You know, I don’t really know how I feel about The Walking Dead at the moment. I go back and forth between feeling like it’s the greatest show ever and feeling more like Shane and Andrea do. I just kind of want to…well, leave.
I think the show might have shot itself in the foot recently. It’s apparent in the new episode, and in all the episodes previously this season, that the show is focusing more on stories about the human characters and trying to separate itself from being just a zombie monster show. (Which I never really thought it was anyway.) Every episode still has zombies in it, yes, but most of the outcry I hear from fans is: “More zombies! Where are the zombies? Who cares about these people?!”
But as I’ve said before, any good film or show about zombies, in my opinion, is only good because of the people who are left behind and the story they tell. The characters drive the story; otherwise, there’d just be a bunch of smelly, moany, mindless weirdos walking around. I may as well grab my sketchbook and go back to art school.
It seems this might be an increasingly unpopular opinion, though. One I am questioning myself. After the last episode, “Chupacabra,” ended, I thought we would get some action now that someone knows about the zombies in the barn. In this episode, “Secrets,” we learn that nothing much happened between Glen and Maggie since the revelation. She just swore him to secrecy. Much like Lori swore him to secrecy about her new pregnant condition. Having to harbor all of these secrets is driving him nuts.
The whole episode leans toward secrets everyone has, some being revealed and some being buried even deeper. Dale confronts Shane about what he has done with Lori, and the night that Otis never came back. Dale also confronts Herschel about what is in the barn. But more importantly, tensions rise between Lori and Rick. After a heated discussion regarding whether or not Carl should participate in a gun training lesson, Lori asks Rick why nobody else knows that Herschel wants the group to move on as soon as they can. She wonders how he could keep such a big secret from her and the group.
Lori is one to talk. Yes, I realize that she is worried about leaving cause she doesn’t want to give birth in, like the woods or a ditch, as she says, but still, she’s keeping a slightly bigger secret than Rick is. Just slightly. So I think she is a bit of a hypocrite. I should have known the tables would turn, though. Lori sends Glen back into town to get something. What it is, we don’t know, and Maggie, angered that Glen has let slip what (or who) is in the barn, goes with him. They have a conversation that mirrors an earlier one between Hershcel and Rick that shows us how differently they see the situation and the “walkers.” Rick sees them as monsters. Things to be feared and killed. Herschel says he sees them as his family. And they are sick. And you help people who are sick.
Glen gets a chance to show just how strong he can be, and it’s a fun scene. Maggie’s feelings for him, as well as her reactions towards another character, are revealing and unexpected. Everything is linked. Because of Maggie’s reactions and what she and Glen brought back for Lori, there is a big revelation that ends the episode. It’s something we’ve known about since the first episode, and now it’s been brought out in the open.
So, I guess I am staying put for now. I just recommend that the show runners have our group find Sophia, so we can all move on to new stories. And if they know what’s good for them, they’ll add in a ton of zombies, so they can gain fans who just want to see what they think they are tuning in for.
For more Walking Dead coverage on FBOTU, click here.
Terry Blas is the creator of the web comic Briar Hollow and cohost of The Gnerd podcast.
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You know, I don’t really know how I feel about The Walking Dead at the moment. I go back and forth between feeling like it’s the greatest show ever and feeling more like Shane and Andrea do. I just kind of want to…well, leave.
I think the show might have shot itself in the foot recently. It’s apparent in the new episode, and in all the episodes previously this season, that the show is focusing more on stories about the human characters and trying to separate itself from being just a zombie monster show. (Which I never really thought it was anyway.) Every episode still has zombies in it, yes, but most of the outcry I hear from fans is: “More zombies! Where are the zombies? Who cares about these people?!”
But as I’ve said before, any good film or show about zombies, in my opinion, is only good because of the people who are left behind and the story they tell. The characters drive the story; otherwise, there’d just be a bunch of smelly, moany, mindless weirdos walking around. I may as well grab my sketchbook and go back to art school.
It seems this might be an increasingly unpopular opinion, though. One I am questioning myself. After the last episode, “Chupacabra,” ended, I thought we would get some action now that someone knows about the zombies in the barn. In this episode, “Secrets,” we learn that nothing much happened between Glen and Maggie since the revelation. She just swore him to secrecy. Much like Lori swore him to secrecy about her new pregnant condition. Having to harbor all of these secrets is driving him nuts.
The whole episode leans toward secrets everyone has, some being revealed and some being buried even deeper. Dale confronts Shane about what he has done with Lori, and the night that Otis never came back. Dale also confronts Herschel about what is in the barn. But more importantly, tensions rise between Lori and Rick. After a heated discussion regarding whether or not Carl should participate in a gun training lesson, Lori asks Rick why nobody else knows that Herschel wants the group to move on as soon as they can. She wonders how he could keep such a big secret from her and the group.
Lori is one to talk. Yes, I realize that she is worried about leaving cause she doesn’t want to give birth in, like the woods or a ditch, as she says, but still, she’s keeping a slightly bigger secret than Rick is. Just slightly. So I think she is a bit of a hypocrite. I should have known the tables would turn, though. Lori sends Glen back into town to get something. What it is, we don’t know, and Maggie, angered that Glen has let slip what (or who) is in the barn, goes with him. They have a conversation that mirrors an earlier one between Hershcel and Rick that shows us how differently they see the situation and the “walkers.” Rick sees them as monsters. Things to be feared and killed. Herschel says he sees them as his family. And they are sick. And you help people who are sick.
Glen gets a chance to show just how strong he can be, and it’s a fun scene. Maggie’s feelings for him, as well as her reactions towards another character, are revealing and unexpected. Everything is linked. Because of Maggie’s reactions and what she and Glen brought back for Lori, there is a big revelation that ends the episode. It’s something we’ve known about since the first episode, and now it’s been brought out in the open.
So, I guess I am staying put for now. I just recommend that the show runners have our group find Sophia, so we can all move on to new stories. And if they know what’s good for them, they’ll add in a ton of zombies, so they can gain fans who just want to see what they think they are tuning in for.
For more Walking Dead coverage on FBOTU, click here.
Terry Blas is the creator of the web comic Briar Hollow and cohost of The Gnerd podcast.
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