S05.E10: Them

[Tara Ariano]

Life on the road has the group beaten and beleaguered.

[HalcyonDays]

If you've read the comics, be very careful to avoid spoiling those who don't, and keep in mind that some people may have much stricter notions of what a spoiler is. Any substantial comic talk should go in the comics thread; minor discussion is okay here, but be very liberal with the spoiler tags, and don't give away too much outside the tags either.

[kikismom]

I wonder what kind of dreams I will have tonight?

[bosawks]

I did like the music box going off.

I can be so easy sometimes....

And it was nice they cut a away second before Sasha probably shot it.

Edited February 16, 2015 by bosawks

[SpaghettiTuesdays]

I might have a heat attack this season.

 

I can't believe this. My heart is beating so fast. WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO FEEL RIGHT NOW?!?!?!

[The Mighty Peanut]

I half hoped they'd open the door and it would be Oz

[minamurray78]

Were there mushrooms in that jewelry box??!!

[TheRabbi]

This show is excruciatingly boring.  I'll stick out the rest of this season and then I'm out.

[Rosiejuliemom]

I wonder what kind of dreams I will have tonight?

 

I'm pretty sure mine will involve vulnerable babies and thunderstorms/tornadoes at night. Add in Freddy Krueger and I'll have a trifecta of what scares the crap out of me.

[Cheetosandchoc]

I half hoped they'd open the door and it would be Oz

the rape prison or the magic place?

[TexasChic]

There was a walker impaled on a tree branch in the top of a tree outside the barn, I can't get past that.

[SimoneS]

Ha, I knew that we would encounter the water benefactor. It is not a good sign that the guy knows that Rick's name.

 

I loved this episode. The pain, exhaustion, and grief from everyone. It reminded me of the farm episodes that I loved so much. Of course, there will be tons of complaints about it.

 

So the mythical components are the storm taking out the walkers with trees and then the music box starts playing.

Edited February 16, 2015 by SimoneS

[kikismom]

Don't forget the dogs!

[Raven1707]

I found it oddly beautiful, overall.

[Mya Stone]

Ha, I knew that we would encounter the water benefactor. It is not a good sign that the guy knows that Rick's name.

I loved this episode. The pain, exhaustion, and grief from everyone. It reminded me of the farm episodes that I loved so much. Of course, there will be tons of complaints about it.

So the mythical components are the storm taking out the walkers with trees and then the music box starts playing.

I'm reallllllllly hoping he knows Rick's name because of Morgan.

A girl can hope, right?

[The Mighty Peanut]

the rape prison or the magic place?

Well with the stormnado or whatever it was I was thinking Oz as in the merry old Land of, but the rape prison would probably make more sense tonally.

[Rosiejuliemom]

I honestly think that this episode was necessary. So many times we haven't been able to see characters mourn their losses or really do much other than soldier on from one crisis to the next. It was interesting to see some of how everything is affecting them.

[mustbekarma]

This was a quiet episode, but I think it was a necessary one. The moment when everyone shoved against the barn door. They made up their minds to live. The scene with the destroyed trees, that was a bit freakish. That barn should have fallen, but it didn't.  Hip, Hip, Hooray, for Mother Nature.

 

That friend so cannot be a friend.

 

I'm trying to ignore them eating the dogs. At least the dogs were trying to eat them first, so I didn't have to feel so badly that they were eating Rin TIn Tin.

 

I hate quiet episodes, because the feces impacts with the rotating oscillator shortly afterwards.

[SpaghettiTuesdays]

I found it oddly beautiful, overall.

I agree. There's something beautiful in the human spirit, whether it'd be the deepest despair or a fleeting smile.

 

This new dude is bad news bears. I'm afraid. 

[natyxg]

This show is excruciatingly boring. 

This THIS tHIS THIIIIISSS.

 

I think this episode was my Walking Dead  I-can't-take-this-anymore episode. It encapsulated everything wrong with this show.

 

It is possible to have character internal plots AND outside plots that keep the tension. Not only possible, but preferable.  They just spent yet another bloody episode emoting and emoting and talking and talking and brooding. They are in a zombie apocalypse. They are tired and hopeless. This is not brand new information. I learned nothing new yet the whole episode was this crap, plus the sprinkled pretentiousness of the symbolism of the new dawn  and the brooding ones being the first ones that wanted to live.

 

This show has become like those boring, pretentious Oscar nominated movies that critics rave about but I find utterly sleep inducing. Every week I want to give it a chance, but walk away just as bored and frustrated.

[Rosiejuliemom]

I'm reallllllllly hoping he knows Rick's name because of Morgan.

A girl can hope, right?

 

Oh, that would be fantastic. Much better than the implication that he has been following/spying on the group for who knows how long.

 

One thing I've noticed in the last two episodes is how the cinematography is drawing me in more than usual. Beautiful camera work.

Edited February 16, 2015 by Rosiejuliemom

[SimoneS]

The moment when everyone shoved against the barn door. They made up their minds to live.

Great point. You are right. I had not thought about the scene that way, but it was about the triumph of hope over despair, especially since it was three people most lost who went to the door first.

[bosawks]

I think it's obvious that the new guy has been hiding out in a LL Bean....

[ghoulina]

Rick said the title! Rick. Said. The Title. 

 

I wonder how long they've been waiting to work that in? I thought it worked, though. We've always known our little group was The Walking Dead, but this kind of put a different spin on it. I liked Rick's story and what it meant for the group. 

 

I mean, really, this is THE lowest they've ever been. No shelter. No working vehicle. No food. Barely any water. Some of the moping was a bit much (Daryl, I'm looking at you), but I can't begrudge them for being at the place they're at, struggling to decide whether it's even worth going on at this point. For what? You love someone, you get close to them, you have hope - BOOM! It's all taken from you. They can't focus continually on despair or the show will become too dark. but I liked some of what they showed us tonight - especially that they had to resort to eating wild dog. This is what it's become. 

 

I found the woman in the trunk to be incredibly sad. Why was she tied up and gagged? How awful to die that way. 

 

I liked seeing so many interactions with people we haven't really seen interact much before - Maggie and Carl, Sash and Abraham, etc. LOVED Maggie and Sasha enjoying the sunset together. 

 

But my overall favorite scene from this episode, and a top contender for the entire series, was every damn body pushed up against that barn door. With the walls shaking and the rain pouring, like motherfucking Noah's ark or something. They all pulled their weight. They were a team. I thought it was really beautiful. 

 

Worst moment? Rolling around in the rain like chickens, with your mouths open, instead of immediately opening the bottles you refuse to drink, dumping them, and filling them with fresh water. 

 

Finally, who in the seven hells is Aaron and why is he so bloody clean???

Edited February 16, 2015 by ghoulina

[SimoneS]

I'm reallllllllly hoping he knows Rick's name because of Morgan.

A girl can hope, right?

 

I cannot imagine Morgan sending that would send someone to find Rick. Morgan would go himself. The guy has to be from the governor's group. I cannot think of anyone else who would know Rick's name.

[Enigma X]

I tend to like the character driven episodes, so I thoroughly enjoyed this one. I like "feels."

[The Mighty Peanut]

Rick's new question..."How many people have you k...do you guys eat people? Because the last group fucking ate people."

[Irishmaple]

I loved that episode.  Almost everyone hit real despair.  Rick's looking at the world his kids are living in now, and it's ugly.  Maggie is grieving, Sasha is grieving, Daryl's grieving.  Michonne has had enough.  Abraham still hates Eugene.  Everyone is starving and dehydrating and not looking that different from the Walkers stalking them.  There are feral dogs and they're dinner.  Life sucks.  And no-one has any quit in them.  Carol and Glenn can verbalize it, but the others were numbed until the Walkers attacked the barn and everyone got up to defend their own lives and the lives of their group.  I thought it was so moving.  The determination to keep the Walkers out was so intense.  Everyone was there, giving their best effort, most of them finding strength they didn't know they could muster.

 

The trunk Walker and the woman in the barn were so pathetic I actually felt sorry for zombies for probably the first time ever.  I don't like the look of Aaron at all.  Knowing Rick's name, knowing he was leading the group?  Creepy, unless the information came from Morgan.  I'm going with creepy for now.  Aaron's giving me Terminus vibes.

[SpaghettiTuesdays]

Sonequa is talking about Maggie/Sasha's sunrise brouhaha. I think that was a beautiful part of the series until it was ruined by the dude who reminds me of a serial rapist.

[SimoneS]

The woman in the trunk was very sad. I hope that she was already turned when she was put there and not kidnapped and put in the truck while she was alive.

 

I mean, really, this is THE lowest they've ever been. No shelter. No working vehicle. No food. Barely any water. Some of the moping was a bit much (Daryl, I'm looking at you), but I can't begrudge them for being at the place they're at, struggling to decide whether it's even worth going on at this point. For what? You love someone, you get close to them, you have hope - BOOM! It's all taken from you. They can't focus continually on despair or the show will become too dark. but I liked some of what they showed us tonight - especially that they had to resort to eating wild dog. This is what it's become. 

 

Last week, I commented that it was amazing that there were not more ulcers, depressions, and suicides given what the group has been through, all the losses that they have suffered. I think the writers were addressing the group's mental health in this episode.  

[CletusMusashi]

I honestly thought Eugene offering to atone to the others by volunteering his services as poison taster, crash test dummy, and general purpose  coal mine canary was a good idea. But of course that would make us remember that he was wrong to try to lead people to Washington for no reason. So it can't be allowed.

[Rosiejuliemom]

I liked seeing so many interactions with people we haven't really seen interact much before - Maggie and Carl, Sash and Abraham, etc. LOVED Maggie and Sasha enjoying the sunset together.

 

 

This. I was wondering if some of these people had even spoken to each other on-screen before. For example, Michonne and Sasha. I did like to see Maggie and Father Gabriel interact, even if Maggie kept verbally bitch-slapping him.

 

I called it on Gabriel being so buttoned down as a form of personal atonement! I'm usually so wrong about stuff like this.

[minamurray78]

I found the tied up zombie in the trunk to be quite jarring.

You think a zombie apocalypse would screw up humanity for good. Then you remember, we were already screwed up from before.

[nodorothyparker]

It was still less self-awarely pretentious than last week.

 

The women pulled most of the heavy weight this episode, especially the two who legitimately had reasons to be at their breaking point.  Loved some of the small interaction between them.  Meanwhile, Daryl was catapulting to the top of the list of characters who can be left to be all mopey dopey in the woods now.  The actor looks constipated every time he tries to cry.

 

10 points to Sasha for pointing out to the day-glo Heat Miser that they're not friends.  I still don't care that much for him but I liked how he shrugged it off and went back to drinking.

Edited February 16, 2015 by nodorothyparker

[MrsRafaelBarba]

Sasha broke formation at the bridge, causing Rick to almost get bitten.

Hope something like that doesn't happen again.

Edited February 16, 2015 by MrsRafaelBarba

[nachomama]

Anyone dapper In the ZA cannot be trusted. They could have eaten frog legs. And yes I hope the weepy stuff is over and we are on to new adventures.

[neece26]

I liked the episode.  Especially liked seeing the entire group together in one show, which so rarely happens.   

 

 

[CletusMusashi]

I still don't even understand why certain characters were acting so sad about Beth. I mean, she just went for a drive with Bob and Tyreese and the little girls, right? We saw them all last week. They were fine.

[MrsRafaelBarba]

As for him knowing Rick's name, perhaps Morgan is already there?

:fingers crossed:

Finally Rick said it, they are The Walking Dead.

Edited February 16, 2015 by HalcyonDays
Removed Comics spoilers

[lulee]

This Aaron guy is bad news. His clothes and gear looked so new they probably still had the price tags on them so he could return them when the zombie apocalypse ends.

[Rosiejuliemom]

Chris Hardwick just brought up a great point. It probably wasn't the best idea for Rick to refer to the group as the walking dead while they were in a barn.

[nodorothyparker]

I love how not a single one of them thought "Hey, I'm over here struggling to hold these doors closed against monsters who will devour us all if they get in.  Maybe I should call for help."  That's our gang.

[Texasmom1970]

Aaron is too clean and also knows Rick by name. Either he is a stalker, bill collector or salesman. Either way can't trust him!

Edited February 16, 2015 by Texasmom1970

[ghoulina]

I honestly thought Eugene offering to atone to the others by volunteering his services as poison taster, crash test dummy, and general purpose  coal mine canary was a good idea.

 

Me too! And I don't even dislike Eugene. But they've got a pretty big group right now. All having to share and shit. Losing the biggest dude, who can't really fight, wouldn't have been a HUGE loss. Take one for the team, Mullet.

[MrsRafaelBarba]

The scene with the dogs, nice callback to the S3 premiere.

When Rick wouldn't let Curl eat dog food.

[RedheadZombie]

This was a quiet episode, but I think it was a necessary one. The moment when everyone shoved against the barn door. They made up their minds to live. The scene with the destroyed trees, that was a bit freakish. That barn should have fallen, but it didn't.  Hip, Hip, Hooray, for Mother Nature.

 

Great point. You are right. I had not thought about the scene that way, but it was about the triumph of hope over despair, especially since it was three people most lost who went to the door first.

 

I'm really lost.  I thought that scene was a dream or simply a fake out.  They didn't look like a group who'd just had a knock-down drag out fight in the mud.

[CletusMusashi]

What's the deal, anyway, with Abe slapping water out of people's hands? That's the second time now. At what point does it officially become a running gag?

[MichaelaRae]

I thought this episode was fantastic. Beautifully done, just as last week's was. But then, I was never in this show for the violence and the zombie kills. It has always been for me about how humans deal with an inhuman world.

[mla40]

I enjoyed this episode a lot. I get tired of the constant new terror and trials and tribulations. It was nice to just see them beat down and wore out without anyone trying to kill them, eat them. I like the entire cast together with more focus on the core group. I just wish they would have left off the new backpacker guy and let him show up at the beginning of the next episode.

[RedheadZombie]

 

Finally, who in the seven hells is Aaron and why is he so bloody clean???

 

I know, right?  Who the fuck is Aaron, and why does he have a biblical name?  They better not go all Lost on me.  I refuse to trust a biblical name in an apocalypse.

 

 Meanwhile, Daryl was catapulting to the top of the list of characters who can be left to be all mopey dopey in the woods now.  The actor looks constipated every time he tries to cry.

 

I've had it up to here with Daryl's man-pain.  Now he's self-mutilating?  Not only that, but he was sure to self-mutilate in an area where everyone will see it.  Typical attention-getting behavior.  Daryl - you've clearly never been a cutter.  Also, deliberately causing wounds in their filthy and non-hygienic environment is absolutely moronic.  Even minor wounds can kill in a world without antibiotics  ...... see Drogo of Game of Thrones.