In this episode, “A Certain Doom”, we have the end of the Whisperer War. We also see where Eugene’s journey leads him and his group. My name is Kent, and I ask 5 weekly questions (sometimes more) and then people answer them. Any comments in BOLD are written by me. I hope you enjoy and if you or someone you know may want to do this blog, contact me, leave a comment, etc.
1. Beta got killed through the efforts of Lydia, Negan, and Daryl. Did you feel that the death was worth the wait and whatever hype you may have had in your own mind? Also, what was your favorite Beta scene in the series?
Bob: It felt complete to me. I liked whenever Beta thought the walkers were talking to him. (Yeah, I loved it when he thought the walkers talked to him. It was the perfect kind of strange.)
Raylene: No I don’t feel the death was worth my wait. There were so many enjoyable scenes. I did like when a Whisperer said you’re the new Alpha and then Beta took care of business. (You’re just mad because you’re reliving Opie’s death from SOA.)
Kent: Beta’s death was very good and worth the wait. I prefer this death over the one in the books because of who was involved. It just made sense. I think my favorite Beta scenes were with Negan. Those two always made me laugh. I also liked anytime that Beta just killed one of his own. It showed his true character.
2. Virgil is the one to find Connie. Do you think we will be introduced to a very different Virgil or will he still be as he was when we last saw him?
Bob: We will see the same Virgil but he will have a facade we aren’t familiar with entirely. (Facade is really the perfect word and I chose not to steal it in my response.)
Raylene: We have a different Virgil than from the island. He left to come search for them at Oceanside. Perhaps he had a revelation in life as Morgan did. (Maybe he heard about an all-female community and wanted to take a chance.)
Kent: I want to see more of the original Virgil, but I think we will see a more complete character now. I think he will have different values and perspectives now. What they are and how they shape his future have me intrigued. He’s definitely a character that I will be paying special attention to.
3. Gabriel was very close to death. Maggie, her ninja, Aaron, and Alden (I assume) were there to save him. Was Maggie’s return underwhelming considering her importance to the show? Whose storyline moving forward interests you more: Maggie or the unnamed ninja?
Bob: Yeah they just thrust Maggie back in there with her Joker smile face. Maggie’s return to me will be interesting and it will probably include the storyline of said ninja. (Thank you for the Joker smile reference.)
Raylene: Ninja by far I did not miss Maggie. She’s going to screw the storyline up somehow. (Yeah, she’s going to piss you off with how she treats Negan even though you’re supposed to hate Negan after Abe’s demise. Life is complicated.)
Kent: That was underwhelming. I think they would have served themselves better by not letting us know that she got the letter and was on her way. If you just change the chronology of when they presented it, the impact would have been better. Imagine not knowing that she was returning and the first time that we see her is with the ninja. Then have her say to Gabriel, this is how I knew where to find you and show that quick flashback. That changes the presentation and adds impact. I’m far more interested in Maggie because I want to know how she is going to be with Negan.
4. Eugene’s group had some issues along the way. It seemed kind of sad, and then Eugene gave a big speech, which made it appear like he may get killed because he was happy. But then they get surrounded by Storm Troopers. Did you fear for Eugene’s life? What do you think of the Storm Troopers, or most likely soldiers for the Commonwealth?
Bob: I totally said storm troopers! I never feared for Eugene’s life but I wasn’t expecting what happened. I thought he would meet up as planned. I am sure this is the plan of the commonwealth. (I would have liked for the lady to have at least been there, but it would have made fans instantly dislike her.)
Raylene: I was expecting Eugene to be shot in the back of the head. I’m thinking Samantha I think that was her name has set them up. I trust no new groups now. (Do you trust her more than Ginny? Also, I think the name is Stephanie but I am too lazy to look it up.)
Kent: This show already killed Carl, so now I fear for my other guy. They set up him being happy and had the tight shot and I thought that was it. It wouldn’t have made sense for this group to be hostile immediately, but they planted the seed in my head. I thought the Storm Trooper outfits were absolutely silly.
5. The plan kind of worked to combat the Whisperers. What did you like or dislike about the plan? Were you happy that Beatrice got killed? Should this plan have even worked?
Bob: I liked that the plan took one episode, not a whole season. It was simple and practical despite being dangerous. (The Savior War has given the remaining fans a better appreciation for shorter and well-executed stories and wars, I think.)
Raylene: Nope didn’t like it at all. Long live Beta. There still has to be a good amount of the herd left not all of them followed the music and went over the edge. (I agree about the herd. That was massive. I feel like the herd is going to simply be forgotten about when they return.)
Kent: That plan had huge gaping holes in it, in my opinion. I will save my complaints for the final thoughts because they are my GMA nominees. I thought Beatrice was a straight-up bitch for how she treated Lydia, and she was from Oceanside. I was so happy when she got got. I don’t want to say that the plan should have worked, it was a good risk. Given their options, I don’t know if they had much overall that they could have done.
Final Thoughts – First of all, should anybody have revealed that Daryl and Carol are going to have a spinoff series prior to this show wrapping up? Secondly, and more importantly, I need to know your nominee for the GMA (Glenn Memorial Award) given out for the absolutely silliest or poorest decision made during an episode FULL of horrible decisions.
Bob: I didn’t know there was a spin-off! The dumbest moment was when Beta said tighten the herd. Just got on the radio or text everyone. The herd tightened in seconds. (Hahaha, the herd tightened within seconds, that is very funny. No way that happens that fast with how they communicate and how few Whisperers there are.)
Raylene: I feel they didn’t disguise themselves very well while watching through the herd in the opposite direction and having most of their faces showing. (Yeah, going the opposite direction made me cringe. I think they made too direct and obvious of a path, plus the way they dressed was comical. Perhaps it was the best that they could do.)
Kent: When the 8 people get all zombified and the plan is to open the door and blend in. That’s all well and good except they had no idea if there would be a Whisperer near the door. Then you instantly lose one of your better people. There had to have been a better way to acclimate. But the goal is to acclimate with the herd, but then you walk against the flow of the herd. I felt that more Whisperers would have noticed this and gone after them. I almost had to laugh that Lydia was just pointed out Whisperers amongst that huge herd. I suppose it is possible, but it seemed a bit silly. Also, there’s no way that whole herd walked off the ledge.
Sorry for the delay in posting this but the website has been having tech issues throughout October. Perfect timing!