The Walking Dead Season 7 Episode 1

"THE DAY WILL COME WHEN YOU WON'T BE"

First up let me just start with a SPOILER WARNING. This review and discussion will include spoilers for the episode. Although I truly can't believe there is anyone out there with any interest who hasn't seen the episode and/or knows what happens please be aware that this review will spoil some big moments.

Wow!... and breathe. That's how I felt after 7 months of waiting and then the intense wringer that was this episode. It started out as frustratingly as last season ended: still playing tricks and using cheap shots to torture us in our rabid desire to find out what happened as surely as Negan was teasing and torturing our group of characters. The show runners knew that we, too, were metaphorically lined up and waiting nervously to see who was about to become a vicious human pinata, and boy did they milk it. I initially feared that we'd have an episode of slower, character stuff with just one or two characters before revealing the big moment at the very end of the episode. The Walking Dead is known to do this, often for a complete episode or two, and whilst it has its defenders I'm firmly on the side that it is mostly filler. Too many episodes, too little budget, too many characters...

 Thankfully that wasn't the case here. It wasn't long before we flashed back (and even before that Rick spat out another cool quote directly from the comic) and, boy, did we get our answers. Whether you were shocked at who was written off the show or not (and I wasn't), what you saw was truly shocking stuff. It shredded my nerves and left me feeling genuinely queasy... and I loved it! Maybe I'm a masochist, I don't know. You kind of have to be to watch this show and others of its ilk. At first I did think that the show might have gone too far but then I realised that the death of the great Sgt. Abraham showed very little at first, observe:

Sure the context was horrific but this moment was even tempered by great humour that was totally within character (and possibly the greatest defiant last words ever!). The aftermath is when things got a bit out of hand: showing the audience the bloody pulp that was once a beloved character's head and then trying to make Rosita look at these shards of skull on Lucille, the bat. But that was perhaps to justify Daryl lashing out. We were so "there" that we might have felt the same. And I for one genuinely thought that this could mean the end of even the immortal Daryl for a while there. Bravo Scott Gimple, you got me! I don't even like the character but I still cared in that moment. But I knew that something was going to go down. I wasn't shocked but I know from YouTube reaction videos that several people were. Back to it...

 ... and goodbye Glenn. At last. I thought you were dead last season and hated that stupid mislead. At the time I even suspected it was to raise questions about whether he might survive the moment that he notoriously perished in the famous comic issue 100. And yet that bat hit me hard too (thankfully metaphorically speaking). The direction and cinematography here were outstanding. I felt it. And I was grossed out. This was where I again thought that the show might have gone too far. Glenn's make-up effects and half-dead state were horrifying... but then I realised that I dug that it, like a lot of the dialogue, was straight from that famous comic issue. Even though it was cut from the 9pm showing on Sky here in the UK, I don't think this image was just there to shock. Sure it did that but I think it was a cool geek touch. In much the same way as fans may get a thrill from seeing Iron Man and Captain America recreate a classic Civil War splash page on the big screen, here we saw a profound and affecting image writ large across two mediums:

I can't end this review without mentioning the incredibly tense moment between Rick and Carl. it was handled perfectly, as we felt the same feelings as Rick. I complained that if Rick went through with the act of chopping off his sons arm it would be farther than I think Rick would go, despite the consequences, and yet I knew that there would be consequences. It shows how well balanced the episode and show were that it didn't punish us with more carnage. Even the heroic moment when Carl tells his father to go for it is completely in character but a welcome relief for the audience at this point. Imagine how much more harrowing this scene might have been if Carl was begging for mercy. And yet this was still the most tense scene in the episode! My younger brother, watching with me, said as much out loud and I'm inclined to agree. It played skilfully with our knowledge of limb loss from the comics, teases littered throughout the episode, and the fact that we had seen how far Negan would go by now. Kudos on breaking us down along with Rick so that we could go through the journey. We, too, started out angry and defiant and ended up completely broken and compliant.

 Let me finish by adding that I loved a couple of great, littler character moments. Like many people I missed Abraham's final gesture of affection to Sasha but it's great and heartbreaking when you see it. I also loved that Michonne stayed strong in the smart way, not pleading with Negan desperately but acknowledging his power and their understanding. For now. And I adore that Maggie remained defiant, even when Rick wasn't any more. Fans of the comic know how important this moment could be going forward. Finally I love how Sasha, who we watched struggle and battle her way through grief and depression, was the one who said that she would help Maggie "get there" beyond these traumas. I dug this, even though I initially forgot that she had just lost someone too. Emmy standard acting all round, great writing, fantastic direction. Cheap shots not required. I just hope we get some levity for a little while now. Phew.

 One final thought: I love that this show, whilst on a surface level is about the classic horror of the undead, is more about the horrors of life for the living, and how people can be the biggest nightmare you can face. Never has this been made clearer than in the final shot of a lone "walker", come to devour scraps of flesh, now looking so insignificant and feeble as it gets smaller in Rick's rear-view mirror.

How clear can I put this, for the next few Monday nights, The Walking Dead is in charge!

**** (4/5)

 MM