With the Whisperer War about to achieve its bloody zenith and everybody’s lives on the road, The Walking Dead apparently isn’t afraid to let issues get bizarre first. And the assault rifle-toting ray of sunshine who made her debut last week was solely the half of it.
Once I say “The Tower” was goofy, I don’t imply that in a nasty approach. I’m additionally not saying the episode was a delight, nevertheless it was definitely entertaining. Though it’s one of many shortest episodes in latest reminiscence—it’s lower than 42 minutes, together with the opening title and finish credit—it has loads occurring. In the beginning, Beta has taken management of the Whisperers’ horde of zombies, and utterly misplaced his thoughts. Admittedly, seeing as he’s been carrying a bespoke zombie masks for years, that’s not precisely a significant transformation, however now he’s truly listening to zombies discuss to him.
However when he brings his horde to Alexandria, he finds the Alexandrians…gone. The settlement is totally empty, and there’s one thing deeply humorous about seeing Beta on the base of the windmill, staring out on the million zombies who've stuffed Alexandria to the brim, and clearly having no concept what to do. It’s even funnier when Alden pokes his head out from the highest of the windmill, the place he and Aaron are hiding. (There’s even a cartoony scene of Beta whipping his head up actual quick as a result of he thinks he sees one thing, however Alden geese like a whack-a-mole simply in time to keep away from being noticed.)
The remainder of the Alexandrians and remaining Hilltoppers are within the titular tower, wherever the hell that's. Apart from hiding, their massive plan appears to revolve round Luke constructing one thing, as a result of I assume the previous music instructor has electrical abilities? He wants some wires or a doohickey from a automotive for it, so Carol and Kelly go fetch it solely to allow them to have a second the place the no-longer-obsessed Carol can apologize for getting Kelly’s sister Connie killed. Each Kelly and the present let Carol utterly off the hook, suggesting it’s wonderful as a result of Kelly is definite Connie isn’t lifeless. It’s bizarre.
It’s additionally bizarre that Negan marches as much as Lydia and tries to change into her grief counselor, provided that, you already know, he murdered Lydia’s mom Alpha very recently. Whereas the character has formally change into one of many good guys and has all the time had a tender spot for youths, it’s weird to see Negan out of the blue change into so empathetic that he will get teary-eyed making an attempt to assist Lydia course of her grief. It’s rather more cheap when he suggests Lydia punch him to kickstart mentioned processing, however when Lydia does lastly freak out and breaks down crying, Negan’s the one who finally ends up holding her, whispering comforting phrases, and compassionately stroking her hair to assuage her.
Compared, the scene the place the opposite super-macho badass comforts a younger lady is rather more cheap. Judith sneaks out of the tower to affix Daryl whereas he’s protecting a watch on the perimeter, and he offers her a number of classes in badassery alongside the way in which. However Judith will get disturbed when Daryl kills a Whisperer and leaves her physique in a ditch. In the event you’re considering Judith is upset by seeing somebody take a life instantly in entrance of her, don’t fear—Rick’s daughter is approach too pragmatic for that. What she’s actually upset about is how her mom Michonne left her, and she or he’s apprehensive Daryl will ultimately abandon her as properly. The truth that (so far as we all know) actor Danai Gurira has no intention of returning to the sequence offers Judith’s grief an additional dimension. It’s additionally doubly comforting when Daryl guarantees her he’ll by no means go away as a result of it'd as properly be Norman Reedus speaking on to the viewers.
In a unique episode, these three moments of emotional reconciliation—Carol n’ Kelly, Negan n’ Lydia, Daryl n’ Judith—are so easy that they'd really feel crass and manipulative, however in “The Tower” they work, and that’s due to the ebullient artist who greeted Eugene, Yumiko, and Ezekiel final week. I totally anticipate that Princess, as she introduces herself, will annoy many viewers, a lot as she annoys the trio. I get it, since she does scare off the horses by needlessly displaying off her zombie-shooting abilities in hoping of impressing her company, then additionally needlessly leads the gang right into a minefield whereas secretly taking them on “the scenic route” to alternate transportation. She’s supposed to be annoying.
It doesn’t assist that her origin and story play out precisely as you anticipate: She’s gotten a little bit kooky as a result of she’s been dwelling by herself for years, nevertheless it seems she was super-lonely earlier than the zombie apocalypse too, which is why she conspired to spend the entire day with the primary dwelling folks she’d seen in perpetually, which melts Yumiko’s stony coronary heart and she or he permits Princess to affix the expeditionary occasion.
However the scene the place Eugene, who's already anxious about probably lacking his assembly with the mysterious Stephanie, sees himself in Princess and reaches out to her offers the episode its finest, most authentically shifting second, and guys? She may have led them just about anyplace as a way to dangle with them longer, and she or he nonetheless selected to undergo a literal minefield. Watching Yumiko, Eugene, and Ezekiel stand like doofuses within the rain whereas Princess tries to recollect the right, non-explosive path out is delightfully foolish. And anyway, most Strolling Lifeless characters are annoying in a method or one other, and in a lot much less enjoyable methods.
Though the true season 10 finale has been delayed till someday later in 2020, a minimum of “The Tower” ends on a strong cliffhanger—Beta main his zombie horde to the place our heroes are hiding…because of a damaged department, a cat, and the very intelligent zombies who Beta believes are speaking to him. It’s goofy as hell, and it’s nonetheless completely going to result in somebody getting killed. Works for me, so long as it isn’t Princess.
Assorted Musings:
- Princess calls zombies “Rotters,” nevertheless it’s not a brand new title for them. It was utilized by the folks within the Atlanta hospital Beth visited again in season 5. Since Princess says she’s been hanging in Charleston because the apocalypse began, I feel we will assume it’s a mere coincidence.
- The “cascade” gag within the minefield was telegraphed a mile and a half away, nevertheless it nonetheless labored for me.
- Whereas protecting a watch on the herd, Aaron and Alden get caught by Whisperers in a kind of scenes that solely is smart if the characters can solely see what the digital camera sees. The Whisperers sneak up on them from virtually all sides, so a minimum of a number of of them ought to have been noticed alongside the way in which.
- I’m eagerly wanting ahead to seeing Eugene, Yumiko, and Ezekiel take a motorcycle experience to their potential doom at any time when the finale does air. It doesn't matter what, although, their mission has already partially succeeded: Princess has sweet!
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