You Cannot Survive Alone... Review: The Walking Dead - "Clear"

Season 3, Episode 12

Air Date: Sunday, March 3, 2013, at 9/8c on AMC

Rating: ★★★★★

“You gotta be able to come back from this.” – Rick Grimes

What starts out as an expedition ends in a revelation. “Clear” is maybe one of the deepest episodes of The Walking Dead (TWD) to date. The word ‘clear’ is written repeatedly on the walls housing a possible madman. What does is mean and why should we care? I’ll get to that in a bit. With the ravings of said madman actually making sense, I’m not sure what to think. What I do know is this episode has to be one of the best of the season, maybe even the series. I was riveted to the screen and dying from the suspense. There’s something to be learned here.

Observations and thoughts:

Are the survivors turning into cold and unfeeling assholes, or are they just doing what’s now the norm for them? Watching a man running after them begging for help has to elicit their compassion, yet no one seems affected as they ignore the stranger’s pleas. I think it’ll come back to bite them in the ass. Hard. You know, karma and all that. Especially the way they take his backpack. That was cold! It just goes to show where the characters are in life now. They have to harden themselves to outsiders because they can’t allow just anyone to infiltrate the group.

I got teary-eyed when I saw the walkie-talkie.

Rick (Andrew Lincoln) has been picky with who he allows into the fold so I understand the reluctance to add another mouth to feed. But you have to think smart during these times and I’m not so sure that’s happening here. After last week’s preview of “Clear,” I wondered about the identity of the mystery guy a few of the gang run into. My guess was Morgan Jones (Lennie James) from season one and I guessed right. I am super psyched (as I’m sure all TWD fans are) about his return because I’ve wondered what happened to him and his son. Rick says, “He saved my life. He wasn’t like this then.” You never know how anyone will be after living in hell on earth. With what Rick learns while talking to Morgan, what do you think he’ll take away with him? Will Rick eventually snap out of his vacation from reality or will he continue chasing a phantom? Do you think seeing Morgan’s state of mind and how he’s alone by choice will force Rick to realize he’s heading down the same road? I think this look into the life of someone who had exactly the same things as he will make a difference. Life experience is the best therapy a person can get.

On the other side of things, I’m beginning to worry about Carl (Chandler Riggs). I don’t think anyone’s taken into consideration his emotional state after having to put a bullet in his mother’s head. I don’t remember him talking to anyone about it or talking about it, period. That has to be dealt with or the poor kid will have some serious mental issues as time progresses. Not that he doesn’t have issues now. He’s already acting like a man in a kid’s body and there’s nothing easy about that transition. One of these days, Carl will learn he’s not invincible.

I learned Michonne has poor decorating tastes. That cat is hideous!

Michonne (Danai Gurira) surprises me at every turn, especially when she says, “I know you see things. People. I used to talk to my dead boyfriend. It happens.” When did she come to this realization about Rick? I know her watching in silence is something she does well, but I think it’s also something she does to maintain her sanity. Doesn’t anyone wonder why she hardly speaks when in a room full of people? Even when given the opportunity to hold a conversation, she doesn’t utter a full sentence. I would love to get more back story on Michonne to see what makes her tick. She’s opened up a little here but there’s so much mystery surrounding her. We still don’t know who the men were that used to be her two zombie watchdogs. That’s a flashback I’m anticipating.

Something can be said for an episode which returns to its roots. The first few episodes of TWD didn’t involve a lot of interaction with groups. “Clear” is centralized on just a few things and that focus creates something beautiful. The monologues, the one-on-one conversations; I can’t think of a better way to move a character to action than seeing the person they might become and wanting to run in the opposite direction. James is above fantastic in “Clear,” and I hope this isn’t the last we see of him. He steals every scene and imparts such zeal that I believe every word he says, even though I know his character is off his rocker. But that’s the beauty of what James does during his scenes. I can’t emphasize enough how much emotion and contemplation James’ character brings. He is an incredible actor and TWD is blessed to be graced by his presence (whenever they can get him, of course).

Memorable lines:

Rick: “You think he’s crazy?”

Michonne: “No. I think he’s dangerous.”

Morgan to Rick: “You don’t clear me, you turn. You just die!”

Morgan: “Please. Please kill me.”

Morgan: “Nothing but static. And then, nothing but nothing. You weren’t there. You were never there.”

Rick: “I was.”

Morgan: “No, not when I tried. I mean, you said you would turn on your radio every day at dawn. You said that you would turn on your radio every day at dawn and you were not there!”

Rick to Morgan: “We both started out in the same place. Things went bad for you; things went bad for me. But you’re not seeing things right.”

Morgan may be crazy, but the words he’s written are significant. Did you catch them all?

“I have to clear.” This is the last thing Morgan says to Rick and it finally makes sense to me. It’s more than the physical act of clearing the streets of Walkers from his booby traps. He is going to spend his time doing what he thinks needs to be done. He doesn’t want to fight anyone else’s fight; he doesn’t want to be part of a community. He wants to make up for his failure. His son is dead because he couldn’t ‘put his wife down’ when he should have. But I also think his statement has to do with an emotional clearing. I take this from Morgan telling Carl, “Hey, Son… don’t ever be sorry.” He’s telling him not to apologize because there’s no reason to be sorry anymore. Everyone, everything, and life as they know it is dead. Let’s not forget, the infection is in the living as well as the living dead. So shooting someone is no big deal. You can’t second guess yourself. You have to remain clear—keep your mind clear and your emotions clear. There is no right or wrong anymore, only survival. Like I said, this is a deep episode. I’ll be dissecting this one for days to come.

Tune in to The Walking Dead, Sundays at 9/8c only on AMC. For more on the show, visit the official site.

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