism :) Cheers, Kev Bamboo!

thanks bamboo, I don't recall Jesus martial arts background so that's useful.

good read. yes fillerish but better gets my vote.

interesting theory, hopefully bollocks though as it would piss me off.

the three most likely end game scenarios in can see are
   1. they find some isolated island and steady to rebuild human life.
   2. they find a way to kill the zombies en mass leading to 1 eventually
   3. they all die.

The arcade game scenario...

No, just no..

Seriously, I don't want it to end like that either but i'm just looking at how things have been shot over the last season and into 8. At times it reminds me of Metal Gear Solid (Daryl would make a great Solid Snake tbf) and also Timesplitters. Things seem to point that way for me. One thing that Robert Kirkman has promised us that it will never end with the "wakes up from a coma" scenario, because that will be the ultimate of shit. They must be thinking of how it may all wind up for the tv show. I'm not sure how long the comic issue will carry on for but that's essentially when we'd have a better idea. However the tv show has not shied away from going a different path but surely the endgame must culminate in a similar way?

What's your theory on the endgame Berni?

Not really a theory but I hope it’s ends with everyone dying. I want it to be ruthless and brutal.
None of this happily ever after bullshit.
Failing that, as long as coral gets done for I’ll be happy.

I haven't really got a theory tbh.  I am not adverse to a huge twist, or a big bang one way or the other, i just hope they end it properly and answer as many questions as they can.

The writers clearly don't even know how it's going to end yet, or they wouldn't have written themselves into the stupid hole of everyone turns and there's no cure.

It's going to go on until it's cancelled and either end terribly (a la Lost) or just get cancelled and not end at all (Fuck you Flash Forward! FUCK YOU).

Not a bad theory jayo, however there are shows on tv that hit only around 1mil viewers yet they keep getting commissioned. I think TWD has a way to go before that. In fact it has such a following I think once the hype/bubble dies right down, it'll still have a core of around 4-5mil viewers. I'd say major decisions will be made from s10. We'll have an idea of what direction it's truly taking at that point. Either towards an endgame or as you say, no real idea of how they'll end it.

And if your video game theory turns true I will personally hunt you down

Well, looks like this season is going to be one that gets increasingly better. S8 E4 was back on form. I'll not burden you with a review yet (i'm a cunt but not that much of one), I'll wait till later tonight/tomorrow so those that watch have had a chance to watch it. Where E1 was okay and E2 was bloody annoying. E3 got a bit better and now E4 was much better. Let's hope this trend continues and we get the show a bit more on track.

Talking of "flash forwards" you guys do know what is planned for S9 don't you?

Enjoy tonight's episode. I think most of you will enjoy this one.

Hahahha bring it on! "...and still I smile."

www.walkindeadharalson.com

This is just up the road from me, claiming to be family friendly!  Looks fun, you lot are nuts.

This is one of the reason's that if I was asked to move to america for a job then this would have to make up part of my remuneration (3 visits per year min.)  Yes RobertT, i'm nuts!

It’s a spoiler thread, people who read it before watching know the consequences.
I enjoyed 8x4. Who was the dude who looked like he’d just come off the set of The Walton’s :-).
Poor sheeva/sheeba too.
Looks like it’s finally going to get to the nitty gritty next week.

Haha ruthless. I'd at least let them watch the advertised uk version first :)

was pretty good, didn't care much for the flashbacks but hey.

so the pieces are falling into place. particularly the guns, and maybe if the truck driver is still alive Intel too. maybe there is a rat and they'll be outed - more likely he'll know there is a rat but not who it is.

A little more on the ball this week having watched the US version sometime Monday morning and then had a second look when the UK version aired at 9pm. I'll probably watch this one again as I want to look at some details which may give us some clues for potential long term answers. I'll talk about that later, if you can stomach it.

S8E4: Some Guy

Well, in a nutshell i'd say that was some way of a return to the kind of TWD form we've been used to in previous seasons. It wasn't the all out best ever episode granted, however it was a good episode and much better than E2 (I think we can all put that down as my most infuriating episode in the whole seasons of TWD to date). This kind of episode is the type which makes a good season, well...good or even great. 

The main focus for this episode was on King Ezekiel, who up until now I really could not warm to. In part this has been due to lack of character development. We know he's putting on an act and we know a loose background of him working in theatre. Now I know not everyone cares for character development but if we are truly going to give a damn about the character or believe that they are real we have to see the real them (a bit like when the Governor was broken after his first attempt to attack the Prison. We then saw him at rock bottom, almost like the man he may have been before the apocalypse, only to see him rise again.). In this episode we finally got that, with pretty much two thirds of the episode dedicated to King Ez.

This was better than filler in my opinion and the only slight tickle was, "Rick & Daryl" becoming "Jason Bourne & Hitman" respectively. As well as Carol somehow managing to trick some of The Saviours that she was only carrying a handgun, when she'd previously followed and shot at them with a machine gun. Ok i'm being picky. The "Starsky & Hutch" moment was a bit of fun and Carol's ploy was fairly clever. I mean come on, most bad guys henchmen are pretty dim, just look at the James Bond villains henchmen!

I'll now expand on the episode in more detail, so skip this bit if you can't be arsed.

We open with King Ezekiel pretty much getting into character and straightaway we begin to realise him as "just some guy", who has undoubtedly taken on the difficult role of trying to instill hope into the people of which we call The Kingdom. It mirrors his theatrical past quite literally with the open dressing room scene and getting "ready" in front of a mirror. He gives the rousing, usual speech and at this point I almost tut and think "here we go again". This isn't because I'd forgotten that his force were gunned down at the end of E3, but I mistakenly think "how the fuck did they all manage to survive a chain gun attack?".

Oh no, it then cuts, as I should've guessed to present day and the aftermath of the Kingdom fighter massacre. A scene that pans over bullet wounds, Kingdommer guts, and limbs strewn across the Saviour outpost. A searching bloodied hand emerges from a pile of bodies and a distraught King Ez slowly pulls himself free. The realisation that (at this point) all his soldiers are dead and he has an injured leg as he terrifyingly scrambles away while his own soldiers start to turn. The King then has a moment of help, albeit brief, from a surviving soldier (I can't even recall his name, that's bad for me) whom we've never really met before. This is short lived  as a Saviour (revealed as Gunther on TTD), shoots Kingdom Soldier #73 in the back. A perfect cameo here from actor Whitmer Thomas, who may well have been an estranged psycho before the apocalypse. I'm not the first to say this by any stretch but a perfect Jeffrey Dahmer-a-like. Gunther taunts King Ez and basically tells him he's worthless while dragging him at gunpoint, towards the intended Saviour outpost (where Carol is staking out). They reach the outpost gateway and it's locked. Gunther, panicking decides he'll jump the gate and take King Ez's head on a stake for Negan (nice bloke). He's just about to kill the King in true medieval style, with King Ez's very own sword. Enter stage right an onrushing, enraged Jerry (no one's stopping an onrushing Jerry) who protects his King with a brutal knife through butter slicing of Gunther, in half with his axe. Nice work Jerry. Jerry and Ezekiel then continue to hold back a horde of Walkers while also trying to chop the chain from the gate.

During this we switch to Carol who (seeing red mist) has made it into the Saviour outpost, where the guys with the chain gun and other arms were shooting from. She cleverly hides in the ceiling as they're packing the guns away and shoots down five of them with a machine gun (AK-Whatever) as they start to leave. Carol must think she's got them all as she emerges from the ceiling but her gunshots must've alerted a few more that were there as then she has to take out another five. They give chase but one says let her go.

Later she's double backed them and they're loading the arms onto a Jeep as she scopes them out. Carol chances it running behind another vehicle. They unleash hell on her and this is the point where she slides her handgun under the vehicle and attempts to break a peace deal with them. Carol has spotted the button for opening a compound gate, which has a horde of Walkers behind. She "surrenders" and one of The Saviours approaches her. She quickly gets him at knifepoint as just as he's distracted by her machine gun hanging on the  wing mirror. Events unfold pretty rapidly, she disposes of her hostage, grabs his keys, presses the gate button, and fires back at two other Saviours as they get mauled by Walkers. The other two Saviours shoot down the Walkers but flee behind their Jeep. It's then (while still negotiating) that Carol spots King Ez & Jerry fending off some Walkers at the gate. She goes to aid them and unlocks the gate with said keys. The remaining Saviours take this as their chance to get away and take their arms back to the Sanctuary. King Ez tells Carol "they're getting away with the guns". We hear the sound of Daryls motorbike in the distance and Carol smiles saying "no they're not" or similar. We then cut to...

Daryl & Rick giving chase as the remaining Saviours flee. Rick in a Jeep and Daryl on his trademark bike. Rick is under fire from the mounted chain gun on the back of the Saviour Jeep but Daryl got a hit at him, so the  Saviour struggles to maintain a good shot (yes this part is pretty unrealistic as you'd think a mounted chain gun would take out at least the tyres on Ric's Jeep if not Rick himself). Daryl loses i and slides of the road, while Rick continues to give chase. Daryl amazingly appears pretty much injury free and manages to take out the Saviour gunner. Rick gets level with the Saviour Jeep and manages to jump aboard, knife the Saviour in the side, overthrow him, and kick him out the Jeep. Ultimately this sends Rick through a barrier and crashing down a grass verge. Daryl catches up and goes to check out the state of Rick. Rick must've bailed as the Jeep went down the verge because he emerges from the downslope of the verge and both he and Daryl then agree to check out the Jeep to collect the guns.

Carol, King Ez & Jerry have left the Saviour compound and making their way back to the Kingdom through some woods. Reflecting and thinking about Shiva, Ezekiel realises his true worth and tell Carol and Jerry to go on without him as he is holding them up. They fight of some more Walkers and end up having to cross a waste discharge outlet that has pooled there with what we can only tell from a drum is a "Dangerous Substance". We get a great scene of what I call "Well Walkers" (think S3 where Glenn is sent down a well on a rope to check some water and finds a really disgusting looking Walker), who almost are too much for our survivors. Ezekiel again says he'll sacrifice so Carol and Jerry can survive. It's here he's truly broken as Jerry says "I can't leave you, my King." and Ez responds "I am not your King, i'm just some guy!" It's a true reveal of friendship and reality of who this real "King" really is. In that moment, Shiva saves the three of them and overthrows a few Walkers but alas, they are too much for the potentially malnourished Bengal Tiger (i'm aware she's had meals of Saviours and Scavengers of late but I can't imagine her diet too sustainable in this apocalypse so it's valid she would be more lethargic). Shiva comes to her impending fate as Ezekiel helplessly watches on.

The final scene ends similarly as it began but with a contrasting and truly broken Ezekiel. They enter the gates of The Kingdom, defeated and deflated, with no Shiva in tow and it's clear to the Kingdom family that this is such. Even "Master Henry" who Ezekiel gave so much hope to in his rousing speech, is ignored as Ezekiel limps through the crowd back to his quarters.

Ok, so that's most of the bones of the episode. I enjoyed this more than the previous three and there were some really interesting moments. For once it told a story and gave an insight into one of the main characters. It's managed to turn my opinion around of Ezekiel, especially how his character builds from this moment on. Maybe I was too quick to judge the character before and should've understood the the facade that he was playing to his Kingdom. Looking at it now, as annoying as his persona was I now see it better. It's taken me, for him to become a broken man though to actually see that. I think we may see a similar character development with Negan next episode S8:E5 The Big Scary U.

There were a few pointers in this episode or as they like to call "foreshadowing" which got me thinking a little more. First off have any of you noticed how more of the Walkers seem to have a fair amount of their skin pulled off (like the one Ezekiel and crew encountered in the woods a couple episodes back). This could just be their state of decay as not all of them are going to be exactly ermm....fresh, but if you have any interest in the graphic novels/comics then this could be pointing towards the arrival of another group in the near future and they're pretty fucking gruesome. I'll leave that one with you. Another foreshadow is with Rick. In the comics Rick has wait for it lost his right hand. We've been constantly teased this in the TV show through a fair few seasons. In fact right at the beginning when Merle (S1:E3) cut himself free from the rooftop by sawing through his own hand (although i'm not sure how far on the comic was at that point). I thought he was going to lose it sometime during S4 when he and Carl had fled the Prison and were on the road. We've had Negan forcing Rick to cut off Carl's hand, and now more recently crashing the Jeep down the hill could've been a way to do it then. It may not happen in the TV show but I think if it did it could be another big moment for the character which could send him over the edge.

My final future pointer here is to way further down the line (it's not even part of the comics, so it's just a theory really) but it could be an indicator as to how all this apocalypse started. As Dr Jenner (S1:E6) told Rick at the CDC that everyone is infected, something Rick tells his fellow survivors this secret later on (at the end of S2 I think). The indicator for me is in this latest episode. In the waste discharge pool/ditch there is the large drum which has the label "DANGEROUS SUBSTANCE" on it. Is this an indicator to some kind of high level contamination to the water, via these drums possibly illegally released/dumped by the Government? If so i'd like, once all the warring is over, maybe this discovery/possibility come to light and then our survivors to go on a hunt to find out the source of this. Possibly discovering a facility where government officials are holed up and taking it to them with a new combined set of allies in the Saviours.

Will that happen? I don't know, it'd be a good arc and a new direction for the show. They can't keep focussing on waging war, peacetime and then a new war again, surely otherwise it'll fall on it's face. It is a victim of it's successful past though. A storyline like this could breathe even better life in to it. Whichever way you look at it though that story arc would be the beginning of the end. Maybe it will start focussing on something like that though in another seasons time. Survival is the first priority obviously but there would still be the underpinning curiosity of three main issues; How did it start? How do we contain it? Can we produce a cure? So a focus must go to that branch at some point.

Anyway, I've said my piece now, I think it was certainly a better episode for S8 so far and I hope we get a similar kind of character development with Negan in E5. Hope you guys enjoyed it. Give me your added theories and thoughts about the episode and opinion on my theory surrounding the oil drum. As always I await all your unnerving criticism and maybe even a slight hint of praise. Thanks for reading/viewing/listening See you same time next week.

Cheers,

Bamboo :)

Nice one Bamboo, enjoy reading your thoughts on the episode and ideas for where its going.

Cheers man.  Should've proof read that piece properly though, as there are a ton of typos (extra "the", "and" instead of "an", etc. oh well).  I definitely think there is scope to create some interesting developments further down the line. I'm not even a published writer, so if I can come up with future plots (good or bad) then their creative writing team must be able to. Especially when the TV Show catches up with the source material because then we'll see how creative the writers down at AMC really are. I'm confident Scott Gimple can deliver on this. He has written some key episodes that really made us feel the character.

Good to read your ramblings every week Bamboo.

Just one point on Rick's arm.  After watching Talking Dead this week, Robert Kirkman indicated that he regretted Rick losing his arm in the comic books.  He admitted that he liked the TV story better than the comic in this aspect.

Also bear in mind that to have a limb missing for Rick would take up some considerable budget for the special effects bearing in mind he is in a lot of episodes.  I don't think they will lose his arm until possibly right at the end of the series, towards the crescendo let's say..

Not sure about this episode, seems to be a lot of filler again, after all, its been 3 weeks since the "shit your pants" episode.
Nothing really much happened to be honest, Negan and Gabriel escaped and judging by the last scene Gabriel didn't make it out unscathed. It looks like he was bitten during the escape.

The Rick/Darryl bits i found a bit cringe worthy to be honest.

thought it was one of the better ones this series. that isn't overly complimentary.

shame panto villan Negan came back at the end

I think he'll be around for some time yet.

Will plop a review on a little later. Short form though...I thought the inside story they touched on Negan was good. It's a far cry from "Have you got your shitting pants on?" which was strange as they were the last words Negan said to Gabriel. Had a new found respect for Father Gabe's character role and looked creepy as he said "I've come to take your confession". Episode's of any series episode which focuses mainly on just one or two characters is always difficult to ask of. I think (when they were in the Portakabin) they got this about right and JDM did deliver a believable angst and genuine sorrow for losing his wife. Especially with not being able to let go.

I'll expand (ohh I can feel the shudders of disbelief) on the above and more in the joy that is, my in depth and ever so complex review of S8:E5: The Big Scary U. Also more questions to be posed which I'd really love to hear your thoughts on. The season is building, it's not the best by a long shot but it's improving as it goes on in my opinion.

Laters guys.

What i'm struggling with with TWD is trying to separate the seasons. When discussing TV shows you can almost always say "oh, season 1 and 2 were good" or "season 3 was shit" I can pretty much remember the whole story from day 1 but i'm struggling to put it in any kind of order which is annoying me.

I think im the only one still watching it. Bamboo couldnt even bring himself to do a write on on last week.

I quite enjoyed last nights episode. Its starting to ramp up a bit. Loved the rocket launcher scene.

So a few of the gang have gone rogue and want to end it now rather than going with Ricks plan, seeing as we are still quite early on in the season it will either got tits up or they will back out at the last minute.

Mean while Rick has his hands full with the scrapyard people. I really do no understand this group. Why are they so weird?

I'll leave a full write up to bamboo but its slowly getting there.

favourite episode for a long while. didn't really want it to end and it's been ages since I've felt like that.

they got a good blend of action, characterisation and plot development this week.

yippee.

the rocket launcher was ace!

the only thing I didn't like was the happy coincidence of Darryl and the van crash... they are getting really lucky with that and stopping the gun truck the other day

The only thing that confused me was Carl in the woods with that indian chap. Did i miss something in a previous episode?
That bit just made me hate Coral even more.

oh yeah forgot that. can't even remember who the hell the guy was..

bamboo, enlighten us!

I will be back in action shortly guys. Had a busy few days editing photos (yes it's so monotonous), talking to banks and other stuff. This is where you all laugh because I don't even have kids or a relationship at the moment  :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick: :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick:

Anyway I will be watching last nights S8:E6: The King, The Widow & Rick, in about an hour (which is really bizarre because that would usually be when I'm watching it either for the 2nd or 3rd time. Especially when reviewing!) sooo I hope to get round to a comprehensive in depth review posted at around 5pm?

I may post up my review from S8:E5: The Big Scary U, if anyone is interested? Or do you think it'll mess up the thread. I can always DM it to anyone if they feel that would be better. Let me know and i'll do whatever.

Once again apologies, good old life getting in the way again  :pint: :)

Ok, so I've had a two week hiatus of posting anything TWD related (well almost) and all in the time when the series is really starting to get back to a better place. Almost TWD we know and love. I'll do a double review of S8:E5: The Big Scary U & S8:E6: The King, The Widow & Rick on individual posts because having them on one will be enough to test my sanity and i'm writing it. I'll spare you that at least, as my reviews are long enough on their own. Wait until the S8 Review!  ;)

Right I'll start of with the previous episode and we'll take it from there...

S8:E5: The Big Scary U

The episode opens by taking us right back to when Rick's Army were just about to fire gunshots at the Sanctuary. We have a great opening scene where Simon enters the room with pancakes for Gregory. The bemused Gregory is convinced by Simon that he already knows everything and trusts that Gregory has a plan to make the Hilltop stay onside as after all he is "in charge" (we all know he's a bullshitter but Simon seemingly gives him the benefit of the doubt). I actually warmed to Gregory a little more in this episode because he dropped the rather "over hammy" acting to more of a "hammy lite" acting. It is what it is! Greg & Si enter Negan's meeting room to put their thoughts to the great dictator to which Negan is hardly convinced and Dwight has had enough of the crap Gregory is spouting, so leaves the room (probably struggling to contain his guilt). Simon backs Gregory by explaining to Negan, if it doesn't work we'll just wipe them out. This tips Negan almost over the edge as Lucille takes a firm bash to the table and he reminds Simon who's in charge. "Are we backsliding Simon? Are we?" It's a great line that opens up a few questions, especially has to how the Sanctuary may well have been operated  before Negan arrived! This could be an assumption but maybe Simon led the Saviours before or was a "leader" in a group of uncontrollable savages. Negan quite directly makes it clear that "Humans are resources." and that they do not just kill on a whim. It all seems a bit odd because of how he made an example of Rick's Group and all the previous with scarring Dwight, throwing the Doctor into the furnace et al. I think we have to start to look at the storylines more independently. We've been on "one side" for so long now that sometimes we're clouded by who the bad guys really are. Yes Negan wants full control and build a community of "resources", call them slaves, workers whatever but he wants to rebuild for essentially his own gains. We pretty much see an appreciation of his management towards the end of the episode. I'll talk about that later. Whereas Rick wants to rebuild a community that all works together in social harmony, where everyone benefits and some sense of normality is resumed. We can pretty much coin this as the Capitalist vs Socialist.

Things are just starting to heat up in Negan's "boardroom" when gunshots are overheard. Negan spies that it's Rick's lot with barricaded vehicles and realises Gregory may well be needed. Negan and his henchmen exit onto the platform that we saw from Rick's POV a few weeks earlier. This was a really nice bit of direction and stitched the two pieces together nicely. All we really gained from it though, is that Dwight's getting ever more paranoid and Gregory is a total grass who is only interested in himself (tell us something we don't know).

During all that we flick to present time and finally get to see Father Gabriel & Negan in the Portakabin. Which is where the majority of this episode focuses on. Negan makes a grab for Father Gabe and pins him down in the initial scuffle. Negan says he's not going to kill him but wonders why Gabe  chose to end up in the Kabin with him. Explaining he saw him save Gregory. Gabe goes all "the Lord sent me, I must have a purpose" etc. To which Negan scoffs at. They talk some more and then Gabriel reveals in the creepiest of ways that "I know why i'm here. I've come to take your confession!" The opening credits roll and we know we're in for a fairly interesting episode.

We now open back in the Sanctuary and the aftermath of Rick's attack. The henchmen are all in Negan's boardroom and Simon proclaims that Negan may be dead, this fractures leadership as the different personalities start to think they can take charge. I think it's then Gavin (the more reasonable Saviour who dealt with the Kingdom's Trades) who smells a rat saying that someone in the room must be relaying info to Rick's Army. Eugene is seen as the obvious antagonist for this as Simon, Gavin & Regina (who has subtly replaced Arat, Negan's original righthand woman, who is currently filming Godzilla) all pretty much point the finger. Dwight actually backs Eugene as we all know he's been sending intel to Daryl. Some more commotion goes off and the situation is evaded, for now.

We then head back to the Portakabin and Negan is reluctant at first to tell Gabe anything about his past. He does however disclose how he came to take control of the Saviours. Explaining that they need someone to tell them what to do "A lot of folks are gonna die in there because I'm not there to stop it." . Obviously he is the man to do that, the worship him, ironically like a bishop or priest. the ever growing pressure of walkers outside the Kabin as they discuss how they'll get out. Father Gabe starts to tell Negan about how he locked his congregation out of the church (way back in S5:E2 or possibly E3). As Negan drops his guard, Gabe probes him about his past, about people he loved, if he had a wife. Negan shows his uncontrollable anger and lifts Lucille ready to pounce but Gabe makes a grab for his gun and holes himself up in another room of the Kabin. Negan then smashes a walker to bits thats been pushing through a broken panel and then calms down and rests his head against  the side while light floods through i a godly fashion. Thus creating the "confession box",  which they mirrored perfectly and set it up for an insight into Negan's more "normal" pre-apocalyptic life.

It flicks back to the Sanctuary briefly and as Sanctuary workers get more unsettled, the remaining Saviour henchmen don't take any real decision. We then have a good scene with Eugene & Dwight, as Eugene's suspicions around Dwight grow. It's firstly a comedic offering from the resident "special guy" as he brings Dwight a jar of his prized pickles. It's a kind touch but he then spots Dwight's handmade chess set (remember Dwight has been making these to send intel/messages to Daryl.) and picks one up, staining his finger in the process with red paint. Dwight is uneasy and says "Don't touch it, it's still wet." as Eugene spots it on his finger. It's a nice touch which complicates things for later in the episode.

We flick back to Portakabin and Negan finally gives his confession. He talks about his first wife, she was ill and he fucked around with other women. It's a genuine regret and with tears in his eyes Jeffrey Dean-Morgan delivers the first true and real side of Negan so far. The man behind the mask, if you must. I liked the performance between the two and as others have said, it was a move away from "panto" Negan as we finally got some character backstory and development. Turns out he was still a cunt before the apocalypse :) Anyway, Negan goes on to tell Gabe that they need to work together to get out of the Kabin. Gabe opens the door and Negan punches Gabe square on the face. It was brilliant after almost having feeling for Negan for him to basically just turn round literally throw it back in Gabe's face. Still was some great scenes.

We go back to the Sanctuary and the workers are becoming more restless. Simon (who has assumed power) decides to turn off the power supply and reserve energy. The workers gather in revolt as they want answers. They realise Negan has not been around. Simon nearly goes for one of them and Dwight calms it down briefly. Meanwhile Gabe and Negan use the zombie guts covering technique (As featured in Atlanta supply missions in S1 and intermittent periods during other Season also. Why don't they do this more often, someone must?) and walk their way out of the Portakabin. They get to the stairs near the Sanctuary but two or three walkers are at the top. The scene cuts so we never know exactly what happened. Did Gabe get bit? Did Negan push them onto him? Or has Gabe just got ill?). Unrest is still going on in the Sanctuary and Regina pulls a gun on a worker and kills them to put an end to the commotion saying "I am Negan". Right on cue, you know who comes whistling down the corridor to see what's been going down. I didn't mind this part and even if it was a return to the "panto villain" it was consistent with the point he made to Gabe. They all bow down, Gabe included (that could be his Kidneys starting to failing all honesty though!) and Negan is not too pleased with Regina. He get's the workers back to work and tells them power will be restored (a certain irony there), one worker calls out "Thank you Negan! Thank God for you." He turns to Gabe smiling that smile and says something like "See?" He then gets Gabriel put in Cell 1.

We then have them back round the table as weapons form Rick's Army have been found and they are indeed weapons from the Sanctuary. It's in this moment that Eugene finally puts two and two together as he see's the red paint on it. Worryingly he looks at his finger, looks at Dwight knowingly but keeps quiet as Eugen knows that he is the main suspect. Not going to look good with the literally blood on his hands. He knows though, so will he grass on Dwight? Later on Negan tells Eugene, while alone, that he'll reward him if he can get rid of all the walkers around the Sanctuary, however if he can't then he threatened him with something more serious but in Negan's words kind, he'd kill him so he didn't have to see the Sanctuary go to shit. How kind of him!

Away from all of that we get a few short scenes with Cagney & Lacey. Sorry I'm being a dick! Our two favourite heroes, Rick and Daryl. Again it' a little bit silly but I guess they are both having fun as actors with all these action scene! Anyway, it pics up from the previous as they inspect the Truck which had the weapons in (one of the main goals in Rick's: The Plan) Daryl & Rick ty to get some answers out of the dying driver and he splutters a few words but Rick then quite aggressively finishes the guy with a knife to the head. He spared him turning I guess. They go check the truck out and Daryl produces a bag of dynamite . He thinks they might be able to use it in the plan but Rick says they must stick to the plan. They start fighting (yes by a truck leaking fuel and full of ammunition) and Rick chucks the bag of dynamite towards the truck. We then get a full on Die Hard scene as Rick and Daryl dive to cover and the truck explodes. After they look at what idiots they've been all for their own egos, however there is now a broken element to the two and i'm interested to see which way this goes. As they go to their vehicles and agree to divulge their own version of the plan, Rick's car doesn't start but there's no chance Daryl will be giving him a ride. Rick makes his way on foot and is spotted by one of the Junkyard/Scavenger lookouts. This really disappointed me as I thought we'd pretty much seen the last of them. I suppose we do need to see them written out properly or at least diminished to just Jadis and maybe one other. Not long after this a helicopter flies over which totally through me. Who or what group has enough fuel for a helicopter? Or is this just another figment of Rick's mind? I don't know at all and that totally chucked me but there has to be some development to that surely? They can't just throw a helicopter in and never explain it. Then again, great directors like Scorsese weren't adverse to throwing in random items just to make sure you're concentrating! I'm not saying it's at that level but there are some talented directors on the show. Michael Satrazemis is brilliant for starters and Matthew Negrete also. Anyway lets hope they develop that somewhere because I for one won't forget about it!

Final scene see's Eugene approaching a door and we find out it's Gabe's cell. He's kindly gone to take him some comforts while he's holed up in solitary. Eugene gets no response and he fumbles to unlock the cell. Gabe clearly has a fever (or seemingly so) and starts muttering about needing to get the Doctor to the Hilltop for Maggie. Was this one of his main ploys? To get the Doctor back at the Hilltop? Is h faking a fever of some kind so he can talk to the Doc? What are your thoughts on this?

So there we have it, The Big Scary U. I know most of you have enjoyed the episode even though it did seem a little fillerish but it's coming back together and there were some good performances, especially from JD-M & Seth Gilliam (Gabe) for their set limited delivery of a "Negan backstory". Special mention though, to Austin Amelio (Dwight) &  Josh McDermitt (Eugene) as the storyline between them develops and intensifies. I think I'm slowly getting my TWD mojo back! Could just be getting my mojo back, I loved those sweets, anyone remember them? Interestingly and it's a bit of a deviation but Eugene's character is full name Eugene Porter. Eugene was believed, especially by Abraham, to be part of the "Human Genome Project". Eugenics is a movement is DNA manipulation or as we may call it "selective breeding". A Porter (in generic terms) is a person or service that moves things within one place to another. Two terms, that both mean movement in different way. A clever play and link on the characters full name, no coincidence i'm sure. Effectively Eugene Porter could otherwise be known as "Movement Mover". I like that, but those things always impress me. Then again, I am a geek. It means I'll be looking for continuity in every character/name link now. There will be others i'm sure.

As always, thanks for reading/listening/viewing. I apologise for the shockingly slow rate at getting these reviews through but as always I welcome all your thoughts etc. I've posed a few questions of that episode so give me your own thoughts on that. I'll be  back straight away tomorrow lunchtime with a review for the most recent episode; S8:E6: The King, The Widow & Rick. Hope you've enjoyed the read and I'll catch up with you guys tomorrow and yes I'll be explaining all about Siddiq (unless you already have yourself) and my theories on that so stay tuned!

Cheers,

Bamboo :)

Hope you've manage to churn your eyes through that last post of misgivings! So finally I get round to posting before the next episode. I think the series is coming along nice and after two fairly good episodes. I'd say E4 was most consistent closely followed by E5 which focused back on our favourite panto villain (I still like the actor and I think they have rescued the villain element a little.). E6 seems to have taken a bit if a step back. It wasn't shocking in any sense and there were some great developments. There were a few pointless bits but they helped to answer a part of the story, linking from last episode. I'll expand on that shortly as I give you a turnip by turnip account of this weeks episode of TWD...

S8:E6: The King, The Widow & Rick

The episode opens with a nicely shot montage (no cheesy fadeouts either) of Rick retrieving a piece of paper out of an old microwave alone (who would have thought it could make such an interesting shot, but it did. It works in this World), Tara and some Alexandrians returning from battle, Daryl whizzing by on his motorbike alone, a solemn Kingdom with Carol contemplating recent events, and Aaron returning to the Hilltop. They all hand over or receive updates of how "Rick's Plan" is going so far, whilst one of Rick's updates is narrated over by the man himself. Then Maggie and Carol's are read respectively whilst returning to Rick, who reveals he's on his way to the Junkyard/Scavengers to execute the next step of the plan. It cuts to the Junkyard and Jadis is creating a sculpture out of wire in nothing but a red potters apron (Pollyanna McIntosh (yeah I know right), scrubs up very well in real life ;) ). It's a good transition from montage to opening scene, it's fluid and pretty seamless. There's a banging on the shipping container in the Junkyard which cuts the silence, and Jadis notions to her people to open it up and let whoever is in there out (guess who?). The doors are opened and they leave us guessing a little longer as we cut to the opening credits and set for the episode proper.

We're met by the Hilltop and Jesus' PoW being fed surplus turnips by the holy one. If ever we needed to tell a classic Bible story then this was clearly prevalent. Maggie discusses this with Jesus and tell him that they're not for the prisoners (the way she says Jesus everytime now I only hear it like she's saying "ffs Jesus!", instead of his name). Gregory suggest they build a Gallows and be done with them and interestingly calls Jesus by his real name, Paul (Paul Rovia). Maggie tells Gregory to go away and she tells Jesus that hanging them is an option. Jesus recoils with "we must remember what we're fighting for". It cuts to the Kingdom briefly as Carol tries to gain entry to Ezekiel's quarters but fails and then races off. Master Henry (Benjamin's brother) chases after and says he'll fight.

The shipping container doors open and out pulled is, surprise surprise, Rick. The Junkyard surround him in their ritualistic way as Rick starts to explain what he wants from them. It may seem pretty stupid after they double backed Rick's Army when we last saw them, but it's a clever play from Rick and show's that he actually may have some kind of strategy instead of just blowing the shit out of them. We learn the reason why he's been snapping all those Polaroids and it's a good reference to Negan and his Saviours, as this is exactly the trait they used. It's a nice touch, simple but adds a little depth to the plot. Jadis declines the offer to join Rick's Army and as they drag him back to his "cell" she accurately states, "talks too much." I still find this group a little pointless, I don't mind Jadis as an individual character but I really hope we get the Junkyard/Scavengers defeated, shortly. Maybe have Jadis survive and eventually hook up with Rick (she clearly likes him).

Back at the Hilltop, Gregory is trying to convince, in an apolitical way, Maggie to do away with the PoWs and understands how tough it is to be leader. It's another sneaky tactic from Gregory (gladly with less hamminess) and with the toning down of his character a little I'm beginning to like him (did I really say that?), okay maybe I'm beginning to not dislike him as much! However Maggie is having none of it (gladly) and tells Gregory that it was easy not to surrender the Hilltop to Negan, whereas our favourite grass, was scared. He goes on to tell her "you need someone to let you know it's alright to go with your gut...you can't have wolves wandering around amongst the sheep.", to which she agrees, and he unfortunately regrets later on.

Inside Alexandria, Michonne & Rosita are both still licking the wounds of war, and also the wounds of regret. They both want to go see what the state of play is at the Sanctuary, which I felt was a little idiotic but it does lead to a potential answer, which may possibly linked to Eugene's solution of ridding the walkers from around the Sanctuary. We see Tara catch up with Daryl as they discuss that they both could kill Dwight together, they then head off I assume towards the Sanctuary to scope it out.

It's a full moon at the Hilltop, as the timeline of that story jumps to later in the day/evening and Jesus is still out side tending his sheep (yes the Biblical reference runs the more you think about it). One of the PoWs tries to aggravate Jesus  but he has none of it. However you can tell Jesus thinks he's fairly right.

Michonne & Rosita are driving to the Sanctuary (although they must've shared the driving because when they left Alexandria, Michonne was driving and in this scene Rosita is. Anyone know the true distance between Alexandria & The Sanctuary? If it's around 100miles I'll forgive them...We'll call it a continuity error.) which is when they stumble across the Eugene link. Opera music playing from some loud speakers. They abandon the car and go investigate.

Enter Carl scavenging in the woods, where he spots a walker impaled on a stake trying to reach some bait in a tree. He then spots "the middle eastern guy" who we learn is called Siddiq. Siddiq was in the S8 Premiere, Mercy. Where both Rick & Carl were looking for fuel and Rick fires warning shots to scare him away, believing him to be a spy. You've probably all figured this out by now, but later in that episode Carl returns to the location leaving him food. In a respectful tip of the head to his Dad, Carl asks Siddiq the same three questions Rick used to ask potential new people; How many walkers have you killed? How many people have you killed? Why? I liked that part and while Carl can be annoying he's showing his own individual leadership as his character develops. The two quickly become mates and Siddiq explains killing the walkers (according to his Mother), "frees their souls". Honouring this (but probably stupidly so. Hey we all make mistakes when we're young...and old!), Carl agrees to free a few walkers souls with Siddiq. They predictably get into a predicament in which Siddiq nearly gets bit and Carl nearly gets his face ripped off (So close Chubbs, soo close :D ). Siddiq says you could've left me. Carl replies with "I'm responsible for you now, that's how it works." They then head off back to Alexandria. I think they did a really good job of introducing this character. He apparently plays a fairly pivotal role in the comics,  so very interesting development. What are your thoughts on Siddiq? Friend or Foe? Part of another group? Is Carl being a dick?

During that time Carol is being followed by Master Henry into the woods, she basically tells him he's an idiot he tries to fend of walkers with a staff. She gives in, and hands him a gun. "The safety stays on, until I say otherwise."


Back at the Hilltop it's the next day. Maggie tells Jesus to bring the prisoners in, to reveal she's built a segregation camp. Gregory, says we can't have them in here. To which Maggie has had enough and impound Gregory into the camp with the PoWs. She then goes on to smash the dude that intimidated Morgan, in the face with the but of her gun. Another prisoner says thank you, she respond with "don't let me regret that." Finally, Gregory has got his just deserts and just as I was starting to dislike him less! Hahaha. Probably my favourite part of the episode.

As Rosita & Michonne explore where the sounds are coming from they stumble into some kind of warehouse/facility. They come across two Saviours rigging up some speakers. We can only assume to draw walkers away from the Sanctuary. As they spy on the Saviours, Michonne accidentally kicks a tennis ball into their view (note the computer game RPG, FPS element to it as Rosita diverts attention away from them). They split, Michonne fights the woman and as she starts to escape, Rosita corners the guy and aims a L-A-R-L (Land to air Rocket Launcher) at him. He scoffs "you aren't going to use that are you baby girl?", BOOM, vapourises the guy in probably one of the most unrealistic kills yet. However I still liked it and it gave a smile. However the girl escapes and tails off with the music blaring. Michonne & Rosita look gutted as they realise they could've used the LARL to shoot the car and stop it getting back to the Sanctuary. Hope isn't lost though as in the nick of time, the shows latest action hero Daryl (with Tara in tow), T-bones the car by plowing into it using an 18 wheeler truck. Where he got that, I don't know, as Alexandria doesn't have one! A tad far fetched maybe but it cleared up one of the theories for removing the walkers fromt the Sanctuary. Does this mean Eugene is going to be in a hole new world of shit? Possibly, but we've no idea it was his idea anyway. We'll soon see i'm sure.

Carol goes back to the Kingdom to talk to Ezekiel again and convince him to be "King" again. Khary Paton again delivers a great part in what is only a short piece. He even used his token "...and yet I smile" line (what a cheek), but this time with more broken gravitas of any failed Kings that have graced our screens. It's another moving and believable scene, I'm certain the tears from both Carol & Ez were genuine. He confesses that she makes him feel real and not a fiction. She again tells him that his people need him. It's not fully answered if he will takes this offer back up but a she leaves she says "If you can't be the King, play the part. That's what they need." He replies "I can't." We're still left in the dark as to whether he will reprise his role. I kind of hope he doesn't and Carol takes the lead of the Kingdom. We need Carol to be back at the forefront. She's an awesome character and Melissa McBride has played and developed her far from the "beaten wife" we first met in S1.

We go briefly back to the Hilltop and Aaron explains how he misses Eric. Maggie mentions about using the Saviours as a bargaining chip. Aaron then takes off on a mission, taking Maggies word with him. Enid says she's going with him, so tells him to get her stuff and some food "We might be a while."

Two final short scenes ends with Daryl, Tara, Michonne & Rosita sitting in the truck outside the Sanctuary. Michonne asks Daryl "What do you need us for?" to which Daryl responds, I think with "You'll see!". We then cut to Jadis walking by Rick's shipping container/cell and drawing a big "A" on with chalk (harks back to S4 Finale: A, when Rick and his crew were captured by the Terminus Cannibals and put inside a container with a big A stamped on it.). This throws up a lot of questions because both the Terminus Cannibals and the Wolves used "A". I wonder if it's got a further message to something more down the line. Maybe there is an even bigger force in control of this "New World". The "A" has been a constant through many seasons so my opinion is they are definitely foreshadowing something big.  They pan out from Rick's cell and he's been stripped naked and the end credits run.

So you've made it to the end of my latest review! What are opinions on the questions I've posed throughout. I hope I've managed to answer a few of your questions, especially on the Siddiq plotline. I found it a fairly decent episode, just a tad far fetched at times. We had some emotive parts with Carol & Ez and I think it worked as an episode on the whole to tie it all together a bit. It's the penultimate episode next Monday, S8:E7: Time For After and we should have a better idea of how the mid-season is going to end. I'd like to see the end of the Junkyard/Scavengers maybe by next episode, but with four main characters at the Sanctuary, seemingly ready to strike, there is only Carol, Master Henry and possibly Hilltop to bring Rick to safety, it seems unlikely. We also will need to tie up Father Gabe's predicament, will Eugene follow his plea and smuggle the Doctor to the Hilltop?  and how? or will Eugene meet his fate via Negan? It poses a few more question which hopefully we can answer before heading into the MSF.

Once again thanks for viewing/listening/reading. Give me your opinions on my opinion and your thoughts going forward towards the MSF. Criticism, always welcome.

Cheers,

Bamboo :)

I didn't get the A reference until now. Thanks bamboo.

Good read. Needs to start getting a wiggle on plot wise now for me.

This was a pretty good episode. I think most of you that watch will enjoy/are enjoying/have enjoyed it.  :)

oops.

Eugene what have you done...

Ricks face at the end was a picture.

I love how they are developing eugenes character into alsomost a mad scientist.

Haha, I think he's going into full breakdown. Will he grass Dwight up to save his own skin (literally) ?


Yeah it's a great development. Don't know if any of you read my piece on Eugene in one of the previous reviews but it's very much that he's turning into this Monster of a character. I said (not so much on here I don't think but a few Seasons back) that Eugene could be the one to kill Negan. It's quite clear as his psychopathic tendencies grow, he could recklessly and ruthlessly murder Negan. After all, he only about self preservation.

corral :)

still reckon it's some misdirection or that he's immune somehow mind!

Like you say, they’ll make some bullshit way to save coral. I hope they don’t but they probably will.

The whole episode was a bit wank.

It was like a repeat.

Oooh Rick's getting the saviours
Oooh the Saviours have got out.
Oooh the Saviours have killed someone to make an example
Oooh Ricks group lucks fucked...

Haven't we seen all this before. Yeah Maggie was almost interesting with the tit-for-tat, but other than that....meh.

The actor that plays Coral is taking a break from acting to go to College, make of that what you will...  maybe they will kill him off..

Ok, TWD is back in a little over three weeks and I know the Season 8 MSF left some of you a little jaded. I want to concentrate on this quote from my S8:E1 Mercy review. So Carl has been bit/scratched/infected somehow. As far as we know and there have been tons of releases around how he's taken a break and is working on his music career (similarly Beth is quite a successful Country artist). Fine. What then of the timehop/flash forwards we saw in this very episode? As my quote states, there was the whole Grimes family in the timehop? Michonne, Judith, Rick, and good old Coral. My theory and yes like Berni (some immune bullshit) said; maybe Carl does have some kind of immunity? It's not beyond the realms of possibility. There is immunity in everything. Dr. Janner (S1 Finale) hadn't necessarily solved the outbreak, just came to that conclusion and was ready to accept death. Carl and others could be immune. Herein lies the problem. If Chandler Riggs is taking a break from acting (well he is, and we know that) yet we have this timehop, that Carl is included in. How will the show come to that conclusion and explain Carl not being there? Viewers (newcomers and diehards alike) will not accept Rick's "timehop" as a mere dream because that will piss off a lot of people. Even myself.

The show has S9 commissioned so it's not going anywhere fast. I said before 10 seasons should have got us past a turning point in the show and give us true direction on the endgame. Looking forward to how S8b pans out and how long are they going to fucking stay in the sewers for?

Looking forward to spouting some long-winded bollocks in the form of a review (yes I promise to contribute more regularly) and you guys putting your own thoughts to boot too.

I guess, talk to you about on the 26/27th Feb!

Cheers,

Bamboo  :)

Keep the enthusiasm BBS, I for one enjoy reading your ramblings and theories..

me too. helps with things I may have missed/not considered

30 mins to go until S8MSP: Honour (Honor; US Eng)

Hopefully it will be one we talk about for all the right reasons and will be incredibly enjoyable. CORALLLLLLL!!!!  :)

he's dead, he's dead he's dead he's dead!

Morgan is kick ass awesome again though. That's good.

Why do i think that some way, some how, he will be back. I can just see it now, just so the writers can spite me.
But yes, Thank fuck he's dead, the annoting little shit.

good episode all in all, i hope the pace keeps up for the rest of the season.

was a good episode, other than coral taking ages to die, and the whole scene up to the gunshot...

I think we will see Coral again in some capacity, not so much as a living character but possibly through "Carl's Vision" via Rick. Not so much like when Lori's ghost came back, although Chandler Riggs did joke about that happening.

I think the episode was handled really well and tbf they had to honour one of the original cast members exit, so I didn't mind. In a way it was almost like Carl's death was done in real time. Nice touch by getting him to the blown out church and gave him a little grace in death. I liked how he passed the mantle (Rick's hat) on to Judith and the lighting in the sewers etc made for a more intimate feel. It was a sad episode and again the show managed to create a compelling episode without having to go all out super action hero.

I liked how they knitted the flash forward parts from the first part of the season, answering a few questions (namely, Old Rick now evident as Carl's Vision) but also still leaving a few questions lingering (Rick slumped by the tree, on a hill, with stained glass windows?). The episode still managed some tension with Carol and Morgan in stealth mode to defeat Gavin's section of the Saviours. Morgan, as others have mentioned was bloody, quite physically, brilliant. Lennie James for me is a cracking actor. The delivery on his "I have to..." line to Carol, when having to kill Gavin...he choked on his sadness and had to say it again. It was much more than just three words. I don't think many actors would've got it across as powerfully as that. In fact Morgan nearly stole the attention away from Carl's scenes.

I'll focus on all this either later on tonight or tomorrow when I write a more in depth (ohhh dread :) ) review of S8EP9:MSP Honour. For what it's worth it was a slightly different angle from how the season so far had, if we're honest muddled along with a few good ones, a few bad ones and some filler ones. I can't say last nights was emphatic but it was a great episode and an honest one at that. Seeing the trailers and other bits and bobs for S8:E10, it looks as though it will ramp up and maybe we'll see a Negan not dissimilar to the one we saw on his entrance to the show. Tough to follow but we need to a reminder he's as ruthless as he has been. Also though, wonder how he will respond to Carl's death. His character had a soft spot for Carl and kids overall, even if Carl duped him in S8E8:MSF. I'll talk about this and more, in the review to come.

Throw in your thoughts and ideas (yes even if they are as ridiculous as mine!) about the episode and future ones to follow. Always nice to read what you guys minds are directing towards and I prefer not to just have my opinion/thoughts expressed. So yeah, open up even the craziest of thoughts about where you think it might go, cos one things for sure Rick's direction or development is bound to change from herein. Catch you later.

Cheers for reading/watching/contributing,

Bamboo  :)

Best episode for ages for me.

Simon is going to feel the wrath of Negan, or maybe he'll end up complicit in his downfall. Negan seems in a strong position, but his inner circle is failing.

And the grinder....

Yep, a great blend of threat, regret, anger and remorse from Negan. Simon just can't control himself and although you saw it coming, it was still great viewing. I actually give some credit to Jadis here as she transformed from her "Leader" role (Mad Max et al) to a broken woman, who spoke properly for the first time. I think she will eventually join up with Rick's group, she could even end up at Oceanside or at one of the other camps. Simon is on spent time or a divide is coming, which could end the "All out War" but start an internal one. Once Negan finds out about Simon going "off course" yet again, surely it'll be toast for him?

This second half of the show in these first two episodes seems to be back on track and there seems to be a more sense of direction, rather than just fragmented segments that were somewhat stagnating with no real direction or endpoint. We can kind of foresee the end of the War and possibly life after it. Rick is still raw understandably and his actions will matter. The path of Morgan will be interesting to follow as well as other characters finding out about Coral's death. I felt Negan was still fairly cuntish over the radio to Rick, while showing he genuinely had a soft spot for Carl. That was just Negan though. A little less of the pantomime and he becomes much more believable. Plus it only enhances the qualities that JD-M has as an actor. If TWD continues to play towards the current casts acting strengths then we'll be in for a great end to the season!

I'll potentially put up a double review (if you can stomach it) and talk in more detail about S8E9: Honour & S8E10: The Lost & The Plunderers.

Wasn't blown away but this episode but i guess they need to set you up for the big finale.

If i'm honest, i'm looking forward to this all being over.

Oh no Chubbs!! You've lost the faith man  :no: KTF mate.

Looking forward to Negan being over, and the reduced number of groups...

But I worry that it'll just be replaced with new 'bad people', and I'm bored of that

Yeah, we do need a more defined core group. Characters like Morgan work because he's a floating member but generally has been independent and has his own side story going on, whilst mostly helping the group. I think the "All out War" is pretty much over and it's a reflection stage...a few loose ends to tie up and getting rid of unimportant/annoying groups (they wrote out the Junkyard/Scavengers fairly well but left me thinking they could've done that half a season a go. I like how using that, they've written in the conflict that will ensue, surely between Negan and Simon). Possibly Oceanside could feature a bit again or was that a way for the show to write Aaron and the Oceansiders (potential Band name? ;) ) out of TWD??

Once everyone has read their "Letters from the grave" and maybe Michonne convinces Rick not to go all rage, while Negan tones things down dealing with his own groups problems, this could be an entry point for the "Whisperers". They've been noted several times and it's merely speculation on my part but this would seem the next logical step. They are also, a totally different type of group, who operate in a different way. I wouldn't say they are a threatening group and we may have eve seen them already (or signs of them). I'm enjoying this half of S8 so far and the delivery of quality has returned. Ironically, as key people have left.

Reduce the cast, focus on strong story and plot strands. Change tack from "Baddies - Calm moment - more baddies" to "Throw us totally of guard/new revelation" and I think it'll interest some deserters, new viewers, and freshen up existing viewers that may feel slightly stagnant. It seems to be working towards that, so I'm happy to see how it develops post All out War.

That’s it, once negan is finished off, it’s just going to be another baddie and we start again.

Morgan is off to Fear the walking dead, so this will likely be last season that you see him regularly.

Now that was the best episode in a long time.

two of the last 3 have been good imo, nice ending yesterday!

So this latest episode is really setting things up for an explosive finale.

The below are my thoughts only, i have not read the comics.

Dwight is back with Negan but very much is still siding with Rick's side. It will be interesting to see how that unfolds. Personally, i think he will instrumental in the downfall of Negan but may possibly pay the price.

Simon is an interesting character. He's had enough of Negan playing games and just wants to end it. I can see him and Negan coming to blows soon. In this last episode he had no interest in finding or saving Negan and it looks like he will try and overthrow his leadership and try to take control of the saviours in an attempt to eradicate the Hilltop, Kingdom and Alexandria communities for good.

Really enjoyed the Rick and Negan altercation and the last scene showing Negan being driven away by Jadis. I wonder how that will pan out.

As for appearance of Georgie and her two "bodyguards". This has the potential to open the series right up. Are they alone? I very much doubt it, how many of them are there? Who knows. It's clear they are doing well for themselves and i don't think this is the last we've seen of them.
Could they have something to do with the Helicopter that's been referenced a few times then season? Looking at their nice truck they were in, its possible.

Looking forward to the last few episodes.

My worry is this is the start of Governor MKIII. (MkII being Negan). I don't know if I can survive another series of a "baddie" unless there is a massive change in direction. Maybe they have tech (like the helo) so it'll be different..

You are right to worry, i'm the same. There are two options for the show, end it and be done with it or carry on and introduce another villain. They cannot continue the show and everything be happy every after.

Going back to Georgie, she was very well dressed, the car was is good condition, they had food to give away. Is she another villain? Who knows....

I'm my opinion i want the show to move away from the wilderness aspect, move away from the forests etc and bring it back into the city. Maybe Georgie is part of a massive community, as in a small town or city and somehow they have managed to re-introduce things like electricity, running water etc back into civilization. After all, "The key" has blueprints for all sorts of things.

Yeah I agree, the last two episodes have been great and this half of S8 has really done well to turn it around after a quickly fading/frustrating S7. S8A had been ok but was basically just a continuation of war and out of character responses. There were good bits though, like the start of the leadership breakdown in the Saviours camp and that has now developed further, with both Simon and Dwight clearly wanting to go different ways but ultimately away from  Negan.

I feel this leadership breakdown is leading to better deliveries of characters. JDM's Negan, plays out so much better in the one-on-one type scenes rather than in the "all hail, kneel down" stuff. The scenario with Jadis is even more interesting and since her "supporters" have been eliminated, her character is better, stronger and more believable. Maybe I just prefer it when characters rise from nothing and become something better, I don't know but it's making for better viewing imo.

Georgie I genuinely don't think is a "MkIII baddie", I see her more as a Deanna type, who had a vision to build a new community at Alexandria (which they duly did, then Rick's group came along and effectively ripped it apart). She pretty much achieved this but then the introduction of Rick's group to Alexandria, was the start of it's downfall. Rick's group well want a future, security and something to build on but clearly, they struggle with the concept of utopian peace and become restless. They're psychologically fucked in that sense (ie, the world has gone to shit and although they hope and want it to end, they can't get their heads arounds it being the constant of life anymore). So yeah Georgie; interesting development and nice for TWD to take a story arc to someplace else. All we've had is Negan vs TWD World for a season and a half (started well, looks to be ending well. Let's forget some of the stuff in between, namely S7B & S8A).

There's a few other things I want to see explored now (and as said, open up the TWD world even more);

 Obviously Georgie's group/location which I'm sure we'll find out in due course.
 
 Jadis' actions and development of character which would also include further secret of the Junkyard/Scrapheap.
 
 Dwight & Simon's actions as i'm certain they'll want to go different ways (Dwight back to Rick and Simon on a one man mission to slaughter everything).
 
 One really good one though, that no one else has mentioned yet...I really want to see if they explore this "Barrington House Museum" which we know is the Hilltop but what were the reasons the radio operator was trying to contact BHM/Hilltop? Was this way before, fairly recently? Was the "Bagged Walker" the Radio Op or was that someone else? Maybe the Radio Op lives at Hilltop now. Father Gabe and Doctor Carson were well on their way to potentially finding out. There was some comprehensive radio kit there and much further range than the Walkie Talkies that the current TWD groups have been using.

Morgan's TWD/FTWD crossover. Possibly could Georgie's group be a link between TWD's Georgia based world and FTWD's LA based world? It'll be interesting how that develops and I hope it's fairly seamless. Especially seeing as Lennie James is a great actor. He'll be back in TWD in some capacity, i'm sure of it. He's always largely been a cameo actor, so to speak in this (due to him being in pretty much high demand) and he has always returned. I'm looking forward to his transition though.

I'm really wanting to write a full review as promised but I've just felt the interest isn't quite back as it was before. I may well do but I've also been a bit busier than I expected lately. Still love rambling about this program and I really do do it more for you guys to bounce off ideas about the show and potential arcs, direction, story development. Really glad to see you enjoying it a bit again too Chubbs! It's getting better and I don't feel like this half of S8 is forcing a build up, it feels more organic in the sense and the character delivery seems better. I still want half a season filmed during treacherous winter. I want to see how characters deal with it, especially food supplies, whether the walkers go slightly more dormant or if they just act as their normal reanimated self. A few walkers with icicles hanging off them and more congealed blood would be awesome to see and I'm sure Greg Nicotero's fantastic prosthesis and SFX team could handle it just as good as they do the rest of the time.

 So yeah TWD, bring on the Winter scenes. All in all the whole of S8B so far has been great and with the last two episodes gaining genuine pace and development.

Ffs, Henry is just another Coral. I knew they would bring him back in some way,shape or form.

yup. The dick.

In all honesty this episode irritated me.

It started with a massive fire fight. Maggie, the master tactician flanking the saviours from all sides. Bullets flying everywhere. When all is done and the saviors retreat, did even one saviour perish? Its almost as it they left with more than they came with. I know the few in the pen escaped but still.....

Don't even get me started on Henry. Another kid, like Coral who thinks he's the big one with a gun then fucks up and leaves it to other to pick up the pieces. He is the new Coral and i hate him just as much.

Looking forward to this season finishing now.

They also blundered in the gun fight - who was who? And my memory is goldfish like, was I supposed to care about those that bought it.

Overall though, I didn't hate it.

Didn't hate it. Started off with great potential in the build up to dupe the oncoming Saviours. Simon was ruthless but I'd say this was his tamest appearance and seemed a little Negan lite. Agreed "Master Henry" is a dick but he knows it wasn't Gavin that killed his bro Benjamin. What annoyed me more was, he had an AK-Whatever on his person and deemed it necessary to enter the PoW pen?!! His demands could have still been enforced from outside. Dick. Check!

I liked the individual Morgan scenes and that added suspense to the tactical build up. Gavin's eerily repetitive and rhetorical line of "You know what it is?!" did slightly grate towards the end but Morgan managed to carry it through. It's clear he still battles between being peacemaker and absolute savage melee warrior.

Whether the Carol/Tobin love interest was meant to pull at heartstrings was a failure and while it was sad to see him go in the sense of the show...that "ship" had long sailed. RIP Tobes!

As the battle/aftermath ensued it became more clear that this episode was lacking in depth, which the initial beginnings of it did quite well to convey. Shame.

The episode kind of just petered out, with Maggie (The Widow) realising that for all her effort (the combat itself was disastrous), she gained nothing but a few Saviours, lost a bunch of PoWs, and her main antagonist wasn't even present.

All in all, it reeked of a "middle season B" lull. The episode could have been great but it didn't really lead us anywhere or make us think. Unlike the "Georgie's Gang" episode, which gave us an arc towards something else.

Start good. Middle meh. End pfft. Hopefully next Monday should pick up. It needs to be on a par with S8:11&12 as a minimum.

So what does Morgan know ??

Probably that he should've killed Gavin and not dithered. He's clearly troubled though.

Another decent episode. Really enjoyed the Jadis/Morgan exchange. Morgan is pissed and i think we may see the end of Simon very soon.

Glad to see Rick's ruthlessness back again, where he played the saviors and stabbed them right in the back. Brutal.

Other than the murder (turn)coat killings and and the helicopter I found it utterly utterrly boring.

Ah yes, how could i forget...the chopper. I'm still leaning towards that chopper belonging to Georgie and her people.

is that the meals on wheels women that visited hilltop?

I think she, the helicopter and obviously Jadis will be linked (given Jadis knew about the chopper)

Yea, with the 2 strange "body guards". Im still maintaining the prediction that she is the leader of a massive almost city like community.

you know what would be a twist. if tweedle dumb and tweedle dumber were reclaimed zombies/stopped from turning when dying with the side effect of stupidity.

but yeah, clearly some (relatively) tech rich society who look like they are trying to nudge some survivors to prosper - but without direct involvement

Not forgetting the fact that it revealed that Jadis had "luxury" living quarters, and a suitcase in her scenario says to me that Jadis had been "dropped in" to carry out some sort of mission and was due for extraction.

This for me is the only type of development that can prolong the series, they need to introduce some bigger, external story rather than regurgitating the same old new evil boss scenario.

And I agree, Georgie is part of this bigger story.  Her nice spanky vehicle and need for records says to me that she is part of a bigger organisation that is looking to reboot civilization by collecting important things from the past, i.e. records, books etc.

That's my take anyway..

I know you meant Negan but had to change it  ;)


Yes I thought it was a good episode which answered a few more questions, left us open to a few more and a few scores were settled. The character pairings worked well. As you say, Jadis/Negan stuff was good. Rick/Morgan - Rick took advantage of knowing Morgan was in 'Robocop' mode again, so the Sheriff and Robocop went on a ruthless, lawless backstabbing rampage. Good moments that partially surprised me. Reminded me of 'Last man standing' when playing Goldeneye on N64 with my mates and one would always get the Golden Gun and double back you (I'm verging towards that 'Computer Game Theory' again aren't I?).

Recurrence with the helicopter throws up the questions RE: Jadis and the possible links to Georgie's gang. It could well be but it also could be linked to something else too. Jadis however could still be from this potentially more sophisticated bunch. As Berni said, she could well have been airdropped but my only gripe is...for continuity...surely someone like Aaron (Alexandria spotter) would've noticed this at some point or even anyone in the TWD world. There was a helicopter that crashed wayyyy back. Possibly S3 but that was deemed at the time to be Military. That could though have been from that group. Would knit things nicely in that sense but I think we're well past that now.

Things do seem to be linking better in this half of S8 and a sense of some kind of future, out of the smog of All Out War. Compared to part of S7B & S8A (last four and first four respectively), which just seemed like they were plundering a bit and the direction showed. I think a few individual performances carried it through. With the Morgan/FTWD X-over imminent, it will be interesting to see how that pans out. I first thought, maybe he'll somehow get a lift in the helicopter but I just can't see that, it'd be a bit of a cop out way to fade him out of the show for the meantime. Although it would be a more realistic way of him travelling the distance needed to get to FTWD World...hmmm ponderous.

Anyway that's all speculation and I could go on for days about it. I thought it was a good episode and this second half has piked up more than I expected. Going into the last two so i'm sure we'll have a few of those answers sewn up and we'll find out who Negan was inviting into the car! Hopefully there will be some surprises too and a few more answers to knit together. 7/10

A reasonable episode in many way, betrayal, bluff, rough justice and a trap set.

If all this had happened in a shorter Negan story line, and hadn't happened before then we there wouldn't be half as much criticism.

But as it is, the episode was enjoyable but the story arch is dragging. I swear I'm done with this show if they largely drag some sort of resolution across the seasons.

Isn't there just one more to go? They needed to finish this now, and hook us on the next storyline before the break IMO. That seems unlikely.

Oh, and Mr head writer, can we have badass Michonne and Carole back please, instead of the whiny touchy feely rubbish. And some actual stories for Daryl.

They will be doing. Think we will see an altogether different TWD World/Universe next season. Next monday's episode should be pretty poignant. I don't know how they're going to bring that together since Negan has repositioned himself to now doing exactly what he really was in the first place (brutal murder) but then he wasn't, then he was using "resources", then Simon got pissed at the plan so reverted to a plan of brutal murder which actually failed miserably, Negan eventually found out he'd been triple-crossed by Simon and octuplet-crossed by Dwight. So then he's decide he'll just murder everyone again. The comeuppance of Simon and Dwight has been coming, probably should've come sooner. Although, Stephen Ogg (Simon) played his role pretty well and he even delivered Saviours style brutally in some pretty savage ways. It's a shame he's gone but in terms of storyline, he had to go at some point. Wonder what will actually happen with Dwight? Made to suffer or will he get a 'Jail Free' card again? Will Sherry turn up again? Would be odd.

The Hilltop is pretty much an easy targeted and with false intel, they could be walking straight into Negan's trap. However, it looks like Oceanside are likely to have a say and seek retribution against the Saviours. My semi-surprise element and this is purely a guess (relating to Jadis' story arc), will be that the helicopter will make a reappearance or some link to Georgie's group. Hopefully that question will be finally answered, in part at least. There is definitely going to be a surprise event happen (in the eyes of the Saviours and Hilltop anyway).

I'm looking forward to the knitting of Morgan's story arc to FTWD and his crossover there. So some element of the S8F should be focusing on his new journey, particularly as FTWD:S4P follows straight after TWD:S8F. There's been a lot spoken about this coming episode being about closure. Not just of All Out War but closure of these eight seasons to date, and a newer beginning.

It's going to be interesting how it develops from that moment on. I agree with you Batch that All Out War should maybe not have been for a whole season. Half would possibly been a little short but twelve episodes could've spent enough time on it, created a few arcs and resolved it. For e.g I think the Scrapheap/Garbage/Junkyard could've just been isolated to a concentration of just Jadis and developed her story to where we are at now. However they spent too much time on their switching of sides and it became a pointless group as a collective (much like Oceanside too). These two groups have probably made the All Out War and Negan story arc drag out much more than they should.

I know they wanted to focus a good chunk of that section from the comics into the tv show, as some kind of honour but it didn't really work or transfer onto screen as well as they probably thought. Lots of pointless moments and many individual 'out of character' moments. It's also meant that several decent characters have been lost in the haze and muddiness of the bigger picture. I'm sure the writers realise that it was the wrong thing to concentrate on this with almost no true way of how to write it out. A good cutting point/end to the war would've been in the aftermath of Carl's death. Like the following episode. Which is what I thought they were doing (reflection and the start of grieving and what really kind of mattered), but then they threw in the added mini arc of Simon losing it (which I didn't mind) and that let to muddying the direction again.

We'll see but I hope we get a pretty decent to very good finale. I imagine it will be a longer episode as if they do follow Morgan's crossover and focus on the ending of this war then it'll need that to do it well. Otherwise it'll just seem like  they've rushed it and chucked it all into one episode.

On the flipside, I know we don't care too much for the studios and writers etc, but there have been ongoing disputes with AMC and Skybound (Robert Kirkman), Scott Gimple, and I think Gale Ann Hurd, as well as others about certain payments so maybe some of the writing has been affected by this (hands tied, refusing to release content). We saw that happen with the big writers strike during I think S4 or S5 of Lost and that very much affected that season(s). While there are obvious needs to remain professional and a fulfilment to contractual requirements. If those very contractual elements are 'up in the air' then very much if we strike with work, or we reduce our productivity to the bare minimum then the output becomes affected. It's quite possible that while still delivering the show, the writers in dispute have quite possibly spoken with their pens.

I had the same thoughts with the helicopter people. clearly a more advanced/old school form of society does exist, and they will come into play. But it would feel a bit of a cop out if they ended the war.

Yeah indeed it would. As that would confirm that they've been viewing it all from afar, then again high powers that be do have this sadistic way of wanting to play at being God. So.....yeah I'd be pretty miffed at that. Just trying to see an angle of how they'd end it, other than taking the protagonists and antagonists by surprise.

https://tvweb.com/walking-dead-season-8-finale-details-series-conclusion/

Interesting...

Haha, when did that article get written? Seems to correlate with a fair amount of what I said. Hands up high, I had not seen that article until it appeared on here  :)

Interesting read that.

To me it sounds like they will kill off a large portion of the current cast, keeping a few key players.
I can see Daryl being killed off amongst  another couple of surprises.

Looking forward to the finale now and seeing how season 9 starts.

Season 8 Finale: Wrath:

Not going to put any spoilers on just yet but very interesting, and not how I thought it would go, so you can deduct my musings at least. A few questions answered and some new ones to ask.

What a load of absolute shit. I think I'm close to done with this.

Here’s a spoiler for everyone!! THAT WAS FUCKNG SHIT!!

It’s not even worth discussing.

 :yawn: I actually thought it was pretty good with a twist at the end. Don't think any of us predicted that at all.

You know, I had a small feeling they wouldn’t kill negan off just yet. I didn’t expect it to go the way it did through.
Just a bit annoyed that there was no teaser into next season.

Very dissapointing.

The teaser was the (medium term prospect of) Maggie, Jesus and Daryl  versus Rick and Michone.

Found the whole idea of that stupid. A sudden flip based on one of Ricks many stupid nonsensical decisions, itself brought about by Corals letter. The letter he didn't believe in before. Its a bit late for redemption Rick.

It sounds like another dull battle is coming, internal as it may be. I no longer care if Rick or Maggie or Daryl or any of them get walkerfied.



And yesterday's episode as a season finale was poor. Such an anti climax of two series. Yeah Eugene's double cross - you were never sure which way he was playing it... that was good. But really...

And don't get me started on the amount of time we wasted on the utterly pointless oceanside.


I think the TV show has sunk because it is essentially tied to the comics story arch..

Jesus too, he goes AWOL for half of the season and then all of a sudden pops back in as if he'd just gone for a leak or something.

As for the Magie/Jesus/Daryl Vs Rick/Michone......its the worse way the story could go. All i got out of that is that we will try to kill negan, i dont think there will be an "all out bore" between the two.

There was also the teaser of the mahoosive hurd that was seen in the distance and the stakes in the ground which I am guessing come from the impending Warriors group (I haven't read the comics but have heard this name numerous times).  I've got to admit, the finale failed to live up to PR expectations, it more spluttered to a somewhat inevitable conclusion..  I was expecting more of a tease about helicopters and the bigger wider world, none of which happened - disappointing on the whole.

I might of missed something, but who was the person that Negan picked up in the car when he returned back to kick Simon's arse?  I was expecting that to be answered, and maybe it was, but if so I didn't put 2 and 2 together.

I was hoping for a bit of a nugget to generate my enthusiasm for S9, it didn't come. 

did you miss last week's episode Bernie?

I think she (the person picked up) was the 'one that got away' when Dwight double crossed a group of saviours about a million years ago. that's how Negan knew about Dwight.

Remember in the last episode when Dwight walked into his room and that bird was sitting on the seat.
Thats who he picked up. If you go back to the mid season finale when Dwight started gunning down the saviors. She was one that got away.

What he said :-) Did you fall asleep watching?

Ha, makes sense now.  I do remember, just didn't register at the time..

Cheers guys

Now that the initial disappointment has subsided some things just don't add up.....

Eugene: If he has planned to sabotage this thing all along, why didn't he tell Rosita/Daryll when they captured him, instead he risked getting killed

Rick: His change in character from cold blooded killer to mr lets make the world a better place in the space of 2 episodes was too quick

Jesus: From day 1, he's been reluctant to kill anyone. He's the peace bringer and all of a sudden he's in on a plan to kill Negan and possibly others.

Daryl: Within the space of a few minutes he went from sparing Dwight's life, the man who killed Denise to wanting to kill Negan.

Eugene changed his mind after Rosita told him he was a useless sack. At least that's how many interpreted it.

the rest, quite agree.

I should have given up after Series 5, I will now. The last 2 series have been utter shite and the one before it pretty ordinary. There's so much better out there nowadays, less so when it first started.

While I'll agree with you all, it didn't live up to a "Big Finale". I still thought it was a pretty good episode.

I think the trouble is, and we've all said it before, we didn't want a cliffhanger that we were teased with In S7 (Who does Negan Kill/Negan's Introduction), so really can they win when people complain 'Oh don't leave us hanging you milking teases' or 'Oh come on, you haven't teased us enough'. Fine, have a balance but you can't moan it's too cliffhangery (new word) one minute, then moan it' not enough.

The Finale, they pretty much followed the Negan story to the letter and his impending life sentence. I have no qualms with that at all and it actually surprised me in the finale how they came to that conclusion. When Rick cut his throat they had me H, L, and S that Rick had killed Negan.

With Maggie/Jesus/Daryl, I don't think what we think (or are being made to think) will happen, is going to happen. If you listen to the lines, Maggie doesn't say that she's preparing to take Rick down, she just said 'We have a lot to do, Rick was wrong about Negan. We'll bide our time and we'll show him'. Maggie quite rightly has big beef with Negan and I'd say Daryl feels responsible for Glenn's death. So she's bound to be pissed (well she went through a range of emotion) as it was a genuine opportunity to finally kill Negan and truly end this. As well as being pregnant too. Daryl likely still wants vengeance too as he was tortured by Negan and the responsibility of Glenn too. However Norman Reedus has said pretty much straight after 'I'm not turning against Rick, so y'all chill.'

With Jesus, I think he's just going along with Maggie as some kind of negotiator. Don't' forget he was always a mediator between Hilltop and The Sanctuary, I see him going to talk to Negan when he's in his cell.

In Rick's defence, his character has always struggled with bad guy/good guy. His own battle to lead hs group in S1. His growing anger suspicions with Shane in S2. The internal battles at the prison (existing prisoners and letting new people in) and deciding not to use his gun anymore and focus on building a community. His battle with the governor but also looking to find reason or a way to live without fighting. His murderous rage in Alexandria before the Negan plot was even around. His strained friendships with Morgan and Daryl. You can't say Rick has changed in two episodes, over the course of his character he has been torn between peace and war, and how to actually achieve some kind of middle ground, whilst retaining leadership. He's always felt duty to do that but not necessarily wanted to have that role.

I think with Daryl not killing Dwight is he has some moral compass. He knows Dwight was trying to help but also Dwight was always under instruction as a Saviour to kill. That or be killed by his own boss (Negan). I think Daryl did the right thing there, that wouldn't change his opinion on wanting Negan dead. I see Daryl talking with Rick to convince him to finally kill Negan. They'll disagree for a while but they've always discussed things and they haven't always agreed. S1 when they handcuffed his brother Merle to the roof (deservedly so) but Daryl was torn obviously and certainly didn't agree with Rick. Even up to S3 they still didn't always agree.

Eugene, I probably agree with you most on. I know Rosita has this love/hate thing going on and he's stubborn af. He also has some cracking phrases that no one truly understands. I actually think Rosita digs him as those two traits are very reminiscent of Abraham's - however Eugene's ahem, 'bravery' is less to be desired. I can understand why he did it (rig the bullets, thanks to Gabriel's error) but yes he should've cried into Rosita's tits and told her. He could've gone back to the bullet factory and pretended to continue his committed coward routine. He definitely shouldn't have vommed on her. That's not how you get chicks Eugene (or is it). He deserved a good wallop around the chops and that's a guarantee she actually likes him. However sadistic that may seem.

Btw Chubbs I'm not actually singling out your comment. When I say you, I mean 'you' collectively. As it happens, you (singularly) gave the most response the individual character theory, so it made sense to comment on those and then build my rambling upon and around it.

I know I'm in the minority here but I did still think it was a good finale. I think more makes sense than not and historical character profiles do support that. There was good reference and a nod to Chandler Riggs character (I know most of us hated him in several seasons), he'd been there from S1E2 so to give that to him was pretty good. I thought. I liked how they linked up the smaller montages/vignettes from earlier episodes in the season; chiefly with Rick under the tree, which was shown during either Mercy or Honour. At that point I thought Rick had given up and then when Carl died, I was even more convinced that he was going to commit suicide or try to. In the end it was the blood of Negan on his hands. But yeah, I liked the continuity there.

I'm not totally (even if somewhat) deluded. Things I wasn't too happy about was the non conclusion of the helicopter/Jadis (Ann)/Georgie/Some new group parts. I suppose you cold say, that was one teaser I was hoping to have a few answers about. Also, while Lennie James, Morgan parts were yet again great, they didn't infer any crossover with FTWD. Not a sniff. If you hadn't seen anything about it or say you binge watch these, you'd just assume Morgan was staying at the Scrapheap. Which then leads me to, why would Jadis (Ann) go to The Hilltop/Alexandria if she was signalling or whatever for this helicopter?

 With her character in mind, I may be completely wrong but there is an important character called 'A' or Alpha. 'A' the letter has been used for several seasons as a visual theme. At the prison and the prominent A for the A block. Between the prison and terminus the letter kept popping up, some walkers had A carved on their foreheads (as well as W as claims of the Wolves). In the containers at Terminus where Rick's group got held. At The sanctuary - namely Daryl and Dwight wearing that A jumper. So this could be a major foreshadowing within Robert Kirkman's mind but obviously some of that content wouldn't have been written at the earlier times. However, are we about the see the introduction/revelation of a very important character?

Finally, if you want to get a better idea of how Morgan's exit knits into his FTWD introduction watch FTWD S4P and that will give you a more insightful look at him leaving Alexandria/Hilltop etc. Not saying watch the whole episode, although I did find it quit good, but yeah just for Morgan's parts. I think he will be back in TWD in future though.

Well that's my rambles worth. Cheers if you read :)

Well, he we are again.....

It was never going to be an action filled first episode and was always going to be a set up of whats to come.

I cant be bothered to do a write up, i'll leave that Bamboo but i think this episode sets up the new season well. Or at least i hope it does.
I know it couldn't be helped but it would have been nice if we didn't know that Rick was going to be killed off, alas i now find myself waiting for it.
Zeke and Carol, i like that the writers have got them together, thought Daryl clearly still has feeling for her.
Daryl looks like he might defect from the group again as he says he wants it to be like it was before, just a few of them. 
I like what they have done with Maggie too, shes about to turn into one nasty bitch. 

The problem I have with it is that the whole thing is heading towards an internal war. Its the same old, same old. But the issue this time is that I don't really care as much about the main characters as I used to.

I'm sure the helicopter people with give some new direction in story, but will it be enough..

The episode itself was OK, certainly the last 10 minutes of horsing around was very good ;)

Oh, and Rick - I'd be surprised if he was killed off with no chance of return.

I'll save you a big write up...yet  ;)

That was, as Chubbs said a decent set up episode ( wasn't overly action packed). I liked how they went to they Natural History Museum in Washington DC to collect crucial seeds from the seed banks that all big museums have. It made more sense and with modern use items going into decline and nature starting to take over (ok it was enhanced) but it seemed the right direction. Of course they've relied on resources that they have purely looted in the past. Those resources are limited so I like that touch and the crumbling, vine covered Capitol House was a great backdrop. I hope we see a bit more of it.

There was no "hanging around" with Gregory up to his snakey tricks again and he really had become a character you totally hate (a bit like the annoying Saviour prisoner from S8, Jared?).

I like the individual character development already. Maggie going darker, Daryl as good as ever (hope they dropped the Last Action Hero parts with him and Rick in S8), Carol getting more screen time again. Rick setting the tone for something new...except there is still a disgruntled underbelly within certain Saviours. For me if Carol goes to the Sanctuary she'll just "shoot on site" or knife several in their sleep. She's not backwards in coming forwards.

It's no surprise the coincidence of a slightly more realistic approach and more focus on the 3 or 4 main characters/couples, comes with Scott Gimple becoming the showrunner for the wider TWD world and Angela Kang becoming the Lead Showrunner for TWD. I hope she can make it work and offer some better plot definition.

Things I wasn't so fussed about; The character who got kicked by the horse who subsequently died. There was a lot of time spent on that, yet as a viewer we didn't really know (or even know at all) who it was, so I wasn't fussed about them. It obviously was essential to the Gregory mini story arc, so is forgivable but whoever it was, I didn't have long enough to feel the same emotion as the Hilltop inhabitants did. Only, time has passed so he may well have been someone they were well accustomed to. Not a core character so meh on him.

I do like the little tickles of growing tension and if they do it right it can make for a good first 4 episodes. I want, as the season goes on, to find out more about "Helicopter gang" as they can't have just cameoed to give "guidance on rebuilding a future" then buggered off? So would like to see much more of them or what their motive is.

It will be interesting to see how Rick's final few episodes cumulate (yes I wish I didn't know he was leaving). Many saying he will be killed but I think they've filmed several scenarios because it's something he could come back to (a la Morgan). I definitely think a break from the role is what's needed for Andrew Lincoln's career. He's seen so many of his fellow cast members go on and be involved in some top films and series but I can't rule out a return to TWD at some point, regardless of what all the so called  "in the know" people have written. However, if/when he is killed, who do you think is going to do it?

I'll leave that there. There is much more to talk about ( I guess) but to conclude, I think the start of this season sets us up better than the start of S8 did (that was just a continuation of All out War which never really answered much and had plots all over the shop, it got better as it came to the S8:B and Corals death), with a direction of building for the future and realising that they're probably a little more insignificant than they thought.

Also loving the ever more decaying walkers and Greg Nicotero continues to bring us the very best in the "undead". As well as the more natural, overgrown environment. New opening title credits look great too. I wonder if we can glean anything from them for future episodes too (like previous opening credits)?

Cheers,

Bamboo  :)

Exactly what i was going to say....

The guy who got kicked by a horse was Ken, i thought maybe i missed something because i didn't have a clue who he was either.

So does that mean there were two "Kens" then because I thought the Korean guy who is a gatekeeper at Hilltop was called Ken too? Maybe I made that up?

Nice touch that Maggie called her kid Hershel and even more meaningful as Scott Wilson, the actor who played Hershel Greene died on the same day (October 7th) he was announced as going to be in some of the episodes this season (how, I don't know but probably through some kind of flashback maybe). He was only 76. I didn't realise he'd been in some great films in his life and also starred alongside Robert Redford to name a few. RIP Hershel.

Have i missed an episode or something? Did not enjoy this episode at all. It seems like there was a massive gap form the end of the last episode where Maggie was looking ready to overthrow the current regime.
I know mending the bridge was mentioned in the last episode but it just seems like they have missed a lot out.  I don't know.

And whats with the porn fest between Gabriel and whats her face. Now i'm no prude, but there is a time and a place.

Oh and that helicopters back again..

It was a slow chugger yesterday for sure. No you didn't miss one.

Do you think they are setting up a "who killed Mr Burns" ending for Rick? Last week Maggie got stroppy, this week Daryl got stroppy. Next week....

Re: The helicopter. Did we see in an earlier series whoever was on guard already see the helicopter? Only you'd think she'd be a bit more excited/vocal about it if not.

I still can't tell me Rosita from me extras

edit: Wait, was it Jadis? Or did she go off last year.?

Also, The Savious going missing is interesting.

We saw the chopper last season when Jadis (Anne as she is now) tried to flag it down at the scrap yard.
Jadis was the one on watch in this past episode when it hovered over again. 

Ah, didn't recognise her with normal hair :) Saw it mentioned it was her elsewhere. Think some of this is passing me by!

That explains that then. She knows more than anybody about them. May actually be one of them.

I enjoyed that episode. I think the dynamics between the main characters are really interesting and there is trouble brewing for sure. Will be very interesting to see how it develops.

Well S9 underway quite nicely now. I think this already has much better direction than the middle third of S8 had altogether. The best thing, is there isn't about 6295 plots going on, that's how S8 lost its way in the middle. Recovered somewhat towards the end.

No Chubbs, you haven't missed anything. Strangely, I thought it linked fairly nicely from E1 as it left us with ultimately, Gregory getting his comeuppance and Rick arranging a gang to build the bridge. That there is the shortest ever synopsis/review of TWD you'll ever see!


I enjoyed the narration by Rick which kind of flowed from start to end, as we find out he's talking to Negan in his cell (I think most of us knew that, although he could've been sounding out to Coral). Basically Rick rubs it in a bit letting Negan know they're doing fine without him.

The rest of the episode is seemingly centred around developing relationships, Carol and Ezequiel 'get engaged', Father Gabriel gets a knob job from Anne (Jadis). I'm actually cool with that and over the course of TWD we haven't seen much relationship action. Let's face it, at the 'end of the world' there'd be a lot of fast love going down. I think they get it right on balance without actually going full sex scene. I mean Game of Porns...sorry Game of Thrones really threw the graphic scenes out there for a while. We can argue a different time setting but people get horny regardless of the century we're in. Any way, we're all adults. They got it right, I think.

The best action elements for me came from the logging scene and subsequently the 'fresh out of Siddiq's Med School' Enid, showing inexperience by using pictures from a medical book to saw Aaron's arm off with a bone saw. Straight out of a 1700s field surgeon. Absolutely cracking and Aaron played a great part there. Maybe this was the 'Rick losing his hand' moment which I talked about happening last season? If so, could this soon be the end for Aaron? Seeing as when Herschel had his leg chopped off in S3 it wasn't long after he was then beheaded by the Governor. How I crave those days (yet I believe we've sensitised to the gore of TWD now). Who knows but my guess would be he could be gone soon. He already got the role of a Marvel character, Red Skull in Infinity War and he could potentially do more in that universe.

I enjoyed the mirroring between Rick's narration to Negan and Maggie's chat with the imprisoned Earl? It also adds a further mirroring to her own experience of her father's struggle with alcohol. Of course, Herschel also wet sober, so even though we aren't familiar with Earl and his family the backstory begs similarity to likely many families. In this case, it's Maggie who is reflective and so eventually lets Earl free, under supervision (after some insight from both Jesus and Michonne).

Wrapping up the episode concludes with everything being a bit more settled and we get a cut to Anne (she's still Jadis to me) on the Cherry Picker and spots the Helicopter again. This throws back to a couple of instances in S8, once when Jadis was signalling while at the Junkyard and also when Rick was heading there to ask them for help we get a brief glimpse. This was also around the time that 'Georgie' and her two Beastie Boys extras came and delivered the information in exchange for goods. The info, in the form of books featured in this episode as Rick throws down the "A Key to a New Life" or similar. Anyway, I think Jadis...sorry Anne, knows something about the helicopter, whether for good or bad.

Finally finally. We get a good end scene with the Saviour who Rick banishes back to Sanctuary. We play the first person view and he recognises 'us' and talks with familiarity saying something like "What are you doing out here?", suddenly the Saviour gets taken out and we cut to end credits. I'm not so intrigued by the Saviour being taken out because there's plenty who are pissed at him but i'm more interested to know who 'we' were. I've tried to think and can't really nail it down. It wouldn't be any of the Alexandria/Hilltop/Kingdom/Oceanside because his response would've been more angered. He knew them for sure so they must be Saviours...and we don't know many Saviours...possibly Eugene? He's a type to be hiding in trees at night but then he likes his comforts. Then I thought what about Dwight? Maybe he's coming back in to it? It then only leaves one of the Saviour women but they were all at the base by the bridge...hmm any thoughts as to who it could be and were they collaborating with whoever took out...Justin...that's the guy who caused the fight!

One final thing, well actually two. Loved Tara's (Terror)  endearing call sign to Rick...Mother Goose. Great bit of comedy. The final thing I'll leave you with is;

When that walker herd turned direction (after the failed siren), and we got a close up...was it just me or did one of those walkers gargle the words 'That way'...I'm not 100% convinced and have watched back. If you want to check it out it's the bits leading up to the log crushing Aaron's arm. it does sound like the walker is giving direction...hmmm. I may just be imagining it.

Anyway, I think the season is ticking along nicely, Rick isn't quite keeping things together and there's a few questions to answer, along with developing plots. Got to love Negan's parting shot to Rick while he's in the shadows of his cell "You're not saving the World Rick! You're just getting it ready for me." Likely the lines of the episode.

Ok, I'm out. See ya next week.

Bamboo!

ah, the book, didn't pick up on its origin. thanks

The saviour guy played Charles Vane in Black Sails.. Surely that was Darryl clocking him one?

Yep 'Georgie and the Beastie Boys' dropped it off  ;)

I think we're being led to think that after they had beef on the bridge. It could be Daryl taking him out but I don't mean that, I meant the person in the FPV ie 'the cameraman'. Justin spoke to him/her like they were very familiar and not a threat.

I doubt its Darryl, its more than likely one of the 30 saviors that went missing

I know that but then who actually took him out because it seemed to me like as he spoke to "us" he got taken out from the left side (Justin's right) and maybe from distance  :hmmm:

That’s more like it. Starting to hot up.
Ricks days are numbered. Anyone else notice at the end of this episode is said ‘ricks final two episodes’ ?

Yep that was a decent episode and I know I favour the optimistic side of the TWD fence but I enjoyed that. Was more like TWD of old. Not quite there with the best but I love the suspicion surrounding Anne/Jadis and her character has developed brilliantly (at the time I could not stand the terrible Junkyard/Scrapheap people) and her role is starting to make more sense. It' growing with great depth and of course we've thought for some time hat she not only knew of the helicopter but why the helicopter. Her story arc is to me, more compelling than that of Maggie/Rick/Daryl/Negan main.

I'll write something more substantial tomorrow as I'll try and watch again and grab some more out of it. Really good episode and the Season, while started so/so, has kicked it up a gear. It needs to stay at this level and then step up another soon after/mid season. I have a feeling/theory of how it could go up to then but there is plenty of questions too. I think for the first time in a while I can say TWD is kinda back.

Barry Scott, I think you may have enjoyed this episode mate.

Chubbs, no didn't see that but with the way the season is developing we could be concentrating on more important things than Rick's exit. Of course he deserves a good send off but something tells me that with Andrew Lincoln leaving, it's going to be alright. Looking forward to S9:E4 now.

"An A or a B?" In true Reg style... :hmmm:

best episode in ages. really enjoyed that...

Definitely felt like an episode of substance and not just filling up time until Rick's exit. As a long term fan (maybe too much) that was as genuine an episode I've seen for a while.

I'm really hoping they (whoever they may be) fuck Rick up real good. Like Glenn with lucile good :-)
Will is be Daryl and Maggie? will it be Negan? will it be someone else? I'm really looking forward to it, but i'm worried its going to be an anti climax.

Oh and whats an A or a B?

Did she say she thought he'd be a B.
A - Resistant to joining, taken by force
B - Open to joining, willingly goes

??? Just my guess

Oh and I still don't think they'll kill Rick off.
In fact, I reckon he'll escape with Negan and vanish into the night, allowing a return in the future.

No spoilers on that please, I haven't seen anything further on his exit.

She said something like "all this time, I thought you were a ‘B,’"

It must be something to do with trading? The guy on the other end of the radio said he would only accept an A.

Maybe A is someone to be sacrificed and B is to join the new group.

Anne though Gabriel was a B so wanted to take him with her to wherever it was they were going. When he declined she then knocked him out and not is an A which means she will use him as a sacrifice.....maybe. Just my thoughts.

Yep I hear you both. Chubbs with the brutal elimination of Rick theory and Batch with the escape/open ended availability.

I think you're safe Batch as there are tons of theories going around and it could be any of them, one of them or none of them.

FWIW, with the A or B theories...we've of course seen the letter 'A' banded around so many times on TWD. I, at the furthest stretch can remember back to the end of Season 4 and the episode was even called 'A'. It was Rick's group getting locked in a container by the Terminus cannibals. As I say 'A' has appeared many times and I could go through lots of them but you only have to have a little think. A few more after S4 Finale are; Father Gabriel's Church had an A sprayed on it. We have the kid in Alexandria stamping Rick's hand with an A. We saw Daryl wearing the A jumper when he was in the Saviours Cell too. There's loads though.

What does that mean though, I hear you say...well for me 'A' seems like someone of value but won't necessarily conform. We could largely put the main characters from Rick's core group in this (Daryl/Carol/Maggie/Rick). When Jadis captured Rick and put him in the Scrapheap container, it was marked with an A. She clearly has him down as an 'A' and of course the dialogue with Gabriel confirmed she thought he was a 'B'. I think both are tradeable so to speak. My theory hear is that although 'A' seems like a threat to Jadis and whoever her group is, I think they are not too dissimilar. Whereas a 'B' I think is more tradeable in the sense of being willing to go "with her". I think she needs a way out of this part of the world and as others have mentioned before, I think she'd been placed there as some kind of decoy but on the condition she has to bring an 'A' back or sacrifice one. Hmmm...

So that leads me to my own theory on Rick's departure...well two actually.  I don't think Daryl/Maggie will ruthlessly kill Rick and although they are both off to see Negan, I don't think they'll get their chance to finish him either. Now Jadis has called herself 'Anne' and leads me to think, does this bear any relevance to the letter 'A'? I'm not certain but could it be that Anne/Jadis slaughters/sacrifices Rick to ensure her freedom/escape to "wherever it may be"? or could it be that Anne/Jadis trades Rick (as he is deemed an 'A' by Jadis) and he leaves on the helicopter? For one thing that bloody helicopter has to be integral or key to either of those answers.

Purely (for Batch), that is all just a guess on my part and I've gleaned nothing from the GNs/comics to come to those conclusions/theories. One other thing could potentially be...Ok it's "Rick Grimes' Final Episodes" as we all know. Call it a long shot, call it hope, call it whatever but could this mean something else? What the fuck are you going on about you idiot, I hear you howl...however as Batch thinks (and myself to an extent) he won't be killed off. I believe it's going to be the end of Rick Grimes as we know him but maybe he's going to become something else...further down the line or seen in a different way. One thing is for certain, Andrew Lincoln has definitely left his Rick role for now, as he's back in the UK but something nags at me to say that he could come back (unlikely S10. Which is confirmed to film) and I'd say in S11 if that were to happen at all/. Let's not forget, Morgan left several times and came back too. He could easily come back now that his TWD world has crossed over into FTWD world. Maybe it's just denial on my part but I think there could easily be a future for Rick and Andrew Lincoln has done a few other films and/cameos in stuff. I'm sure he'll be looking to take a break and then star as a lead in a film somewhere. After then, like I say...he could come back. What capacity that could be is definitely unknown and even though we know Rick is going, the TWD crew have done a great job of keeping that under wraps as to HOW he goes.

Right I'm done. Didn't even review the episode but I think we have one of the better seasons building on our hands and that must really go down to the direction of new showrunner, Angela Kang. She's added more touches of realism and character depth in these S9 openers than much of S8 did altogether. I hope it continues because I'm glad that we're talking about what could happen on the show, rather than how slow or lost the episode or season had become. Should it have taken the best part of a season to season and half to get back to some good viewing? Absolutely not but we can't do anything about that and we know it's tough to sustain a show over a long period of years, especially something on a cinematic level but let's hope they've learned their lesson and this season really does build to something that get's talked about for a least a month or two after!

Ok, catch ya later! Give me your thoughts on the expanded list  ;) of theories above, as I always enjoy reading your thoughts too. Good, bad or Jadis.

Cheers,

Bamboo!

Just read back after being away for a few weeks and watched the last 2 episodes together, along withthe talking dead.

Definately confirmed that the next 2 episodes are Rick's last (confirmed in the Talking Dead)

My stand on A and B is:
A = A leader, and person of great use (potentially to help lead the regeneration and rebuilding of mankind?)
B = A Sheep, a follower, and complicite person that will follow orders and help do the manual rebuild.

One last thing that immediately came to mind after the first episode and the new opening credits - does anyone else take my stance that the storyline is very much going down the War of the Worlds route with the birds?  That is the first thing that came to my mind after seeing it, and take note every episode there seems to be a cut scene were a flock of birds (specifically crows) flies up from the trees.  The opening credits seem to suggest that a tree with no leaves bursts into green life when the birds fly up.  I might be wrong, but it seems quite obvious to me..

The new season is refreshing so far, hopefully it continues.  Maggie is definately being setup to be Rick's replacement, and after the mention this week about the record collector and her two twins, along with the return of the helicopter people, I hope it goes more down that route rather than focussing on an "in" war amongst the groups..  I think we have been there too many times.  As a back story fair enough, bit not the main topic, it needs to branch out and focus on the bigger picture.  This would also give them a chance to start linking TWD and FTWD storylines more closely also.

On your thoughts on Maggie, I think it will be Negan that does that.

You could be right, just can't see them ending the series like that, as that is what would happen (unless he changes his bad ass tune.)

Maggie and Daryl would have to be killed off for one.

the way they said at the end that its time to go and see Negan gave me the impression that they want to use him for something. What? who knows.

I assumed they just meant kill him

I know they are his last but there is still something that says to me that he'll be back in some capacity. Reason being and this isn't the writers fault but why would they market the season based on one big fat spoiler, aka "Rick Grimes' Final Episodes"? Yeah leaks happen all the time in shows and more so with an extra or someone releasing a snap. They could've just said nothing and let speculation grow. They didn't need to confirm the departure of an actor, that has ran the lead role for 8.33 seasons. It just seems bizarre marketing. Likely as well many won't tune in until S9E5 because of this and they will have missed some good episodes. Episodes that may have increased their viewers. It's what seasons are backed upon. Anyway they've gone with that angle so, whatever.

Good pointers on the A/B theories. I think we all have a similar line of thought on this but with our own twists. A = Leader/Intelligent/Useful (Negan/Rick/Maggie), B = To follow command. That's why Jadis had Negan on the trolley at the Scrapheap towards end of S8, while signalling/awaiting contact with the helicopter *flares*. This is why I think she'll trade/sacrifice Rick to ensure her freedom. Fthr Gabriel is a B but he's not a muggy one. There's definitely a much bigger picture building in all this and I do love the development of Jadis/Anne.

On the credits part as I pointed out before they have always foreshadowed the characters outcomes or links to things so I'd say watch the opening credits and look at what accompanies each main actor. There's usually stuff to be extracted there. Like previously, Alanna Masterson (Tara) and the boat implied Oceanside. Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Negan) and the iron revealed one of his torture techniques. If you can stomach me going back through largely what I can remember and some I will have to confirm but I believe the 'Crows' have been present in every sequence change of opening credits. Let's take a look back and pick out some key foreshadows and confirm those crows;

Go to the bottom if you want a quicker answer ;)

S1 = Not much to foreshadow but the 'Little Girl' Teddy Bear makes an appearance, Dale's RV and a shot of a building with Steven Yeun titled alongside (Rick encountered Glenn via radio in the Tank but Glenn was on a rooftop in Atlanta).

Counting Crows = Two. On the road pecking away at a dead animal corpse.

S2 = No change, just the addition of Norman Reedus (Daryl) to the titles and the odd Producer

Counting Crows = Two. As above.

S3 = Change of Titles. Danai Gurira added. Foreshadowing of Morgan's location during his "Clear" cameo in S3. Steven Yeun credit appears next to Hershel's pocket watch, which he later inherits and of course the Prison is shown.

Counting Crows = Several fly in the background at the very opening of the titles. Blink and you miss them.

S4 = Same titles as S3 with a few changes. Scott Wilson (Hershel) and Melissa McBride (Carol) added. Lauren Cohan credit appears next to a large leafy tree (see below). We also see a Bone saw which foreshadows the Terminus Cannibals.

Counting Crows = Blink as much as you like. In the large leafy tree that appears next to Lauren Cohan credit, a huge bunch of them fly out of it, possibly 100 of them.

S5 = Title Change. Centred on capture but with similar reference to previous vignettes. There's homage to 'Brian Heriot' The Governor's alter ego when he befriended Tara's family. In about 10-20 frames it says "Brian Heriot we love you. Brian Heriot do not go home." and crossed out words behind. There is Ricks bag of weapons that he concealed in S4. We get minor foreshadowing of the Cannibals Cult revelation with melted bloody church candles and also the route map to DC that Abraham gives to Rick.

Counting Crows = Two putrefied trees adorned with corvids. About 25.

S6 = No changes. Just rearrangement and promotion of actors to title credits. A pointer that Glenn's Pocket watch has featured since and could well have been a foreshadow for borrowed time?

Counting Crows = As S5.

S7 = While retaining much of S6 it adds now recogniseable and prominent foreshadows in Tara's Oceanside boat and beach, Eugene's Ammunition Foundry, Rosita's lookout (to sniper Negan from), and of course Negan's 'Lucille' and the iron in the furnace. All actors titles compliment each vignette. It's the first time we have significant items pointing to story direction.

Counting Crows = The same crow sequence that appears as in S5&6.

S8 = Again largely the same but with fill ins. Michonne gets her Katana featured and it has a biohazard symbol etched on it...Fthr Gabe has a sewer extract point so that could foreshadow maybe his escape from Jadis in S9 (pure guess) it could just be foreshadowing Carl's heroic move to sending the Alexandrians down to the sewers before he dies. We have Aaron feature on the titles with a burnt out car and dilapidated house.

Counting Crows = As S5,S6&7.

S9 = Title change after four seasons of mostly the same vignettes we get a refreshed and more animated look. After the crows which dominate the first part and subsequently fly away, we get a skull with a garden fork surrounded by blossom/orchid pierced through it and Daryl's bow with three arrows. Helicopter cuts through (Jadis link) and reveals two silhouetted characters on horseback who look like Rick & Michonne. That falls back to reveal graves in a forest, some basic, some headstones (unidentified but could point to obvious later key deaths). Michonne's Katana is present too. Ross Marquand's name (Aaron) then appears under Rick's/Coral's Sheriff hat on a gate and accompanied by a walker. It then reveals a walled ruin of some kind. Keep with me...It backs under the entrance to Alexandria and we have Rick's .45 Calibre and Negan's Lucille laid atop of each other. The words "Final Warning" (We saw this in S9E3 I think and the Oceanside girl...Cyndie mentions it I think) are inscribed on the internal walls of Alexandria and appear in the background. That's followed by Daryl's motorbike and a merge into Hilltop. The rebuilding of building and then a noose dangles down (a la Gregory's execution). This cuts away so a shabby looking windmill, over a bridge surrounded by trees. It suddenly lights up from the windows and doors and then we're flooded with crows. They clear and it cuts back to the 'Walker' from the ruins but on what looks like open moorland and a chunk of walkers in the background. The camera/animation orbits the walker 180 degrees, where we end up behind it and facing the Windmill from distance. We pan away from the staggering Walker and come out through the 'N' of the now overgrown 'THE WALKING DEAD' title.

Counting Crows = Bloody loads of them :)

Phew! Apologies Berni ;)

As for linking/crossing/merging with FTWD, yep that could well happen. FTWD timeline is nearly in line with TWD timeline now. It's possible or my thoughts that TWDS9 Finale could merge with FTWDS5 Premiere (similar to TWDS8 Finale linked Morgan straight into FTWDS4 Premiere).

Any way I'm done.

As for the corvids. Yep they've featured in every opening credits so that could be the long running link. Well maybe an international link and that could be how the TWD world explores further. This is prevalent in many zombie flicks, as you mention WOTW, 28 Days Later, and many others. A side note though; Corvids our symbolic of death and in film of course we see them in the classic Hitchcock film. A group of crows is known as a "Murder of crows" so it could just be a nod to that and considering the show is largely focused around the dead.

back to being shit this week.

going to bin it after Rick goes. I'll record it and maybe watch it later if I can be bothered

Didn't think it was shit but it seemed to drag a little, in what was mainly three scenes taking up the episode without getting properly started. Chiefly; Michonne's struggle to live a lie, Daryl & Rick fall out, and Michonne/Negan prison chat.

I thought Negan's parts were good, considering it's quite tough to play a solo role from a cell (Anthony Hopkins managed this, albeit in a film with just over 15mins of screen time and bagging an Oscar to boot). Takes a special kind of actor to pull it off.

Daryl & Rick in parts were similar to S8, where they became Starsky & Hutch but in the 'pit' they both acted believably and emotionally. I think it showed through that these were likely the last scenes they were filming together. Likewise, briefly with Carol. Literal on screen 'goodbyes'.

Michonne's struggle was largely taken up with a dream/nightmare, dark/light, good/bad. Although it was a good side arc, it just seemed like bad timing and took away from the Maggie story. That should have been the main focus but it got muddied away, even if the scene plots linked together. My concern was it seemed to be taking some time for Maggie to get to Alexandria when all the other pieces were falling into place.

Little bits that teased were; Jesus telling Maggie that Georgie had sent a message but she was disinterested. Of course she was focused on going to see Negan but it also implied (to me) that they have been in some kind of regular contact since.

Father Gabe and Jadis. What an odd couple?!  ;) I thought she was going to do away with him but it turns out she has feelings for him still. This pissed me off. After the developments of her character in the last couple episodes, all of that just dissipated in a short amount of screen time and she's just gone. It still leaves us with questions to be answered but I genuinely thought they were building her part up more. Maybe they will revisit that, AR (After Rick).

So what of Rick?...Ok well it's TWD so someone is bound to come along, lift him off and get him to a field hospital in the last minutes...surely? Even if they do he's supper for certain. I just hope that next episode they do Andrew Lincoln and Rick Grimes justice. I also hope they don't allow the season to then plod in mourning over Rick. One or one half an episode maybe but I hope something huge happens that doesn't give them chance to and they have to act. That's no disrespect to Rick but in order for the show to be sure they've made the right call, they will need something to push the viewers and cast on in a different direction.

Just a short one for me, for now. Likely I'll annoy you with some more over the next couple of days. I'll finish up by noting these 'Easter Eggs' during the episode;

Michonne - During the 'dream montage' she is mesmerised by a hanging Walker, which throws back to her introduction on the show in S3 about the backstory of her partner and race issues relating to her heritage. This is why she is almost in trance and we're unsure if she is in real time or actually dreaming. It's a good call

Carol and the Saviour - Was homage to her former abusive husband Ed in S1, with the line "weak little woman"

Rick and Daryl - As Rick offers his hand to pull Daryl out he says "Take my hand Brother". This is from S2 when Daryl fell down an embankment, got knocked unconscious and when he comes round he hallucinates and see's Merle who teases him and says "come on little Brother, grab my hand."

Rick I think will be taken off by the helicopter people to be saved.

I'm completely underwhelmed by the buildup to his exit so far.

I have a feeling something like the helicopter (+some other combo) will take Rick also. If you've seen the S9E5 Preview then you will already know so much and be able to piece some together. FWIW the E5 preview actually looks like it will be a really good episode. Not dissimilar to the S7E2 episode in the aftermath of Negan's 'Lucille Wrath'. Where it was Rick centric and we were given a convincing showing of a fully broken Rick. It was the one with the infamous "Now bring me my axe!" line. Where Negan chucks the axe (which is actually Rick's axe) onto the roof of the RV. Hopefully we'll get an episode of that kind of level.

It's understanding that most people aren't overwhelmed by the build-up. Probably has something to with being told since the start of S9 that it is, "Rick Grimes' Final Episodes". Maybe it will make for a more interesting E5?

I have a feeling you won't bin it off after. Although now I've said that, you'll more likely will do! Of course there's nothing to stop you ;)

The more I watch it the more I’m convinced they will not kill rick off. I will be mega pissed if this is the case.

I fucking hate this show.

I was ready to come on here and say I’m done with this show, then the last 2 minutes sucks me back in. Ffs.

I didnt enjoy the episode because it was clear that they wouldn’t kill off rick.
Ever since the backlash of negan bashing the skulls of Glenn and abe, with fans claiming get it was too grousome, the writers have lost all their bottle with pushing the boundaries.

There are too many questions with the teaser for next week and it’s late. Somehow, as much as I despise this program it’s managed to keep me hooked. Go figure.

well, the Rick exit went as expected. not too badly done after last week's poor effort.

really annoyed Maggie wussed out.

How much of a time jump was that at the end? several years at least.

lastly there is some major spoiler news out there regarding Rick Grimes. Does anyone want it posted in here? you may have seen it already (I'm sure bamboo will have!)

The time hop was several years atleast. I hope it’s not going to be back and forth for the rest of the season.
I’ll give this season till the end as I want to see what happens but I’m finding myself watching because I want closure, not because I’m enjoying it.

me too. wanting closure. was adamant 'this was it' for me.

but..

The spoiler you mentioned above, i don't understand. Why would they/he want to do that?

So the helicopter, is that the last we see of it them? and Jadis?

The flash forward but i actually liked, but just cutting out 5 years or so would leave too many holes in the plot and questions and as i mentioned already, i don't want a constant back and forth.

For anyone who reads up on TWD (not the comics, just fan site) know that there is a new "group" making an appearance at some point. They have been mooted for the last 2 seasons but have yet to show their faces.

They have bee talking about this new direction for a long time and i think now is the time we will see some big changes in the leadership and plot.

the spoiler relates to Rick's fate, and won't been seen in twd as far as I know

this link is a spoiler detailing Rick's fate to some extent. click at own risk

https://tinyurl.com/y9q6q2bb

The time hop is 6 years.

Scott Gimple has confirmed that this was it for Rick's character in the Walking dead series in it's current guise, but they are making some feature length spin off movies that will cover certain characters (including Rick) back story, current and future timeline depending on where they are at the time in the WD universe.  Sounds a bit like how they have handled the Star Wars universe.

As much as I still enjoy the show, I am not sure if I have it in me to start trying to keep up with multiple aspects of one universe (a la Marvel).  As it is I have only watched one half an episode of FTWD, and the fact that these movies are being shown on AMC, so might not be available to watch without paying, this could push me away (unless a channel like Fox pay for the rights as they do with TWD).

Looking forward to the rebooted world and characters of TWD, but disapointed they didn't either kill him off, or follow a seperate story following Rick in a spin off series.  It would have been better than FTWD, which imo is just TWD in Texas or wherever they are supposed to be based.

Ah, well, the film spin offs is the spoiler I mentioned.

Though I hadn't heard it could be set as back story. Who the hell cares about Rick's back story.

Still skeptical a reboot/reset will have me back watching. Going to watch the next episode though, accidentally read about something happening in that too.

Not necessarily Rick's back story in his case, but other movies might feature other characters and their back stories.

whatever its about, its a dumb idea. :-)

Agreed.

Oh, almost forgot about the Negan/Maggie bit. No one actually believes Negan right? He is perceiving himself as a broken man, nothing to live for, willing to die.  He's clever, hes playing Maggie so stay alive. He's biding his time to strike.
At least thats what i think...

Had the same though too. Expected to see him smirking as the camera pulled back.
Though he does seem obsessed with Lucille.

Thought it was a really decent episode, considering it wasn't even a SP, MSF, MSP or SF. Liked the hallucinating/losing consciousness parts. Ricks piece with Shane was great especially when he came back round and was faced with a walker. Thought the Herschel bit was good too. Without going in to too much about it even though most guessed the outcome, the episode did leave us guessing throughout. Even though I was hell bent on the helicopter, when Rick blew up the bridge I genuinely felt the same as Daryl in that moment. Even when Anne/Jadis was signalling with the helicopter I didn't guess she'd find Rick.

Essentially it concluded and I guess many of us thought that was the end of the episode (Rick & Anne leaving in the helicopter), which did now open up a wider and much bigger/more sophisticated world elsewhere. Will be interesting if we ever do get to see that side of TWD, not in the planned feature length films, as planned but an actual exploration/expanding in the TV show. Clearly it throws up questions and mine is; surely there are much bigger influences/important people at play and that will be interesting how they/we find out. Would love them to explore Jadis/Anne character role even more but clearly we're not likely to see her for some time.

As Chubbs touched on, a new group are on our horizon I believe, for me it's been pretty evident for a while. I think I've hinted at this group since S6/S7. Whenever they do turn up, It will be a totally different ball game!

I like the time jump (significant enough to separate a story gap), and I like the idea of bringing Judith Grimes to the fore. She looks like she is going to be a proper "Lil Ass Kicker". I can see Daryl, Carol and herself creating a formidable, no nonsense partnership. Love the look of the characters from that last few minutes of teasing. Especially a long haired Carol, Michonne's look and of course the introduction of an older Judith. It almost feels like that it has gone towards a Medieval kind of look.

I also think that Eugene & Rosita will get together.

What's great is it gives us so many questions to ponder, yet without it leaving us hanging because we have the next three episodes to get some of those questions answered. I like the angle this could go and the avenues it may explore.

I don't think they'll keep hopping forward and back either. Certainly makes an interesting approach for the coming E6. Did anyone catch in the S9E6 preview, I think it was Eugene said "The Walkers are developing". Personally I was also thrilled to see the introduction of Magna, Luke, Connie & Kelly (they're all in the GNs). Especially Magna :)

Any of you catch a hoard of Walkers and one clearly say "Where are they?".


All in all a really good episode and sets us up perfectly for upto the MSF, which is when I think the "New Group" will be revealed.

Lucille was his wife's name. Lucille the baseball bat is Negan's symbolism for not wanting to let go which is why he begged Maggie to kill him. Totally believed him. Think we're going to see more of Negan the person from now on than Negan the persona/cult/dictator.

As a side, did you notice how when Negan was trying to talk Maggie out and reminded her of how he killed Glenn, he also spoke about how Herschel got murdered too. Now, to me he wouldn't have known how he died as Negan wasn't part of  The Governors set up (as we know). Tell me I'm barking thee wrong way but potentially could some Woodbury survivors have wound up at the Sanctuary, instead of joining Rick's group? Therefore Negan would have heard the stories of the battle at the prison, etc. I don't know but when he said to Maggie about that (How Herschel died) it made me wonder.

5 minutes in and I hate Judith already....

Now that’s what I’m talking about. More of this please.
It looks like they’ve stuck with the time shift for now and I’m ok with it. Big question is, who got michone up the duff? If the time shift is 6 years, there’s no way that kids more that 3 years old.

Carol, what a badass. That’s what I want to see more of. Ruthless, none of this sparing peoples lives bullshit.

Brings me onto Judith, surely it’s not possible to be more annoying than Coral?

Will be interesting to see how Negans character develops now.

Rosita and Gabe? Did not see that comming. Poor eugene, who actually looks to have grown some balls atlast.

Great episode.

I'm out for now. I no longer care. found most of that dull.

may catch up at the end of the season. not sure

If any of you have read the "Rise of the Governor" book then you'll see that an adaptation of that would make a great film. I'm sure this will be one top of the list.

You sure you were watching the same episode? I know I'm a good old rose-tinted kin of soul but that was a really good episode and we didn't have a "Rick hangover" per se. Yes Michonne still struggles with her grief but I think that is reflective and real to most of us that have loved.

I think the young actor playing Judith is brilliant. Annoying but brilliant. Her line "...their voices are starting to fade. I hope you still hear them." Was fucking heartbreaking and was delivered very well. Not just some half arsed young kid actor. She has a future for sure. Real talent.

I like the "new" gang of people and I like the brave decision to include a deaf actor too. It's not beyond the realms of possibility that just one deaf person would survive so it does add another sense of realism. Also the guy playing Luke you may recognise if you've seen Fantastic Beasts. If not...well no biggy but he's also a great actor. I thought he had some good parts tonight.

Cast regulars, largely Carol was ever the badass and continues her ways. I think she's too much for King Ez, who seems to just want the simple life. Eugene, as mentioned seems to have finally grown a pair of balls and Father Gabe seems to be getting all the pussy the lucky lucky man!

Yes I came up with that thought as well RE: Michonne's little boy, who does look about 2 ish. It can't be Rick's as stated and also Michonne had an 'X' scar on her back (Kidney area) so I wonder what's gone on there too. It will indeed be interesting how they develop Negan from his cell. It's clear he loves kids and I like how his tone and manner is different to when he's being "Mr Big Balls". I thought the conversation between him on Judith was pretty good and quite comedic. Left you thinking...Judith, you stubborn little sod! I would guess that was the point.

I don't see how you can have found most of that dull Batch? Carol getting revenge on the last annoying hint of Saviours, better elements of story writing for characters than has been in a while, and then the added twist at the end left you thinking "wtf, was that!" (I have a good idea) but it was creepy as fuck.

Each to their own I guess. I found this episode much more hopeful and inspiring than Towns latest managerial appointment!

I like the look and feel of the characters now in general, in this time jump. More believable, weathered, rustic and honest. It's not all sunshine and lollipops. You believe that Judith has grown up knowing only this world (even if Michonne is desperate to protect that) but she is fairly smart and wise to it. She'll make mistakes...she's about 7. Yep, bloody annoying but I like her character.

One last thing, adding to cast members with quality. I'd say of the 5 that have joined, Luke will be one of the best. Magna has potential but could be a washy type. Think Connie & Kelly make a great double act. The other we haven't really seen yet. On top of this, I believe Samantha Morton is joining the cast also. Now that would be an awesome fit for TWD.

Ok, I'm out for now. May revisit the episode tomorrow but I won't let it get away ;)

Cheers,

Boo (TWD Geek)

I've stopped caring about any of them bamboo. found myself playing with my phone about 45 minutes in.

figured if I feel like that, no point keeping up with it.

will watch the Rick films though

Fair enough mate. Shame though, I think this Season is better than much of S7 and about half of S8. Things naturally run their course though. I think they've reinvented the show enough to warrant S10 (which has the green light anyway) as there is a bigger world to explore. I also think we will see Rick. I'm sure give it a few years and we'll be where he's at. My mind imagines him getting the treatment he needs in this new world and becoming a significant force. Whether that is for good/bad I don't know.

Not sure we need a backstory on Rick as we learnt a lot about him but the feature length stuff would be great to show us what happened in the 5/6 years since leaving on the helicopter. Then that could set Andrew Lincoln for a reprise a few years down the line, when he's done those and maybe one or two. If AMC were offering Norman Reedus a $20m contract for TWD then what would someone like James Cameron or Peter Jackson offer up to AL? They are the kind of people I can see him working with. Cameron the most likely as he was married to Gale Ann Hurd (TWD Executive Producer). Cameron actually has a lot to thank Hurd for. Before they were together Hurd bought the screenplay to The Terminator off Cameron for $1, as long as he directed it. It paid dividends as Hurd is worth $60m and Cameron is worth $700m.

Interestingly I read somewhere that the kid we saw is in fact Ricks. I don’t buy it. No way was that kid 5/6 years old.

I know what your saying. If Michonne fell pregnant in say E4/E5 then we can take 9 months off but time jump is meant to be 6 years and surprisingly Judith is about 10. Then again she was born in S3 so that would add up (Season timelines were shorter in those days). The only thing I may have thought was that Michonne could be hallucinating and seeing her son Andre (pre apocalypse). However that would be odd because I'm sure Magna (new girl, wavy hair, rebel, quite fit) saw Michonne & RJ (yep that is his name) when she planned to attack her and had a change of heart.

Still want to know what the "X" is on Michonne's upper hip/kidney area?

Cant believe i didn't put 2 and 2 together with the talking walkers at the end.

I know that the scene with Rosita and Eugene at the end is in the opening credits but it was actually my wife, who wont watch the show, notice them talking..

I wont spoil it but it you watch it back, listen carefully and you will hear the walkers say "where are they?, "they must be close" "don't let them get away"

I have not been this excited about the show for a very long time.

Haha, I mentioned this in my longer comment above :)

It was very fucking creepy and with Batch not watching the last 15mins or so he's missed an absolute treat. Can't wait to see it develop properly.

Like I said, Samantha Morton is being cast in the season. With Dan Fogler (Luke) already making an appearance they have replaced quality (Andy) with two cracking actors. When we'll see Samantha Morton is anyone's guess but she has played some brilliant film roles. I remember her from back in the day, in Prostitution Drama; Band of Gold.

I watched the whole episode and heard the walker speak. was just messing about with my phone for a fair bit of it.

talking, evolving zombies, meh.

bits i enjoyed:
bad ass mode Carole
the exchange between Judith and Michone

Haha! Oh you're in for a treat. Please do keep watching. It's about to get very dark.

They pretty much confirmed on the Talking Dead that the kid is Rick's, although I agree he didn't look like a 5/6 year old to me..  more 3 or 4.

I haven't read the comics so this either might be a unintentional spoiler or I am barking completely up the wrong tree.

Everyone knows that the next gang coming along are called the Whisperers, I took the talking not as the Walkers evolving and talking, but the new group whispering to each other and somehow finding a way to exist with walkers, using the herd as a weapon and a way to keep themselves incognito, just the whisperers playing a part to travel from A to B with everyone else avoiding them.  I am not sure as to what end but that is how I took it.  If you looked at some of those walkers, they we not greatly decayed, just acting like Walkers with their heads down, especially one big bald guy in particular and a bunch of women with long black hair.  The leaders of the herd were definately walkers, but the ones walking in the middle I don't think were.

Now I might be well and truly barking up that wrong tree, but I don't think that scene was necessarily as it seemed on first viewing.  I know BBS will already have a good idea, but that is how I took it anyway.

FFS Bernie!!! Spoiler Alert!!!

I didnt want to be the one who gave too much away but you are spot on Bernie. I've not read the comics but know enough, so if the writers perceive the Whisperers as they are in the comics then we're in for a treat.

1.)  The title of the thread says spoilers
2.)  I preempted my theory with the statement that I hadn't read the comics and have no knowledge of
      what the future holds, I just gave my theory of what I saw

so...  FFS Chubbs!!!  You just dropped a huge Spoiler Alert!!! by confirming my theory :D

I did not have any clue and could easily have been barking..  

It's only you, Batch and BBS that actually seem to take part in this thread anyway, so I don't think the audience has been harmed too much..   :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick:

Ok, I was being reserved too tbh. There's plenty of theories for other stuff but as you may or may not know...

Samantha Noton will play the role of Alpha. Someone from Sons of Anarchy will play the role of Beta.

This isn't related to Anne/Jadis/Helicopter people's A+B but it could've been a major foreshadow for these upcoming and very important characters. I'm excited to see how it all pans out.

Not a patch on last week but certainly sets us up for a massive mid season finale. Lets be honest, the last few MSF haven't been great but im really looking forward to this one. As bamoboo has already said, this is about to get really fucking dark.

The Maggie part was interesting with her leaving and Jesus now running the show. I actually had forgotten about Georgie and took me a while to figure it out.

There is obviously a 6 year gap which needs filling so i think as the season goes on we'll find out more about certain things.

Anyone else think that Jesus and Aaron have a thing going on? I certainly got that impression.

Yeah, Jesus and Aaron are definately playing hide the sausage.

Agree with you Chubbs, not as strong an episode but I think this one and next weeks are all about setting up the second half of the season.

Interestingly this episode was directed by the dude that played Abraham.

Look forward to next weeks ep.

Glad its not just me who had their gaydar tuned :-)

I didn't catch the bit about Abraham directing that episode. 

Next week is the MSF and i have a feeling a massive cliffhanger is coming.

Yep this episode took a little step back and focussed mainly on "Tracker Daryl" and the "Fantastic Five". The latter (Luke/Magna/Connie et al) got a chance to show their worth and the two with the sling shots were pretty cool.

I like Luke, or should I say, I like the actor that plays Luke. He's an absolute loon but awesome. Michonne's understandable paranoia in the "Violin scene", it worked as a good piece of comedy in what seemed like an initially tense moment. Is Luke just a very clever facade though? I think his charm will turn over some people and while it's only a theory, there could be more to him than meets the eye.

Daryl and "Dog"! Only Daryl could name his dog, Dog. I also noticed that he also has a "X" scar on his kidney area, in the same spot I mentioned about Michonne. Except he also had two "ll" marked on him too. This was even overlooked on TTD as they focused more on the impending Whisperers, Luke's group and chatted to Cudlitz about his directing debut. I'm really curious as to how they have got those near identical scars. Will others have them too? Is it a branding? An operation? I really don't know but it leads me back to...

Michonne and her seeming at unease with going to HillTop. Obviously she was unaware of Maggie and Hershel Jr leaving but even then she was doubting at going there. This gives us a huge question over what has happened in those 6ish years, other than what we already know. I think the show has hinted at a few flashbacks, to make certain things relevant to present day.

So Maggie has left with Georgie & The Beastie Twins (sorry can't help it) a far as Jesus has now informed us? The Georgie part is a bit odd as they certainly have an arc for that but haven't explored it further yet. All we've had is a cameo role and it's been left open. Now Maggie has gone, it's left a gap of why she's gone. I'm aware Lauren Cohan is returning in S10 so she's doing a bit of a Lennie James (Morgan) in disappearing for a bit. How they link that altogether and reintroduce Georgie, a new world, etc. will be interesting. Just quite annoying we'll have to suck it and see.

Suck it and see!? Indeed - I think Paul Rovia aka Jesus and Aaron are impeding their fight club liaisons with a long game of "cache le jambon". All's fair and two strong characters that actually deserve more airtime. It shouldn't be for their sexuality plots though - it should be for how good those characters are but hey, we all need love, even in an apocalypse!

Totally agree in the sense that the last few MSF have not been the best but then which do you think is more important? A strongly plotted developing MSF with an explosive MSP? or An explosive MSF with a strongly plotted developing MSP? I'd opt for the latter but I don't think hurts either way round. Although this is is what pissed off people before. It was a massive waiting game (S6SF - S7SP) on Negan's wrath. While I thought they were two fantastic separate episodes, with the plot built in the former and the explosive, shocking reveal in the latter, it was too long and everyone agrees they felt milked. I think you can get away with it more mid-season as we only have at the most 3 months to wait (unlike the 6 between seasons). I still think they should go for the shock strategy in a mid-season finale and then follow that through with a strong story into mid-season premiere.

Final note - Yes, I think the MSF will give us our first frank and exposed view of the Whisperers and the way Rosita & Eugene are pretty much shell-shocked amongst something they've never contemplated in this world before, sums up this impending group. Even some of the twisted amongst us would not have those thoughts/actions. They've built up the creep factor already and I really hope this brings the show back to where it was. With Samantha Norton and Ryan Hurst cast, I think they can bring an added element of classic cult horror to the show. Especially Morton who I think will scare even the toughest of us. Bring it on!

Many questions still to be answered but S9 is ticking along nicely. There hasn't been a "shit" episode yet. Some erring on meh but largely they told Rick's exit story well, and basically since S9E6 it's been a new show. I actually find it great that I'm not thinking about things like 'This show can't go on without Rick' but actually focussing on what comes next in the show. I haven't really thought about Rick. That's great testament to the writers and the new cast members (while still lots to learn about them) seem to have slotted in pretty well.

Ok, I'm done rabbling on!

Cheers,

Bamboo :)

Quick synopsis:

Hello Whisperers.

Jesus doesn't save.

Negan.

Fantastic Five earn their keep.

There's something about Michonne.

Daryl thinks he's losing his tracker touch.

It was good. Eugene's cameo was brilliant. It was stressful and tense viewing in the two main elements of the episode. Not as explosive as some of you might have hoped but those Whisperers are fucking creepy and ruthless.

Felt like there is one more episode to come but a very effective cliffhanger.

"your messing around in places where you don't belong" was probably the creepiest line I've heard. Awesome.

I'll revisit the MSF: S9E8: Evolution properly tomorrow.

Jesus! Noooooo!!!! Did not expect that.
Slow start but as expected the cliff hanger was huge.

The writers have dropped a ball by not using Jesus to his full potential. Can’t dwell on that now.

Always knew the old Negan was in there somewhere.

Really enjoyed this first half of season 9.

True and there was some good story to work with. I guess it's a case of too many characters and it was nice to have a surprise key character death in there. Tbh though, his character was annoying last season when Jesus became...Jesus. That whole "Don't you kill the Saviours (during a war with them) but kill them" did grind. Especially as it was a nondescript character. That's not Tom Payne's fault, he's a good actor. Just poor character writing and Scott Gimple obsession with All Out War lasting longer than most conflicts.

I didn't think it was necessarily a huge cliffhanger but an effective one and introduced the Whisperers in a very shocking way. If people watching, knew nothing about this group - that sudden 'Walker into Whisperer moment' was fantastic.

Negan, I still think we'll see a different Negan...even if the S9:E9:MSP Trailer seems to suggest otherwise :)

What did you think to the Whisperers entrance Chubbs? We've not really met them yet but looks set up for a cracking S9B :)

I think because we know about the whisperers, the suspense was not as great as for those who did not.
I've not read the comics, but have several mates who have so I've just picked up on a few bits.

RE: Negan, I'm assuming the room he entered was Judith's? I didn't catch what that drawing on the wall was.
It's possible he is a changed man and will help in the fight against the whisperer's

No one knows...

Still really gutted about Jesus. Aaron doesn't have much luck in love, does he.

I for one am not upset that Jesus has gone, the character annoyed the crap out of me.

Was a decent episode but think they could have done a little more with it, still makes me look forward to the second half though.

As for Negan, I reckon he is going to behave himself.  I think he is looking for Lucille, once located I reckon he will head back to his cell to prove he has changed, with Lucille tucked away safe just in case.

The way he was talking to Gabe made me think he's still got that ability to manipulate people and it worked. I think he's still an evil bastard.

Since I'm not watching it, the summary is

New characters do stuff
Jesus dies
Maggie is Awol
Negan is free (who freed him)
Whisperers whisper.

Is that right. Was wondering whether to catch up.

New characters do stuff- Nor really until the very end of the episode.

Jesus dies- yes

Maggie is Awol- we learned this last episode and this is still the case

Negan is free (who freed him)- I believe it was Gabe. Negan informed Gabe that Rosita was hurt (he overheard someone talking from his cell) so im guessing Gabe in his rush to find out more forgot to lock the cell.

Whisperers whisper- Funny that :-), but in a nutshell, yes.

cool. may watch it on a rainy day. not today.

Fucker. Was tempted to add a whole MSF review onto this quote. But I won't cos I'm not a cunt  ;)

MSF? oh, mid season finale

just post what you want, it's a spoiler thread, I can choose to read it or not.

Yep mostly agree. What started out as a very intriguing character became very inconsistent and annoying. It seemed like with the Aaron partnership that things were getting on track, although it was annoying at his stubbornness to take responsibility at HillTop. I thought that the "pack" of Daryl/Aaron/Jesus seemed to work. Bringing together three people that enjoy their "me" time. Jesus - A HillTop Informant, Aaron - An Alexandria Scout, Daryl - A Redneck Tracker. That could've been a good dynamic.

Ultimately Tom Payne (aka Jesus), hadn't been happy with his character prominence (or lack of) and I think they've spent a lot of negotiation on keeping Lauren Cohan (Maggie), who will be back in S10. So I guess it's a matter of something's got to give. Jesus was a good ninja but as we saw...almost too confident in his own ability. I think Aaron is a better actor anyway, maybe he and Daryl will team up (seeing as the show has given Aaron the pathway that was part of Rick's story, in losing his arm) which would be quite good?

Yep, they could've done a bit more with it. If they cut much of the "Henry" parts out they likely could. They clearly have an arc for Henry though, so that's why we've seen more of him in these last two. I liked he wasn't a grass though and maybe he'll continue elements of Coral's story? Who know! I like how the intensity and danger heightened throughout the episode though, much like in the S6F when our group finally met Negan.

This of course brings me to Negan and I think, while still being a ruthless asshole (he admitted as much that he should've cared for Lucille (his wife, not bat) more), he has changed and Alexandria will need Negan more than ever. Maybe he'll go back to the Sanctuary and restore some order - we've not really seen them much since bridgegate? Except for Carol torching some of them to death for taking her engagement ring.

I'll finish on Michonne, then round up. There really is something about Michonne. What has she done? We can understand her grievances with Maggie but seemingly HillTop, Kingdom & part of Alexandria all kept from her that Maggie had left. But HillTop were so cold with her. I want to know about that fucking "X" scar on her kidney area (Daryl has it too). I'm purely speculating here now but it looks like it could either be a branding or an operation. If the former it could be that she had been banished for something she'd done? That would also mean Daryl would too? I don't know, I'm speculating and rambling. So I'll stop. For your lots sanity  :D

Anyone think Aaron's "prosthetic arm" looks kind of like a medieval version of Kingpin? Makes me smile even though it is actually good.

This episode actually felt like it was a standalone, cult horror movie. Up there with Friday The 13th for cemeteries and smoke. The Walkers were even more "Day of the Dead" than normal too, with colour draining from them by the years. Really looking forward to S9B.

Cheers, and apologies Berni  ;)

soapy tit wank I meant "fucker" more in the sense of you being a cunt  ;) Seeing as it is a rainy day.

Yeah, I'll post what I want in this thread. There's only 4/5 contributors and we all (used to) watch the episodes anyway. I enjoy the speculation and just general discussion. I like a lot of film and TV but TWD was the first Undead/Cult Horror to do this genre seriously/at length and with substance, while being great (most of the time). Not since Romero's "birth" of the Undead has anyone came close and even that was scoffed at by many at first.

I cant be the only one still watching this.

Im really enjoying this second half of season 9. The arrival of the whisperers has really put the tension back into the program.

With Coral gone a while ago, i didn't think the show could have a characterful as annoying as him, but they've pulled it out the bag with Henry. Once again, like Coral, always thinking with his Dick.

I wont go into detail, will leave that to Bamboo but it's no longer starting to feel like a chore watching TWD.

Interesting, becaue while I've given up I tae the odd dip into another forums TWD thread on occasion to see if there was much to entice me back. The theme there seemed to be 'can we kill off the new peope and get new new people' ...

I think Henry is basically continuing Corals story arc. Coral got his dick wet over Lydia in the comics so it makes sense. I also read ages ago that Coral became a Blacksmith at Hilltop in the comics too. Henry = Knob and Apprentice Blacksmith - Lydia = Alpha's Daughter. I'd rather that be a short sharp, story arc because there is way too much to tell. Especially with Daryl & Michonne's "X" scars.

As for new characters, I think the "famous five", which were the ones introduced after Rick's death/evacuation (Luke, etc), have a great pedigree and I actually praise the show for using a real deaf actor and using sign language in the script. I don't think there is anything wrong with them and there is plenty of backstory that we haven't seen from them. Could one be an informant of sorts or have a dodgy past? The other "new" characters can't be complained about. Little Judith is bloody awesome and takes no shit from Negan...it's proof she's grown up in this environment and not had to adapt to it. She knows she has been born into a world of death, undead and deception. Alpha and Lydia...well Samantha Norton, as soon as I knew she landed the role I wasn't going to be disappointed. You wouldn't think she has one of the most common Nottingham accents going. Alpha is something totally different really from anything on TWD. Her introduction on last week's episode was great and I like how they managed to build her in, mostly via a flashback of Lydia's story. Great episode. Beta is also another great actor, one of the leads from Sons of Anarchy...I think we're in for a few twists, turns and spiky moments; a few reveals from between the timehop.

Talking of the timehop, I hadn't really thought about it. I think the show has done a great job of moving forward from that moment (Rick's exit with Anne/Jadis). While there are still answers, the distraction of a group of friendly characters (famous five), Judith and the Whisperers has really moved the show on. I feel like TWD is badass again. It's also nice to see Daryl actually getting some proper dialogue, he spent nearly two seasons being this grunting guy on a bike (which he is, in part), with occasional sentence. Maybe Rick leaving has been the best thing to happen to actually keep the show going. It's given licence to open up a few storylines and tell us about them. It became too "Rick centric" and the story was suffering.

Anyway, enough of my digressing splurge. I think S9A and so far S9B has put TWD back up there again. Long live the King...

What TWD forum are you reading? Sounds like it's the equivalent of the Swindon Town Fans page on AssBook?  :D

I too am still enjoying the latest "new" Walking Dead, and it looks like they are introducing another group also with the sign spray painted on the back of a street sign in Mondays episode.  Like an upside down V crossed with a T.

I am interested to see where this goes.  I am glad one character bit the dust recently as well, he was annoying..

Are you referring to Jesus? If so, i liked him? I think he could have gone to be a main character but the writers didn't see it like that.

I also noticed that sign but it slipped my mind until just now.

Yep Jesus, annoyed the shit out of me..

Oh and it is obvious now that Henry was introduced to replace Coral's story arc.  I agree, he is as annoying..

Could it be linked to Michonne & Daryl's "X" scars? I think it looks a bit like a Pi symbol too. Maybe there is a link with Alpha or the Whisperers somewhere in all that too but it definitely got me ticking.

As an aside, some have also joked that "RJ" is the product of Michonne and Daryl hooking up during the timehop...I'm not convinced  :D

Kind of agree with you Berni that Jesus had become a frustrating character, although in S9, funny enough he was forming a good relationship with Aaron and also Daryl. The writing for his character made him look worse. I touched on this but so many out of character inconsistencies left me feeling a bit watery with Jesus. Like his inability to lead Hilltop, even though the character had always been pretty strong and independent. We saw indecisive signs of this in All Out War during S7B&S8A. But I've touched on that. Shame he went but with the influx of newbs, there had to be some sacrifices but also made for a shocker of an exit as we got our first hand look at the Whisperers in the S9MSF.

I'll put it there though, S9 has been well structured so far, even with lots of stuff happening. There seems to be more depth once again in the storytelling, it's pretty obvious new showrunner Angela Kang has got rid of much gimmickry. Much of which was creeping in to every Scott Gimple led episode. During S7 I wouldn't have said this but I actually am looking forward to how S9 will end/develop and what S10 holds. I say, bloody well done for to Kang et al for rescuing a slide into the Football League relegation trapdoor...err I mean, 2-4-1 Bargain Bucket DVD bin.

One thing that baffled me recently though, TWD has been nominated for "Nickelodeon Kids Choice Best TV Show"...yeah. How could it even be on the nominees list?

"...and the nominees are...Dora The Explorer...Sanjay & Craig...Peppa Pig...aand TWD."

Oh well, a win is a win. Strange one though.

What, no updated from this weeks episode? Maybe because it was a bit meh and predictable.

We learned a bit more about the whisperers but it was all to obvious that Henry would get rescued. Good thinking with the masks from Darryl.

Not really much more to say. I was feeling pretty rough on monday so wasn't really at full attention.

Decent episode last night. Anyone still watching?

Yep, I am watching and enjoying it again.

Yeah still watching, the thread relevance for TWD on the TEF means it gets pushed down quite quickly so have missed it, unless searching for it. Also just been lazy not doing any write ups.

Ok, so Henry basically wanting to get his dick wet (shock horror, 14yr old lad realises what his penis may be for haha), while annoying as every wrong or stupid decision Coral ever made, is integral to that story arc. But for a shit, lovelorn Henry, thankfully most of the cast members are pretty good. Cassidy McClinchy who plays Lydia has been a great addition. Annoying but in a good way, like in a Gregory/Dwight kind of way. You're not 100% sure if she's just fully fucked up or who she'll side with. It seems for now she's with the mini group of Daryl, Connie...and Henry. She's a great actor though. Easily get any creepy, complex horror genre kid in Hollywood (check out Darlin', sequel to The Woman. Directed by Pollyanna "Jadis/Anne" McCintosh).

I like the development of Alpha and the way they introduced her (very similar in some ways to what we assume with Carol's backstory and domestic violence, etc.), all told through the confused, manipulated eyes of Lydia. At least she seems willing to compromise and like a true "baddie", also has someone much more physically stronger to do much of her dirty work for her...

...Enter stage left, Beta. He's a big, hard bastard and certainly wouldn't mess with him. There was something of a reenactment of The Hulk and Loki, in the scene where he lifted and threw Henry with just one arm. Then came the "skinning" scenes as Henry realised what an awful mess he was in. Henry, we get it, you want to have a bit of fun but in the apocalypse you can pretty much get with and girl/boy you want. Still, bless him - can't help who you fall in love with, even if that happens to be the daughter of Buffalo Bill's even crazier cousin! Daryl saves the day, as Chubbs says with the clever idea of using a skin mask to sneak in and rescues both Henry & Lydia. That lad is fucking smitten. The dick.

The latest episode, as would be expected Alpha is a bit pissed at Daryl for taking back her daughter (political pawn signaling within the show, I guess), so she sends Beta to go and beat Daryl up. Essentially we get our first real mini battle for a while and Daryl wins round one. Great scenes, a bit of tenseness and I love how they used Connie's other heightened senses to show how she would be able to survive. Using shadow movement and light to recognise that heightened quality. If anything she will be more aware because of her deafness. Also proved that her group had good contingencies with the store of supplies in the building. Just because she's deaf, she certainly ain't dumb, and she's fast becoming one of my more favourite members of the famous five. Magna & Yukimo are ok but have not had masses of air time. Kelly is a bit meh as she's really not impressed. She compliments better with Connie. Kelly, interestingly is a male character in the GNs and caused some questioning over the gender of Angel Theory (Kelly TV). She is a of course female and is, like Connie, deaf in real life.

Luke has disappeared with Alden (Enid's squeeze) and they've not been seen since. Won't be too fussed if Alden goes, even though he does play a decent peacemaker. Any sign of the Saviour turned Hilltop favourite and the former Fantastic Beasts, Luke was last spotted when their horses were being eaten, after being cut open by Whisperers. Have the Whisperers got them? Seems unlikely, seeing as we've been to the Whisperers Camp and so have Daryl & Connie. So begs the question...Where the fuck are they?

A few things still to patch up (cough). I'll come back to that shortly. Negan...so he's a changed man etc. and Judith has been found out by Michonne that she's befriended him all this time. I guess she's been distracted and there's a lot gone on in the timehop to reveal. But yeah Negan. Needed or expected a little more screen time but for now he's just back in the cell...or is he? Who knows. The Kingdom - bit patchy over there, seems quite fragmented other than King Ez' main focus of trying to push through this Trade Fayre. Some questionably stupid but quite comedic missions to retrieve a bulb for his cinema. On the face of it, you'd say "just no" but they delivered quite a good scene and then we got to meet the Highwaymen (Berni mentioned the symbol a couple back). Who'd have thought the offer of Netflix & Chill in the apocalypse would work as a great negotiating tool. Hey, they've been deprived of "Film" for 6/7/8+ years. It's nice to throw in a little comedy in there and they just about got away with it. So we'll have movie night at the Kingdom once again "...and still I smile."

One more "patch" of significance to cover...I've done Alexandria/Negan, done Hilltop (which really is leaderless without Daryl) and the Kingdom but one area that needs to be addressed or maybe "dressed" is Michonne and her 'X' scar. It also comes full circle because we know Daryl has this same mark too. Now the upcoming episode is aptly named "Scars". We still don't know Michonne's full backstory from when she entered the show back in S2 Finale. Although we can disregard that for now as there is backstory to fill out from the timehop and those scars.

My theory had been about maybe some kind of transplant to save someone, someone we may not even know yet. There has been talk that both Daryl & Michonne both crossed a line and this is the underlying factor as to why Hilltop has been so resenting towards Michonne. However...if that was the true case, why were Hilltop so accepting of Daryl to help out there? Especially if there is an element of mistrust, uncertainty surrounding Michonne. Maybe her "we look after our own" stance has caused more friction, whereas Daryl has always been a lone wolf so to speak. They are forgetting though that Michonne had gone it alone before she found Andrea...hmm interesting.

Anyway, I've changed tack a little or coming to more of a conclusion...and this would make total sense...before I go on, this is purely a guess and I know nothing of the direction of this...hear me out. We have Alpha. We have Beta. We've had an episode called Omega (S9E10 I think) and we have these scars...X scars. Well anyone who knows a little greek knows an 'X' is pretty much the symbol Chi. So is this linked in the show? It's been heavily symbolised in this season. The continuation of 'A' culminating in Alpha currently, Beta, the Omega episode, the Highwaymen symbol, probably a load more too!

Will the X symbolise Chi and what will the revelation be? I'm sticking to some kind of transplant or maybe a branding of sorts or some kind of '"trade". What do you (that are still reading) think the 'X' will reveal? Also what are your thoughts with where the show is at? Has it redeemed itself from the lows of S7b & S8a? For me it's not quite back to it's best. Maybe never get back to that but new characters and a change of showrunner have given it a boost and it's back up there. One thing is for certain, we will find out about the 'X' in Monday's episode of TWD; S9E14: Scars. It's going to be a dark one apparently.

Thanks for reading!

Cheers,

Bamboo!

Not sure about this episode "Scars" Whilst it filled in some blanks, Is anyone else finding Michones character increasingly annoying?
I dont know what it is about her i just find her all holier than thou..

The episode did give more fuel to the fire that Daryl is the dad of the 2nd kid.

I thought it was good, but it was a very different kind of episode from the usual type of TWD we've come to know. However there was a very ruthless element that we know Michonne has had for a while. It was very shades of 'Children of the Corn' & Tarantino's 'Kill Bill'. You could say it was a standalone featurette. Much similar in ways to an episode I bang on about a lot from Season 4; The Grove. The infamous "Look at the flowers Lizzie" scene.

I'm not annoyed with her, this just sealed up some of the holes from the timehop and explains her hostility. That's a whole lot of pent up angst and tension but I guess it's reflective in real life too. When we don't say 'those words we should have' or sit and talk with someone. So you could say it was a poignant episode.

I liked how they subtly switched between past and present, purely with slightly different colour film (I believe most of TWD is all shot on film at Greg Nicotero's request, other than the CGI'd bits). You still had to concentrate though as there were times when you were like "is that now or...nope it's previous." I also enjoyed how they shot the switching of times between the beheading of kids and walkers. I think if we'd seen the actual murder of kids, it would've needed and R rating and screened at 11pm. Hell to that though, we've seen it all on TWD tbh. It still made for some great combined action scenes. Also, present day Judith...she is a cracking actor. Her delivery is much more believable than several actors.

But yes, continuity. There wasn't really muchin this one and it didn't really lead us to anything. It was an episode of closure. Finding Rick's gun was a nice touch, as Michonne turned over burned rancid walkers. Almost in the hope that she would discover his fate. Alas, the viewer knows the truth and I always like these angles because it gives the viewer to see the story in a different way and potentially choose an outcome. Like, you can will the character to find the solution or you may feel that the character should never find out.

All in all, it was an enjoyable episode and certainly didn't feel like filler at all. Yet it was, as mentioned, very much a standalone episode. Maybe this is what the show are priming us for with the impending series of films they will do. To get us into "solo character" mode? Who knows!

My only bugbear was this...Why? Why what? You say. Well, why did Jocelyn decide to do that anyway? I don't mean deceive her pre-apocalypse friend. Just the whole 'creepy kindergarten' thing. What was her motive? Other than mirroring Alpha, of the "Those who stay strong survive. The weak die." mantra but it seemed a bit unnecessary. However, it helped knit the gaps in the timehop and of course there would be several schizos created in that kind of environment or enable the odd psychopath and sociopath. We have seen a few!

Catch ya later :)

Well that was beautifully  evil.

Yes, there is the big question of, how. But does it really matter?

Would have been better if we actually saw it happen but ever since the backlash following Glenn meeting Lucile, that were never going to happen, was it.

Not really main characters but still, a couple that were gaining some limelight in recent weeks

Loved this episode..  not convinced about the snowy episode next week from what I have seen, we will see I guess..

Winter is coming indeed..

I only watched 2 GOT seasons but there are certainly some similarities.

Who's going to replace Henry and the annoying twat? Although Michone had started to annoy me in recent weeks. Last nights episode i warmed to her a little.

Its a shame we didn't see more of the highway men and i'm surprised they got rid of Tara.

Thank god that Henry ended up on a stake.  Carol is going to go medieval on Alpha, gonna be fun.  And I get the feeling that unleashing Negan onto Alpha and the Whisperers will be the way that he gains trust and belonging with the group.

I too loved this episode and thought it even better than "Scars". I think Chubbs summed it up 'beautifully evil' and I think the evil was even more evident by leaving some of the gore out. What is it they says about the best horror sometimes? Less is more, because it leads each mind to wherever it wants to go and last night, I found myself saying "Oh fuck", "Oh shit". Especially in the opening scenes as at first I thought we had another timehop! Then we get the scene of the absolutely brilliant nut job Alpha, doing what she does best. She really is a schizo. A clever one though.

As to how the spikymcspikeheads came to be, my two theories are;

Alpha or (Debbie) asked Ezequiel where the "clothes trade" was, which I think was the barn. After killing them they could've easily snuck out a few bags of heads! The other theory I'd go with is that was the Kingdom's Armoury store because Terror said she was going to get tooled/geared up. Henry told Lydia he was going to tend to something. But I want an answer because out of all those people that went off...Magna went off too..but her head wasn't on a spike? We still don't know an awful lot about that group, so could she have also been in on it? I may be rubbing my ass on the wrong bark but it could have legs?!

Kinda glad Henry was disposed of before he got too annoying. Lydia is a better character and so is Judith. Also glad some of the Brady Bunch kids got dicked too. No real room for development so just get rid. Although saying that, I was surprised at Henry being beheaded and Enid too. Although both had drifted. Biggest surprise was Tara and I had to rewatch a few times as I wasn't sure if it was Rosita or Tara. Especially as the shot before was Eugene asking Gabe "Do you know where she is?".

All in all though it was a slow burner at first but the suspense grew strongly. The best part being it didn't have to be a total bloodfest to creep us out. Great performance from Sam Norton. She should get a Saturn and an Emmy for that. Well written and cleverly delivered. Just imagine thinking you're in a safe place and the very person you're being protected from comes and sits down next to you and puts their hand on you! Fuck, that got me all weird!

So who will replace Henry as prize knob jockey? Hmm not sure, the Brady Bunch dude has no one to pick on but he may get with Lydia. However this may move the story arc onto Alden so it may be that Lydia and Alden have a thing going? Still not sure though because she's meant to be about 14 and he around 26 so probably not. Yep there's no real stand out dick heads atm. Plus, we didn't get ANY Negan time this episode so he's bound to feature in the finale.

Will more heads roll (literally) in the finale? Finally we get some Winter scenes (They are a little further north at Spike Hill but it'll be interesting to see how they do this. Don't think it'll go full GoT rip off, there's plenty of story to keep us absorbed.

Anyway, not going to go on (cue huge laughs), I don't need to. I think we've just about got our show back!

Absolute let dow of a finale. Not ever worth discussing. Not even the radio but at the end.

Strange. I thought it was refreshing to not see any "Finale deaths" or absolute milking cliffhangers. We can't have it both ways. People moaned they were milking the show and pissing on it's faithful fanbase in previous finales. We essentially had the "finale" last week. I thought the radio bit was just enough of an answer to give us a few questions. The main one being, who is it? Maggie? Jadis/Anne (don't think so). Sounded like a woman but there was indecipherable stuff too so who knows.

Chubbs, I know you prefer the gore/action element more but I think they got this right. There has been so much packed into this season along with several great standalone episodes. The Rick episodes feel like so long ago and just like it's own 5 episode mini series, the few that followed after worked seamlessly even after a big jump. The lead up to the Whisperers and how they lived amongst the dead and the Jesus kill. Then actually meeting them. Knowing the darker elements of how Alpha came to be. Then the Spikes. Then they go and throw us a very convincing snow storm into the mix! There has been a lot in S9.

Ok, so not a lot happened in the finale. Several characters are riddled with guilt after the loss of their loved ones after Alpha's example, relationships strained. Negan slowly being let back into the community. Actually thought Negan had some good parts in this one. He's still a cunt but he's showing rehabilitation has worked mostly, and saving Judith will go a long way. It was a come down from the previous episode, no doubt but as stated I think it just about balanced in favour of the right way to go.

My wife has spent the past two days hanging out with the cast and crew of the show - they've been having a Dead Fest up the road from us where they film it.  Seems people come in from all over the country for it.  Still only ever watched one episode.

Nice, I have the Senoia locations on my to do list Rob. As an unashamed FanBoy of the show, i'm incredibly jealous but I will get to see some of the places. How come your wife was involved? They are currently filming for S10 so likely many visitors trying to sneak a peek of the c&c during filming.

Must actually be a little annoying for locals?

The locals love it - brings in lots of tourists for a very small Town.  They have the corrugated wall up around some of the houses still (Alexandria?).  One of the actors and a crew member have a restaurant as well.  Lovely quaint little place - gets used in lots of films as well when they need a Southern small town feel and Pinewood is just up the road, so film is good business around these parts.  You can do a full dress up ting somewhere near here as well.  Come anytime from April to November an you'll probably get glorious weather as well.

Yes Alexandria with the Windmill. They had to get planning permission to erect that fully working four sail mill I believe. Yep the bar you talk of is Nic n Normans, it's co owned by pretty much lead actor Norman Reedus (Daryl) and Greg Nicotero the guy who brings us all the SFX (one of George A Romero's proteges) and awesome different looking walkers. He's cool af.

Glad to hear the locals embrace it. Film can be a master of it's own downfall in locations sometimes but I'm happy to see a residential/tourism success. Long may it continue.

Thanks for the info.

Hello Walker lovers!

Yep TWD thread finds itself near the top of the TEF again so it must mean it's getting close to that time again...no not the start of Season 10 but where I ramble for days on end about theories, forthcomings, misgivings, inaccuracies, qualities, and virtues of TWD.

So with just three weeks to go until the S10 Premiere (and two until The Talking Dead), what are your expectations for the new season? S9 largely was back to good form and we had some really great episodes. A few felt a little let down/unimpressed by the S9F but I felt the finale laid enough ground for S10. We can really see it shaping itself to seamlessly involve the feature-length movies. The said movies which will explain where Rick's story has led to and there will be many of us that have an idea on that. Feel free to share your thoughts on this too.

My opinion on TWD to date, is that it has preferred to give us too much info/many reveals more recently. I guess their thinking was that in a world full of spoilers and leaks, it's difficult to keep a lid on things. Especially in the highest grossing drama/show (in the USA at least). The Rick episodes in S9 were particularly stand out in this respect. They were great episodes but because you knew the inevitable (even if not the "how"), it took the sheen off some excellence DoP and cinematography, as well as some really decent written scenes.

I think we need some more element of surprise in S10. Something we can truly speculate about. Parts of S9 did throw up surprises; Jesus death, Alpha's sly tactics to enter the Fayre and the heads on spikes that followed (ok some of us would have an idea of that but the way they built up and wrote that worked well. Sam Norton as Alpha was brilliant.), all gave us a moment of shock. So in S10, I'd like more of that and less reveals beforehand. If the suspense from S9 is matched in S10, you can take my anxiety pills and double the dose. They really got back on track and it didn't even need to be a full on bloodbath.

I'm looking forward to the new season (as usual) and any new characters that are likely to be on the horizon too. Will we see Georgie again, the woman who gave Hilltop "the Key", a huge book of literature and plans to rebuild for a new future. This largely was happening at Alexandria several seasons back with Deanna and her Architect husband. Maybe that was part of the direction but of course it never pushed through and we got Georgie instead. I'm intrigued to see if we get further developments there. I'd like to think a surprise could be a return of Maggie (potentially at the end of S10) but it seems unlikely as Lauren Cohen has other commitments but we do know she contractually will return at some point. On the show, when? Your guess is good as mine.

Another theory is around Rick. Andrew Lincoln was on set to direct at the end of S9 and has been around the set during filming of S10. It leads me to think that we will see Rick in the season, and potentially at the end. I don't know this as concrete, it's just my own fantasy so don't shoot me. It would be great if they could officially keep it under wraps and would make a great reveal if/when it happens. If it does, I think it'd be at a point when Michonne has finally moved on and is with <<insert your character here>>, to her own shock and it'll bring up a whole host of questions that'll be left to be answered in S11.

Ok, I'm getting ahead of myself here and I'm sure the two or three that do contribute on here will be asleep by this point but throw your own suggestions into the ring. There's loads to cover - I haven't even touched on Negan and his potential involvement in this season. So yeah, hit me as we prepare for another season of TWD!

Cheers,

Bamboo :)

S10 of TWD, titled: Lines We Cross airs October 6th (USA) and October 7th (UK)

I wish i could be excited about this, but i'm struggling

I thought the trailers look pretty good. Of course there is going to be some kind of mini war between the Whisperers and the Survivors. I'm expecting some big game changers during the season, something that totally throws the cast of either side and opens up the TWD World even more.

We are getting closer to the movies so as mentioned above, I think we'll see some kind of tying in of stories. I would love to see Morgan again at some point but I think they are arcing his story in FTWD to bridge with the movies too but that's a whole different kettle of fish.

Going to be the first season where I'm not fully sure how it will go, since we are closing in on the end of source material, it'll really show how creative the writers will be going in to S11. The only concrete thing I know is that Beta will have some kind of backstory episode.

I will start to get interested again once the new season starts no doubt

Indeed. Just over a week away now.

Interestingly (or not), a girl I know got to interview the cast of TWD, at the S10 Exclusive Premiere just the other night in LA. Incredibly jealous but also massively proud. She was just a fan of the show, like us and has worked her way to this point. Good on her.

Anyone watch it last night? I did.
The opening episode was never going to be "explosive" if you get my drift :-) so you can't really judge the season just yet.....
...... but with that opening scene on the beach did anyone else think they were watching one of those really bad Channel 5/SyFy knock of films? I'd call this one Spartans vs Zombies! I think maybe they've been watching too much 300 in that movie there of theirs.

The episode as a whole wasn't bad, but as a whole, didn't do much for me.

The "satellite" is obviously a bit talking point. Also, with Daryl and Carol talking of running away, will we finally see what else is out there rather than concentrating the currently settlements.

Couple of questions which may have already been answered in the last season but..
1. Who's the dad of Michone's son?
2. Who's the dad of Rosita's kid?

Right, I stopped watching this after the episode where Shibba Died.

I am a massive fan and I have 3 of the Graphic Novel in compendium form (4th one is out soon  :D ;D :clap: )


I stopped watching as they went so far away from the source material but the recent trailer looks pretty fuckign awesome.

Last page in compendium 3 is the Whisperers marking out their borders using heads on stakes.... has that happened in the show?

Yea, the heads on stakes closed out the last season (9) and there is now a lot more talk on "borders" in S10 Ep1.

Michone's sons dad is Rick
Rosita's kids dad is Siddiq

Of course, I watched this.

Briggany - I would say if you want to "catch up". Don't bother watching S7B or S8A...it's just the All Out War spread out over a seasons worth of episodes. There are one of decent episodes but it really is drawn out. S8B is better and we first see "real" evidence of the Whisperers being integrated into the show. In very small doses. S9 first 5 episodes are centred around Rick. It was kind of his own mini-series and goes against the source material but it does come to a nicely open ended conclusion. The rest of S9A gives us a time hop (similar to the GNs) and introduces a bunch of new characters who are pretty intriguing and are rescued by a familiar face. We lose a regular in the S9A MSF at the hands of the Whisperers. S9B then moves further into the life of the Whisperers and a few random episodes. As Chubbs says, the penultimate episode of S9B gives us the "heads on stakes" which is so iconic in the GNs. The whole episode is skin creepingly ace! Alpha is brilliant in her parts. The finale eases off a touch but our Survivors have to negotiate a snowstorm. Negan seeks/attains some form of retribution.

As for S10 E1: The Lines We Cross; yeah it was good. I wholly agree with Chubbs that it was never going to be explosive but it did enough to leave a few questons. The satellite for me will be the constant in this season, and will continue where S9 left off...on the subject of communications. It looks as though Eugene will be learning some Russian.

There was a lot of piecing about, of course showing us what each season regular was up to.

I think they spent too long on the whole "Oceanside Barracks" and it felt a bit unnecessary at this stage in the shows lifespan. We know how to fight Walkers, however they appear (which Greg Nicotero and his team do a great job on coming up with even more awesome looking Walkers), we don't need some kind of strategic formation to advance upon them. Michonne's commanding line of "remember your training", like no one in this world has ever killed a walker before. That was my only real bug bear and I'm glad they got it out the way early.

Carol & Daryl, will they buggar off? The thing is, mentioning "heading west" puts them on course to collide with FTWD. So will they crossover or will we see Morgan and Dwight cross back for an episode? Not seen any confirmation of Lennie James on set but they are all contracted by AMC so...they can crossover at any time, if the timelines correlate. My feeling at this stage is...Carol will face off with Alpha (as per the end of this episode set us up for) and the outcome of that may see her go it alone or with Daryl, or if she gets killed, Daryl may head off with his new squeeze Connie. It's open for a number of directions.

That may bring us up to S10MSF and we'll see/hear from Maggie, via Eugene being able to expand his comms network. Thanks to you guessed it, that Russian satellite. Maybe we'll even get to hear Rick, Anne (Jadis) or someone from the much eluded Commonwealth (my belief this was touched on with the whole helicopter bits in S8 and  of course S9).

All this is guesswork, I can't see them dragging out the Whisperer War, as they are a different kettle of skin. So either a major character will die or some form of Peace Treaty will be agreed (the borders thing again). There are, as mentioned above, so many angles this could be taken.

I want to see the writers be a little more brave, especially as the source material comes to a close. I think we'll see what they have in their locker, for true original content in S11. Which has been confirmed. Above anything, the show has got back on track to the side of much better, since Angela Kang replaced Scott Gimple as the showrunner. She seems to know how to tell a story a little more emotively and the characters are more believable again. You can even see it with Negan; yep he's still an asshole but a rather less hammy asshole.

Gimple was hell bent on pure action and lost the story. Kang brought the story back. It's in safer hands for the foreseeable.

Anyhow, I'm signing off. Catch you next time for S10:E2: We Are The End of The World. As always, chime in with your own thoughts comments and ideas for the rest of S10.

Cheers,

Bamboo :)

I'll be watching S10:E2 tonight/early hours. Beta backstory looks hopeful.

Yep, that was a pretty good episode. Creepily good. Couldn't predict which way things would go. I'd say it's on a par with S9:E15

Show us yer face!

What you watched than on bamboo?

How are you watching it tonight?

I actually watched it on late Friday/Early hours of Saturday Morning at 3am.

AMC Premiere streams it 48hrs before the US Cable AMCTV release and thus 72hrs before the UK FoxHD release.

So with that, I believe streams are available :) Decent streams too.

PM me please. Its been ages since i streamed online so no idea where to look these days.

Cheers

PM me too please. Ta

Don't normaly like these "back story" episodes but this one was an exception. Can't be arsed to go into it, will leave the running commentary to bamboo but was good to see how A and B crossed paths and then symbolism behind B's mask.

Have PM'd you mate.

Done.

cheers bud,

still waiting for your write up. Slacking this week :-)

Haha!

I'm going to try and put together something every Friday, so it is a fresh recap for those watching the next episode. There's only four or five of us that contribute (quick count, Berni, Briggany, yourself, me) regularly. Then Batch, Barry, BobT and a few others dip in on the fly. So probs 10 who consciously want to read whatever gets put on here. Others probably just read if bored or they want rid of the "New" post thing flashing at them.

Anyway, no problem. Hopefully it's decent enough. If you explore the site there are loads of shows on there and all seemingly pretty decent on the quality front.

I'll have an S10:E2 review on later. It was jaw-droppingly good ;)

TWD: S10:E2: We Are The End of The World

For me, this should've been titled "The Rise of Gamma, for reasons you'll already know or will find out, as we discuss the recent episode of TWD.

Origin stories can often be a gamble to concentrate the mind of the viewer (I personally like these reverse arcs) but this episode handles it really well. We pick up with a fantastic opening scene, straight out of George A. Romero's copybook. The fact Greg Nicotero directed this episode makes it clear to see.

An unnamed, car crash victim comes round as we hear the growing sound of an ear piercingly loud car horn. Already you feel like you are amongst the crash. She panics and finds the fate of many a "survivor" in the world we now live in. It's a scene we had come to love in TWD of older seasons, yet we hadn't had something so gruesomely spectacular in recent seasons. Our unknown survivor not only has the 'pulled apart by Walkers' treatment but has her nose torn away by a very hungry Walker. There's more though - she also has her jaw ripped downwards. It is gruesome. It is spectacular. It is up there for what you expect from any cult horror. Shocking and shuddering. Excellent. The real beauty in this opening scene is we shouldn't really care about this unknown character but here I was (even though I've seen this several times in horror) hoping in someway that she survived.

By this point we have seen Alpha and a c10yr old Lydia. They've adapted to life amongst the dead. I believe the flashback elements in this episode are a continuation of Alpha's flashback, after leaving her original group of survivors (albeit around 3 years forward) in the S9 Episode titled Omega. Alpha adds to the intense nature created in the opening scene. Instead of helping the unnamed survivor, she smirks and makes some kind of snarling noise that seemed like a Jurassic Park Easter Egg. Intentional or not, it fitted beautifully and we knew the ruthless trait that Alpha has. It's essentially protect your own and no one else.

Alpha and Lydia, scurry into and empty building. We later find out this is a Mental Health hospital/ward and gives us eerie throwbacks to those episodes way back when Rick was just coming round. Except this is even darker. Befitting with Alpha and the character we are about to meet.

Beta - seemingly has been in this building possibly surviving for sometime? We can't be one hundred percent sure. He may have been visiting (more on that later). Wearing a ski mask/balaclava at this point, he cuts the lonely figure we see in present day and initially tries to fend off Alpha & Lydia from sanctuary. He agrees to "just one night" in his accustomed growl.

Back to the future (no pun), Alpha tells Beta to round up and release a bunch of Walkers from a nearby compound. He takes with him two sisters; Mary & Frances. Frances is still in a state of flux. She incidentally is the girl who has her baby taken away from her in S9, when Alpha see's it as a distraction and ultimately disposable. It's a really good link back and explains pretty well, why Frances suffers a case of PTSD while the Whisperers, led by Beta are guiding the compound Walkers across a field. Frances has a vision of her baby being carried by a walker and briefly slips into trauma. Her stronger sister Mary, convinces/helps her snap out of it and says she needs to stay focused. It's a continuing theme of tenseness and you aren't sure what is going to happen with either of these characters. They all escape and back at Alpha's camp we get a moment where we think Frances is going to meet her fate. Ya know? Full skinning style! But no, she breaks down in front of Alpha (yet privately), about losing her child. This triggers Alpha, who has also lost Lydia and she gives Frances a reprieve. The rest of the camp are of the belief Lydia is dead (at the hands of Alpha). Unbeknown to them, Alpha craves having Lydia back. She shows a moment of weakness and this concerns Beta. Essentially thinking 'if you aren't my Alpha, then who is?' It's the start of a changing dynamic and we'll discover why. Alpha loses it in this moment of weakness and trashes a holding pen that she had planned to keep Lydia captive in. 

At the Hospital, young Lydia is imprisoned (for her safety) in what used to be a padded cell. But she decides she's not a child anymore and sets out to prove this to her estranged Mother. She leaves the serenity of her padded sell and covers herself in guts of the dead and goes on a little expedition around the Sanitarium corridors. She of course nearly becomes lunch for a Walker (in true Coral style) but Alpha finds her. They enter a part of the hospital that has been forbidden to them by Beta. They see photographs with scratched out faces and a man wearing a tee with a smiley face...enter stage left...Walker wearing tee with smiley face...of course Alpha slays the Walker just as...enter stage right...Beta discovers them but he is distraught and we realise he has lost his only friend (whom he may have visited at the hospital or maybe made friends with in there?). Potentially he was keeping his undead companion alive (much like The Governor with his Walker daughter). This is where the sinister, sacrificial lamb comes into Alpha's twisted psyche. She attempts to remove Beta's ski mask, and indeed she does...but quickly, almost knowingly puts it back down. Does Beta have some form of disfigurement he is ashamed of? Alpha is quick to suggest he doesn't have to leave his friend "Just wear his face on yours, simple."That isn't a direct quote but her nonchalance at the ease of the task - she may have just said such. It is then the real character of Beta is born, as we know him.

We flip to present day and the mirroring story lines continue (Lydia imprisoned/Alpha shrine holding pen). I think this was really key to how this made the episode work, as well as how it all tied together with events in E1. After Frances reprieve, Beta affirms to Alpha that "We are the end of the World", in some kind of horrific Buffalo Bill crazed cult Waltz. Or something. It's disturbing. Alpha confirms to Beta they will attack the communities once again. As if to prove her status. Mary and Frances look on and talk. You sense Mary is possibly plotting something and that she senses weakness from Alpha and Beta. She asks Frances to be strong and that she has to stick to the cause. She's certainly a strong introduction.

The scene then moves back to another session of Walker herding, this time with Alpha. We get chaos in the Alpha ranks we've not really seen yet. We know she's composed usually but the fallout of the satellite crashing near, causes the Walkers to avert from the Whisperers. Frances goes into full trauma as she see's her baby with a Walker and runs towards it. Surprisingly Alpha goes after her to save her from the enclosing Walker herd. It's still uncertain what may happen but Mary also joins in to deal with the herd. We think to save her sister (Frances). She doesn't, she pushes/throws her into the herd and drags Alpha away. This mirrors the sacrificing that Beta has in the flashback. Alpha is in awe of this dedicated heroism. Once in shelter the Whisperers have a ceremony of sorts and Mary is anointed as "Gamma". Now a third in command. This again does not sit well with Beta. Maybe he see's that Gamma is even stronger than both he and Alpha?

The episode ends almost as E1 does but from the POV of Alpha. The Whisperers I think are going to find out where the satellite is. Alpha takes a moment to reflect in a clearing as the others continue. She pulls off her mask and as she steps into the opening, she looks across the dry riverbed and there she see's her new found nemesis - Carol. Roll credits.

So, what did you all think? For me it was a great episode, much thanks to a well written episode by Nicole Mirante. Nicotero I've mentioned and his work goes without saying. The cast must take great credit here too. Sam Norton and Ryan Hurst are brilliant and the introduction of Thora Birch (Gamma) seems like a perfect fit. Special mention must go to Juliet Brett (Mary) and Erica Frene (Car crash victim opening scene; I had to IMDb that one), who both had great cameos. Mary for her trauma infused performance and Car crash victim for being gloriously ripped to pieces. Impacting on us, with only three minutes into the show. I like how the dynamic does seem to be changing within the Whisperers. Will Gamma play ball? Will she try to overthrow the Whisperers? I like the uncertainty. Will Beta lose it? Will Beta ever reveal his face and if not, why not? Will Alpha totally break at some point?

In someways, what I found great was that this episode gave us mostly answers and didn't throw up tons of questions. Well not confusing ones anyway. We didn't finish watching, wondering what the hell is going on (in S7b & S8a there were times when I really felt like this), everything fitted really well. Things were answered, some stuff left open and a few questions about our new(ish) antagonists. I'm not sat here having pose tons of questions though. So over to you guys. Do you have any theories on Gamma, Beta or Alpha? Any answers to the questions above or maybe you have questions of your own.

I'll now settle in to watch TWD: S10:E3: Ghosts, as I'm sure some of you may also be doing/have done too. Be sure to check in on my next review (if you have the guts to stomach it), Friday 25th October. As always, criticism, theories, grumblings and your comments are always welcome.

Thanks,

Bamboo :)

***TWD: S10:E3: Ghosts airs on AMCtv 9/8pm Sunday 20th Oct USA Cable and FoxHD 9pm Monday 21st Oct UK Sky/NowTv etc. You can watch the latest episode, streamed up to 72hrs earlier than the UK airing on AMC Premiere (or you can ask a friend of a friend of a friend of a friend, who MAY know something)***

E3 was pretty good. Lingering creepiness and unlike lat week; more questions but in a good way. I don't even know what real is any more! All I know is, it's time to release the Negan. Maybe.

:banging:

Ok, so what's this about Danai Gurira leaving then?

A quick word with Sam Morton on TTD.
First time on there I think.
Hopefully they can get her on the sofa at some stage.
A fine actor.

Hey Wobbly, always happy to talk at length (shock) about TWD. Yes Michonne is contracted to the end of this season. Nothing has really been leaked yet as to how she will leave. The actor herself, I think is leaving because her commitments with the Marvel Universe in Black Panther, have taken off and likely a good bunch of contractual dollars are talking. On e thing I know is, Michonne won't be killed off. I imagine she will be integrated into the forthcoming feature-length TWD movies. I'm led to believe they will start with Rick's story and include Jadis/Anne (Pollyanna McIntosh).

Yeah for sure, a very very talented actor. She's from my neck of the woods so, I'm going to be biased. I remember when she was in Band of Gold (the first serial drama to focus on the serious issues surrounding (sometimes forced into/trafficked) prostitution in the UK), it was a very taboo drama at the time.

This is pretty much as short as my replies get WB, so "enjoy" it while you can  :soapy tit wank:

Didn’t think much to EP3 to be honest.
The show as a whole has gone soft. I’m fed of up “not killing off” characters. And the Alpha constantly letting people off the hook.

Ever since the backlash (undeserved I must add) of THAT Negan episode, it just seems the writers are a scared of anything that may cause some controversy.

Tbh mate, I know what you mean (since THAT Negan episode) but also, I think there is a part of us that is probably sensitised to the whole extreme horror elements, would you agree slightly?

In E2 of this Season we got to see a Walker biting the nose off a woman, who was still alive. Who proceeded to rip her mandible down, with the skin ripping (while being pulled apart at the guts to add) away. All this while Alpha just walked on by with a psychopathic snort.

Also consider that some of the 'best horror' is when we don't see the act taking place but we know it is happening/has happened. Surely we don't need to see Beta skinning his best friends face, into a lovely Halloween mask? Alpha slicing off several heads with a tetanus infused blade? Our own imagination can paint a horrific enough picture, some may say even worse than anyone could depict or adapt onto screen for us. That is the true cleverness of horror movies. Leave it to the imagination.

For what it's worth, I do agree with you in part because I'd love to see Greg Nicotero's unfiltered interpretation on the screen. I'm sure he pushes as much as he can, as well as others involved. I do stand by the "we're more sensitised now" comment though and I do think the show is doing better character development, than it did for nearly 1.5 seasons (over S7 & S8). It feels more believable again, even though we have to remember that it is after all just an adaption of a fictional comic.

Episode 4: Bag of shit...

Bag of shit is probably a little over exaggeration. There were some good parts. The tree breaching the walls. Maggie on the radio to Michonen? Being teased to us. Neagan fucking off somewhere, leaves a question mark. Judith was pretty badass.

I hear you though, it was the first episode that felt like filler (if there's only one or two, I'll let them off) for a good chunk of the episode. It certainly seemed to fragment the good stortytelling in the season so far. Also, if we're going to have a gay sex scene, give it to us (GoT style), not some romantic drama love scene. We're adults, we've all seen a pair of tits before! I didn't like those opening and closing montages, if was a little "CH5 Afternoon Movie". I see what Michael Cudlitz was trying to do but it didn't fit with the season story, to date.

A bag of shit? Naa, we've had worse/more pointless episodes than that. Let's just pick up next week and be concentrating on the story proper. Like Eugene working on the satellite (has to have some further reach), The Whisperers being creepy af (after the Carol episode, I wanted development from that reveal), and more answers to the things mooted in E1. All we really got is more possibility of Daryl being RJs father...

We know Judith, Michonne & Luke are heading to Oceanside again so I hope they don't use a whole episode on that. I want more Whisperers and some horrific/catastrophic end to them, either way. By mid season. Then into S10B, I'd like to be at a point where comms have reached further, we've got a future update from Maggie/Georgie/Jadis(Anne)/whoever is on the end of the radio.


I'll do a larger, more annoying write up later. Dad in hospital atm so preoccupied.

Now that was much better.

Just realised I didn't do a write up for the previous episode. I liked this one but I didn't really like the continuous theme with relationships. Maybe I need to watch again.

I did however like the King Ez revelation, the better version of Negan (like the Negan of old but without the cheese) and the Whisperers as usual. Nice little hook at the end as well with Negan meeting some new friends. That fucking "Negan lover" was annoying. So glad he was dealt with!

I have a feeling next week is going to be better than this and we'll have a big death/exit.  E6 is a perfect time to ramp it up a bit. Three really impacting and revealing episodes, I'll be pretty happy. I want more answers from the satellite story and the radio (Maggie?) story. All the lover's tiffs bits are a bit yawn worthy. Scrap that and focus on the main arcs.

What about Kelly & Magna? I have a feeling they might be Whisperers or informants to them maybe? Remember Alpha's words "We are always watching". How could they know everything without a plant, and let's face it, we still know very little about them. There's been no backstory on all of that group (Luke, Yumiko, Connie, Kelly & Magna). Only their word so those two could still be doing something else. Kelly is always saying she doesn't fit in and Magna is a rebel anyway...hmm, interesting.

Struggling through this series.  The soap opera element is tedious, I couldn't care less about 2 minor, boring characters having a minor spat and the tribe Vs tribe storylines have been done to death.  Not enough about survival, settlement and society development and problem solving.

This series is far too slow but there has been some good gore, today's Negan head smashups were top notch - hopefully it will spice up a bit, it better had.

To be honest mate, it's only really been E4: Silence The Whispers, where they seemed to over focus on unknown relationships, and yeah it wasn't really believable because we've never fully connected with those characters.

I think that is where TWD struggles at times - new characters. Especially when they are classed as a season regular but we only get a little but about them (but nothing of over interest) then we don't see them for 2 or 3 episodes. A prime example would be the Highwaymen. We got introduced to them with a mysterious symbol popping up. We were led to believe they had been around for xx years undetected, and patrolling the roads between the communities. The Whisperers are different in this sense because they have/had been concealing themselves at least (and we have to retain that nothing in this world is actually real).

I didn't buy the Highwaymen theory but then they were basically killed off in the Community Fayre. Cool, never really influenced the show and a good way to move them (and a few other characters that had dried up) on. So then about 8 episodes later (S10:E4 funny enough) we have them mentioned, something like "The Highwaymen didn't die for this - The Highwaymen want justice.". It wasn't really needed. If it had been replaced with Tara, maybe so and we might have believe the anger being expressed but you just felt like 'The Highwa- oh those guys who featured for about 1.5 episodes)'. At least Tara had been in the show since like S3B/S4A. It would be like someone saying "The Wolves didn't die for this" although their brief introduction did at least leave some kind of impression.

They have been successful with other character intros though too. Recently, I'd say Connie and Luke have integrated well, Judith is great when considering her age and the storylines she has to deliver. You believe she is a kid beyond her years that has grown up in an apocalypse. Alpha, Beta and now Gamma are all believable characters with troubled minds. Lydia has fitted in well as a character who can't seem to fit in.

I don't agree so much about the "survival, settlement and social dev"...I mean that world as we know it has moved on from scrambling for tins of beans and chocolate pudding ;) Survival is more tuned to being against other humans, especially one where rule and order is almost obsolete. Settlement - well is Alexandria, Hilltop, Kingdom (now gone) and Oceanside not enough? Which also brings in society development and the communities trying to develop a charter of rights and ways of working in peace. That was Rick's ultimate vision after years of moving around and fighting. Eugene setting up longer range comms between the communities. I admit there is still more problem solving needed - especially about the potential wider world (Jadis/Anne and Rick, Helicopter) but that may come with Maggie and the woman known as Georgie.

I know I said I think we'll have the Negan/Beta face off (possibly literally) next week but thinking about it...they'll probably take us to Oceanside as Michonne and Judith have headed there. Because...I'm not sure, I think it was to look for more clues about the Whisperers after a skin mask showed up there. I hope it is at least very horrific or gives us further answers. I'll be pissed if we spend a whole episode at Oceanside, only to have a bunch of people talk, that we don't know and don't really care about.

I actually am eager to find out more about the satellite (as so much focus was on it on E1&E2). Yep I know it will help with further comms possibly but you don't focus that so heavily, then detract from it (ooh look, Eugene is also a great Dad and can change nappies using maths - bizarrely), without it having a wider meaning. So wrap up the Whisperers (in some way, they don't have to 'die' even.) and open this world up.

Will we see that by S10E9...? I hope so but the show is certainly better than it was during S7B&S8A. S8B&S9A got us back on track (incidentally this was when Angela Kang took on the role of Show Runner from Scott Gimple) and Since the Whisperers introduction proper, most episodes have been largely good, with good storylines. Stick to the main few arcs and we'll be all good going into S10B.

Not a review but flip ya later. I got carried away..

Another decent episode. I enjoyed Negan in this one. Time will tell which side he's really batting for.
Carol is stating to annoy me. She deserves to be offed.
Who was Eugene talking to? That will be a good side plot.
The whole settlement have been hit with some kind of fever....We've been here before.

Its getting better. I just hope it carries on.

Nice "batting" for :) I think we all know he's batting for himself, if truth be told but it does add an element of uncertainty. Will he become a full blown Whisperer or will he double back them. Also though if he does, will it mean he rejoins the Survivors (Hilltop/Alexandria) or will he quite simply decide to go it alone. He's strong enough to be a lone wolf. It makes us wonder and that's a good thing. Potentially something much bigger will divert everyone's attention.

Yep glad they opened up on Eugene's Radio/Satellite stuff a bit more as I was saying it should play an important role.

Carol is a little bit, but the theory of going after one of Alpha's hordes is a good one though. Basically play them at their own game. All I wonder though is why hasn't anyone just copied them to infiltrate (by wearing a skin mask too). Easily pass under the cover of darkness and be protected.

I didn't really fall for the Carol "twig-break" thing distracting a bunch of Walkers, although it made it creepy for Daryl. What I mean is, I get it but in the same episode it was inconsistent because Negan was talking mostly normally while walking with Beta and surrounded by a horde. None of the Walkers turned on him all that while. I slight continuity error - to a degree.

Yeah the fever thing is a little repetitive. To be honest my thoughts are old woman will die of natural causes, combined with fever but we'll be led to think it's linked to something. We'll prob get scenes where we think Rosita may fall foul of it. I have a feeling Sadiq/Dante's number may be up soon. There's little story for either (aside from being the Doctors and their own masculine efforts), I do like the portrayal of Sadiq's PTSD though but the character can't really live off that forever.

Agree it's getting better with the odd episode being a slow burner (I thought this one started slowly) but imo, I would say we've only had one "below par" episode in this season so far, which was E4. Two to go and more to wrap up, I'm interested in the main of how the Negan/Whisperer arc and Eugene Comms arc turn out/reveal. Bring it on!

Haha, the "batting" pun was totally un-intended.

Not really a spoiler but i was talking to a fried who is behind on the TV show but has finished the comics and when i mentioned we are at the part where Eugene is speaking to someone over the radio his response was simply. "it sounds like they are sticking to some of the comics better story-lines"

Carol is just another Coral and Henry now, doing stupid shit, getting into trouble and putting others in jeopardy.

Ha! No way, I thought it was a very shrewd and intentional pun!

Ahh, yeah it does seem like the main stuff they are sticking to. I mean of course...they should do because otherwise there would be no point in having the source material. I'm quite interested when it comes to the end of that source material - how they develop on from there. Green light granted for S11 to be filmed and that means S12 will be being written or at least brainstormed and I think source material is due to end sometime at S11 MSF. Something bigger is coming (i'm sure those that know the graphic novel stuff will have an idea of what may come) and I hope they follow through with those key parts. However it can always divert - as the show has done but it does seem to come back to the main arcs.

Yeah she is grating a little. It's kind of out of character type of stuff. The trouble with this is maybe the actor has kinda notioned that she's not happy with not being a lead character and possibly wants out or has asked to negotiate more $$$$. I know from previous, like Jesus, you had a good actor with a good character and you feel the show wasn't really doing him justice. When he demanded to be higher up the pecking order, the show basically wrote him out of it. Although it did produce a shock death for one of the more better known characters. If you're going to go out - what a way to go and a great way to introduce the Whisperers at the same time!

It will be a shame if this is a similar scenario with Melissa McBride as we've seen her character develop so much (as Carol) and probably one of the best in that sense. Let's hope not or maybe do something like they did with Morgan and leave it open? Lennie James is a decent actor too and they did similar with Maggie (she is coming back soon which will be interesting). Danai Gurira is leaving though so maybe budget wise that will help negotiate something for McBride but maybe Lauren Cohen (Maggie) will swallow up that budget.

Anyway, yep S10 has been nearly back to the better seasons level of good and is keeping me interested. I still think it's no coincidence that since Angela Kang took over as Show Runner (S9 onwards) that the show has had more depth to the plot and character development. Long may it continue!

I suspect the illness will be linked to water poisoning, caused by gamma deliberately gutting walkers upstream. 

is it still a 'good' guys v bad guys cycle? Haven't watched since Rick left and it looked like it was headed that way - which isn't for me

Pookemon - I think we know that but Chubbs was referencing back to S3/S4 when the Prison had an outbreak of fever. Not everyone who watches will have been on board then but yes the current fever will be related to Gamma poisoning the water source (caught by Aaron, who then gave her a bandage). Although, if they are accurate with certain water diseases, most humans in good health can deal with it and usually end up with a spot of sickness and/or diarrhea. Which is why I said the old girl may die as her health doesn't seem so great. Rosita should just get the shits.

Batch - I think you know there will always be good/bad, dark/light, yin/yang or...balance. But they are exploring more interesting arcs. Chiefly Eugene and his development of further reaching comms. Currently talking to someone over the channels and has sparked intrigue.

At present I'd say Whisperers v Survivors isn't really the focus although Carol is trying her hand at going it alone to bring them down (with Daryl in tow). It's really Whisperers v Negan so the dynamic is Bad v Bad and Negan is one great form. Not in a cringeworthy way either. These parts are really letting JDM shine as Negan. He's got a game plan but cleverly neither the Whisperers, Survivors or the viewers know what it is. Intriguing.

Another mini arc is as referenced above - Gamma and Aaron. It seems there is an unpredictable nature to Gamma (third in command Whisperer) who Aaron has accidentally befriended. We don't know much about her but it seems like Aaron is trying to negotiate/build bridges via her. She seemingly hasn't gone full blown "Buffalo Bill's cousin" so could she be swayed to join the Survivors as an informant or spill the beans to Alpha. At the moment she has only said to Alpha "the man with the metal arm gave it to me", in reference to the bandage for her cut hand.

Personally I think once the Whisperer element is dealt with (I don't think it's all too far away) we'll have a bigger reveal of something much bigger, which will come via Maggie and potentially I would say another timehop. Definitely not so much good v bad but of course that element is within. I think you'll like Alpha and a more rebooted Negan.

thanks bamboo.

maybe I'll dip back in one day

Ha! Good man. I know this is coming from a self-confessed TWD fan boy but I would say that since S9B forward, the show really is back to it's better days. The first five episodes of S9, Rick Grimes final episodes were needed to close that particular chapter and to actually stop the show from going stale. Rick leaving has ironically made it better, while leaving us all wondering where he is and if we'll see/hear him again some day (the movies aside). Part of me says we will on the show in the future, even if it is for just 5 seconds in the final ever episode of TWD.

As I say, since then I think you've missed some pretty good developments. I'd say only 2 have been filler and maybe one lame episode (I'm biased remember), even if we were really harsh I'd say no more than 4 could fall into that "meh" category.

Anyway, I've rambled again but look forward to you watching again at some point!

Well, well, well. What have we here? S10:E7... Take. A. Bow. This was genuinely a great episode. It focused mostly on Sidiq's PTSD and how he's been battling his demons. Really great portrayal in my opinion as he struggles with the day to day.

Ho-hum I can hear all 3/4/5 of you mutter...but tonight had a fantastic twist to it. I don't think many/any of us have even hinted at it but clever from the TWD writers. Very tense in what seems like just a generally good episode throughout. I think it will catch most of you out, until it's staring you in the face. After all the episode is called "Open Your Eyes". What makes it even better is, it isn't even carried by one of the leads. No Negan, No Michonne, No Beta, very little Alpha, Daryl and Carol. It's Sidiq, Gamma and an Unnamed Whisperer who steal the show. The latter two don't even feature to much.

I know I'm bias, as likely the TEF's No1 TWD Fan Boy (read No1 as "only") but this episode really delivered for me personally. I didn't think it would at the start, when I realised it would all be centred on Sidiq but the big reveal was executed brilliantly and as a spoiler, yes Chubbs you kinda get your wish. I'll say no more. A word on Danté too, I wasn't too keen on the other Doc at first - just seemed like another annoying character with too many parts (remember captured Saviour Jared and Tobin - Carol's Alexandria squeeze?) but he's come into his own and compliments Avi Nash (Sidiq) really well. It'll be interesting where they take his arc as there is no secret he is keen to find a lady but is there more they can develop with him? Can't really live off being Doc No.2 for much longer.

Finally (I'll maybe do a write up after the episode has aired on Monday Night), I'm glad they've stayed pretty consistent with the quality of episodes in S10A (bar the one episode which was a bit too melodrama) and this one certainly has ramped up again, in time for the S10 E8 MSF. I almost choked at some of the scenes. There's a beautiful irony or perfectly intentional (I'll let you decide) that this episode was Directed by Michael Cudlitz. Yup, good ole Abraham Ford. Did a cracking job this time around. Not as shocking as those Negan scenes but I think they got the balance right between "no backlash" and "evil enough" to literally open our eyes or maybe quickly shut them again. How it all culminates though is awesome. If you have the link, you should watch it as soon as. Honestly; it was that good.

Ok I'm out but I'll catch up with you all on Monday eve.

Cheers,

Bamboo :)

Did any of the regulars watch?

Yeah, I did actually. Totally forgot as lots going on at the moment.
Decent episode. I was confused why you’d quoted an old post of mine but that soon made sense.
We much be coming up to MSF soon?

Also I’ve heared that now the graphic novels have finished, the show will come to an end after season 12.

I am still watching, have just been on catch up after going on holiday in October

MSF next week.  Still enjoying it overall..

Yeah no problem, as is life and all that. Haha, yeah just thought I'd revisit that moment. I liked how they brought that full circle and gave it closure. Very well written.

Yep MSF is this Friday/Saturday morning (Monday for TV viewers here) for me.

Well S11 has green light for filming and S12 will be in writing/creation stages. I had heard personally that S14 would be the final season but that would see it end in 2024. Unless they have a fallow year (like GoT) to allow for the TWD movies (scheduled for 2021/22) I can't see how they would run TWD, FTWD, the new TWD3 series and a TWD Universe Trilogy of movies (the Marvel model) all say in the same year. Surely would affect viewing numbers across FTWD & the new one?

So maybe a fallow year would happen end of S11? Make room to give exposure to the movies. Rick's story is the first and most anticipated, of course. I think Michonne will have one too as we still know very little about her background. A governor one would be good and a standalone Negan one would be great to give Jeffrey Dean Morgan proper licence to explore that character. I would like a Daryl one tbh. I guess they'll play it by ear and see how the Rick one is received (as well as the other two). Then we'd likely get a Marvel style release every year to 18 months for however long people were interested. There's certainly enough cult following to achieve that.

What I'm trying and failing to lead to, is that maybe after a fallow year with the first movie, that we see a return of TWD for S12 and potentially the final season. It would be one way to draw back or attract some more viewers for a final season or seasons. Hopefully if they did this they could somehow make the end in Rick's film, link back in to TWD S12. In my mind this is how Rick will either reappear in TWD, in either S12 as stated or possibly at the end of S11. My theory for S11 would be that it would be giving us a pathway into the movies and what a way to exit for a year! The other one for S12 would be a conclusion from the TWD movie and we start S12 where the movie left off.

It's all just conjecture on my part but I'm quite excited where the unknown and "sourceless" era of TWD will take us. How the writers deliver to us without original content and what arcs they would follow. Interesting times for a show that really has been a huge part of my 20s into 30s. Reflective as to how they will end it all but curious too.

Cheers,

Bamboo! :)

Oh excellent! All caught up? Edit: I guess you have considering you mention MSF  :D

What did you think to the Siddiq/Danté reveal? I am a little curious as to whether Siddiq may still be around? Just he may have rendered him unconscious? Of course it's a great foil because he can pretend that Siddiq ended it all/lost his mind and he acted in self defence...hmmm.

For me it is a great little plot twist and will be fun to see what answers they come up with in the MSF. Almost needs a double length episode really, especially if this arc is kind of a precursor to Negan's arc. Aka, Negan is a Double Agent (but who for?). So plenty of fun to be had!

Yep caught up, I thought the reveal was decent and had a feeling that something wasn't right with Dante, too nice.

If you watched TTD last week yo would know the answer to the question as to whether Siddiq is still around, it was in the sneak peak - if not you will find your answer in the MSF.

And so it returns. Been saying for a long time that Carol needs to go and this episode just emphasized that.
Decent episode all round i though, although the Negan/Alpha scene was...um.....lets say, interesting.

Had Andrew Lincoln at work last month. Made me want to start watching it, very late but just completed season 1

Carol is basically S7 Coral, S8 Henry, S9 Michonne blended into one. I hope they aren't writing the actor out because she is very good. Seems like they might be making the character a shitter to force her out. Dunno why but yes, Carol you nob!

Agree though the rest was pretty good and Negan/Alpha thing I had heard of but wasn't sure if they would air it. I'm glad they did. Puts some twist to the phrase "You can leave your hat on". Whatever floats your boat in the post apocalyptic world but did not surprise me from both characters. Negan definitely has her where he wants her now though.

Disgustingly dark and but for Carol it was fairly edgy too. I know we knew they would likely escape but a few close calls and cliffhangers. I really thought Jerry was a gonner! The other two...Magna and Connie...I reckon one or both are still alive.

What does this mean for Carol now? Will she go solo again, as Daryl is truly fucked off with her. Maybe she'll crossover briefly into Fear TWD and bump into Morgan/Dwight?

Been saying it for yonks that Eugene & Rosita will end up together. But is more of a side story. I want more on the comms from the wider world. Maggie is due back and Michonne will depart so maybe those three factors will combine and open up a wider world. Plus there is "Georgie" who we haven't scene since S8b (I think).

There is also a whole new character being introduced too. I think this will tie in with that wider element/arc.

All in all, a decent episode that sets us up nicely for S10b  sorry for the hijack Chubbs :)

Met him once. Pretty decent guy. But I'm jealous...what was he doing at your work?

The pilot episode is as good as anything in original horror/drama and you can tell the end of S1 was planned to be just so. S2 is a good link but for me S3 & S4 produced some of the highs. Not then until S7 did they reach similar levels (Negan). Then it stoops and hits lows for writing and imagination. But thankfully picked up again in S8b to date. Not quite had S3/4 highs but some of the Alpha stuff (community fayre) has been wonderfully gruesome and would sit amongst any cult horror.

Glad you're getting into it :)

No need to apologise mate. I'm not one for write ups as you can tell so you knock yourself out.

Archery/Rifle shooting with mates, despite the Metro and other news outlets thinking he was back in "training".

Nice one. Haha maybe production have agreed something with him and told him to get himself up to scratch. He will be filming for the upcoming standalone movies but I've no concrete knowledge on timeframes.

I think we will see him appear in TWD once more at a pivotal point but AMC would be very wise to not reveal this. They can easily film scenes for him to be included in TWD (they may already have done so) again. His exit point still left an entry point. Andrew Lincoln's main reason for leaving was to spend some quality time with his young family. He'll be back. In some capacity.

2 really solid episodes to start the 2nd Half of the season. Really enjoyed both. Won't mention anything about this weeks episode as i'm aware not everyone would have watched it yet.

Watched it last night. Agree really good episode, I felt this one was better and built on from the MSP. I thought even more tense and a few questions but there were some great notable performances from Daryl, Alpha and Gamma. Beta was good too and Lil ass kicker was brilliant. She really lives on the characters of Rick and Coral but in her own way.

Rosita/Gabriel dynamic was quite good. I really hope one day they give us a proper backstory on Gabe because in the deepest parts of his closet, he is certainly no angel and Rosita is realizing this too.

I'll not say anything directly about the episode either but yeah, the show is doing some good stuff. You can tell the difference since Angela Kang came in as Showrunner. A good move all round since S9.

Lil ass kicker makes me feel sick. I hope she dies ASAP

Yea, i don't like her. Even more annoying than Coral.

I think she's brilliant. How protecting Gamma/Mary and shooting Beta is on Coral levels of annoyance, I'm not really sure. Her story/character proves she's grown up in that world. That's why shit doesn't phase her. Something that took Michonne a while to accept.

She has a track record of saving people but also understanding differences beyond her years. Much better than Coral.

This second half of season 10 is back to its best. 3 decent episodes in a row. Cant remember the last time that happened.

Wont say anything about it until after the weekend though. So many questions though.

Are you using the link I gave you? Or another steam? Have to say I keep forgetting as used to always watch around about now or during Sunday's but seems they're getting the early one's ripped from AMC Premium now too. Nice  ;D

Yea man, i am. Its usually up and ready early hours of Saturday. I will normaly watch it at some point over the weekend.

Sweet. Also remember the US has just put their clocks forward I think, so now only 4hrs EST and 7hrs PST time difference for 3 weeks. Means those that stay up to watch it on the standard airing time don't have to stay up so late for a while (I'm talking die hards like me, who then like to watch the Talking Dead straight after too).  On that, it's a lot harder to find TTD than it is TWD.

This link, once the ads have been dealt with I find is pretty great. Basically like an online version of iPTV sans sports.

I'm watching the latest episode in a bit.

Also bit of a long shot. I've never been to a comic con but always loved the whole idea and environment of them, especially when it involves some of your fave shows. I want to go but not on my own (strange, as I do a lot of stuff on my own), so putting it out there. If yourself or anyone on this thread was in a similar predicament and wanted to go - I'd gladly go with a fellow geek. And yes I'm aware it's me and my reputation for talking a lot  :D

You know what, i went to a comicon probably 15+ years ago and loved it. Was my first and last but yeah, depending on date/location/price etc i'd be up for it. If you have your eye on one, let me know and i'll have a gander.

San Diego would be the dream 😉 Especially a full TWD panel for me, personally!

Haha, yeah I'll see what's what. Was considering Dublin but that's come too soon. Pretty well priced and Michael Cudlitz (Abraham) is there and they're also doing a Robocop screening with the Robocop dude giving a talk beforehand. A little gutted!

TWD definitely building in the right way this time. That was pretty awesome. Without giving anything away it almost felt like the end!

Great episode last night, lot's of questions not helped or answered by TTD not being recorded due to the Corona Zombie Virus..

Oh man, so much going on right now i totally forgot about this week.

I thought they could've done a recording sans live audience but maybe scheduling put paid to that. I did read that production for FTWD S5 has been halted and writing for TWD S11 has been granted extension, with writers meetings being done over FT/Skype etc.

Back to the episode. Yep watched it on Friday night. Brilliant stuff and only building on the second half of the season. Thought Earl played his parts well. As did Negan, Alpha, Beta & Gamma. Even Carol's part at the end was a justified smile.

Plus I would say they have got the timeline in terms of not dragging a story out correct this time. They fucked up by dragging out the Saviours story (well the All Out War parts) and turning it into an endless "Last Action Hero" montage.

Looks like we're set for a Michonne & Virgil episode as we discover what she's been up to. Intriguing. Then I'm sure we have to get some development from the Eugene & "Stephanie" arc. Really wonder how they'll follow that (in line with the comics). I still think Eugene will end up fucking Rosita. She's showing interest in him now she knows someone is on the scene, the fucking hussy! :)

Finally, yep Magna? I liked how they did it but how did she get out? She didn't really say. I think Connie is still alive too. Oh and what now for Beta? Now he's essentially been liberated!

Really enjoyed that episode. I was not expecting the ending. Well, up to the point where whats her face opened the door, then i expected it.

This season has been top notch i think. I read somewhere that Maggie is due to come back this season, no sure if/when that will happen.

Looking forward to how the Eugene story line plans out with his secret rendezvous. I can't help but think its a innocent as its being made out. Could it be a trap?

I'm really not interested in Manga and Yumiko, both characters irritate the shit out of me.

I warmed to Judith in this episode, not sure how long that will last mind.

Well that was a strange episode. So many questions.

Haven't watched yet. Was meant to last night. I assume it is Michonne focussed (without you giving anything away) tonight?

Yeah, As you predicted its pretty much Michonne focused. I think i need to watch it again but this time with 100% focus on it. It was so strange, its style was very non-TWD.

It was the Michonne exit episode and basically teed up her own feature length episode similar to Rick's - I fully expect those two episode to coincide together at some point, or be combined.

I expect Rick and Michonne to show up at some point in the standard Walking Dead, probably for a few episodes once they announce the end of the show.  I guess there is a question as to whether next season will be the last?

I read somewhere there is plans for a 12 season but not sure if its been commissioned yet.

Decent build up episode getting ready for the SF, which has been delayed. I believe the will show the penultimate episode next weekend and then there will be a wait for the Finale due to post production issues which were slowed down because of COVID-19.
Looks like it will open up a lot of questions around the new group and finally we see some city life again which is nice.

Lots to talk about but little time, i will leave that to you Bamboo.

Yep caught up and then watched both 13 & 14 at the same time on Saturday night just gone. Think the penultimate episode should be available or up shortly - possibly tonight.

So firstly E13: What We Become.

Where what has been said is a Michonne stand alone. Still a great episode and credit to Danai Gurira for a pretty good performance, revisiting old haunts and a familiar face. I really enjoyed how they showed the perspective of how things may have turned out, had she turned her back on Andrea. It also gives us a greater perspective of how we see 'our' Survivors against the backdrop of numerous 'enemies'. We have for so long, backed our people; Rick, Carol et al. Whilst they portray one side of the coin to us, it's easier to view other groups point of view in this world - even those with slightly different angles and approach.

This also led me to think about how they filmed this episode. I wonder if they did get actors back for it, use previously unseen alternative footage or maybe they did that thing like they do with dead actors and can magically make them appear. Think it's called time sequencing, it may just be CGI but I thought it had a different name. Anyway, they take all known imaging/film and map it then "regenerate" a character and can even make them follow a script. I think I'll stick with unseen alternative footage that they then stitched together but it could easily be a combination. Would be fantastic foresight by the writers if they had filmed a "double life" for Michonne. Anyway I'll leave that to my little mind to ponder upon for hours upon end. 

Back to the episode, which of course was mostly centred around Michonne tripping (anyone not up to speed will think "wtf have they done with TWD") and yes it felt very un-TWD and more like somewhere between LOST and The Beach. Yet it did all make sense in the end and paved the way for a Michonne movie, likewise with a Rick movie (which we all know they are working on. I have great hopes that they can become fantastic addons but stand out in their own right.). We now have a scenario of questions that might be answered; will she find Rick...if he was on that boat, why when he left in a helicopter...is it a plant from someone more sinister trying to lure Michonne to them...but what would their motive really be to do so...in the grand scheme of things our survivors are just a group of people who happened to survive but they are not important figures in terms of the USA or the World.

Definitely things to ponder there. So Virgil, living on an ex-naval island. I wonder if that was a slight nod in some ways to Thunderbirds or maybe Dante's inferno? Since what he puts Michonne through is likely as close a visualisation to hell one might imagine...unless tripping while already in an incredibly fragile state of mind is your bag then fill your boots. But maybe in a way he also showed Michonne that she chose the "right" path and by showing her the "what could've been" maybe it's some form of redemption. Which may mean she will find Rick at some point.

The Island consequently, I found out, is called Bloodsworth Island...hmmm desperate times and all that but if a random guy popped up and I was asked to follow them  back, I don't think 'Bloodsworth' would have me dancing all the way there like Dick Van Dyke.

There's not much more to draw from the episode because it stuck very closely to that main plot and there were no other scenes; apart from Judith talking to Michonne towards the end. Like her or loathe her, poor girl was born with no Mother, her Father has disappeared presumed dead, she befriended a sociopath who tried to murder them all, is pretty much raising her brother single-handedly and now her adoptive Mother is off on an adventure to find her presumed dead Father. All at the age of about 10. Girl is mentally strong - lil' ass kicker is probably about right.

Oh one last thing, of course we get a hint of where Michonne is headed as she meets those two strangers who need saving. We get another throwback to her introduction as she once again dons two armless and mouthless walkers. Maybe the two people she meets are her replacements per se. She disposes of here new/old walkers and now has two living people. I don't know how that ties in but it looks like Michonne and friends are approaching some kind of army or infantry that are marching in formation to...somewhere.

Onto E14: Look At The Flowers.

This episode focuses back in the world we know and centers on the aftermath of Alpha's demise. At the hands of Negan and we open with Carol and himself. Carol pretty much double-backs Negan by not holding up her end of the bargain. Basically we get the reveal (which was kind of revealed at the end of E12) that Negan went incognito to do Carol's dirty work. Except Negan being Negan, he actually enjoyed himself while there a little too much. Potentially (but without going into too much side story) he forgot why he was really there because he was part of the Whisperers attack on Hilltop; so a bit of a flaw there but this is Negan and I'm gonna let that slide.

All in all he got the job done and then Carol (and Daryl) are both harsh about the length of time it took him to carry out Alpha's murder. Yet I'm with Negan here, yes he could easily kill her at any time but like he said "I wanted to come out of this with my head still intact!". Possible he didn't need to kidnap Lydia in this but if he was going to lure Alpha to exactly where he wanted her then this was guaranteed to get her there.

So Carol walks of telling Negan he's a "free man", which seemingly for the first time, leaves Negan pretty lost. He definitely needs a group - whether he is leader or not. As much as he likes to think he can go it alone. What is this?! Talking in sympathy for Negan?! Never thought I'd see the day!

Meanwhile at the safe haven where all the Kingdom/Hilltop lot are at we see Magna return with Yumiko (I can't warm to those too and it pisses me off because I think Luke (Fantastic Beasts guy) is a much better character, as well as Connie & Kelly compliment each other well but it seems like those three have been discarded somewhat), to Jerry's delight and then Eugene finally grows some balls to announce he's made contact with someone from outside their world.

It's a call out to bring together a team of people to join him on his comms mission, which culminates in three people who really have nothing else left in the world (romantically I'd say) and are all searching for something. Yumiko, is seeking some form of redemption, Ezekiel has lost Carol and has cancer but maybe he has thoughts that they may find somewhere with treatment? And of course Eugene who is leading his search/meeting with a wider community. All three have hope in some form and what comes next they probably don't expect.

We cut to Beta discovering Alpha's head on the stake as he struggles to come to terms that his leader is now gone. There's a theme in this that I didn't really consider while watching but it is of course leadership & guidance. Negan, Beta, Ezekiel etc. They all seem to be searching for that too. To be led.

There's a brief moment where Negan heads back to the hideout where he held Lydia but she is gone and Daryl appears about to kill him. Negan explains he has "Silenced the Alpha" and shows him her skin mask but Daryl isn't convinced - yet. But it does seem to be the start of some love/hate bromance. Similar to that he had with his brother Merle and also how his friendship with Rick started out. Albeit in different times. Negan says he can prove it Alpha is dead and he'll show Daryl her head. He also makes the assumption/mocks Daryl about his relationship with Carol. Classic Negan being a cunt.

Meanwhile Carol, having her alone time is haunted and mocked by Alpha's apparition and classic lines from past episodes are used by Alpha and has Carol spooked.

Back to Beta (no pun) and he now has Alpha's head in a bag. Seemingly unable to accept his "Alpha" is no more. Not sure where he heads to but it must be a place he either used to perform or jam because there are memories of his own past as he smashes up a guitar and rips a promo poster down. Doesn't look like we're going to get the country singer back any time soon. While there and a little calmer her takes Alpha out of the bag and has some kind of conversation with her. He blasts out what must be some of his old tunes and we get some kind of late night walker rave. I think that's homage to Night of the Living Dead as the scene was reminiscent of the cult horror classic. He later kind of thanks her, stabs her head and then sickeningly we discover he's stitched some of her face onto his previously torn skin mask. Disgustingly gruesome but awesome all the same. That stuff just feels normal now!

The trio of Eugene, Zeke & Yumi are somewhere on there adventure, though it's not certain where they are at first (I later remembered that in the comics it should be Pittsburgh but in the show, in the radio conversations Stefanie mentions Charleston, West Virginia so assume that's where they are headed or near to) they come across a bizarre set of walkers  in a cage on the road? Some kind of old checkpoint maybe...I'm not sure but from there on in their journeys gets more weird but also intriguing. Even more so as they encounter more and more walkers chained and et up in everyday scenarios. It is a nice comedic touch that Ezekiel finds very amusing, and it's a moment of light relief in a world where everything has gone to shit. They're even in brightly coloured outfits for god's sake. On another note, it is nice to see them approaching a city and see that dynamic. I love the woods and countryside but there's only so many times you can have shots of skulking through the trees and foraging for water. So was refreshing to have desolate cityscapes and yes, the trio had reached Charleston.

Negan and Daryl still untrusting each other head to "Spike Hill" to find that Alpha's head has gone (we know Beta took it). Typical as this makes Negan look like he's telling porkies so Daryl understandably points his weapon at him. Ironically at that point a couple of Whisperers appear and point their weapons at Daryl. Negan is taking it all in his stride as the Whisperers confirm what Negan has been trying to say. In another moment of comedy, they kneel before Negan and anoint him as the new "Alpha". Incredible. Negan hysterical, Daryl in disbelief as they then tie him up. They seem to think Daryl is going to come to his fate but the continued smirk from Negan had me and I think Daryl too, believing he was toying with them. Why? Well for the audience that was easy to figure out. There's fuck all of a life with the Whisperers and Negan likes the finer things in life (yes even in this world), why would he sacrifice the doorstep of total retribution just to lose it all? As for Daryl I think he realises that Negan was telling the truth after all, even if the circumstances he's in are not ideal. It's the look from Daryl that says to the viewer "You're not gonna kill me after proving me wrong are you?" even if the actual line he delivers is "If I were you, I'd kill me" or to that effect. It's with that, he shoots the Whisperer to his side and then stabs the other one (I think). We then see the start of Daryl & Negan's 'friendship' as Daryl proclaims "Untie me then asshole". They then wait out to see if Carol turns up, for some reason but there is a mutual respect laid out between them.

Just before Eugene's gang get to the city we find that Ezekiel's horse has gone lame as well as been bitten. He puts the horse out of its misery but it mirrors his own thoughts. He's convinced otherwise and that he must continue with them.

We quickly head back to Carol of the Woods and she winds up in some shack, and still being haunted by Alpha. The roof of the shack caves in trapping Carol and Alpha's ghost taunts her, telling Carol to accept death so she can't hurt anyone anymore (kind of Carol's own struggle. She believes everyone she comes into contact with dies or gets into trouble). This is another mirror story but Carol isn't ready to die and chooses life, just as a walker is about to have a go at her ankle. She then heads back to Alexandria. Which we later see, with Daryl letting her back in through the gates.

There was a tiny bit with Beta, seemingly taking his new found status (I think he feels he is the Alpha now he has a part of her on his face) as leader and Whisperers (and mini horde) with him to his next plan of attack/vengeance.

It pretty much finishes up with Eugene and fellow intrepid explorers reaching the bizarre city of Charleston. As mentioned and like further back in the road, walkers are posed in everyday positions. Two enjoying high tea with purple feather boas. in part it reminded me of Westworld (the  film) as at first, it felt to me like the chained up walkers were being controlled mechanically. Maybe they are? Just as they are getting used to these strange set ups, a new character pounces onto the scene, quite literally with the overly enthusiastic "OMG Hii!!". She is of course, adorned in very bright purple/cerise clothes.

So that was that, a double review (thank god that's over I hear you mutter, yeah me too). I know who the purple character is already, thanks to the comics but it annoyed me a little bit that official TWD & TTD socials revealed the name of the character almost immediately after airing. As if every viewer would know her name and character. That grates me a touch so I'm not going to say it until after the UK airing of E15 The Tower.

It looks like from the pre episode trailer that this new character will join up with Eugene & crew but for one, it definitely isn't the woman (Stephanie) that he's been talking to so that search continues and will be interesting how that arcs. Hopefully we see that get pretty close on E15. As for Beta again from all the trailers and promos he of course takes his mini horde to Alexandria, as he's seen a top the windmill (with a familiar face hiding behind) there. Which poses a big question, if Alexandria was safe where the fuck has everyone (inc Judith and kids, as well as Negan etc) headed to? I guess we'll find out once we've seen that episode.

As mentioned by Chubbs, this will be the last one until later in the year. Of course the circumstances have made it difficult but this make work in their favour. A bit like the GoT hiatus, this early pause may generate some suspense but I also fear that the S10:E16 (S10:SF) Finale will end up getting leaked earlier which would spoil it. But who knows, I'm not sure how much production has released of it so far but I'm sure there will have been pre post-production screenings of it to the industry and journos, critics etc. Let us hope they can keep it under wraps for until they have the airing date.

I'll be watching E15 in a bit tonight so will stick a review on around Tues or Weds after people have had chance to watch. In the meantime, there's plenty of nonsense to get stuck into above and after watching E15 I'm going to rewatch and catch up on FTWD, purely just to stitch in any crossovers and Easter eggs (perfect timing) that may led to a bit more info regarding Rick/Michonne and their future fate.

If you got here without skipping...I salute you. Cheers,

Bamboo :)

Have e15 been on this week? Struggling to find a stream on my usual site.

Chubbs, yeah I got it on the usual place. Watched it Sunday evening but had planned to watch it Sat eve. Because of the AMC Premiere channel in the states it airs Fridays at 8/9pm over there (if you pay the premium) so it means the stream can be posted here early hours of Saturday morning. Definitely by 4/5/6 am. But yeah it was up on mine in 720p (which is fine on the laptop and even mirrored to the tv is ok at that res too, plus it loads up a bit quicker than 4K. Don't really need it though 720p or HD is fine enough).

Just going to binge some FTWD. TWD World also launches later this year too - not sure about it yet but it has a two season contract. Pretty sensible as I think it is being ran as a bridging series to the movies. So they've got us by the balls somewhat here, have AMC. Clever. I think if we're interested in the Rick Trilogy (of course we are. We want to know what happened to conclude his story and if it  goes a different path to the comic book arc), then we've got to watch this newer series too.

How that works though I'm not sure, because it was due to launch after the S10F of TWD. But now that will begin later in the year. Will be interesting how they schedule it. Too much/too many TWDs all airing at a similar time would just be confusing, especially if this one is key.

So we have TWD, FTWD, TWDW...Some time in the near future and Covid-19 social restrictions have been lifted for a month..."Sorry can't come out of isolation, I'm watching Fear The Walking Dead World Movie Trilogy Part I...."

 :)

Partially palatable review for TWD S10:E15: The Tower will be in your eyeballs very late tomorrow evening. Bit of a minefield but I'm sure you Princesses can handle it  ;)

ending

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-54099889


are the films still going ahead?
wasn't to know what happened to Rick

don't care about the rest

From what i read the films are still going, as is fear the walking dead and also 2 new spin offs. So TWD as a universe will still be around for some time.

Might start on Fear the walking dead soon.

Well what they are doing is essentially putting S11 and S12 into one longer marathon S11.

I think contracts for 3 films have been agreed and one is definitely surrounding Rick (and Jadis/Anne), the others were rumored to be Michonne & Negan and then Daryl & Carol.

Obviously if they have a series penned for Michonne/Negan and one for Daryl/Carol as the article suggests, maybe they have adjusted the contracts and will just do the one standalone Rick film? Which would probably be a good move in some ways instead of milking it. Although I'd be happy to see a feature that focuses on the main glut of TWD characters. I'd love a Morgan standalone because I know that Lennie James could pull it off. Similarly Michonne (Danai Gurira) has done the Black Panther stuff so could easily transition back to film and of course, Lincoln has switched between the two through his careers (although with very differing roles). So wouldn't mind TWD based films with them as central characters.

But then Daryl has a really interesting backstory too so (personally) would loved a movie with him as I think he is good enough to carry a feature by himself (The episode in S7/S8 - The Cell confirmed this). A series would make sense for him to have all his story told.

The thing I'm guessing will happen is what I thought regardless, that we will see Rick in TWD series even if it is only a cameo/reveal. Which would kind of seamlessly lead us into the Rick film. We had already started to see some loose ends being tied up and the crossover elements merging from FTWD. In these next two (now one extra long) season(s) I think we will see this develop further and the unknown (in TWD) theories regarding the helicopter etc, will knit together. If you watch FTWD then these are almost answered but the new series (TWD World?!) has been solely created to give us even more insight. Imagine FTWD was kinda the prequel series, TWD was our present and TWDW is in part the future...in terms of timelines.

It will be interesting how they do it and bring all three series into one and then go on to the film(s) and companion series later. At that point, as you say it is then up to the viewer if they want to explore other characters deeper or just find out what happened with Rick. I'm sure for many casuals, they will just want the latter. For the TWD Geeks (I'm not looking at myself), there should probably be enough interest to continue in the TWD Universe for a while after.

In any case, I feel they might just be using this as a way to gauge fan/viewer response by stating "it will come to an end". It's always a good marketing ploy, especially when the delayed S10 Finale is about a month/3 weeks away. It will have fans talking, hashtagging and generate wider interest in TWD. That way AMC can maybe decide to fund even more TWD projects, especially if a lot of fans essentially beg/demand that it continue. One thing about this show is that they have listened to their viewers/fans etc a lot and other than maybe 1.5 seasons worth, they have always delivered; I'd say watch this space but of course money talks too.

It feels weird talking about TWD after all this time. Usually this would be gearing up the start of a new season but we're going to get an extended finale (double episode I think). I'm not certain then when they will start S11. As they have to film a good chunk of it yet. I would say that they may start it after this new TWDW (Beyond. It's Beyond) has finished as the story from their will have relevance for what we begin to find out/get closer to Rick again. For me, I'd like it if Michonne finds Rick whether in a positive or negative state. They could go all mushy or they could go super dark. A version of the latter works better for me.

For yourself personally Batch, yes I'm sure that there will be a film and it will give us all the answers we are after, regarding Rick.

Ok, I'm done but I'm genuinely looking forward to watching again. Currently on the second rerun of FTWD and will then move onto a rerun of TWD S10 to get me all fresh n ready for TWD S10 Finale: A Certain Doom, which airs on October 4th USA & October 5th UK on Fox Enjoy :)

Edit: Just also remembered that even though TWD S10 Finale is coming soon, there will also be 6 (six) "Bonus" Episodes in the early part of 2021 and aren't part of the S11/12 amalgamation, so in fact the impending S10 Finale is not really the Finale as such. Maybe these S10 "add ons" will reveal much more before we go balls deep into the final season?!

More than happy with that from my point of view, especially after such a long wait just for the Finale.

What he said....

I'm sure the handful of you that contribute on this thread have missed my TWD preview/review/future thoughts, and ramblings, etc  :pint:

:D  Spat my tea, cheers Chubbs

It would be nice if Fox bought the rights to FTWD so that we can at least watch it in the same place, I would have preferred to have watched it in conjunction with TWD, but because AMC is PPV that wasn't possible, and I wasn't going to pay for one show.  I watched the first half of season 1, but then stopped when it wasn't readily available.  Not sure I have the energy to watch back all of the seasons of that now.

I know someone, who knows someone, who knows someone, who knows a place where you can watch all of the TWD stuff.

Plus, I'll be watching the TWD:World Beyond (finally got it right) just for the very lovely Alexa Mansour  :-[

But unless I know that someone, that is not really helping me is it?

You might know that someone though. Would you like me point you in the correct direction?   :D

Are you talking a dodgey firestick or something?

What you do with your dodgy firestick is entirely up to you  :D

That was actually quite a brilliant episode for the return of TWD. No spoilers as i know some wont watch it until tomorrow night, but a huge surprise (not in a good way) was the Star Wars crossover. You'll see what i mean.

I've never watched the walking dead, but I believe that one of my favourite ever songs by one of my very favourite bands was featured in the show; The Regulator by Clutch

https://youtu.be/_nPXBeGp6d4

And here is that song

Almost a week past and no Bamboo review. Disappointing.

For anyone who still reads this thread. A 2nd spin off started last week The Walking Dead: World Beyond. Without going into it too much it focuses around a more established world in the present day and follows a group of teenagers/young adults on their adventures outside their gates into the "World Beyond"
2 episodes in and im not convinced to be honest. Appreciate there needs to be back story etc, but just haven't been drawn in.

I assume that is on AMC channel wise?

Watched the first in this series too and think it was underwhelming at best.

Its available on Amazon Prime. That's where I've been watching it.

Ah cheers, i'll take a look, although I am not sure I have the motivation to get into another version tbh.

Yeah, i feel the same. I never bothered with Fear the Walking Dead either.

Fear the walking dead isn’t too bad. Definitely better than the newer spin off. I have watched maybe 2 series of FTWD and it’s slower than the original show and the walkers seem far more difficult to kill..maybe because it’s earlier in the pandemic and they are less crumbly and rotten?!

I started watching this for the first time over the weekend, I’m now on to series 3!
First time I have ever opened this thread so will make sure not to read through it!

****Written with no spoilers so if you can be arsed, you have piece of mind Quagmire****

Hope you're enjoying it so far Quaggy? You're kinda getting into some of the best continued episodes of TWD (in S3/S4/S5) right now, in my opinion.

One of the better dynamics for me in TWD is that although the Zombie/Walker kills are great and needed, they don't become as relevant as the show evolves. The humans become the main threats to one another. The walkers are just annoying (irritants for the survivors) but the SFX and ideas used by Greg Nicotero are incredible. How he and many of his team continue to come up with different ideas is brilliant; I'm a huge fan.

Chubbs - sorry man. I've been away and incredibly busy with life and thangs. Other than the quick occasional chirp on the TEF, so haven't had time to concentrate on a full review but things are settling a little again so I will try and bang one out over the weekend.

Hunk - There are several tunes and covers on the TWD Soundtrack that are pretty awesome. Check out Bad Moon Rising by Mourning Rituals (fantastic CCR cover), really fits the feel for TWD.

Molepar - Haven't watched TWD:WB as of yet but I know the story is integral to the whole TWD Universe. I probably won't be convinced either myself but I know I'll watch it as several on here will have identified that I am a complete TWD nerd. I'll want to look for clues, pointers etc for the main show. Plus it may throw us some Easter eggs or answers too. Yep FTWD is a slow burner in the first couple of seasons yet I think it was only commissioned for two seasons initially. Frank Delaney opens that pilot episode so well. It's developed nicely and yet to some it's just become TWD lite but I really like how certain characters have evolved; those who have joined it in later seasons compliment it too.

I'm quite excited for how all three tie together and we migrate into the feature length movies.

I'm out for now, just used a quick hour in the early hours (insomnia, my only current lover) to write this. Chubbs, I'll defo get round to writing my review of the S10 Finale: A Certain Doom but it was definitely eye pokingly good!

Cheers,
Bambi
:)

I'm over it Bamboo. :-)

You talk dead to me  :D

Will be writing a review of both the TWD S10 Finale: A Certain Doom & S1 Premiere TWD: World Beyond as a form of x-over mash up tonight.  I am just about to rewatch both back to back and then will get started.

Those who haven't watched yet will eventually know what I mean and Chubbs (I think) has already touched on the "Star Wars" element :hmmm:

Okay. Catch you in a bit.

Cheers,
Bamboo :)

Not reading back the thread. After losing a bit of interest at the mid-season break of season 9 (went to go back to it but the Sky box failed to record episode 9 so couldn't really re-start it). Discovered season 9 on Prime so finished it now (annoyingly 10 costs, and the Sky box has recorded all but episode 2 and 16 of season 10).

I've quite enjoyed the addition of the Whisperers - I know it's a tad formulaic as the show lurches from one set of baddies to another but they keep the ideas fairly fresh. The heads on sticks episode got me - seeing Henry up there after all the trouble he went to for Lydia & the impact on Carol. Awful to lose Tara that way too. I sort of have trouble with the idea that they were all kidnapped with weapons, fought their way out of the initial guards but all still ended up decapitated.

Got to get onto season 10 now somehow!

I liked the showrunner change to Angela Kang, she really made us have feeling for several characters again. Your mini assessment above is testament to this. I think the theory is they were duped into that storage area/barn and with the insecurity of seeming safe and the enjoyment of the Community Fayre, they just didn't expect any form of attack from within.

Loved the moment Alpha sits next to Lydia (and how Alpha disguised herself) in the cinema that was quite simply one of the most creepiest moments of that episode (no that season). To have your biggest nightmare and subsequently your own Mother come sit next to you. Simple but effective story writing. I also enjoyed the Dante arc and really didn't clock that until about an episode before. The reveal episode itself though was incredibly tense and kept you guessing as to how it would turn out.

I also know someone who has a link to enable you to watch all of S10, if interested.

Appreciated, I have managed to locate the episode I was missing.

You're welcome. Glad you found it. You can get cracking now. I might end up writing this S10 Finale review when I get home!

Just read last night that TWD:S10C (it is what it is) or TWD:S10:E17:One More, will Premiere on AMC Sunday 28th Feb 2021. For UK viewers that looks like it will be the usual Monday 1st March 2021 but if you happen to have access to AMC Premiere you can view 24hrs before. It's not so useful for UK viewers as it still means our friends over the water have the chance to view the episode on Saturday 27th Feb 2021. Although if you have access to a decent stream then you can also watch around the same time it airs on AMC Premiere (USA). This will be the first of six anthology extending episodes of S10; taking us to 22 episodes for the season in total. I'm intrigued what the finale (of sorts) will be like come E22.

Being a total TWD nerd, I will do my usual in watching it at the earliest opportunity; which means staying up from around 3am waiting for it to go live.

If any of you are interested there has been a teaser "read-through" released on AMC's official YouTube of the upcoming Feb episode. You'll need a VPN though as YT gets all stroppy about content from other countries, (yet strangely won't age restrict the song WAP) and it not being your locale. Whatever YT and fuck your Vevo dominated music vids.

Anyway, here's the link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vBo_l6Ys8I&feature=youtu.be

So does that mean just 6 episodes from February and then Season 11 starting in it's usual October slot?

I think so Berni. It will kind of level out a "lost" year. The 6 additionals will take us up to mid April. Which is usually around the time of the season finale (usually TWD Season Bs start mid Feb).

Yet S11 will be 24 episodes long and will feel more like a S11 & S12. From what I've read people say it will start in 2021 and end in 2022 splitting it into 3 sets of 8 (A - Oct '21-Dec' 21, B - Feb '22-April '22, C - Oct '22-Dec '22). I wouldn't mind them being scheduled for 2 sets of 12 instead. Something like A Oct '21-Jan '22 and B Feb '22-May'22. I guess the former does fit in with the cast and crews usual filming schedule, just will seem it odd being like a season and a half.

I agree, 2 sets of 12 would be better, as it is it always feels like it is ending just as it gets going.

The World Beyond doesn't seem to be getting a great reception. A resounding 4/10 on IMDB, 41% on RT
Watched 2 eps and its didn't draw me in at all.

Hey Chubbs, hope you're good man. I was going to include it in my elusive TWD S10 Finale review but to me (going off only the S1 Premiere) it feels a little like Smallville x Stranger Things x Dawson's Creek/The OC, which individually wouldn't usually be a bad thing.

Clearly AMC are aiming to tap into a younger market with this spin-off come sequel companion series, so it's possible we might view it a little differently. The good thing (whichever way it is viewed) is that TWD:WB is definitely only running for two seasons. I think this is to bring everything to a head in time for the last part (half or third) of S11 and of course then the movies.

I think I can probably manage two seasons worth but I'll likely binge it. Currently playing catch up on a season and half of FTWD, which does seem to get a little better the more it goes on. I think adding Morgan and Dwight to it (for true TWDers) ignited a bit more interest (think that was their thinking) and helped. I kind of know where it's at atm but just watching for watching sake really.

Back to TWD:WB, I'm purely going to watch that just for my own TWD nerd out to look for any clues/pointers/easter eggs that might indicate a potential Rick return. I know that sounds a bit daft via a different show but that is exactly what has been teased. We shall see but a lot of confirmations going around regarding Michonne too.

I'm quite excited about the bolt on/anthology episodes of TWD S10(C). Wondering if they will just focus on further character development/backstories and/or weave it into the current storyline. My theory is they will do this to prep us for the upcoming movies, which most of us know will be standalone features of individual character stories (a la Marvel style).

Also apologies all. I earlier said that S10:E17 was called One More. This is in fact the name of E19. This was due to me thinking the virtual table read clip above, was for E17. It also revealed that these extra episodes will have the fantastic Robert Patrick, who will always be Liquid Metal Man to me (or T-1000). It's no surprise that he finally gets a role on TWD, linking up once again with Gale Anne Hurd; who as any Sci-Fi and cult nerd will know produced so many great late 80s and early 90s films.

Another release is that Jeffrey Dean-Morgan's wife Hilarie Burton will be featuring as Negan's wife...yep, we finally get to meet the human version of Lucille!

Anyway, here are the correct running titles for S10 E17-E22:

17 Home Sweet Home (Which I'm led to believe is a Daryl/Carol centric episode)
18 Find Me (No idea, will dig. Possibly Maggie or Michonne?!)
19 One More (Going by the YouTube clip it certainly focuses on Eugene, Aaron and Gabriel, along with Robert Patrick)
20 Splinter (Again, no idea but that title could relate to either Lucille (bat) or Morgan's Bō. But this could also mean a splinter cell, maybe relate to the CRM or Commonwealth)
21 Diverged (Not a clue)
22 Here's Negan (Think that is self explanatory)

Whatever direction they go, I think we'll discover much more about the wider world of TWD as it ramps up for S11. One thing is for sure, I'm hoping no Starbucks cups make it into the final edit, although unlike GoT it would be easier to say it was intentional. Just hope the final extended S11 does the whole thing justice. I would rather the series end with me wanting to watch more, rather than thinking "oh well, that's the end of that".

Anyway, I'll keep updating with snippets or info between now and Feb end for you guys to mull over, if desired.

Laters,
Bamboo :)

So we're back and i couldn't be happier. Season 10 really brought the excitement back to the show and have been looking forward to these 6 next episodes.

Pretty decent episode, mainly centered around Maggie her new group of people.

As we all know, one group of enemies gets eliminated, a new group is not too far behind. We soon discover a that Maggie and her people have been tracked by a group they call "The Reapers" we get a little sniff of who they are in this episode. Basically a group of mercenaries led by someone called "Pope". I'm sure we'll get to know more about them as we go. 

There is also the reunion of Maggie and Negan which will no doubt unfold throughout the next 6 episodes. Personally as a "new man" i think we'll see Negan go off on his own as to avoid conflict, assuming Maggie doesn't get to him first.

Looking forward to seeing how this all unfolds, especially the Storm Troopers from ep16 which were not included as part of ep17 story line so there are still plenty of things to uncover. .

Im sure bamboo will give you a better run down.

I was a little underwhelmed, but am assuming that it will ramp back up in the next few weeks.  I am hoping to see the storyline start to crank up towards the (sort of) end goal that we know we are working towards.  Now that Maggie has had her return episode, hoepfully the storyline will start to move.

how many seasons are left? might dip back in for the ending

hope the Rick films get made, when he left that's where my viewing stopped...

Yes, season 11 will be the final season but as not the end of the franchise by a long shot. Fear the Walking dead will continue as will the recently started “world beyond”. I’ve not watched either of these but I also remember hearing of at least 1 more spin off plus the Rick films.

Daryl has his own feature planned as well I think, and maybe Michonne - i think there were 3 mentioned

Watched episode 18 last night. Bernie, if you were underwhelmed by last week, don't get your hopes up for this one. It was good in the sense that it filled us in on Daryl's story over that large gap of how every may years it was but very little action.

 :zzz:

Well not really a full review of both episodes but more of an explanation of how these bonus episodes might pan out and fit in to the "gap" of S10 & S11. Here's my take below, if anyone can stomach it :)

S10C: E17(Bonus E1): Home Sweet Home & E18(Bonus E2): Find Me

I think we have to remember that these episodes are in an anthology style so are not necessarily to flow fully with the storyline. They are purely bonus episodes, much like we might get in a limited edition DVD/download. In essence they are going to be very individualistic character development style and mostly fill us in on the voids of or catch a character up with current events.

I made the mistake above when watching the Maggie one because I rewatched the S10 Finale first and it then kind of felt like there was (somewhat ironically) an episode skipped/missing.

How it appeared to me that Maggie was there and suddenly Judith who never met her properly before or had any significant relationship with her, then had this instantaneous bond with her! Remember Maggie lived at Hilltop not Alexandria so never really spent time with Judith as she grew up. She then left anyway before the timehop. I was feeling critical too that Maggie almost comes back and is barking orders to a few people she has no real idea about and who they might be. It seemed a slight social faux pas. If I had been Kelly I'd have lamped her or at least been like "who the fuck she think she is".

I did enjoy the dynamic between Kelly and Elijah (mask fella) and that could develop well in S11. The other fella feels a bit "Boromir-lite". In so much that like in LOTR when Boromir dies, whilst we somewhat care and he has been "protector", we know the story is going to move on quickly. I have no idea but I won't be shocked if he gets killed off very soon into S11 proper. I can't even think of his name?! Coe? Coel? Anyway, can't see him being of a huge need to the show. The only thing that could save him is that this "right hand man" could play the arc of Dante (remember him, the snitch for the Whisperers who was a medic, it was a really good reveal when the penny dropped for Siddiq and the viewers). I think, will have to check but Dante was meant to be involved with Maggie. Since he's gone, it's possible Cole (I just checked, it's Cole) could merge into that arc. Don't ask why though and I still think he'll be bumped off pretty early. We don't really want the cast to expand too much going into a final season. We need fully fleshed out character that we know to then drive through an extra long season.

I know it was designed to lay the plot between Maggie & Negan but I was more interested in the "Reaper" that said 'Pope marked you' before subsequently enacting a suicide bombing; it reminded me a little of Merle Dixon in the craziness of the character. Interesting to see how "Pope" develops and if anything links S10 and S11, it will be the initially story around the "Reapers" but we have the "Stormtroopers to negotiate too ;)

On to "Find Me" which airs in the UK tonight shortly, I am a fan of Norman Reedus as Daryl when he gets chance to have some extended air time. I liked him in "The Cell" (S7E3) and "The Obliged" (S9:E4) previously, he becomes a much more fleshed out character and not this mumbling/grunting biker (which he is endeared to that too), which is what the show needs. Really though we only see the dynamic between Daryl & Carol and how he came to get "Dog" via "Leah".

It also confirmed that Daryl is not asexual as we see him finally get his dick wet or at least it infers he did. It never really mattered to myself but there are quite a few who have wanted to find this out (not likely from members of the TEF). Other than that it didn't tell alot in terms of knitting in with the show directly. It was purely what Daryl did whilst away, which is good but I just wanted a closer knit but then I'm forgetting my own advice in keeping these separate. What does bodes well is that (I know they are doing a Daryl & Carol spin-off series) if they shoot a Daryl-centric movie, Reedus is more than capable of carrying Daryl as a lead/standalone character. Which is apt considering Daryl indeed enjoys being mostly alone.

I did like how they framed the story with Daryl and Carol finding the shack that Daryl had spent time at (a bit of a secret kept from the fans as we all thought he was in his tarped lean to the whole time with "Dog") with Leah that then envelopes it and ends back on Daryl and Carol in the present. The framed story also mirrors somewhat issues and difficulties with trust, friendships and relationships in this present day post-apocalyptic world. It's definitely one you'll enjoy if you prefer more about character development than just the action elements.

I have a feeling we'll see Leah again (maybe in the spin-off) but what does this also mean for Connie? Does this mean we now see Daryl as a slightly different character to before? Maybe he is not such the quiet man than we thought. Again, that kind of arc doesn't interest me so much in terms of who he is getting into bed with but it will of course for some fans of the show. Anyway, the spin-off for them is not meant to be until about 2023 and we have a whole bumper of a S11 to negotiate, as well as these four other S10 bonus episodes. We can't speculate on the direction of Daryl (and Carol, Connie, Leah) at a later date.

As I stated at the beginning try to view them separately and don't make the mistake I did with the initial episode of trying to knit it too firmly to the S10 Finale. Yep, Lydia I think narrated the opening scene, with a kind of S10 Finale reminder and catch up as if she were relaying them to Maggie somewhat. That was the only main linkage the the S10 Finale. I would say it's more about gearing us up for S11 and any subsequent spin-offs, as well as the standalone movies too. Now would be a good time, for an actor on TWD to put in some decent individual performances as I'm sure they'd get a better/renewed/extended contract.

So verdict on the first two? If I put my pure TWD head on and try to join the episodes up then I would say S17 (Bonus E1) is quite underwhelming  but if I treat it as mostly individual then it lays good groundwork for the future S11 as well as leaving us with a good teaser to a new and yet seemingly strange/more sophisticated threat? Are these "Reapers" a precursor to the CRM or Commonwealth? I don't know but it was those parts that got me thinking, as well as the obvious Negan/Maggie arc.

S18 (Bonus E2), I enjoyed more but possibly because I treated it more in an individual sense. We figured out more about Daryl and his friendship with Carol. But there were no real reveals, perhaps there wasn't meant to be and the episode was really nicely shot. We also have to remember that these have been filmed under covid restrictions and smaller cast and crew than normal. It's great that we have this additional content at all but I'm glad they are bridging the gap and providing it to some of us more loyal lot.

All in all, I'd say S17 was an average TWD episode with a few minor irritations. I think I'll have to rewatch it and treat it differently. S18 was good but I think you could have watched that having never really watched TWD. It was very much standalone and thinking about it, this was probably a way of getting some new people interested. Other than it being a piece of Daryl's timeline, I think potentially we have to treat it a little how Logan is to Wolverine. You can watch Logan having never watched/read anything about Wolverine, I would be more than happy if TWD followed this with certain key TWD characters :)

Right, that's me done. Hope those that haven't enjoy elements of the episode in about an hour.

Cheers,
Bamboo
:)

I'll do a review/overview of Bonus E3&4 (or S10:E19&E20) later today as I watched the latest on Thursday just gone. For some reason, I'm now able to watch four days before the UK air date on Mondays! All good for me!

Anyway, I'm just wondering since I'm on a roll, I'm thinking of actually doing video reviews and reactions (don't worry, not overly hammy ones where they run behind the sofa) for the whole back catalogue of TWD. That's right, all the way back to 2011 when Rick Grimes said "little girl, little girl...".

It's true form for me, that after ten seasons of watching, I finally decide to do what I've sat and watched pretty much several TWD fans do, and subsequently have some semi-decent traction out of it! For me personally, it's more of a cathartic thing also likely linked to me not wanting to let go of TWD Series, as it comes to an end.

So yeah, where was I?! Wondering...oh yeah, that's it...so I'm wondering if any of you filthy animals would be interested in listening/watching my reviews and reacts over on YouTube (or similar), instead of having to read my long ass pieces on here? That way, we can relive all the seasons and episodes (there's quite a few). I'm thinking of putting these out once per week and also doing a giveaway because shock-horror, I have quite a lot of TWD merch; from tees to Funko Pops and comics to collectables. I'd rather they go to people who might appreciate them and I have duplicates so better sharing the TWD love than not!

But this obviously will take up a chunk of my time so I may set up a Patreon or something and basically if you subscribe to it, you'll get tiered benefits. But I'll likely just put the giveaway level at $1/£1 as I'm not looking to break anyone's bank. The first giveaway will probably be done for free to all who commented/liked/thumbs up and shared it and then be just the $1 sub after that.

Let me know what you think. I'm fielding this out across a few other places too as there's not a raging TWD fan base on the TEF but I think it'll be something worth viewing between now and the start of the TWD movies. With around 140 episodes, there's a good 3yrs worth of continuous content to go through - I might be all caught up by around the time the first movie has premiered.

I forgot for a moment that i'd watched Ep19, but that was the Gabriel and Aaron one, wasn't it?

Just watched Ep20, it was interesting, different but enjoyable. Doesn't really answer many questions, apart from does it mean Zeke is dead. (it says spoilers on the title so tough shit if someone reads this) I may be wrong but that's how I understood it.

Princess is a wild one, eh?

These recent episodes has been a bit Meh to be honest, i get its all story telling but its just opens more questions when so many are already left unanswered.

Zeke is not dead, he was stood at the end with a hood on his bonce.  Apart from the start where they got into the scrap and the end where she handed over all of the info and saw them in the hoods, everything else in between was what was going on in her head (apart from the interrogation).  The idea being that the all of the time she was in confinement she disappears into her own world.

Just another fill in episode to give you more back story on Princess - that is what it seems all of these bonus episodes are, which is fair enough i suppose - better than nothing i guess.

The first episode ever where nobody dies, and the only walker you saw were not realy walkers in their typical sense.