It was a week of violence and ‘tainted meat’ in a world where mercy amounts to a swift and clean death
On Sunday night we peeled back the layers to see Gareth at
his most terrifying: a men’s rights activist in the making. The only
thing I know about the zombie apocalypse is that misandry will thrive in
an environment where full military arsenals are available to women who
have to hear self-styled cannibalistic gurus blather on about our “extra
layer of fat” or “how much better the pretty ones taste”.
Listen: Bob is dead. He had a little bit of heroism in his second-chance life, and a beautiful little love affair with Sasha, but he got bitten by a zombie in the food pantry last week and succumbed to his feverish illness. He sort of got the last laugh though. After Gareth went Full McConaughey on him, carrying on about dying bears while zombies banged on the windows of the school where they were holed up, Bob started scream-laughing that he was “tainted meat” and showing off the giant bite on his shoulder. Everyone puked, Bob got kicked in the face, and then they dumped him on the steps of the church, which is a pretty close re-enactment of a night out with my friends.
Right before Bob was brought back, Sasha pulled a knife on Gabriel, the priest, because three of their people have now disappeared since they arrived. They were right to be a little suspicious: Gabriel confessed that he locked the doors on his own congregation while they were ripped apart by zombies. But who had time to carve “You’ll burn for this” in the side of the building under that kind of intense pressure to survive, with walkers hot on their heels? That is an impressive dedication to spite.
Gabriel is full of regret and damnation, but everyone looked on silently, slack-jawed and dead-eyed, all of them thinking, “Oh, man, we’ve done so much worse than that since this all started. Like, three of us have straight up killed a few kids.”
Rick let his inner psychopath out for a stroll by choking the priest for a minute and shooting his gun blindly into the woods, but he really ramps it up when Guile from Streetfighter (ie Abraham) wants to take Eugene and the newly fixed bus and get out of dodge. Glen convinces him to stay for a few more hours, volunteering that he and Maggie will go along when they do leave. It’s a terrible decision, and one made only in the service of us, the viewer, being able to find out if they ever do make it to Washington. I see your plot device, and I raise you a Eugene-is-probably-going-to-die.
Once Rick finds out that Gareth is only 10 minutes away, he sets off Sasha, Abraham, and Glen to kick some ass. But Gareth’s firing on all pistons now that he’s full of protein, and he doubles back to the church as soon as Rick leaves. Everyone left is curled up in Gabriel’s office, and baby Judith gives away their position.
Gareth thinks he has them cornered, but then Rick and everyone double back and start shooting. Two of Gareth’s guys get shot in the head immediately, and Gareth gets shot in the arm. Once Gareth is on his knees, he asks Rick why he didn’t just kill them, and Rick is like, “I didn’t want to waste the bullets” before he proceeds to hack Gareth apart with a machete instead. Rick is a lot of things – unwashed, singularly focused, a little stinky – but he is not a liar. Sasha and Abraham get busy killing the rest of Gareth’s people with knives and the butt of a gun, and then the sun came out and they all held hands and sang hymns, smiling at their good fortune. Just kidding, they sat around as shellshocked as usual, unable to believe that their lives are continually swirling down the drain of despair.
Everyone says goodbye to Bob, and Bob thanks Rick for taking him in, though he might want to reconsider now that his association with Rick has ended his life. Then he died, and Tyreese batted cleanup by stabbing him in the head so his sister wouldn’t have to do it. That’s what passes for mercy these days – I won’t make you puncture the brains of the last guy you kissed.
Tyreese has to be sick of digging graves by now, but he and Rick bury Bob after the Washington crew takes off. Later that night, Daryl and Carol show up, and I bet they’ll get an earful about what they missed.
Do you think Bob had a dignified death? I would have liked for him to stick around a little bit longer; I think he added some necessary levity. Gareth totally got what was coming to him, though.
See you next week, when we find out who took Beth.
Listen: Bob is dead. He had a little bit of heroism in his second-chance life, and a beautiful little love affair with Sasha, but he got bitten by a zombie in the food pantry last week and succumbed to his feverish illness. He sort of got the last laugh though. After Gareth went Full McConaughey on him, carrying on about dying bears while zombies banged on the windows of the school where they were holed up, Bob started scream-laughing that he was “tainted meat” and showing off the giant bite on his shoulder. Everyone puked, Bob got kicked in the face, and then they dumped him on the steps of the church, which is a pretty close re-enactment of a night out with my friends.
Right before Bob was brought back, Sasha pulled a knife on Gabriel, the priest, because three of their people have now disappeared since they arrived. They were right to be a little suspicious: Gabriel confessed that he locked the doors on his own congregation while they were ripped apart by zombies. But who had time to carve “You’ll burn for this” in the side of the building under that kind of intense pressure to survive, with walkers hot on their heels? That is an impressive dedication to spite.
Gabriel is full of regret and damnation, but everyone looked on silently, slack-jawed and dead-eyed, all of them thinking, “Oh, man, we’ve done so much worse than that since this all started. Like, three of us have straight up killed a few kids.”
Rick let his inner psychopath out for a stroll by choking the priest for a minute and shooting his gun blindly into the woods, but he really ramps it up when Guile from Streetfighter (ie Abraham) wants to take Eugene and the newly fixed bus and get out of dodge. Glen convinces him to stay for a few more hours, volunteering that he and Maggie will go along when they do leave. It’s a terrible decision, and one made only in the service of us, the viewer, being able to find out if they ever do make it to Washington. I see your plot device, and I raise you a Eugene-is-probably-going-to-die.
Once Rick finds out that Gareth is only 10 minutes away, he sets off Sasha, Abraham, and Glen to kick some ass. But Gareth’s firing on all pistons now that he’s full of protein, and he doubles back to the church as soon as Rick leaves. Everyone left is curled up in Gabriel’s office, and baby Judith gives away their position.
Gareth thinks he has them cornered, but then Rick and everyone double back and start shooting. Two of Gareth’s guys get shot in the head immediately, and Gareth gets shot in the arm. Once Gareth is on his knees, he asks Rick why he didn’t just kill them, and Rick is like, “I didn’t want to waste the bullets” before he proceeds to hack Gareth apart with a machete instead. Rick is a lot of things – unwashed, singularly focused, a little stinky – but he is not a liar. Sasha and Abraham get busy killing the rest of Gareth’s people with knives and the butt of a gun, and then the sun came out and they all held hands and sang hymns, smiling at their good fortune. Just kidding, they sat around as shellshocked as usual, unable to believe that their lives are continually swirling down the drain of despair.
Everyone says goodbye to Bob, and Bob thanks Rick for taking him in, though he might want to reconsider now that his association with Rick has ended his life. Then he died, and Tyreese batted cleanup by stabbing him in the head so his sister wouldn’t have to do it. That’s what passes for mercy these days – I won’t make you puncture the brains of the last guy you kissed.
Tyreese has to be sick of digging graves by now, but he and Rick bury Bob after the Washington crew takes off. Later that night, Daryl and Carol show up, and I bet they’ll get an earful about what they missed.
Do you think Bob had a dignified death? I would have liked for him to stick around a little bit longer; I think he added some necessary levity. Gareth totally got what was coming to him, though.
See you next week, when we find out who took Beth.
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