Rick: Lord of the Thangs

[Omar G.]

I think Andrew Lincoln is a really good actor, but boy is Rick tough to take sometimes.

[Portia]

In his defense, it's not easy doing both stuff and things.

[David T. Cole]

Rick shouldn't die but the last shot of him should be him finding a farm to run and leaping into a corn field and hugging all the stalks.

[Milaxx]

Can I get my hate on for a minute? Rick is the worst leader who ever lead. I can appreciate that the former cop in him wants or feels he should take the lead, but really he sucks at it. Watching him go back and forth season after season make me dislike the character.

[mandolin]

I love Rick more than is probably normal, and I think he does make bad decisions, but ever since he woke up from that coma, life has kind of sucked for the guy. And pre-apocalypse, he was married to Lori, which would've made for a lot of bad days.

I unabashedly love any and all iterations of stuff-and-things.

[bravelittletoaster]

I'm a big fan of Rick's reduced role this season [1/2 season?  Whatever.  Since the destruction of the prison].  I don't think my problem is with Andrew Lincoln per se, though maybe a different actor could have brought Rick's mansplaining off with a bit more aplomb or charm.  I find that when we do focus on him this season I am liking him a lot better in his small doses.  So I don't know if Lincoln had another project to work on, or they just felt like long stretches sans Rick were called for by the narrative, but whatever the impetus, I'm digging it.

[LCanterbury]

I'm an unashamed Rick-fan. My love for Andrew Lincoln is the only reason squeamish me considered watching a show about zombies in the first place.

I like that he has tried and failed in a lot of his approaches; makes him interesting. Despite this, I have liked the minimal screen time he has had of late - his constant manpain was a bit much for a while there.

[ghoulina]

I don't think Rick is a bad leader at all. I think he's a normal human being with flaws. One thing I love about this show is that it's not filled with a bunch of natural badasses, kicking ass and taking names. It's dealing with real people who have somehow survived up to this point. I find that a lot easier to relate to. I do think Rick has made some bad decisions, but I also think he's made some good ones. He came up with the genius plan in Guts that got everyone back to the quarry safely. His  instincts saved their lives in Nebraska. He made the right move at the end of season 3, with the "we fled" fakeout when the Guv attacked the prison. I just think he is a man, doing his best. Crazy moments aside, I would follow him because he is someone with compassion for others and trying to walk that fine line between doing the hard things that need to be done, while still keeping a grasp on his moral compass. Has he failed along the way? Absolutely. But, IMO, THAT'S the kind of journey worth watching.

[kikismom]

This has bugged me from the start. One of the things they check you for when you apply to be a cop, deputy, trooper, etc. is your ability to be DECISIVE. Maybe wrong maybe right, but commit to a course of action and see it through. Rick dithers and waffles and then makes a decision, only to back-track 5 minutes later. Then back-track again.

I lost it when they were stranded by the waterfall after fleeing the farm, when Rick said they couldn't go after Andrea. First of all, they wouldn't be short of gas in the vehicles if he hadn't chauffered Randall round and round on the trip-to-nowhere (18 miles each way how many times?!), and I know damn well if it was Lori or Carl they'd all HAVE to go back to the farm, walkers or not. And he really chapped my ass with his self-pity party right in front of the Greenes---who had just lost Patricia, Jimmy, and their whole farm. Not to mention he wouldn't risk his life for Andrea, whom he had known from the beginning, but it was okay for Jimmy to risk-and lose-his life bringing the RV to the barn to provide Rick and Carl a way down from the hayloft just so they could wave thanks you're on your own sucker to Jimmy who was being eaten alive for his efforts. I really want to like Rick, and I'll spot people some mistakes under the circumstances, but his blunders are the kind where you should know better, ZA or not.

[ghoulina]

I think the difference between being a cop and being a leader in the ZA, is that when you're a police officer there is a rule of law you go by. Yes, you still have to rely on instinct and make snap decisions. But I still think Rick has done well in several of those circumstances (the bar scene, again, sticking out). But he's on a whole new terrain now. There IS no rule of law, no precedents to follow. He's making it up as he goes along.

As for the Andrea situation, wasn't Carol fairly certain she saw Andrea die? I thought she gave that impression and that's why they didn't make a stronger case for going back for her.

[kikismom]

You're right, I went back and they put it like "we saw Andrea go down" so it gave the impression she died (although it could have given the impression she did something else, but that's a Beavis and Butthead joke).

oh, and Rick was pretty tight in Nebraska. So I gotta give him a chance...

[peach]

I thought Nebraska was memorable.  His eyes hardened, and suddenly you knew that diplomatic, democratic, indecisive Rick was going to kill those guys, and he did, because they were a clear and present danger.  That look in his eyes still stands out in my memory.  But the dithering around with Randall that season was torture...for the audience.

I like Rick's character, even when he's frustrating, because he's frustrating in a realistic way, in the same way real people frustrate you when they don't do what you want them to.  I hope he gets a haircut soon, because everyone else seems to be able to, and keep reasonably clean.  When he found a clean t-shirt in that house, I almost cried with joy.

[Cheetosandchoc]

Peach you beat me to it. It's hard to watch Rick becuase of his lack of grooming. I find myself holding my breath when he is on my screen.

[Milaxx]

The thing that bug me about Rick is I always get this stink of self righteousness from him. Of course he's human and doing the best he can in the ZA, but I feel like he often holds others to higher standards. I dunno, he just bugs. I also in part hold him responsible for there not being a meetup plan. Especially seeing how they all got scattered when the farm was over run. To be fair that blame is shared by all of the so called "council". There really should have been more of a safely plan beyond get on the bus and drive away. 

[Cheetosandchoc]

I don't think Rick would of casually strolled into Terminus though.

[burrito]

The thing that bug me about Rick is I always get this stink of self righteousness from him.

 

I see him the way Hershel saw him.  Rick's a man of conscience, which makes him try to do the right thing, but I've never felt he was smug about it.    

 

[bravelittletoaster]

He just doesn't exactly exude personality to me.  And yeah, maybe being the central figure / straight man in a zombie apocalypse is kind of a thankless role, and maybe I'm unduly influenced by less 'naturalistic' but more favorable [to me] takes like Zombieland and Shawn of the Dead, but I just wish Rick weren't so fucking boring.  I realize shit's gotten fairly real for him, but my snark bias makes me wish he were more of a smart ass.  

Anyhow, I think my deep ambivalence towards Rick is why I've always been deeply ambivalent towards this show in general.  With the lighter focus on him this half season and the introduction of new faces to whom I seem to be responding a bit better, my interest in this show has correlated negatively with his screen time [ie, it's gone up.]

[peach]

I thought he was great in season 3, but he's been stuck with a fairly boring plot line this season, to set up the next season, so that isn't his fault.  He was farming and staying out of everyone's way, then they had a showdown where he got beaten almost to death and has been trying to recover, and then has barely been seen for the back half.  I think the finale is going to bring Rick back into the chaos again, so he probably needed the rest!  lol 

The only meat for Rick this season was when he banished Carol, which was infuriating, and THAT is the time I felt like he was being self-righteous.  But plenty of fans think he should have done it.  And to quote Mika's mom, everything works out like it's supposed to...maybe Carol being outside the prison saved her life during the Gov's attack.  And she was able to witness what happened to Judith and track them down.  It's so easy to get mad at the writers or characters episode by episode, until you see how it all unfolds!  Now we have a delicious irony that Rick tossed out Carol to protect his kids, but it is Carol and her willingness to do anything to protect the group that has saved his kid.  Getting kicked out worked out for the best for her, too, it unfolded with the only opportunity for her to confess to Tyrese and not end up with a hammer between the eyes.

Anyway, things are about to get horrible with/for Rick again, so who knows what we will all be thinking about Rick tomorrow night.

[Enigma X]

I guess I have always been a Rick fan and really like him (Michonne and Carl) this season but liked him previous seasons too and find nothing wrong with his leadership skills. I think, of the bunch, he tries to use reason in a world with no reason but if you go totally off the reservation you are still not making anything better for humanity. I guess I don't see any of the other chraracters being any better with leadership, if given the opportunity, than Rick.

[kikismom]

I'm trying to give him a chance but he does get on my nerves a lot.

Carol lost her daughter, Amy lost her sister, etc. and they had grief but they made themselves pull their shit together. Lori dies and Rick goes into the fetal position (for a considerable time).

When Rick tried early on to get Herschel to let them stay, he's all "You have to let us stay, you need to think again..." That's cop talk but not how you talk when you are virtually a beggr, not in a position of strength. He's like that again with the Governor, he doesn't seem to pick up on the obvious signals that he isn't making a case; he's antagonizing someone ( and when failure to win the argument means big trouble). When he talks about being the leader, he's always "I didn't ask for this", yet when anyone else tries to lead he goes off. Merle's in, then he's out, then he's in again (despite Glenn's feelings), Michonne is in, then she's out, then she's back in, we take Randall back, then away, then back, ad infinitum. I like some things he's done, but a leader has to have some consistency and a lot of problems with the group happened because Rick is such a weathervane, whichever way the wind blows. That makes me scared with this Terminus arc;is he going to yell "RUN! RUN FOR YOUR LI---oh, now wait, let's negotiate, let's not be too hasty...no this is really bad-- LOCK AND LOAD!...although... the place does have some advantages... " I like Nebraska Rick, not Rinse and Repeat Rick.

[peach]

Rick drives me crazy!!  BUT, I felt like Rick had stuffed everything down since he killed Shane, and he zeroed in on one single purpose: finding some kind of safe haven for Lori to have her baby, while keeping everyone else alive.  So when Lori did die, and he'd failed (and Carl had to do the worst), everything he'd suppressed finally came pouring out, and he broke down in a giant PTSD event.  Andrea and Carol each had a terrible loss, but Rick had all the pressure, and I think his breakdown was mostly based on guilt.  He even carried guilt for what happened to Sophia.  Each person suffers their losses, but Rick feels those in addition to his own, because he's made himself responsible for the group.

Also, Rick was a few months behind everyone in their coping with the situation, because he was unconscious for the collapse of society, and he had to catch up to the others in terms of really grasping the enormity of what's happened to the world. 

As far as his indecisiveness goes, I think it was all about being almost incapacitated by being afraid to make a mistake.  But hopefully they're all learning, that whatever decision you make, someone's still going to die.  So you have to act and move on.  Which is how I interpreted the ending of the first half of the season when he said, "Don't look back."

[ghoulina]

Carol lost her daughter, Amy lost her sister, etc. and they had grief but they made themselves pull their shit together. Lori dies and Rick goes into the fetal position (for a considerable time).

 

I think the difference is that Rick had so much unfinished business with Lori when she died. Amy and Andrea had actually just resolved a lot of theirs. Andrea talked about missing out on so much because of her being older than Amy and away doing her own thing. The ZA was their chance to reconnect and become closer. And, of course, Carol and Sophia didn't have that. I would think losing a child would basically be the worst thing ever, but it was almost sort of anti-climactic because Carol had so long to get used to the idea. But with Lori it happened very suddenly and her and Rick were still not in a good place. Rick had been punishing her all winter and she was desperately trying to make things right. Shortly before she died, they had the moment on the catwalk where he finally showed a smidge of tenderness toward her. But they weren't there.....yet. I think his grief after she died was spurred by immense guilt. I think he wished that he hadn't been so cold to her, and had made things right before she died. And now he never would be able to.

Edited March 30, 2014 by ghoulina

[VioletHues]

Rick is my eye candy on this show and I'm going to need him to take a shower soon. 

[Enigma X]

Kate W, Rick (and Daryl are/) is my eyecandy, and for a minute, the dirty look had me going. But it is time for him to hose down.

[kikismom]

Oh, I love AL and NR, the actors...the writers keep messing with them though.

Okay: Rick did have guilt, not just grief; so he gets a pass for the breakdown.(You're breakin' me Ghoulina!) Still, I'm really mad that Rick/Michonne/Carl won't encounter the Brother Eugene's Traveling Salvation Show till they get to Terminus (and by then that'll be the least of their problems).  I keep running a mental-movie of what reaction Rick/Michonne/Carl would have had if it had been them instead of Glenn and Tara. Especially if Abraham yelled at Michonne Is that all you got? (snort)

  I can't see Rick eating that "It's classified! " happy horseshit either; (eye-fuck Eugene till he wets his pants).Carl would have probably taken their weapons. Or trotted out his line "If you believe in that, you're an idiot!" If I had a choice between being stranded with Abraham or Lil' Hat-bastard it's not even a dilemma.

[peach]

"Carl would have probably taken their weapons. Or trotted out his line "If you believe in that, you're an idiot!" If I had a choice between being stranded with Abraham or Lil' Hat-bastard it's not even a dilemma."

Word!  As much as people complain about Carl, to me he often seems to be the smartest person in the group.  I'd want to be with Rick, Carl, Carol, Michonne and Daryl.  Everyone else, even characters I like, are expendable to me.  (I hope the writers agree!)

(edited because I messed up the quote thingy)

Edited March 30, 2014 by peach

[peach]

I guess Rick is decisive now! 

[VioletHues]

About that shower...

In all seriousness though, last night's episode made me question my own sanity as it was the most attractive I've found Rick all season. Apparently I like a man who isn't afraid to get a little nuts.

[Watcher0363]

I was going to post an article defending Ricks leadership. But the 4th season finale summed it up well. In the world they live in, it is easy to become a monster and to justify your actions as just for a host of reasons, some more legitimate than others. But the greatest danger is when you are a leader and a monster. Then your followers become monsters and the humanity of the whole is greatly diminished if not totally lost.

[peach]

Are you saying you feel like that's what he's become?  A leader and a monster?

I think the monsters are the ones who harm innocent people.  I don't think anything he did to stop a true monster makes him one too.  It was extreme, yes. 

[kikismom]

 

 

But the greatest danger is when you are a leader and a monster. Then your followers become monsters and the humanity of the whole is greatly diminished if not totally lost.

We're here to talk about TWD, not Martha Stewart.

[catrox14]

I can't concur that Rick is a monster now. It took Daryl being nearly beaten to death, a gun to his own head, the combined threat of sexual assault and murder of Michonne and an actual sexual assault on his own son in front of his eyes to spur him into that act of self-defense using the only tool he had at his disposal.  I think he's still well far from monster territory.  I think he's just not going to feel bad about it taking extreme measures anymore. Nor should he.

[peach]

Andrew Lincoln was on Talking Dead last night, and kept talking about how excited he was about all the new changes with his character.  So I guess he was sick of Rick, too.  ha

[Tim Thomason]

Rick: "They're screwing with the wrong people."

Carl: "I am a monster, ready to take these monsters down." (looks down solemnly)

Abraham: "YEAAHHH! I like this dude."

Eugene: "You could probably fit another 95 people in this train car, comfortably. This is a very spacious train car." (wanders off in conversation)

Tara: "Let's go take these guy--" (twists her ankle)

Glenn: "Oh, God, he's in one of these moods again."

Daryl: (nods proudly while quietly adjusting his trousers)

Michonne: (has left the car about 5 seconds ago)

[Pete Martell]

I sometimes feel guilty about finding Rick so hot when he's having a breakdown or when he's so far over the edge, but he was incredibly hot in this episode. Even those night shots with his hair all Jon Snow insane, blood on his mouth. The zeal in his eyes. This was a calling for Rick.

The jacket does not help my feelings. 

I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be worried at the darkness, but I loved seeing Rick so dangerous and feral.

I don't think Rick's a bad leader; he's not a great leader, but he has his moments. I just don't think the group has ever been one that is served well with one leader. The main exception was the months on the road after the farm was destroyed, but the rest of the time it's just too many disparate personalities. This small group with Daryl, Michonne, and Carl is the type he'd be better leading.

My Rick thread title will always be - He Goes For The Jugular.

Edited April 1, 2014 by Pete Martell

[bravelittletoaster]

I sometimes feel guilty about finding Rick so hot when he's having a breakdown or when he's so far over the edge, but he was incredibly hot in this episode. Even those night shots with his hair all Jon Snow insane, blood on his mouth. The zeal in his eyes. This was a calling for Rick.

You shouldn't feel guilty, you should feel lucky.  I'd like this show so much more if the lead character did it for me.  As it is I'm pretty proud of my shallow self for sticking around for so long without any personal eye candy.

[Pete Martell]

I think the difference is that Rick had so much unfinished business with Lori when she died. Amy and Andrea had actually just resolved a lot of theirs. Andrea talked about missing out on so much because of her being older than Amy and away doing her own thing. The ZA was their chance to reconnect and become closer. And, of course, Carol and Sophia didn't have that. I would think losing a child would basically be the worst thing ever, but it was almost sort of anti-climactic because Carol had so long to get used to the idea. But with Lori it happened very suddenly and her and Rick were still not in a good place. Rick had been punishing her all winter and she was desperately trying to make things right. Shortly before she died, they had the moment on the catwalk where he finally showed a smidge of tenderness toward her. But they weren't there.....yet. I think his grief after she died was spurred by immense guilt. I think he wished that he hadn't been so cold to her, and had made things right before she died. And now he never would be able to.

I also don't think Carol or Andrea resolved most of their grief. Andrea tried to commit suicide. She would have if Dale hadn't essentially forced her to leave the CDC because he would have died too. She then became obsessed with proving how strong she was and what a leader she was, which ultimately led to her death. Carol put all of her anger and pain about Sophia into her relationship with Lizzie and with Mika, only to see her idea (that if a child is "strong," the rest solves itself) end in tatters. 

They didn't have flashy, melodramatic breakdowns the way Rick has had a few times, but what seemed like togetherness on the surface was much more damaged within.

Edited April 1, 2014 by Pete Martell

[TooMuchCoffee]

The world needs bad men. They keep the other bad men from the door.

oh, sorry...wrong show

[CletusMusashi]

I liked him last episode, but it doesn't fill me with much hope. Rick's personality is whatever the writers need it to be at that particular moment. When the time that they want him to be a crazy ass-kicker is over, he will probably go back to sucking, so that they can "surprise" us again the next time he does anything interesting.

[JackONeill]

He has been inconsistent, but mostly I blame the writers for that.  Under the circumstances (the end of the world as we know it), he's done better than most at the job.

[peach]

I think Rick is inconsistent in the way that real people often are.  I think that's why it pisses me off so much!  ha.  I don't think it's a problem with the writing, I think it's his character's struggle to figure out who he is or maybe more who he thinks he "should" be in this new world, and he goes back and forth trying to come to terms with his brute instincts vs his humanity.  I think the end of the season was supposed to show that he's finally reached equilibrium.  Looking at the overall picture after 4 seasons, I think it's pretty realistic in terms of character development.

I've felt like the Farmer Rick prison scenario was mostly an overcorrection on his part (mostly for Carl's sake), but I now think the flashbacks were meant to show that they needed that time at the prison to regroup and heal themselves a bit before forging ahead into the world.  That's my interpretation anyway...from that scene near the end of him saying maybe it wouldn't last, but it was enough to have it right now (or something like that). 

[BoobooJettyBear]

As this is my first post I'd really like to offer something insightful and articulate with regards to Rick's actions in 'A' and his journey in general throughout the series, but I'm afraid I'm just going to bring the shallow:

Rick Grimes is the sexiest mofo in the ZA and I'm not ashamed at finding him at his most hottest during his exchange with the marauders.

Although the bits of Joe in his beard were a bit of a turn-off.

[catrox14]

Mileage varies and all that but I don't find Rick inconsistent at all.

I think most people by the time they are Rick's age are who we are.  But sometimes life circumstances force us to move in one direction or another despite our own desires and wishes and needs and ideals, etc, but we want to hang onto the person we think we are.  In other words, real change is hard.  I think our core 'person' wants to remain in place.  And I think Rick is moving through these forced changes a little slower than say Shane or Carl did because he doesn't want to lose the man inside that he believes he has always been,a loyal husband, loving father, lawman, reluctant leader.  I think he's finally accepted that he is still that man essentially but now to survive he has to be a harsher man too.  I find that interesting character growth.

But mostly I appreciate that Lincoln has kept Rick's characterization, body language and speech patterns consistent throughout the run.  No matter if he's making good or bad decisions or is having a meltdown or is trying to be happy, I know it's still Rick and for me that overcomes some odd writing choices and makes Rick a truly three-dimensional character.

[Mattipoo]

I can't stand farmer Rick, especially the Rick that followed the moldy woman into the woods alone in the season premiere. I am glad that in the season finale, Rick is finally turning back to the BAMF he can and should be in order to survive the ZA.

[dreamwriter31]

I am in agreement, Mattipoo. I like BAMF Rick. This Rick is the one I want to see. He hasn't completely lost his humanity, but he understands in this world, he needs to use whatever means necessary to survive. 

The scene where Rick calls Darryl his brother? One of my favorites of the entire series. 

[Ocean Chick]

Kikismom has said everything I think of Rick already.  But I like that he's human and messes up at times.  I hate perfect people - they're boring.  Which is one reason I'm still rather cool on Michonne.  I need her to f*ck up once in a while (besides tripping over the rope and twisting her ankle.  That was a start, but she needs to do more).  RIck isn't a great leader, but he's learning.  He just needs to acknowledge that decisions have to be made on the fly now, and they can't spend precious moments being wishy-washy or feeling guilty for things out of their control.

As far as Carol having plenty of time to grieve for Sophia before she came out of the barn, I really don't think they were on the farm all that long.  Probably a week or less.  It just seemed like forever because of seeing only a hour a week spread over the season.  Carol just has a lot of mental fortitude, is all, and life has taught her not to hope for the best.  Rick still is learning that (his talking on the phone to "Lori", saying he thought he'd have time to make up with her).

[3jt]

I love Rick. I especially love Rick interacting with other strong personalities like Michone, and Darryl. I am glad that he is struggling in this hell world- I don't trust anyone <side eye the Gov> that actually thrives.

[kj4ever]

I keep thinking the title of this thread should be Rick Grimes - Taking a bite out of crime

[seacliffsal]

kj4ever-perfect, just perfect!

[tv echo]

I keep thinking the title of this thread should be Rick Grimes - Taking a bite out of crime

I agree.  Anyway, if the spoilers are correct, then

Rick will no longer be leading badly in this next season.