![]() (SPOILER ALERT): There's something to be said about a show that has the ability to bring together millions upon millions of individuals from all races, genders, ages, languages, beliefs, and world-views every Sunday night during the fall season. Few shows have had this massive of a global impact the way that The Walking Dead has since it's premier back in 2010 - we know this rag-tag bunch of survivors better than we know ourselves at this point, they're family. This fact didn't make tonight any easier. It's not like we didn't see it coming, we all had hints and clues and months to pour over the footage to try and brace ourselves, and the millions tuning in this evening just knew that this was going to be a rough season premier. You can pretty much tell it's going to be horribly painful when Chad Hardwick stands amongst the fans for Talking Dead recap looking as though someone just killed his dog - his usually happy expression wiped away. But no matter how prepared we thought we were, none of us could brace ourselves emotionally and physically enough to withstand watching Negan take a barbed-wire baseball bat to the heads of two members of Rick's crew. My word. It's nightmare inducing. This was a roller coaster of an episode, and like the season tag-line has said - we're just getting started. ![]() The episode opens with the gruesome sounds of skulls being cracked open and brains exploding everywhere. Negan has made his point very clear - things are changing and Rick is no longer the alpha dog. The next ten minutes of the episode is fairly quiet as Negan drags Rick away and drives off in the RV, leaving the stunned group shaken and silenced. You can feel the hatred fill the tones of the conversation between the two. Rick looks more defeated and shaken than we've ever seen him. Powerful scenes consisting of close-up head shots of each member of the crew staring down the sharp end of Lucille, accompanied by beautiful black and white memories that Rick holds fondly, keeps building suspense and agonizing pain as we reach nearly twenty five minutes of showtime before the reveal we've waited all summer for. It's a powerful moment watching Rick crumble on top of the RV, tears pouring down his face as the sorrow just becomes too much. It's a level of giving up we have yet to see from the unshakable Rick Grimes that proves just how far this season will go to break him. Andrew Lincoln shines in this episode; sweaty, greasy, blood covered, snotty, exhausted. It's emotionally draining on not only him but the viewers. One by one we see Negan prove his dominance over each and every broken soul he comes within a few inches of, spending nearly five minutes just teasing them with threats of who he's going to bludgeon to death. Not surprisingly, the first victim is Abraham. This was something we all saw coming months ago, no matter how much the producers and cast tried to convince us otherwise. Blow after wicked blow we see close-up shots of every agonized facial expression amongst them, rapidly changing with every point of contact that Lucille makes with his skull until nothing remains but spilled brains and a lifeless body. And in a split second the world stopped as the sharp end of Lucille met the top of Glenn's head. It was a moment that shook the foundation of this show and the fans, watching as Negan relentlessly destroys Glenn while Rick and his crew are forced to watch silently. The episode is filled with slow, agonizing shots of the traumatized crew forced to sit all night amongst the bodies of their fallen. The scenes force the viewers to stare at the bludgeon messes on the ground for longer than you would like. ![]() The episode focuses heavily on Negan asserting his dominance over Rick. After dragging him into the RV and beating him with the blunt end of the axe, he throws the shaken sheriff into a band of walkers, commanding him to go 'retrieve his axe' as he laughs from inside the safety of the RV. Rick, in a panic, runs for the safety of the RV roof, crying until he buckles to the commands of his better. The episode focuses heavily on switching back and forth between the brutal night before and Rick drowning in his agony in the foggy morning that follows. When the two return back to the group, we see them still sitting in their sweat and blood amongst the destroyed bodies, held at gunpoint and cowering in the foggy clearing. The beatings continue; guns are shoved against the back of everyone's heads, Rick is commanded to severe his own son's arm clean off with an axe, Daryl is kidnapped and hauled away, and all the while Negan looms over a cowering Rick like a shadow of death. The final half of the episode depicts desperation, pain, complete and utter defeat. It's a solemn scene, devoid of music and sounds, just the heavy breathing and commanding voice of Negan and painful sobbing of the cast in the morning air before he orders his crew to leave - giving a warning that they'll be back in a week's time. Jeffrey Dean Morgan has truly brought a monster to life on the small screen, he makes The Governor look like a playful kitten. He's unlike any villain this show has ever seen, the worst part about him is he's so real and the discomfort from his presence sticks with you long after the credits roll. The final few moments of the episode really tie it all together, highlighting the reasons we adore this show - determination, perseverance, and family. Eugene is crying in the background, Maggie is trying to hold herself together, Carl sits defeated in silence, Michonne looks exhausted, Rick is broken - he's utterly broken. Maggie attempts to get the group to split, wanting to continue her journey alone (feeling responsible for the mess they find themselves in). Rick seems offended, he looks at her in the most loving way I've ever seen him look at another human. And then he utters the most beautiful sentence the show has written in a long time "he's our family... he's our family too". It's a solemn scene as the gang packs up and leaves, Maggie standing alone between two piles of brains and blood, foreshadowing just how incredibly brutal this season is going to be. The episode ends with a walker slowly approaching the RV before they drive off into the new morning - unprepared for this new threat. It shifts to a powerful shot of Rick's tired, bloodshot blue eyes, staring off into the distance with an undeniable look of defeat. It's a powerful episode unlike any other show has produced, creating nausea, tears, and utter discomfort among fans around the globe. We're in for one helluva rough season my friends, we're just getting started. ![]() Written by Alycia D. (MaybeMockingbird) All pictures are copyright AMC and The Walking Dead. TWD Season Seven now playing Sunday nights at 9/8CT on AMC
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