(Author’s Note: Sorry this is going up late. Very busy day yesterday.)
Sadly, at this point, I (along with, I presume, a lot of viewers) approach The Walking Dead with something closer to obligation than anticipation. I’ve given up on this show’s ability to shock, or or horrify, or move me. I know its bag of tricks. Which is probably what makes “Honor” such a welcome surprise. It’s not a perfect episode, but it’s solid, and there’s something to be said for solidity in storytelling. In a lot of ways, this should have been the mid-season finale, but since it picks up so quickly after “How It’s Gotta Be,” it’ll play better on a rewatch. “Honor” shows more attention to continuity in storytelling than we’ve seen for a long time, even if TWD still relies too heavily on maddening time jumps, meant only to befuddle and shock the viewer.
Carl dies. This is not surprising, except that, after Glenn’s fake-out death, one half expected the show to weasel out of it somehow. Most of the episode is a full-length death scene, and Chandler Riggs handles it well. We get to see Carl get bitten, and Riggs does some great facial acting, as we see the stupefaction and sick realization of what has happened, and what ultimately will happen. He starts living underground, like he’s afraid of turning into a werewolf, and working on goodbye cards. He keeps the bite a secret for as long as he can. (This is where the show’s penchant for dueling timelines muddles the story, as it’s unclear how the Carol/Morgan stuff aligns with the Carl plot.)
The Walking Dead has always done right by its departing characters (give or take an Andrea or Beth), and the amount of screen time that “Honor” sets aside for Riggs to monologue is slyly bold, especially now that the show is hemorrhaging viewers. But it shows how important Carl is to the show, and to its credit, he’s had one of the best arcs (not the best, obviously; that honor goes to Carol). He went from whiny kid to cold-blooded killer to the group’s conscience, and Riggs only occasionally flirted with the annoying overacting that some child actors indulge in. When he returns his trademark hat to Rick, it actually feels like a Big Moment.
Andrew Lincoln does fine work in this episode, but he wisely steps back and cedes the big scenes to Riggs and Danai Gurira. Daryl gets a nice moment, telling Carl that he saved everyone; and Siddiq, who is just there now (in a narrative approach that reminds one of Roy), says that he will honor Carl, who saved him even though he didn’t know that Siddiq was a doctor. The dialogue on the show is the best it’s been in a long time, and certain lines were genuinely moving. “You can’t kill them all, Dad,” Carl says. “There has to be something after.”
It’s that “something after” that the show dangles in front of us now. As Carl – hopeful, optimistic Carl – expires, it’s all too easy to see it as the show actualizing the death of hope. So where will Rick and the group go now? Will they get worse, darker, and more brutal? Or will they work towards Carl’s utopian vision? The flash-forwards we’ve been seeing all season aren’t a time jump at all, but a fantasy of Carl’s, in which Eugene and even Negan have rejoined the group and are living together in peace. I have very little patience for TWD‘s fantasy sequences, especially that asinine Thanksgiving dinner scene after Glenn’s death, so this part definitely induced some eye-rolling, but its a small stumble amidst otherwise well-done scenes.
The Carol/Morgan stuff is well-done, but not incredibly impactful. They infiltrate the Kingdom in order to rescue Ezekiel, and it’s well-shot and directed (by series mainstay Greg Nicotero), but there’s never any real tension. We know The Walking Dead would never in a million years kill Carl and Ezekiel in the same episode. What works about this sequence is Ezekiel’s conversations with Gavin, the rare Savior who seems like a person outside of his role as Negan’s henchman.
Gavin and Ezekiel actually like each other, and Gavin seems more concerned about Ezekiel’s imminent death than Ezekiel does. Their relationship seems genuine, and built on a foundation of respect and affection. Jayson Warner Smith brings nuance and subtlety to Gavin, and affords him layers not seen in other Saviors (even Trevor Ogg’s Simon, who I am on the record as loving).
But ultimately, this sequence exists so season 8A’s storylines can be wrapped up, and so we can see Morgan in killing-machine mode. It’s no secret that Morgan will soon be departing the show and resurfacing on Fear the Walking Dead, because evidently AMC wants to ruin FTWD as soon as it’s found its groove. The question remaining is “Why,” which is what “Honor” tries to answer. Morgan just likes killing too much.
Lennie James moves with a nice, impassive physicality, but his stick is looking dumber every time he uses it. Not only because he only has one move, but also because it seems like all he has to do it lightly tap someone with it and they die – off-screen, of course. The problem with this is, we’ve seen people in the group leave because they enjoy killing too much. Several times, actually. Carol left the group twice, once voluntarily and once involuntarily, and Morgan had previously taken a vow of non-lethality. This well is dry, and it’s a shame to see the show return to it again and again.
Of course, I could be wrong. Nothing would please me more. “Honor,” while not a perfect episode, shows that there’s still a little gas in the Walking Dead tank, and that when the creative team really wants to, they can dig into the humanity that is at the show’s core. The problem is, they so seldom want to do that. “Honor” is a step in the right direction; here’s hoping the show stays on the path.
3.5/5
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