Andrea, who is bitten, gets what could have been a heartfelt send-off if it weren’t for how insufferable she is. She is the third person to be tied to something during a zombie attack, and the only one to not make it out alive. She failed to do what Glenn and Michonne did, thus proving the full breadth of her ineptitude. Michonne and her have a moment, though a blunted one, before Andrea kills herself.
This is Michonne’s second big emotional scene tonight. Shippers who are looking forward to the first Rick-Michonne lip-lock were able to move their relationship-o-meters up a bit. Michonne is unreasonably understanding about Rick almost giving her to the Governor, a character progression that feels a little less believable than it would if this show had any sense of character growth or pacing. Sure, “Clear” gave her a bit of a boost, but really? Next to the Governor turning into the Terminator this was one of the least believable things in the episode.
We end with Rick bringing the entirety of Woodbury’s remaining population to the prison, making up for all the people he turned away and distrusted, and further alienating his son. It’s a moment of profound humanity, and is oddly reasonable move for a character who has been learning to accept and trust throughout the whole season.
So really… sure, we got some insane moments, some breathless action and worrisome developments, but it was all at the cost of sensible character motivation. Is this the kind of trade-off we are willing to make? Judging by the ratings, yes, but really I think we are selling ourselves short by accepting it. We came so close to something really special, a mix of action and humanity that we could be thrilled and moved by. Instead, The Walking Dead saw fit to just be madness and action. Fun, but not substantive.
Still, the dynamic of the prison group is changed forever now, and with Rick taking responsibility for even more people it only leaves more opportunity for some hopefully interesting character growth next season.
And yes, for anyone wondering, I will be coming back to this show next season. All of its missteps aside, The Walking Dead continues to hold limitless potential for interesting storytelling. I just hope someone on the writing staff can finally come through with it.
