#twd 9x11

[walking-dead-icons]

Daryl and Alpha in The Walking Dead 9x11 “Bounty”.

Gifs by: walking-dead-icons.

[twalkingd]

lydia & henry + kisses

[carlgrimesisnotdeadforme]

Enid: When I was about your age I saw my parents die. It changed me. It became all about surviving somehow. And then, someone else close to me died. Someone special, with a big heart. He left me a letter reminding me that just surviving it isn't living. It took me way too long to get where it really went. You live with it by staying who you are and not letting the bad things change you.

Carl in heaven:

[part-time-psychotic]

JERRY HAS BABIES!!

I'm so happy..

but so scared for him

[boltsandashes]

Initial Reactions 9x11

So... I really didn’t love this episode? Let me know if you guys feel the same. I just overall feel that this was a much weaker episode than the past few, sloppy writing and hugely pointless subplots and wasted cameos and––

There were a few things here and there I liked but... well ok, bouncing into bullet points.

What the actual fuck was that Jesus cameo? So coming into this I was worried I was probably hoping for something bigger than what we’d get from his scene, but I don’t think it’s just my Tom Payne loving brain exaggerating things when I say that was easily the most pointless cameo I’ve ever seen on TV and TWD should be ashamed of wasting him and letting his fans down like that. That flashback was nearly pointless, gave us nothing but the charter, and Tara was the one who had that. Jesus didn’t need to be in that scene at all and I’m just deeply pissed and disappointed that he was brought back for that, that he wasn’t given one single damn second that meant something to go out on.

I could not get on board with that entire projector lightbulb storyline. I get what they were going for, it was a sweet thought. I understand that they didn’t want to wait for the herd to pass because the fair’s coming up soon (though –– how fucking big is that herd and how far away is the fair? Can they really not come through again after the herd passes?) But having something so deeply trivial juxtaposed against something so intense, so life or death in the Hilltop segment, just made it really hard to give half a damn about.

Connie saving that baby and the whole run through the cornfield was a nailbiting, intense, and amazingly shot segment. I love that we were brought into her world a little more through the muted sound, to experience it a little closer to the way she must have.

Honestly why were the elderly blacksmith and his wife brought out for this? I know that they ended up with the baby  so maybe they just wanted to establish some sort of connection there? But actually why the hell would they be the people running out through that gate with Daryl to help him potentially battle Walkers and human enemies alike? Were there no able-bodied people who actually knew how to fight? Why would Magna and Yumiko yet again hide behind the big safe walls while their friend is in danger and let those two go out instead? I mean..... honestly did I miss something there? 

Did anyone else think Enid’s speech to Henry was 150% counterproductive? “Carl taught me that you need to stay true to yourself. Don’t let the world change you, don’t let it take who you are. Now I’m gonna need to you to go against everything you believe in and send this girl back to her abuser kay thanks.” It just felt like such a sloppy and backwards way of convincing him and, again, took a callback to a past character that could’ve been really meaningful and used it in exactly the wrong way.

Okay..... other good things... I continued to enjoy Daryl’s characterization this episode. Honestly I love what they’re doing with him overall this season. I don’t think it’s just ‘cause he’s my favorite, he’s really shining and I love it.

There was a segment in the walking dead video game Survival Instinct where Daryl has to go through a movie theater full of Walkers and I got hit with pretty intense nostalgia for that game from this episode. Wasn’t the highest quality game but I loved it.

I’m struggling to find other things to say about this episode.

...Like really, did all of the Carzekiel plot feel sort of awkward and forced to you guys? It felt weird and pointless and shoehorned in, like they just needed something for the characters to do so they came up with... that. And yeah, seeing Carol become more optimistic for Zeke was nice, but we’ve kind of seen that already? And again, seeing it happen through such a pointless and risky segment was just more frustrating than endearing. I guess if it wasn’t pointless then it wouldn’t offer the same message of “yes, we don’t need this but we deserve good things” but christ, Zeke. There are other cool things you could show the kids. Or other ways to handle this. Or the show could’ve not juxtaposed people risking their lives for a lightbulb with people risking their lives for a baby, highlighting how silly and inconsequential the former seems.

...Or maybe I’m just still bitter from the Jesus segment. Let me know what you thought of the episode. Maybe I’ll mull everything over and end up liking it more later in hindsight.