The Walking Dead: Monsters

First Aired November 5th, 2017

Carol (played by Melissa McBride) and Ezekiel (played by Khary Payton) use a fake surrender ploy to take down a large group of Saviors. Morales (played by Juan Gabriel Pareja) plans to turn over Rick (played by Andrew Lincoln) to Negan (played by Jeffery Dean Morgan) and calls the Saviors battling outside for backup.

Aaron (played by Ross Marquand) tends to a wounded Eric (played by Jordan Woods-Robinson) but Eric forces Aaron to leave him to go help the others. Morales reveals his family died shortly after leaving Rick in Atlanta, and Rick recounts how Negan murdered Glenn (played by Steven Yeun). But Morales reasons that in order to survive he had to join the Saviors and rebuffs Rick’s attempts to talk him down. However Daryl (played by Norman Reedus) kills Morales with his crossbow uncaring that he once knew Morales when the Saviors enter the building.

While transporting tied up Saviors, Morgan (played by Lennie James) gets annoyed with Jared (played by Joshua Mikel) and his trash talk but walkers come flooding down a hill. While the group is distracted Jared leads a few people into the woods, Morgan kills one but Jesus (played by Tom Payne) stops him from killing the rest and they’re recaptured. Jesus hopes that after the war there can be peace with the remaining Saviors but Morgan refuses to believe they can change which results in a fight. Morgan admits that he’s not right in the head but believes he’s right about the Saviors and leaves.

Jesus’s idea of planning for a future peace is admirable but like I predicted transporting such a large group of Saviors is more trouble than it’s worth. But the story of Morgan slowly unravelling as he goes from pacifist to cold blooded killer is sure to be an emotionally fraught journey to watch Morgan take. Once again there was a lot of action and a few character deaths but neither made much of an impact. Eric was clearly a goner you could tell because the whole scene played out like a final goodbye. But given that he’s been background furniture for most of his time on the series this is meant to further Aaron’s character.

There were plenty of storylines to cover with Morales; how he lost his family, his past with Rick playing into his role with the Saviors. Instead that was all wrapped up in a brief conversation with Rick before he met the business end of Daryl’s crossbow. Bringing back Morales seemed like a cool way to bridge the gap from season one to now, but killing him in the very next episode makes it all feel like stunt casting.

Meanwhile Carol and Ezekiel continue moving forward taking out groups of Saviors while Rick and Daryl are boxed in by the Saviors until they’re rescued by Aaron and a few others. Gregory (played by Xander Berkeley) arrives at the Hilltop and begs to be let inside where he’s confronted by Maggie (played by Lauren Cohan). She demands to know what happened to Father Gabriel (played by Seth Gilliam) and berates him for trying to side with the Saviors.

Maggie nearly leaves Gregory outside to die but after he apologizes and begs she decides to let him in. Jesus arrives with the captured Saviors (during which Gregory fiercely tries to deny them entry) and Jesus convinces Maggie to lock them up over killing them. Rick, Daryl and Aaron gather the remainder of their troops and head out and Rick takes pictures of the area. Aaron goes back to where he left Eric and finds only a tree covered in blood and a reanimated Eric walking away, Aaron wants to go after him but is convinced to leave with the others.

Carol and Ezekiel were taking out those Saviors way too easily they almost looked bored doing it. Gregory sank to a new low removing any lingering doubts that his character can be rehabilitated; apparently he stole a little girl’s pancakes so he clearly has no boundaries. But it was his hypocrisy with allowing the Savior captives after his plea of ‘we’re all humans’ that was the kicker.

Aside from the obvious concern of having two dozen enemy soldiers in their backyard I don’t see how keeping these Saviors locked up will broker any kind of peace talks. The Eric walker wandered off the same way Eric spent his time on the season; quietly and in the background. But Aaron’s devastation over losing Eric should be a driving force behind his actions for the rest of the season so his death will have a purpose.

Aaron sits despondent over losing Aaron, Rick rescues the baby he found in the building and Aaron offers to take her to the Hilltop. Before they can leave someone shoots at Rick and Daryl and Rick makes a deal with the boy that they’ll let him leave if he gives them information. But as soon as the boy reveals where the Saviors guns were taken to Daryl coldly executes him.

While sweeping a cleared Savior hideout Ezekiel is fired upon resulting in several deaths. Ezekiel made a statement at the top of the episode that nobody in his group would die; so really we were just waiting for it to happen. The baby girl is obviously meant as a symbol of hope for the future (maybe even a potential daughter for Aaron?). Rick has no problem killing but he’s clearly not happy with Daryl. Finding that baby seems to have spurred a kinder side to Rick that is clearly lost on Daryl.

Quotes/Thoughts

“I’m not right, I know that I’m not right. But that doesn’t make me wrong.”

Morgan going off alone to find himself sounds bad on paper but given how good he is at killing Saviors he should be fine.

“There’s not a lot that worth much these days, but a man’s word that’s got to mean something right?”

Daryl’s shoot first and ask questions never attitude is certainly effective.

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