Air Date: Sunday, March 13, 2016 at 9/8c on AMC
Rating:
“You don’t want me to stick to my principles.” – Carol Peletier
Carol and Maggie gain the upper hand before Paula realizes she has lost it.
We were left with quite a cliffhanger at the end of “Not Tomorrow Yet” with Carol (Melissa McBride) and Maggie (Laurie Cohan) being taken prisoner by a group of the Saviors. This week, in “The Same Boat,” The Walking Dead (TWD) takes explores their captors with another in depth look at the growth of one of the best characters on television today. Carol has gone through quite the change over the past five seasons. When we first saw her, she was timid, frightened of her own shadow, and hunched in on herself. She kept her hair short probably to keep her husband from getting a good grip on her. Carol then morphed into a mournful and angry woman who’d lost everything. She picked up a knife, decided to get better at defending herself and developed some confidence. Next thing you know, she’s flipping a switch to put people out of their misery, disguising herself and becoming a sharpshooter, and baking cookies all the time. All of the levels of Carol’s growth stem from her origins of being the weak and helpless one. Well, she’s no longer either one of those things, but maybe something more than she thought she ever could be.
What Do You Think About…?
Carol is a master at sitting and watching people. She recognizes who they are, what they are, and knows how to manipulate them and the situation. It comes from her being a battered wife. She’s learned how to appease the bullies around her, how to pull the attention to herself to save the helpless, and how to get what she wants out of a situation. Carol isn’t entirely selfless though; she cares about her own well being as well as that of others.
Maggie turns her situation around pretty quickly. She’s only recently taken over the role of ‘counselor’ in Alexandria, yet here she is questioning her captor with ease. I love how this scene plays out. Maybe. ‘Chelle (Jeananne Goossen) could be manipulating Maggie to get information from her. Too bad it won’t work. Maggie is fierce. She must have been sneaking self-defense classes when we weren’t watching or something.
The word “bitch” is thrown around carelessly by men and women alike. I wonder why the women in the Saviors feel the need to use the word to hurt Carol and Maggie. You’d think there’d be some kind of solidarity among the ladies. Maybe these women only hear the word “bitch” and don’t know any other term to use.
Apparently a rosary can be used for more than praying…
“You’re not the good guys. You should know that.” I understand why ‘Chelle makes this statement; it seems to be true. But does it mean the Saviors are the good guys? I’m thinking not. They don’t want to talk first; they take by force and use fear to rule people. That does not a good guy make. The survivors have turned into killers without meaning to go down that route. Is our group of survivors turning into bad guys? When looking at Paula (Alicia Witt) and Molls (Jill Jane Clements), couldn’t they be Michonne (Danai Gurira) and Carol? Or any other member of the group for that matter. Everyone has reached their breaking point at some time or another.
I’ve heard the coffee bean story before that Paula shares with Carol. I don’t get her point though as it relates to Carol. What I do get is how it relates to Paula. She’s gone through the boiling water and came out hard like the egg. She doesn’t see anything wrong with that and it’s that way of thinking that leads to her demise.
Killing people takes its toll on those who have never harmed another person. There’s a reason Carol doesn’t want to kill again and why Maggie says, “I can’t anymore.” They are hanging onto their humanity as much as they can. To turn into Paula would mean the end for them.
Morgan (Lennie James) isn’t in “The Same Boat” but his presence can be felt. His words resonate throughout every movement Carol makes. She’s thinking about his take on life now, how everyone deserves to live. Notice how she doesn’t kill Donnie (Rus Blackwell) when she has the chance? You have to wonder what she is thinking in that moment to not kill him outright. Carol is a damn good shot. She doesn’t miss.
Quotes
Molls to Carol during her hyperventilating fit: “Honey, you need to take some yoga breathes and calm your ass down.”
Speculation is this is just a ruse. I think Carol really freaks out. Not only that, she is thinking about what she’ll have to do in order to get out of the mess she and Maggie are in.
**
Molls: “I’m a dead woman walking, which puts us in exactly the same boat.”
**
Paula to Carol: “I see exactly who you are, Carol; I know, you’re pathetic. You want to think we’re just the same? Go ahead. You’re wrong.”
What Paula fails to realize is just how wrong she is about Carol. It’s interesting to know Carol sees Paula as the woman she will become if she continues down the same path.
**
Maggie: “I’m not planning to die today.”
‘Chelle: “Me neither. Thing is, one of us is wrong.”
I don’t like the attitude floating between these women. You’d think they would flock together as females in a male dominated world but that is not the case.
**
Molls: “Sweetie, sweetie, we are all Negan.”
Carol: “What does that mean? What does that mean?”
That’s what I’d like to know too. Are they using the name to stand for them as a group, or is it some rule they have to throw off the scent of who the real Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) is?
Overall
You mess with Maggie and Carol, don’t be surprised if a walker ends up eating your face.
“Carol, we have to finish this, we have to.” I love everything about “The Same Boat” from the writing and directing to the superb acting on everyone’s part. Melissa McBride is our MVP this time around, making Carol a stand out character even when she tries to blend into the background. Maggie is no slouch either, head butting mofos and holding her own. This time together makes it possible for viewers to learn more about how the zombie apocalypse changes people. Let me know what you think about “The Same Boat” by dropping me a line in the comments section below or tweet me @ellemoe.
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Photo credit: Gene Page/AMC © 2010-2016 American Movie Classics Company, LLC. All rights reserved.
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