The Walking Dead: Honor (8x09)

Spoilers under the cut.

Okay, so... why? I don't mean "why" in the "why have you forsaken me, God" kind of way, but in the "what the heck is the point?" kind of way. Did Chandler Riggs want to leave the show? Did they need a bump in ratings? Were they just out of ideas?

Cons:

I just didn't feel much of anything. Carl has never been my number one fave or anything, but still - you would expect that after eight seasons watching this kid grow up, I'd feel something watching him slowly die. But honestly? They prepped me for it way too hard, and then there were way too many dramatic goodbye speeches. I would have been much more upset if Carl had seemed scared or sad to be dying, but he took it all with this ridiculous stoicism that just really bothered me.

That's a bigger problem with this show, actually - the characters never talk like human beings. I don't just mean characters like King Ezekiel. Everyone. They're always having moral debates and giving long speeches about hope and pain and all of that, and it can really drain my connections to these characters. There were some spectacularly un-subtle cuts in this episode between Carl talking about the young man he killed at the prison, and a debate going on between Carol, Morgan, and Ezekiel about killing one of the Saviors. The "thesis statement of morality," if you will, is insultingly blunt and yet still somehow muddled. We've seen Morgan take so many turns that I'm not even sure what I'm supposed to think of him anymore. Same with Carol. What side of the debate are they on? And why is there a debate?

We learn that the glimpses of a future with white-bearded Rick were actually a dream that Carl has been having about what the future could be. In Carl's final moments, Rick promises to make that dream a reality. This is all a little cheesy, but I actually didn't mind it too much, with one important exception - we see the older version of Judith walking through the town, interacting with different people in Alexandria. We see Eugene, and learn that in Carl's hopeful vision, he has been accepted back into the fold. That, I can accept. But then we see Judith walk up to Negan, who is living as a peaceful member of the community. I was watching the episode on my phone on the bus, and I actually said "Oh, fuck you," out loud when Negan showed up. Like, come on, Carl. I can forgive you some cheesy wishful thinking in your final moments, but why would you extend that to Negan? He murdered a shit-ton of people in cold blood and enjoyed it. He's obviously an evil sociopath. I'm just not on board for a redemption arc for Negan. Sure, make him interesting and complex, but ultimately he's got to be a villain through and through, or this show is never going to earn my trust back.

Pros:

This is going to be a short review, because I don't feel like belaboring the point that I just didn't feel anything about Carl dying. There were a few exceptions to that, and I do want to go into it.

Carl is far too stoic and composed, but there is a moment right at the end where he starts crying so badly that he has trouble getting words out, and the words he's trying to say are just simply: "I love you, Dad." And Rick replies that he loves him so much, and kisses him on the forehead. See, this is all I need. I don't need all the speechifying. The same sort of thing happened with Michonne. Carl goes on and on about how she needs to be strong for Rick and Judith, which is all just kind of annoying, but then he says "you're my best friend, Michonne," and she says "and you're mine," and it was the most connected I felt to the situation all episode.

I do like the fact that we're moving things forward in a meaningful way, as our surviving characters are all making their way towards the Hilltop, for what will hopefully be a final stand against Negan. If this dude is not dead by the finale of Season Eight, I'm going to lose my shit. You've overstayed your welcome, Saviors. I mean that in a diegetic and extra-diegetic way. Yeesh, I'm getting sick of them.

There you have it. Chandler Riggs did a good job with what he was given, but in my opinion, the melodrama really did not work in this instance. I could have done with a few quieter, simpler moments. There's something fundamentally broken in this show (at least from my perspective) when one of the original characters dies, and they are so clearly trying to make you feel sad about it, and I don't so much as blink at it. Bye, Carl. I've had months to prepare for your departure, so... not too broken up, honestly.

6/10