In final week’s recap, I wrote the next: “Do you ever really feel tense when watching The Strolling Lifeless anymore? Does the TV present ever actually shock you anymore? I’m fairly positive it’s been fairly some time since TWD made me really feel like a personality was in actual hazard or did something that made me marvel what was going to occur subsequent.” I’m happy to report tonight’s episode shocked me, made me anxious, and left me questioning what’s coming subsequent week.
Now, on condition that subsequent week’s episode of The Strolling Lifeless can also be the sequence finale, you’d have each proper to really feel it’s a lot too little, and much too late. However I’m grateful the present has lastly began to really feel a bit like a sequence finale versus enterprise as typical. When “Household” begins, Alexandria has been fully liberated from the occupying Commonwealth forces after final week’s episode—which you would possibly assume may make for an fascinating hour of TV, however apparently not—and all of the protagonists who aren’t caught in Alexandria (Eugene, Yumiko, Max, and Mercer) or trapped in a zombie horde (Aaron, Lydia, Jerry, Ezekiel, Lucas, and Jules) arm up, get on the prepare, and head to the Commonwealth to rescue their children and take Pam out.
Earlier than, throughout, and after their prepare trip, characters have emotionally significant conversations which can be simply restating the plot or recreating the identical previous character beats. Judith has an awesome argument for being allowed to hitch the assault to honor her father Rick, her mom Michonne, her brother Carl, and even her beginning mom Lori, who she by no means received to satisfy, and assist make sure the peaceable, higher future that they envisioned (…among the time). Later, Daryl guarantees to inform her “all of the tales about everybody who ever beloved you,” which received me fairly good. Negan confesses to Ezekiel that he’s properly conscious that everybody he’s using with is a greater particular person than he’s, and if Ezekiel can’t see that, properly, somebody’s not been paying consideration.
G/O Media could get a fee
Maybe the perfect line in “Household” comes off the prepare. Because the Commontroopers herd the zombies towards the Commonwealth, Aaron, Jerry, and Lydia handle to sneak into an deserted RV, however Elijah, Luke, and Jules are swept away earlier than they’ll enter. Lydia tries to tug her boyfriend Elijah in, however solely manages to get chomped on the wrist by a zombie. Sure, a zombie truly bit one of many protagonists! After all, she will need to have her arm slashed off to keep away from changing into a zombie herself—one thing Aaron is uniquely suited to take care of, because the identical factor occurred to him. However as an alternative, Jerry does the slashing, whereas Aaron comforts her. Simply earlier than the blade got here down, Aaron empathetically tells her, “You might be so beloved, Lydia.” It’s lovely, and I’m undecided it’s true, nevertheless it’s an exquisite second nonetheless.
Contained in the Commonwealth, the persons are justifiably offended at Governor Pam, so she requires a “B17”—i.e., having troops lead an enormous horde of zombies to town’s entrance gates so she will be able to justify a city-wide lockdown. Sadly, nobody’s knowledgeable her concerning the Variants, the smarter-than-the-average-undead who can climb partitions and eat the troopers, certainly one of whom simply occurs to land on the “open gate lever” as he’s being eaten, permitting a number of thousand zombies direct entry to the residential and industrial areas of the Commonwealth. It’s dangerous information for everyone however the viewers: The Variants got here again! They’d a significant influence on the storyline! They’ll in all probability be again subsequent week, too! Oh, what a bounty of riches.
Princess manages to contact Mercer from the prepare and tells him the plan, so Mercer pulls his troops from the prepare station Staff Alexandria shall be sneaking into. Sadly, Pam hears of the redeployment, has Mercer arrested, and parks her armed goons inside to allow them to gun down the Alexandrians upon arrival. Weirdly, Pam can also be there to get in on the motion and begins firing an assault rifle at Maggie, just for lovely Judith to push her out of the way in which and get shot as an alternative. Judith’s down! Put together to riot!
As if the characters within the present know that the franchise will lose all of its remaining goodwill if Judith dies, the group bands collectively, escapes the station, and begins heading for the Commonwealth’s physician. Even Pamela has the decency to be appalled she’s shot a baby, screaming to the Alexandrians, “You probably did this!” to divert the blame. Pam escapes, solely to learn that big herd of zombies is coming to city. She directs the Commontroopers to direct the zombies to the “Decrease Wards,” aka the poor a part of city, and defend the “Estates,” i.e., the rich people’ houses. It’s probably the most actively and blatantly evil classism Pam has ever proven, and it clearly doesn’t sit properly with the military’s new chief, Vickers.
Nevertheless, Vickers a minimum of partially does as advised, and begins deploying troops to direct the zombies—and the group lands proper in-between two barricades with the horde heading proper for them. The Alexandrians handle to combat again sufficient zombies to let Daryl, carrying Judith, escape down an alley, however the episode ends with the remainder of them swarmed.
I do not know how they’re going to get out of this, and I really like that. I’m positive the reply shall be foolish or require a little bit retcon, however I really like feeling that these characters—particularly Judith—are in precise hazard, even when they in all probability aren’t. I really like that Lydia received bit by a zombie, as a result of it makes me really feel someplace in my dumb, TV-watching lizard mind, that different characters might also get eaten. I really like that the Variant zombies turned what was a foul however contained scenario into an all-out catastrophe, proving they’re far more harmful than the zombies we’ve been anticipating over a decade, even when they want a little bit luck on their facet. I really like not understanding precisely what’s going to occur subsequent.
Verify that—I’m appreciative of all of this. The episode wasn’t so nice that I wasn’t questioning how Pam controls half of the Commonwealth military with out Mercer in some way understanding something about it, or how she has troops who’re fully and uniformly effective with main 1000’s of zombies to their hometown at her bidding, or why, once more, she simply doesn’t lie and inform individuals a zombie herd’s been noticed so martial legislation must be instated as an alternative of genuinely bringing zombies to their entrance gate—a gate that’s far sufficient away from city, as we see tonight, that it’s extremely unlikely any civilian would ever discover out if the menace was actual or not. It’s pointless, Pam. Do some streamlining!
Nonetheless, my solely actual criticism about “Household” is that this episode ought to have aired weeks in the past, or a minimum of an episode prefer it. If I hadn’t spent so, so, so lengthy watching and recapping this present, I’d truthfully be a little bit bummed there was just one extra episode to go. However since The Strolling Lifeless was content material to spin its wheels for a lot of the earlier six episodes, I’m content material there’s just one extra hour to go. I solely hope it’s pretty much as good as this one.
Assorted Musings:
- Oh, I used to be aggravated when Mercer talked about having authorized grounds to take away Pamela from workplace. Look, guys, both the Commonwealth has a working authorized system you should use to lawfully vote out the dangerous wealthy girl or you possibly can stage an armed coup, however not each. Decide a lane.
- I discovered it delightfully creepy when Aaron and the others had been whispering to one another within the zombie horde in order to not be detected. Whisperer tech, man—they had been loopy, however they knew what they had been doing.
- Talking of, one other Commonwealth Jeep bites the mud off-screen. Did the funds for this closing season shrink, or…?
- Boy, positive looks as if Jerry’s gonna die, proper? Aaron and Lydia—even Jerry himself—made it sound like the ultimate time they had been ever going to see one another. Jerry even says, “See you on the opposite facet.” However the cause he’s going is to assist Elijah, Luke, and Jules, who’re both lifeless, captured, or nonetheless trapped hiding within the horde, and a single particular person couldn’t assist them in any of these three conditions.
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