The Walking Dead: Discussion Thread

[JaneAusten]

Can I say Andrea I love reading your posts particularly when you shade Maggie because I can't stand her either. I have no love for Beth but Maggie is so grating. Ugh.

[ChitHappens]

[DRW50]

Talking Dead is lucky to get the ratings they have with some of the guests they choose. Between the Sarah Palin comments and the claim that the lady cop was jealous of Beth because she was hot or all the men wanted her, John Barrowman reminded me again of why I try to avoid seeing him on things as much as possible.

[gtru1981]

I thought it was boring but it needed to be explained. I did read some spoilers for the mid season finale and I can see why it was made. Not going to say anything.

[Vee]

That was, I thought, an incredibly strong episode. Very, very well done and they've managed to do what I once thought impossible: Build Emily Kinney and Beth up as a strong new young female lead.

I also loved, loved, loved her with Tyler James Williams (Noah), who was the title character on Everybody Hates Chris as a kid and now is in theaters in the big new indie Dear White People playing a black gay college student. Noah and Beth had real chemistry, it must be said. I doubt we have seen the last of him.

Very, very good stuff. The further they go from the comics, the better they get. I just hope that [!@#$%^&*] rape camp doesn't kill Carol.

Joan was played by Keisha Castle-Hughes, the young New Zealand star of Whale Rider all grown up. She is featured on GOT next year as one of the daughters of Oberyn Martell in what I think is planned to be a substantial role.

Edited November 9, 2014 by Vee

[YRBB]

It took me a while to catch up because I heard it was a Beth-centric episode and I couldn't have that. It turned out to be better than I thought and the work done on Beth was great (although the actress remains pretty much the same). The episode got Noah/Beth right, the casting was excellent, there were indeed some very exciting moments but also it was sorta boring and I ended up spending the whole time wondering what the point was. Great little twist at the end, though.

[DRW50]

I feel like this episode will probably get bashed enough to where I'll end up defending it even though I wasn't totally enthused.

What did I like:

- While this is not a group I would have spent an episode on, I'm glad the show had the guts to do so. The reveal would not have worked if there had been 2 or 3 different strands in this episode.

- The group dynamics. They worked better than I thought they would.

- Tara. I'm a big Tara fan, and this episode just confirmed it. I loved that she was trying to give Eugene a chance the way she was given a chance. I loved the way she kept throwing herself toward Abraham to try to protect Glenn.

- While I have no interest in seeing yet another dead lady for manpain (and yet another dead little girl to boot...), they managed to make Abraham's backstory short yet gutwrenching. Michael Cudlitz did a good job of showing how much of an animal Abraham had become.

- Rosita being smart and having a voice of her own.

- Eugene getting the [!@#$%^&*] beat out of him. I already have a hard time believing they wouldn't just stab him in the head and walk away, but at least he got some comeuppance.

- Maggie getting a little more airtime and having Actual Conversations with people.

- the library setting, the firehose kills, etc. Nice to see things switched up.

What did I not like?

- the lighting was, yet again this season, so dark I literally was staring at a black screen for huge portions of the episode.

- I don't mind seeing sex on TWD, I truly don't, and if they get puritan backlash over this I will defend them, but the whole bit with Eugene perving on Abraham and Rosita wasn't needed and made the character seem like a total creeper.

- I don't think they entirely got across the horrors of Abraham's backstory.

- I give Maggie a pass because so many other fans bash her 24/7, but the Beth stuff still needs to be addressed.

- I'm still not sure Abraham has any place on the show.

Edited November 10, 2014 by DRW50

[Vee]

I'm sorry, but I thought Tara was dumber than hell not to mention that [!@#$%^&*] to the others. The minute he said he sabotaged the bus I would've known he was lying. At the very least, you tell someone.

Good episode - not as good as last week, but very solid. TWD has, over the years, picked up a lot of personnel from The Wire both in front of and behind the camera. Tonight's episode was very well-directed by the legendary Ernest Dickerson, longtime cinematographer to Spike Lee who has directed a number of TWD episodes (including Too Far Gone, Seed and Welcome to the Tombs, among others) over the last few years, as well as a lot of The Wire. Next week, another Wire vet, Seith Mann, will apparently be directing again - he's also done a few. These guys are the best around and elevate this show. TPTB bring on such great crew for the writing and directing that , along with the actors, lift up what could be some very rote stories. (Also, I figure if we keep bringing up The Wire and they keep hiring all the same people eventually Carl will have to watch it, after finishing the PP soaps.)

I am glad Abraham beat the hell of that idiot. Maybe now they'll both shut up. I am tired of Abraham, Rosita and Mulletor.

[slick jones]

I don't get why they[Glen and Maggie] chose to follow this jerk Abraham on his quest and /i don't see why we really need the character. They should find a way back to the group of characters we actually like.

Awesome seeing this guy get the crap beaten out of him! Hit him Again! Rosita can take a flyin leap, too.

Time to get back to the Beth/ Owen story. Does anyone really give a crap about Abraham's past? Cuz I don't. I think it's a shame because I've enjoyed Cudlitz in many of his past roles...going back to 90210.

Can't wait for Carol n Darryl next week!

[quartermainefan]

Dull episode. I FFed huge chunks, the Abraham flashbacks and the dark scenes. I just don't care about Abraham and wasn't the slightest bit curious about him or his past. Eugene? Eh, his reveal didn't throw me much because I don't feel Abraham's pain no matter what it is. I felt sorry for Maggie and Glenn, who now have to walk 15 freaking miles back home.

[marceline]

Was this whole Eugene thing supposed to be a story where the audience figured it out before the characters? Because I haven't seen anybody who believe that Eugene was remotely capable of anything and frankly, the fact that he sabotaged the bus should earn him a bullet to the head or at the very least he should be banished from the group.

So we're back to the format where every useless character get his/her own episode? Ugh.

[ChitHappens]

Didn't hate the eppy, but I still don't care about Abe. Eugene? I usually tuned him out, so the big secret was no big deal to me. Everyone of these newbies does not need a damn back story!

At least we get the 2 bad asses next week! That ought to be good!

[DRW50]

I saw people who were surprised. I don't think it was that big of a surprise, as he was always so clumsy and stupid, but then, that's a TV trope for Supersecret Genius, so some may have bought it.

I kind of like the new episode format, and getting to see people fleshed out instead of standing around. It just bugs me that we're getting so little of characters like Michonne.

[DRW50]

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Walking-Dead-Michael-Cudlitz-Josh-McDermitt-1088981.aspx

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/walking-deads-michael-cudlitz-abraham-747361?utm_source=twitter

http://www.eonline.com/news/596198/the-walking-dead-s-can-of-whoop-ass-michael-cudlitz-reveals-what-s-next-and-the-truth-about-his-casting

http://www.thewalkingdead.com/episode-505-panel-to-screen-comparison/

[Juliajms]

Another episode where the screen is basically black. So annoying.