3.16 "Welcome to the Tombs" - Spoilers

Television, Movies Games and Books The Walking Dead
#1

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welcome_to_the_Tombs

The Governor (David Morrissey) brutally tortures Milton (Dallas Roberts) for burning the pit of walkers and betraying his plan to Andrea. Milton wonders what Penny would think of her father now. The Governor states that she would be afraid of him, however she would still be alive if had been like this all along. The Governor orders Milton to kill Andrea (Laurie Holden), who is handcuffed to a dental chair. When Milton refuses and instead attempts to kill The Governor, The Governor stabs him multiple times in the torso and leaves him to die in the room with her. The Governor proclaims, “In this life now, you kill or you die. Or you die and you kill”.

Meanwhile, Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and his group pack up the prison and load supplies into the cars. Rick tries to talk to Carl (Chandler Riggs), but Carl ignores him. Looking up at the catwalk, Rick sees an hallucination of Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies), dressed as she was on the day she died, staring back at him. As Daryl (Norman Reedus) mourns his brother, Carol (Melissa McBride) praises Merle (Michael Rooker) for improving their odds against The Governor. In the cell block, Michonne (Danai Gurira) forgives Rick for considering The Governor’s offer and thanks him for allowing her into the group.

Back in Woodbury, The Governor assembles his troops. Tyreese (Chad Coleman) informs The Governor that he and Sasha (Sonequa Martin-Green) will not join the fight but offers to stay behind to guard the women and children. After a tense moment, The Governor consents and thanks him. Woodbury’s forces then storm the prison, shooting up the guard towers with a shock-and-awe approach, and move into a seemingly abandoned prison, where The Governor leads them into the tombs. There, Rick and his group stage an ambush, and discipline breaks down amongst The Governor’s people, who panic and flee. A Woodbury teenager, Jody (Tanner Holland), becomes separated and encounters Carl, Beth (Emily Kinney), and Hershel (Scott Wilson) in the woods while running away from the prison. Carl instructs him to drop his weapon, but the youth approaches Carl, weapon extended, as if to turn it over. Despite the ambiguity of young man’s intentions, Carl shoots him without remorse. Carl later justifies this action to Rick by claiming that the young man drew first, an account which Hershel disputes.

In Woodbury, Tyreese checks in on the women and children. He and Sasha agree they may have to slip out when The Governor returns. Milton asks Andrea why she stayed in Woodbury after learning her friends were alive. She explains that she wanted to save everyone, even The Governor (for a while). A dying Milton informs Andrea of the pliers he left within grasp behind her and urges her to hurry. She removes her shoes and tries to grab them with her feet.

The Governor overtakes the retreating convoy of his surviving assault team and forces them to stop, some distance away from the prison. When most of them express a desire to return to Woodbury and leave the prison group alone, The Governor begins shooting them, killing most of the group, including a shocked Allen (Daniel Thomas May), who stands up to the Governor. He spares only Martinez (Jose Pablo Cantillo) and Bowman (Travis Love), who witness the massacre in horror. Karen (Melissa Ponzio) hides under a corpse and plays dead while the Governor executes survivors. He runs out of ammunition before he can shoot her and he leaves with Martinez and Shumpert.
Rick asks Carl about the teenager he killed. Carl points out that Dale, Lori, and Merle all died because he and Rick did not seize opportunities to kill potential threats.

Glenn (Steven Yeun) and Maggie (Lauren Cohan) offer to help guard the prison in case The Governor returns, while Rick decides to finish off The Governor’s forces at Woodbury and gives chase, accompanied by Michonne and Daryl. They encounter some of the former Woodbury soldiers, some now reanimated as walkers, as well as Karen, the only survivor, who was hiding in a truck. Meanwhile, Milton reanimates and advances on Andrea as she desperately tries to get free of her restraints using the pair of pliers.

Tyreese and Sasha are standing guard at Woodbury’s gate when Rick’s group arrives with Karen. She explains to Tyreese how The Governor killed everyone, and Rick, Daryl, and Michonne saved her. Rick’s group comes out from their cover with their hands raised. Rick mentions that Andrea never made it to the prison and suggests she could still be in Woodbury. They head to the interrogation room and notice a pool of blood under the door. Inside, they find Milton dead and Andrea huddling against the wall, having been bitten. Andrea apologizes for her actions, explaining that she didn’t want anyone to die, and she insists on shooting herself. Andrea says goodbye, and the others give her privacy, leaving a tearful Michonne by her side. Then a shot is heard offscreen. The episode ends with Rick’s group returning to the prison with the residents of Woodbury who had remained behind (including Tyreese, Sasha and Karen), much to Carl’s dismay. Rick looks at the catwalk where he had seen Lori before, but the hallucination is gone. Meanwhile, The Governor, Martinez, and Bowman remain at large.

Discuss

#2

I’m conflicted on this season finale. After month of lambasting Walking Dead for being way too dark this was somewhat too much of a swing to the other side of the pendulum. It seems like the story in the second half of this season took a hit from the lack of darkness. Will great Walking Dead TV be possible without being dark? I’m not sure. But truthfully I was not too far from stopping to watch it because of its overly-dark tones. This gives me a chance to start watching the next season at least. Hopefully with a stronger story.

~Shooter Out

#3

The season finale of Walking Dead brought me back to my Battlestar roots. I came away from the episode feeling really good about it. Then I started reading the overly negative commentary and started wondering what was wrong with me.

I stick to my guns that it was a great episode and choose to ignore the negative that is out there and take the episode for what it was: compelling, interesting, dark, shocking and at moments beautiful. The fake abandonment of the prison was brilliant, luring them into a trap and having them turn on themselves while picking them off as they ran. The Governor going totally Ahab on his people was the outcome we knew was coming, he has lost his grip on reality and his ability to reason. He put everything on killing Rick foresaking Woodbury completely. The Laurie sequence was heartbreaking all the way through with a gut punch in the end. The shot of the men waiting outside her cell as Michonne stayed with her so that she could kill herself was amazing. Karl kills a boy surrending in cold blood, what else would we expect given the brave new world? However that is a wake-up call to Rick which ultimately drives him to take the young and old from Woodbury and make them a home.

Overall I found it well rounded and enjoyable. Good television which is far superior to 98% of what is out there.

#4

I would have to agree, Solai, But my origional stance remains, this felt like a series finale, not a series finale.

#5

I’ve said this elsewhere, but I don’t believe Carl shot that kid in cold blood. Carl has adapted quickly to the world he’s now living in. The adults are slower to it and it shows in Hershel’s reaction. I think that scene exhibits the stark contrast of the old way of thinking and the new.

That kid was told repeatedly to lay down his weapon and he didn’t. He advanced on Carl, and though it would have taken too long to actually shoot the gun, it would have taken no additional time to use it as a club or diversion. He was scared and desperate and people in that state do crazy, stupid things.

In my opinion, Carl did the right thing. He made some very valid points when Rick confronted him.

Wow. Andrea’s death. A person of honor and strength, even though I think she made some crappy choices! Her heart was in the right place, but she suffered from cranial-rectal inversion. How many times did she make me yell at my tv?! I’d lost count.

Hope is a powerful drug.

#6

Exactly. I understand Hershel voicing his concerns with Rick, but to say “He gunned that boy down” was not fair at all.

As for Andrea, if she had taken the govenor out when she had the chance, she would have saved the lives of all those Woodbury folk, not to mention her own.

I’m tempted to draw comparisons between a TV show about a zombie apocalypse, and current gun control legislation, but I won’t. Suffice to say, many of our politicians suffer from cranial-rectal inversion.:oops:

#7

Finale was OK, but the more I thought about it, the more it ripped defeat from the jaws of victory.

Andrea did not die. She was killed by the writing staff. She made questionable judgment calls, but no way do I accept that the character was dim enough to chit-chat while she was staring down a rising walker. That sh*t was just stupid and insulting.

You’re not telling me the Governor’s men are dim enough that they’re gonna just stand there, watch him mow everybody down, and go “OK, uh, what do we do next, boss?”

Carl, technically, didn’t do the right thing. But he did the right thing from his point of view. So it’s a legit character choice.

Letting the Governor live was, artistically, a sissy move. A real big-kid show like Spartacus can commit to letting go of a character.

I understand and accept Merle being gone, but I’da preferred they’da killed Gov and kept Merle. Keeping Merle ties in with once of my favorite themes, reconciliation, which BSG explored so well. How do you make peace with this rotten sumunabotch who was wronged you in so many ways?

#8

Holy crap, I was thinking the same thing! Frakking writers for dishonoring Andrea’s character! She’s the one who steps in and efficiently takes down a walker- no fuss, no hesitation. Total bull. She deserved better.

Letting the Governor go felt trope-ish. “Tune in next season, folks!”

Like I need that bait & hook.

Merle should have stayed. Every group needs its Jayne. A twisted, nasty and dark, Jayne. I’m with you there, man. What a journey that would have been!

But that performance by Norman Reedus? Beautiful. Tragic. Heart-rending.

#9

Daryl is their Jayne. He’s just Jayne 3 seasons in when he’s softer and we like him more.

#10

As much as I enjoyed this episode I agree with all of your and Bkitty’s observations.

Andrea dying didn’t feel right and didn’t respect her character. Ultimately this was clumsy although the setup was strong.

Governor walking away was weak. The guys getting the truck? Torn on that. Put yourself in their shoes, what choice do you have? None. You say, “Sorry, not coming with you.” He responds, “Really, sorry to here that.” BLAM.

I still think Carl did the right thing.

Milton gave the performance of a season.

We need Merle, killing him off is a mistake. He is the unknown variable and without him things feel a little too settled in the group.

#11

I remember the scene as the Gov having lowered his weapon, and theirs were still half-raised. Hell, you still could have argued self-defense. But I could be remembering it incorrectly.

#12

OK, I was so pissed off by season two’s finale that I seriously considered not watching the series again. When I saw that Netflix had Season 3 I actually stared at it for over a minute contemplating whether to bother watching it or not. Why?

Cons:

Rick’s ‘Dictator Speech’, this really hacked me off and turned me against the character. And everyone just looking at him and putting up with it made the other characters look weak.

Changing the rules. This is a cardinal sin in writing. Once you have laid down the rules for how things work in the world you have established, you cannot change them for convenience. Whether to get yourself out of a corner you have written yourself into, or to try and pull a ‘tomato surprise’ to spice things up because things have gotten stale in your story. Once you change the rules you have betrayed the audiences trust, and it is hard to win them back.

Pros:

The silhouette of the prison at the end.

The appearance of Michone. This is my favorite character from the comics.

Hearing that someone had been cast as ‘The Governor’.

Michone is why I finally decided to give the show another try… And for the most part I am glad I did. And just like last season everything seemed to be going pretty good, up until the finale.

The Governor: Much more interesting and fleshed out than the one from the comics, and in the end not as cruel and sadistic as the one from the comics. Though they did set things up to look like he would go down that road a few times just to yank on the chains of those of us who had read the comics. In the end though he was pretty much a paper tiger. He would retreat to his man-cave whenever things did not go his way, he cared more about his position and power than the people whose lives he was responsible for. I wonder how many writers wrote his lines? Because his character did a lot dancing this season, sometimes he seemed clever, and cared for his people. But later on he seemed to unravel and flounder, and seem petty. In the end he did a total WTF, and then drove off with with two dudes who should have offed him as soon as he opened fire on the militia. This was a lame solution.

Merle: By far the most interesting character this season. What an arch. I thought for sure he was a plant, I thought the Governor had set the whole thing up for him to be rescued; just so he could get inside the prison and scout it out and then return with valuable intelligence. But no, no one on the writing staff was that clever. Still, he did his part. And in the end his character was actually believable, and redeemed himself. Poor Daryl…

Andrea: Love her in the comics, hated her in the series. But this season she was actually interesting, and seemed to grow and show promise. I thought for sure that by putting her through so much she would come out the other end a hard and tempered weapon, and she was even developing leadership skills. I had envisioned her being rescued by Rick and his entourage, mostly as a reward for all that Michone had gone through. But also to emerge as another potential leader, Herschel is Rick’s conscience and moral compass, Andrea could have been the voice of cruel and harsh reality. Keeping him from waffling on the hard choices, and someone he could trust to look after the others while he and his crew would be off on missions and foraging runs. But no they offed her… And in doing so also killed off Milton the only truly interesting character from Woodbury. What a frakking waste.

Michone: I probably would have cast someone a little more Amazonish, but the actress has grown on me. She seems to be growing onto the role pretty well, and I think I will keep watching just to see where they take her.

Carl: Becoming a little badass. And I agreed with his offing the kid who would not put his weapon down. Anyone who delays following a direct order while having a weapon pointed at their face is up to something. The kid obviously thought, “Oh it is just a cripple and a little kid, I think I can take them out, I just need to creep a little bit closer…” Carl is slowly becoming what Rick is a afraid to become. Rick is desperately trying to hold onto his humanity, while Carl is willing to let it go if it means keeping those he loves alive. Indecisiveness has cost the lives of those he cared about, he is not going to let that happen again.

Herschel: Last season he was a pompous, preachy self righteous plantation owner. Now that he has been stripped of his land and much of his family, and part of a limb… He has become more humble, and oddly more useful. And likable.

Final Thoughts:

The Governor turned out to be someone thrust into a position of power that he was not qualified for or deserved of. If anything Milton probably should have been in charge… He was a weasel, a coward, a bully and very shortsighted. He used others to do the dirty work for him, to undertake the roles he was too afraid to do, or felt he was above doing himself. And because he did not have the charisma nor the authoritative personality to bend people to his will, (or a history showing he is capable of good strategic thinking, or even a history of victories to reinforce his role as a leader) his ragtag militia scattered and fled when they met a strong organized force. And when he could not rally and reorganize his defeated forces he reacted out of rage and mowed them down until his weapon was spent, along with his anger. (This is when his goons should have killed him)

A true visionary, and a man of conviction. Would have rallied the people of Woodbury to rebuild their world and take it back. To extend their city and welcome with open arms any who would seek shelter. To give everyone a sense of purpose, to find a way for anyone whatever their skill level a way to contribute. To look ahead, and plan for his peoples future needs. To give them a goal to look towards, to keep them looking ahead and focused, instead of pining for their past. But the Governor ruled by fear, fear of what was outside the walls. And tried to keep peoples morale up with parties, and foolish exhibitions which taxed the cities resources. He fed off the dying carcass of civilization and stole from survivors rather than replanting and rebuilding. He only cared about his image, and his power. Not about his people or their future. And if anyone disagreed with him? Quietly kill them. Because he was too weak a leader to tolerate any opposition, and too unintelligent and uncharismatic to provide and convincing counterargument. And, he would kill them by proxy. In an attempt to keep his own hands clean, and to keep his closest goons afraid of what might happen to them should they ever try to oppose him.

And now because most of the useful and fit peoples of Woodbury are dead. The prison has just brought in a bus full of the elderly, infirm and children. In other words… ‘Red Shirts’. More mouths to feed. But at the very least maybe they can be used as field hands, Herschel can put them to work planting and tending crops.

In the end Rick has grown a little as a leader. He is looking forward, seeing people a little more as resources for mankind’s future and a little less as threats. He even put himself in harms way in an effort to enforce a parlay, rather than a gunfight. He used cunning rather than brute force to defend the prison. And gave the enemy a chance to run rather than being mowed down. Giving an opportunity for those forced into fighting a chance to rethink and change sides, instead of throwing their lives away for a madman. Very forward thinking for Rick. Also I liked the fact that Rick has given up the whole ‘dictator’ thing, and has sworn to never keep secrets from his ‘family’. This redeems that whole stupid speech he gave last season. And maybe now that Rick has grown as a leader and is now thinking more of life, rather than dwelling on death. His hallucinations will stop.

A little anticlimactic to say the least. The Governor blows his load and then slinks off embarrassed… But things actually look hopeful for once. If you make things too dark for too long you can drive your audience away, things are bleak enough in the real world; why torture yourself by emotionally investing yourself in a world where things are even worse. I believe I may give this another go…

Edit: Oh and I liked how they revisited the guy from season one, and showing just how different things turned out for them. Along with the nods to L4D and Half Life 2.