Original air date: 02/08/15
60 second recap:
After Beth's death, the group moves on to Virginia. Rick, Glenn, Michonne, Noah and Tyreese drive off to Noah's old neighborhood to see if any of his family members are still alive. They quickly find out that none have survived. Tyreese accompanies Noah to his house while Rick, Glenn and Michonne scout for supplies. Rick and Glenn discuss Rick's thought process behind killing Officer Dawn. Michonne then convinces them both that they should all head to Washington D.C. After being distracted by a photo on the wall, Tyreese is bit in the arm by Noah's younger walker brother. As the fever sets in, Tyreese starts having hallucinations and flashbacks of Beth, Bob, Mark, Mika, Lizzie and the Governor. Michonne tries to save Tyreese by amputating his arm but he ends up dying later anyways.
Major character development:
Rick:
So turns out, Rick really wanted to kill Dawn. It's good that he can be open with his feelings about that with Glenn and Michonne instead of bottling it up inside. You can see that he's still trying to balance his "tough" side with his "soft" side. He can be cold and calculating but also kind and considerate. He admits that he wanted to kill Dawn regardless of whether she meant to shoot Beth or not but he also admits that their whole trip to Noah's neighborhood was done to honor Beth. When he radios Carol to tell them they're bringing Tyreese over, he tells her to keep Carl and Sasha away because they "don't need to see this".
Also, there was this quick but touching little moment with Michonne:
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| (!!!!!!!!!) |
Rick sees that she's struggling to stay confident and he tries to reassure her that "we'll figure it out". He's not afraid to show affection and respect for her. Later, he takes her advice and agrees that they should head to D.C. So, even though killing people doesn't bother Rick anymore, he's still capable of tenderness and care.
Noah:
Talk about bad luck charm; Noah has done nothing but cause mayhem and injury to everyone around him. First, he botched Beth's escape from the hospital by slowing her down. Then, he was the reason Beth got shot by Dawn (ok, so maybe that wasn't technically his fault but, still). And now, he directly caused the chain of events that led to Tyreese's death. If he had just stayed in one spot like Tyreese had wanted, none of this would have happened. At the very least, if he hadn't wasted all that time getting himself stuck on the front porch with the two walkers (how on Earth did that even happen?!?!), Rick and Michonne could have gotten to Tyreese faster. Either way, Noah is dead weight and basically useless. I feel bad for saying this but I hope his character bites the dust soon, if only so that no one else has to die because of his mistakes.
Is Michonne the new Herschel? By the looks of it, she's the one with the most hope in the group right now. She was trying so hard to stay positive, offering several suggestions on how they could fortify Noah's old neighborhood and make it safe. (It was almost comical to watch her scavenge for supplies while Rick and Glenn just stood there, talking and contributing absolutely nothing) Her heartfelt plea to Rick about heading to D.C. was like a beam of light in the darkness. We haven't heard someone speak that passionately about having a purpose since Herschel's infamous "risk your life" speech (which got turned into a song on Youtube) Hopefully Michonne's newfound spirit doesn't get broken anytime soon; the group needs her optimism now more than ever.
Remember when Glenn was just a sweet, nerdy pizza delivery guy? Looks like those days are long gone. There's a lot of pent up anger and frustration in him (can you blame the guy?). A lot of really traumatic things have happened to him and they're starting to take their toll on his mental health. Of all the remaining survivors, Glenn has tried to hold onto his "humanity" the longest. He has always remained generally optimistic (well, as optimistic as you can be in those situations) and true to his morals but now, we're finally starting to see him crack. We literally watched him break a cd in half in anger. He gave off an incredibly cynical vibe during his discussion with Rick about Noah's overrun neighborhood (which again, can you blame the guy?). He said he would have felt no remorse for killing Dawn, were he in Rick's place. This is a big change from the guy that seemed visibly repulsed by Rick, Sasha and Abraham when they violently murdered the cannibals in Father Gabriel's church. No one in their right mind would fault Glenn for feeling the way he is right now but it would be sad if it became a permanent thing. Besides, what would Herschel (R.I.P.) think?
Tyreese:
Oh, Tyreese. R.I.P. you big bear; you will be missed, especially by baby Judith. You were too sweet for this world <3 p="">
I certainly didn't want Tyreese to die but I can't say I'm all that surprised that he did. The show has proved time and time again that you have to adapt in order to survive in this new world. If you aren't willing to do the "dirty work" or you hesitate just a little too long, you're done for. What I am surprised by is the way Tyreese was killed. I get that the writers wanted to show that nobody is safe, even "indestructible" men like Tyreese but, still. Noah's zombie brother catching Tyreese off guard like that felt really forced. It's frustrating to watch The Walking Dead constantly kill off main characters in completely illogical ways (*cough cough* the silent, super strong walker that killed Dale).
Tyreese's hallucinations gave us some nice insight into the demons he was battling deep, down in his subconscious. Martin and the Governor taunted him with his insecurities about not being able to adapt to the brutal new world and for forgiving Carol. Mika, Lizzie, Bob and Beth gave a voice to the side of himself that refused to succumb to the cynicism and violence around him. It was absolutely heartbreaking to watch Tyreese fight for his life. Memories of Judith and Sasha undoubtably kept him going for as long as he did but in the end, the promise of peace was just too tempting to fight.
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| In retrospect, the fact that Tyreese was the only one who seemed to notice the skeleton makes for some eerie foreshadowing. |
Overall:
"What Happened and What's Going On?" was a departure from what we normally see on The Walking Dead. Usually the show is pretty straight forward; scenes of action inter spliced with scenes of dialogue, all in sequential order. This time, we got lots of (sometimes disorienting) flashbacks, hallucinations and eerie soundbites. It's nice to see the production crew getting to stretch their creative legs a bit. There were a lot of really great point-of-view camera angles that made the audience feel like they were in Tyreese's shoes. The part where his hallucination of the Governor morphed into a walker was especially effective, as was the one with Mika and Lizzie holding onto his bloody, amputated arm.
Fans hoping for a bit more "zombie action" may have been disappointed in this episode but you can't deny that it packed an emotional punch. It throws another wrench into the dynamic of the already traumatized group of survivors. At times, Tyreese's fever dreams teetered on the edge of being cheesy but overall, they were really moving. It will be interesting to see how the show moves forward without its resident "good guy".
Biggest mysteries:
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| Who left this message? Are those wolves in the literal sense? Or is it a name of a new group of villains? |
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| Also, who did this?? |
Fun fact:
Remember that elegant British voice that Tyreese heard speaking on the radio after he got bit? That was none other than Rick Grimes himself (actor Andrew Lincoln is British in real life). Lincoln was reading radio reports of the Rwandan Genocide.
Biggest tear jerker moment:
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| I really lost it when I saw the little beanie. |
Walker kill of the week:
I can't believe I'm saying this but, I'm going to have to give this honor to Noah and his use of the toy airplane to kill his walker brother; it was the only time he has ever been useful. Of course, if Noah had just been there 15 seconds earlier, he would have saved Tyreese from being bit in the first place but that's a whole other story.
Best quotes:
"Don't you want one more day with a chance?"--Michonne channeling Herschel
"You didn't show me shit!"---Tyreese to the Governor's ghost
Favorite moment:
Grade: A-
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