The situation “The Walking Dead” has set up this season, with the Woodbury camp versus the prison camp and all the conflicting allegiances and misunderstandings, provides almost inevitable thrills. And Sunday’s winter finale was no exception; in many ways, it gives us what we had been waiting for: A showdown between the two groups, Michonne meeting Andrea and the Governor again, Andrea discovering the Guv’s collection of heads and the chained-up Penny walker, and brothers Merle and Daryl meeting again.
However, I was a bit put off by the plot conveniences in “Made to Suffer,” particularly the fact that Andrea doesn’t actually see Rick or any of the major players from her group because this battle is fought under the cover of smoke bombs (she sees one of the prisoners who joined Rick’s group after she got split up from them). Oddly, despite his attempts to keep Andrea from identifying the “terrorists” as they attacked Woodbury to rescue Glenn and Maggie, the Governor puts Merle and Daryl on display in “the pit” at episode’s end with Andrea standing right there. So now he has made enemies of not only Daryl, whom he could’ve killed rather than captured, but also Andrea and Merle. What’s his reasoning there?
Another disappointing part of this scene is that the Governor — by turning on Merle for inexplicable reasons — puts Merle and Daryl on the same side by default, so the brothers’ reunion doesn’t have the conflict we anticipated. However, I think the writers will eventually make up for this: I suspect the brothers will escape together, and all kinds of personal conflicts will get rekindled when Daryl brings Merle back to Rick’s group.
Another convenience throughout the entire third season so far is that Michonne doesn’t talk much. Now, I like the character a lot; she’s one of TV’s coolest action heroes with the way she mows down walkers with that katana. However, her failure to explain to Rick’s team her plan to go after Andrea causes a lot of unnecessary confusion. Then she doesn’t say anything to Andrea after stabbing the Governor in the eye, and then she doesn’t say anything to Rick’s gang upon returning from her secret (failed, in part because of her unwillingness to talk) mission to pull Andrea out. It seems like the writers are using Michonne’s lack of verboseness to drag out the plot.
The previews suggest that the Governor will continue to be a major bad guy going forward this season, and I understand why the writers want to keep him around — he has become an iconic baddie we love to hate. But I doubt I was the only one who wished Michonne — rather than stabbing Penny through the back of the skull — had thrown the juvenile walker at her father so she could tear him apart. The sudden vacuum in the villain department might’ve been worth it just to see that scene.
The Guvna — now sporting the eye patch that I understand he is known for in the comics — will eventually get his just desserts, but I hope he doesn’t spiral into stupidity and cartoonish evil. I’m already a bit worried, based on previews that show Andrea is still with him, that he doesn’t realize Andrea would be put off by his capture of Daryl. I don’t have much worry that Andrea will side with the Governor, but I kind of wish she wasn’t still hanging around in Woodbury.
The winter finale also introduces some nice new elements, notably a whole new group of survivors finding their way to the prison (and Carl copying his dad’s strategy of helping them escape a horde of walkers, but then locking them up for safekeeping). Also, the mustachioed prisoner seems to be putting the moves on every female in the group (well, just the single ones, as he is a gentleman, of course).
But, of course, the big question is: How the heck will the captive Daryl and Merle (and the sort-of captive Andrea) escape the mob scene in the midseason cliffhanger? Share your theories about that and other “Walking Dead” plot points in the thread below.