Walking Dead S4E6
WARNING: This review contains spoilers.
The Governor is back, and he is participating in no-shave Movember.
This episode of a fine season of The Walking Dead focuses entirely on the Governor (David Morrissey). Last week, the Governator is seen standing in the shadows outside the prison. This week, we are treated to a flashback of what happened to the infamous psychopath immediately after his defeat (and mass murder) at the prison last season.
After splitting off from Martinez and the other guy (I can't remember his name, the dude with the bow), the Governor drives a truck through the gates of Woodbury and burns the town to the ground. Which explains the season-long question of "Why don't they move from the prison to Woodbury?" Then, our favorite psycho/torturer/rapist with 20/0 vision begans a Bruce Banner-like walk. Just don't make him angry.
The High Plains Drifter-wannabe seems to be so ashamed of his actions, that he repeatedly places himself in positions where Biters (remember, the Gov calls them "Biters") can attack him, and he is possibly suicidal. Which is understandable, after you commit a mass murder and have lots of alone time to think about JUST HOW HORRIBLE YOU ARE. He is so dead inside that the #zombs almost mistake him for one of their own. As he is stumbling along and possibly giving up hope in himself, he spies a young girl in a window. A young girl who looks much like his own undead daughter Penny. So he makes his way toward the building.
Living in the building are two sisters, Lilly and Tara, their dying father, and Lilly's daughter Megan. Our scruffy Snake Plissken-lookalike psychopath begins to bond with this family via grunts and blank stares, and the Governor Redemption Tour kicks off. Coming to a town near you, buy your tickets now.
As he proves useful to this apparently clueless family, he gets offered Spaghetti-Os and sex. In return, he clubs the old geezer with an oxygen tank as the father dies, undies, and tries to turn Tara into #ZombieChow. Then the Gov, using the name Brian Harriet, buries the dead/undead/dead father. He also gets a shower and a shave, teaches young Megan how to play chess, and assumes responsibility for the young girl's safety. The parallels between Megan and the former dead/undead/dead Penny are not subtle.
For some inexplicable reason, these two sisters, who don't know that the dead reanimate or that head shots are the only way to kill #zombs, want to leave the safety of their secure apartment building and roam the countryside in the Spaghetti-Os truck. And Governor Brian agrees. The lure of regular Spaghetti-Os will make a man do strange things.
Of course, the truck breaks down, Tara sprains her ankle, and a herd of former #fencezombies attack. Governor Brian and young Megan (who has taken a shine to the Cyclopic former insurance adjuster, or was that Revolution?) fall into a hole as they are running. And there's #zombs in the hole! So Governor Brian takes them out, by pulling out throats and ripping heads off with femurs. Dude is bare-handed! This is good stuff.
The episode ends with Martinez (remember him, he was the second in charge at Woodbury after Merle was blacklisted) looking down in the hole at the Gov and young Megan. So we'll soon find out if the Gov is redeemed, or just channeling his psychopathy into adoptive fatherhood at the moment.
I'm on the fence about this episode. I understand that the Governor had to be revisited, and the redemption tour was needed. Last season, this character was over-the-top cartoonish and unbelievably flawed. So an episode devoted to character development and humanizing a major player in the world of the Walking Dead was necessary. The Merle treatment. But I don't like that the Darryl/Rick confrontation over the ouster of Carol has been delayed. And I don't like that the Gov spent the first half hour grunting.
I realize that we are likely seeing the buildup to Rick Versus Governor II: The Sequel, but I don't necessarily want to see another showdown. Yes, something has to get the Prison-ers out of their comfort zone and on the road again, but please let it be something other than, in my best Don LaFontaine voice, "The Governator is back and this time he's playing for keeps!"
A slight bobble in an otherwise good season of the Walking Dead. And some character development and a character rebuild was needed. I'm OK with this. Bare-handed zombie kills and David Morrissey can carry an episode. Looking forward to next week and hopefully the Rick-Darryl conversation.
Random Thoughts:
- Why does everyone have a different name for the undead? "Walkers," "biters", "skin eaters." Why not just call them zombies?
- How did those two sisters survive this long having no survival skills whatsoever? That's hopefully a future webisode.
- The titular reference is about the Gov, as he shuffles along from town to town. Or is it the Penny-like child in the window?
- Will Rick, Darryl, Glen, Maggie, and Michonne forgive the new and improved "Brian Harriet?" Maybe he's at the prison fence because he needs their help? Will he run into Carol?
What did you think?
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