9.02: The Walking Dead - The Bridge

ctg

weaver of the unseen
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Justin, Daryl and Saviours (Photo by Jackson Lee Davis/AMC)

The communities join forces to restore a bridge that will facilitate communication and trade. Someone is gravely injured at the construction site.

This episode mark 100th appearance of Andrew Lincoln in the series. After this, there are only 3 appearance left before he leaves the series to only come back as a director. Then again Maggie only gets 1 episode over Rick, but there are rumours that she will return next season, after the AMC has shorted the issues in between them.
 
This episode made me to think about robots first and foremost, because unlike us (even if they're autonomous) they are governed by the laws. In Kirkman's universe, most of the regulations went out from the window as soon as the dead arrive. After that all rules were unspoken and some things were taken granted, because there was nobody to enforce them. But that also got me wondering would they really need written rules to govern them all, when they don't really have a centralised government or a person sitting on top of the pyramid?

So far nobody has needed the government, or the judicial system as everything has worked by the common sense, and those who have violated the unspoken rules are either dead, locked up or they have turned. But it is becoming clear that things cannot go much further without taking examples from the yesterdays world and adapting them for the greater good.

I was annoyed by Justin's arrogance on the bridge. I get that man can get overly hot and thirsty, but raising hand and smacking down a person, who offered you a relief just winds me up. So I saw Daryl's action as justified. Justin needed be smacked. But I don't think he needed bollocking from Rick, as a lawman he should have known better. Some people don't learn, but they don't need to be exiled, when all lives matter.

The people do stupid stuff, because it's in their nature. Justin mostly probably have never learned and all his life, most of the people must have dismissed him as a bully and unwanted person, instead of trying to give him a chance, like what Maggie did to Earl - the blacksmith.

Maybe that is also part of the reason why Morgan left as he needed those laws to keep him grounded. Without them the whole Ricknation is just one step away from anarchy. The people he tried to talk weren't listening to his words. Nobody ever does and that again makes me think about Aaron's lost hand ... and the robots, because if the man on top of the log pile would have held his nerves and obeyed the rules, they could have got away from the fiasco without much of drama. But because of it, we now know that Enya is advancing through medical profession, maybe one day become a full doctor. And we also know that logs are awesome weapons against the dead.

A question: Why the helicopter people are scanning Ricknation at the night time?
 
A lot to like about this episode.
In a traditional series I would expect the good guys to prevail and everyone to live happily ever after. Here, I am not so sure.
Rick seems to have come full circle in believing that people have a natural tendency to come together for the common good. Negan fully expects everything to "go to sh*t." I expect that Negan will be mostly right.
Building that symbolic bridge with the Savior survivors has not exactly been a human resource manager's dream, and I strongly suspect that the Saviors who have been disappearing at the Sanctuary are regrouping nearby to cause more chaos down the road.
Zach McGowan was the perfect choice as the face of the unrepentant Saviors. I immediately recognized him from his bad boy roles on Black Sails and The 100, so I wasn't surprised when he knocked little Henry down to get more water.
He got what he deserved from Daryl. I guessing that he has now been forcibly recruited by the Savior Resistance, which gave him a fitting, welcome aboard handshake.
Meanwhile, back at the Hilltop, Maggie continues to struggle with the burdens of leadership. Despite the arguments of Michonne and Jesus, I don't think the community is ready for democratic rule by law. A representative governing body wouldn't be nimble enough to respond to the challenges the group is certain to face in the near future.
Maggie made the right decisions in executing Gregory and paroling (sort of) Earl, the drunken, murderous blacksmith. She should stay in charge until the time is right for her to move on.
I was amazed that former Trash Tribe leader Jadis, now transformed into the full-sentence-speaking Anne, is getting romantic with Gabriel. I was unaware that frog mating sounds could be so arousing. I think Anne would dump Gabriel instantly, though, for a ride on that still-mysterious helicopter she spotted while on watch.
 
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Rick seems to have come full circle in believing that people have a natural tendency to come together for the common good. Negan fully expects everything to "go to sh*t." I expect that Negan will be mostly right.

Negan is kind of realistic. The last world went down the toilet and there's not much in the Kirkman's world to prevent it from happening again.

Despite the arguments of Michonne and Jesus, I don't think the community is ready for democratic rule by law. A representative governing body wouldn't be nimble enough to respond to the challenges the group is certain to face in the near future.

They do need a leader, a man or a woman or a council to sit on top of everything. A council would be the best bet in my mind instead of giving all the power to a single individual. I don't think anyone of would happy if someone like the current potus, would come and reap all the benefits from the hard labour that the Ricknation has put together. It would drive them crazy.

I was amazed that former Trash Tribe leader Jadis, now transformed into the full-sentence-speaking Anne, is getting romantic with Gabriel. I was unaware that frog mating sounds could be so arousing. I think Anne would dump Gabriel instantly, though, for a ride on that still-mysterious helicopter she spotted while on watch.

I'm not sure trashlady would dump Gabriel even if the helicopter would come to pick her up. I believe she would ask him to come along. But about the frog mating sons, they are arousing, just like the serenade by the crickets. Warm summer night, lonely settings and you might get lucky with 'keerbit, keerbit' going at the background.
 
Looks like we know how Maggie will leave, whatever happens with Rick will make her rethink her decision to join Georgia, that also leaves the door open for her return.

I could also be completely wrong.

Are we ever going to find out who is flying the helicopter?

Rick needs to open his eyes, Carl's vision for the future has blinded him and also Michonne to a certain extent. He needs to recognise that some of the saviours resent him and want the alliance to fail. I wouldn't be surprised if some of the Oceansiders feel the same.

Medics don't have a good survival rate hope that doesn't mean we are going to lose Enid.
 
Are we ever going to find out who is flying the helicopter?

I believe it's the people of that woman who gave them the "key" manual at the end of the last season. Jadis the trashlady tried to get a lift last time, but she cocked it up somehow.

Rick needs to open his eyes, Carl's vision for the future has blinded him and also Michonne to a certain extent. He needs to recognise that some of the saviours resent him and want the alliance to fail. I wouldn't be surprised if some of the Oceansiders feel the same.

He tries to be the good guy, or a better person, but all he has gained is the rose tinted glasses.
 
Looks like we know how Maggie will leave, whatever happens with Rick will make her rethink her decision to join Georgia, that also leaves the door open for her return.

I could also be completely wrong.

Are we ever going to find out who is flying the helicopter?

During a scene which seemed quite low key (aside from the heartbreaking paintings of Glenn, Hershel and Beth on the wall), Jesus spoke with Maggie about the mysterious Georgie and her community. Jayne Atkinson's character has remained in touch with Lauren Cohan's as she plans to exit the series this season, apparently inviting her to join them, repeatedly.

"It's like when you're playing a video game, and the fog of the map around you is expanding as you go into different areas to explore," Kang told THR. "That's what's happening with [Georgie's group]. The Alexandrian group thought it was just them before Jesus came along and told them, 'The world is so much bigger than you think.' Then they found out through Georgie the world is even bigger than that group thought. There will be certain societies that just kind of exist out there, that we don't constantly check in on. We don't always tell stories with Oceanside, but they're very much there. That's the same deal with Georgie and the twins. She's off trying to figure out who else is out there. That builds very much into the idea of civilization that all of our characters are grappling with."

As the fog continues to clear, Kang continues to promise more plans for Cohan and her Maggie Rhee. "Either way," Kang says, "we're still going to tell more stories with Maggie."

Still, getting Cohan back on the AMC zombie show might be easier said than done. She recently locked up a deal with AMC to appear on Whiskey Cavalier. "I hope it'll work," said Kang. "We'll cross that bridge [when we get to it]. Lauren and I have had conversations, and she's excited to come back, even if it's not for a full season. We can work with that. That's scheduling problems. We'll figure out the story. She's great. We have a great relationship, and she still loves the show. Sometimes our actors need to spread their wings a little bit. We get that."
'The Walking Dead' Showrunner On Maggie's Exit Plans
 
The Walking Dead showrunner Angela Kang has revealed the reasoning behind the romantic pairing of new couple Father Gabriel (Seth Gilliam) and Anne (Pollyanna McIntosh), formerly Jadis of the Scavengers.

“How we thought they would be drawn to each other is that they’re both a little odd, the two of them, but in the most delightful way,” Kang told EW.

“They both have an odd perspective on life and strange senses of humor. And we thought that was something that would be a draw. But they’re also both very strong in their own ways, and they’ve also been outsiders. And they’ve been outsiders that wronged people in the past, and they have guilt about that.”

Gabriel was at first begrudgingly accepted by Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and his pack of survivors when he was a traitorous coward who turned his back on his congregation, leaving them to die in the earliest days of the zombie apocalypse.

The priest has since earned Rick’s trust and become a valued member of the Alexandria community, but as Anne explained to him in 902, Gabriel is among the rare few who has embraced her after Rick and Morgan (Lennie James) reached out and welcomed her into the fold.

“And so, there were just a lot of things that made us go like, it’s such an unexpected couple, but let’s try it and see what happens,” Kang said. “And I just think that the two actors had a lot of fun playing those scenes. They play that chemistry very well.”

The coupling is the latest major pairing to reach The Walking Dead Season Nine, which also sees a blossoming serious relationship between Carol (Melissa McBride) and King Ezekiel (Khary Payton), who now act as a familial unit with surrogate son Henry (Macsen Lintz). After scoffing at his proposal attempt in 901, Carol slipped on Ezekiel’s ring — but opted out of a corny speech.

“I think in the moment, Carol is allowing herself a little bit of joy,” Kang said.

“She’s not a person that trusts easily, she doesn’t give her heart easily. But Ezekiel is a breath of fresh air in her world. He’s so different in terms of just the joy that he’s able to find. And she’s had so much darkness. And I think for someone who just is looking for a little peace in her life, he fills that void.”
Showrunner Explains ‘The Walking Dead’s Newest Couple
 
I agree with Reberg that Anne is bound to try and disappear with the 'copter, and probably hurt someone in the way on the attempt out.
The log rolling was so effective! Quite some effort needed to bring those up again.

It seems then some old elements of the Saviours are wreaking revenge. Recruiting or merely killing?

Asking the guy (Justin) who started the bridge fight to then do an important role for the walker direction was rather stupid. Especially as Rick mentioned he was needed because he was strong for doing construction work. Kind of a contrived plot device. Also I think if Negan is freed and becomes a leader again, that would be annoying. Unless it is very brief and he gets finished off. Anyway, it was good watching overall. Hopefully the story won't get too bogged down again.
 
There was a time when The Walking Dead was the biggest thing on TV. That time has now passed. Sunday’s episode, “The Bridge,” had the lowest ratings in series history, beating the previous worst record set in season one.

According to Variety, the episode received a 2.0 rating in the key demographic of adults 18-49. The previous record was a 2.4 during season one, when the show was just starting to find its audience. However, in terms of total viewers (as opposed to ratings), 4.9 million people watched this week’s episode live or same day, which is not the worst ever. It’s the second worst ever to 4.7 million, also in the first season. If that math seems wonky, it’s because ratings are determined by populations and various other confusing factors. And yes, those numbers go up with streaming and DVR and all that.

This is news, though, not just because of the new low. It’s because there’s a trend here. Last week’s season nine premiere was the lowest-rated premiere in series history—coming off the season eight finale, which was the lowest-rated finale in series history. To put that in perspective, the last three new episodes of The Walking Dead, which include an always hyped-up finale and premiere, have set some kind of personal worsts in ratings for the show. That’s crazy.

Any show is going to experience some decline after nine seasons. In the case of The Walking Dead, it’s a season built around the highly publicized departure of the show’s main character, played by Andrew Lincoln. But in recent months there were reports of co-star Norman Reedus potentially signing a huge new contract and the CEO of AMC saying he wanted The Walking Dead franchise to continue for 10 years plus and expand into movies and stuff. All of that made it seem like The Walking Dead would live forever. These ratings, though, strongly suggest fans are starting to peel off the show en masse. Is there anything that could win them back? We’ll have to wait and see.
https://io9.gizmodo.com/the-walking-dead-just-had-its-worst-ratings-ever-1829785539

I think the damage was done in the last three seasons and there is not much AMC or the producers can do, other than delivering absolutely stellar episodes, as they did in some cases at Fear's second half. I personally haven't been really excited about this season and I can see TWD hate continuing.

Kirkman's Outcast was cancelled earlier this year. So it won't be returning into the small screen any time soon, if ever. TWD has delivered a blow to its audience and turned them away without being able to renew the interest, unlike Fear. We all know that Andrew Lincoln is leaving soon, and so is Maggie's actor Lauren Cohan. With most of the original crew gone, there's not much for the long line fan's to hang on if TWD's crew doesn't create hooks that renews the interest.

Maybe AMC will cock it up as they don't have experience from a very long series. And maybe it would have been better, if they had split the series as they've done with the Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. Although those series are different, they are also the same, and they do deepen the story.

I'm not going to say it's new showrunners fault either, because she got the impossible job of trying to make the cake pretty again after it had been tramp down by a series of unbelievable events that broke the fans disbelief.
 

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