Spoilers below!
Andrea, why must you make me facepalm so much? She has without question been the most frustrating character on this show and now she basically has an entire episode dedicated to her. Can you hear that from way over there? That's the sound of me sighing as hard as I can.
This episode focuses on Andrea's conflict over who to trust. There's the Governor -- the super shady and transparently evil dude that she sleeps with -- or her old friends who flat-out tell her that her boyfriend attacked them and is pure evil. Wow, that's a tough choice, isn't it?!
Putting a spotlight on Andrea's "conflict" is infuriating. The choice is obvious to literally everyone except for her. Sure, she has a warm bed with the Governor and someone to hold at night... but what about all of the blatant lies? The fish tanks full of heads? Him clearly lying about the road being blocked off? Him attacking the prison? Making everyone part of the army? So on and so freaking on.
Look, I get she can't just kill the man in his sleep (did anyone honestly think she would?) -- it takes a reaaaal cold heart to do that. It's good that she's finally questioning things more, but talk about too little too late. It's clear the Governor doesn't trust her anymore and why she returned to him is beyond my comprehension. And now knowing he attacked them, there's no way she can honestly believe there's any chance of a truce. It's funny how she notices Rick changed so quickly but totally has the blinders on when it comes to sweet ol' Philip. Also, remind me why she thinks she can fully trust Milton, the Governor's right-hand-man? Furthermore, did anyone else find it hilarious that Carol needed to bring up T-Dog twice because Andrea clearly didn't care to ask about him at all? I hope you're getting more respect up in heaven, T-Dog.
Tyreese, what are you doing, man?! He flat-out says Rick is crazy but the rest of the people aren't bad, then seconds later he basically agrees to potentially kill them so he can earn his place in this new town! Ben and Allen are scum bags, but Tyreese was a man of morals back at the prison and stood up for what was right... where'd that all go?
I have mixed feelings about Merle. I'm super happy that he's playing along with the team now, but that felt like way too quick of a transition. I know he wants to be by his brother's side and he realizes this is where he's has to be, but it's tough to believe he could shed his personality so easily. I was hoping for a little more conflict with Merle before he turned a new leaf.
While other characters are frustrating (Andrea) or developing at the speed of light (Merle), the show has impressed me with how they've changed Carol so much over time. It's clear she's now a product of his world. She hasn't become callous, just tougher and far more realistic. Her cruel yet logical plan for how Andrea should deal with the Governor was shocking and clearly needed to help Andrea realize how dire this situation truly is.
As for what I loved in this episode, it was especially nice to see Carl lay down some strong logic on his father. Just like Carol, it's great to see how much Carl has changed throughout the seasons and it was a pleasant surprise to see him be the voice of reason. Additionally, the make up for the Governor's wound looked fantastic and there's an absolutely brutal curbstomp thrown in there. No episode would be compete without some harsh violence against zombies, right?
Overall, this was just an okay episode laced with quite a few aggravating Andrea moments. She's finally starting to see the obvious and I hope this epiphany lasts. To see her flip flop even more or try push for a peaceful conflict with this situation would be really annoying to watch.
Gregg Katzman is a freelance writer for Comic Vine and IGN Entertainment. This is the part where he shamelessly plugs his Twitter page in hopes of getting a new follower or two.
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