The Walking Dead Review: “Spend” (5×14)

If last night’s dynamite episode of “The Walking Dead” taught us anything, it’s that Alexandria is comprised entirely of jackasses and woefully inept survivors. How any of them have survived this long, even taking their big steel walls into account, is beyond comprehension.

This episode was the most ambitious hour of the season thus far. It juggled five different storylines, each giving a glimpse as to how Rick’s gang and the Alexandrians intermingled. For better or for worse.

Firmly in the “for worse” column is Father Gabriel . Words fail describing what a piece of garbage he is. The episode begins with him having a meltdown and ripping pages out of his bible. Though he disappears for pretty much the rest of the episode (save for looking at others judgmentally from afar) he reappears with one final act of hypocrisy.

Completely selling out his saviors to Deanna, he implores her that allowing them inside was a mistake. There’s some contrived biblical babble about Rick being Satan in the disguise of an angel before he suggests the group will put themselves before the citizens of Alexandria. If ever there was a character for Carol to chain up in the woods to be eaten and forgotten about, it’s this guy. Other actors have made morally corrupt characters compelling, but Seth Gilliam has played the same note since his first scene on the series.

Thankfully the other threads of the story are successful in making the audience care for side characters who have been kept out of the spotlight. Abraham is given a job on Tobin’s construction crew (they’re expanding the city wall). Abe is visibly struggling with the mundane work. So when a walker horde approaches, a thrilling energy rushes over him. “Mother Dick!” he exclaims, happy to be battling the undead again.

When Tobin orders his group to leave poor Francine for walker bait, Abraham jumps in to clear the fray. He and Francine annihilate all zombies, Tobin gets a right hook to the face from the woman he left to die (Tobin can join Gabriel as one of Carol the Cookie Monster’s victims), and Abraham finds himself the new leader of the construction crew. I find Michael Cudlitz a fascinating actor to watch and I hope these recent developments spell more screen time for Abe.

Outside the town’s gates, a supply run for spare parts turns tragic. Glenn, Tara, Noah, Aiden, and Nicholas bring Eugene along to a warehouse so the genius/liar can find pieces needed to fix broken solar panels. Aiden is still a hothead, but willing to listen to Glenn’s advice on checking the perimeter before entering the building blind. It also provides a nice lull before the action and a nice interaction between Tara and Eugene. Tara’s eternal warmth is wearing thin with him, and she tells him he needs to buck up and fend for himself.

The show plays a cruel trick on us once inside. An armored walker in riot gear approaches, and of course the idiotic Aiden fires his rifle at it several times. Why he thinks his bullets will pierce the bullet proof helmet and body armor, we will never know. A bullet hits a grenade on the walker’s belt and the explosion knocks out Tara and impales Aiden on a metal rod.

Even though Glenn and Noah try to lift him off the rod (his friend Nicholas quickly bails to save his own skin), zombies close in and we are treated to some good old fashioned zombie gore as they rip open his stomach and devour his entrails. The crowd cheers, because we never like this dude anyway.

But when Glenn and Noah catch up with the fleeing Nicholas, the three become stuck in a revolving door (who the hell invented those deathtraps anyway?) with zombies on either side. After a heroic Eugene lures walkers away with the van and some terrible rap music, Glenn attempts to break the glass to get out. But Nicholas is again only concerned with himself and shoves his way out of the revolving door, exposing poor Noah to the group of zombies behind him. Glenn can only watch in horror as his new friend’s face is ripped off his skull. Game of Thrones’ Oberyn vs. The Mountain moment has nothing on this. I’m also now horrified at myself for cheering at a death just moments before. Noah did nothing wrong and deserved better than to be ripped apart so some coward could live (Hey Carol, I’ve got another woods person for ya!).

The final story thread with Carol back in Alexandria is quite successful. Her blunt line delivery with Sam is good for a laugh. It mixes up the pacing well when inter-cut with the chaos of the supply run. But when Sam asks for a gun Carol stole the resulting twist provides the most tension of the episode, no undead needed. “Who’s it for” Carol asks, suddenly recognizing signs of abuse in the young cookie fiend. She knows the answer even as Sam runs away without telling her.

And once again Melissa McBride gets the best line of the episode. Informing Rick of Pete’s abuse towards Jessie, she states with measured voice “there’s only one way it can go. You’re going to need to kill him”. With this brewing conflict, “The Walking Dead” proves it can create compelling drama even with out zombies present.

Other Thoughts:

• Lovely moment when Glenn discovers the first page of the late Noah’s diary: “This is the beginning”. It’s devastating because Noah won’t get to experience this new life behind walls, and also echoing the reoccurring theme of the group in uncharted waters with Alexandria life.
• Loved Eugene’s redemptive arc in the episode. Finally realizes that this group protected him and finds the courage to risk his life for them several times.
• Deanna is expressing some hesitancy and perhaps regret over giving Rick’s group positions of power. She wanted survivors, but is gradually seeing her grasp on the community slip away. Expertly played by Tovah Feldshuh. I’m expecting fireworks when she discovers her sons is dead next week.
• Carol’s last line is great, but I’m hoping she is the one to take out Peter instead. Wouldn’t it be a great full circle moment for her if she were to take out an abusive father and save a family the way she couldn’t save hers?
• Walker Kill of the Week: Aiden’s silly mistake with the grenade. Because it rid us of his presence and displayed the incompetence of most of these Alexandrians. If only Gabriel had found himself in the blast radius.