The Little Red Umbrella: walking dead

The Walking Dead Goes Steinbeck by Alex Snider

*Spoilers* The future of humanity looks pretty grim after this week's episode. Seems it's really hard to keep kids alive during the zombie apocalypse, especially girl-children. Rough stuff. I'm still unsettled.

In a way this episode felt like a rehashing of Sophia's death in season two; an attempt by the writers to right the wrongs. The never-ending search for Sophia had diminishing returns, to the point where when she finally staggered out of that barn, the emotional wallop was more like a light slap. The group was devastated and Carol was the perfect picture of maternal grief but the audience had already been put through seven (!!) aimless, tedious episodes during which the phrase "we have to find Sophia" became the surest way to anaesthetize viewers. Did I know she was going to wind up zombie-fied? I had hoped not because I'm a big softie, but as someone who has read a lot of Flannery O'Connor, I always expect the absolute worst to happen.

That being said, I didn't expect both Lizzie and Mika to die this episode. I did read a recap before I watched though (I had heard rumblings of one of their deaths and my heart can't take brutality against children unless I've got warning) but prior to that recap, I thought we'd be with at least one of those kids for a while. Before I saw the episode I was pretty skeptical that it was the right decision so early in the murderous-Lizzie game but now I'm really glad that it was dealt with quickly. Maybe I'd grown too accustomed to TWD dragging out story-lines but I'm happy to be shaken out of that particular Stockholm Syndrome state. It did seem unlikely that a show that's already dispatched every other tween girl would take out another two, especially when they're under Carol's care. (Surely Carol had been through enough! Apparently not because what's worse than killing one daughter? Killing two surrogate daughters and having to stab one in the brain and shoot the other in the head. It's like Carol is in a darker sequel to Groundhog Day.)

My doubts were unfounded as it turns out, this episode was a beautiful tragedy wrapped in a bottle episode. There was no way to avoid Lizzie killing Mika, no way to avoid Lizzie's death – as Carol said Lizzie "can't be around other people". If this had always been a well-written show I'd think that this was an ode to Greek or Shakespearean tragedy: a fatal flaw brings down a family despite the glimmer of hope and initial happiness. I guess that makes Lizzie Antigone and Mika Polynices sort of? It's a working theory.

Of Mice and Zombies (I'm here all night, folks, tip your waitress!)

So there are things we can't change and Lizzie's sickness is one of them. I'm eternally grateful that the show didn't go the Bad Seed route and turn her into a child of the corn. She was, in the end, a little girl with problems (dead bunnies and attempted-infanticides aside). She was sweet, she was caring, she was empathetic; not evil or psychotic or a budding sociopath. Mika's strategies for helping Lizzie calm down definitely suggested that those problems had been there for a while and Lizzie insisting that the walkers spoke to her implied something more than zombie apocalypse PTSD.

But what a sad thing to watch. I started the episode not caring really about either of the girls but by the end (rather by their ends) I liked them both – especially Mika who's optimism I found infinitely more convincing than Beth's (I'm trying to like Beth, I am! Especially because my dear friend who has in my experience never been wrong about anything ever likes her. But ugh, Beth!). I loved her comment on the smoke and missing science class. Also love how she's cute as a button but has one of those older-lady faces like the "60 Year Old Girl" meme.

Liked Adventures of Tom Sawyer but prefers Reader's Digest

Other thoughts:

There was a lot of recurring imagery this episode, all calling back to the second season and the search for Sophia. Of course there's the bucolic farm, the repeated references to flowers (don't forget the significance of the Cherokee roses), the deer (last time we saw a deer was when Carl was shot). At one point, when chasing after Lizzie, Mika runs past an old barn with the doors wide open (no zombie Sophia lurching out this time). It all further cements the parallels between Sophia and the sisters and shows how much Carol has grown.

Wow, there are a lot of dead girls on TV, huh? On TWD alone there's been five, all white, all blonde: Sophia, Zombie Penny, Megan and now Lizzie and Mika. And possibly Beth. Somebody dye Judith's hair asap.

What even is my life now?

The Greek tragedy aspect is up for interpretation but the homage to Of Mice and Men is obvious. I went back and reread the end of Steinbeck's novella and sure enough it's nearly identical. You've got the stern but kind care-giver, the means-no-harm-but-harms-none-the-less sidekick and you've got the picturesque setting for a mercy killing. "Lizzie, look at the flowers" is TWD version of Lenny asking George to describe their dream again. And here I thought Shane's wardrobe choice post-murdering Otis would be the most Of Mice and Men thing on TWD.

Somewhat Raskolnikov-y <- another shoehorned literary reference. I'm a delight at parties

I am really glad that Carol confessed to Tyrese about Karen and David. That was an immensely powerful scene made all the more poignant considering the events prior. Pleased that Tyrese forgave her (even if he swore not to forget) so we can avoid more fighting on the show. It also kind of takes the wind out of the sails for the inevitable Carol-Tyrese-Rick reunion. Any chance to side-step squabbling and waffling is one the writers should take. But Carol and Tyrese! Am I the only one who's shipping those two hard now?

Melissa McBride is the damn star of this show. Portrayed by far and away the best actor on the show, Carol's arc has been my favourite of all the characters'. We got a chance this episode to really revel in how much Carol has changed, from the meek mother and abused wife, she has become one of the most capable and tough characters – willing to make the hard call but has yet to lose any compassion. If anything Carol is more compassionate now. Her difficult actions have amplified her humanity.

I tried to count how many bullets were fired and lost track at 27 during the charred-walker onslaught. YOU GUYS THERE WERE ONLY SEVEN WALKERS. Maggie, Sasha and Bob with their six bullets would be so pissed.

For all its faults, TWD is always so beautiful. The cinematography is fantastic and nearly rivals that of Breaking Bad. Every shot of the forest and farm this episode filled me with yearning to be there. The direction this week was also great. Loved loved loved the scenes through the window. First the cold open with the music, kettle and slow pan over to Lizzie playing tag with a walker. Then Tyrese watching Lizzie lose her shit at Carol for killing her playmate and again Tyrese watching as Carol shot Lizzie. And the final shot of Carol and Tyrese walking away from the farm. I already mentioned Flannery O'Connor above but this episode really nailed the Southern Gothic – the awful combination of beauty and of the grotesque with the gorgeous atmosphere laced with death.

One day I'm going to start a Tumblr consisting entirely of TV characters digging graves.

There are only two episodes left which bums me out. Nervous about losing any of the characters – at this point I like them all (except the new crews). I do stand by my assertion that Rick's gotta go, though.

Read the previous episode recap here.

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Alex Snider watches a lot of TV. Follow her on Twitter where she'll be super active for a week then be quiet for months – she's a social media cicada.

The Walking Dead Goes Stag by Alex Snider

Another pretty great episode! It certainly feels like we've turned a corner and entered an age of consistently solid Walking Dead with each episode bringing us further and further from all the earlier missteps (Lori, Woodbury, Sleepytime Farm). The decision to split up the group and spend some time fleshing out underused characters has worked out fantastically for TWD. I could watch a show about each pairing (except maybe for Glenn's new crew). I'm particularly happy with the character developing happening with Beth, Sasha and Bob – three characters we knew next to nothing about. Both Beth and Sasha have existed in their more relevant siblings' shadows but separating them from those siblings and effectively eliminating their comfort zones has done wonders for their personalities. Beth is happy-go-lucky with a soft spot for optimism, Sasha is pragmatic and below that ambivalent, apathetic shell she's sensitive and sweet. Bob hates being alone and isn't above using his raw sex appeal to try and sway the ladies into following him, pied piper like. Really though I loved the cold-open and the way that solitude reverberates through the episode. Loneliness kills the soul quicker than hoards of walkers.

I've always maintained that fog is the spookiest of spooky weather formations. Try harder mist!

It's telling that for over three seasons we've been with the same group (more or less) yet the number of meaningful relationships that have been forged is negligible. To my recollection, the only surviving pairs that have had conversations that indicate a deeper bond have been Rick and Hershel, Maggie and Glenn, Michonne and Carl, maybe Carol and Daryl. Most of the time we just watch as the group bickers and hashes out everyday survival details. Watching relationships bloom now lends both gravitas and levity to the show. Stakes are raised significantly when we see the characters develop meaningful ties to one another – now we're worried about Beth both because of Beth and because of what Beth means to Daryl – and at the same time there is a much needed joy injected into the lives of the survivors. The reunion between Bob, Sasha and Maggie was such a nice moment in the show (a show very light on nice moments) made bittersweet by the trials still ahead.

TWD or a Six Feet Under hallucination??

Other thoughts:

Beth is probably not long for the world, huh? Last week we got her using her demise as a way to flirt with Daryl, this week she told him that she wouldn't need him soon (this was moments before getting stuck in a rabbit snare) plus all the talk of good people and dignity in death. Plus she has totally manic pixie dream girl-ed Daryl (right down to the twee singing) and we all know what happens to MPDG when they've taught the uptight, cranky men in their lives how to enjoy life and companionship (they die, usually). Seems to be a fair amount of foreshadowing for poor Beth but then again this show's never dealt too heavily in foreshadowing.

"Like what you see?" (A shadow of nipple)

It does seem like that adorable scruffy dog was party to Beth's abduction. Seems like the whole funeral home was a big, elaborate set-up to... kidnap Beth...

"Girl, you got blood all over your face"

So Daryl has met up with those awful men from Rick's house and it would appear that he's joined up before they encounter Rick. Does that mean that Daryl is the guy Rick overhears getting beat up? More importantly does this mean that Daryl will be meeting back up with Michonne soon??? Michonne + Daryl 4ever.

Poncho Villa

Meeting all these very bad people almost makes me miss Shane. Or rather pine for what could have been with Shane. He would have fit in real nice with all Daryl's new crew what with all his raging and murder. He truly was ahead of his time (they were only months into the apocalypse and already he had bought half way into new guy's mantra: "why hurt yourself when you can hurt someone else"). If only the show hadn't been preoccupied with Rick's milquetoast leadership and nailing every single female stereotype with Lori (UGH AND WITH FINDING SOPHIA) then maybe Shane's descent into villainy would have been more interestingly chilling.

This dog lost an eye defending his owner against a car-jacker. Really.

Does anyone else feel like TWD apocalypse is a whole lot grimier than need be? Something like 90% of the world has been wiped out, surely that leaves a plethora of essentials like deodorant, soap, lotion, tooth paste (or at least tonnes of Clorets) not to mention all the stores filled with new clothes. There's actually no need for everyone to be wearing such grody clothes. Ok, yes, right now they're all on the run and wandering in some sort of endless forest circle but surely when things at the prison were stable they could've squeezed in a trip to Urban Outfitters on one of their jaunts for baby food. I guess I'm just curious how the priorities during the apocalypse would change. Obviously on TWD, they're not very concerned with sex and hygiene seems to have been dialed back to Neolithic standards – even my indoor cat spends 40% of his time grooming, you're telling me that humans would abandon cleanliness so easily? And that people wouldn't be screwing their brains out whenever possible? There needs to be some sort of distraction from the horrors of everyday life and what better distraction than sex? Just so long as dudes pull out, we've seen what happens when no mid-wife is available.

Bob comes one step further to crossing "threesome" off his bucket list

And how quickly would we just develop zombie coping mechanisms and then try to reestablish some sense of normalcy? Would we just lose all drive for consumerism and appearances? Money has been what's holding me down all these years so a global economic crash that renders all money meaningless sounds like my time to shine! No more basement apartments and public transit and found furniture for me, no sir, I'd be living fancy and look good doing it.

(Sasha has the right idea with that sweet studio loft space – exposed brick and lots of light! Bummer that Bob and Maggie cock-blocked her.)

BETH'S GOING TO PROM!!

What else would change? Now that we've watched four seasons of grimaces and frowns, is humour something else that will be thrown aside post-near human extinction? I feel like I'd still be cracking wise when not death-brawling zombies. Although, 98% of my jokes are based on Frankie Muniz's Twitter, Rizzoli and Isles and just repeating lines from comedies – eeeet's niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice – so who knows what my zombie apocalypse fodder would be. I wonder if my witty observations about the things pet owners say would still be relevant?

"We're looking for a keyboardist, you in?"

Your pedantic nitpicking of the week:

How is it that some survivors find shelter immediately in picturesque homes on sleepy streets but others, who have been wandering in similar directions at the same time are left wandering the woods? And how do walkers always know where doors are?

Read the previous episode recap here.

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Alex Snider watches a lot of TV. Follow her on Twitter where she'll be super active for a week then be quiet for months – she's a social media cicada.

The Walking Dead's Moonshine Brings All the Walkers to the Yard by Alex Snider

Having spent a number of summers taking golf lessons I can attest to how horrifying country clubs are and while I thought there could be nothing worse than an actual zombie apocalypse, this episode proved me wrong by presenting a future where the only available clean clothes are golf clothes. If there was one thing I hated more than actually golfing (my powder-keg combo of impatience, competitiveness and rage ruined many a game) it was that I couldn't wear normal teenager clothes but instead had to wear boxy polo shirts and baggy, to-the-knee shorts. It was a nightmare. A nightmare only out-nightmared by the time that in a lesson with the cute assistant-pro when I threw my driver twice (damn these sweaty palms!).
I will say that the patrons of TWD country club were considerably more tolerable than the ones with whom I had to deal with as a kid. Way less sneering and judging and booze-soaked! And there wasn't a single racist joke told the entire episode! Progress!

I've never never considered wearing a top-knot

Aside from the sartorial, this episode really triggered a number of fears I have, zombie apocalypse or not. We got a terrible snake moment (NB: all snake moments are terrible and no amount of Jake the Snake YouTube video submersion therapy will ever help my phobia) and being isolated with annoying drunks. God, if I had a dollar for the number of dates I've had who got real moody after a few then made me watch them pee, I wouldn't have a dollar because unlike Beth I'm into jolly drunks. I have, however, been saddled with boring drunks who's milquetoast-ness have nearly driven me to aggressively pee in the corner so I really felt for Daryl this episode.

And what, Beth is too good for Peach Schnapps? It's been good enough for thousands of teenage girls before you, Beth! You want to feel a normal annoying college girl, drink the damn Schnapps. (My first hangover was brought on by apple-flavoured Growers so I know of what I speak). I took a screen-cap of her face when she had her first sip of moonshine and, if we've ever had any doubts to Beth's credibility as an actor we now have definitive proof that she's not method. I had a single shot of home-brew nine years ago and I still hurt. No way Beth would be able to handle that ish without gagging and bargaining with the deities to never drink more. Ugh Beth.

I've never worn terrible extensions

I know that Daryl's breakdown was designed to be a stealth drone aimed right for the hearts of all the women watching with their boyfriends, a gift from the writers to all the dudes who watch with their girlfriends (girlfriends hiding their eyes from the gore or having panic attacks over snakes or who just don't stop talking) to ensure that sex would definitely be on the table that night, but it didn't do it for this lady. There is something so tiresome about stoic men being badgered into flaying themselves alive with emotions. It panders to that trope that men are bad at feelings and can only really face their feelings when prodded by women. Michonne was like Daryl, she closed herself off and stuck to monosyllabic words but then she sorted it out on her own like a boss. But then maybe I'm wrong and men actually do need women to slice through their swagger and bravado with surgical precision, revealing their vulnerabilities.


I've never wished I was in the open woods with a baby and two little kids, one of whom is prolly a psycho

Other thoughts:

The writers' attempts to delve into some of the tensions between people as the field between the haves and have-nots has been totally leveled is a little clunky. The supposed massacre at the country club that Daryl and Beth stumble upon being as much fueled by desperation to survive and relishing the opportunity to get one over the privileged elite.The class divide theme continued into Daryl and Beth's drinking game with Beth goading Daryl about his unsavory past, and Daryl using it as a teachable moment to learn Beth on the hoi polloi. I love a good take-down on the dangers of classism but Beth seemed to go further into saviour-mode and any growth she could have experienced is overshadowed by the un-charming reality of Beth: rich, sheltered, pretty white girl. It did nothing to expand Beth's character beyond her privilege.

Is there a gang of marauders roaming the woods torturing and murdering people they've deemed bad, leaving signs behind to denote the crime of the victim (I'm as anti-capitalism as the next socialist hipster but being a Rich Bitch hardly seems like an executable offense)? Or is this just how things go now? Hoping it's the former and we'll have our next Big Bad.

I do actually like that Daryl and Beth got drunk (despite the unbelievability of Beth's first drank). The seriousness and near constant brow-furrowing can get a little grim.

Torching the cabin was a nice heavy-handed metaphor but I am curious about the logic of not only destroying your only shelter forcing you to roam zombie-filled woods, guided by moonlight, but also didn't we see Glenn distract a whole bunch of walkers with fire a few episodes ago? Are walkers attracted to fire or not?

I've never used saccharine songs as a cover for personality

Do we want Daryl and Beth to get together? I want more sex on this show but I also am holding out for Daryl and Michonne (who, according to my watching-buddy, "would be a Jay Z and Beyonce power couple and rule the world"). I don't like Beth but I don't like not liking her -- I figure if I can come around on Juliette Barnes on Nashville then I can warm to Beth but only if she stops being such a fucking Scarlet -- so in anticipation of that thaw I want her to get it. Of course after her speech about Daryl missing her it seems like she might not make it out of the woods.

I'm a little disappointed by Daryl's back-story. Seemed too obvious given the information we were given at the beginning of the series.

I've never been bullied into talking about feelings

I didn't get to writing a recap for last week's episode -- partly because I had stiletto nails and it's exhausting trying to type with the pads of my fingers -- but my main points would have been:

The episode felt like it cobbled together two different kinds of zombie movies. There was the 28 Days Later-man-is-the-most-dangerous-hunter trope (one which I'm never allowed to forget as every time I try and play the fun "how would you do in the apocalypse game" my friend never fails to real talk me by reminding of the whole rape/forced-birthing thing) with Rick hiding under the bed, Gage-style, listening to a bunch of scary men talk about who gets to "have" Michonne. There were some ridiculous moments that asked the viewer to overlook logic (like Rick fighting and strangling that bigger dude without his buddies noticing any of the breaking glass and heavy-man breathing -- I can always hear my roommate putting on make-up even through two closed doors) but overall there was the perfect amount of tension driving that story.

I've never had a boring plot line

At the other end of the genre, we had a Resident Evil-like cartoon complete with booty-shawts and a what would surely be a classic Mr Bean hijink with a hapless scientist shooting out the only transportation. I half expected steam to shoot out of Handlebar Moustache's ears. Glenn seemed just as perplexed by the superhero trio and just as eager to get back to the angsty tone of the show.

The Kenny Powers-look-alike scientist doesn't smell right. Aside from the nonsensical reasoning behind not sharing "classified" government information, he's pretty eager to abandon the plan to go to Washington. Having already proven his inadequacies when it comes to aiming a gun, killing zombies and yelling for help, maybe he's just nervous the politician walkers will be more vicious and bloodthirsty than the simple rural Georgian ones. I get it, I watch Scandal and I'd actually rather deal with a flesh-noshing zombie than anyone breathing on that show.

I've never regretted saving anyone

(I don't think his mullet is a indicator that he's not a scientist. I mean, it's funny because if the last 15 years have taught me anything it's that mullets will always be a good punchline but surely a PhD in biochemistry doesn't come with nerd glasses and a bow-tie.)

I am very surprised that Glenn and company were able to drive so far away from the prison and surrounding woods where everyone else is just circling the same ground. Was almost certain that we had a Truman Show situation.

Very glad that even though Hershel is dead, his magical healing skillz have lived on, Rick is looking pretty good considering the day before his kid thought he was a walker.

I've never had to interact with anyone from a different background than me

Looking forward to everyone meeting up again! Not looking forward to the fog-scene from next week's episode. I'm already pretty spooked all the time and that looks real spooky.

Read the previous episode recap here.

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Alex Snider watches a lot of TV. Follow her on Twitter where she'll be super active for a week then be quiet for months – she's a social media cicada.

**The Boob Tube Review: The Walking Dead's Baby Hands** by Alex Snider

That was a pretty great episode, huh? The plot moved forward quickly as if pursued by walkers, we got two big reveals and were introduced to new characters who judging by their Charlie's Angels poses are gonna be big deals. We even got a couple new narrative devises! The diary one was boring (that probably has to do with it being associated with Beth) but I really liked the way the writers played with time, leaving little Easter eggs for the viewer to piece together a time-line. For once we were shown not told. Daryl and Beth were behind Tyrese and the girls but we got to figure that out based on a bunch of mashed berries, yet another walker in a plaid shirt and a log full of slaughtered bunnies. It was all very Run Lola Run. Unfortunately this lead to the disappointing realization that Daryl is terrible at tracking. He couldn't tell that there was an adult and two kids? Didn't see the tracks that lead away in the forest? Didn't see the tracks that lead away on the rails? I would think that seeing dead walkers would lend hope not despair. Yikes, Daryl. Poor Sophia never stood a chance.

First time Larry Gilliard Jr has been able to smile in a role

I know last week I said that I hoped we'd get a lot of time with each group but that opening with Daryl and Beth got me powerful tired. I've never really used the word 'drip' to describe someone both because I'm not entirely sure what it means and because it seems like an insult that Rizzo from Grease would use and, let's face it, I am no Rizzo but Beth is a such a drip. If drip means someone who's very presence is exhaustive in its boringness. I swear I take five naps every time she opens her mouth. I'm extremely grateful we didn't get even another second of her and Daryl. All in all though, it ended up being the perfect amount of time for each survivor. Although I could easily do with an entire series following Carol, Tyrese and that sweetie-pie Lizzie.

Beth making the same face that I do whenever she's around

There were two legitimately tense moments this episode: Lizzie falling into her dreamy-murder zone and almost sending Judith off into a forever nap and when Glenn went back into the prison. Glenn's scene was aided considerably by the spooky, Left 4 Dead music that I wish they'd utilize more. Nothing drives tension more than sound (or a total absence of it). Sure we can always hear the groaning onslaught of zombies (even if it's not entirely clear that the survivors can. How many times have we seen zombies sneak up on people?) and the juxtaposition of lovely forest sounds with the rasping moans of the undead is always nice but the horror genre is famous for its use of creepy instrumentals (thanks to horror music, we know when to expect a shark attack, a shower attack and an in-bred hillbilly attack) and it's time for TWD to capitalize on that. Their zombie-head-smashing-and-stabbing, flesh-being-chomped-on game is super tight but time to expand into tension-building instrumentals.

Danger zone

As ecstatic as I am to leave the prison behind, I wish that we had been given a few more glimpses into life there. Beth's diary makes it sound like a happy, friendly place but while things did seem more peaceful at the beginning of the season, the audience was never granted any scenes of happiness or relaxation. The stakes over the prison never seemed particularly high in part because life still seemed so bleak. The prison never felt like pre-bloodthirsty Woodbury. When Glenn is grabbing things for his pack, I found it striking that there were so many little details signifying a settled community and it would've been nice to see more of that earlier.

Other thoughts:

Both big reveals (Judith and Carol live!) were really well done. I actually gasped with joy when Carol turned up. She's becoming my favourite character. No guff, that one. I'm really excited to see how things play with her and Tyrese. Wouldn't it be rad if they hooked up?? Carol needs to get her dick wet for sure.

I was also really surprised to see Judith in Tyrese's arms (granted I had put some effort into convincing people that she was better off dead). My friend saw it coming and I'm pretty jealous of his prophetic powers.

Wait...

Waaaaaait...

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaait...

Oh look, it's fucking Judith

So now Judith is here forever. If they couldn't take the easy out and imply her death then we're gonna watch that baby grow up. So I'm in. I'm all in. I love that baby now and her face is real fucking cute. That moment when Lizzie was suffocating her and she reached up and touched Lizzie with that stupid chubby little baby hand I started spontaneously ovulating. There is no one I care for more on this show.

Is anyone else watching Nashville? Because
Hayden Panettierre is Judith's hand twin but her hands don't
ellicite nearly as much girly cooing from me

As I mentioned above, Beth narrating her diary didn't do it for me. Not only is it always weird to introduce a totally new plot devise four seasons in but Beth has never once mentioned a journal. And at the beginning of the season we were lead to believe that she has hardened considerably (girl didn't blink when she found out her boyfriend was killed) that hardly jives with this episode's Beth the Beacon of Hope. Ughhhhhhhhhh BETH.

Super deep metaphor, Beth

When is Daryl gonna make the move to a top knot? I love the hair-in-his-face look when the hair is clean (wanna run my hands through that) á la Riggins but Daryl faces some hygiene hurdles so clearly a bun is the way to go. A Google image search tells me that Norman Reedus has never worn his hair like that. Obviously no one has ever told him that it's been scientifically proven that there are few things sexier than the top knot/tank top combo. Disappointed.

As much as I love Maggie and Glenn together, it's nice to see them separated and interacting with other people. Looking forward to their tear-soaked reunion.

#tbt

My favourite thing about Chad L Coleman is the horrified face he makes while realizing kids have lost their blush of innocence. We saw it a thousand times on The Wire and now we get to see it again with Lizzie.

Why is it that this crew of rag-tag survivors cannot, for the life of them, remember any sort of strategy when it comes to distracting walkers? Why isn't everyone always accompanied by jaw-less, arm-less walkers? Or covered in rotting guts? Or wearing riot gear? And now we learn that fire attracts zombies? Come on.

How do we feel about Tara? I liked her before but in this episode I found her pretty grating. Especially her reaction to the new guys showing up. Why did she call them assholes? They just pulled up, girl, no need to get weirdly aggressive.

I watched this episode three times and each time I laughed my ass off at the first zombie who struggles off the bus. I expect to see that clip on that guy's Emmy reel.

Y'all wanna see a dead body?

Things are shaping up to be a matriarchy, huh? Carl is the only surviving boy child in a land of little girls.

I watched the Talking Dead this week and there was a poll asking who the audience was most happy to see alive: Carol, Glenn, Tara or Judith. YOU GUYS JUDITH WON. 46% of people were happier to see that non-character than Carol. What is this world coming to??

My queen

Read the previous episode recap here.

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Alex Snider watches a lot of TV. Follow her on Twitter where she'll be super active for a week then be quiet for months – she's a social media cicada.

**The Boob Tube Review: The Walking Dead Takes on the Bildungsroman** by Alex Snider

Well, look what's limped back, wheezing and lurching unpredictably, into my heart! After binge watching the last half-season I'm giving our old girl another shot. Why, you ask, when my disappointment and frustration has been so meticulously documented?
First of all, not only did all the PoC survive the prison, but they were all further fleshed out leading up to the mid-season finale. Sasha and Tyrese became integral to the group, holding down seats on the leadership council along with Glenn. And along with D'Angelo Barksdale they were given story-lines that added layers to the overall plot. Even Martinez saw some character development before he took a 3 iron to the head. Your death wasn't in vain, T-Dogg!

Also, all eight episodes managed to avoid engaging any of the terrible stereotypical women tropes of which the show had become so fond. None of the women characters were hysterical, scheming, naggy, irrational, slutty, moody or incapable. And not a single lady got into an easily avoidable car crash. I mean, yes, Lilly did seem to have graduated from the same parenting class as Lori (the one that is shockingly lax about watching kids closely during a zombie apocalypse) but she was never characterized as A BAD MOTHER. The guys even stopped cock-blocking them from the sacred decision-making council.

And, at long last, the prison is done, destroyed, never to be repopulated. While seasons three and four haven't been nearly as boring as season two's soporific pastoral hymn, holding the characters in one locale ends up writing them into a corner. Having the survivors separated and scattered gives new life to the show and more options to the writers. High concept shows like TWD easily grow stagnant when the scope is too narrow. Life in the prison, like life on the farm, was becoming too easy and that just doesn't make for good entertainment. On the farm, the writers pushed against the staleness by infusing lots of personal drama but for whatever reason that personal drama boiled down to petty bickering and the weekly reheated offering of the ole' Sophia question.

Without the relative safety of the prison, the show is rife with possibilities. I really enjoyed that this episode focused on Michonne, Rick and Carl, it felt like a follow-up to season three's excellent bottle episode. In that episode we were granted a glimpse of Michonne, Rick and Carl's character that had been previously buried beneath clunky writing. The same goes for this episode, albeit more heavily for Michonne and Carl than for Rick. Their inner lives, motivations and fears were explored with nuance and care. Humanity has been presented cynically so far with survivors resorting to extreme violence against one another in a dog-eats-dog world but this episode we saw the strength and beauty in human connections. Carl and Michonne showed just how important relationships are in this world, they both tried to go it alone but in the end their reunion gave the show what has it's been missing: heart.

I'm interested in seeing whether the next couple episodes do the same thing with the remaining isolated groups. Delving deeper into the psyches of the remaining survivors would be a welcome change of pace and direction especially coming off the heels of two showdowns with The Governor and a season-long nap at Hershel's farm. We've watched hundreds of zombies get taken out, we've seen charismatic sociopaths convince peace-loving folk to wage war twice, we've witnessed too many convoluted bad decisions and we've heard more verbal masturbatory soliloquies than an Aaron Sorkin table reading. We are due for some psychological mining of the post-apocalyptic mind. I want to ask each character "whaaaaaaaaat is going on up here"?

Other thoughts:

I hold the unpopular (based on a poll with an extremely shallow subject pool -- my friend with whom I watched the episode) opinion that Rick should check out. It's time that the show pick either Carl or Rick to be the main protagonist and at this point, Carl is the far more interesting choice. This episode illustrated that while Carl holds more responsibility than your average non-end of days tween while still being in the awkward throes of angsty, rebelling, bratty puberty.

At the same time, Rick's arc feels complete. I'm not sure where they can go with Rick now. He has grown as a character, overcoming his flaws (the hero-complex and distrust) and emerged as a fair, thoughtful and compassionate leader. The ghost of Lori forgave him and Hershel recognized his growth and offered the saddest smile in TV history as Rick pleaded with The Governor. The group will be safer and more peaceful if he becomes leader again but where is the fun in that? What is a premium cable show without it's tortured anti-hero? This isn't Friday Night Lights, we need the main protagonist to be complicated and conflicted and to fuck shit up. A show centered around Carl promises that and more. Seeing the zombie-infested world through the eyes of a child offers a fresh perspective on an old genre. Carl's mind is still developing and we've seen the ways in which he's still a child and the ways that this new world has hardened him. His growth will be shaped by his surroundings and predicament and where that takes him is something that I want to see. The question is whether the show can really give us that bildungsroman theme while his father is still alive.

Foreshadowing??

The first half of the show, I thought that there was going to be the sound of zombie's moanin' and groenin' in the background to amp up the tension. Then I realized it was just Rick struggling to breath.

Why is it that I feel like 90% of Rick's screen time consists of him staring at his own anguished reflection? I don't think there has been any other instances of tortured mirror stand-offs but, man, did it feel familiar.

To me, you are perfect

The reveal of Michonne's baby broke my heart. Maybe I hadn't been paying attention to the meagre scraps of Michonne's identity we've been given so far but I had no idea that she had a kid. I'm sure we're going to learn more about her past in the upcoming season and I'm sure it will make me real sad. But if there's one thing I excel at, it's getting overly invested in fictional character so I'm in.

Also very sad that her super fine husband will probably never grace the screen again. Ugh I miss him already :,(

THAT SMILE.

Moving forward:

I predict that Lizzie as the mastermind behind the Vitruvian rat and she killed Tyrese's girl and Carol took the fall for her. Gonna make for some awkward nights around the fire when Tyrese finds out (which in classic TWD style will probably be in three seasons).

I realize that outside of the world of television criticism wishing death upon babies makes me a monster, but *quick disclaimer about how much I love babies* I really hope that Judith is gone for good. Babies on TV are almost always dead weight. And a baby on a zombie show? There is no good way of writing that baby. There's no rewarding character arcs or satisfying plots to glean from pre-verbal zombie-bait. Best case scenario, it's a Friends situation where the baby is always conveniently off with a babysitter (which on TWD would be Beth so maybe that would be killing two birds with one stone? Something to think about...).

More flashbacks and dream sequences! I want to see our pals dressed in something else. I want to see them happy and I want my heart-strings to be pulled once it's revealed just how much they've lost. TWD has always excelled in the simple moments that juxtapose the past with the present. Carl encountering a normal boys room perfectly illustrated how overwhelming different this world is.

Also more sex.

Don't know how quickly Rick will be able to heal since Hershel is dead along with his supernatural healing abilities.

Carl's struggle with that zombie upstairs was some tough medicine for me. As someone who is at this very moment surrounded by stacks of hundreds of books, my future death flashed before my eyes as all those books hindered Carl's fight. I always assumed that if I were to be killed by my books it would be a Principal Skinner-buried-alive type situation but now I'm worried about my ability to fend off zombies in my living room.

Time for a Kindle

Let's hope the days of mindless villagers have perished alongside The Governor. One of the more frustrating parts of the last two seasons has been his ability to work regular, peace-loving folk into a murderous froth. Why his last group would follow him when he was a mysterious new dude who's arrival neatly coincided with the death of two leaders is a plot hole the size one of the blown out prison walls.

More confusing is the writers' insistence on disallowing characters to share any relevant information. Why Rick wouldn't share pertinent details of their last run-in with The Governor (torture, imprisonment, sexual assault, war mongering, mass murder) is perplexing and displays the ongoing laziness of the writers. Please, let this trend be in the past! Let us move on to an age of sharing relevant information and pick up the pace of the show! Let the zombies amble, not the plot!

One more pedantic squabble: Obviously I've a well-documented history of *maybe* paying too much attention to details within TWD universe (I'm still trying to sort out how Shane was never called out on his excessive showering) but why is it that the head of Hershel was still chomping but when Michonne (and others) regularly behead walkers it's the final death? Wouldn't all those zombie heads still be 'alive', too?

I'm going to miss Hershel, his folksy wisdom and his pony-tail.

Good night, sweet prince

Read the next episode recap here.

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Alex Snider watches a lot of TV. Follow her on Twitter where she'll be super active for a week then be quiet for months – she's a social media cicada.