Season 3 Episode 9 - "The suicide king" [** Spoilers **]

expectationlost

did we skip over maggie shooting dead a women?

Nervous Wreck

Grimebox wrote: »

What was the story with the music that played when Rick picked looked at the baby? Was it supposed to imply a realisation that it was Shane's?

No. It was Rick's lack of a connection to his daughter that was being displayed. As soon as she was handed to him, she started crying and he didn't really know what to do, or whether he cared enough to do anything.

Oscorp

Grimebox wrote: »

What was the story with the music that played when Rick picked looked at the baby? Was it supposed to imply a realisation that it was Shane's?

That's exactly what I thought at the time, although I'm not so sure now because of what happened with Lori at the end.

Grimebox

Nervous Wreck wrote: »

No. It was Rick's lack of a connection to his daughter that was being displayed. As soon as she was handed to him, she started crying and he didn't really know what to do, or whether he cared enough to do anything.

I just watched it again and this seems most likely. Why does he have this lack of connection? I still think the characters' motives are all over the place in this show

CastorTroy

Grimebox wrote: »

I just watched it again and this seems most likely. Why does he have this lack of connection? I still the characters motives are all over the place in this show

Guessing due to doubt of being the father. And also because she's the reason Lori died.

Michonne needs to talk to these people. She'll probably then wonder why they're willing to kick her out. She just found out these people were with Andrea and I'm sure Andrea aid good things about them, so why can't she see they're good. (Though I suppose Andrea's character judgement is questionable since she also believes in The Governor)

tommy2bad

Anyone else think the whole mid season break is killing this show?
Looses the pace and tension that has built up in the first half and has to rethread ground again. I wish they would just do a full season and then leave it till next year. Long enough to have forgotten the bad bits and look forward to it again.

Martyn1989

tommy2bad wrote: »

Anyone else think the whole mid season break is killing this show?
Looses the pace and tension that has built up in the first half and has to rethread ground again. I wish they would just do a full season and then leave it till next year. Long enough to have forgotten the bad bits and look forward to it again.

Yeh, I'm not a series kinda guy but I've never come across this mid season break stuff. TBH I really don't like it but infairness if writers where writing for a whole series they'd still be building tension, not trying to reach a crescendo at this stage of the show.

Rick needs to cop on, I find myself rolling my eyes when we has a little melt down.

username123

tommy2bad wrote: »

Anyone else think the whole mid season break is killing this show?

Totally. Id actually forgotten lots of bits and pieces.

What was the deal with Andrea calling for someone to help the guy bit by the walkers in Woodbury and then expressing shock at the Gov shooting him. She knows once bitten that badly theres no hope. Why didnt she shoot him? It just seemed off kilter.

Nervous Wreck

Grimebox wrote: »

I just watched it again and this seems most likely. Why does he have this lack of connection? I still think the characters' motives are all over the place in this show

Because, whether he likes it or not, he's the leader of the group and that means taking action. Lori had just died (partly because of the baby) when he had to leave the prison to go out and chase after his compatriots. This excursion ended in more death and violence, something to which Rick may well be accustomed at this stage, but is still certainly a far cry from who Rick has always been as a person. He's damaged, at this stage, by the death (at his own hands) of his best friend, the death of his wife (at the hands of his child) and the burden of being the only person that can hold their group together. He's spent no time around his daughter and every second that he has has been tainted with the knowledge that, were it not for her, his wife would still be alive.

storker

username123 wrote: »

Totally. Id actually forgotten lots of bits and pieces.

What was the deal with Andrea calling for someone to help the guy bit by the walkers in Woodbury and then expressing shock at the Gov shooting him. She knows once bitten that badly theres no hope. Why didnt she shoot him? It just seemed off kilter.

I was surprised she didn't jump at the chance to strut her pistol-packin'-momma stuff and even more surprised when she looked shocked at the governor doing it. Although maybe it's because the person was still alive and human (even if only technically).

pixelburp

tommy2bad wrote: »

Anyone else think the whole mid season break is killing this show?
Looses the pace and tension that has built up in the first half and has to rethread ground again. I wish they would just do a full season and then leave it till next year. Long enough to have forgotten the bad bits and look forward to it again.

I don't think that was the fault of the series break, more a really lazy resolution to the cliffhanger. To be fair, cliffhangers are easy to write, believable solutions less so: but even so, Daryl & Merle's predicament was almost immediately resolved by the convenient arrival of Rick. It was ludicrously glib & bottomed out the tension in one scene.

Jason Todd

I think Andrea's shock was more to do with the fact that the place was in meltdown with the Governor nowhere to be seen until he popped up and blew the guys head off in full view of an already panicked group of people.

Although, yeah, calling for help was pretty pointless. If she had called for help carrying the guy indoors to then put him out of his misery I could understand!

Wanderer2010

Im surprised at the negative reaction to this episode, I actually thought it was a solid episode and sets up some storylines that will no doubt trigger a great finale (Daryl and Meryl teaming up, the Governor wanting revenge, the motives of the new group in the prison etc). I think people are expecting too much, the show is designed to be 12-16 eps long, you are not going to get the same impact from the mid season finale (which is a new gimmick to drag out a show).

I didnt really like Rick and his new mental breakdown mode but it is understandable considering how much he has been through so he needs it but I hope he comes out even stronger after it (plus its not the first time he is seeing things, remember the image of Shane in the episode before?). Michonne could be a great character but this lack of talking is now just irritating, and Andrea is now my least fave character, she just makes it hard to warm to her. Still a very strong show though and theres another 2 great seasons left in my opinion.

Conmaicne Mara

I don't think it was Andrea calling for help for the fella that got bit? Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought it was a towns person?

El Guapo!

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

I don't think it was Andrea calling for help for the fella that got bit? Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought it was a towns person?

Yeah I thought the same too.
It was another woman calling for help. Andrea wasn't saying anything because she knew what had to be done. She knew they had to put a bullet in his head but didn't know how to do it in front of the townspeople who have generally been sheltered from that type of stuff.
She was shocked by the coldness of the Governor when he did it and I think she was hoping he'd deal with it a bit more tactfully.

TheUsual

Man those zombie head floating in the Governor's tank were soooo creepy.

I wonder if he watches TV with them for company.

Shane St.

when will episode be out. debating staying up for it

Lollipops23

Gotta say, I'm really hoping that they just used ep 9 to set us all back up for the second half of the season. It seemed pretty much pointless; more of the same.

Time to bump off Andrea, methinks. Give the fans what they want and kill her off, nice and gory like.

mrbrown69

..

meitina

Does anyone else got the feeling that prison is being watched by somebody???CCTV???

mathproblem

ughh.. almost unwatchable. A whole load of talking, "you cant come with us, go , no stay, it'll never work, i'm not hanging around with him/her, you're like a son to me" load of me hole, faux-dramatic speeches from start to finish & with zero comic relief, feck all action besides a few shapes staggering around through some smoke effects at the start. I almost needed matchsticks to prop my eyes open.

Since i was young & read a book called Z for Zachariah in the school library about a post apocalyptic world & then there's Cormac McCarthy's The Road & a few other zombie things etc.. this kind of story of existing in a world where "everything changed" & there's a kind of going back to the state of nature has been rocket fuel for my imagination. I think the whole area is perfect for mining some great artwork, in long form television & in movies & that's why it pains me so much to see this all reduced down to a bogstandard human drama, of "now i trust you, now i don't", "were friends now were enemies".. the whole thing reminds me of those dramatic skits they do in WWE/WWF wrestling before the fights to make rednecks think there's really something on the line. And nearly as badly acted too, the only worse lead I've seen for overmilking those 'dramatic' moments is Charlie Hunham as Jax in Sons of Anarchy.

Of course i'm gonna keep watching just for those one or two moments that place your own mind into that future; like when they find the prison or the farm or woodbury, or when you first see Michonne with her sword & two zombies on chains & think "hmm, i would do that too, thanks for the idea".. but all this talking, talking, drama, drama, drama, it wallows in it like a pig in it's own sh*t. I know a series needs some of it, but not this much. (also as if youre gonna kick darren & his brother out, or michonne or tyreese for that matter-you land in a sh*tstorm warzone & 4 ready made super soldiers fall into your lap - sorry guys no room here we only take in kids & old one legged guys)

hopefully ep10 picks up like someone above said, maybe because it's just the first in the season/halfseason they just had to work out all this bog-standard development because i hope to god the next one is better or i won't make it through.

Syferus

Yet another very good episode. The way the show has realised the potential it's always had is a very rare thing to see, things are just humming along right now.

I loved the black humour - laced with tragedy - of the Governor appearing to put a bullet in the townie's head and going away again without a word. It told you things that'd take ten minutes of exposition to get across in a few seconds.

The symmetry between Rick and the Governor has only deepened now with both dealing with losses. If anything the Governor is more sane than Rick right now, and he's clearly messed up to hell himself.

Rick's breakdown was paced very well and was made absolute in the finale of the episode. Anyone complaining it even happening honestly never grasped the character to begin with because it was always clear he wasn't supposed to be some sort of Rambo-Action Man hybrid. If that's what you want exit stage left right now because there's a million films with that brand of generic, unrealistic macho fetish fever dreams for you to get your kicks from. A continuing series about a post-apocalyptic world was always going to become quite existentialist and, in terms of mood, depressed.

I try not to deal in absolutes when talking about something as subjective as the arts but if you're someone opposed to Rick's breakdown as a concept you have verifiably misunderstood the entire concept of the show.

Anyways. Everyone's looked to Rick as their saviour and we're surely going to get a whole lot of reverberations in the camp with Rick's judgement compromised, Daryl gone (for now) and Glenn dealing with his own problems as well. Nevermind the imminent threat Woodbury poses to them.

Beautiful.

uRbaN

Anti Climatic episode for sure.
The action scenes looked very Father Ted...and was pretty annoyed with Ricks breakdown and everyone staring at the floor rather than say "Hey Tyreese, we have need of a big (black) dude never mind crazy ole rick here"

In an aside, I wonder how long the Father and son? combo in Tyreeses group last. They seem very disposable...

Syferus

uRbaN wrote: »

Anti Climatic episode for sure.
The action scenes looked very Father Ted...and was pretty annoyed with Ricks breakdown and everyone staring at the floor rather than say "Hey Tyreese, we have need of a big (black) dude never mind crazy ole rick here"

In an aside, I wonder how long the Father and son? combo in Tyreeses group last. They seem very disposable...

You actually expected a group of people who have looked to Rick as their saviour and leader for so long to act rationally when he has a very public meltdown?

C'mon now.