What happened?
Rick maintains a close vigil by the phone when he believes he is being contacted by people who may have a safe place for the group to go to. However, it turns out he is imagining the conversation and the realisation brings him back to the group, and to hold his new baby. Meanwhile Maggie and Glenn are captured by Merle, during his hunt for Michonne, and taken back to Woodbury (where Andrea has been getting very close to The Governor). An injured Michonne makes her way to the prison, carrying baby supplies. . .
Thoughts
Well, from the last episode, I did have my suspicions that something was up with the ringing telephone. I did mostly think it was going to be Carol (turned out what happened to her was less interesting than anticipated) but I was also drawn to the idea that it was going to be in Rick's mind. And the moment Hershal came down to see Rick and listened to the phone himself (almost certainly hearing no dial tone) and was then told to leave, and did so, I knew something was definitely, as they say, up.
I liked how the 'surprise' was handled, though. It was important that Rick realised it for himself during the conversation, that he was talking to the ex-members of his flock. Fundamentally he was talking to his conscience, and only then could he face up to 'speaking' with Lori. It was interesting that his sub-conscious had considered them all in a safe place, that part of the way he was coping with the guilt of their deaths was in a deep-rooted belief that they had gone to a place where they could no longer be hurt. You can call that heaven, or just simply a release from the horrible real world - net result is the same.
It did cross my mind that The Walking Dead was going to pull a cheap trick by having Rick perhaps discover that the telephone wire wasn't connected and that would be how he, and us, would have it confirmed he was talking to voices in his head. I'm glad that didn't happen. As stated, it was more important that Rick found this out for himself. It was vital really in accepting that he could, quite literally, have gone quite mad and then get back to sanity. Let's just stop and take a second and acknowledge that Rick was basically having a minor schizophrenic episode, so to have it snatched away with a little surprise twist and then have him shrug and carry on wouldn't have felt believable.
No, it was much better that they pulled the surprise that these were the voices of characters that have been and gone, and that they interrogated him (which, let's not forget, was him interrogating himself!) on the mental burdens he carries, like how many people he has killed. Lori asked him what happened, and he had to admit that he loved her and he always did, but he just couldn't put it back together. The mystery surrounding what happened between them turned out to be a decision Rick had made, where he had to push Lori away whilst he committed to keeping her alive. He couldn't let sentimentality cloud his clear-eyed plan to get her somewhere safe.
The tragedy was he thought there would be time afterwards to put everything right. The lesson is that there is never as much time as you think, and you can't rely on tomorrow.
So Rick returned to the fold and cradled his new baby girl and, whilst it is perhaps a tad implausible, I'll happily forgive it because it's a relief to see him back. God knows it looks like they're all going to need him, not least of all Maggie and Glenn. Michonne's arrival at the prison, for once herself looking extremely vulnerable but having the good sense to bring provisions to get her sanctity. No doubt she will relay to Rick and the rest what happened to their friends and, for sure, they're going to want to know about Woodbury and where it is and how it is they are going to get Maggie and Glenn back. However, the idea that they could stage a rescue attempts feels quite unlikely. What I think is more likely is that either Maggie or Glenn, at the hands of Merle, will give up the information about the prison and Rick and his group may have to face the unwelcome prospect of The Governor and co dropping by. . .
It's fair to say that the chance of them forging an uneasy friendship seem highly unlikely. With Maggie and Glenn kidnapped they have shown their hand about what kind of people they are. Rick and the rest are suspicious of people that offer them friendship, so they aren't going to be duped by those that attacked and took their people. Hopefully Rick will trust Michonne, take her in and get her patched up. Fact is they could definitely use her on their side for when things get rough!
Andrea has literally got into bed with the enemy, and I thought it was interesting how her character had a less savoury aspect revealed. She's always had an unsympathetic quality about her and whilst that has occasionally been tiresome and annoying, to see it come to the potential fruition it may lead to here is pretty cool. The possibility is that she could become the queen to the The Governor's king, and whilst he is keeping her in the dark and keeping a happy front I suspect she might be inclined to go with him on his more despicable actions. As he knows, and she admitted, she likes the killing. He observed that despite her protests she remained at the staged zombie brawl. Just a tip in the right direction and she could be quite the menacing force all of her own. She's the type that couldn't be counted on to do the right thing when put in a position of power.
The acid test will be in how she reacts to Maggie and Glenn. Will she consider them friends that she lost and still wants to help, or outsiders that once abandoned her who no longer have her loyalty? I rather fancy it will be the first, when it comes down to it. She may wrestle with her conscience for a while and make all the noises about wanting them treated right, but when it is expressed that they may present a threat to Woodbury she could easily change her tune.
Merle is back to his snarling, hatable character of old and it's nothing less than fun. In the best way he's a great villain; tough, nasty and eminently detestable. The measure of a good villain is in how much you want to see them get their comeuppance. I absolutely want Merle to meet a miserable end. . . but not quite yet. I still want him to encounter Daryl, for one thing, but the show needs him. Whilst The Governor contains all the growl it's Merle that provides the bite. Without Merle then The Governor is a dog with no teeth.
Daryl was on fine form this episode. His conversation with Carl about losing their mothers was candid and touching due to its lack of sentimentality. He said it how it was. And Carl admitted that he had been the one to finish Lori off, to which Daryl was sympathetic in his matter of fact way. For once there was some happiness in his life, when it turned out that Carol was alive after all and had just shut herself away in a cell. Thankfully he didn't put a bullet in her skull when he finally went to check out what was making the noise. . . Daryl scooped her up in his arms and carried her away in a nice parallel to how Rick held his own child for the first time. Strong bonds confirmed, clearly drawn lines about who is important. This decimated group can scarcely take any more loss, which is precisely why the kidnap of Glenn and Maggie will be a heavy blow and, more importantly, the new threats and dangers The Governor and Woodbury hold seem even more intimidating.
It's getting closer and closer to the two sides meeting. . . Oh I can't wait!
What was the best part?
You have to enjoy Michonne's ambush and battle with Merle and his men, rudely interrupted by a posse of walkers entering the fray to mix things up even more. That was terrific stuff. But Rick's emotional acceptance of the weight of his conscience, talking on the phone with Lori, was satisfying mostly because The Walking Dead didn't cheapen it by making it into a telegraphed 'surprise' twist. Instead the surprise that all the previous voices had been characters we'd known and lost was a startling turn and laid out the truth that these phone calls had been all about Rick confronting himself and, most importantly, forgiving himself. He's been carrying these guilt ghouls in his conscience and there has to be a point where he can let himself off the hook. Perhaps with a new baby in his arms he can try and face a new dawn with a clean slate.
What do I think will happen next?
I think Merle and The Governor are going to go to torture town with Maggie and Glenn, perhaps getting the information out of one by threatening the other. Individually they might possess the will to keep their secrets (although Glenn is notoriously bad at keeping his mouth shut!) but if, say, Maggie had a gun put to her head and would be shot unless Glenn spoke up then I don't see him keeping schtum. How will The Governor play it? Go straight out on a prison assault? Or try and offer Rick the false hand of friendship?
I don't really see what Rick and his group have that The Governor might want, except perhaps the baby. The Governor lost one daughter and there's Rick with a fresh baby girl, days old. . . It's a chilling thought, but exactly the kind of terrible direction The Walking Dead has the audacity to make us face.
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