It’s a welcoming party at Alexandria for Rick and company. Some suburban style bliss awaits them. Or is it? In an episode that is light on action and big on talking, “The Walking Dead” asks its harried group if this idyllic town is too good to be true.
The smartest part of the episode is the claustrophobic manner they present Alexandria. Unlike the massive expanses of Woodbury or the prison, the rusted steel walls of this community are always in view. The space is secure, but its small size is a constant presence. When the gate closes behind the band of survivors, they appear like caged animals.
Attempting to welcome the group and manager their doubts is former congresswoman, Deanna Monroe (Tovah Feldshuh). The actress balances both warmth and sternness as the leader of the town. Her rules for permanent residency include turning over all weapons and sitting for a videotaped interview (yes they have electricity and running water here!).
Director Greg Nicotero utilizes Deanna’s interviews as a recurring framing device, displaying how each member of the group reacts to their new abode. Some survivors are honest about their experiences. Carl reveals how he killed his mother. Rick warns Deanna that she shouldn’t just let anyone in, and discusses being a sheriff. Carol on the other hand puts on the façade of a happy housewife, completely underplaying her role as the group’s resident Terminator. Watching actress Melissa McBride wax poetically about missing “that man of hers” Ed (who enjoyed beating her to a pulp) as she beams ear to ear is completely unnerving. Daryl displays a different approach to keeping his guard up. It mostly includes sulking at a distance and brooding, which frankly, is getting super old super fast.
“Becoming soft” and letting one’s guard down became the overarching themes of the week. Deanna reveals that the Alexandria survivors discovered the safe zone early after the outbreak. Most residents have spent the majority of the apocalypse safe from the dangers lurking beyond their borders. Many of Rick’s crew are hesitant to settle down in the same manner. In fact Deanna appears to recognize that her community doesn’t have what it takes to withstand conflict with an outside group. She wants muscle. She wants survivors. Carl points out “I don’t want us to get weak too”.
The Alexandrians’ short comings in the world beyond their walls are most evident when Glenn, Tara, and Noah accompany Deanna’s son Aidan on a scouting mission. In just one episode Aidan has rocketed up to first place on my “Please-Feed-This-Character-to-a-Zombie-Now” list. Instead of killing a walker that killed his friends, he chained it up to a tree. Because reasons. It escapes and almost takes a bit out of Tara before Glenn puts a knife through its head.
This leads to a bizarre conflict (I guess you don’t just kill attacking undead in Alexandria?) where Aidan puffs out his chest and confronts Glenn about who is in charge. When the cocky pretty boy lunges at Glenn, he ducks and knocks Aidan to the ground with a single punch. Even the group members on the lower end of the badass spectrum are scrappy and not to be messed with. #TeamGlenn #Aidanisatool
The show of strength, combined with Rick’s subsequent mediation prompts Deanna to officially establish them as residents. Rick is made Constable (along with Michonne) so he can take up the mantle of who he used to be. Unlike our survivors, who you were before the outbreak is important to Deanna. It may be too early to tell, but our experience on the road has me thinking this belief could be her undoing.
Which reminds me, I’ve almost forgot the best part of the episode: Clean shaven Rick. Andrew Lincoln’s beard has basically become another character on the show. Watching him shave that man off and suit up in a sheriff uniform is powerful. He almost doesn’t recognize himself, and his group doesn’t either.
There are other examples of Rick assimilating back into a civilized world (aligning his watch when Deanna announces the time was a nice touch). But is he really going to breath easy and relax? Despite being given two houses, Rick’s group sleeps together in the same room on the first night. Our sheriff stands on his porch with fellow doubters Carol and Daryl wondering what happens if they have mistrusted Deanna and Aaron, and if their new neighbors are too weak to survive. “If they can’t make it, then we’ll just take this place” Rick utters. It seems like the attitude of other ruthless leaders the group has encountered. But, in the world of roaming dead, there’s a fine line between hero and villain.
Other Thoughts:
- Rick’s group behaves a bit like PTSD victims, ignoring the comforts of the homes and sleeping on floors all together. It sort of reminded me of the scene in “Cast Away” where Tom Hanks finds himself unable to sleep in a bed after being rescued. It definitely hit home the theme of “family” though.
- Both Rick and Carl find potential love interests. Jessie (AHS’s Alexandra Breckinridge) is married, but shares awkward sexual tension with him when Rick knocks over her art sculpture. Carl seems to fall for the quiet moody girl Enid.
- Did anyone else notice the comic book Carl picks up is titled “Wolf Fight”? Is this an easter egg referencing the “wolves” who attacked Noah’s home? The comic belonged to Enid, who was seen snooping outside the walls several time. Could Nicotero be cleverly foreshadowing that she is a spy for sinister forces beyond the walls of Alexandria?
- Carl had a heartbreaking moment when the other teenagers asked him what he wanted to do, videogames or play pool? Tears start to well up in his eyes and he has no idea how to respond to something that would have seemed so trivial and ridiculous only yesterday. A needed reminder that he hasn’t been able to enjoy the lack of responsibility usually given to children.
- Andrew Lincoln looks great shaved…but did he really need to shave his chest too? Sigh.
- The walker fight with Rick and Carl beyond the wall seemed extraneous. The writers should trust their characters enough to know they don’t necessarily need a big battle. Though seeing the glimmer in the father and son pair as walkers approached worked well, they were keeping themselves from being weak. It also raises the question: who stole Rick’s gun from the blender hiding space? (I’m looking at you Enid).
- Walker Kill of the Week: Not particularly gruesome this week. But I loved Rick’s whispered “Sasha” command, and her resulting spin-aim-headshot move. It immediately set the group apart from the Alexandria residents.
Sam is an Actor/Singer based in New York City, and a graduate of Emerson College in Boston with BFA in Acting . After graduating he performed with Imaginary Beasts and was a member of the final Boston cast of "The Awesome 80's Prom". In NYC his performances include a stint in the New York Musical Theatre Festival and cabaret acts with Molly Pope and Timothy Mathis. Most nights he can be found with a bottle of wine in one hand and a PS4 controller in the other. It sounds complicated, but he makes it work. Read his blog at samonstage.blogspot.com