In which Kim and Shawn have a few comments on dick biting and stroganoff and hurtle towards the finale.
Kim: There was a lot happening in this episode, but not a lot happened. This one will be hard to write up because I was distracted by Daryl, as usual, looking all post-apocalyptic hot and trying to be a hard ass, but failing miserably. I’m going to keep my comments short and sweet because there are some things that I saw that truly bothered me and I’m not fully ready to commit them to writing at this time.
Abraham has become the king of the one-liners and practical advice, a crown previously owned by Merle. I will admit to waiting anxiously for whatever gem is going to come out of his mouth next.
When Eugene took matters into his own mouth, my son yelled out, “Way to bite a dick, man!” I was both proud and horrified. But I laughed twice as hard when Abraham complimented him on the exact same thing later.
I’m really unsure of the point of Rosita taking the tracks alone. Was it just for tension? It’s not like any bonding occurred that we could see while Daryl and Denise were on the road alone.
Speaking of Denise, you knew this was ending poorly for her. It was her sheer determination. Also, so much was made over the fact that she didn’t tell Tara she loved her, that I just knew it was never going to happen.
The shit in the eye is getting old. Yes, I was shocked when it happened and I wasn’t expecting her to go out that way, but how many eyes can one show plow through? From now on, when anyone leaves I house, I fully expect someone to warn them to be serious all of the time because, as the old adage goes, it’s only funny until someone loses an eye. Also, Christmas Story – “you’ll shoot your eye out!” Or someone else will.
Daryl was exceptionally hot in this episode. I wanted to brush his hair out of his eyes (because eyes are a theme here), and push him up against a tree and do bad things to him. Or let him do them to me, either/or. But he’s got his beloved crossbow back, and I’m not sure I can compete with that.
I should talk about Carol leaving, but I don’t think I can right now. I will say if she winds up saving our gang from the Saviors much like she did at Terminus, I’m going to be more than a little irritated because I hate lazy story lines that turn out the same way. I do want to know what’s changed in her because she burned people for having the flu and she killed psycho Lizzie, but she’s suddenly unwilling to save anyone else in her group? Not. Buying. It.
Last, but certainly not least, I do have one pressing question. Where in the hell has Abraham been staying since leaving Rosita? I mean, I assumed he was shacking up with Sasha, but obviously that’s not the case.
Pick up this turd by the clean end, Shawn, and show me what you’ve got.
Shawn: 1.) DIBS IS DIBS. Eugene might have bit a dick but before that he came up with a really clever plan in a world that is short on actual plans. As much as I want a show where Rick and Daryl go on adventures, I’d be just as happy with the “Abraham and Eugene” show where they live together and have long talks about subjects. I’ve been waiting for Eugene to actually make a difference in the show and little did I know that it would all happen in one episode.
2.) COLA WARS. Denise showed us the Universal Truth – soda will kill you. I also wasn’t completely caught off guard by her death. I think it’s almost too predictable for the show to kill one of the new characters. They had finally started to develop a realistic same-sex relationship from the start and they shut it right down. I’m sad not to see where that was going. So she’s now the person who helped get Daryl his crossbow but also the woman that caused him the grief of causing her death because of not killing someone earlier. And she’s got that whole cooking thing that showed us passing of time.
3.) TERMINUS AHEAD. Yeah, don’t follow the train tracks. Ever. There’s nothing good that can come of it.
4.) I’M SO GLAD WE HAD THIS TIME TOGETHER. So Carol has had enough of the murdering? A little too late, Missy. I thought we had exorcised that demon with last week’s episode. During all this passing of time with her on the porch, did Morgan sit there and mix his concrete and fill her head with guilt? I don’t mind her leaving. That doesn’t seem too far out of character. Her leaving off screen feels like a cheat and something that the writers leave themselves open to go back and manipulate. It’s certainly an opening for us to put the rest of our team at risk next week. Daryl is not going to take this very well. Or with his own personal safety in mind. I guess that last speech/letter just didn’t put the right cap on the episode that I had hoped.
5.) EYE OF THE BEHOLDER. Denise still finishing her sentence after getting the arrow to the eye was as creepy as any of the deaths this season. You nailed the eyeball stuff. The symbolism is sometimes aimed at fifth graders. The grass is greener. The calm before the storm. The you can’t see what’s really happening. We build our own prisons. Yadda yadda yadda. The eyes have it – if you are in the eye patch making industry.
6.) DOCTOR DOCTOR. My first thought was that we don’t have a doctor in Alexandria. Who is going to deliver this baby and now we have just set up or finale.
I also didn’t have as much to say because it felt like the episode had lots to say but didn’t get around to saying it all. I’m not sure I had to shine up a turd but maybe I was only looking at it through my one good eye.
Last point – beef jerky stroganoff!!!
