10.05: The Walking Dead - What It Always Is

[ctg]

Supplies go missing from Hilltop; Negan is idolized by an Alexandrian; Ezekiel holds a secret.

 

[ctg]

I do get why a deft person would go hunting into the woods alone. It just doesn't make sense even if Kelly is a teenager. Her older sister Connie took forever to afraid that she's nowhere to be find. It's like nobody really cared, or they were too busy to deal with the fallout of their walls going down, mysteriously.

How do you topple living trees so effectively without using any tools?

The only man in the Hilltop that thinks about why is the blacksmith. Which reminds me that he has come a long way from the point they were going to string him up from his neck. And to be honest, without his input they wouldn't have many of their tools and fancy weapons. Or then everything would be super fancy, because they would rely on the Dr Evil.

But back to Kelly, and the reason why he went to woods. I get why he did steal, because that is what the people in desperate situations do. They steal and wangle anything in order to survive. And they don't care, if you are close, because they only think that tomorrow the sky is going to fall on their neck and then it's the end.

It might be a subtle fear, but it is a real one. And it is a curious one.

"I heard you made him to cut his own kid arm off," the starry-eyed youth claimed. "And then you shot him..."

"I never did that," Negan replied. "I would never kill a kid." Well, the redeemed Negan seems to reveal his secrets, but it's not like we know for sure if he has ever killed young people. What surprised me is that Negan didn't wanted to put back his image by accepting his black leather jacket. It's like he really wanted to put that past behind his back.

Especially when he heard the woman screaming in the bus at the Sanctuary. He did do his up most to get in there and save the family. And when they youth whooped, "Classic Negan," I was sure there was going to be a head-busting session in the cards.

It surprised me even more that he didn't show the violent side, when the youth suggested about killing the couple. Only when Brandon said: "I don't know how to lie," did the classic Negan surface. It's like he has never left the building. He was just always lurking at the background, ready to sprung up when ever the darkside was needed.

To be frank, I was surprised by the youth killing the couple, only so that he could say: "I am Negan." What a sad story. Honestly, all the goodwill he had been doing over the years went out in the window, when he picked up that stone and used to end the bad kid.

So, is there a hope for the redemption?

As a side-node, I kind of loved that Negan went to Whisperer camp and started mashing heads. But the question is why? If he wants to skip the camp, killing isn't a way to make anyone happy.

So the King is dying. First he lost his Kingdom, then his Queen, and finally he's losing his health, and for that Michonne stopped him from using the last will. There is nothign left in the Kirkman's world that can save his life. I'm not even sure that the helicopter people could treat it. In fact, I'm pretty certain that nobody in the world has an active chemo or a cancer treating regime and for Sadiq being the only "doctor" ... things aren't looking so prosperous.

You could always try to cut it out, but they don't even have a clean room to act as a surgical theathre, or a skilled people to put Ezekiel to sleep, while someone performs the operation. If the imaginary doctor wouldn't be in his mind, there could be a chance for the King to survive.

 

[tegeus-Cromis]

Wait -- is this spoilers for the episode that hasn't aired in the US yet??

 

[ctg]

Wait -- is this spoilers for the episode that hasn't aired in the US yet??

The episode aired on Friday. It is available in the AMZ Prime. They started doing the Friday release at this years summer and it has been used in other series as well, like for example in the Preacher. UK and rest of the world haven't caught up with the policy change.

 

[tegeus-Cromis]

But... That shouldn't count. Most people, even in the US, don't have AMC Prime and are still watching it when it first airs on AMC on Sunday. Can we please avoid spoilers until then?

 

[tegeus-Cromis]

If you want guidelines, look at when all the news and entertainment sites post their recaps, which is after the show airs on Sunday nights.

 

[ctg]

If you want guidelines, look at when all the news and entertainment sites post their recaps, which is after the show airs on Sunday nights.

What do you mean? In the Preacher and for the Fear and TWD there has been posts about the episodes all over the weekend timeslot ever since they made the policy change. I get that it annoys people, because they are in a different state than some other people. But to be honest, I have a new job and the only time I might be able to post a review on TWD is Sunday evening.

In general if you see me posting in these threads after the first initial post, it is going to be spoiling. In the individual threads, where posts go one after another, I do spoilers under the banner. So, I guess, this needs a moderator input to be absolutely clear.

 

[ctg]

Where can I watch?

- On AMC.com
- With the AMC app on your phone or tablet (iPhone, iPad, Android devices)
- With the AMC app on your TV streaming device (Roku, Apple TV, FireTV, Xbox One, Android TV, Chromecast)

Where to Watch - AMC Premiere - AMC Premiere

 

[tegeus-Cromis]

Listen. The situation is simple. No spoilers is one of the most basic rules of internet etiquette. TWD is an AMC show. The official airdate of TWD is Sundays at 9pm Eastern. Posting anything before that is definitely not cool. Is your convenience so important to you that you feel the need to spoil others' viewing experience? Feel free to write it ahead of time and post it Sunday after the show airs.

 

[tegeus-Cromis]

@Brian G Turner , I think we need some moderation here.

 

[Brian G Turner]

To be fair, this is a discussion of a specific episode, and in that instance posters need to expect spoilers up to and including that episode.

The general rule is - to avoid spoilers about a specific episode, avoid reading a discussion thread about that episode.

We tend to do things differently with films/movies - an initial thread discussing expectations before that film is released, then another thread filled with spoilers for those who have watched it.

For speculation about an up and coming episode, post that in any preceding one as appropriate.

Hope that helps.

 

[REBerg]

It looked like the murder of the mother and son flipped Negan's good/evil switch back to evil, which was a shame because he had tried so hard to conquer his dark side.
Even the brainless adulation of his groupie, along with presenting the trademark leather jacket and Lucille II, had failed to pull Negan off his path of redemption. Pulping his follower's head with a rock was a little over the top, but the creep had it coming.
Negan obviously has a soft spot for kids. That makes me think he was a father, maybe even a decent human being, before the zombie apocalypse came along.
So, what is Negan's plan in seeking out the Whisperers? Was he on a suicide mission, or does he want to dispatch Alpha and become the new Whisperer King?

 

[ctg]

Negan obviously has a soft spot for kids. That makes me think he was a father, maybe even a decent human being, before the zombie apocalypse came along.

I think it was mentioned somewhere that Negan was a kindergarden teacher before the events that lead to him becoming the leader for the Saviours. I cannot confirm it, but it would explain his soft spot for the young people.

So, what is Negan's plan in seeking out the Whisperers? Was he on a suicide mission, or does he want to dispatch Alpha and become the new Whisperer King?

Yeah, that is a good question. Is he the guy we know and hate or is he the guy we want him to become?

 

[nixie]

Even in a world were all life is precious some people deserve to die.

The Alexanderian who followed Negan deserved to die. Negan's anger was understandable.

I still think Carol let Negan out, I think they've made a deal. Carol's probably darker than him.
What she done at the prison, then the little girl, the terminus, the Saviours who stole her ring and threatened Henry.

I do think he is looking for redemption, he cares for Judith and to a lesser extent Lydia.

He is looking fo away to take the whisperers down from inside
Then again I'm probably completely wrong

 

[ctg]

Carol's probably darker than him.
What she done at the prison, then the little girl, the terminus, the Saviours who stole her ring and threatened Henry.

Yeah. Very good points. We don't even know what she did at the sea or wherever she went in her voyage. She came back as changed woman instead of being the lady we all love.

He is looking fo away to take the whisperers down from inside

Would it be bad if that is the case?

 

[svalbard]

Even in a world were all life is precious some people deserve to die.

The Alexanderian who followed Negan deserved to die. Negan's anger was understandable.

I still think Carol let Negan out, I think they've made a deal. Carol's probably darker than him.
What she done at the prison, then the little girl, the terminus, the Saviours who stole her ring and threatened Henry.

I do think he is looking for redemption, he cares for Judith and to a lesser extent Lydia.

He is looking fo away to take the whisperers down from inside
Then again I'm probably completely wrong

I think that is a very plausible theory.

Another strong episode. We are getting spoiled this season.

 

[svalbard]

To be fair, this is a discussion of a specific episode, and in that instance posters need to expect spoilers up to and including that episode.

The general rule is - to avoid spoilers about a specific episode, avoid reading a discussion thread about that episode.

We tend to do things differently with films/movies - an initial thread discussing expectations before that film is released, then another thread filled with spoilers for those who have watched it.

For speculation about an up and coming episode, post that in any preceding one as appropriate.

Hope that helps.

Good points Brian. I would also like to add that ctg has being posting reviews of every episode of TWD for years. If you see that the first post in the thread is from him then you can be assured it is a detailed review and quite good ones at that too.

 

[ctg]

Is Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) back to his old ways on The Walking Dead? Episode 10x05, followed a fugitive Negan after his escape from the Alexandria jail with the help of an unidentified accomplice. Psychopathic fanboy Brandon (Blaine Kern III) caught up with Negan and hoped to restart the long defunct Saviors by acting as the devil on his shoulder, attempting to goad Negan into bringing back the bat-wielding bad guy who once imposed his rule over multiple communities before he was ousted and jailed by Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln). Brandon reunited Negan with his leather jacket and a recreation of barbwire-wrapped baseball bat Lucille, and the episode ended with Negan gleefully swinging away before running into Beta (Ryan Hurst) and the Whisperers. What does it mean that Negan has embraced his old look?

“I think we want that to be a bit up to the audience. That jacket and that bat is so strongly associated with the worst things that Negan has done,” showrunner Angela Kang told EW. “It’s so iconic to his look, and that Negan look — that was the Negan that we saw when he strolled into our world and killed two beloved characters — that impact still ripples into the current day, many years later. But we also just saw that he killed this guy because he killed two innocents, right?”

She continued, “So Negan has a lot going on. Negan’s also a guy who plays things close to the vest, and there’s all kinds of thoughts swirling through his head, and we’ll learn more about it as it goes on. Certainly, we’re seeing him embrace a certain side of himself that perhaps he was forced to leave behind, but it opens up that question of, is the old Negan completely back? Was he never really gone? And those are all things that we’ll be dealing with this season.”

The episode ended with Negan knowingly crossing into Whisperer territory, using his knockoff Lucille to brain walkers. Was Negan trying to find the enemy Whisperers?

“I think he’s out zombie bashing, but he crosses that little, weird barbed-wire border, so he knows he’s going into that territory, and he knows that, at some point, he’s going to run into these Whisperers,” Kang teased. “The intention is that he’s probably trying to get found, but having a little zombie-bashing fun along the way, and what that means, we’ll find out.”

In the comic books, Negan had his own reasons for tracking down the Whisperers. In the show, he’s even more motivated: when he escaped Alexandria, he was keeping ahead of a vote determining his fate and an angry mob out for blood after the accidental slaying of Margo (Jerri Tubbs), killed by Negan when he rescued ex-Whisperer Lydia (Cassady McClincy) from a vicious attack.

“He’s going to surprise you in ways that you’re not gonna be ready for as an audience,” Morgan said of Negan on a past episode of Talking Dead. “Whether that be good things or downright awful things, that’s the beauty of him. You don’t know what you’re gonna get. That’s why I’m still here, Season 10, as an actor, because how lucky am I?”

The Walking Dead Showrunner Reveals If Negan Is Back to Being a Bad Guy

Well, not really and Jeffrey is not revealing stuff either. He just refers to what we saw and says to wait for it.

 

[Dave]

I thought this was the best episode in months, maybe even years. There were several real stories being told, like an actual plot that wasn't just zombies attack. The people have post traumatic stress emotional difficulties, but not to the point of being unable to function, like in the previous episode. They don't have modern medicine anymore. People are making their own escape plans; well wouldn't you? Neegan's friendship with Carl is shown in a new light. Maybe Neegan wasn't born bad, but had badness thrust upon him. After what just happened he is now very angry, but the episode closed on one of the best cliffhangers....

 

[ctg]

People are making their own escape plans; well wouldn't you?

Always, but in the state of the community they are in, I would do community wide escape plans. Not individual ones.

Maybe Neegan wasn't born bad, but had badness thrust upon him.

Maybe he found lawlessness allowed him to do extraordinary things and he had no breaks, or stop buttons.