It’s the big midseason finale for The Walking Dead. Who died? Who survived? How often did Chris Hardwick annoy the hell out of us?
Find out below.
Also, things from the comic may be discussed, as well as things from the preview for the following episodes.
1. TYREEEEEESE!
Once fan favorite from the comics Tyreese makes his debut here, and Chad Coleman, the man cast as him, makes the most out of his screen time. While he’s a bit more…robust than I always expected for the former NFL player Tyreese, Coleman brings the power and emotional side to the character very quickly. I like that this last episode introduced new characters to the show, as we’d lost a number recently and it’s good to have quality replacement. While we won’t see how they fit in until Feburary, I wholly welcome them (even if they are a little foolish with their party guests).
2. Action Sequences = Yay!
There were some really rad action sequences in this episode. While the assault on Woodbury was definitely the tops (even if they used a flashbang AND a smoke grenade, which seems unnecessary based off my history playing Counter Strike), even little parts like Carl going to save Tyreese’s crew was pretty damn fantastic. I’d say the biggest change between season three and the others is that season three instead of talking us to death actually kills things to death, and it’s made the stakes higher and the character moments a little more palatable.
3. Michonne vs. The Governor = Tops!
On a scale of 1 to 10, Michonne finally squaring off against The Governor was a 12 in badassery. This was the moment we were waiting for, and what we were given was an absolutely savage fight that featured a serious “IN YOUR FACE!” moment, and found me actually shouting “GO FOR HIS EYE! HIS EYE!” as my girlfriend looked on with slight disgust. Probably one of the most badass sequences in this season, if not the show, and it was in no way disappointing.
4. Cracks in the Armor
While The Governor is the character who noticeably is completely broken in this episode (losing your daughter and your eye could do that to a guy), we start seeing break downs in others. Daryl briefly questions loyalty until Rick snaps him out of it; Merle gets taken down quite a few notches by The Governor; Michonne is kind of losing her shit a bit; and Andrea, poor Andrea, doesn’t know what she wants now that her boytoy is minus an eye and plus many heads, not to mention his vigorous hate for her former friends. Things are definitely set up for a raucous final 8 episodes of the season. I can’t wait to get there.
5. But I have to…
I just want to say, teasing us with scenes from next season and how the episode ended…it just makes the whole thing frustrating that we have to wait a few months for the remaining 8. While not as bad as what Breaking Bad fans have to go through, AMC is kind of rough with their scheduling. Alas, at least I am finally excited by this show. Only took 2.5 seasons.
