User Reviews

Ever since the third episode of season five, which, for those who don't remember, saw Rick kill what remained of Gareth and his cannibal friends-boy that was a good episode-the show has been trending downwards, both in quality, and likability. Fast forward to the season eight premiere, and the show's 100th episode, the love that I once had when "Four Walls and a Roof" premiered, is one that barely exists at this point in time. Going from a show that was built on intriguing character dynamics and more often than not, entertaining dialogue, which had us cry, think, and become attached to our beloved characters, has been bastardized by an executive team that cares more about making money, than delivering a product most would deem worth the hour from our Sunday nights. What was once a show that had me on my toes, had my heart beating, and my mind on the fritz has become mind-numbing and lacklustre at times, due to contrived plots and decisions made out of character to advance said plots. Parts of season 6 (i.e. Glenn's fake-out death, the finale cliff-hanger, the scene leading up to Denise's death, etc.) and much of season 7, exemplifies this to the bone. Above all, this revolves around the crux of the show's problems: Negan. Tonight's episode 'Mercy' showed how this cartoonish, over-the-top fiend couldn't even go one episode without saying something crude, as a means of "invoking fear" within Rick and co. I get it, his character is exactly like this in the comics, but sometimes, some things do not translate well on the big screen, and he is one of them. The sooner they kill him off, the better. Besides my disdain for Negan as a character, this episode, as a whole, was far from the much-needed adrenaline shot it so desperately needs. This episode would have been a step in the right direction, if Negan was not in it. Matter of fact, it would have been better if less bullets were needlessly wasted and if there was some actual meaningful carnage in the episode. Because of how convoluted the final 10-15 minutes were, I cannot give this episode a rating higher than a 7/10. The build-up in the first 20 or so minutes ACTUALLY progressed the plot quite nicely, despite little pay off in the episode itself. However, I remain CAUTIOUSLY optimistic that the intermingling of the three timelines will pay off by the midseason finale. One can only hope.. That being said, I am not sold on Gimple being the show's saviour, nor am I sold that Negan was worth the hype he has garnered since season 6 episode 9, and that really showed in tonight's below-average (but still decent episode) premiere.

I read numerous reviews of this episode and agree with the complaints; however, as a stand alone episode I was entertained. Some have complained that there was no explanation as to where the weapons and ammo came from: the answer is from the group on the beach. Remember in "Swear" there was a truck on a bridge that was abandoned and full of walkers; underneath the sawdust and walkers was what appeared to be thousands of rounds of ammo (that was a HINT).

The guns came from THE BEACH.

There were people who where lying about (killed) after the blast of gunfire, but none of the main protagonists were killed; Negan could have been wounded because I thought I saw him limp as he ran for cover. The reason the writers did this was to give us action and have the main characters interact, but not kill anyone they will use later.

Obviously Negan is a big part of the future. I would not be surprised if several episodes be dedicated to Negan to explain how such a moron come to lead the Saviors. Heck, they might even show him as a bully in the halls of his grade school taking money from other students smaller than him. The problem I have with Negan is how can he rule the Saviors, but be so damned stupid at the same time. Nobody has taken this puerile idiot out yet?

There was a point where Negan ran into a shelter that also had Father Gabriel. Had the padre one shot in his gun, he should have IMMEDIATELY killed Negan. He hesitated! If the writing makes any sense at all for the future, Negan should bash the father's brains in with Lucille at that point without talking. We are in a war...right? If Negan starts to talk about his penis size, or whether Gabriel should soil his pants (which he does ad nauseam), I might turn the channel.

I am currently watching The Game of Thrones and Walking Dead could follow their example as to what makes good writing: don't talk too much. When they say castrate...they mean it. Taking off a head and putting in on a pike is the norm. What is with the walking dead getting all mushy and feely about politically correct crap?

A reason for hope: as the show was bouncing around from future to present and so forth, I saw Rick walk up to an enemy man and shove his knife in him from behind and then walk off like it was nothing more than scratching his nose. OK...that is what I want to see more of! That was a GOOD point in this episode! ALSO, where is Michone is all of this? She is a warrior...use her as such! Carol and Morgan seem to be over the touchy feely BS they felt in the past and are ready for action.

Bottom line...I hope the writers consider the intelligence of the audience in the future and write accordingly. I do hear you out there that complain. However, when I first watched the show without reading comments, I gave in an 8 in my opinion, so that is where I will stand with the hope things improve.

The episode begins with several somewhat confusing time lines, showing the communities preparing for war and Rick's speech, with a fairly questionable line drop. in the episode it is shown how the horde is joined, and the previous one of the war. to be a 100 episode and sell it for that, the result is very disappointing. good points: the winks of previous seasons I liked, Rick's future seemed interesting and the end of the episode was well achieved. bad points: the direction of the episode was quite bland and poor, something I do not understand, because it is the same episode director as the premiere of the seventh season; the dialogue is quite unreal and silly; the action sequences are something that could be epic. Incoherent points: Rick in his speech said that he denied he should die, but when they arrive, Rick and 40 other people five meters away from Deny and his people, decide not to kill him, incoherence in his pure state. then Rick decides to shoot them and none is injured. And then Rick decides to shoot Negan, why don't I kill him when he had him in front?

I really enjoyed this episode. It got the season off to a strong start. The callbacks to earlier seasons were welcome, even though a lot went over my head. There was enough action to satisfy anybody. The episode had it's flaws, just like anything does. I enjoyed Rick's fake-out countdown, and I enjoyed the ending to the episode. This episode alone was better than every episode from season seven, with the exception of season seven, episode two.

After a really lackluster season 7, I went into the premiere hoping against hope that this show would capture some of it's former glory. Perhaps my hopes were too high, because nothing of great significance happened. For a show entering it's 100th episode, one would hope they'd pull out all the stops and remind people why it's one of the best shows on television. Instead, it made me feel as though this show has lost it's way. As said before, nothing significant happened.

A speech about hope from the three leaders, then they lead a herd to Negan's place. Gabriel is trapped with Negan at the Sanctuary. End of episode.

There was a genuine complaint about the lack of action last season, and this episode tries to make up for it, but in the least interesting way possible. Tons of bullets fly this episode, but hardly any find their mark. Everyone has terrible aim, and the fact that Negan isn't dead after this episode proves plot armor is strong in this show.

Numerous actions leave you questioning logic with this show, including but not limited to: shooting point blank and missing, shooting all the windows at the Sanctuary (even the one's several stories up), Gabriel's decision to help Gregory, and the fact that Negan is not dead.

As a fan of the comics, I can easily say this show is on it's way to ruining one of the best story arcs. I will continue to watch, but more and more I find myself wondering why I even bother. I want nothing more than for this show to get better. But I fear it's best days are behind it.

So this is a pretty predictable episode, nothing special (try to see through the hype, here). Kind of disappointing, honestly.

They opened the, "War Against Negan," with a series of interlocking armored vehicles. Pretty neat. Negan strolls out of his office which apparently overlooks the EZ-access-entry-for-revolutionaries. Then after some tacky, hyper-cliché dialogue and some mental projectile vomiting, Rick decides to take his shots. He misses... somehow. He has a fully-automatic rifle and misses his dozen or-so shots he takes. Surprise: Negan is faster than bullets, and shame on you for not knowing that (wink). It wasn't even the cliché, "Oh they missed!" - it was a blatant and reckless spin in the story's writing to sustain Negan and his role in this everlasting, looping story that is the bundle-o'-disappointments: The Walking Dead.

Later, the Pastor (what's his name?) is locked in a room with Negan. Scary! Here's the twist, Mr. Pastor is armed to the teeth with a fully-automatic rifle. Negan has his bat (spooky!). The tone of the scene leads one to believe Negan dominates Mr. Extremely-Armed Pastor, which is pathetic writing. The scene dims out and the episode ends with an overplayed get-you-going speech from Rick, tucked in nicely with some glittery eyes from Maggie and other followers.

Between some of those scenes, when Carol and her gang were raiding the outpost, how did they miss? A group of a dozen people with fully-automatic (that's the firearm-theme here, if you didn't catch on) rifles somehow miss a guy who slowly ducks behind a beat-up car. Watch the clip, there are literally bullets fired directly at the ground.

Get it yet? The whole episode was a fabrication, with sub-fabrications forced in here and there to sustain the rest of the season. They lead one to believe that they'll get the season going with some momentum (a foreign idea to TWD fans), only to throw in constant impossibilities to drag it all out (a familiar idea to TWD fans).

For those of you hanging on for the rest of the season, enjoy. I know reading this will be harsh for those caught up in the hype, and that it's difficult to see through the hype's fog.. I genuinely hope they restore some dignity from this one. It seems to me, though, that they're tumbling into the same loop they've been in since after the CDC episode (remember that?).

I'm willing to overlook the artsy flash forward scenes (of which there are two--future Rick and further in the future Rick)even though they don't add anything of substance to the episode, or for that matter, make much sense (here's hoping they will in the future), but what is unforgivable is the writing that gums up this episode like caulk in a sliding glass door. There's skinny Negan in all his cocky, slick haired glory, standing outside, in plain daylight, egging Rick and 50 other people on who are armed to the teeth like he has a death wish--and nobody fires a single shot at him. When Rick DOES finally take a shot (after counting backward from 10 and firing before he reaches 6) he unloads with a fully automatic rifle a full thirty whole feet from Negan and company and manages to mangle the wall of the building but no humans seem to be the worse for wear. Rick and company then manage to spend another 1000 bullets firing at the windows 30-40 feet into the air...priceless.

If this is any inkling as to the writers fatigue that has seemed to plague this series since season 7 (and I'm being generous), then we are all in for a very long--and lazily written--season that may well turn out to be the nail in the coffin for this dying series. Like the Walkers that plague our intrepid heroes, this show is decaying right before our eyes.

Terrible. Absolutely terrible.

I was hooked on Walking Dead for its first 5 seasons. It was some of the bravest drama on television. It wasn't afraid to kill off main characters when their deaths heightened the drama.

Then came seasons 6 and 7 and suddenly it morphed into The 100 With Zombies. and now on the pilot ep of S8, it's become as badly written and inconsistent as Fear The Walking Dead. That takes some doing. Self-sabotage? I'm not sure, but surely some of the cast must read these scripts and think, "WTF has happened to this show?"

For two seasons now, intelligent characters have done dumb things. Negan has been bulletproof. Rick can shoot a zombie at 100 metres, but can't shoot Negan with a machine gun at 10m.

Zombies now just walk past fallen people. The priest was never in ANY danger. In S1-5, he would have been eaten alive.

This episode has THE MOST COMPLICATED plan - of luring hundreds of zombies for miles toward the Saviors' hideout - when they could have just used guns.

Bullets are in short supply, but that doesn't stop the good guys wasting thousands of them shooting at a building.

Negan is now a bullet-proof cartoon villain who spouts poorly-written T shirt slogans to bore people off the idea of shooting him. Even the Priest, armed with a rifle, can't be bothered to aim it. Despite being brave enough to escape a zombie hoard, the priest is now frozen with fear as Negan steps out of the shadows.

Rick's dream sequence! Why are we now relying on dream sequences to instill some mystery into the drama? You could add a laugh track to that dream sequence of Rick waking up as an old man it wouldn't seem out of place on Saturday Night Live.

TERRIBLE. Another 15 episodes of this. To think what it used to be and what it has become.

I'm starting to find the physiology of the 'walkers' more believable than the behaviour of the humans. OK - like most arm-chair zombie-survivors, I'm full of ideas of what I'd do in their place, but surely with all of the paramilitary ordinance Rick's crew seems to have found, there'd be one rifle capable of hitting Negan when he is out front of his lair pontificating (if only to shut him up). Also, why does no one wear any of the abandoned body-armour and helmets that must be floating around – I know that it's post-apocalyptic chic to wear a motley collection of scavenged sports equipment or a bad-ass duster, but they are going to war after all. What really puzzles me about their end-of-days societies is that nobody rides a bicycle (it would be faster than walking, could get around any traffic pile-up, uses no fuel, and won't attract the undead). All that aside, this is an OK, if somewhat predictable, season opener, lots of action to 'set the hook' but little resolution. All of the primary characters are back in play in the main plot line, which is good. Give it an extra rating-point if you like lots of gruesome 'walker' shots.

To its credit (the one and only moment of praise I can think of) this first episode of the new season gets on with the fighting and we finally get to see the "good" guys fight back against cardboard villain Negan.

However, that is its only good point. The rest is just more of the same interminable writing that has plagued the show for the past few seasons and especially last year.

Rick and his cohorts come up with an unnecessarily convoluted plot to bring the dead to Negan's compound - literally thousands of them - and all armed to the teeth, they confront him.

And nothing of any consequence happened.

Negan is not dead. His plot armour is thicker than the main glacis of an M1 Abrams. There is even a point where Negan and his top bad dudes come out to confront the Ricksurgency, and stand in plain sight of thirty or more people armed with modern assault rifles, not fifty feet away.

No one shoots him. A single bullet would be all it would take. But no, the clever writers think what we all want to see is a pissing contest between Rick and Negan. They talk... and talk... and talk.

Finally, when Rick deigns to start shooting, he misses. So does everyone else that takes his cue to start firing. Negan and his minions scuttle inside.

Now, although I said well done for getting on with the fighting, which was something I imagined they would defer until later in the season, given how padded and slow last season was, I am not impressed. A quick glance at the write-ups for future episodes suggests Negan is going to run, and run, and run. No quick end of the worst villain in the show's history, no siree. They are going to drag it out until the end of this season, I'm sure.

It's not just the lame plot that gets to me. The character writing is abysmal, in part because the cast is now so huge as to not allow sufficient time to develop them. I've been hoping for a cull of the numbers for some time, since the size of the cast has become ridiculously unwieldy, yet it hasn't happened. Even in this episode, where a death or two wouldn't be out of the question, no one of any consequence dies. Just faceless minions and zombies.

I don't really know what more to say about this show. Once good, now a turgid melodrama with characters that are less than one-dimensional.

Someone, somewhere, will perhaps take these episodes and edit them down to the thirty minute mark, cutting out all the padding and filler and make them into something enjoyable to watch. For now, though, they are just bloated exercises in excess, written by people who have no idea how to make an enjoyable TV drama.

SUMMARY: More of the same nonsense from last season. Beyond broken at this point.

"Fear The Walking Dead" is a good show, but it's not as good as this show and I'm glad we have it back. This celebrates the series' 100th episode and I just discovered that this happens to be the longest running series on AMC. I admit that this wasn't a big landmark for the series. None of the main characters died but it was still a great episode. It's great to anticipate the arrival of Daryl of course! I remember reading that Daryl has become so popular in the show the creators of the comics said they couldn't do the character justice by introducing him into the comic.

We get a lot of great setup and just scenes of the main characters walking around. We get them fighting Negan and his men as well as the walkers. We get great visuals with the zombies just being blown apart. There are these strange scenes where we see Rick as an older man with a daughter and apparently Michonne as his wife. Are these meet to be flash forwards or is this taking place in Rick's imagination? It's a great return to the show and it doesn't try to be too elaborate and just give us what the show is great for. ****

I don't like seeing Negan so weak in an episode, but I am sure the show has something big planned for the first half of the season. There was a lot of action here and the hour flew by so I am willing to overlook a few, or all, of the logistical flaws in this one.

Rick's speeches were not as great as I think the producers thought they were, but at least they were better than Maggie's.