There are many brilliant 'The Walking Dead' episodes. There is a sizeable handful of episodes that are between decent and very good. There were disappointments back when the show was great admittedly, but they were still watchable. Post-Season 6, which was still worth the look if less consistent than the previous five seasons, there have been a fair share of lacklustre or less episodes that didn't do the show justice in any way.
Not many episodes made me feel very torn on what my thoughts were and what rating to give it. "Swear" is one of them. It is one of the lowest rated 'The Walking Dead' episodes, the lowest rated at this stage of the show, and while to me it is understandable as to why it didn't connect with people (to put it lightly) in my view the show has been a lot worse than this. Found "Swear" to be very flawed but nowhere near as bad as led to believe and not deserving of such vitriolic criticism (people even resorted to body shaming which is very shallow and has no place in a review).
Did appreciate "Swear" somewhat for being a change of pace. Most of the previous Season 7 episodes took the uncompromisingly brutal approach, whereas this is of a lighter and calmer (at times quirkier) sort and can see why people thought it refreshing. There were moments that were quietly amusing and others that were charming. There was tension at times, Tara learning of the deaths was a very poignant moment, there was a nice twist and the walkers are quite cool and creepy. The visuals are suitably slick generally.
Although there were reservations over how a not particularly major character, around for quite a few years but never properly in the spotlight, would fare as a lead, it was surprising that this aspect came off better than expected. Tara may not be the most compelling 'The Walking Dead' character, but it was really nice to see her have more to do after so long and with a presence that indicates that she was deserving of having an episode centred around her. Alanna Masterson's performance was appealing.
Was not totally enamoured by everybody else though, nobody's awful but nobody else really stands out. Heath's presence is quite bland and underwritten. While liking and appreciating Tara's development, the rest of the characters were of the functional but not much else kind. The dialogue is still a bit rambling, other episodes have done that worse though, and also awkward, even the intentional awkwardness felt like it was taken too far.
Felt that the story had its moments, but it didn't properly grab me. The pace is on the meandering side, with parts not really going anywhere, and other than the Oceanside introduction and Tara's character development there is not an awful lot of progression so if anybody considers the episode filler and questioning how it fits in with the rest of the show they can't really be blamed. It also felt quite contrived, with moments of over-conveniences happening out of the blue, things not always making sense and character behaviour that frustrates rather than rivets.
In conclusion, not that bad but left me torn. 5/10
Not many episodes made me feel very torn on what my thoughts were and what rating to give it. "Swear" is one of them. It is one of the lowest rated 'The Walking Dead' episodes, the lowest rated at this stage of the show, and while to me it is understandable as to why it didn't connect with people (to put it lightly) in my view the show has been a lot worse than this. Found "Swear" to be very flawed but nowhere near as bad as led to believe and not deserving of such vitriolic criticism (people even resorted to body shaming which is very shallow and has no place in a review).
Did appreciate "Swear" somewhat for being a change of pace. Most of the previous Season 7 episodes took the uncompromisingly brutal approach, whereas this is of a lighter and calmer (at times quirkier) sort and can see why people thought it refreshing. There were moments that were quietly amusing and others that were charming. There was tension at times, Tara learning of the deaths was a very poignant moment, there was a nice twist and the walkers are quite cool and creepy. The visuals are suitably slick generally.
Although there were reservations over how a not particularly major character, around for quite a few years but never properly in the spotlight, would fare as a lead, it was surprising that this aspect came off better than expected. Tara may not be the most compelling 'The Walking Dead' character, but it was really nice to see her have more to do after so long and with a presence that indicates that she was deserving of having an episode centred around her. Alanna Masterson's performance was appealing.
Was not totally enamoured by everybody else though, nobody's awful but nobody else really stands out. Heath's presence is quite bland and underwritten. While liking and appreciating Tara's development, the rest of the characters were of the functional but not much else kind. The dialogue is still a bit rambling, other episodes have done that worse though, and also awkward, even the intentional awkwardness felt like it was taken too far.
Felt that the story had its moments, but it didn't properly grab me. The pace is on the meandering side, with parts not really going anywhere, and other than the Oceanside introduction and Tara's character development there is not an awful lot of progression so if anybody considers the episode filler and questioning how it fits in with the rest of the show they can't really be blamed. It also felt quite contrived, with moments of over-conveniences happening out of the blue, things not always making sense and character behaviour that frustrates rather than rivets.
In conclusion, not that bad but left me torn. 5/10