Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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Side note on the actress playing Maggie: I saw a trailer for her new tv show. It's freakin' awful looking. But I guess she'd rather reign in hell than serve in...well...never mind.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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hepcat wrote: Tue Feb 26, 2019 11:08 am Side note on the actress playing Maggie: I saw a trailer for her new tv show. It's freakin' awful looking. But I guess she'd rather reign in hell than serve in...well...never mind.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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Whiskey Cavalier, at least the premiere ep, was kind of a hot mess. Pretty much all over the place. But dammit I just love seeing Lauren Cohen in action. She just has this likability factor for me, kind of reminds me a bit of Sandra Bullock, where I'm happy to just watch her in anything.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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Whiskey Cavalier looks to the latest ABC attempt to have another Castle like romantic comedy/drama. This will be their third I think. There was The Catch and some show about an actress following a cop or something.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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Last night's ep started out good for me, I was glad to see Michonne, Aaron, Rosita, Eugene and some of the older cast members again. Eugene's spreadsheet scene was one of the most genuinely entertaining things I've seen on the show for a long time. The bizarre 4-way relationship is kind of a soap opera mess, but it's an entertaining diversion in an otherwise bleak world.

Leader Michonne is kind of an annoying bore; it's like they dumped all the things that made Rick annoying onto her character, which I suppose makes sense but is awful for the character. No wonder she's ready to leave the show. Her scene with Negan should have been much more powerful, but instead shows the price they pay for losing Rick. In the comic, Rick/Negan was an extremely dynamic, dramatic and complex relationship; here it's happening by proxy. Same thing goes with Judith and Negan; without the history that Carl had with him, it's again a lot of great story without the depth that it had before, and again feels like it's more by proxy. I guess the end result is we are supposed to think that Negan (and Judith) have gotten under her skin enough to forgo her insistence on vetoing the fair.

Much of the ep then focuses on the Whisperers, who I'm sorry are still not impressing me at all. For one moment it seems like there's a wow factor at how many people they have. We get a nice glimpse into the size of their community and the way they live, but almost immediately they ruin the mystique with a simple walker attack (I guess led by Daryl?) which they seem completely ill-equipped to deal with and start losing people left and right? This is the great setup that supposedly keeps people safe, that they can't handle just a small group of walkers at their own base camp?!?!? Alpha's posturing and establishing dominance over a couple of losers I guess was supposed to be shocking, but it didn't do much for me. Again, we are supposed to believe that this huge group of people have all given up on any chance of a normal life to join this nomadic dead-skin-wearing group, but they haven't shown us anything to make it seem like they have any appeal whatsoever. Survival against the walkers would be the one thing, and even that they kind of just threw out the window.

Essentially this episode boiled down to getting things setup for The Fair, which promises to give us our next dose of mayhem and death.

Anyway, did anyone else watch Talking Dead after? Father Gabriel had a weird vibe the entire episode, and even blurted out that some major deaths were coming. Rosita was gushing over him but he still seemed kind of distant and negative. This leads me to think he is going to be one of the main casualties coming up. Maybe they'll trade him for Ezekiel? It's hard to imagine both of them getting killed but who knows. They definitely need some housecleaning of extra characters.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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Wait...so NOW you don’t really have to wear dead guts to keep the zombies from attacking you, you just have to walk slowly?

For cryin’ out loud, show. Get your story straight. :doh:
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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hepcat wrote: Mon Mar 04, 2019 7:31 pm Wait...so NOW you don’t really have to wear dead guts to keep the zombies from attacking you, you just have to walk slowly?

For cryin’ out loud, show. Get your story straight. :doh:
lol! I was wondering about that too. I think wearing the full face mask sliced from a zombie is considered "enough." This would be roughly consistent with Fear the Walking Dead, where all they had to do was paint a little zombie blood on their face and that seemed to work. So that would explain why some of the people who weren't wearing their masks still got eaten. It doesn't explain why pretty girl and Hornry didn't seem to get targeted. Maybe their raging teen hormones makes them immune.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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The only thing I can think of is that they weren’t actually around any dead in those scenes. Which means they’re totally method about this faux zombie crap.

Another weird thing we learned is that their necks must be made out of pudding as you can easily sever one with just wire and a seemingly small amount of effort.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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hepcat wrote: Mon Mar 04, 2019 7:47 pm The only thing I can think of is that they weren’t actually around any dead in those scenes. Which means they’re totally method about this faux zombie crap.
Yes, there were no actual zombies among them as they were heading back to their camp.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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I have more questions than answers about the Whisperers after this last episode. What the challenge to Alpha's authority going to end up in a whisper-off but she just decapitated her instead? As pointed out, did she use a wire made of lasers? I also didn't understand why the other guy just stood there. It seemed like they were trying to set up Alpha as a menacing monster but I just couldn't make sense of it.

Also, when they skin the walkers, why are they getting the bone ridges of the skull on their face masks. They should all look like leatherface, not actual zombies with sunken eyes and protroduing orbital sockets. The giant mean tracker that's roughing up Hornry (thanks again for that) is the one I saw that confused me.

Any, I'm watching but it feels like the wheels are flying off this bus.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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Smoove_B wrote: Mon Mar 04, 2019 9:09 pm Any, I'm watching but it feels like the wheels are flying off this bus.
Yep.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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The show is doing a poor job of introducing the whisperers. In the comic they walked among the dead and used the dead as weapons. The dead were never used against them.

Im assuming wearing zombie skins would smell putrid, which is why they are safe with them on both in the show and in the comic.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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I enjoyed last night's episode quite a bit, possibly my favorite this season thus far. The Daryl vs Beta battle lived up to the hype and was definitely one of the best 1v1 fights the show has had for quite a while. It had the air of some of the Rick v. Negan battles, but Beta just looks a lot more intimidating.

Daryl and Connie made for a great combo/duo, I'm really starting to like her a lot. It made the Hornry/Lydia teen romance much more bearable. Actually I like both the young actors, it's not their fault they are stuck in a kind of thankless storyline. One thing that bugged me is that the group kept insisting they couldn't go back if they had Lydia, but that doesn't make a whole lot of sense. What makes them think Alpha won't just go and attack Hilltop regardless? So now they just want to go on the run indefinitely? I don't remember how this all works out in the comics, but it just seems like they should know by now the only way this ends is by taking them out. Maybe it's going to fall to Negan to drive that point home, but probably not until a few more key characters die.

The Highwaymen storyline turned out to be (I guess) kind of a red herring? The resolution was pretty cool, presuming that was really the resolution. I can see how some might think it was kind of cheesy or out of the blue, but I think that's why I liked it. It's fun to see Carol do her thing.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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rittchard wrote: Mon Mar 11, 2019 1:49 pm I enjoyed last night's episode quite a bit, possibly my favorite this season thus far. The Daryl vs Beta battle lived up to the hype and was definitely one of the best 1v1 fights the show has had for quite a while. It had the air of some of the Rick v. Negan battles, but Beta just looks a lot more intimidating.

Daryl and Connie made for a great combo/duo, I'm really starting to like her a lot. It made the Hornry/Lydia teen romance much more bearable. Actually I like both the young actors, it's not their fault they are stuck in a kind of thankless storyline. One thing that bugged me is that the group kept insisting they couldn't go back if they had Lydia, but that doesn't make a whole lot of sense. What makes them think Alpha won't just go and attack Hilltop regardless? So now they just want to go on the run indefinitely? I don't remember how this all works out in the comics, but it just seems like they should know by now the only way this ends is by taking them out. Maybe it's going to fall to Negan to drive that point home, but probably not until a few more key characters die.

The Highwaymen storyline turned out to be (I guess) kind of a red herring? The resolution was pretty cool, presuming that was really the resolution. I can see how some might think it was kind of cheesy or out of the blue, but I think that's why I liked it. It's fun to see Carol do her thing.
Spoiler:
The comic goes something like this: Carl runs off to make sure Lydia is safe. Rick goes after Carl. Alpha takes Rick on a walk to show him the biggest herd he’s ever seen under the Whsiperer’s control. On the way back home Rick finds the heads of a ton of his friends on pikes meant to mark the Whsiperer’s territory. Like major characters. Biggest wiping of characters at one time to date in the comics.
I thought the show last night did a good job of letting you know why these people would live like that: The way they coped with losing people is walking among them. That and they have reverted to some seriously primitive shit from how they live to how they mate, etc.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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rittchard wrote: Mon Mar 11, 2019 1:49 pm I enjoyed last night's episode quite a bit, possibly my favorite this season thus far. The Daryl vs Beta battle lived up to the hype and was definitely one of the best 1v1 fights the show has had for quite a while. It had the air of some of the Rick v. Negan battles, but Beta just looks a lot more intimidating.
Hmm...I guess I'm the opposite. It seemed more telegraphed than a WWE match and with his plot armor, I knew Daryl was never in trouble. Plus the whole time I was thinking Beta is no Merle so there's just no way Daryl is going down.

I still am not clear on what their plan was in the high-rise complex. They split up for an ambush but why not just throw bricks at them in the stairwell? You know they're not carrying guns so get them all bottled up and just hammer them with heavy things.

I know I sound nit-picky and it's probably just my general overall frustration over the show's arc this season. I like Lydia. I don't understand the Whisperers. I was also a bit confused by the Highway Men though I guess the movie tie in at least made the earlier episode worth it. I guess I just don't get how these Highway dudes just more or less appeared and thought they were going to get away with robbing people. I guess I'm assuming Alexandria and the Kingdom are known and/or have a reputation so going up against them like that seems...bold.

Anyway I'm still watching (of course) and I'll watch until the bitter end (of course) but they really need to tighten some things up, IMHO. Same as it ever was.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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Smoove_B wrote: Mon Mar 11, 2019 7:41 pm
rittchard wrote: Mon Mar 11, 2019 1:49 pm I enjoyed last night's episode quite a bit, possibly my favorite this season thus far. The Daryl vs Beta battle lived up to the hype and was definitely one of the best 1v1 fights the show has had for quite a while. It had the air of some of the Rick v. Negan battles, but Beta just looks a lot more intimidating.
Hmm...I guess I'm the opposite. It seemed more telegraphed than a WWE match and with his plot armor, I knew Daryl was never in trouble. Plus the whole time I was thinking Beta is no Merle so there's just no way Daryl is going down.

I still am not clear on what their plan was in the high-rise complex. They split up for an ambush but why not just throw bricks at them in the stairwell? You know they're not carrying guns so get them all bottled up and just hammer them with heavy things.

I know I sound nit-picky and it's probably just my general overall frustration over the show's arc this season. I like Lydia. I don't understand the Whisperers. I was also a bit confused by the Highway Men though I guess the movie tie in at least made the earlier episode worth it. I guess I just don't get how these Highway dudes just more or less appeared and thought they were going to get away with robbing people. I guess I'm assuming Alexandria and the Kingdom are known and/or have a reputation so going up against them like that seems...bold.
Feel free to nitpick lol, I'm pretty much the same way. If they happen to surprise me with something I like, I can be more forgiving. Addressing your comments:

- I never thought Daryl was in trouble, though I thought he might get a bit hurt. Daryl is pretty much 100% untouchable at this point since they literally have no one left from the original cast except Carol. But I still liked the "raw" nature of the battle, i.e. no fancy martial arts stuff, just a lot of wall bashing and knife slashing. I also liked that neither of them, particularly Daryl, was above fighting "dirty" with secret weapons and whatnot.

- The plan for the complex was to create the (episode name) "chokepoint" to divide up the human Whisperers from their zombie guardians. Lydia told them there should only be around 5 or 6 humans with the pack, so the goal was to get all the zombies stuck at the stairwell and have the humans come to them in a nicer fight zone where ambush is presumably much easier. But yes, you bring up a good point, they could have set a trap up in the stairwell, especially with a crossbow and Connie's Sling+1. I suppose a tight curling stairwell just doesn't offer good angles for shooting?

- The idea that was floated was that the mid-ground territory that used to be held by the leftover Saviors was up for grabs after Carol slaughtered Jed (Jeb?) and his crew (which apparently no one else knew about). So the Highwaymen kind of filled that void of space and started claiming the territory. I think it was supposed to be all fairly recent. I don't remember when Carol fried those people, was that before or after the second time jump? It's never been made explicitly clear to me, but I think we are supposed to assume that the Kingdom is the most cut off (or furthest) from the other groups, with maybe the Sanctuary kind of in between? A nice map would help.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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I will say that hiring Angus Sampson to play the head of the Highwaymen was a smart move. He was friggin' fantastic on the second season of Fargo. I've been noticing him in more and more things lately, so it looks like others watched that season as well.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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I enjoyed the episode overall, but there was a giant, gaping problem with the whole plan to challenge Beta and his crew. That fight should never have happened...
Spoiler:
As the Whisperers and their walkers are approaching the building, Daryl fired a very well-placed crossbow shot right into the head of a walker only a few feet away from Beta in order to get their attention. Why didn't he just shoot Beta?

Daryl is a smart guy, but the show set up an unnecessary face-off...something you would think Daryl should be smart enough to avoid

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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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disarm wrote: Tue Mar 12, 2019 1:09 pm I enjoyed the episode overall, but there was a giant, gaping problem with the whole plan to challenge Beta and his crew. That fight should never have happened...
Spoiler:
As the Whisperers and their walkers are approaching the building, Daryl fired a very well-placed crossbow shot right into the head of a walker only a few feet away from Beta in order to get their attention. Why didn't he just shoot Beta?

Daryl is a smart guy, but the show set up an unnecessary face-off...something you would think Daryl should be smart enough to avoid
Because he didn't know which one was Beta and he had a limited number of arrows (as has been shown more than once). I didn't have an issue with that scene. I did, however, find the continued ability of the deaf woman to have Daredevil levels of hearing at times a little disconcerting.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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hepcat wrote: Tue Mar 12, 2019 1:12 pm
disarm wrote: Tue Mar 12, 2019 1:09 pm I enjoyed the episode overall, but there was a giant, gaping problem with the whole plan to challenge Beta and his crew. That fight should never have happened...
Spoiler:
As the Whisperers and their walkers are approaching the building, Daryl fired a very well-placed crossbow shot right into the head of a walker only a few feet away from Beta in order to get their attention. Why didn't he just shoot Beta?

Daryl is a smart guy, but the show set up an unnecessary face-off...something you would think Daryl should be smart enough to avoid
Because he didn't know which one was Beta and he had a limited number of arrows (as has been shown more than once). I didn't have an issue with that scene. I did, however, find the continued ability of the deaf woman to have Daredevil levels of hearing at times a little disconcerting.
LOL, I couldn't remember what that reminded me of until you just said it! And I just watched Daredevil S2 a couple weeks ago!!!

I actually think it's really cool to give her some advantage. My take on it is if Michonne can be like a freaking ninja, Connie can be Daredevil lol. I still want to know what she's shooting with her magical D&D Slingshot.

If you want a more serious take, I think what they mentioned is she saw a glimmer out of the corner of her eye, so it's more that she has heightened vision that she's learned to rely on. Anyone who has lasted this long in the apocalypse has had to have some advantage to lean on. Our "heroes" are supposed to be the best of the best at this point.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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She also has demanded people face her when they're talking so she can read their lips...then in the next scene, responds to a question someone who was facing the other direction just asked.

Not a big deal, and certainly not something I'm obsessing over. Just something I found amusing at times.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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rittchard wrote: Tue Mar 12, 2019 1:27 pm If you want a more serious take, I think what they mentioned is she saw a glimmer out of the corner of her eye, so it's more that she has heightened vision that she's learned to rely on.
Yes, this is what the actress mentioned on Talking Dead.

And seriously guys, crossbow "shots" and crossbow "arrows"? C'mon, they are called bolts, duh. :nerdslurp:
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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I live in Chicago. If it isn’t a semi automatic, it ain’t worth worrying about.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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My main annoyance was that beta fell 10 stories and gets up with a bloody lip. WTF? Well that and most of the stuff everyone else has complained about. I did enjoy the hell out of the Kingdom parts. Haven't read the comics so I don't have anything to compare it to. My other issue is Carl 2.0 being Carl .5 and doing dumb shit because the story advances by him doing dumb shit. Just when Carl was an enjoyable character they get rid of him and bring in someone to do stupid things. They better not make Carol Laurie 2.0. I will not be happy.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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Well...that was something. I don't know if there was an issue with AMC or DirecTV last night, but there were some really strange cuts to commercial during last night's show. It felt like someone dumped to a commercial break too soon and then resumed the episode mid-scene for a few times in the first half hour of watching. As a result, I'm not sure I fully grasped the story, though I guess I understand the big picture. Either way, I'd seen a spoiler-free article over the weekend indicating this was a MUST SEE episode, but I didn't really feel anything about it. I'm convinced now I'm in the "find fault with everything for the person you're dating" stage of watching this show and I'm just looking for excuses to end it.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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Smoove_B wrote: Mon Mar 18, 2019 10:29 am Well...that was something. I don't know if there was an issue with AMC or DirecTV last night, but there were some really strange cuts to commercial during last night's show. It felt like someone dumped to a commercial break too soon and then resumed the episode mid-scene for a few times in the first half hour of watching. As a result, I'm not sure I fully grasped the story, though I guess I understand the big picture. Either way, I'd seen a spoiler-free article over the weekend indicating this was a MUST SEE episode, but I didn't really feel anything about it. I'm convinced now I'm in the "find fault with everything for the person you're dating" stage of watching this show and I'm just looking for excuses to end it.
Ya had the same problem. Was really annoying.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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That's interesting, not sure what's up but... I actually loved it. Definitely the best of the season for me, and maybe one of my top 10 in the entire series. This was the first time this season where I didn't feel like the episode was filled with too many second tier characters or plotlines. Thankfully Hornry and Lydia were used sparingly and didn't interfere with the core cast.

Why? A lot of great 1 on 1 character interaction and moments. I loved Michonne with Daryl, Daryl with Judith, Judith and Michonne, Michonne and Negan. Even Michonne with Tara (sorry that's her True Blood name, I forgot her character name lol) reminiscing was just so natural. The Judith actress is a scene stealer and living up to all the praise they've been giving her, she just needs to be in it more. Danai has been a bit off her game most of this season, but I thought she was absolutely awesome this episode from start to finish. I bought the whole thing, even Judith's manipulative "why don't we love them anymore?" line which in the hands of a lesser child actor would have irritated the crap out of me. It brought tears to my eyes, and Michonne's reaction/breakdown/healing was just fantastic.

We finally get the explanation for what changed Michonne, as well as the mystery X scars. It had to be something really extreme, and this was about as extreme as it gets. The branding I thought was a bit non-sensical, I wish they had spent a little more time explaining why that was necessary. The producer lady waved it off as some sort of training exercise, but they could have done other things. Branding usually has some particular reason, I'd imagine, to send a message or place a claim or something. It seemed like they were just going to kill them anyway, so why bother. I did find it a bit hard to swallow that these people, including a so-called friend, would be that cruel to a pregnant woman. But I guess the friend had already gone full evil and had also brain-washed her creepy children of the corn. Either way I thought it was a fantastic sequence and I was rooting hard for Michonne to slaughter those little creeps. Yeah, it's a bit disturbing but whatever. Go look at the flowers, you creepy kids!

I loved the references to Carl and his grave site, and the way they used Rick's legacy/memory. Earlier episodes it was kind of irritating me, but this one it worked for some reason - the frustration of not being able to gain closure from finding a body or even a walker version is worse than pretty much anything, particularly for people like Daryl and Michonne who are so strong willed. It's that much more frustrating as a fan knowing that the Rick character is indeed out there and alive. It kind of just pisses me off. Knowing that Michonne is also leaving the show is really problematic. I'd like to hear she's off to find Rick and join him in movie land. But it makes no sense she'd leave her two kids behind, so it seems more likely they have to kill her off unless she takes them with her. Anyway, something to worry about later. For one brief moment, I'm actually quite satisfied with the show.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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I guess I should pay closer attention as I had no idea Michone had a son with Rick. :shock:
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

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The time jumps confused me, even with Wife helpfully explaining them. I usually clock out mentally during child-centered scenes and this episode was swarming with them. Most the kids were feral (I think) but we were supposed to recognize some of them, and...well, you confuse easily at my age.

At least it explained Michone's zombie-slayer hobby and set up a rapprochement with the other communities, although I still really don't get why she broke with them in the first place. Am I being senile again?
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

Post by rittchard »

Kraken wrote: Mon Mar 18, 2019 10:51 pm The time jumps confused me, even with Wife helpfully explaining them. I usually clock out mentally during child-centered scenes and this episode was swarming with them. Most the kids were feral (I think) but we were supposed to recognize some of them, and...well, you confuse easily at my age.

At least it explained Michone's zombie-slayer hobby and set up a rapprochement with the other communities, although I still really don't get why she broke with them in the first place. Am I being senile again?
I don't think you were supposed to recognize any of the Children of the Corn. But they were mixed in with other kids from Alexandria. I'm not sure why they didn't take Aaron's kid, maybe she was still too little at the time. Given Michonne's state of pregnancy, we can presume this takes place somewhere around 6 months after Rick disappeared, so that makes sense.

Basically after this highly traumatic event, Michonne becomes completely distrustful of all strangers, and makes the decision that protecting her own community is the priority above everything else. So she kind of just goes into her own shell and takes Alexandria with her. It's not so much a hard break with the other communities, but more of a re-prioritization toward self-preservation over helping anyone else. I guess you could call it a form of PTSD causing extreme distrust.

I guess what isn't clear is how much detail she told the rest of the Council of Alexandria. They all had to know about the betrayal from her friend since there was evidence left behind (dead guy). Perhaps she kept the gory details of being tortured and then slaughtering the kids to herself (and Daryl). It seems like everyone would have been more sympathetic if they knew what had happened, and maybe discussing it they would have had her take a break from leadership, etc. But it appears she just doubled down on taking control even though she was preggers and injured. Since Daryl was off on his own, she became even more isolated in her position until this episode unfolds.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

Post by EvilHomer3k »

They've never done time jumps well. You are always surprised that it's a time jump and until something happens to let you know it was a time jump you often don't have any idea that it was. I despised the scene where they are tied up, get branded, then have escaped. The only clue you see is Daryl moving his thumb. Nothing at all about what actually happened. Just oh, look, they're free. Then, of course, they have the scene where Judith is doing just fine, then gets distracted before killing the zombie because the writers feel it's needed. Why was it needed? Why would someone who has, for their entire life, been taught that they could die from any simple mistake, suddenly make a mistake like that. Just let me slice this zombie at the knee...Oh, hi mom! Zombie grabs her. Really? What was the purpose of that? It felt forced and out of character. Judith is supposed to be this badass character but if she was, she wouldn't do stupid things like this.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

Post by Kraken »

EvilHomer3k wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 11:18 pm They've never done time jumps well. You are always surprised that it's a time jump and until something happens to let you know it was a time jump you often don't have any idea that it was.
Glad I'm not the only one who gets disoriented. I'm never sure how much of that is just due to my mind slipping away.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

Post by hepcat »

The show is seriously feeling the loss of Carl. They really shot themselves in the foot, if you ask me. Lincoln wanted to leave, so there was no stopping that. But without one central character on which to focus the bulk of the story, we're left with Michonne, Daryl and (the recently departed) Maggie for our central cast. And while they're good, they're also creating disparate story lines, IMHO.

Carl could have taken up the mantle of his father and acted as the core of the show. He had the chops (I disagree with those who thought he was a horrible actor), and he had the pedigree as the son of Rick Grimes. He also had the advantage of growing into manhood in this world. He could have lent a sense of adaptability to this world that the others aren't fully capable of.

Honestly, at this point, I'd like to see Negan eventually released and put in Rick's place. I would find a reformed Negan attempting to do right a far more interesting focus than the scattershot attempts at one we're seeing right now.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

Post by Smoove_B »

I'm pretty sure that scenario is going to happen, but I'm having a hard time imagining any situation where the people involved would accept it.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

Post by rittchard »

Yup, I've been saying all along that losing Carl (on top of Rick) would kill the show's "soul". I know some people didn't like Carl but he was the lynchpin that sold the show (and comic) for me since the beginning. I had read the first giant book of the comic and loved the comic Carl, but I was extremely skeptical if they could find a child actor that could play him effectively. He pretty much won me over in season 2 after he got shot. From then on, even with some of the weaker storylines, I thought he did a great job.

As Hepcat said, the show should have focused on him with Rick leaving. I'm pretty sure I heard an interview where Andrew Lincoln said the same thing. While we will probably never hear what really happened, I suspect the producers had a falling out with the actor's father, who probably made some crazy demands when he found out his son could potentially become the lead star of the show. That's all conjecture, of course. A lot of fans thought he was going to college, but the actor explicitly stated he had chosen to take a gap year for TWD, and had also chosen a college nearby so that he could keep filming. So it doesn't seem like it was something he wanted or had planned on.

Anyway, back to the show - in the comic I think Negan ends up saving Rick during a pivotal fight with the Whisperers (I think it was them), and that helps cement his position in the group. Given that he already has Judith's vote, I suspect something similar will happen, with him saving someone critical (maybe Michonne?). Don't forget, conveniently most of the people who were at the Glenn/Abraham slaying are dead or gone. With 8 (?) years passing, it's likely many of the folk don't have much memory of why he's in jail. So I agree with Hep, letting him become the focus (along with Judith) next season may be something that can carry the show. Certainly the actor has the charisma to do so.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

Post by EvilHomer3k »

I think that there were people who disliked Carl. I think that many people grew to like him as he grew older. Mostly because the writing around his character got better.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

Post by tjg_marantz »

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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

Post by Smoove_B »

Lots of contracts ran out and/or people wanted off the show, I guess.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

Post by stimpy »

I thought it was a good episode finally, until I had a second to think about it.
How in the world did 1 woman get 10 people out of the camp without anyone noticing?
No screaming? No fighting? Not 1 person put up a struggle?
Grand canyon plot hole.
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Re: Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

Post by EvilHomer3k »

stimpy wrote: Mon Mar 25, 2019 9:04 am I thought it was a good episode finally, until I had a second to think about it.
How in the world did 1 woman get 10 people out of the camp without anyone noticing?
No screaming? No fighting? Not 1 person put up a struggle?
Grand canyon plot hole.
Exactly. Even if she had more with her it makes no sense at all. I can see Henry. I can see the highwaymen. But all of them? It makes no sense and is exactly why they didn't try to explain it. It's the laziest form of lazy writing.
Intern Writer: "How is Alpha going to get all these people out of The Kingdom without anyone noticing?"
Seasoned TWD writer: "Who cares. We just use a flashback sort of showing how they died and don't explain how they got there. No one will notice or care. It's the only zombie show around so what are they going to do? Watch something else?"

I think they could have had the same effect just getting Henry, the Highwaymen, and Tara (who was going off to get ready anyway). It would have been much easier to believe and much simpler overall but the writers never seem to go for a simple solution when they can contrive something ridiculous. How would Earl not notice that Tammy was gone? Sadiq not notice Enid was gone (or her boyfriend)? When you do something that big you have to explain it. It's like showing someone preparing to climb Everest and then showing them at the top.

They didn't really kill off any of the good characters anyway. Tara never seemed like a good choice to be a leader and Henry was annoying doing his WTF is Carl impersonation all the time. I think the highwaymen had a lot of potential but they weren't on long enough to become attached to them. The rest were cast members with little screen time. I will miss Enid.

Also, I had no idea that Brett Butler was Tammy.
That sound of the spoon scraping over the can ribbing as you corral the last ravioli or two is the signal that a great treat is coming. It's the washboard solo in God's own
bluegrass band of comfort food. - LawBeefaroni
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