Air Date: Sunday, October 30, 2016 at 9/8c on AMC
Rating:
“Drink from the well, replenish the well.” – King Ezekiel
King Ezekiel is more than meets the eye.
After pulling myself out of the emotional abyss last week’s season premiere left me in, I’m excited to be inside the “Kingdom.” While it isn’t Alexandria by any means, it’s nothing to shake a fist at either. The people who inhabit the Kingdom are still a mystery, the location some place we haven’t seen before, and yet, the Kingdom already feels like home. Could this new place be the salvation the group needs? Will it be the safe haven Morgan (Lennie James) has been looking for? The Walking Dead takes a turn for the better by moving fans away from the deaths in “The Day Will Come When You Won’t Be” to hope for life in “The Well.”
What I Liked
King Ezekiel (Khary Payton) is quite the character. I knew there was something more to him than meets the eye but not what he reveals himself to be. Meeting his feline pet Shiva for the first time wasn’t quite as shocking as I thought it would be because my first thoughts were about where she came from―the circus or the zoo. Naturally, I figured Ezekiel was her keeper in some regard. How else does a man come to keep a tiger tamed at his side? He sure as shit isn’t Siegfried or Roy.
Ezekiel and Carol are two sides of the same coin.
Carol (Melissa McBride) is tripping. How she’s able to envision the walkers as the people they once were, shows her state of mind. I don’t think it’s a fever dream or hallucination so much as she’s looking behind the veil. All we’ve been shown is death and what it looks like once it’s been personified. Carol is looking at what used to be; her resolve to no longer take a life has made her see the light. She’s isn’t delusional or out of her mind. Carol is in touch with what’s wrong with the world. Not long ago, Lizzie (Brighton Sharbino) killed her sister Mika (Kyla Kenedy) because she knew she would come back. It disturbed Carol that Lizzie would do such a thing but I think the irony of the situation is hitting her hard right about now. She’s focusing on the before, and is therefore not capable of handling the after. Badass Carol is taking a backseat to a more resolved Carol. She’s close to being defeated; close to giving up entirely.
Random Thoughts
It seems Negan’s (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) influence is far reaching indeed. How he is able to make other peaceful living groups supply necessities for his group makes me realize he’s not a good guy. I know it was mentioned on Talking Dead last week but it doesn’t ring true to me. He isn’t about the survival of anyone other than himself, and if his agenda isn’t met, he’ll kill the obstacle in his way. I’ve considered how different the show would be if we’d started the tale with Negan’s group. And I still think he would be considered a villain, and an asshat. If it seemed he cared about the well being of everyone he comes into contact with, and his people weren’t so nasty, then I’d feel more inclined to root for Negan and his group.
Does Morgan feel he’s responsible for Carol since he killed someone to save her life? I get the sense he is keeping her alive against her own wishes because he went against everything he believes to stop her from being murdered. He’s trying to get her to accept that she owes him a life debt, while she’s consistently saying she wants to go. Her idea of going is permanent though. Or is it?
The scene with the pigs is enlightening. I couldn’t quite figure out what was going on and it wasn’t as if any of the Kingdom survivors were being forthcoming. While feeding pigs walkers might seem like a bit of revenge, I don’t see it doing much of anything. No one’s keeling over after eating their fill of ribs. So what is the point of this big reveal besides the proverbial pissing in someone’s soup?
Where the hell is Jesus (Tom Payne)? If he’s in the background biding his time again, I’m going to want someone to kick his ass.
Overall
Welcome to the Kingdom. Will it be all that it seems?
I enjoyed the look into another community―one that isn’t Woodberry or Terminus. King Ezekiel is keeping his people fed, safe, and protected. He’s doing things for their good without their knowledge though. I’m not sure if his keeping Negan a secret is a bad thing or not. Would the knowledge make a difference in the day to day operations of the Kingdom? Would people want to fight? And damn, if they did, would they be able to win? If enough communities come together, they have to be able to take Negan and his Saviors down. The Walking Dead is veering down a windy lane on its trip to Neganville. I’m curious to see how things progress now that we’ve met a new leader, his people, and exposed their connection to the big bad in the area. Let me know what you think about “The Well” 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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