The Walking Dead: The World Before (10x08)

I hate it when smart characters have to act like morons for the sake of the plot.

Cons:

So, Carol has this crazy trigger of running off into danger because of her need to kill Alpha. She's so intent on this goal that she risks her own life and lots of other peoples' lives more than once, and seems completely unrepentant about it. In this case, she ran after Alpha and into an obvious trap. And then Daryl sends in everyone else after her, and then follows himself. So now they're all trapped in an underground cavern filled with the Whisperers' hoard. And this is the big mid-season cliffhanger we are left with. How... lame. How uninspired. How stupid of Daryl and the others to let this happen. I was cool with them scouting for the hoard, but to run blindly into danger like that was just so uncalled for.

We learn Dante's backstory a little bit, but I'm still not totally happy with it. He was brand new to the Whisperers, and went in as a valuable spy because Lydia wouldn't recognize him. But what ties him to Alpha, then? Clearly, their philosophies line up, somewhat. Dante believes that communities like Alexandria are giving their people false hope. But Alpha is supposed to be a cult of personality, and Dante has no reason to be so loyal to her that he'd risk his own life in this way. We needed more to understand why he was so die-hard for the Whisperers. If he's new, he hasn't been indoctrinated. It's also annoying that he was able to infiltrate so easily, because it just makes Alpha and the Whisperers seem all-powerful in a way that reminds me of the Saviors.

While I certainly enjoyed aspects of Michonne's story, and I'll talk about that in a moment, I really hate that she's going alone to the Naval base. We know Danai Gurira is leaving the show after this season, so everything that Michonne gets up to this season is part of an exit strategy. I don't think they'll kill off Michonne, but what do I know? They certainly made a big production out of her going off alone, and saying goodbye to Judith. This show is not subtle when it comes to character exits. Siddiq's death was the first time I've been surprised by a death or exit in literal years.

And speaking of Siddiq's death... he was an actual interesting character, and we've got a shortage of those. Seeing Gabriel and Rosita together just emphasized for me how uninteresting they are as a couple, when compared to Rosita and Siddiq's natural chemistry.

Pros:

There were a lot of things that irritated me about this episode, but to be honest, there were also a lot of aspects I really liked.

I like Virgil, this new guy who shows up, saves Luke's life, tries to rob our heroes, and then ends up having a cool opportunity to offer Michonne for the fight against the Whisperers. We didn't get to know a ton about him, but we learn how much he's willing to do for his family, and I liked the way he talked to Michonne, the way they each worked their way towards understanding while remaining cautious.

I also really liked Judith in this episode. I enjoyed the fact that she and her mom have a good relationship, and that she's competent with the Walkers but also reasonable about her role in events. She doesn't go off full-tilt into danger, she knows that she needs to be cautious. I also love how studious she is, how much she wants to learn and get more books, and how she's thinking of others. At the library, she sees a Russian-English dictionary and thinks about how it will make a good resource for Eugene. She's actually such a thoughtful person, and that really adds a lot to her character.

Gabriel going off and murdering Dante was really unexpected, and yet it worked for his character. Gabriel's arc on the show has always been about bravery, and about what he's willing to do in order to earn his place. What he did to Dante was revenge for Siddiq, but it was also proof of his dedication to Rosita and little Coco. I think the romance is pretty bland, but I did like what he was willing to do here. It also makes it interesting to think about how Dante's death is going to factor in to the fight with the Whisperers. When and how will Alpha find out about this? How can it be used to our good guys' advantage?

The horror scene at the beginning of the episode was excellently done - you've got Dante pulling a knife on Rosita, while Walker-Siddiq lurches towards baby Coco. Dante says "sometimes animals eat their young," and the visceral horror of the situation is just... so creepy. The Walkers are sort of old-hat at this point, but it's been quite some time since we've seen one of our beloved characters walking around as one of the undead. The sight is always unsettling. I think maybe we need more newly dead Walkers on the show, because there's something so uncanny about seeing them before they've started to rot!

I also appreciate seeing Rosita deal with Siddiq's death by thinking about the future for their daughter. She goes out to take care of some Walkers and has to get an assist from a somewhat awkward Eugene, and this makes Rosita question herself. She's supposed to be strong enough to take everything on. And now she has doubts because she can't die - she needs to stay alive so Coco won't be an orphan. Gabriel is less than helpful at encouraging her, but he later redeems himself by committing murder, I guess.

Daryl and Carol have a lovely conversation and hug, and it seems in some ways like Daryl is pulling Carol out of the worst of her behavior. That's part of what makes it so frustrating that she then snaps and chases down Alpha, but setting that aside, I really liked Daryl and Carol in this episode. Whether they're angling for a romance or not (I'm thinking yes, on that score), they certainly are spending a good deal of time showcasing how important these two are to each other, and we're getting to see all the ways in which Carol's mental well-being or lack thereof is affecting Daryl. And you can just sense that Carol would love for Daryl to stop worrying, but she can't exactly manage that. It's a deliciously complex situation, and it's fun to watch it unravel onscreen.

I think that's all I've got to say for now. This episode was a mixed bag, and it fell pretty flat for a mid-season finale. But there were certainly plenty of moments in it that I enjoyed greatly!

7/10