The Walking Dead

[evenflow]

Late to the discussion but that mid season finale was awful. No other way to put it. I yearn for the governor. Hopefully Neegan is just as good.

[Matt]

EW.com: Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman calls Negan 'an atomic bomb that's going to be dropped on the show'

“As far as shake-ups go, we have lots of shake-ups from season to season,” says Kirkman. “It keeps things interesting — keeps the blood pumping, I like to say — but Negan is kind of an atomic bomb that’s going to be dropped on the show and the show will probably never be the same after that. So buckle up, I guess?”

Negan is the leader of a group we met in the midseason finale’s prologue scene called the Saviors. We saw them stop Daryl, Sasha, and Abraham on the road while informing them “your property now belongs to Negan.” So who is this nefarious outfit and how do they differ from other groups we’ve encountered before?

“I think the Saviors are dangerously organized,” says Kirkman. “The Wolves were psychotic, the Hunters [the group from Terminus] had a lot of weaknesses. When it comes to the Saviors, and Negan in particular, the way I’ve always thought about this in the comics is this is a group that’s led by a guy who’s had his morality dial a few clicks away from Rick toward the darker aspects of his personality, but is still an intellectual and capable leader who’s kept his group alive against all odds just as long as Rick has. It’s really the best encountering the best. When these two forces come head to head, things are gonna get interesting. This is a much different group than they’ve ever encountered. The Saviors are a group they’re not really prepared for.”

Yes, yes. Blow it up. Blow it all up. Make this show interesting again. Kill everybody.

Except Maggie.

(But make her abort the baby.)

#TeamNegan

[Jeff]

Kill everybody.

Except Maggie.

(But make her abort the baby.)

Wait, you want her to abort her own baby?  You, sir, are a monster.

[Matt]

But not History's Greatest.

Don't really care how it happens (abortion, miscarriage, whatever), just don't want to have watch Maggie go full-term with this thing. Aside from the purely selfish reason of not wanting to see Lauren Cohan made up to look all fat and gross, the show already has a baby. It doesn't need another one.

[Jeff]

the show already has a baby. It doesn't need another one.

So now we all see your true colors - you hate babies on TV shows.  You're probably glad that no babies got Oscar nominations too... #ageist #babyhater

[Dave]

Don't really care how it happens (abortion, miscarriage, whatever), just don't want to have watch Maggie go full-term with this thing. Aside from the purely selfish reason of not wanting to see Lauren Cohan made up to look all fat and gross, the show already has a baby. It doesn't need another one.

My wife and I joke about Judith.  It seems like they use a new baby actor every show, and she is really more a prop than anything.

I'm not a reader of the comics to know her importance in the comics, but she seems like a complete waste of space in the show.  She is never in jeopardy, she hasn't been important to any of the plot points since they had to go on runs for formula, so why bother?  You would think they would have just killed her off when the prison fell.

[JediJman]

I think they got stuck with what to do with her after deciding to have her survive the prison and now don't have any good ideas for how to get rid of her.  It's tough to spin zombies killing a baby into good TV for the general public, but I agree that she's pretty pointless to keep around.  Maybe there is some bigger design to have her play a role years down the road. 

In the comic, Judith and Lori get shot/killed in the prison battle with the governor and they don't really have any pregnancies to worry about after that. 

[BillCable]

Judith might be a much more effective tool to paint Negan as a monster than just about anything else.

[McMetal]

Judith might be a much more effective tool to paint Negan as a monster than just about anything else.

Better her than Glenn!

[GrandMoffNick]

Judith might be a much more effective tool to paint Negan as a monster than just about anything else.

I might have agreed with that except would everyone's apathy toward Judith make us not feel as strongly toward Negan being a monster if he killed her? I feel it wouldn't work.

[JediJman]

Judith might be a much more effective tool to paint Negan as a monster than just about anything else.

I might have agreed with that except would everyone's apathy toward Judith make us not feel as strongly toward Negan being a monster if he killed her? I feel it wouldn't work.

I think they would have to take Negan very differently if he killed Judith, but I like the idea.  I think Rick could eventually reconcile in some way with other character deaths, but would be pretty impossible to let the guy that killed your baby daughter go on living. 

[Tracy]

Judith might be a much more effective tool to paint Negan as a monster than just about anything else.

I might have agreed with that except would everyone's apathy toward Judith make us not feel as strongly toward Negan being a monster if he killed her? I feel it wouldn't work.

I think they would have to take Negan very differently if he killed Judith, but I like the idea.  I think Rick could eventually reconcile in some way with other character deaths, but would be pretty impossible to let the guy that killed your baby daughter go on living.

I agree. No matter how apathetic you feel about Judith as a character - most people/viewers wouldn't take the killing of a baby very well at all.

[Jesse James]

It's gotta happen at some point though...  I mean, how is Judith surviving something almost everyone else isn't ya know?  I just can't see them keeping Judith on forever.  She has to go at some point.

[Pete_Fett]

Well, if you think about it, Neagan killing Judith would work better for the show. In the comics, Rick is keeping Neagan in a cell. There's no way they are going to keep paying Jeffery Dean Morgan just to have him sitting in a cell. Neagan killing Judith means that Rick would be seen as justified in killing Neagan.

I know there are a lot of fans that would love to see Glenn survive past the Alexandrians encountering Neagan, but I could also see them going even further with Neagan and having him kill both Glenn AND Judith instead of a swap of one for the other.

[McMetal]

Welcome back, and thanks for one of the best episodes ever!

Great action, great drama, tying up loose ends with no hokey stretches of credulity.

I was Tom-Cruise-jumping-on-the-couch after the first 5 minutes, and again when Abraham and Sasha showed up right when I was completely expecting Glenn to get eaten alive. That was some kick ass TV.

They did a great job this episode in particular I thought of creating a real sense of danger for just about everyone.

Loved Carol capping the Wolf. Loved Father Gabriel finally sacking up.

Will really miss Alexandra Breckinridge. Was so hoping it would just be the whiny brats. Great scene right out of the comics with Rick hacking off the arm still clutching to Carl. Not to mention the lost eye...whoa.

RPG was the definite highlight though...just obliterated those bastards. Nibble on that!