Summary:
The war continues, this time around focusing solely on the group from The Kingdom. When we last saw the group they were surprised by machine gun fire and scattering in a field. This episode picks up right where that left off showing the complete carnage left in the wake of just one browning .50 caliber machine gun. Wounded and beaten both physically and mentally the survivors, which are limited to just Ezekial, Carol, and Jerry (thank God!) fight their way from the danger left by so many dead bodies. While Carol goes full Jane Bond to complete their mission and capture the guns.
The Good
- Ezekial proves why he is King with a VERY theatrical “Still I Smile” speech that we all caught in the trailers. This episode his star making turn with a good 60% of his character development happening right here. He comes to terms with the silliness of his King persona and at the same time comes to understand it’s importance to the people who follow him



The Bad:

- The series jumped back to a, mostly, single story episode format. It just feels like it’s slowing down the entire war story arc for something that could have been handled in half an episode. This isn’t such a big deal if it only happens this one time, if it becomes a regular thing we could fall right back into a show that feels like it’s stalling the whole season just for that finale episode.
- This last thing is more of a quibble than anything else, but I really can’t stand when TV/Filmmakers are inconsistent in the damage caused by firearms and explosives. I mentioned how great the gore was in that opening massacre, and it really was, showing the capabilities of these guns is paramount for having us understand why it was worth risking most of the fighting force of the kingdom. They falter in the end for the sake of an action beat. When Rick and Daryl are chasing down the Saviors one drops the tailgate and, in true 80’s action movie fashion, has a .50 cal machine gun setup and ready to fire. Now these guns literally RIPPED apart 60 people earlier in the episode, however when they’re fired into Rick’s jeep they just plink off the hood with little more than a spark. Just for arguments sake, these are the bullets that are fired from fighter jets (at least the ones that have guns), it would do to say that one quick burst would rip that Jeep to shreds.
The Dead:

- The zombie’s this episode were top notch. As I mentioned earlier the gore effects from those ripped up by the machine guns were gnarly to a new level. If that wasn’t enough, while Ezekiel, Carol, and Jerry make their escape they have to do so by crossing a toxic waste dump area. Let me tell you, toxic waste and sewage zombies are the worst zombie. Greg Nicotero’s crew proved that hands down. Say what you will about the consistency of the show’s quality but one area where they have yet to stumble is the effects department.
NEXT WEEK
The Return of Negan!!