6.01: The Walking Dead - First Time Again

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Rick and the group are still having trouble assimilating into Alexandria. Will a new threat bring them closer together or drive them farther apart?

Warning, your favourite character might die in this season opening!

 

[ctg]

Could someone add the episode title "First Time Again", please?

 

[Jeffbert]

I have no fear of being the lest bit disappointed.

 

[REBerg]

Oh, yeah!

Daryl really has a lot of confidence in his motorcycle maintenance skills. I like how Morgan saw through Carol's June Cleaver act, and how Carol reacted to her unveiling.

Who the hell was sounding that horn? Oh, well, the best-laid plans of mice and men … will lead to plenty of action next week!

 

[ctg]

Pffffttttt.... when I watched Mr Kirkman's interview on Twitch, he said that he warned the audience at Madison Square Garden (NYCC): "I told them, 'Nobody's safe.' And they booed at me, so I asked: 'Whose your favourite character and I write him out!' They booed me lauder." I feared that he meant in the very first episode, as he is notoriously closely guarding the secret of whose going to be offed next. But it's no secret that is his privilege as the Author of the series.

I know Frank Darapont put a great deal effort in the first season, but to be honest, I'm glad Kirkman took the reins. Or at least gave writers a chance to venture their own path in his world. In Rick's world, where nobody's safe. Not even him, because it could happen to him. He could had been snatched in those woods, and that would have been in the end. Except, he has learned to adapt to the post-apocalyptia so well that it would take more than a stray zombie to take him down.

So, he was right. Alexandrian aren't ready for the world that waits them outside. They could be protected, but, to what cost?

What function they could provide by hugging to the old world standards and not adapt, like Morgan has? Maybe you could see, because I cannot. Then again, I have to say that in the olden days warriors used to protect the weak and vulnerable. The warriors build the walls that were much sturdier than the flimsy walls Alexandrians build to guide the horde. They knew that a mass could break them down, if they weren't thick enough.

But Rick ain't a builder. Heis a lawman and he couldn't have Reg's experience, as that Architect could had finally realised that the walls, he devised to protect Alexandria, aren't going to work against a mass of ten thousand odd zombies pressing against it. The old style massive fortifications could have, but there ain't none of them in that little hideout.

What do you think?

Shout out to Eugene for being wonderfully nerdy, and Abraham gloriously fearsome.

 

[ctg]

Daryl really has a lot of confidence in his motorcycle maintenance skills.

That man was born on back of a bike. I'm glad he's back on the saddle.

I like how Morgan saw through Carol's June Cleaver act, and how Carol reacted to her unveiling.

She's so sneaky, but that's also freaking me out, because she has that psychopathic thing in her. She's not scared on stabbing people in the back, if it advances her agendas.

Who the hell was sounding that horn?

A dead person?

 

[REBerg]

I'm thinking that the mysterious local wolf pack is behind the horn. I'm also thinking they engineered the quarry zombie trap with the expectation that the herd would, when it reached critical mass, break loose and head for Alexandria. Rick's plan to lead the herd away from the community had to be stopped.

Weaponizing the zombies seems like a viable way for the Wolves to take Alexandria without engaging in a firefight. The herd comes in and clears out any residents who were foolish enough to stay. The herd then either moves on, or the Wolves take over the job of leading them off into the wilderness. Rick has already shown them that it can be done.

 

[ctg]

I'm also thinking they engineered the quarry zombie trap with the expectation that the herd would, when it reached critical mass, break loose and head for Alexandria. Rick's plan to lead the herd away from the community had to be stopped.

The problem I see is the horn location as a normal one you have in the car wouldn't be powerful enough to be heard about the groaning that ten thousand walkers make in the woods. So, maybe you are right, it could be the wolves that have come to blow little piggies house down. But I don't think Diana would have allowed one to be build in Alexandria, as it wouldn't serve a purpose to have a horn you could possibly find from a local fire-station.

Note that I don't know if you put those emergency things in fire-stations in America.

Another problem is the size of the horde, as you could fit easily fifty thousand in the small quarry, because to overcome Alexandria, you would probably need three thousand and they would have no choice, but to abandon the camp and head back to road again. So, as it is, I think they are in luck that there's so much forest between the road and the community.

 

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(Photo by Gene Page/AMC)

Another shout for Dale's truck finding it's way back into the show.

If you look closely this stock shot, you can see the original mass of extras trumping down the road dressed like zombies. So, the CGI horde, they put in afterwards, was brilliantly done.

(Photo by Gene Page/AMC)

The faithful moment. Could Rick have been able to save him?

 

[REBerg]

The faithful moment. Could Rick have been able to save him?

Yes! Rick could have cut off his head to keep the infection from spreading.

 

[Gnrevolution]

Loved this first episode of the season, although I worry they blew most of their budget on it and the rest of the season will take place in a closet ;(

I've seen lots of complaints about the plan, but I've not seen anyone come up with anything better. I think they tried to emphasise the need for it, but maybe not well enough for some people.

As for the horn? Logic says it's the Wolves based on previous use of big rigs (of which this sounded like a horn from), but I struggle to see what good it's going to to do them at this point. I think more likely it's someone from ASZ who has escaped and is trying to warn the others, but I guess we'll only find out next week for sure....

 

[ctg]

I've seen lots of complaints about the plan, but I've not seen anyone come up with anything better. I think they tried to emphasise the need for it, but maybe not well enough for some people.

Nothing wrong with The Plan. It worked as expected and those walls held against the numbers. It was the horn that effed whole lot of things, including the plan. But I was expecting to see those hordes last season, as the whole DC metropolitan area should be swamped with a large number of those shambling monsters. And not all of them are in great condition as can be seen from above shots.

 

[Gnrevolution]

No, I didn't think there was anything wrong with the plan, but lots of people seemed to think, why move the herd anywhere but instead try and torch / behead / otherwise incapacitate them whilst still in-situ. Don't agree with them, but others think it was a very dumb move to set them free, albeit that they were only partially contained at that point.

 

[SilentRoamer]

What a brilliant episode and return to the series! More happened here than in the first season of FTWD and this episode has reminded me again why I love WD.

Nothing wrong with the PLAN. I assume it would have been tighter and the fences would have been more reinforced if they didn't have to turn the dry run into the live run. With regards to the option to "kill them in situ", it has some problems:

1. Method of kill
Guns - They probably don't have enough ammo to clear that quarry of all workers.
H2H - For obvious reasons unless you are letting these out in small groups you would just be overwhelmed and ain't nobody climbing into that quarry.
Fire - Well this is probably the most stupid because a few things are going to happen - waste a tonne of fuel/alcohol, create a huge fire and smoke which can be seen for miles and miles around and inevitably draw more walkers. Also you end up with a load of not dead but burned up walkers.
2. Controlled release
I suspect there was never any controlled release planned - so it was an all or nothing kind of plan. As soon as you create enough space then sheer numbers pushes them all through - as happened with the lorry.

The plan has some good advantages not least of which they could have reblocked the quarry and used the same plan and same fences after a buildup of a few hundred. Essentially completely negating walkers from one side of the ASZ.

Anyone else notice the Big Rigs used at the quarry looked like the same ones in the Compound that Morgan rescued Darryl and Arron from in 5.16 - I suspect the Wolves set the whole build up in motion - it would make sense as I am also certain they have been operating in the ASZ area and are well aware of our groups.

 

[ctg]

Anyone else notice the Big Rigs used at the quarry looked like the same ones in the Compound that Morgan rescued Darryl and Arron from in 5.16 - I suspect the Wolves set the whole build up in motion - it would make sense as I am also certain they have been operating in the ASZ area and are well aware of our groups.

It's entirely possible, those trailers didn't end up there for no reason. They were placed there with something in mind. Is that horn coming from quarry?

 

[SilentRoamer]

No the horn is coming from the ASZ. Right at the end of the episode Rick said the horn was coming from "home". If the Horn would have sounded based on their plan map it would have sent them in the opposite direction of Rick and co instead of through the woods straight to the ASZ.

I suspect the wolves behind this - we know they like using big trailers to control zombies.

 

[Dave]

I wasn't sure about the Wizard of Oz - black&White/Colour thing to show the flashbacks, but it appeared to work and it made it a different episode. I don't want it to get stale.

The horn - almost certainly the Wolves - also we've only seen a few of them and don't know how many there are. I think it was clever that the horn could be operated by a single person - so their strength in numbers is still unknown.

Carol - yes I clocked that - great scene.

The plan - yes nothing wrong with it - except, why did they have to be drawn past Alexandria to take them away? Surely, taking them away in the opposite direction would mean that they never came anywhere near the settlement.

as far as possible away <- this way better <- the quarry -> this way chosen -> Alexandria -> as far as possible away

 

[SilentRoamer]

Hey Dave,

The reason was shown on the map we saw for a few seconds. They needed decent sized roads in order to keep the horde a cohesive unit.

They break apart to easy in the woods.

 

[Judderman]

Interesting episode though the pied piper stuff was somewhat reminiscent of the last episode of Fear the Walking Dead we saw a few days earlier. Though guiding zombies with different intent. Also I thought the flashback stuff was somewhat disturbing to the episode flow and pointless. They were only flashing back some hours. But still there was some entertaining scenes. It must be the Wolves who sounded the horn, unless the drunk's son did it.

 

[Culhwch]

If the horn is coming from Alexandria, I doubt it's the Wolves. I can't see how that works in a narrative sense, because you either start the next episode in flashback again to follow what is happening in town while the great zombie muster is happening, or you somehow have to shoehorn in exposition on how the Wolves came to the town (and why) once Rick and his crew get back there. Also I can't think why they'd do it. I don't think the Wolves as a tangible threat will eventuate for a couple of episodes yet.