I think most of us might have been glued to the Oscar festivities for one reason or another, so perhaps this episode of The Walking Dead didn’t get as much love as the previous few. That’s okay; I’m here to tell you all you need to know because it’s as action packed as any controversial awards ceremony full of first time winners.
Sasha and Abraham return from a patrol, Abraham regaling Sasha with tales of his time in the military, laying on his unique blend of “aw shucks” charm. They’ve been on the same patrol team for a while, and if you’ll recall, survived some harrowing moments leading up to the mid-season finale. They’ve been through a lot together, and bonded over a rocket launcher. Plus, Abraham loves the ladies in general. So it’s a bit tough for him when Sasha says she’s taking a new assignment and the markedly less attractive Eugene will be stepping in. They will make quite a pair, both having the best haircuts in the apocalypse, but it’s clear that Abraham is a bit taken aback and the moment turns a little awkward. Her goodbye “peace” sign haunts him, even with Rosita lying in bed with him. You almost hate the guy, because Rosita isn’t exactly hard to look at either.
Glenn and Maggie have a brief but metaphoric chat about tomatoes, but bigger things are afoot. They see a commotion and rush to Rick’s house, where Jesus calmly waits for Rick and Michonne to get dressed. I love how absolutely chill he is, even with people pointing guns at him. This chillness comes from being an extreme badass who can defend himself, and also being someone who can clearly escape from bondage. He explains to the group that their world is about to get bigger, and so begins the saga of Hilltop.
Fans of the comic should be suspicious of this caravan of Rick, Daryl, Abraham, Maggie, Michonne, Jesus, and Glenn. We (think) we know how this is going to turn out. After a small conversation between Abraham and Glenn about the finer points of childbirth in a hellish world of the living dead, they spot an overturned car. It’s Jesus’ people apparently, and tracks lead them to a building not far off. Things are already tense, but after a quick rescue of the crash survivors and some RV trouble, the group reaches Hilltop. Among the rescued of Jesus’ people is an obstetrician, so things are looking up for our parents-to-be.
After a quick tour of Hilltop, it seems to be somewhat of a colonial throwback, with peasants outside farming and blacksmithing and the Barrington House overlooking everything. The group meets Gregory, who quickly rubs Rick the wrong way with his insistence that the group get cleaned up before they talk business. Gregory is kind of a dick, but let’s face it, our heroes are consistently on the brink of hygienical disaster. Once again Abraham wants to discuss love at the end of the world, this time with Daryl. He asks if Daryl if he’s ever thought about settling down, to which Daryl replies very poignantly:
“You think shit’s settled?”
Maggie handles the first meeting with Gregory, which doesn’t go so well. Gregory is, like I said, kind of a dick. But Jesus convinces them to mull it over while he talks sense into his boss. But before any mulling can begin, a man-bunned fellow named Ethan returns with a group of Hilltop people bearing bad news. Some of their group were killed and one is still being held hostage. Apparently a deal went south between them and the infamous Negan and the hostage will only be returned if Ethan gives Gregory a message, a knife to the gut.
A fight breaks out and we see just how savage our heroes can be. After getting the better of Ethan, Rick stands up covered in blood and asks, “What?” The residents of Hilltop can only look on in horror. During the melee, Abraham takes a bit of a beating and in his near death state, has a bit of a revelation about his future. When Daryl helps him up, we see a necklace Rosita had given Abraham broken in the grass. A bit ham-fisted, but we can see what’s coming.
The Hilltop people are none too happy with our heroes but both sides stand down and Jesus begins to explain that things are a bit more complicated than they seem, which is the biggest damn understatement in this whole show. I hope you guys caught Jesus’ use of words in describing their first encounter with Negan, and how the Hilltop people needed to understand “right off the bat.” That’ll come up again, uncomfortably sooner rather than later. Jesus explains their situation with Negan, and Daryl is quick to offer up a solution that the group agrees to pretty damn quick as well. Maggie observes that it will cost our heroes something. Yet she manages to negotiate with Gregory half of all of Hilltop’s goods upfront as payment for the oncoming tussle. As the group loads up the RV, Glenn and Maggie see an ultrasound of their unborn child.
Now here’s where things get interesting, and I suggest that if you don’t want to read POSSIBLE SPOILERS, stop after this: Rick and company leave Hilltop and the episode ends.
At first I thought Glenn was safe from his comic book demise when I saw him with Maggie in the medical trailer. I thought they were gonna stay behind in Hilltop. But nope, he’s there smiling at everyone because they’re seeing the ultrasound pictures. So it’s still a very real possibility that he gets to meet Lucille soon. Then again, Rick did ask one of the survivors of Negan’s dissatisfaction to come with so he can brief Rick on Negan’s assets. It’s possible that he’s going to be the one, although in the comic Heath was part of the group that went to Hilltop and he was spared, and this guy might be Heath’s analog. And yet, the Governor beheaded Tyrese, not Hershel, so the comic isn’t the best point of reference sometimes. Sometimes. Hell, maybe Abraham will be the one to go, since he’s so eager to get home to tell a special someone how he really feels.
All I know is that fans have a rough road ahead as the battle for Hilltop begins.
Written by A Play On Nerds contributor, Jerry Herrera - Lover of horror, sci fi, and fantasy in that order. Semi-permanent Disneyland resident. I'm at least one of the droids you're looking for. Twitter: @FrankenJerry - Instagram: @GeraldoPedro