This week, we got a chance to see how the communities have evolved and see how everyone has aged. We also spend a lot of time with Magna’s new group. It was a very loaded episode. My name is Kent, and I ask 9 episode-specific questions, and 2 bonus questions, and that’s how we get the 9 Deuce. 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, whatever. The contact info is at the bottom of this blog.
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The 9
- Is there a character that you would fear crossing than Carol? If so, who?
Bob: I would fear crossing her son, clearly. (Yeah, especially since he looks so similar to Sophia. I think most of you know that they are real-life brother and sister along with younger Henry. Still, messing with the kid is just a bad, bad decision.)
Kristi: Nope. Carol is the shit! (I think the hair makes her scarier in some way.)
Chris: Carol has had far too many badass moments. I would be terrified to piss her off. (That feels like a good blog question at some point. Her best 3 or 5 badass moments.)
Raylene: Only one that may be close to Carol would be how Michonne is now after the loss of Rick. (Yeah, if anybody messed with RJ or Judith, you’d think that. I’d give the honors to Michonne, but Negan lives and I think she could have changed that.)
Kent: I can make an argument for a few like Maggie, Michonne, or even Negan. Still, I think I fear Carol the most. Her justice is usually swift and awesome.
- Lauren Cohen’s name wasn’t in the credits. Will we get an explanation next week? Do you have any ideas on what it may be?
Bob: Nah, I don’t think we get an explanation this season. Maybe AMC is thinking her new show will fail. (Normally I don’t wish a new show ill will, but if it’s the difference of getting Maggie back on the show, I will be selfish and hope for her quick return.)
Kristi: I’m not sure if we will get an explanation so soon. I feel like we will be learning more of the new people and the way of the world. Since we didn’t see little Herschel, I’m thinking she left the group for some reason. (That’s going to be the big key. If we see Little Herschel when we get to Hilltop. I don’t think that we will. I think it buys time to tell the story when it’s needed. If we do see him, then I will be more concerned, honestly.)
Chris: I think they are waiting for her new show to fail. They can definitely get to the midseason finale before having to explain where she is. (Yeah, they have so many new avenues to explore, they can really go a long time without bringing her up. They already altered enough of the story with Earl. I am intrigued though.)
Raylene: I hope we get some type of story as to what happened to her. (Probably in February or March.)
Kent: They are heading toward Hilltop this week. I am curious how they avoid it. I don’t think we’re getting an explanation this half season. Maybe a quick comment alluding to her, but that is it. Maybe she is hanging out with Heath. I think the explanation is that she learning things with Georgie. That is the easiest explanation for the short term.
- Kids are kind of a big deal in this episode. Aside from Judith, we saw Gracie, RJ, and grown-up Henry. Which of the 3 characters not named Judith are you most interested in?
Bob: I have no interest in Michonne’s new child. I can’t say I am terribly interested in any of the kids besides Judith. (I feel RJ is just going to be the new Judith. A character that is there but serves very little purpose, and with no further time jumps incoming, I think I would have considered not adding RJ. They aren’t going to kill the kid, so he is just going to exist and be an excuse from time to time.)
Kristi: Grown-up Henry is annoying as hell. I’m going with the new kid, Kelly. I enjoyed his character. (I was trying to figure out who the hell Kelly was. Then I read the next question. I had a moment, to say the very least. The girl who plays Kelly was very entertaining on Talking Dead last week.)
Chris: Henry, only because I think his story might follow Carl’s from the comics. (It seems inevitable, doesn’t it? Which means Ezekiel will follow more of Rick’s role, or maybe Carol will replace Rick’s role with the upcoming story. I don’t know which.)
Raylene: If Henry smartens his ass up then him. (He’s going to have to smarten up a bit. Of course, if Chris and I are correct in our assumptions, he is going to be the reason for some bad business.)
Kent: I want to say, Gracie. Aaron is such a good character, maybe there is some hope. Henry has the most potential, but Gracie has my attention. I will probably not see her the rest of the season.
- Which member of Magna’s group do you like the best early on, or who has your interest? Their names are Magna, Luke, Yumiko (head injury), Connie (deaf), and Kelly (the young one).
Bob: Magna has my interest, but I don’t like her at all. She is… nuts. (I don’t like her either. I didn’t like her in the comics and don’t like what little bit I have seen on the show, but maybe she can grow into an interesting character.)
Kristi: I really like Luke and Kelly. (Kelly is going to be a very fun character that can hopefully provide some moments of levity.)
Chris: Luke and Magna. (I honestly thought you’d say Yumiko.)
Raylene: Luke seems to be the moral compass so he’s doomed but I do like him (Moral compasses have a bad time. As it was, he was a dude surviving with 4 women. I feel that he’s paid his dues.)
Kent: Connie and Luke. I fear Luke’s existence though as the moral compass. Connie could be compelling though. Much like Wendell in Fear TWD, it’s interesting to see how they write a character with disabilities. Wendell became a favorite of mine because he was unique. I think Connie has that potential.
- We got a fun scene with Negan and Judith. What was your takeaway from that scene?
Bob: That was great. Judith will let him out at some point. Negan turned around that was good to see. (I really want to see that conversation happen when she releases Negan and everyone is like “why would you do that” and she just lays down the law. That would be fantastic.)
Kristi: I think he is growing nicer. I think he will eventually get out and join the group. (I agree with you, at least to some extent.)
Chris: As evil as he comes across sometimes, he shows a soft spot for kids. I think when the whisperers eventually come for Alexandria, he will help them defend. (That probably comes from him being a gym teacher, I would think. He could become the male Carol in that he has great scenes with kids. I am fine with that.)
Raylene: He seems to not be in his dark place anymore but damn, how long is his ass in that cell? (Well he was supposed to be in there like NWO, 4 Life. We all know that is highly unlikely though.)
Kent: This was my favorite scene of the episode. I think that Negan see potential in kids. I would go so far as to say that I think he hated what he grew into out of his need to survive, and there’s something in Negan’s head where he believes that things can be different. He clearly thought things could have been very different with Carl. I loved this scene and watched it a few times.
- Rosita appears to have a relationship with Gabriel, and Eugene appeared to be on the verge of confessing his love to her. Do you prefer Gabriel or Eugene for a Rosita relationship?
Bob: Gabriel – She chewed Eugene out severely before. People are feeling good and they want to make more people. (Now if only someone scavenged some Barry White, everything will be good.)
Kristi: Eugene. It was just weird watching her with Gabriel. They have zero chemistry. (I am struggling coming up with someone that Rosita has chemistry with. I could see her and Magna maybe, but that would be very random.
Chris: I hate when a relationship just randomly exists. That being said, I just can’t see Rosita and Eugene as a couple, and I like Gabriel as a character. He did talk to her a lot after she tried to kill Negan. (This was the best point and I didn’t think about their talks. It’s the closest rational explanation that I have heard so far.)
Raylene: I don’t think she’ll ever return the feelings for poor Eugene so Gabe it is. (Yeah, I think Eugene would annoy the hell out of her.)
Kent: I don’t think Rosita is right for Eugene or Gabe. Both seem like bad choices based on chemistry. I’d rather see Gabriel with Dianne of the Kingdom and Eugene with Laura. Rosita has no real chemistry with any male character that I can think of, who is still single. Daryl is the closest, and I still say nay to that. Just saying, I feel bad for Gabriel.
- We got to see the Whisperers. Do you have any initial thoughts?
Bob: This is truly a great twist! I can’t wait to see what happens with this.
Chris: Excited!!!! These aren’t people who want to be in charge or anything. They are not like the other “bad guys.” I don’t want to spoil anything, but some of the whisperers are awesome characters. (I’m not sure if they are necessarily bad guys. They serve as antagonists, obviously. I am curious how they handle the “animalistic behavior” of the group considering what they can show on TV. I think the show will paint them as more evil to make it more clear-cut rather than letting the fans decide.)
Raylene: YEEHAW……..
Kent: I want to see Ryan Hurst.
- Is Daryl just living alone in the woods?
Bob: Yes, he is a nomad. (Remember when he and Merle were Nomads for like one whole episode before coming back to the prison and saving Officer Friendly?)
Chris: Yeah, because we need at least a few episodes of Daryl being a moody drifter….. Again. (I was legitimately wondering if they are waiting until the second half of the season before making Daryl the official torch carrier. It may make some sense given how much his contract went up, supposedly.)
Raylene: It appears that he’s doing a Carol when she lived just outside of the Kingdom. (Yeah, I can see him doing that. He seems disinterested in things. I get why they make Daryl like this, but it feels like a been there done that at times.)
Kent: I don’t say this in a mean or snarky way. I don’t care about Daryl. We have so many characters that need to be given direction, I’m fine if Daryl waits out a few more episodes. I’d rather get more information on all of the progress and advances that have been made in the time jump.
- Do you feel that Michonne is the leader of Alexandria, or do you genuinely think it is a committee?
Bob: Michonne is in charge, the committee fears her and therefore follows her.
Kristi: She seems to think she is the leader. I see the committee thing but I think her voice is the final spoken.
Chris: I think the committee is there for input, but Michonne is definitely in charge.
Raylene: Michonne is definitely The Queen of Alexandria
Kent: Well, I thought that somebody would choose the committee and provide some piece of knowledge that makes me think on my response. Oh well, it’s a clean sweep. If the committee makes a decision that Michonne disagrees with, I am willing to bet Michonne still gets what she wants.
Bonus Deuce
- Will Ezekiel regret letting Henry move to Hilltop?
Bob: Yeah, especially when Henry DIES! (He’s not going to die……for a while at least.)
Raylene: No he’ll be fine until the fair. (The fair is supposed to be a fun time for all though.)
Kent: Based on my uncertainty on which character will cross the border, I don’t have a legit answer here.
- Laura is a member of the Alexandria committee. She is the blond girl who was a Savior and had some scenes mainly with Eugene. Do you think that they will eventually tell us what happened with the former Saviors?
Bob: Probably. I don’t think it is necessary after they got BURRRNNNNNED! (Kid tested, Russell approved.)
Chris: They probably will, but it’s not needed. All the “important” saviors don’t live there anymore or are dead. (Yeah, I am disappointed at how all of the big name Saviors are dead. Arat, Regina, Gavin, Jared, & Simon are all dead. Dwight and Sherry are MIA as far as we know. Negan is in jail, and Laura is in the committee. Aside from Aldon, did I miss anybody that had any name value?)
Raylene: I think we’ve gotten the drift either they live throughout the communities or have started groups like poor Mud’s. (Mud acted like an amateur. After surviving the ZA for say 8-9 years, you’d think he’d be smarter.
Kent: I’m not sure if there are other Saviors any more. I am guessing most splintered and joined other communities and blended in, or they became nomads. I am going to say that we won’t get any further updates. Dwight is the last chip to fall.
Final Thoughts – Did this feel like a very different or new show, or was it more of the same old stuff?
Bob: It is as new as the first episode this season. Pining for Rick really needs to stop.
Kristi: Same show, new stuff.
Chris: Same show, but with a different vibe.
Raylene: It had a new vibe to it
Kent: It’s like when a show gets canceled, but eventually gets picked up by a different network. Arrested Development or Sliders are 2 good examples. There is a different feel but you are comfortable with the characters in altered states, basically.
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- Circle of Confusion
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- Darkwoods Productions
- AMC Studios
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