My biggest question for this episode is absolutely ridiculous but important. Can James Marsden fall as cool as Gary Sinise did? I’ve got an Oscar Meyer P3 protein pack with turkey, bacon, and Colby Jack. It’s pretty tasty. Hopefully, I don’t fall asleep.
This episode is called The Walk and yet I feel like I won’t hear Pantera or see Rob Van Dam. That makes me sad.
Start Episode 7 The Walk
Is it just me or did Nick feel less impactful in this version? I really am wondering if it is nostalgia or if Nick was lacking. 3 days later, I can update this and say definitively that this version of Nick didn’t have as big of an impact due to how poorly they told his story and the order in which they told it. They fucked Nick’s character.
Trashcan Man (TCM) found the facility and the nuke that Flagg asked for.
We see Harold and Nadine detonate the bomb again. Nadine looks horrified. Harold may have had slight regrets, but then he says that Flagg will get him a woman that will make her look like a potato sack. Nice. Harold wants to be 100 miles away by sunrise. What an insult, by the way. I want to get in a relationship and then dump the girl so I can tell her that I’m gonna get me a girl that makes her look like a potato sack. I am curious what the reaction would be.
Larry visits the infirmary. Fran is fine, unfortunately. Larry and Glen chat. Larry asks Glen if Harold really did all of this and Glen says that yes, Harold is the one who built it. Larry thinks that Nadine is the one who brought it into the house. Larry suggests it may be a blessing if Mother Abigail (MA) doesn’t wake up considering how Nick was her favorite.
MA wakes up and tells Ray to bring everyone there right now. So the 5 assemble, with Ray replacing Nick, quintessentially. MA talks about how she has sinned with pride. How she thought that Nick was the one to lead the group. Now Stu has to be the leader, and lead them west to Vegas. They are to leave today on foot. Take no food or water, and just take the clothes on their back. One of them will fall, but God hasn’t shown her who. Let’s face it, I already spoiled it, but you expect bad things with people that she chooses as a leader. Frannie is not to go. That’s unfortunate. Not everyone will live through all of this. It is in Vegas where they must go and make their stand. This is what God wants from them. She takes her last breathe, a candle goes out. Whoopie was a good replacement, but Ruby Dee gave that whole speech with so much more passion and I’m sure it was written differently. I preferred Ruby’s version of the speech better.
Harold and Nadine are on their motorcycles riding through this world Nadine decides to take off a bit faster. Harold catches up going over 100 mph and he is telling her to slow down. She sees the U-Turn up ahead, but he isn’t paying attention until it is too late. He slides, hits the barricade, and goes flying. He lands on an old tree and is impaled in the chest, his leg is broken, and he is stuck. He asks her to get the rope from his bag. She says that this is better for him. She tells him that Flagg would have never let Harold live. She apologizes to Harold. She tells him that he can end it quickly if he’s brave. He freaks out and shoots at her instead and his eyes are bugging out. He hears the motorcycle leave.
I have often wondered, are we left to believe that this was her way of a mercy kill so that he didn’t get killed by Flagg? Was she just a selfish bitch and using Harold to get what she wanted? I think that answer is actually different depending on the version. In the 94 version, it really feels like she used Harold, got the bomb, and killed him off so he would leave her alone. In this 2020 version, I view it as a mercy killing. Still, I think if Harold goes to New Vegas, Flagg probably just tells him to pick any girl that he wants aside from Nadine and possibly Julie. That’s really a simple thing for Flagg, right?
Fran is pouting at the table. She asks the dumbest questions. How long will it take to get there? How the hell is he going to know that? Fran asks if Stu thinks that MA spoke for God. Fran thinks that she did. Stu is blaming himself for not listening to Fran about Harold. Well, how is he supposed to know when to listen to her crazy ass? Fran mentions that MA never mentioned Harold. They assume Harold and Nadine are on their way to Vegas. She says that bringing Harold to justice is not part of his mission, but he’s gonna do it anyway. Well yea, no shit. Why wouldn’t he? In this version, Fran is practically the de facto leader. I guess Norris can help. She makes Stu promise that he will return. He swears that he will try.
Larry gives Joe the guitar to take care of while he’s gone. Joe gives him a big hug. Fran and Stu say their goodbyes. Glen and Kojak arrive. Glen gives Fran a camera to take one final picture of the 4.
I don’t want to rant much here, but this is why we could have really used Ray’s story. We have no investment in her. Hell, we have very little in Glen, but he makes sense at the very least. And I’m not trying to be sexist, but it was cooler watching 4 men march off to be basically slaughtered. This just feels like a reflection of today’s society rather than an artistic decision that improves the story in some way. Once again, the dynamic is different if it is tough as nails Kathy Bates walking with the 3 guys because then you feel confident in her ability to survive and are invested in her.
So the first thing Larry asks is about how they will get water. They are trying to incorporate Ray into the fold by having a joke about how her heritage makes her know certain things. Consider that if you had big Ralph who could haul supplies on this journey, the optics make sense. Instead, now you have a smaller female, she does look very short compared to the other 3 dudes, and she really looks out of place. And that would be fine if they established something about her background or her journey. Optics and lack of story or character development make this cringe-worthy.
Well, everyone in the group now has backpacks. Larry suggests that the longer the walk, the better. Once they get there, they’re just going to get murdered in his mind. Ray said that MA would never send them to get murdered. Oh Ray, oh naive Ray, you may be surprised. Maybe this is the version where MA is a sadistic old witch as Randall has claimed and she keeps sending her minions to be slaughtered.
A crow watches over Harold. He finishes his writing. Is that a vulture and not a crow? Harold puts that gun in his mouth and pulls the trigger until it goes click. Definitely a vulture.
A montage of the group walking to Radiohead’s “I Promise”. This song does nothing for me. Sorry. They come across Harold and his bike. Larry goes to cover up Harold and Ray is super pissy, but Larry owes it to Harold because he helped get him to Colorado. Harold has no face. Larry read Harold’s note. Harold talks about a game that the kids would play, but he was always afraid to make the jump into the pit. He’s mad at the bullying assholes and even more angry at himself for turning into something worse. He apologizes but recognizes that he did them of his own free will. He allowed himself to be misread. He signs it as Hawk. Larry takes off his awesome leather jacket to cover up Harold. That scene was just sad, at least to me.
Nadine is making progress but then stops and sees Flagg a distance away on the side of the road. She finds white rose petals on the ground and then a red carpet, and now she is suddenly inside Flagg’s penthouse. She looks exhausted, but not relieved. They kiss and she says that Harold didn’t make it. But Harold had served his purpose. He is pleased that she kept herself pure for him and now she gets to be his wife and get undressed to her underwear and have a little afternoon delight. There’s some man ass, but she’s not showing. In the midst of sex, she says that something isn’t right. She looks up at this being on top of her. I don’t know how to describe it. Looked dumb, but so did the 94 version.
The group comes across a hole in the road, more like a huge valley. It’s about damn time. This embankment looks more treacherous due to more rock, but I think easier to climb down, compared to 94’s version. Climbing up without more dirt seems bad. Kojak goes up first, then Larry, Ray, Glen, and finally, Stu is bringing up the rear. Stu gets to the top but it gives way and ohhh, the leg snapping, fucking A. Stu tells Larry to realign the leg. They make a splint for his leg. Now they want to get supplies and a stretcher and Stu says no because MA said that one of them would fall. Larry doesn’t like the idea of leaving Stu, but Glen backs up Stu. Stu goes on about the valley of the shadow of death and fearing no evil. Stu says that Larry is now in charge. Well Larry, now you’re as good as dead. Ray gives Stu some beads or a bracelet. Glen gives Stu some pills. He tells him to space them out and if he were to take 3 to 4, they would be fatal. Glen saying goodbye was actually the saddest part of that scene.
I’m hearing “I Put A Spell On You” by Screamin’ Jay Hawkins. Such a great song. Flagg is waiting on the road by a nice car. Nadine is dressed all in white, her hair is a bit lighter, just a nice transformation. She looks really good. Oh, her belly hurts because she’s got his seed in her.
Kojak returns to Stu. They did this slightly differently in 94. I think this is closer to the book’s plot. Glen can’t find Kohak and now a vehicle rolls up on them. It’s a limo with Lloyd and some goons with guns. There’s no real conversation. I prefer how pushy they were in 94. It was a nice moment for Larry’s character as the leader.
They finally arrive in New Vegas and that big-screen video of Flagg is so cheesy. They are erecting a terrible-looking Ceaser-type statue of Flagg. We see some people getting beat up on the road. There was the wolf. All of these videos do is serve to annoy. It doesn’t really make this place intimidating. I don’t get the purpose.
Flagg sends Nadine down to greet their guests. Hey, Rat Woman has on a nice dress and I can’t see her cleavage. Good for her, finally. Rat Woman and a big Hoss accompany Nadine. I feel that they should have made Rat Woman’s hair a little prettier. I would just like to change the character in many ways because I adore her as an actress. I’m hearing a really shitty version of “Baby Can You Dig Your Man”.
Nadine greets the 3 visitors and she is very, very pregnant. Her face looks off and her belly is actually moving. That’s normal, right? They play us off with “You Must Have Been A Beautiful Baby” by Bing Crosby.
End Episode 7 The Walk
I like that I didn’t write nearly as much as I do during most episodes. It was a simple episode. Not much to compliment or critique.
The sex scene was terrible, I don’t think they improved it from 94. The complaints I had are basic. Thankfully, TCM wasn’t on-screen too much to make me sad. They tried their best to hit the proper emotional notes. Saying goodbye when MA died, when the group left, Harold’s letter, and leaving Stu behind all worked as intended.
I don’t think episode 8 can salvage Randall Flagg’s portrayal. It is falling so flat. He’s not menacing, he’s not charming, he’s not much of anything. Also, I really hope that they can build up Ray a little bit in the next episode.
Final Rating – 0.8 – My complaints are minor. They followed the book pretty well here.
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