Mind. Blown. Review: The Walking Dead - “Isolation”

Season 4, Episode 3

Air Date: Sunday, October 27, 2013, at 9/8c on AMC

Rating: ★★★★★

“You find out who did this and you bring ‘em to me. You bring ‘em to me!” – Tyreese

Have you noticed how the titles of subsequent The Walking Dead episodes are now one word? Will this sequence continue? What does it mean for the future of the characters? I get the feeling the theme of each new episode will be whittled down and explained in one word. One word can hold incredible meaning with only a few syllables. What does isolation mean to you?

Observations and thoughts:

Big Man on Campus

Um, I don’t think the survivors know who they’re messing with. Tyreese (Chad L. Coleman) ain’t a little guy. I love seeing how Daryl (Norman Reedus) is protective of Rick (Andrew Lincoln), but I think Rick can take care of himself. Daryl has almost turned into his guard dog. The fight turns into a beat down. Tyreese is full of emotion; he’s reasonably upset and looking to hurt someone. His anger isn’t geared toward Rick. His anger is for the one who dared to take matters into their own hands. I still don’t know who that person is, but I have a damn good idea who it might be. I want to see Tyreese rip them a new one. What’s happening isn’t fair. Tensions are high and everyone’s looking for some way to blow off a little steam. Heck, at least now Hershel (Scott Wilson) can put his skills to use again. He hasn’t been doing much doctoring as of late. Not a bad thing, just an observation.

Shit Meet Fan

What is this outbreak and what will the group do about it? How can you find a cure for a disease that’s come out of nowhere? Not only that, there’s no medicine, no hospitals, no way to discover what the illness is or how it’s spreading. The only thing they do know is everyone who gets sick, dies, and hello new zombie. “We need antibiotics.” Hershel has some idea what to do but I’ll be damned if it’s the solution. Too many people have gotten sick already. Living in close proximity will bring about disease.

Carol (Melissa McBride) is awfully attached to the kids. It has to be because of her daughter Sophia (Madison Lintz) being gone. I hadn’t thought about it until now. Not until “Isolation” did I realize Carol was teaching the kids how to protect themselves because her daughter wasn’t able to. How else do you think Sophia was made zombie bait? What an interesting turn of events. She’s still a mom at heart and mothers will do anything to protect those they care for. Keep that in mind.

Little Boy Lost

“Don’t. You don’t need to.” Oh, Hershel. He doesn’t know about Carl leaving a walker to roam and that walker taking the life of one of the group. I don’t know yet how walking away from the zombie will come back to bite them in the rear (or if it will) but I wonder what’s going through Carl’s mind. Is he second guessing himself? He’s finally gotten his gun back (the answer to the gun buried in the yard has been solved) and his father trusts him to do what’s right. Has he grown enough to make those decisions without potentially causing someone else’s death? That remains to be seen.

Survival of the Fittest

Don’t get me wrong, I love The Walking Dead. I really do. I guess with us being four seasons in I don’t know how these people continue to survive. Wouldn’t you imagine they are tired of the daily fight? I’m getting tired watching them struggle to survive. As soon as they take a step in the right direction and things are smooth sailing, here comes something even worse. The painting above Hershel’s head says, “Smooth waters do not good sailors make.” If that ain’t the truth, I don’t know what is. It’s with these words I consider this group of survivors to be the bravest, toughest individuals I’ve come across in my years of watching TV. I don’t know how they do it. I mean, think about Michonne (Danai Gurira) being on her own for so long, having found a friend and losing said friend only to find herself alone again. Because yes, she is alone.

Can we talk for one moment about the biggest herd of walkers ever to grace our televisions? All I could think was WTF? It had to be a damn town of zombies in that one scene. The suspense alone is enough to make me shat my pants. I have to give it up to the writers. They bring it every damn episode.

Memorable line:

Glenn to Hershel about the illness circulating the prison: “If it’s walkers, if it’s people we can do something. But with this, we’re just digging graves.”

Rick: “We have to save lives first; we have to keep this place going.”

Tyreese: “You worry about that and I’ll worry about what’s right.”

Daryl: “Hey! I’m glad you’re here.”

Michonne: “Where else would I be?”

Daryl: “Running off.”

Glenn to Hershel: “This sucks. After everything, and I’ll just get taken out by a glorified cold.”

With Glenn’s (Steven Yeun) words still ringing in my ears, I have to agree with him. This sickness is the pits. It’s slowing things down, making viewers wonder who’ll die next to come back as a walker. I’d hate to see familiar faces taken out by the flu. Especially Hershel. I don’t know where Wilson pulls his motivation but he delivers a speech like nobody’s business. I’ll be mighty pissed if he succumbs to this illness. Here that, writers? No walker Hershel please. My heart can’t take it.

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