Warning: Spoilers Ahead

Wow, where has the freaking time gone! 8 short episodes, and then The Walking Dead is down the rabbit hole for another long hiatus until mid-February. Sigh. Even though it sucks any way you look at it, everyone is expecting an amazing mid-season finale tonight, and we’ve already had some pretty epic moments in the first half of season 5.

Here are my top 5 moments of of the season thus far:

5. Carol Goes Commando — Episode 5.01 “No Sanctuary”

Carol has had an amazing run thus far on the series with probably her most memorable episode being “The Grove” from season 4 and which earned Melissa McBride high critical acclaim. Even after an episode of that magnitude, she goes and nearly outdoes herself just a few episodes later in the season 5 premiere.

With Rick, Daryl, Bob, and Glenn on the verge of being put down like common cattle and becoming the next meal for the Termites, Carol saves the day by infiltrating the Terminus compound and creating a very big and very loud diversion using only some fireworks and a shotgun. Definitely one of the most memorable scenes of the season — possibly of the entire series — and the one that put her back in good graces with Rick.

4. Oh God, Carol Is That You?! — Episode 5.04 “Slabtown”

For the most part, not much went on in the episode “Slabtown,” and it definitely wasn’t one to write home about. We were introduced to most of the main players at Grady Memorial where we discover Beth is being held, with the only one even remotely interesting being Dr. Steven Edwards — the sole doctor at the facility who has made some questionable decisions in order to guarantee his survival.

With the exception perhaps of newcomer Noah escaping the hospital at the end, this episode was fairly uneventable — well, at least until the final scene. Just when we think Beth is about to take out Dr. Edwards for making her his patsy, they roll Carol in on a gurney, unconscious and badly-bruised. Oh. My. God! The sh*t just got real in this episode! This was totally, completely unexpected and definitely became one of the most shocking scenes of the season thus far.

3. Tainted Meat! Tainted Meat! — Episode 5.03 “Four Walls and a Roof”

Poor, poor Bob. If you are a fan of the comic book series, you knew this scene was coming. In the comics, Dale is kidnapped and knocked unconscious by a small group of cannibals dubbed “The Hunters,” and when he comes to, he finds that his only remaining leg had been cut off and is now roasting on the open-fire right in front of him (his other leg had already been amputated due to a walker bite). The only kicker is Dale had wondered away from camp because he had been bitten by a walker on the shoulder, and he didn’t want everyone to just sit and watch him die.  And, of course, “The Hunters” were too stupid to even think about that or ask that question.

With an epic scene like that in the comics, we all knew there is no way the television writers would pass it up, but with Dale already being dead, another character would unfortunately get the short straw and become chow for Gareth and his cannibalistic freaks. That character was Bob, and wow, did he do an amazing job! Even though I was crying, I couldn’t help but also laugh when Bob started yelling, “Tainted meat! Tainted meat!” Even though Bob was only a peripheral character and had been with the series for barely a season, this scene alone created his legacy and made him one of the most memorable characters due to his horrific manner of death.

2. Wait? Is that Negan?! — Episode 5.01 “No Sanctuary”

For those who have not read the comics, this scene meant nothing to you. But, for those who are fans of the comic book series, the final scene in “No Sanctuary” became the shot that was heard around The Walking Dead fandom. In the final moments of the season premiere, Gareth’s mother, Mary, is thrown back in the train car after having been raped (again) by the group of vagabonds that had attacked their compound. Then, the man who we assume is the group’s leader emerges from the shadows, and at that moment, my jaw dropped. Holy crap! Is that comic-book Negan!

After the Governor, there is a “supervillain” in the comic book series named Negan. He’s an extremely large guy, with black slicked-back hair and he’s the epitome of evil. He’s an opportunist who uses the apocalypse to his advantage to rape, kill, steal and commit any other crime he feels like without the fear of any consequences. However, his hallmark is torturing people while laughing about it and savagely raping women.

Even though Negan doesn’t show up until much later in the comics, the man who walked into that train car was a dead-ringer for the man.  What does this mean? Are they going to introduce Negan early or possibly just hint that Negan is out there wreaking havoc long before he finally cross paths with Rick and his group?

It turns out none of the above was true, and it was nothing more than a trick to rattle the fandom into thinking it was Negan. The man we saw was actually the same man with the long hair that ran out of the boxcar and lunged at Glenn. Well, the trick worked because it rattled the viewers so much that “Negan” trended worldwide on Twitter while the episode aired.

1. Rick Goes Ape-Sh*t … Again! — Episode 5.03 “Four Walls and a Roof”

We all knew that Rick was going off the deep end last season when he bit out Joe-the-Claimer’s neck after one of his crew attempted to assault Carl. This guy means business, and so you best back off and leave him alone.

After Gareth and the remaining Termites finally catch up with Rick at the church in the episode “Four Walls and a Roof,” (and also after they had eaten poor Bob’s leg), Rick let the world know that this new “Crazy Rick” was here to stay — at least for the time being.

Even with Gareth on his knees, apologizing and begging for mercy, Rick doesn’t buy it. He unleashes all of his bottled-up anger onto the guy, slashing him to pieces while Father Gabriel, Tyreese and the rest of the group looked on with horror. Ironically, Rick used the same machete with the red handle that he promised Gareth he would kill him with in the season premiere. The scene was shocking, disturbing, horrific and holds the honor of the most memorable OMG moment of the first half of season 5.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–

So, what now? We are at the mid-season finale, and so, what should be expect?  While Rick may have been voted down in last week’s episode and they opted for an exchange of Dawn’s cops for Beth and Carol, I’m not sure that’s going to pan out thanks to Sasha’s big screw-up. That leads us back to Rick’s original plan of a violent confrontation, and we know from past experience that those usually don’t end well — for both Rick’s group and the other side. At the very least, expect some serious bloodshed, and you might as well have the tissue handy because it’s probably a safe bet that at least one character won’t make it out alive.

And, what about all of the white cross hospital people? Will all of them meet their demise? And, if Dr. Edwards is killed, who will treat Carol and her injuries? I have not seen the episode, but if I had to guess, I would say that there is a possibility that Doc may survive (in fact, that is the ONLY thing that makes me think the doctor lives); otherwise, Carol is going to be in some pretty dire straits since there is no one else who has medical training. Of course, this all assumes that Carol survives, which of course we don’t know either.

Check out the below sneak peek videos and let us know your thoughts. The title of the episode is “Coda” which means the final section in a piece of music. Given Beth’s affinity for music, would they make it so obvious in that title that this will be Beth’s final act before she dies? Or, could it be a misdirect? Hmmmm…..

The mid-season finale of The Walking Dead airs tonight at 9/8c on AMC.

VIDEO

PHOTOS

All photos courtesy of Gene Page and AMC

 

 

 

s are closed.