The "tune" of this episode of The Walking Dead is unexpectedly positive and sunny. None of the expected bloodshed events happened at all, and everyone got a " gift " more or less, their value is high or low, some One thing is the same, that is, they are full of hope.
But don't think this episode is very "water". Many clues have already outlined the focus of the next story. There are two core keywords: "market" and "whisperer".
Optimism comes first
The first scene at the beginning is "filling the pit", which traces the origin and process of the cold relationship between Alexander and Shanshanzhai.
The content of this scene is that the leadership of the Kingdom of God, the Peak Village and Alexander contacted, shared and exchanged materials. Judging from the words of Jesus and Tara and others, it should be a point in time shortly after Rick's "death".
As a representative of Alexander, Tara said that after completing the transaction, she would not return to the original community, but would switch to the Peak Village, which shows that she was very dissatisfied with Michelle's actions at the time.
Tara also brought out the "Multi-community Charter of Power and Freedom" drafted by Michelle , and it would eat ashes in her home anyway - it can be seen that Michelle is the main culprit for Rick's "death". Peak Village and Salvation Hall have unilaterally reduced (or even cut off) communication with other communities.
This possibility is indeed very high, and there are two supporting evidences: one is that Jesus confessed that Maggie doesn’t like Michelle now, and there is a rift between the two leaders of the community ; the other is Michelle’s Charter "Above, there are only three communities of Alexandria, the Kingdom of God and the Seaside Hotel.
Of course, other things may have happened during this period, but this scene can barely explain the discord within the alliance.
But these are not the point, the point is the attitude of Ezekiel after getting the Charter. As a positive and optimistic person, he still hopes that the "contract ideal" of the alliance can be realized, and added the mountain village and the Salvation Hall without authorization - even if the Salvation Hall no longer exists, he did not modify the original addition.
The large-scale market within the alliance is about to start, and the Kingdom of God is now short of supplies , so he plans to hunt deer. After the successful completion, he started a hidden "side mission": go to the cinema to get the projector light bulb.
What the f**k? ! We have a hard time even surviving now. You let everyone take risks for such a dispensable pastime? No wonder Ezekiel was reluctant to tell Carol at first, because the pessimistic, pragmatic Carol would certainly not agree.
But people like Ezekiel and Jerry want to do this for their own reasons: they hope that everyone, especially children, can once again feel the fruits of pre-apocalyptic human civilization , such as the children of Jerry and Nabila - this group in Children born after the end of the world, they don't even know what a movie is.
I have to say that this is in line with Ezekiel's optimistic style. No matter how difficult the environment is, it will not hinder his ideal of "we are human beings" , not to mention that he has other reasons: we organize everyone to watch movies during the market, It is also a means to enhance the relationship between the community~
In the face of the gracious/carefree Ezekiel, how can Carol bear/be at ease? (PS: This episode has a new fun type of walking dead, "Popcorn Machine Broken Head", haha)
When Jerry went to dismantle the light bulb, Ezekiel took the poster frame by the way, intending to use it to frame the charter, maybe it can be used in the market? !
At this time, Carol is worried again: I am still worried that the "alliance" will fail, and the situation in the Kingdom of God is really not optimistic. Are we still considering joining the Mountaintop Village or finding a new place? ...
Carol's words illustrate many things: the Kingdom of God has not recovered its vitality after losing most of the young and middle-aged people in the war many years ago. Most of the people inside are old and weak, women and children, and it is even more unsustainable now; However, the Mountaintop Village is thriving. The Kingdom of God has always insisted on trading with the Mountaintop Village, and dispatched Diana and others to help them train. It is also to narrow the relationship with the Mountaintop Village in an increasingly conservative and closed environment.
Ezekiel remains optimistic and hopeful, even as the reality is so cruel .
The "stunning" thing is that Jerry accidentally dropped the light bulb into the corpse. There was pressure inside and outside, and even Ezekiel wanted to give up...
Carol, who was constantly infected by Ezekiel's spirit, was reluctant to agree this time - she never liked Ezekiel calling herself "queen", but at this moment she insisted on letting everyone complete the task in the name of "queen".
After so many things over the years, Carol is essentially a very pessimistic person, so she prefers to be with optimistic people like Ezekiel, so that she can feel "warm" and "angry", so She didn't want Ezekiel and others to show the same lost and desolate expressions as herself.
So, the most romantic scene in this episode appeared. Under Carol's encouragement and plan, along with the sound of music and slow motion, the people of the Kingdom of God destroyed the remaining walking corpses in the theater and got the projector bulb. Completed all side quests satisfactorily.
Despite this, Carol's nature of "thinking about defeat before winning" has not changed... But she is willing to listen to Ezekiel's "painted pie", and she will never get tired of listening to it for the rest of her life.
The status quo of the Kingdom of God is worse than imagined. It is so difficult to just make a living. Can they still afford a war?
twists and turns
Alpha's request is very simple, to get back his daughter.
Seeing that the mountain village was "bullying people" and it was difficult to speak, Afar called another group of people, and the "arrogance" of the mountain village came down...
From the perspective of negotiation and negotiation alone, Alpha's performance can't be faulted : it doesn't matter if you cross the line and kill our people, the two sides will not conflict again, I just want my daughter back.
Darryl didn't want to send Lydia back at first. After seeing Alpha's strength and the two hostages of Alden and Luke, he was still unwilling to be outdone.
Alpha has a posture of first salute and then soldiers, and has the power of "subduing soldiers without fighting" : You crossed the line first and killed our people. I have two hostages in my hand, and I also brought my children here to negotiate ... No matter from which angle you look at it, it doesn't matter if you want to be tough.
No matter what the facts are, just from the perspective of the two sides, Shanshanzhai is indeed at a disadvantage, especially since they still call themselves "civilized people", and "unknown teachers" are taboos.
Therefore, even if Daryl came to negotiate alone, nothing would change. He could only accept Alpha's proposal and exchange hostages.
Alpha never let down her guard . Seeing that a group of walking corpses were approaching not far away, she also did not agree to divert the corpses away, but ordered the corpses to stay by her side.
For Whisperers who believe in "surviving the walking dead" and self-proclaimed "animals," having the walking dead beside them is like having an extra bodyguard.
Of course, Alpha may have a more "black-bellied" reason: use a baby to lure a group of corpses, and see the response of the mountain village... The "law" of the whisperer is silence, if someone can't obey it, no matter whether it is an adult or a baby are only sacrificed.
The Whisperer's "rules" really stimulated the crowd at the top of the mountain, and Luke couldn't help but remind Connie who was hiding... The next scene is also quite interesting. From the perspective of the deaf and mute, the wheat field escapes until Connie Picked up by Darryl and others.
The most frowning plot in this episode is Henry's ignorance . Because he can't bear Lydia, he sneaks her away, puts two hostages and the entire mountaintop at risk, Enid and Adiline come and go When persuading himself, he also hoped that the other party did not find him... It is not right to send an abused girl back to the sea of fire, but Henry's approach is also playing with fire.
When Enid persuaded Henry, he mentioned his dead parents and Carl, especially Carl's sentence "Don't let bad things change you" is quite connotative...
Henry didn't listen, but Lydia came out on her own - obviously, after going through ups and downs, she understood the truth of Enid's words better than Henry, and she didn't want everyone to be embarrassed.
The arrangement of this scene is really not ideal, but it finally did not cause a catastrophe (the nature is the same as that of Henry's illness of the Notre Dame in the previous episode, the difference is that this time it is more excessive). The hostage exchange between the Whisperer and the Peak Village then proceeded smoothly without any "abnormalities".
The conflict came to an end for now. Henry understood everyone's decision, but he couldn't accept it and asked Darryl, "Can you bear this?"
What Daryl taught him was also true: the world is unfair, you just have to live with it.
It would be easy if things could be revealed like this... After kissing Lydia goodbye, Henry's impulse had overcome his reason, leaving a note and stealing it away. As the actual "Godfather", Darryl can't let it go. ——In fact, Henry's impulse gave Darryl a chance. Now that this is the case, it is better to rak the hay and fight the rabbits, and do the things that he wants to do but can't do together.
After the rescue of the baby during the day, Connie has also been unhappy, and Daryl's solo action also gave her a chance, and the two touched Henry and the Whisperer together.
If there is a conflict in the future, is it to be blamed on the mountain village to take the initiative to find trouble? Not necessarily, this is mentioned at the end of the article.
both joys and sorrows
Overall, the tone of this episode is very "bright" , especially the branch line of Earl and Tammy's family.
As an excellent blacksmith in the Mountaintop Village and even the entire alliance, Earl is not a problem when he is busy forging iron, but he has a problem regardless of the excessive consumption of his body.
With Earl's current physical state, he can rest for a while, even if he retires. This is the common wish of Enid and Tammy.
This anomaly was quickly answered: after the death of his son Kenneth, the old man has not been able to calm down , and being obsessed with work is the best way for him to fill his emptiness . How can he allow others to easily deprive him of his power?
It is not difficult to see from the conversations between Tammy and Enid that the old couple are really good people (Ear's repentance is also very good), and they also take care of Enid and Alden as their own children...
So, giving Earl and Tammy an orphaned baby for adoption may be the best gift and consolation for them.
In contrast, the reunions of other people in this episode are a bit "indifferent".
In addition, Ezekiel, who returned to the Kingdom of God, also framed the "Charter", and the movie projector can be used normally again. It seems that everything is going in a good direction.
The market is about to start soon, and every community in the alliance is actively preparing its own specialties and supplies, and Ezekiel's wish is to let everyone put down the indifference and strife (especially the conservative Alexander) in recent years. For the real "alliance" with legal significance.
Well, let's talk about the hidden dangers revealed in this episode.
When Lydia finished cleaning herself up, she still didn't want to believe her mother's actions. In her opinion, Afar had violated the Whisperer's principles.
"She shouldn't come to me, has she changed?" Henry immediately denied Lydia's idea, "It's impossible for someone like her to change."
Alpha's first reaction when she took back Lydia also confirmed Henry's opinion to a certain extent: she slapped Lydia first, then hugged her daughter, looked directly at the people at the top of the mountain, and quietly told her to call herself "alpha".
I understand that Alpha, as the leader, is always on guard against the words and deeds of the mountain village, but she is by no means a loving mother at the moment, but more like a jackal waiting for an opportunity.
In addition, a scene of the Kingdom of God and the group returning to the city is also very strange. It seems that the mark on the street sign is not left by them. Could it be the mark that the Whisperers have been active?
You can make a bold guess: The Whisperer did not plan to leave things alone and leave the hinterland of the alliance, but planned to slowly eat the entire alliance. The contact between Alpha and the mountain village did not really care about her daughter Lydia, and the actual purpose was to spy on the front. The garrison strength, contact information, bottom line and other information of the community such as the Peak Village, and taking two hostages in exchange for so much information is definitely not a loss-making business.
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