This post refers to events that transpire through the first five episodes of season six. If you don't want those episodes to be spoiled, stop reading.
I have written pretty long preview posts before each half-season of the previous two seasons. This year I didn't think there was enough to talk about so I skipped it. Six seasons in, I still find myself looking forward to and enjoying every episode. But the show remains very frustrating because of its predictability and refusal to focus on the big picture of this new world the show has created for us. The characters seems to be doomed to an endless cycle of moving form one false oasis to the next for the foreseeable future. Five episodes in the ratings have slipped for the first time in the show's history but they remain sky high for the world of basic cable. And there is no reason to think that AMC will not continue to milk this Golden Goose for as long as its audience are big enough to justify the special effects budget.
This season is about part for the course. Each episode is entertaining and suspenseful in the moment, and frustrating and stupid upon further reflection. Here are my thoughts on each episode in the season so far:
1. First Time Again. The season premiere was entertaining and I liked the way they told a bifurcated story that covered a lot of exposition without sacrificing much action. But it was also disappointing when you step back and think about how stupid Rick's plan was. The Walkers were trapped in a quarry. The thing to do was seal off the gap between the two 18 wheelers and then light all the Walkers on fire. There are a variety of ways to do that, but enough flame tipped arrows from Darryl would have eventually done the trick. Instead they decided to march 30,000 zombies down the road for a day's shamble and hope for the best. Dumb, dumb, dumb. Grade: B+
2. JSS. Easily the best episode so far. They had just lulled me into thinking this was going to be a filler episode about the women folk of Alexandria when the Wolves attacked. The action was great and the combat was very suspensefull. I also liked the Enid story line. Her back story was written sparsely, which is something the show should do more often. And her interactions with Carl felt genuine. My theory on her is that she has some kind of affiliation with a group outside the walls but I do not think it is the Wolves. She doesn't have a W carved on her forehead for one thing and I think we've learned that the Wolves are some kind of whacky death cult. Enid is not that. But she apparently started to tell Carl some kind of secret about how "we" got to Alexandria during the Wolf attack. I think she will turn out to be a good guy and her return will probably be dramatic and heroic. I sure hope Carl gets to kiss her this season. Grade: A.
3. Thank You. A fun episode to watch but frustrating in respect because I'm pretty sure they are going to come up with some kind of cop out reason that Glenn survived that impossible situation in the dumpster. It's one thing to make the audience learn they should not jump to conclusions and another thing to just cheat. I suspect a really big cheat is coming and nothing in the following episode dissuades me from that opinion. I'm writing this while watching the Talking Dead after episode 5 and the actress who plays Jess is desperately trying to convince us that Glenn is dead. And I think we all know that means he is alive. Grade: A-,
4. Here's Not Here. I have to acknowledge that this is the kind of episode that I have been wanting since the end of season three. But the timing seemed gimmicky, as if they were just trying to drag out the "Is Glenn story line for an extra week. And the execution was uneven. The acting by Morgan and Eastman were first rate. I expect one or both of them to receive the first Emmy nomination(s) in this history of this show. (Eastman will be eligible in the guest star category.) But the plot was very predictable. We know from the moment we meet him that Eastman is going to be Morgan's Yoda and we know that he is doomed to die before the episode is over. Eastman's backstory was about as cliche as television gets in this golden age. But the performances redeem the episode. I just hope that Morgan survives beyond this season. It seems like either he will have to give up his Akido philosophy or pay the price for it. I'm hope he kills that last Wolf before the Wolf kills him, but I doubt they writer kept him alive unless he is going to do damage to someone in our group. Maybe he will kill Gabriel or Abraham. Someone important. Grade: B+.
5. Now. This story was a shambling mess of plot holes. Rick shouts that everyone should keep noise to a minimum. Later on he teaches Jesse's kid how to shoot by firing his revolver into the herd. In between there is no attempt to kill any of the Walkers who are threatening Alexandria. I know there are a lot of them, but the armory appears to be well stocked, so why not put Rosita in the lookout tower with a rifle and a silencer, to take down as many as she can? For the love of God, THIN THE HERD! (A few ideas for that: big knifes mounted on a long piece of pipe, throwing rocks, sling shots, etc. There are a lot of options.) Grade: C.
But that is just a small demonstration of my biggest frustration with the show. It's all tactics, never strategy. I just want someone on this show to do some math and teach the others that the only way to get civilization back is to kill all of the approximately one billion Walkers that are shambling around the Americas. Every Walker put down is a step towards that goal. It's daunting, but you have to assume others are out and about doing their share of the work as well. Kill your quota every day and eventually the world will be tamed. Then you can get to work on figuring out how to cure the survivors or at least come up with a protocol for preventing the dead from doing any damage after they pass.
But this is not the show for that. Maybe Fear the Walking Dead will become that, but it doesn't seem likely.
Stray Observations and Predictions:
- Milking the Glenn story line is a cheap trick. Next week seems to focus on Darryl, Sasha and Abraham so we might go three straight weeks without learning what happened to Glenn. I'm beginning to suspect we won't find out his fate until episode 7 or even the midseason finale. But I'm more convinced than ever that he is alive and he will be reunited with his pregnant wife.
- They seem to be saving on actor's salaries by holding key characters out of some episodes. Where was Carol tonight? Where was Eugene?
- There should have been some mention of Morgan's Wolf prisoner. Even if he was committed to not killing him, I can't believe that he would not let Rick or Deanna that there was a Wolf left. Maybe he wouldn't have wanted to put the Wolf's life in danger, but she certainly knows that his prisoner intends to kill the others. Keeping him out of sight seems to be part of a strategy of making his return more dramatic.
- Remember when Darryl was on this show? It's a good thing that next week's episode apparently focuses on him. The dip in the ratings is not just because the narrative is trapped in a cycle of going from one false oasis to another. It's because Darryl isn't getting enough screen time.
- We are overdue for a familiar death and I think we'll get one next week. Abraham seems like a good candidate.
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