S09.E06: Who Are You Now?

[marcee]

I'm with the viewers who are a bit irritated by seeing a chubby ZA survivor... but more than that, what are the odds that excellent fighters are dropping dead left and right but someone who is ***deaf*** has made it through a decade of zombie overrun? One of the very few things that helps saves lives in this show is hearing the dead sneak up behind you...hearing the moaning and groaning in forests and behind doors...the shuffling outside your tent. How is it even remotely possible that not only is there enough food to keep Chubby chubby, but in 10 some-odd years, a deaf woman (and her kid? sister? maybe?) survived just fine? Suspension of disbelief, table for everyone. That's not even taking into account that zombies should eventually fall apart, right? Or is there a point at which they stop decaying?

I liked this episode, though. I enjoyed little Judith and I'm ok with adults giving in. She is, after all, what's left of Rick - and representative of the future they all aspire to have.

I enjoyed Eugene's progress. Watching him efficiently take out a bunch of walkers made me feel a strange sort of pride.

I liked the new group, even though I have serious questions about some of the writers' choices here.

I loved bad-ass Carol and I'm so happy to see her again!

Negan didn't irritate me nearly as much as he used to; I loved his new haircut.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised with the ZA post-Rick. Looking forward to more.

Edited November 13, 2018 by marcee
grammar

[peach]

4 minutes ago, marcee said:

I'm with the viewers who are a bit irritated by seeing a chubby ZA survivor... but more than that, what are the odds that excellent fighters are dropping dead left and right but someone who is ***deaf*** has made it through a decade of zombie overrun? One of the very few things that helps saves lives in this show is hearing the dead sneak up behind you...hearing the moaning and groaning in forests and behind doors...the shuffling outside your tent. How is it even remotely possible that not only is there enough food to keep Chubby chubby, but in 10 some-odd years, a deaf woman (and her kid? sister? maybe?) survived just fine? Suspension of disbelief, table for everyone.

My personal opinion is that they are just copying from A Quiet Place since that was such a huge hit.  Although, our intrepid crew can't seem to hear zombies shuffling through the woods, either.  Or tanks.  Or helicopters.
My issue with a deaf character  is that I have to watch the subtitles instead of barely watch and half listen while surfing the net at the same time.

[iMonrey]

Quote

 I did think Judith got off a bit of poignancy with her line about starting to forget the sound of Rick's and Carl's voices.

Except I can't imagine Judith remembering Carl at all. There was an 18-month jump between Season 8 and the start of Season 9 so Judith was - what - four years old when Carl died? If that? 

Is Daryl's tent pitched on the ground? I get why maybe he's living out in the wild but that hardly seems practical let alone safe. Shouldn't he have a tree house somewhere if he doesn't want to avail himself of an actual structure?

[Dobian]

20 hours ago, Butless said:

I have no great love for Daryl, but he is a solid actor and one of the two main male leads after  season 7, episode 1.

The blame lays entirely with TPTB and their greed. Do you think any of them didn't see their salaries go up, astronomically, from season to season? And they MADE an enormous cast of characters that, 7+ years down the line, no one gives a shit about. Tara? Rosita? Even Eugene is not a viable character since Abraham was killed off. One note characters that play off each other, making one big note scene, over and over and over... Aaron can also fuck off. Etc.  ALL of Oceanside. Barcode Bitch. And Negan is still around. He was an abortion. But he's STILL around, and getting paid, like the rest of them.  And whenever they've added a half decent character, who can act and has even a tiny bit of story to go on -like Dwight- they kill them off. 

They're written like cartoon characters, which I guess makes sense since the show is based on a comic.  And don't get me started on FPP.  Seth Gilliam was so cool in The Wire it kills me seeing him play this character.  I've never read the comics but have looked at excerpts, like some from the Saviors story.  It felt kind of Batmanesque with the over-the-top villain and setting, but on the show they overlay the comic book premise on a story they try to make feel realistic.  I think you need to go one direction or the other, a comic book show (like Gotham is), or a realistic show.  When you stick things in like Eugene and Garbage Pail kids, then try to make it all serious drama, it just feels weird.

[Nashville]

43 minutes ago, Dobian said:

They're written like cartoon characters, which I guess makes sense since the show is based on a comic.  

GRAPHIC NOVEL, not COMIC!!!  :D

Sorry, couldn’t resist.  ;)  Better be careful, though; make a slip like that at a ComicCon, and they’re liable to react like you just stole Carol’s ring.  :>

[AngelaHunter]

41 minutes ago, Nashville said:

GRAPHIC NOVEL, not COMIC!!!  :D

Haha! Yep. I never call them anything but "comics" but I get that adults don't want to tell people they read comic books - something in which I lost interest at about 13 years of age - and they think calling them "Graphic Novels" makes it sound all arty and cerebral but it's fooling no one.

1 hour ago, Dobian said:

And don't get me started on FPP. 

Thinking about Rosita telling herself, re: FPP, "I gotta get me some of that" just left me in utter confusion. As much as I found Abe unappealing in so many ways (although I did come to quite like him as a character) I could see why Rosita aligned with him. It was a mutual agreement and Rosita is no sentimental fool: Abe was big and strong and well-versed in combat, and she agreed to be "some ass" for him. It made sense to me. Done deal.

[Nashville]

26 minutes ago, AngelaHunter said:

Haha! Yep. I never call them anything but "comics" but I get that adults don't want to tell people they read comic books - something in which I lost interest at about 13 years of age - and they think calling them "Graphic Novels" makes it sound all arty and cerebral but it's fooling no one.

Yep!  These are the same folks who will get into spirited debates over who would win in a Batman/Superman faceoff.  My standard answer to attempts to pull me into such: “It depends on the luck of the draw”.

(Get it?)

  ;>

Secret confession: I’ll do the GN/comic “slip” myself on purpose sometimes around the True Believers, just to see which of their eyes will start twitching first.  ;)

 

26 minutes ago, AngelaHunter said:

Thinking about Rosita telling herself, re: FPP, "I gotta get me some of that" just left me in utter confusion.

Hey, ya never know.  Considering FPP is THE ONLY PERSON ON THE PLANET to douse himself in walker guts and actually catch something from it - maybe losing the vision in his one eye was a trade-off for getting a certain sumptin’ sumptin’ elsewhere which never dies...?  ;>

(Yeah, I’m going to hell....)

[Gobi]

11 hours ago, OoohMaggie said:

They are going to have to start, children literally are the future, even annoying ones.

If they don't start reproducing more, their society is doomed. Just to have a stable population, no increase or decrease, requires a total fertility rate of 2.1 live births per female. From what we've seen, there's been one successful birth in the past six years. So, yeah, they're doomed.

[AngelaHunter]

39 minutes ago, Gobi said:

If they don't start reproducing more, their society is doomed.

Yabbut, to reproduce, people need to have S-E-X, something TPTB seem to frown upon, since until recently the only people "mixing the Bisquick" were Magge and Glenn. I guess Negan is firing blanks, considering his harem seemed to remain without issue.

 

55 minutes ago, Nashville said:

 Considering FPP is THE ONLY PERSON ON THE PLANET to douse himself in walker guts and actually catch something from it

Oh, yeah. Catching something from walker guts and goo spray ect was a thing for about 20 minutes, wasn't it? I guess that's all forgotten now.

57 minutes ago, Nashville said:

(Get it?)

Actually, I do! Nice one.

[Gobi]

2 hours ago, Nashville said:

GRAPHIC NOVEL, not COMIC!!!  :D

Sorry, couldn’t resist.  ;)  Better be careful, though; make a slip like that at a ComicCon, and they’re liable to react like you just stole Carol’s ring.  :>

I haven't read any TWD novels, they were too graphic for me.

[oakville]

I must say that I am enjoying the new season & the attempt to  show the "world building". I like the fact that progress is being made in Alexandria. I still hate Negan, but I like the new arrivals. It wasn't that long ago that Rick & his crew were outsiders to the residents of Alexandria. It' absurd that Saviors would still be hiding out nearby.

[Colorado David]

49 minutes ago, AngelaHunter said:

Yabbut, to reproduce, people need to have S-E-X, something TPTB seem to frown upon, since until recently the only people "mixing the Bisquick" were Magge and Glenn. I guess Negan is firing blanks, considering his harem seemed to remain without issue.

 

FPP appears to be trying to do his best to spread the seed upon the earth.  I'm assuming Carol's too old by now. Maggie won't hit anyone but Glenn. I'm surprised Jesus hasn't hooked up with somebody, he seems pretty virile. 

[AngelaHunter]

2 minutes ago, Colorado David said:

I'm surprised Jesus hasn't hooked up with somebody, he seems pretty virile. 

He could hook up I guess, but there's not going to be any fruit from those loins.

[Butless]

4 hours ago, Dobian said:

They're written like cartoon characters, which I guess makes sense since the show is based on a comic.  And don't get me started on FPP.  Seth Gilliam was so cool in The Wire it kills me seeing him play this character.  I've never read the comics but have looked at excerpts, like some from the Saviors story.  It felt kind of Batmanesque with the over-the-top villain and setting, but on the show they overlay the comic book premise on a story they try to make feel realistic.  I think you need to go one direction or the other, a comic book show (like Gotham is), or a realistic show.  When you stick things in like Eugene and Garbage Pail kids, then try to make it all serious drama, it just feels weird.

And the Garbage Paill kids weren't in the comics. It sounded like a Gimple idea . He's the one who was so excited about them, and said they were an homage to Star Trek. THAT's what he thinks the audience wants to see in WD. Shit HE likes, that he can just piss into the show.

[Colorado David]

20 minutes ago, AngelaHunter said:

He could hook up I guess, but there's not going to be any fruit from those loins.

Maybe Jadis will salvage some of Rick's gene-gravy. Then we could have Coral 2.0.

[Butless]

5 hours ago, peach said:

My personal opinion is that they are just copying from A Quiet Place since that was such a huge hit.  Although, our intrepid crew can't seem to hear zombies shuffling through the woods, either.  Or tanks.  Or helicopters.
My issue with a deaf character  is that I have to watch the subtitles instead of barely watch and half listen while surfing the net at the same time.

Theyre trying to be inclusive re the audience, putting in fat, deaf and wheelchairbound(FTWD) characters, which I can understand. But it does distract from any realism.  Now it feels like these characters are going to go out in a shitty way , hampered by their handicap, or stick around for too long, both which are a bummer. Im betting on the latter, which is the bigger of two bummers. 

But the worse problem is the stories each of these new characters gave. I would have thrown them all out as lying sacks of shit, right then. NONE of them directly answered the questions put to them. It was all a bunch of bullshit exposition. Kelly said they were in high school when the ZA broke out. And who gives a flying fuck that her deaf sister brought down a bunch of shady politicians pre-ZA, as a reporter?  Gime me a fucking break.  It doesnt say much for Kelly's smarts that he would say this anyway to a group of people he doesnt know are even on the up & up. Luke was just overly dramatic. And with these writers? It seems like they were trying to make him endearing, with all his blubbering about occa bucco, etc.

[Butless]

3 hours ago, AngelaHunter said:

Haha! Yep. I never call them anything but "comics" but I get that adults don't want to tell people they read comic books - something in which I lost interest at about 13 years of age - and they think calling them "Graphic Novels" makes it sound all arty and cerebral but it's fooling no one.

Thinking about Rosita telling herself, re: FPP, "I gotta get me some of that" just left me in utter confusion. As much as I found Abe unappealing in so many ways (although I did come to quite like him as a character) I could see why Rosita aligned with him. It was a mutual agreement and Rosita is no sentimental fool: Abe was big and strong and well-versed in combat, and she agreed to be "some ass" for him. It made sense to me. Done deal.

Ive seen some of the comic and I wasnt impressed, to say the least. Not with the writing or drawing. Kirkman is the villain of his own story, imo, wrt the WD show.

Right. More than looks or age disparity (SG is 50, christian Serratos 28), it doesnt make sense to have them as a couple because  the character of Rosita was shown not to believe in fairy tails, and is a hard pragmatist.  I suppose they could show  through flashbacks in those 6 years  how she came to Jesus, but I dont want to watch that. At all. And its unfair to the audience that we've been forced to imagine FPP have sex in two consecutive episodes. Andrew Lincoln was the sex symbol of this show, and  his two sex scenes were 7 years apart.

[Colorado David]

6 minutes ago, Butless said:

 And with these writers? It seems like they were trying to make him endearing, with all his blubbering about occa bucco, etc.

Yeah. Tho Ezekiel might dig the fact that he's a musician, being the dramatis artis type.

[Butless]

Just now, Colorado David said:

Yeah. Tho Ezekiel might dig the fact that he's a musician, being the dramatis artis type.

And FPP might have an organ he can play. Why not? He's slept with everyone else ;[

[AngelaHunter]

27 minutes ago, Butless said:

Theyre trying to be inclusive re the audience, putting in fat, deaf and wheelchairbound(FTWD) characters

Yeah, I know. It's painful, clunky and obvious how they strive to carry the "We are all one" PC-ness into the apocalypse. No wonder the cast has grown huge. I'm ready to start squawking because they didn't include any Irish Canadians.

21 minutes ago, Butless said:

And FPP might have an organ he can play. Why not? He's slept with everyone else ;[

Yep. He's one horny clergyman.

[mightysparrow]

On 11/12/2018 at 2:59 AM, Butless said:

There's really no one to root for anymore and I don't care if anyone dies.  Starting with all the kids. I called TPTB wealthy parents of spoiled brats they thought were perfect, before, and I was right. This is exactly how they write the children of this show.  All except for Sophia, in S1, who was pretty much a bland plot device, anyway.  And it's just gotten worse over time.

Even the idea that a WD audience would want to sit and watch a bunch of children hop around in the plot is pretty tone-deaf.   Making them precocious little assholes was never going to make this show better, and it's all but unwatchable, now.  Judith should have been killed off as a toddler, like in the comics. I don't read the comics, but I'm pretty sure Kirkman did it because he made a mistake bringing a baby character into a ZA world, in the first place. It fit his misogynistic narrative in the beginning, and then when Lori died and he couldn't kick her around anymore, the baby became a bigger and bigger burden, I'm sure.

They cant play this two ways. They cant ask you to suspend disbelief for nearly every plot point, as they are doing now. The thing that held the audience, which was overwhelmingly adult, was setting the story in as real a world as we know. And that included making the characters realistic, so that we could sympathize and empathize with them. Now the characters have become hollow; parodies of themselves. Spouting the same plot dialog over and over and over...

Characters don't behave in rational, human ways. The ex-con stalks Michonne to her home with her knife out.  She was exposed as a liar by Michonne earlier in the day. Watches her as she trains  Judith. Then she makes like Michael Myers and stalks her at home, also with her knife out.  We're supposed to be afraid for Michonne because they've shown the ex-con as menacing, and angry. But its irrational to watch someone behave this way. TPTB dont think so, because they've used this character as a plot device to fake-out the viewer. They do these things on a little and big scale over and again, and have never learned their lesson, that  its shitty writing/tv, and that they are abusing the patience of the audience with utter crap,like this.

A poster said earlier that there was  something "off" about the music teacher.  Yes; I agree.  What's off about him is he isn't a human that would be a product of 8 or 9 years of the ZA.  Like the sheltered Alexandrian who kept going on about wanting a pasta maker, this asshole, upon seeing his rescuers, says that he can make occa bucco for them. That's his bargaining chip.  He's melodramatic and emotional over the supposed recent loss of a group member. He answers the pageant question, 'Who are you now?,' that he's still a music teacher, because even in the ZA, people need to learn (music).  Now, are any of these things 'normal' for a person who lived through a zombie holocaust?

Asking an audience to pretend that gas would still be around, or that zombies have enough sinew left 8-9 years later to attack people is one thing.  Asking them to accept that in 6 years, Judith grew at least 6 years, while a Richonne kid is still 3-4, is asinine.  Or that that new kid Kelly was in "high school" when the ZA broke out, and 8-9 years later, he doesn't seem to be over 18 years old. Etc. Anyway back to Michonne's  surprise kid... if they wanted to, they could have him be from a union with someone else other than Rick. It's been 6 years. She only knew Rick ... 2-3 years? Why wouldn't she have gotten with another man, in the 6 years that passed? She thinks he's DEAD. Shades of Lori's story here, again.  She's a young woman, why in the fuck should she be expected to be a nun, after Rick dies. Not a question; a statement.  All too often, with 'good' women characters ,like hers, the writers and audience, expect them to only be with one man, and a faithful widow to a dead husband.  And in fact, that was the rock they beat Lori with, in the first place.  It would be more interesting if she had had that kid with anyone other than Rick. Father Gabe, Negan, I don't care; anyone else. And it would explain the age fuck-up of that kid, too.

  Reveal hidden contents

 

As it is, in the realm of fantasy of this show,  the only reason that Rick wouldn't make it back to Michonne in 6 years ... the only reason a 'good' man character wouldn't move hell and high water to make it back to her, would be because  he didn't live long, after the helicopter touched down again.  That 'his story'  is much shorter than those 6 years. Maybe his story only lasts a year or less, in the timeline.

If there is even any truth to the bullshit that movies of his story are going to be made. Aaah, with the same people writing them, I can guarantee they will be nonsensical crap, anyway.

 

Very well said. 

The Madonna/whore view of this show is sickening.  Apparently 'good' women are only allowed a limited amount of dick. 

Michonne survived the death of her own child and managed to move on and create another life for herself, but she can't get over RICK GRIMES?  Please.  Michonne is a CATCH, she always was.  I don't care how badass she is.  LOOK AT HER!!!!!!  I can't believe there isn't a man in the ZA not willing to risk her wrath for just the chance to be with her.  Rick is DEAD; if anyone should be moving on with her life, it should be Michonne.  She has children to raise and a community to run and she spends her time talking to a ghost.  What rankles someone like me is the fact that Rick isn't even a ghost, just a man who FOR SOME REASON, has managed to stay away from his community, his children and the woman so devoted to him that she's stopped living. 

[maystone]

On 11/12/2018 at 9:06 AM, Bryce Lynch said:

Normally, I love Angel of Death Carol, and I am not big on giving mercy to the Saviors.  But, I had mixed feelings about her taking revenge and burning them all up.  The Saviors easily could have killed her and Henry initially and then again, after they chose to let them go, but idiot Henry decided to take them all on with his stick.  But, the Savior she had spared 6 years earlier remembered and returned the favor.  The best argument I can come up with to justify Carols pyromania was that they would have been a threat to other good guys traveling the roads.  

I thought I heard Carol say that the Saviors had some of her friends' belongings in their wagon, and Jed saying that they had found them, not stolen them. That put me in mind of Carol finding the Termites and all their stash. I just figured that she reverted to That Carol in order to just get rid of the threat once and for all. Still very much a "Whoa!" moment for me, though.

[enoughcats]

Such a minor quibble: osso bucco requires tomatoes and red wine.  WTF would assume that red wine is available in this world.

Ok, another osso bucco  quibble.  It's better when made with a meat that isn't strongly flavored.  The horse that I've eaten in France is hellish strongly flavored and the herbs it takes to kill the 'flavor' don't grow in the wild in Virginia.

[amazinglybored]

8 hours ago, marcee said:

I'm with the viewers who are a bit irritated by seeing a chubby ZA survivor... but more than that, what are the odds that excellent fighters are dropping dead left and right but someone who is ***deaf*** has made it through a decade of zombie overrun? One of the very few things that helps saves lives in this show is hearing the dead sneak up behind you...hearing the moaning and groaning in forests and behind doors...the shuffling outside your tent. How is it even remotely possible that not only is there enough food to keep Chubby chubby, but in 10 some-odd years, a deaf woman (and her kid? sister? maybe?) survived just fine? Suspension of disbelief, table for everyone. That's not even taking into account that zombies should eventually fall apart, right? Or is there a point at which they stop decaying?

 

Yeahhhhhhhh.... it really is a setting that would favour young-ish adults to around middle age, fitter and healthier people and the show has been meh about that part of it. More men than women would probably survive on physical attributes (plus no pregnancy or menstruation related issues. ie you’re screwed if your period involves crippling pain or anemia) and people who were heavier would lose the weight if they survived. Muscular people would also lose extra muscle mass, tbh. It wouldn’t be impossible for the elderly, children, stupid youths, disabled and overweight/unfit to survive but it would be harder on the individual and the group. Heavier people would definitely lose weight and I’d side eye the newbies having a deaf woman and fat man; 2 of 5 members. You’d assume something was up with that. They’re running from a well off settlement, they’re there to gather information, etc.

 

They’ve showed it to a degree. Lori died in childbirth, there aren’t any elderly characters kicking around anymore, numerous children have died, people died or almost died in the names of Carl and Judith, most of the characters you see over the years aren’t that young, etc. I’ll handwave the zombies still being dangerous because they’re zombies and I’ll ignore that they wouldn’t have gas for most of the show because I don’t want to watch the writers try to really tackle travel without vehicles. However, I can get why representation would trump that and actors shouldn’t be starving themselves by the dozens to look more realistic. Putting stupid wigs on actors is still the worst. The aesthetic choices bother me more than anything.

[Iguessnot]

21 hours ago, Nashville said:

 

 

Er - how were they built in the first place, then?  Robots?  ;)

Just kidding - but in truth there’s nothing to the houses’ construction (wood, sheetrock, insulation, shingles, siding, etc.) you couldn’t find at a Lowe’s or Home Depot - and IIRC back when Deanna was first welcoming CDB to Alexandria, she told Rick her husband was the engineer who constructed the ASZ’s perimeter wall out of materials they scavenged from a Home Depot(?) warehouse in the vicinity.  So there’s no reason the home construction materials couldn’t have been scavenged from the same site as well over the past half-dozen years or so - although I do think that’s a helluva lot of material hauling just to conform to the neighborhood covenant’s aesthetic restrictions.  :>

 

 

But the perimeter wall looks like a scavenged wall. If TPTB want to suggest our motley crew built McMansion replicas, they should have been able to repair that bridge all by their lonesomes. 

[Nashville]

2 hours ago, Iguessnot said:

But the perimeter wall looks like a scavenged wall.

Sure it did!  The perimeter wall was put up in a rush to meet an emergent need (keeping out things which wanted to eat them), so aesthetics were probably not a primary concern - and once the ASZhats had something up and functional, I doubt they messed with it any more than was necessary for maintenance.

 

2 hours ago, Iguessnot said:

If TPTB want to suggest our motley crew built McMansion replicas, they should have been able to repair that bridge all by their lonesomes. 

Kind of an apples and oranges comparison; constructing a bridge across a body of moving water is a totally different engineering exercise than building a house.

[OoohMaggie]

12 hours ago, AngelaHunter said:

Haha! Yep. I never call them anything but "comics" but I get that adults don't want to tell people they read comic books - something in which I lost interest at about 13 years of age - and they think calling them "Graphic Novels" makes it sound all arty and cerebral but it's fooling no one.

The comic I loved at a similar age was very graphic, being about the world wars and all, it was still a comic though, doesn’t ‘ComicCon’ rather say it all?

[OoohMaggie]

10 hours ago, AngelaHunter said:

He could hook up I guess, but there's not going to be any fruit from those loins.

I think Olivia had a turkey baster.

[SimoneS]

4 hours ago, Nashville said:

Kind of an apples and oranges comparison; constructing a bridge across a body of moving water is a totally different engineering exercise than building a house.

Exactly. You need a knowledgeable and creative structural engineer to build, maintain, and repair a bridge. I don't know how they haven't come across one in Alexandria, VA, home to thousands of federal employees and tech companies, but the idea that Eugene has the knowledge to build a bridge was always ridiculous. 

I am not sure the group could build houses from scratch even if they had the materials and machinery, but they surely could have figured out how to patch up ones that they have.

[OoohMaggie]

23 HOURS AGO, MARCEE SAID

[”but someone who is ***deaf*** has made it through a decade of zombie overrun?”]

Being without a sense increases the effectiveness of those remaining. Someone who is deaf would be extremely visually alert, they can’t detect people behind them, just around the corner or even behind a door so they would keep aware of what’s around them far more diligently than someone also using their ears. Obviously they are at greater risk, but not by a huge degree.

Also there is no need for anyone to ever get bitten, all they need is the correct clothing, which apart from Negan nobody seems interested in wearing, but a boring show that would obviously make.

Edited November 14, 2018 by OoohMaggie

[TattleTeeny]

18 hours ago, marcee said:

I'm with the viewers who are a bit irritated by seeing a chubby ZA survivor... but more than that, what are the odds that excellent fighters are dropping dead left and right but someone who is ***deaf*** has made it through a decade of zombie overrun? One of the very few things that helps saves lives in this show is hearing the dead sneak up behind you...hearing the moaning and groaning in forests and behind doors...the shuffling outside your tent. How is it even remotely possible that not only is there enough food to keep Chubby chubby, but in 10 some-odd years, a deaf woman (and her kid? sister? maybe?) survived just fine? Suspension of disbelief, table for everyone. That's not even taking into account that zombies should eventually fall apart, right? Or is there a point at which they stop decaying?

I loved bad-ass Carol and I'm so happy to see her again!

Negan didn't irritate me nearly as much as he used to; I loved his new haircut.

 

I just assume that, like in non-zombie life, some people are just a bit more prone to a bulkier frame regardless of food intake or whatever. As for a deaf woman, if I think about that long enough, it still doesn't equate to me to keeping a baby safe in the apocalypse (I am not a parent though, and have zero idea how one takes care of a child 24/7 in normal circumstances, haha!). Similarly, I have always wondered if the people at the Kingdom were vegetarians, considering how much meat they'd have needed just for Shiva! (Love and miss you, Shiva!)

I also love bad-ass Carol--so many times where she saved the day in such an action-movie style and I can't help but love it every time!

As for zombies not eventually just completely falling apart forever, I just assumed that more and more are always being "born," whether due to people dropping dead of whatever causes and maybe no one being there to stab their heads or casualties in other situations. My BF always wonders why there are still so many walkers but I just assume that until/unless there's some kind of cure, they're just always going to be replenished. 

I'm one of the few here who's OK with Negan in general (as a character/foil, mind you, not that I think he's a swell guy!), but I found myself wondering whose job it is to maintain his hair, haha! Like why does anyone at Alexandria even care if Negan's hair is taken care of? Did he ask for a haircut? Was it a reward for good behavior in the clink? Had he contracted lice--or excessive tangles--and it was necessary? Sometimes while watching things, I get a little off track pondering the mundane (and, yes, I see the irony in caring more about why Negan has a haircut than I do about the zombies that just keep on coming!)

Edited November 14, 2018 by TattleTeeny

[AngelaHunter]

On 11/12/2018 at 7:40 PM, TattleTeeny said:

Glenn seemed fine to me. And, while I liked Shane in some ways, I wouldn't want him as a romantic partner, ZA or not.

Glenn was adorable, but during a life-or-death apocalyptic event "romance"  wouldn't be on the list of things I was looking for.

 

On 11/13/2018 at 3:50 AM, IDreamofJoaquin said:

I bet Maggie and Enid look exactly the same, along with fresh faced Rosita.   

When you're in your teens or early-middle twenties, you don't change much in six years. But if you're in your late forties, the passage of time is more noticeable. Why anyone would want to put that truly awful wig on Carol and age her so much more, I have no idea. Oh, and Rosita? Those corn rows? Not flattering at all. Would people who have been thrust back into agricultural societies where every day is filled with hard work really want to spend hours washing and drying their very long hair and then working it into elaborate styles? Michonne and the King must take out those dreads sometimes, mustn't they? Their coifs would take all day.

[Kdawg82]

2 minutes ago, AngelaHunter said:

Would people who have been thrust back into agricultural societies where every day is filled with hard work really want to spend hours washing and drying their very long hair and then working it into elaborate styles?

ITA! My hair wouldn't get beyond my ears! Not to mention the safety of it all where many days are a fight for your life. 

1 hour ago, TattleTeeny said:

still doesn't equate to me to keeping a baby safe in the apocalypse (I am not a parent though, and have zero idea how one takes care of a child 24/7 in normal circumstances, haha!).

Mom of three here! I can only say, day 1 of the ZA, me, my whole family of loudmouths and anyone in our vicinity would be dead. By walker or other. I mean, just the internet or cable going out incites a riot in our home. 

[TattleTeeny]

Mine grows like a weed; I'd have to be shaving it all off every 15 minutes in order not to have bangs in my eyes, so I'd keep it long and just cram it up into a knot on top of my head constantly (same as I basically do in my non-fighting-for-my-life life). Or perhaps loot a practical yet jaunty hat from a long-abandoned store!

Edited November 14, 2018 by TattleTeeny

[iMonrey]

Quote

I’ll ignore that they wouldn’t have gas for most of the show because I don’t want to watch the writers try to really tackle travel without vehicles. 

The Saviors were manufacturing fuel from corn earlier this season, but in this episode they established that the Sanctuary "had fallen." So I'm assuming there's no more fuel to be had, and indeed we saw transportation only on horseback this episode.

[FishyJoe]

It's possible to make gas out of wood. Also possible to make gas from organic waste. Most garbage dumps today harvest gas to fuel power plants. There should also be plenty of oil available from abandoned wells. All they need is somebody smart enough to operate the machinery. 

This makes me wonder what happened to all the smart people. If Eugene is the brightest mind, the human race is doomed. They shouldn't be stuck on 18th century technology. They should be at least operating at an early 20th century level with all the abandoned machinery around. 

[amazinglybored]

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

The Saviors were manufacturing fuel from corn earlier this season, but in this episode they established that the Sanctuary "had fallen." So I'm assuming there's no more fuel to be had, and indeed we saw transportation only on horseback this episode.

 

If they stick with it I’m sure it will be frustrating and not make much sense.

[peach]

Daryl has to be "outside the camp" as it were, because he's going to come save the day at some critical moment.  Like when he left the prison with Merle, but he came back in the nick of time and put a bolt in that walker that was about to chomp on Rick at the fence.  Great scene.  Or when Carol was out there abandoned so she could save the whole gang at Terminus.

Anyway, Daryl's a loner.  Glenn died partly because of him.  His best friend is dead now, too.  Carol is busy with her Hilltop family.  The woods are his home.

[JasonCC]

Jesus and Aaron are hitting it, right?

I'm intrigued a bit more again and interested to see it play out......one of the problems with time jumps is that disconnect depending on how you are watching it (real time or binging). In this episode people are acting more in line with a one/two year time jump at most, but the children aging, show is meant to be five/six. Plus, when we watch in real time we feel like it's been longer than the events portrayed. I remember seasons 3, 4, 5 were only months long in ZA time and the jump btw 2 and 3 was about 7-8 months (Lori getting from Morning After Pill box--thanks for that hilarious reminder--to ready to POP). I always had to remind myself of that in seasons 4 and 5 Michonne had been with Andrea longer than the group WE'D been watching her interact with with for 3ish years in real time, not show time.

 

Related to timeline, jumps: http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/the-walking-dead/feature/a870165/the-walking-dead-timeline/

Edited November 15, 2018 by JasonCC

[Starchild]

On 2018-11-13 at 8:14 PM, Butless said:

And the Garbage Pail kids weren't in the comics. ... Gimple ... said they were an homage to Star Trek. 

What? How?

Re: Eugene on the tower. It doesn't bother me that he and Rosita thought it made more sense for him to come down than for her to go up. What I don't understand is why he didn't say "Hey Rosita, can you come set that ladder up for me again please?" 

[Nashville]

15 hours ago, Kdawg82 said:

ITA! My hair wouldn't get beyond my ears! Not to mention the safety of it all where many days are a fight for your life. 

Loose long hair can actually be very practical when you’re working the fields out in the sun all day - it helps keep both sunburn AND mosquitoes off the back of your neck. :)

 

3 hours ago, Starchild said:

What? How?

Tribbles, maybe - although I think the Tribbles may have had a better grasp of the English language than the GPKs.

[DesertCyclist]

So as Eugene and Rosita were hiding in the mud on the creekbank while the Walker herd moseyed on by, I was watching with headphones and heard something like, "[unintelligible] ... do not let them get away."  What was that all about???

[Gobi]

2 minutes ago, DesertCyclist said:

So as Eugene and Rosita were hiding in the mud on the creekbank while the Walker herd moseyed on by, I was watching with headphones and heard something like, "[unintelligible] ... do not let them get away."  What was that all about???

 

2 minutes ago, DesertCyclist said:

So as Eugene and Rosita were hiding in the mud on the creekbank while the Walker herd moseyed on by, I was watching with headphones and heard something like, "[unintelligible] ... do not let them get away."  What was that all about???

Check the speculation thread; possible spoiler, though.

[Nashville]

1 hour ago, DesertCyclist said:

So as Eugene and Rosita were hiding in the mud on the creekbank while the Walker herd moseyed on by, I was watching with headphones and heard something like, "[unintelligible] ... do not let them get away."  What was that all about???

Easily explainable, but total spoiler territory.

[Nashville]

On 11/14/2018 at 5:49 AM, SimoneS said:

Exactly. You need a knowledgeable and creative structural engineer to build, maintain, and repair a bridge. I don't know how they haven't come across one in Alexandria, VA, home to thousands of federal employees and tech companies, but the idea that Eugene has the knowledge to build a bridge was always ridiculous. 

They had one (Reg, Deanna’s husband) - at least until Petey Petey DrunkDoctor WifeBeaty killed him, that is.  ;>

[Token]

After many seasons of hatred..... I didn't hate this.  I didn't love it.  But I didn't hate it.

And, biggest miracle of all, they managed to find a child actor (in Judith) who doesn't annoy the shit out of me.

I like Rosita and Gabriel together.

Overall.... cautiously optimistic.

[enoughcats]

1 hour ago, DesertCyclist said:

So as Eugene and Rosita were hiding in the mud on the creekbank while the Walker herd moseyed on by, I was watching with headphones and heard something like, "[unintelligible] ... do not let them get away."  What was that all about???

Watch or rewatch with closed captions on.  

[SimoneS]

20 minutes ago, Nashville said:

They had one (Reg, Deanna’s husband) - at least until Petey Petey DrunkDoctor WifeBeaty killed him, that is.  ;>

Deanna's husband was an architect which is how he was able to put up the walls in Alexandria and keep them up. Now he could design a house and would likely have some knowledge about how to build one. This reminds me how ridiculous it is that Henry wants to go to train with Earl to learn how to fix the boiler. Uh? Since when do blacksmiths know how to fix boilers? Hard to believe that they haven't encountered a plumber either. It is pretty convenient that the people still alive or involved in the group don't have any skills or knowledge about how build, fix or repair the most important things that they need now that the infrastructure is collapsing. They don't even seem to have any teachers so the children are not in school. You would think that they know that it is important to have the children in school learning math, science, social science, history, arts, before all of this critical knowledge is lost.

Edited November 15, 2018 by SimoneS

[Nashville]

22 minutes ago, SimoneS said:

Deanna's husband was an architect which is how he was able to put up the walls in Alexandria and keep them up. Now he could design a house and would likely have some knowledge about how to build one.

The Walking Dead Wiki states Reg’s pre-ZA occupation as “professor of architecture”, which may indicate a deeper-than-usual familiarity with the engineering-related aspects of architecture.  

Then again, it may not.  ;)    There’s no specification one way or the other of any familiarity Reg may or may not have had with civil engineering (the bridge guys), architectural engineering, or any other kind of -eering.  

If Reg was teaching architecture, though, I’d expect his course curricula to at least address certain basic engineering fundamentals - if for no other reason than to equip his students (the future architects of the world) to understand what their consulting engineers are going on and on about.  :)

[OoohMaggie]

1 hour ago, Nashville said:

The Walking Dead Wiki states Reg’s pre-ZA occupation as “professor of architecture”, 

Was it ever established why Reg elected to place the diagonal bracing on the exterior of the wall? Going with any horde, or other form of pressured attack, rather than against it.

Edited November 15, 2018 by OoohMaggie