With only one episode left to go in season six, things are coming down to the wire: Carol is wounded and still missing; Maggie is having pregnancy-related issues; Glenn, Michonne, and Rosita have been captured; and Daryl has been shot. Evidently, this episode was filled with cliffhangers and plot-building for the season finale, which will certainly be an episode to remember.
In one of the first scenes after the opening credits, a Johnny Cash song could be heard: "It's all over, it's all over, my heart echoed it's all over...I was broken in a million little pieces..." These lyrics perfectly describe both Alexandria and our characters in this episode, and they most certainly will apply in next week's finale as well.
Juxtaposed with the music are the scenes unfolding before our eyes. We see nothing but peace and happiness amongst our survivors; they've almost forgotten it's the end of the world. Rick is actually deluded enough to think they're untouchable and impenetrable. The events which will soon take place will prove just how foolish this assumption was.
Carol is the first of our survivors broken in a million little pieces. Her hyperventilating returned, she had her rosary in one hand, and she began crying and pleaded with the Saviours to not force her to kill them - just like how she was two episodes ago when she had to kill Paula. Once again, she seemed so weak and frightened (like a nervous little bird) but, for the second time, she was able to ignore her moral compass and kill in order to survive. She had a trick up her sleeve and was able to kill almost all of them in one swift action. This demonstrates that Carol is a killer right to her core: even when her heart is telling her to stop, her mind is forcing her to act to save herself.
If I'm honest, this surprised me. In last week's episode, Carol admitted she could no longer kill for anyone, so I figured that she certainly wouldn't kill for herself if she wasn't prepared to kill for those she loves. Either that, or she was incorrect and she would be able to kill again. Plainly, the latter ended up being the case, further underlining that Carol's survival instincts supersede her own desires.
Something to bear in mind, though, is that Carol left her rosary behind. TWD writers love symbolism, thus, this could mean that Carol now truly has reached the point of no return and will no longer be able to kill. Additionally, the fact that one of the Saviours picks it up marks a change in power and foreshadows the impending doom that is Negan.
Morgan and Rick have been battling it out for the entire season. Both have been keen to preach their philosophies to the Alexandrians, and each are eager to see their own philosophy embedded in the constitution of Alexandria; however, up until now, both have been totally at odds with one another and in utter disagreement over which is more effective and better for survival. But in this episode, Rick seemed to change his mind. He chose to put his faith in Morgan and his philosophy that 'all life is precious' by returning home and allowing Morgan to go after Carol on his own. This is a big deal for Rick, as he points out: "You don't even know Carol," whereas Rick and Carol are family. I fear that this is the worst possible time for Rick to trust Morgan, though, as with Negan coming in next week's episode, we'll all soon learn that there can be no room for doubt.
What surprised me the most was that Daryl went after Dwight and not Carol. This is very telling for his character as it indicates to us that his mind isn't where it should be, and that he - like Carol - is in a million little pieces. He's letting regret get the better of him and now his feeling of regret will be even worse as his refusal to return to Alexandria has put the lives of even more of our survivors in jeopardy.
And what was with that final cliffhanger? I mean obviously he's not dead as it's too ambiguous, but he's certainly severely wounded. This marks the lowest point for Daryl in the show so far, as he was foolish in the first place to believe Morgan's philosophy and allow Dwight to get the better of him (when Daryl first met Dwight and he was robbed and left for dead by him), then in last week's episode he failed to kill Dwight (by the train tracks), and in this episode he was too stubborn to see that he wasn't thinking rationally and was putting everyone in danger. When Glenn urged him to turn around, he simply said:"I can't." Never have we known Daryl to be a slave to anything, but right now he's a slave to his regret and emotions, which has just put them all in grave danger.
Symbolically, Daryl's actions make it impossible to identify which philosophy works. He exercised Morgan's initially, but when that failed he implemented Rick's, but that failed too. As a result, now they're all screwed. This seems to suggest neither philosophy is entirely flawless, but that survival perhaps lies somewhere between Morgan and Rick's competing ideologies - or somewhere else altogether.
Finally, for anyone that watched the preview for next week's episode: holy sh*t. That's Lucille.
Be afraid; be very afraid...
In one of the first scenes after the opening credits, a Johnny Cash song could be heard: "It's all over, it's all over, my heart echoed it's all over...I was broken in a million little pieces..." These lyrics perfectly describe both Alexandria and our characters in this episode, and they most certainly will apply in next week's finale as well.
Juxtaposed with the music are the scenes unfolding before our eyes. We see nothing but peace and happiness amongst our survivors; they've almost forgotten it's the end of the world. Rick is actually deluded enough to think they're untouchable and impenetrable. The events which will soon take place will prove just how foolish this assumption was.
Carol is the first of our survivors broken in a million little pieces. Her hyperventilating returned, she had her rosary in one hand, and she began crying and pleaded with the Saviours to not force her to kill them - just like how she was two episodes ago when she had to kill Paula. Once again, she seemed so weak and frightened (like a nervous little bird) but, for the second time, she was able to ignore her moral compass and kill in order to survive. She had a trick up her sleeve and was able to kill almost all of them in one swift action. This demonstrates that Carol is a killer right to her core: even when her heart is telling her to stop, her mind is forcing her to act to save herself.
If I'm honest, this surprised me. In last week's episode, Carol admitted she could no longer kill for anyone, so I figured that she certainly wouldn't kill for herself if she wasn't prepared to kill for those she loves. Either that, or she was incorrect and she would be able to kill again. Plainly, the latter ended up being the case, further underlining that Carol's survival instincts supersede her own desires.
Something to bear in mind, though, is that Carol left her rosary behind. TWD writers love symbolism, thus, this could mean that Carol now truly has reached the point of no return and will no longer be able to kill. Additionally, the fact that one of the Saviours picks it up marks a change in power and foreshadows the impending doom that is Negan.
Morgan and Rick have been battling it out for the entire season. Both have been keen to preach their philosophies to the Alexandrians, and each are eager to see their own philosophy embedded in the constitution of Alexandria; however, up until now, both have been totally at odds with one another and in utter disagreement over which is more effective and better for survival. But in this episode, Rick seemed to change his mind. He chose to put his faith in Morgan and his philosophy that 'all life is precious' by returning home and allowing Morgan to go after Carol on his own. This is a big deal for Rick, as he points out: "You don't even know Carol," whereas Rick and Carol are family. I fear that this is the worst possible time for Rick to trust Morgan, though, as with Negan coming in next week's episode, we'll all soon learn that there can be no room for doubt.
What surprised me the most was that Daryl went after Dwight and not Carol. This is very telling for his character as it indicates to us that his mind isn't where it should be, and that he - like Carol - is in a million little pieces. He's letting regret get the better of him and now his feeling of regret will be even worse as his refusal to return to Alexandria has put the lives of even more of our survivors in jeopardy.
And what was with that final cliffhanger? I mean obviously he's not dead as it's too ambiguous, but he's certainly severely wounded. This marks the lowest point for Daryl in the show so far, as he was foolish in the first place to believe Morgan's philosophy and allow Dwight to get the better of him (when Daryl first met Dwight and he was robbed and left for dead by him), then in last week's episode he failed to kill Dwight (by the train tracks), and in this episode he was too stubborn to see that he wasn't thinking rationally and was putting everyone in danger. When Glenn urged him to turn around, he simply said:"I can't." Never have we known Daryl to be a slave to anything, but right now he's a slave to his regret and emotions, which has just put them all in grave danger.
Symbolically, Daryl's actions make it impossible to identify which philosophy works. He exercised Morgan's initially, but when that failed he implemented Rick's, but that failed too. As a result, now they're all screwed. This seems to suggest neither philosophy is entirely flawless, but that survival perhaps lies somewhere between Morgan and Rick's competing ideologies - or somewhere else altogether.
Finally, for anyone that watched the preview for next week's episode: holy sh*t. That's Lucille.
Be afraid; be very afraid...