3.15 This Sorrowful Life Rick is the last person you want making a life-or-death decision, but he’s the man who met with the Governor, he’s the man who holds Michonne’s fate in his hands, and he’s the man who has to decide if the chance at peace is worth the life of a relatively innocent person who has proven herself to be a valuable addition to the group. Can Rick be trusted enough to pull together a group to help him make decisions without choosing the absolutely wrong people to carry out the task at hand? It’s pretty clear that something’s wrong with Rick, given the way Merle has so easily integrated back into the group. Then again, Merle seems like he’s a man facing a crisis of conscience. For the past few episodes, he’s seemed like he’s trying to do the right thing in spite of how much easier it is to do the wrong one. For a character that started out as a one-dimensional redneck who became a one-dimensional sidekick thug to show cracks in his character like Merle does in this episode is pretty impressive. It shows that the writers behind the show (in this case Scott Gimple) are trying to give all the characters some shade and depth (even The Governor got some humanizing moments before his complete psychotic break). Greg Nicotero, who directed this episode, has shown improving touch with actors, especially when filming conversations. He’s got a good sense of the visual, as befitting a special effects master, and he keeps his camera movements simple, but he frames his shots very well. He’s effective at generating tension with simple framing devices, like the doorway of a car or building, and he filmed one of the more creative action sequences of the season, taking a great idea from the writer’s pen and putting it into practice with some flair. You don’t need Sam Raimi’s camera flexibility when you can simply put your camera in the right place and let things happen around it. Both styles are equally effective, though Raimi-cam is more flashy than clever. This week’s episode, the penultimate for the season, functioned as a bit of a wild card in terms of its effect on the overall plot. A lot of things that have been simmering below the surface have come to the surface, and it’s going to cast a long-lasting shadow in season four and beyond. How it will affect the survivors depends on just how many people survive the upcoming clash of camps. I get the feeling there’s going to be a pretty high body count next week. US Correspondent Ron Hogan cannot wait for the last episode of The Walking Dead for this season. It’s going to be a barn-burner, though not literally since they already burned the barn full of walkers last year. Find more by Ron daily at Shaktronics and PopFi. Follow our Twitter feed for faster news and bad jokes right here. And be our Facebook chum here
