5.12 Remember Rick and his survivors on The Walking Dead are a bunch of feral animals, and Deanna (Tovah Feldshuh) is the woman attempting to re-domesticate that pack of cats. Some food, a roof over their heads, soap and a hot shower, clean clothes, a toilet that isn’t a hole in the ground… it’s a much-needed respite from life on the road, but will it be enough? On the surface, everything looks great, but it’s what’s going on inside the heads of our characters that just might screw up the whole deal. How the characters handle their entrance interview with Deanna and their slow assimilation with the survivors of Alexandria is what drives this episode, which moves slowly and draws out the tension of being an outsider. The interviews are the most interesting little visual blip from director Greg Nicotero; they’re recorded sitting in a chair being interviewed and the footage changes from standard HD television to old-fashioned 4×3 television, like an old video camera from the pre-widescreen days would shoot. The questions are Alexandria’s version of Rick’s Three Questions: who they are, what they hope to get out of Alexandria, and what they used to do in the world outside. It turns out some of those careers, like Rick’s background in law enforcement and Glenn’s peerless ability to go on supply runs, might help knit them into the fabric of the safe zone. The most telling moments don’t come from the words of the script by Channing Powell (though it is a great script, especially by The Walking Dead standards), but from the actions taken therein. When Glenn gets into a scrape with Aiden, Rick’s group comes running and they strike out brutally. When the walker endangers Tara and Glenn, they ignore Aiden’s command and protect their own. And, as Rick says, if the Alexandria group isn’t strong enough to keep their home safe, well… they’ll just take it from them. That beat, and the hard pan in on Rick’s face when he says that, means a lot. Has the group gotten so feral that they’re willing to screw over people who are misguided but otherwise friendly? If you’re a member of Alexandria, it’s a legitimate concern. (See also the very cold reception of Rick from Samantha AKA Alexandra Breckenridge’s husband.) If you’re part of Rick’s group, are you really willing to give up your guns and control of your own lives to people who have never stepped foot outside of their flush toilet utopia in exchange for the chance to be involved in said utopia? And what to make of the gambit of making Rick and Michonne the law? Read Ron’s review of the previous episode, The Distance, here. US Correspondent Ron Hogan is very sad to see Rick’s crazy beard go. Flee the tyranny of the clean shave, Rick! Come back to your bearded brethren! 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.
