S06.E16: Last Day On Earth

[Sentient Meat]

Well, every single time a Savior meets another group, they monologue about how they always kill one person to make their point.  (They haven't seemed to pick up on the fact that Rick & Friends kill everyone.)  And Negan reiterated that point.

Well I did hear his mini gang say that... but he specifically talked about a bad beating so I found it interesting that almost everyone jumped to the conclusion that it was going to be death rather than a severe maiming.

I think Aaron is one of the more interesting characters, or could be, but we just don't get much of him.  I thought what he was doing, outside the community trying to find survivors to bring back to ASZ is actually something that would have been interesting to see the show explore.  But it just turned out to be another mcguffin, a way to have him run into CDB and get them to ASZ.

 

I don't want to speculate about who gets the personal introduction to Lucille, for the same reason I try to avoid spoilers, I'd rather just be informed when it happens and then be surprised or delighted or aghast at what happens but I do wonder about Aaron's inclusion in their little road trip.

Yeah I remember at the beginning that Aaron seemed interesting and then he blended into that anonymous mish mash of characters that seem to comprise all of

Alexandria.  I have nothing against him... I just found it odd that they played up his scenes with Maggie.

[peach]

Very true.  And, also, if someone were to escape that Lucille beating and come out alive, that would reeeeallllllllly be ridiculous.  There was blood.  There was crunching.  Negan kept hitting him or her over and over.  There's no way anyone is surviving that. 

 

Plus the foreshadowing Polaroids that Glenn saw at the outpost.  Their heads were obliterated. 

 

I will make only one post on my speculation, because the cliffhanger is irritating, but I think Glenn seeing the photos, and then Negan finishing the Eeny Meeny poem with "my mother told me to pick the very best one," means it's Glenn, because Glenn is "the best one" of them, morally.  Or at least that's his role.  Time will tell.  So very much time.

[iRarelyWatchTV36]

Just because I can be a huge nitpicking dick about things...........

 

-  That huge mass of humanity and not one walker stumbles upon them from the surrounding wooded areas?  uh huh.  (or are they trying to put on display that the amount of walkers, as the further they get from Day 0, is finite?)

 

-  So, Aaron and Eric normally went out on scouting runs, looking for new people..... but somehow missed/avoided all of the Hilltoppers, Wolves and Saviors - until the last couple of months.  Neat-o.

Edited April 4, 2016 by iRarelyWatchTV36

[catrox14]

Well he's only killing one of them.

Isn't that the usual Survivors tax? Considering Ricks crew killed a couple dozen of them, they're not paying as high price as they could be.

 

No, I'm laughing that Negan is saying Rick killed more of Negan's own people than Negan was comfortable with, which implied that Negan has a baseline of HIS OWN people his cool with being killed.

[peach]

Well I did hear his mini gang say that... but he specifically talked about a bad beating so I found it interesting that almost everyone jumped to the conclusion that it was going to be death rather than a severe maiming.

 

The original biker gang that Daryl blew up with an RPG told them that, Jesus said Negan told Hilltop that and beat a kid to death in front of them, the redheaded woman that kidnapped Carol and Maggie told them that, Dwight told them that, and tonight the lead guy in the road told them that.

-  So, Aaron and Eric normally went out on scouting runs, looking for new people..... but somehow missed/avoided all of the Hilltoppers, Wolves and Saviors - until the last couple of months.  Neat-o.

 

And a quarry packed with thousands of zombies.

[Dewey Decimate]

JDM/Negan/The Comedian is a hot-hot-hottie pants, but that comic book get-up kinda cracked me up. It's the red scarf that did it... he looked like a missing member of the Village People. Or Snyder from One Day At a Time.

 

My favorite part was Carol and Morgan's conclusion. I wondered what deus ex machina was going to save them (or would one/both die?), and (even as a comix reader) was totally surprised by the Riot Gear Knights of the Round Table. Awesome!!

 

The RV corralling got a bit tedious after the eleventh commercial break (even with FFing), though it still kept my stomach in knots. The ending was, well, just kind of a bummer. Like the fourth Star Wars movie - it could have been so much better. Don't know who they're going to kill, but I was preparing for an awful demise for a beloved character. I actually WANTED a main character to die. If it's Aaron, for example, I will be PISSED. Like the character, and the actor is delightful and adorable, but it'd be a cop-out. It's been a while, and in some ways, I wanted that ugly-cry Herschel catharsis. I don't like the A-list characters always being safe, because damn - it's a zombie apocalypse! "Good" people will die! I'm indifferent about having to wait til next season; I mostly feel bad for the actor, who should have gotten a full 21-gun salute send-off while emotions are at peak freshness. In the end, I'll still love the show, its characters, and even the show runners. (Except for Kirkman. Thanks for the series, dude, but you just seem like a dick.)

[scrb]

BTW, what exactly is sexy ("doable") about a psychopath blathering about how he's going to bludgeon one of them to death?

 

Especially since he's got a huge army behind him against a half dozen people on their knees, unarmed?

[GreyBunny]

-  So, Aaron and Eric normally went out on scouting runs, looking for new people..... but somehow missed/avoided all of the Hilltoppers, Wolves and Saviors - until the last couple of months.  Neat-o.

No kidding.  Didn't Aaron once say they cleared out an area of 50-55 miles around Alexandria by scavenging and yet Eugene said Hilltop was 23 miles away.  Gotta love how Hilltop, the Wolves, the Saviors, and the new people Carol and Morgan met just magically appeared out of nowhere.  When the walkers left the quarry did that open a portal that allowed these other people to spill out from a parallel universe and populate the countryside near Alex?

Edited April 4, 2016 by GreyBunny

[iRarelyWatchTV36]

Not a nitpick, but a general 'wth?' thing.... why did they purposely show Rick looking at the holy internal side of the camper [that he put there when he killed all the wolves trying to sneak up on him in that 6A ep]?  A reminder of how unsafe they were, as bullets could penetrate the vehicle and harm/kill them??  He just thought the holes were aesthetically pleasing to the eye???

[catrox14]

BTW, what exactly is sexy ("doable") about a psychopath blathering about how he's going to bludgeon one of them to death?

 

Especially since he's got a huge army behind him against a half dozen people on their knees, unarmed?

 

Because he looks like Jeffrey Dean Morgan and his voice is like honey butter?

[Sentient Meat]

This is what Negan said.

 

Negan: "More than I'm comfortable with and for that... that you are going to pay and so now... I'm going to beat the holy hell out of one of you.

This... this is Lucille and she is awesome."

 

Not I'm going to kill one of you... not I'm gonna beat one of you to death... just beat the holy hell out of one of you.  That is why I'm wondering why everyone is so sure that translates into death.  Granted in real life, wounds from such a bat swung by a large man would usually mean death... but he never says explicitly that he intends to kill someone.

[catrox14]

Not a nitpick, but a general 'wth?' thing.... why did they purposely show Rick looking at the holy internal side of the camper [that he put there when he killed all the wolves trying to sneak up on him in that 6A ep]?  A reminder of how unsafe they were, as bullets could penetrate the vehicle and harm/kill them??  He just thought the holes were aesthetically pleasing to the eye???

 

I thought he was having some PTSD remembering back to being trapped alone and scared to death.

[GreyBunny]

This is what Negan said.

 

Negan: "More than I'm comfortable with and for that... that you are going to pay and so now... I'm going to beat the holy hell out of one of you.

This... this is Lucille and she is awesome."

 

Not I'm going to kill one of you... not I'm gonna beat one of you to death... just beat the holy hell out of one of you.  That is why I'm wondering why everyone is so sure that translates into death.  Granted in real life, wounds from such a bat swung by a large man would usually mean death... but he never says explicitly that he intends to kill someone.

 

1) Glenn saw the polaroids, those people's heads were mutilated beyond recognition.

 

2)  They've said over and over ad nauseum that they kill one person to send a message.  The Hilltoppers said the same thing of Negan's group.  Since Rick's group killed so many Saviors they'd be lucky if Negan kills only one of them.

 

3) He hit someone hard with a baseball bat wrapped with barbed wire. I counted about 8 strikes.  Negan was standing in front of them and aimed straight down.  There is no target to hit from that angle except the head. 

 

Someone is dead.  Very dead.  And their face is probably no longer recognizable.

Edited April 4, 2016 by GreyBunny

[iRarelyWatchTV36]

This is what Negan said.

 

Negan: "More than I'm comfortable with and for that... that you are going to pay and so now... I'm going to beat the holy hell out of one of you.

This... this is Lucille and she is awesome."

 

Not I'm going to kill one of you... not I'm gonna beat one of you to death... just beat the holy hell out of one of you.  That is why I'm wondering why everyone is so sure that translates into death.  Granted in real life, wounds from such a bat swung by a large man would usually mean death... but he never says explicitly that he intends to kill someone.

 

I hear you, but I also heard the bat-striking-object sounds getting meatier and meatier as they went on.  As in, skull broke and bat is now striking brain and whatever else below the skull.

[nachomama]

Him & his bisquick is anxious to get mixed up, poured out and get some lady's tummy full of pancakes.

Blargh. This made me so nauseous. That is the worst cliffhanger on the planet. Having to think of Abe's "O" face.

[catrox14]

This is what Negan said.

 

Negan: "More than I'm comfortable with and for that... that you are going to pay and so now... I'm going to beat the holy hell out of one of you.

This... this is Lucille and she is awesome."

 

Not I'm going to kill one of you... not I'm gonna beat one of you to death... just beat the holy hell out of one of you.  That is why I'm wondering why everyone is so sure that translates into death.  Granted in real life, wounds from such a bat swung by a large man would usually mean death... but he never says explicitly that he intends to kill someone.

 

Glenn saw the pictures of the people he killed in the room so it's not a difficult thing to extrapolate that is how they were killed.

But as soon as someone gets a fucking baseball bat to their head...they will have brain damage of some kind. If he doesn't kill them he just maims them for life. 

[Sighed I]

I think that the verdict on this on will be that it didn't work for non-comic readers, a group I'm a part of.

 

I think they relied on the comic knowledge too build dread over Neegan and failed in the show.  I think JDM is great.  But everything about him screamed that comic moment that they used to introduce Abraham, Euegene, and Rosita.  It took me a long time to get over the stupid of that. I have complete disinterest in this.

I don't read the comic either, and this is exactly the problem I had with the build up to Negan. Constant comic book spoilers left and right for months, even in freaking headlines to articles about the show. Show viewers speculating on the plot, only to have comic readers pop in again and again, (sometimes smugly) commenting how off base people's theories were, dropping "hints" so obvious a cave salamander could see it.

 

I love JDM (he'll always be John Winchester to me--hubba hubba), but in the end Negan's intro fell flat for me. It was just like the intro of Abraham, Rosita and Eugene--artificial, two dimensional...like a comic book instead of a TV show. It took me a long time to see those three as living, breathing characters instead of caricatures.

 

For Negan, all that was missing was him twirling his mustache. Plus he wouldn't...stop...freaking...talking (what is with these Saviors and their damn monologues?!). It just feels like another instance of, oh we must have this "iconic moment" from the comic, word for word, frame for frame. For me as a viewer, it rang false.

 

Hopefully once the tediousness of his introduction is over, the show can move on to what it does best--using the comic as the framework for the plot and developing the characters instead of being a slave to it.

Edited April 4, 2016 by Sighed I

[CletusMusashi]

I hear you, but I also heard the bat-striking-object sounds getting meatier and meatier as they went on.  As in, skull broke and bat is now striking brain and whatever else below the skull.

But then again, we also saw Glenn under a pile of zombies... until they changed their minds later.

And we heard Tyreese crunching his fist into Martin's face... again, until they changed their minds later.

I mean, seriously, their track record of sticking to these "cliffhanger" deaths is just not all that good.

Which is why, on this particular show these days, I refuse to mourn Schroedinger's Anybody.

Edited April 4, 2016 by CletusMusashi

[Sentient Meat]

1) Glenn saw the polaroids, those people's heads were mutilated beyond recognition.

2)  They've said over and over ad nauseum that they kill one person to send a message.  The Hilltoppers said the same thing of Negan's group.  Since Rick's group killed so many Saviors they'd be lucky if Negan kills only one of them.

3) He hit someone hard with a baseball bat wrapped with barbed wire. I counted about 8 strikes.  

 

Someone is dead.  Very dead.  And their face is probably no longer recognizable.

 

I hear you, but I also heard the bat-striking-object sounds getting meatier and meatier as they went on.  As in, skull broke and bat is now striking brain and whatever else below the skull.

 

All of these are good points and I'm not even saying that you are wrong... I just find it an odd semantic choice that the writers would choose those words specifically.

 

I was more commenting how universally everyone seemed to assume the victim was dead... when by contrast most believe Jon Snow or even the Hound are still alive.

[Dodginblue]

This is what Negan said.

 

Negan: "More than I'm comfortable with and for that... that you are going to pay and so now... I'm going to beat the holy hell out of one of you.

This... this is Lucille and she is awesome."

 

Not I'm going to kill one of you... not I'm gonna beat one of you to death... just beat the holy hell out of one of you.  That is why I'm wondering why everyone is so sure that translates into death.  Granted in real life, wounds from such a bat swung by a large man would usually mean death... but he never says explicitly that he intends to kill someone.

I don't think you can hit someone with a wooden baseball bat repeatedly and not be meaning to cause death.  It's not like he was aiming for someone's leg. 

 

Presumably this is at least partly how Negan's gotten his crew, all these people doing his bidding.  So he's not just killing someone to send a message to the newcomers, he's also doing it to keep his existing group in line.  

[AwesomO4000]

Now that I can think about more than the ending- I kind of like Negan.  He's got a group of several dozen, he keeps them all in line (apparently), he only takes half from other groups and they do get a kind of protection from having him around (to pull off what he does the area has to be pretty zombie free).  Is that really a bad deal?  

 

Our group traded violence for food anyway, why not link up with the guy who has a crew that large, knows how to weaponize walkers, and clearly has some kind of magical mode of transportation?  You're gonna kill for someone.  Why not kill for the best?

 

Because from what little we've seen, Negan is like an abusive spouse. The half you give him is never going to be enough. He'll find an excuse to kill one of your people just because. The reason the Hilltop made the deal with Alexandria is because the last time they tried to give Negan's group half, Negan killed a 16 year old that was with their group, took someone else hostage, and insisted the returning guy kill their leader to get the hostage back. He'll probably decide that "half" of your "stuff" includes the women - that guy* who caught Glenn, Michonne, Darryl, and Rosita last week definitely implied that - so he might decide to take your wife to "service" his troops and expect you to smile and thank him for keeping your place "safe."

 

So that is why you wouldn't really be "killing for the best," because Negan is a psychopath, and you would never know if you would end up being expendable. Or he'd decide you didn't follow his orders enough and cut off your finger in punishment (like he did to that woman on the episode from a couple of weeks ago). In other words, you'd likely never feel safe.

 

* I keep forgetting that guy's name... and I so hope Darryl eventually kills his smug ass - Darryl tried to help you, you asshat!, you have no reason to be pissed at Darryl.

 

I forgot to mention Carl locking Enid in the closet made me laugh, but really was a shoddy thing to do. He took away her agency. She wanted to go with Maggie. He should have accepted that decision. She can take care of herself well enough as far as I can tell.

 

I'm not entirely sold on that. She and Glen seemed to have their own problems during their trip home after Glen's dumpster roll. Carl was a little tricky and probably shouldn't have taken away her choice, but Enid doesn't have a parent to override any bad decisions she might make. Carl has Rick who can override Carl's decisions if they are too rash. And speaking of Rick and Carl...

 

I like that Rick is still including Carl in the decision making in this episode. Rick asks Carl what he thinks. He might override Carl, but he listens to his input. I think Carl has earned that.

 

But when Negan started talking to admire his own voice, I sooo wanted Carl to grab that discarded gun and shoot Negan in the head. It would serve Negan right for leaving that gun there thinking Carl isn't a threat.

 

If it were my group, I'd get a hold of some really toxic substance and somehow sabotage the food or supplies that I was giving Negan's gang. Poison a bunch of their asses, and hope that I got Negan in the batch.

[Lizzing]

I remember reading that several members of the cast were (paraphrasing here) made sick by what was in this finale script.  Did they have a different script than what was shot?  Or were the cast members just disgusted by the long winded talkyness of it all?  The beheading of Hershel was far more gruesome of a plot turn than anything that happened on screen here (or, even, not on screen).   All in all, I'm not even pissed about the clifhanger.  I'm pissed at how boring this finale was.  That 1.5 hours of Morgan's road to cheesemongering was a better use of my time.  The only one upside was Negan giving the CDB gang permission to pee their pants, and poor ole FPP was left back at the ASZ and missed it.  FPP can't ever catch a break.

[morgankobi]

My god, the dramatics of this group! Re-occuring themes! Costumes! Pyrotechnics!

So the whole time they were in the woods whistling, and taking weapons, and lining up both groups, Negan is just waiting inside the RV for his cue. I imagine he was also practicing his lines.  

 

 

*Edited to take out the extra "e" in Negan. Although now I will rhyme with Megan, not Meegan in my head-just out of spite. And still think of Key and Peele as I do.

Edited April 5, 2016 by morgankobi

[GreyBunny]

All of these are good points and I'm not even saying that you are wrong... I just find it an odd semantic choice that the writers would choose those words specifically.

 

I was more commenting how universally everyone seemed to assume the victim was dead... when by contrast most believe Jon Snow or even the Hound are still alive.

 

Jon Snow is in a fantasy series where magic exists and people are resurrected from the dead and can inhabit other creatures.  He has a chance of getting some hardcore supernatural help, plus his story is not over.  The identity of his parents hasn't been officially revealed yet (even though that's the worst kept secret of the series).  Who Jon's parents are and what Jon still probably needs to do is central to the entire story.  The Hound, also in that same fantasy series, may or may not be dead based on how closely the producers decide to follow the books (in the books the answer to whether Sandor is dead has already been revealed). 

 

I don't think Melisandre or Ghost are going to be of much help to Glenn or Daryl or whoever got the bat.  

Edited April 4, 2016 by GreyBunny

[mrspidey]

Dear TPTB,

 

Have fun trying to keep the victim's identity a secret during the shooting of season 7. Maybe you shuld get some pointers from the Game of Thrones crew because that worked out so well for them....

 

 

 

Not.

As for me...

Gonna pass on this episode until season 7 starts. 

[catrox14]

All of these are good points and I'm not even saying that you are wrong... I just find it an odd semantic choice that the writers would choose those words specifically.

 

I was more commenting how universally everyone seemed to assume the victim was dead... when by contrast most believe Jon Snow or even the Hound are still alive.

 

Maybe they setting Negan up to be like a Charlie Manson type.  Hurts and maims to make a point. Kills occasionally. Incites his people to kill.

[Sentient Meat]

Jon Snow is in a fantasy series where magic exists and people are resurrected from the dead and can inhabit other creatures.  He has a chance of getting some hardcore supernatural help, plus his story is not over.  They haven't even revealed who his parents are yet (even though that's the worst kept secret of the series).  Who Jon's parents are and what Jon still needs to do is central to the entire story.  The Hound, also in that same fantasy series, may or may not be dead based on how closely the producers decide to follow the books (in the books the answer to whether Sandor is dead has already been revealed). 

 

I don't think Melisandre or Ghost are going to be of much help to Glenn or Daryl or whoever got the bat.  

Good answer, although I did almost laugh out loud at the distinction of "fantasy" genre when we are talking about a world with creatures that reanimate and manage locomotion without any logical scientific explanation.

[InsertWordHere]

I am not sure Negan's threat about Carl's eye makes Rick safe. Negan could easily feed Carl's eye to Zombie Rick. Just saying.

And also, what the hell's up with Abe suddenly getting all this "I'm ready to raise a family, because I'm sane now or something," character development crap all of a sudden? 

This is why I think Abe is the likely victim. There was a repeated theme of living today as if it's your last day and Abe was the only one we saw doing anything like that, especially in his goodbye to Eugene. 

 

OTOH, the POV shots of the four captured CDBers littered throughout the same episode that ended with a (horribly disappointing) POV shot makes me think it's one of them.

[thuganomics85]

Whelp, I was hoping the spoilers would be false, but I guess not.  They truly plan on ending it on a cliffhanger and not finding out till next season.  Of course, with this show, we might not even find out till episode four of next season.  I would not be surprised if next season kicks off with a Governor-style focused two-parter for Negan, and then devotes the third episode entirely to Morgan and Carol with these new, armored guys.  Then, they'll finally get around to the aftermath of Negan and "Lucille." And, that's not even considering that there is probably a .01% chance they'll be able to keep the eventual victim under wraps for ten months, so it's probably going to be spoiled at some point.  It's just stupid.  It would have been way more impactful for the final shot to be the victim, and everyone else's reaction.  Instead, I doubt I'm really going to care.

 

Still, if I had to hazard a guess, I'm going with either Glenn or Abraham.  Despite his antics, I suspect Negan's choice isn't going to be random, and there will be a reason for his target.  With Glenn, I see his moment where he tried to stop Negan be considered an offense, and something Negan would want to shutdown automatically.  With Abraham, the brief moment where he stared him down and even adjusted himself in a more threaten position, might have been enough that Negan determined he is the biggest physical threat.  To be fair, Carl did the same thing, but I suspect Negan probably was more amused (maybe even impressed), then threatened.  I don't think it will be Rick, because I suspect Negan would rather see Rick suffer then die.  I don't think it will be Maggie for dramatic reasons: I can see them having her feel guilty because so many of them were there because they were trying to save her.  Daryl normally would have been a good contender, but I wonder if him being wounded would make Negan feel like it won't be as impressive or impactful.  I hope it isn't Michonne, and I don't think it will be.  The rest I feel would just be anti-climatic.  So, yeah, I'm thinking either Glenn or Abraham for now.

 

Jeffery Dean Morgan was a great choice for Negan at least.  I thought he had a perfect mixture of menace and violence, but also a twisted sense of humor.  Hate to admit, but I did chuckle a few times.  The speech was a bit long, but he more then sold it.

 

I'm also equally excited that the other henchman of Negan's (not Dwight), was played by Steven Ogg a.k.a. Trevor from Grand Theft Auto V.  Trevor would so be down with Negan and their ilk!

 

Basically Carol/Morgan was mainly there to meet this new group, and have Morgan finally kill again in order to save Carol.  I'm sure this will all be addressed later on. I was disappointed it was simply by gunshot, because I so wanted him to just come charging out of nowhere on horseback and take out the Savior with his walking stick.

 

Overall, not angry with the cop out, but just kind of disappointed.  I just feel like this show has what it takes to be great, but it keeps just falling short of it.  The cliffhanger was a perfect example of it.  Could have been much better.  But I guess I just accepted that The Walking Dead will be a mainly sold show, with moments of brilliance, followed by stumbles and missteps.

 

But, hey, Fear the Walking Dead is coming back, and if that show doesn't get its shit together this season, I might be begging for this show to return in a few months.

[GreyBunny]

Good answer, although I did almost laugh out loud at the distinction of "fantasy" genre when we are talking about a world with creatures that reanimate and manage locomotion without any logical scientific explanation.

 

Haha, true!  And GoT is also dealing with a zombie apocalypse. But in virtually all other aspects Walking Dead is playing by real world rules while GoT has a lot more fantasy, magic, and supernatural elements going on and it plays by some very different rules.

Edited April 4, 2016 by GreyBunny

[Nashville]

FWIW: as soon as I saw a few weeks ago they were going to stretch this out right up to the season finale, I'd taken a cliffhanger for granted - why wouldn't you?  And please don't give me that "disrespecting the fans" stuff; at its heart this show is a business, a cliffhanger ending is going to have people talking about TWD all summer long, and you just can't buy free advertising like that.  The first episode of Season 7 will probably be one of the highest-rating episodes of the series.

 

 

I thought the bat was kind of...disappointing.  I was expecting some kind of spiked bat, not one with what looked like wire wrapped around it.  Or were there  little spikes that I just didn't see?  Maybe I was thinking about a caveman's club.

 

Wasn't simple wire - that was barbed wire. 

Strung out lengthwise in a fence, the little barbed fuckers can rip you up pretty effectively. 

Hell, COWS can feel them through cowhide - which is why they use it in fencing in the first place.  Keeps them from leaning against the fence and knocking it down.

In tightly wound wraps around a bat, the effect on flesh would be amazing in its devastation.

 

 

During the airing, one commercial was for a new TV show called Ride with Norman Reedus. Granted, he could film it during the WD hiatus, but I side-eyed that big time. I feel the need for a poll....

 

Actually, I think the first season of NR's new show is already in the can...? 

At least a couple of times on TTD I've hard reference to Reedus bouncing back and forth between shooting schedules for both shows.

 

 

I didn't even know who the guy they tortured was. Anyone help me with that?

 

Don't know what his given name was, but tonight his name was "Example".  :)

Actually, he was the last survivor of another group who fought against Negan and lost.

 

 

I am not sure. He mentioned that all his people at the library were dead and that is where Carol was hiding. I think that the guy Morgan cut down was with him. So I think that he was some random Red Shirt they came across.

 

No, the guy that Morgan capped was a Savior - the one survivor out of the truckload that Carol Mac-9'ed.

 

 

Personally, I found nothing intimidating or scary about Negan

 

I dunno; the 200+ soldiers at his back would be intimidating as fuck to me, under the circumstances.

 

 

Now that I think about it ambushing them at the Hilltop would have made sense, but how would they know that it where Rick was going? Basically, in the space of a day, they managed to block off all the roads which I find unbelievable.

 

1. Negan has had scouts around Alexandria for a while now; doubt they're going to miss a big-ass RV pulling out. or not note what direction it's going in.
2. Once the Saviors know in what direction the RV is traveling and what route they're taking, they could put a pre-established coordinated plan into action - 15 Saviors at on Route A (whichever one the RV is traveling), 30 on Routes B and C (the next most likely routes, given where Route A heads), and large groups doing the massive shit on less desirable alternate routes. (logs, chain gang, etc.).  They have bodies, and they have communications.
3. Unbelievable?  Nope - just a matter of manpower resources. 

 

In truth, this was Rick's hubris; he assumed ALL groups were like HIS group - isolated clusters of a dozen or so survivors.  Wrong!

 

 

Not a nitpick, but a general 'wth?' thing.... why did they purposely show Rick looking at the holy internal side of the camper [that he put there when he killed all the wolves trying to sneak up on him in that 6A ep]?  A reminder of how unsafe they were, as bullets could penetrate the vehicle and harm/kill them??  He just thought the holes were aesthetically pleasing to the eye???

 

Symbolic: the bullets piercing the RV walls were a metaphor for the Savior's piercing Rick's erroneous assumption that CDB could encounter nothing which they could not overcome.

[Ronin Jackson]

This is the only show I read spoilers about, and it's mostly because A) I've read the source material and B) I don't respect the writers and honestly I can't really explain why I keep watching this show. I've quit better shows long before this. I figure me watching this show might be what an addiction to bath salts might be like. This has got to be the most ridiculous cliffhanger I've ever seen. I don't mind cliffhangers. A good one could be a great part of a show's experience. The thing is a great cliffhanger needs to reveal something new and make us wonder what's going to happen next. The only thing this cliffhanger did was withhold information, and honestly the only reason to do that is if the showrunners couldn't figure out what they wanted to do with it. I think this might be televisions first cliffhanger that was done purely for the sake of procrastination. Hell I'm one of the most chronic procrastinators on the planet and you know what... I don't empathize! Christ Gimple and Kirkman, you are storytellers! I'm more inclined to blame Gimple here because Kirkman didn't pull this idiotic crap in the comics.

 

Anyway, I think it really is time to kick the bath salts habit. This time I mean it! Of course in October I will probably end up sampling a little. We'll see how that turns out.

[GreyBunny]

As someone from elsewhere said:  I know who got Lucille'd: we all did.  Gimple Lucille'd the audience.  

[Sighed I]

The group getting herded just as they started the season trying to herd the walkers was pretty cool

Great observation. I hadn't thought about that, but it really was a nice bookend. I tend to read more than I post, but it's observations like this from other fans which keeps me visiting these forums.

 

Also, when Alexandria got overrun by walkers, they were in pretty much a no-win situation, yet somehow they found a way to fight back and survive. That success brought the community together and made them stronger.

 

On the other hand, beating those incredible odds made them overconfident, even arrogant. Now they find themselves completely helpless, truly in a no-win situation (for now, anyway), just like at the beginning of the season.

Edited April 4, 2016 by Sighed I

[qweenB]

I hated everything about this. Boring.Waaay Tito much Morgan. Why is Enid even on this show?

[qweenB]

Why did the dude laying in the road get spray painted?

[ShadowSixx]

Why did the dude laying in the road get spray painted?

 

I seriously thought that they were going to set him on fire but they hung him instead.

 

Did I miss something when Dwight held Daryl at gunpoint? Who/What was shot? The episode would have been more interesting if they had showed Glenn, Michonne, Rosita, and Daryl being taken away and Michonne's dreads being cut off, and other items being taken from them four and put on the zombies blocking the road.

 

I was really hoping that Carol came up behind Dwight and shot him in the head instead of her adventure with Morgan. I rather Carol & Morgan be mixed with the group cause it would have made more interesting with the way these two view life & death. Writers really missed an opportunity right there.

[GreyBunny]

Why did the dude laying in the road get spray painted?

"X"

He was being marked for death to mess with CDB's heads.

[Save Yourself]

That was so fucked, I feel like I've had a massive dump taken on me. I'm fine with cliffhangers, I thought the Terminus one was great because it made sense to have the break inserted in that spot in the story, the scene was complete and the next season had a good set up. But this.. this was the power going out with 30 seconds to go. Loads of people upthread have laid out why it is complete rubbish so I won't belabour the point.

 

I do want to say that if it is true that even the cast don't know who died that is just FUBAR. That gives me no confidence whatsoever as a viewer that the creative team actually knew when that episode was filmed who was 'getting it' which is very worrisome. I've still got to think about whether I want to continue watching TWD, I never ever thought I would give it up as for all it's flaws I have loved the ride but this shoddy viewer treatment and then the stupidity that Gimple and Kirkman are now sprouting in the media defending this clusterfuck makes me think that it might not be worth all the time I expend on the show, this isn't a show I can watch 'casually' so it's come down to all or nothing! I know what I absolutely WON'T be doing (and I'm promising my fellow PTV'ers!) is buying an advance season pass on iTunes for season 7 which is what I have traditionally done, I'm just too pissed off to add to AMC's coffers.

Edited April 4, 2016 by Save Yourself

[mornnoch]

The cliffhanger sucked out all the positives I felt about TWD.

[loki567]

Does anybody know how far along in filming they were during the Glenn controversy? Between this and the Daryl "gunshot," they also seem like they're courting the fan outrage. 

 

I thought it was fine until the Negan reveal. I like the increasing sense of dread and hopelessness. But goddamn, Negan is cartoon as fuck. And his dialogue, yeesh. 

[Sofinn]

White t-shirt, really Rick? How optimistic of you.

Loved how Ricks demeanor changed when he found out about Michonne. Andy Lincoln is damn fine actor.

Those saviors do like to speak. Negan should give motivational speaches. Creepy af but way too long. Negans actor is the first actor I have seen on other shows and I was surprised to actually recognize someone. Yay.

Dont like cliffhangers, hope it was Rosita. Something about her annoys me.

[mornnoch]

I think that the verdict on this on will be that it didn't work for non-comic readers, a group I'm a part of.

Almost every comic book reader is even more pissed than the non-readers. They ruined one of the most iconic comic book scenes.

[DEL901]

Just because I can be a huge nitpicking dick about things...........

 

-  That huge mass of humanity and not one walker stumbles upon them from the surrounding wooded areas?  uh huh.  (or are they trying to put on display that the amount of walkers, as the further they get from Day 0, is finite?)

 

-  So, Aaron and Eric normally went out on scouting runs, looking for new people..... but somehow missed/avoided all of the Hilltoppers, Wolves and Saviors - until the last couple of months.  Neat-o.

 

Even more unbelievable: Negan and the gang let the Wolves... the uncontrollable Wolves.... live? 

 

Poor Eugene... he would have loved running into the knights on horseback.  He could use his blacksmithing skills to make more armor.

And when the Saviors finally get to Alexandria and find out how little they have... they will NOT be happy.  Nice houses, but almost no supplies.  Maybe they'll decide to move in?

[loki567]

 

Even more unbelievable: Negan and the gang let the Wolves... the uncontrollable Wolves.... live?

 

I think that could have been a really interesting storyline if the Wolves and Alexandria had to make some sort of alliance to fight the Saviors. Would have played into the Alpha Wolf surviving, Morgan's don't-kill philosophy, the rehabilitation theme, Denise could have played a part, fears that the group is becoming worse than the people they're fight. ... it's a shame. 

[Enero]

Finally rewatched this. Not much to add. Many have already said what I wanted to say, but I do have a few comments.

As crazy as it was for all of CDB's best and baddest to leave Alexandria to run after Darryl or take Maggie to Hilltop, I did appreciate the scene with FPP giving a rundown of their protection and evacuation protocol if things go bad.

Michonne was definitely not giving Negan the pleasure of seeing her shaking in her boots. She stared his ass down just like Carl and Abe. And I agree, she looked particularly lovely in last night's episode.

I don't think Carol smiling in the face of death was necessarily her being badass. I think she's had a death wish since she left Alexandria. She wanted to die but wasn't quite ready to embrace death until she got injured and the Savior was going to finish her off.

It was stupid for Rick and Co. to try and carry Maggie to Hilltop but I understand why they did it. She's their family and was/is very ill. They couldn't just give up on attempting to get her help. They had to do everything in their power to save her.

I like JDM but I didn't think he was all that scary or compelling here. His monologue could've been more impactful if it was shorter. Also I think the pony tail and scarf was just...ridiculous, very caricature like.

I think the reason why he called Carl a future serial killer is because of who he's being raised by, a group of people who slaughtered in "cold blood" Negan's people, many of whom were asleep when killed.

I do wonder though, how did Negan know Carl was Rick's son? Rick didn't start screaming at Negan to leave Carl alone until after he (Negan) mentioned that Carl was his son. So did someone at Hilltop give him inside Intel on CDB? If so, it would have to be either Jesus or Andy. They were the only two from Hilltop who went to Alexandria and would know Rick has a son.

Abraham wanting kids with Sasha was ridiculous. Didn't they just get together yesterday? And he was just in bed with Rosita a couple of days before that? I know this is the ZA and as a result relationships move fast, but come on. For this reason, his epiphany about life in general and his goodbye to Eugene, I think he's the one getting beaten to death. Glenn is a red- herring. Abe and Baby Glaggie will be the ones that die.

[MissScarlett]

YES to both of these. Hershel was one of my favorite characters, and I HATED losing him. But having the break to process and mourn the loss, so to speak, helped me to empathize with the characters' loss that much more when the show returned.

I agree they risk having a lot of fans feeling more detached once they finally make the reveal, because so much time will have passed, so many debates will have been beaten into the ground, people will just want to know who the hell it is and be done with it. I'm sure it'll still be very upsetting once we know, but I don't think it will have the same emotional impact as knowing now and spending the summer speculating how the hell CDB is going to get out of this clusterfuck.

This episode DID NOT have the impact on me they were going for. I love this show, and I shouldn't be feeling like the people running it has contempt for me as a viewer. This is the first time I've felt downright angry after an episode. Worst season finale of the series, IMO.

I agree with this! Not only that, but if it was a big death, then this cliffhanger rips that impactful moment away from the character and actor.

As an audience member, I don't want to have to relive the Lucilling just to find out who it was.

If I'm going to be pissed about who they chose to kill off, then I'd rather be pissed now and not be pissed off later or worse... be kinda "meh" about the whole thing when the show returns.

The best thing about this episode besides the introduction of Negan, is that we saw some character building with Father Gabriel (only a moment), Abraham, Carol, Morgan, and Rick.

There is so much to process still. Over all, the episode was boring for the most part with a few key moments.

Edited April 4, 2016 by MissScarlett

[Happy Harpy]

I have really enjoyed this half season. But I am seriously pissed off they ended it on a fucking cliffhanger.

 

 

Dear TPTB,

 

Have fun trying to keep the victim's identity a secret during the shooting of season 7. Maybe you shuld get some pointers from the Game of Thrones crew because that worked out so well for them....

 

Not.

As for me...

Gonna pass on this episode until season 7 starts. 

 

My thoughts exactly.

 

I didn't watch the episode yet and I don't know if I will. Six months to rip a band-aid is a fucking long time.

 

I love every CDB character so I wouldn't mind if the writers dropped the "no one is safe" rule in order to keep them all. One thing that never failed the show, and even carries it imo at its weakest, is the dynamics between those main characters. I believe that the potential of their relationships haven't been exploited yet: I want to see Daryl interact more with Rick's kids, I want to see more female friendships, I want to see more Rick/Glenn etc. So if a "secondary" character, like Abe or Eugene, had died in this finale, it would have been a kind of cop out because of the gigantic "huge death is coming, people" hype (just in case: I'm not a comic reader) but I wouldn't have complained.

 

The first thing I thought about was the last GOT finale, which I personally found idiotic. I repeat myself but, in these days and age and with social networks and cameras everywhere, you can't do a Who shot JR? anymore. The sets will be spied on, people who want to know will check the sighting reports on spoiler sites, and petulant assholes with no lives will spoil it for the whole internet to know on every site, even unrelated, that allows comments.

But at least, in the case of GOT, TPTB still had a leg to stand on re: giving the author a last chance to tell his story first. On TWD, it seems that the death is already in the comic so WHY not tell? Where is the merit? I just don't see it.

 

If it's a huge death and a fan favorite dies, it won't matter much if it's the same character as in the comic or not, imo. People will wail, lament and riot anyway and letting them hope for six months (in case they manage to stay unspoiled) that the victim isn't their personal fave will only make things worse. People who were to rage quit because of that death will, anyway. They'll quit after the S7 premiere instead of the S6 finale, that's all...and because they won't have six months to calm down and remember the other characters/plotlines they like, in the end the show might lose more viewers.

If it's a secondary/more polarizing character or a red shirt who dies, waiting for six months to reveal their identity is imo even more idiotic. The hype will grow and grow and grow, and the cop out will only be more obvious, the disappointment only bigger, and the show will lose that much more steam and following imo. They already delayed the Alexandria slaughter whereas for me, it should have been the MSF. I personally think that audiences get tired very quickly when this kind of "storytelling" becomes a habit.

 

I do like S.Gimple as a showrunner and as someone said upthread, I particularly appreciate the way he has written women so far. This half season was one of my favorite. But this fade to blood was a rating/media stunt imo, and for me it's below the biggest show on TV. TPBT didn't need to do this. I'm not surprised there's a backlash and I won't be surprised if it actually backfires. 

[The Mighty Peanut]

I may be in the minority but watching Rick so scared was the worst part for me ..

I don't think you're alone. Andrew Lincoln was the "saving" grace. His mounting terror during Negan's soliloquy of ultimate evil and when he started regressing to berserker Rick when he realized they had Michonne were both awesome. And it was all in his facial expressions. The actual writing wasn't that great. When he told Maggie they always come out on top i was waiting for the ghosts of Hershel, Beth, all the other members of Maggie's brutally slaughtered actual blood family, Lori, Andrea, Noah, Denise, T-Dawg, Tyreese, Lizzie, Mika, Sophia, Bob, Deanna, etc to come out like uuuuuuuummmmm

I enjoyed Carol literally laughing in the face of death and frustrating the abusive dickhead with her mirth.

Cliffhanger was stupid. As has been pointed out, all it takes is finding out who isn't in Georgia and/or on set and we have our Lucille victim as well as

the availabity of the comics which seem to be playing out according to canon

. I feel for all you spoiler avoiders. It's going to be hard not to find out. Tptb did a disservice to the fans.

Edited April 4, 2016 by The Mighty Peanut

[SimoneS]

The inherent weakness of Rick's group, and perhaps the entire show, is Rick's willingness to sacrifice everyone just to save one person.  In this case, everyone's life is on the line just to save Maggie.  Yes, it is a noble thing to do, but it is also incredibly stupid.  It is that type of predictable behavior that has cost more lives than saved.  I think it is pretty safe to say, that Rick's group should have been killed off long ago.

I actually think that caring for every one in his group is the strength of Rick, his people, and the show as a whole. Unlike Shane, Phillip, etc., Rick is willing to go to the mat to save one of his people. It is why they have survived this long and they stick with him through good and hard times and new "good" people join them. It is people like Shane, Phillip, Joe, Dawn, and Negan who abandon and exploit everyone around them who ultimately will falter and lose. If violence and intimidation is all you have going for you, you will always encounter people more violent or people who band together to fight back and take you down. Not to say it isn't bloody and there isn't suffering, but in a world like this all people have to do find a leader like Rick and eventually, they find the courage to take down monsters.

Edited April 4, 2016 by SimoneS