The Walking Dead 3: Episode 8 Who is "Made to Suffer"?

Last episode for the year. The series will have a long break during the holidays and all of January. This is how it went down.

Found on flickrcc.net

Rick, Daryl, Oscar and Michonne infiltrated Woodbury to rescue Glenn and Maggie. Although Glenn and Maggie are successfully rescued, Oscar is killed while Daryl is captured by the opposite faction. During the exchange, Michonne sneaked away to face the Governor. At the Governor's house, she discovered the Governor's secret room including Penny, the Governor's zombie daughter. During the encouter, Michonne stabbed Penny at the head and the Governor's eye. Andrea came to the Governor's aid which resulted in a standstill between her and Michonne.

While these were going on at Woodbury, a group of 5 survivors, lead by Tyreese, invade the prison. Carl found and rescued them from walkers by locking them in one of the cell blocks. Tyresse thanked the boy who offered them food and shelter, then went off to take care one bitten member.

Back at Woodbury, the Governor declares war against the terrorists that attacked them. He accused  Merle as traitor and presented Daryl to the townsfolk. The angry mob chants a verdict of execution while Andrea looks on helplessly at the faith of the two brothers.


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Oh goodie! New blood comes to the fold. A group of 5 survivors, led by Tyreese, fights their way out the walker-infested forest. In their attempt to evade their flesh hungry pursuers, Donna got bitten. The other woman in the group, Sasha, insisted on leave Donna behind. But Donna's husband and son didn't do so, even though it was futile to rescue her at that point. They were able to get out of the woods and into the collapse wall at the back of the prison. Will these group find home within Rick's dwindling dependents?

At Woodbury, we see Andrea still at the Governor's quarters. She picks up a photo of the Governor and his family. Looking at the photo, do you notice Andrea's striking resemblance to his deceased wife? So that is the reason why the Governor likes Andrea so much. When Andrea left, the Governor goes to his secret room to check on her zombie-daughter, Penny. He talks and cuddles Penny like any loving father would do. Is he also conducting an experiment with Penny similar to what Milton was doing? Could his child zombie still recognize him? But his affection were not reciprocated. Instead, her attention were all on the bowl of raw meat beside her. He got angry and shove the child walker away back into her cage.

In the holding area, Glenn and Maggie comforts each other from the torturous ordeal they had from their abductors. Then Glenn suddenly goes to the walker carcass and tears off its arm violently to extract a crude weapon from the shattered bones. In another area, the Governor talks to Merle and the others about the threat posted by the people at the prison. He wants them destroyed and let the bitters reclaim the prison. Merle wants a chance to talk to his brother and persuade him to join their faction at Woodbury. The Governor is concerned about Andrea finding out about Glenn so he orders them to take the prisoner out to be silenced.


In the meantime, Michonne led Rick and the others to the infirmary. Glenn and Maggie are not there so she insisted to locate them at the Governor's home. Rick still don't trust her so he wants to look somewhere else. A guard enters the house to investigate the movements he saw from outside. Rick seize and interrogates him on the whereabouts of Maggie and Glenn. The man knows nothing so he gag and hit him unconscious.

At prison, Axel is infatuated with the Hershel's teenager, Beth.  I do wonder where Hershel was at this point. Carols sees this and talks to Axel about it. Axel says that Beth is the only girl he an flirt with since Maggie is with Glenn and he assume Carol, having short hair, to be a lesbian. Carol says she is not homosexual. Axel proposes to her but she turns him down. What a comic relief Axel is turning out to be.

Back at Woodbury, When Merle and the other guards came to collect their captives, Glenn and Maggie attack them with their makeshift weapons. Merle lets out a round of gunfire during the scuffle. Maggie killed his captor with the zombie bone, however, Merle easily subdued the injured Glenn. More guards came in and the couple were recaptured.

Hearing the gunfire, Rick and his group advance to where Glenn and Maggie held captive. They throw smoke grenades to confused Merle and his group, and pull Glenn and Maggie out to safety. Glenn blurs out Merle is alive and that he is the right-hand man of the Governor. Daryl wants to find Merle, but Rick begs Daryl to help them escape. Michonne slips away from the group to act on her own agenda.

Upon hearing that one of his men was killed by the outsiders, the Governor rallies his group on an alert mode. He assigns Andrea to enforce the curfew just to keep her away from knowing the truth that Rick's group are there. However, the war escalated when Rick starts to assault the front wall with gunfires and smoke bombs. Andrea joins the not knowing that she is firing at her former comrades. Daryl provides cover while the others moves towards the wall. Rick stops when he sees Shane coming towards them. But it was only his imagination. Oscar have been shot and drop dead on the spot. Maggie fires a bullet on his head so he won't turn to a zombie. She calls for Rick. This snaps Rick back to reality and shouts for Daryl to follow. However, Daryl was caught in a crossfire.

At prison, Carl and the others hear screaming within the prison. Hershel wasn't able to stop the boy to leave and investigate. Carl finds Tyreese and his group fighting walkers. He lead the group out of the dangerous predicament and into the safety of the cell block. Donna dies along the way. While the group is preoccupied with the situation, Carl locks them in the cell, leaving them food and water. Sasha protests and demands to let them out. Tyreese calms her down and thanks Carl for helping and leading them to safety. He went back to take care of Donna.

Michonne went to the Governor's residence where he sits waiting for the man to enter. She hears noises in one of the rooms which he breaks down to investigate. There she finds the Governor's water tanks filled with zombie heads. At the back of it, she finds the cage and the chained, hooded figure within. She thought it was a child but surprised when she lifted the hood to find a zombie child. When the Governor finds Michonne with Penny, he surrenders his weapons and begs Michonne to let Penny go. Michonne, who struggling to understand it all, stabs the walker child with her sword. This made the Governor into a mad frenzy and they have a brutal fight. The Governor rams Michonne's face against the water tanks. The Governor pins Michonne to the ground while the zombie heads tries to take a bite on the struggling Michonne. Michonne grabs a loose broken glass and stabs the Governor's eye with it. When Michonne was about to strike the fatal blow, Andrea step it pointing her gun at Michonne. Both girls held at a stand still. Michonne lowers her sword and Andrea proceeds to help the Governor. The Governor went to where Penny is and cradled the corpse in grief.

At the infirmary, Andrea asks the Governor about Michonne, the zombie heads and Penny. Even though how much the Governor makes his explanation sound normal, Andrea struggles to accept its merits. Merle enters the room to report of Rick and his groups escape. However, he was only greeted by the Governor's hard gaze. He now know Merle lied to him about killing Michonne.

Michonne reunites with Rick outside the wall. They been waiting for Daryl to come out. Rick doubts her as she states her usefulness to them. The Governor calls for a town assembly. He reveals they were attacked by terrorists and that Merle was one of them. He then reveals the captured Daryl. He asks for the towns verdict. The public clamors for an execution. Andrea looks on in terror and disbelief.



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Highlights:

• Carl is turning out to be a miniature version of Rick. So far, it looks like he is control of everything at prison. However, I do wonder how would he hold up against Tyreese's group now that Rick and the others are not there to defend the fort. Would the new entrants take over the prison? 

•  Tyreese seems to be a decent person. He looks like a man of reason and has respect for boundaries. He would be a perfect addition to Rick's group. And Rick needs more people since it becomes evident that the Governor wants them destroyed.

•  What would happen to the brothers, Merle and Daryl? Would they end up dead or would they escape and join Rick's group? I doubt it if Daryl would join his brother at the Governor's side. The Governor already forsaken Merle. So it is better if Merle joins his brother in Rick's group. But they need to escape the Governor's wrath first.

•  What would happen to Andrea. Do you think Andrea would join Rick's group? I don't think the Governor would let her go. Maybe she will help the brothers to escape from Woodbury.

•  Why did Shane suddenly pops out of the picture? Is Rick having psychological issues? If that's the case, we can expect other dead characters make a comeback via Rick's phantasms.

• If Woodbury has Milton, the prison has Axel. Even though they are creepy sometimes, they do provide a minute of comic relief from all the seriousness that's been happening. However, I do hope Axel don't bother sweet Beth too much. While Daryl is still in Woodbury, would he take this opportunity and continue his courtship with Carol?

• RIP Oscar. I find Oscar's character similar to T-Dogg's. I thought he will have a longer presence in the show. I guess he had to go to make room for Tyreese.

•  Talk about the dynamic couple, Glenn and Maggie. They are strong when together, but weak when apart. Or is it the other way around. Nonetheless, they are now the it couple now that Rick's better half is gone. Maybe we will see her in Rick's dreams.

• Even though the ideal match up is between Rick and the Governor, I like to see the Governor- Michonne brawl once again. I am sure the Governor wants to avenge Penny's second death.

Sneak Peaks and Previews

 The Walking Dead 3x09 Sneak Peek #1 "The Suicide King"

The Walking Dead 3x09 Sneak Peek #2 "The Suicide King"

The Walking Dead 3x09 "The Suicide King" Preview

See you February 10, 2013

The Walking Dead 3 Episode 7: When the Dead comes Knocking

Found on flickrcc.net

Merle interrogates Glenn for the whereabouts of his group. He refuse to divulge the location despite being tortured and setting loose a walker on him. The Governor threatens Maggie with rape, but she also refuses to talk. The Governor brings her to where Glenn is and further threatens her there. She finally tells them the about their group and location when the Governor threatens to kill Glenn. With this information, the Governor orders a scouting mission to locate the prison and its inhabitants.

Upon the request of the Governor, Andrea helps out Milton on his experiment on their theory that walkers possesses past memories of their former human life. The experiment failed to yield results when Andrea stake  a knife into the subjects' head when it tried to sink it's teeth into the overzealous Milton.

At the prison grounds, the walkers finally sense Michonne's presence when her wounds started bleeding profusely. When Michonne falls down while fighting walkers, Rick helps her and brings her into the safety of the prison walls. During their interrogation on Michonne, Rick found out from her how Glenn and Maggie were kidnapped and taken to Woodbury. Rick, together with Michonne, Daryl and Oscar, set forth on a rescue mission to save their captured comrades. They evaded a large group of walkers along the way until they reach the guarded walls of Woodbury.

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At Woodbury...

Merle starts interrogating Glenn asking the groups hiding place, while Maggie listens in the adjacent holding area. He begins by beating on Glenn, but Glenn won't budge. He even head butts Merle and made bold bluffs about how Rick and the rest of their group will come soon to rescue him and Maggie. This surprise  and infuriates Merle even more. He sensed a big change in Glenn's character far from the good-nature Asian guy he knew way back.

Infuriated with Glenn's stubbornness, Merle released a walker inside the room while Glenn is helplessly bound to a chair. Fueled by an instinct to survive, Glenn kick and scrap his way to avoid his hungry attacker. He smashed the chair against the wall and used the chair arm to stab the zombie on the head. He reminds me of Bruce Lee, not because he kung fu his way out of this situation, but because he broke away from being Rick's sidekick and an outright hero of the show.

Having no success with Glenn, the Governor tuns his attention to Maggie. He sexually assaulted Maggie by telling her to take off her shirt and bra. He then threatens her with rape by touching her and pinning her against the table. At this point, I thought Maggie has already reached her breaking point. However, The Governor took her to where Glenn is, and Glen was outrage to see Maggie topless. The Governor points his gun to Glenn. Maggie blurred out the location and how many are there. I couldn't blame her for doing so. I would been more less forgiving if Glenn would be the first one that yielded.


The Governor interrogates Maggie. He told her to take off her shirt, then her bra. At this point, he clearly threatens her with rape. She relented to the Governor’s twisted request when he threatens Glenn's life. Now the Governor knows her weakness at this point.

Then the Governor took Maggie to where Glenn is. Glenn was in a rage when she saw Maggie topless. He pointed his gun to Maggie then points it at Glenn. "Prison!", Maggie blunted out thus revealing the location of their camp and how many are they in it.

The Governor seems to to so surprise how a small number of people able to clear out an overrun prison. This information made him on a heightened alert. He ordered Merle to organize a coinsurance mission to the prison located at the area he calls Red Zone.

In another part of town, Milton is working on an experiment to find out if zombies still possess their human memories. This is a part of his mission to find a cure for the zombie plague. Andrea was there to help upon the request of the Governor. The theory seems to be sound and there seems to be snippets throughout the series where some zombies still depicts human behaviors. An old man, Mr. Coleman, who’s dying from prostate cancer, has volunteered to let Milton run a post-transformation experiment.The experiment, however, failed to yield the desired results. Andrea stake a knife into the reanimated subjects' head when it tried to sink it's teeth into the overzealous Milton.

In prison...


Michonne is almost at her end.  Her invisibility cloak worn out due to the stench of her bleeding wound, she found herself surrounded by zombies near the prison fences. Michonne tried to swing and slash her sword at the walkers only to fall on the ground dazed due to the loss of blood. The zombies close in for the feast. Rick and Carl starts shooting and brings the fallen stranger inside their prison abode.

When Michonne regained consciousness, Rick started to ask her questions of who she was, how she able to found the prison, and why is she carrying basket full of baby formula. Michonne just glared at them from from where she lay unable to trust the men who stared with an equal stare of distrust back at her. Daryl came  to show Rick something important. They lock up Michonne but promise to come back for her to let Hershel treat her wounds.

Back at their cell block, Daryl shows a much alive Carol whom he found earlier passed out in a locked cell. Everybody was happy to see their lost comrade. Carol is elated to see Lori's baby, however, the sweet reunion turned to sad one when Carol's searching eyes for the baby's mother was met by Rick's mournful gaze. Michonne watch this tender moment from the adjacent cell.


Whatever Michonne thought about what she had witness, it made her reveal that Glenn and Maggie were kidnapped and taken to Woodbury. However, she didn't mention Merle's name as the one who shot her and abducted the lovers nor her erstwhile travel friend, Andrea, whom she left at Woodbury. It is clearly her intention to leave out these details in her story. She, nonetheless, offered Rick to lead and help them get in to Woodbury.

While Hershel tends to Michonne's wound, Rick, Daryl and Oscar prepare for the rescue mission. Rick took the time to talk with Carl about Lori's death. Here, they decided to name the baby Judith. This heart to heart talks is turning out to be bad premonitions of something bad to happen. Like the one Rick and Lori had and then she died during childbirth. I does make me wonder that something bad would happen at prison after Rick and the rest leave for Woodbury.

Moving on. Michonne leads the three men to Woodbury. But before they reach it's gates, they were ambushed by a group of walkers. The group ran into a cabin in the woods where they find an old guy with a shotgun. The guy told the trespassers to get off his property or he would call the cops. Rick told him he is a cop. This is becoming a comical-serious situation. This survivor seems out of place or oblivious to the horrors that is out there. Before he could run out and let the zombies in, Michonne killed him with her sword. Rick throws the body out to the waiting hoard as a diversion so they can escape out the the back of the cabin. They finally reached their destination at nightfall. Hold your horses, the showdown is set to begin.


Highlights:

• Rick names his newborn daughter "Judith". Carl suggested the name for no apparent reason.  There seems to be no indications whether he questions the paternity of the child. However, it would interesting to see if old wounds would surface with regards to this story line in future events.

• Carol's reunion with the group was bitter sweet. She was elated to see Lori's baby, however, Rick's mournful demeanor made a clear response to Carol's inquisitive glance of the whereabouts of the baby's mother.  

• When Rick interrogated Michonne, she failed to mention vital information regading Glenn and Maggie's kidnapping. She did not mention Merle's name and even her erstwhile travel companion, Andrea. This would lead to a shocking confrontation between Daryl and Merle. 

• I was a surprise to see his strong conviction when he go against Merle's torturous ways. Glenn has become a stronger person because of Maggie. Then again, their relationship is becoming their own weakness as seen when Maggie gave in to the Governor's threat to Glenn's life.

• I really don't know if the Governor's intention to rape Maggie is real or just a show of power. I just feel he is really rotten apple down to the core. He is worst than Merle. Where does Merle's loyalty lie? I hope Daryl could sway him out of the dark side.

• Michonne is a nutcase that is hard to crack. However, there still a part in her that wants to belong. Would Michonne forsake her rogue ways and find a home in Rick's group? 

Next week is the mid season finale of The Walking Dead which means there would be no The Walking Dead after that and until February 2013. Bummer! They would let us wait hanging during the holidays again. So expect the next episode to be full pack that would surely make us suffer the long wait during the holidays. Here are trailer and sneak peak videos of the next episode.

The Walking Dead - Season 3 Episode 8 - Preview - Made to Suffer 

The Walking Dead Season 3 Episode 8 Sneak Peek #1 "Made to Suffer"

The Walking Dead Season 3 Episode 8 Sneak Peek #2 "Made to Suffer"

The Walking Dead 3 Episode 6: Hounded

Photo by Med PhotoBlog

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It is interesting to watch what's happening to two different places back and forth. All the more, the phase of the story lines is becoming so fast and the transition between scenes is fleeting that sometimes I could not cope with what's been happening or what's been said. It does makes the show exciting as it builds to a forgone conclusion. And that is the meeting of the worlds, and the clash it would bring to two groups of survivors and  the inevitable meeting between The Governor and Rick Grimmes. Are  they gonna be friends or enemies?

Storyline:

Last time we were left hanging with an unexpected ring from an old telephone from where Rick has been mourning with the passing of Lori. Rick picks up the phone and then talks to unknown survivors. It turns out that Rick is just hearing voices from the dead, including Lori. This unexplained event seems to snap Rick from his self-destructive ways as he accepted Lori's death and rejoins the group. Rick lovingly holds his baby for the first time. Daryl finds Carol, alive.

At Woodbury, Andrea wanted to be productive at town by volunteering for sentry duty. During her duty, she jumps down from the wall to kill a biter. She realized that she enjoyed the fights she witnessed in the earlier festivities. This she confesses to the Governor, then led to beginning of an affair between them.

Merle, together with a group of guys from town, was sent to hunt down Michonne. Michonne, in turn, ambushes the team and killed all except Merle and another. However, Michonne got wounded in the process, so she escaped to a nearby town. There she sees Glen and Maggie gathering supplies. Merle was there too. He captured the lovers and took them back to Woodbury. Michonne find her way to prison. Rick saw her staring behind the prison fences with Maggie's baskets of groceries.

Details:

Michonne is on the run. The Governor sent a search party to kill her. She was right after all. No one leaves Woodbury alive. And Merle and his gang needs to make sure of that.

Michonne, however, has other plans; that is to ambush them. She managed to kill most of the men but ended up being shot at her thigh while making her escape. She lure zombies to join the fray.  During the ruckus, she disemboweled one walker and the entrails poured all over her.

Merle was left together with a guy with an odd name. A name that he can't remember or pronounce. This makes our tetchy redneck more irritable. So he call him Neil. Merle want to go back to Woodbury and report that they taken cared of Michonne permanently. Too honest Neil wants to track Michonne further or else report that their mission failed. So Merle ask him to say his tongue twister of a name, then shot him dead.

Back at prison, the phone is still ringing. Rick picks up the phone and a woman answered from the other end. She say she's in a safe place from a location she didn't want to mention. They have been calling at random looking for other survivors of this world. Rick wanted to know more of them and if they would be willing to take him, his son and his newborn baby  in to their camp. She said she would concur with her group and will be back in two hours. This seem to snap Rick back to a state of hope. He cleaned up and went up to the cell block to greet his comrades. All are still in the mourning mood and words still left unsaid. Rick went back to his phone.

When it rang again, the man on the other side ask him how many men he killed and how he lost his wife. Still hurting of the subject of Lori, Rick didn't answer him. The man hung up. This made Rick so desperate.

Hershel found Rick in the boiler room by the phone. He thanked Rick for saving him. Rick told him about his received phone calls. Hershel seems to doubt what Rick has disclosed him. I think he know Rick is going nuts. Nevertheless, he offered to sit with him while waiting for the call. Rick declined his offer, so the old man hobbled back to their cell block.

The phone rings again and this time a woman answers back. She said it would do him good if he would talk about his wife's death. Rick was surprised 'cause she knows his name. This conversation is now turning to be a 'twilight zone' of some sort. Rick never told her his name.

Daryl seems to be coming to his own while Rick is still in the slump. He took Carl and Oscar on a patrol along the prison corridor to keep the cell block safe from several walkers still wandering around. It was kinda sweet yet awkward sharing the story how he lost his mother to Carl. That didn't seem to lift the boy's spirit. However, his own spirit sank when he saw Carol's knife stuck in one of the walkers he killed along the corridors.

At Woodbury, Andrea wanted to be a productive member of the town, so he asked the Governor to give her sentry duty. So she was sent to the wall. There she trained with a young girl to shoot zombies from afar. The girl couldn't shoot one so Andrea leaped down the wall and killed the zombie up close. The girl was so freaked out from what had happened. No one goes beyond the wall without the Governor's authorization.

Andrea is called to speak to the Governor. She confided with him that she misses the fight with zombies. Then the talk between them turned to flirtation thanks to good old whiskey. They ended up in bed together.

In another town, Maggie and Glen are shopping for infant formula and other supplies at an abandoned grocery store. Michonne saw them and observed from afar. Merle suddenly appear and they were all in a stand still. Glen ask Merle to wait until they return with Daryl. Merle had other plans and kidnapped them both.  Michonne watched helplessly as Merle took his hostages back to Woodbury.

Merle disturbs the Governor's 'score' of Andrea. Merle lied about what happened to the mission. The Governor, however, was suspicious since he didn't retrieve Michonne's sword. He let it slide when Merle segued to tell him of his new found captives.

The phone rang again for the third time. Rick picks it up with fear. The woman at the other end says he knows him. And the voice was so familiar because it sounds like Lori. And it is Lori's voice. Rick lost it and cried while saying how much he loved her. Rick was in a ball of enormous emotion waiting to explode. And it did pop when Lori reminded him about their baby.

Now, Daryl is slump and at a loss. He seem to be full of anxiety and doubt as he holds Carols knife and stabbing it into the ground. He was probably afraid to find Carol dead and a zombie behind the noisy cell door. Finding the courage to push through, he opened the door and finds Carol, alive!

Rick finds Hershel rocking the baby. He took the baby and looked at her lovingly for the first time. It seems that Rick will be better from hereon in. He went outside the prison along with the baby, Carl and the rest. He walked toward the fence to stare at zombies gathering at the fences. One of them is Michonne; who moves among the undead, undercover and unharmed; carrying Maggie's basket of groceries.


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Highlights:

• I thought Merle is loyal to the Governor.  It is unclear to me why he did not pursue the wounded Michonne further. Is this a part of his scheme to reunite with Daryl and have his revenge on Rick?
• Oscar strikes gold when he saw a pair of old slippers one of the cell room. That was a welcome surprise.
• Daryl seems to be rambling when he told Carl how he lost his mother so I didn't get the story entirely. Did it made Carl feel good about himself? Maybe so...
• It was a special treat to find Carol alive all this time. I think Daryl and Carol will hook up soon. 
• Michonne discovered another form of stealth and that is wearing zombie innards.
• What will happen to Andrea now that she is intimate with the Governor? What plans does the Governor have for Andrea?

The Walking Dead 3 Episode 5: The Call

Found on flickrcc.net

Have you recovered from the loss and chaos of episode 4? I didn't expect Lori to die from childbirth, even though, the odds are evident against her having a smooth delivery and under stressful and dangerous circumstances. It was so naive of me to unconsciously believe that the main heroine of the show don't die. I should have known better.

Let me begin my blog with the happenings at Woodbury.

The episode started with the Governor combing someone's hair. As he does this, the comb pulled out a patch of hair and the skin to which it was attached. It turned out that he was with a child zombie. I made a conclusion that this child zombie was her daughter as it resembles the little girl in the family picture shown in the same residence in the earlier episodes. So, the mystery of Woodbury starts to unravel. The Governor choose to keep her "zombified" daughter close for reasons still not clear. Perhaps he is hoping for a cure that would restore her daughter back to life. Or he just clings to the husk of his dead love one because of his longing and guilt from his daughter's fate. This is reminiscent to season 2 when Hershel, likewise kept his undead wife and other "zombified" kin locked up in the barn.

Anyway, the zombie girl began to grunt and struggle when part of her flesh got torn off. The scuffle reached the house window and then the Governor saw Michonne looking back at them.

Michonne, breaks into the Governor's house to get her samurai sword. She, then, overhears the Governor,  Merle and Milton discussing about having captive zombies for tonight's festivities. She discover the whereabouts of the said captive biters which she slays as an act of defiance to the suburban stronghold which she wanted to flee. This lead to a confrontation between Michonne and the Governor.

The animosity between these two are so deep.  It's really hard to figure out why are they against each other in the first place. Why they hate each other so much? Perhaps, it is really Michonne's nature to be defiant to authority and conformity. But, I have to admit, the Governor is one creepy character. I find these two central characters alike.  I am perplexed to why she couldn't understand the Governor's affinity with his zombie daughter when she was also keeping two pet zombies in tow earlier. She has also her own secrets. Yes, like the Governor and the town, I am suspicious of her origins.

The bad blood between them became so evident when Michonne grab her sword and points it to the Governor's throat. It would have been easy for her to end his life but she didn't. It is not her nature to kill people. But the Governor does have that nature and she suspects it. This is a clear sign of Michonne's distrust of the place and the people. We now know at this point that Michonne will leave this place.

In the middle of this conflict is Andrea. When words about the incident reached Andrea, she and Michonne had another argument and a debate on whether to go or stay. At the gates of Woodbury, the two were still in a stalemate. Andrea finally expresses that she cannot take a life outside Woodbury in fear of her life. This forces Michonne to give Andrea an ultimatum: she would leave this place with or without her. Andrea would have followed Michonne out the gate but Merle was there to intervene and locked the gates in front of a very doubtful Andrea.

Later on that night, Andrea and the Governor were together at the start of the night's festivities. Still sad about Michonne's leaving and now she finds herself witnessing the spectacle that was before her. Merle and another guy fighting in an arena surrounded by biters. Earlier, there was a scene where Merle and some other guys collecting trapped biters. Their purpose was now revealed. The Governor assured her that the fight was safe and staged considering the zombies were toothless. It was a show to boost morale and eradicate fear. Still, Andrea felt disturbed by what she saw and by how much the people enjoyed watching the horrendous show. At this point, we see how horrible and scared she felt for letting Michonne leave without her and now trapped in zombie fight town.

Back at prison, Rick clearly suffered a lot - mentally and emotionally; with the loss of Lori. Overcome with grief,  he went on a zombie killing rampage thus abandoning the group who cling to him for protection up to  this point. He lost all wits and became a man filled with rage and revenge. It makes me wonder how he feels about Lori's baby. Does he have ill feelings against the child? I think he does for two main reasons. One, Lori died giving birth to the baby. And, the baby is not his but of Shane.

Lori's baby is crying as if desperately pleading for his attention. So Daryl had no choice but to step up as leader and takes Maggie on an expedition to search for milk for the latest addition to their group. They were able to find infant formula, feeding bottles and other supplies (and a possum) in a nearby care center. These e vents makes you realize how adept Daryl is.He is resourceful and skilled. In the game of survivor, I feel he is the most likely to outlast everyone including Rick. He is also the only person in the group who isn't related to someone somehow. Yet, I see him care for the group. He took the initiative to care of Lori's baby who he lovingly named "Ass Kicker". He also offered a flower to  one of the graves Glenn, Axel and Oscar dug for their fallen comrades. I see him now, not as Rick's right hand, but the alternative leader for the group if Rick would not snap out of his grieving state or die because of it. I don't even trust Rick at this point. He is unstable and can snap at anyone who go against his warpath state. I even thought he would kill Glenn when the younger guy tried to talk sense into him.

Other uplifting moments were when Hershel and Glenn had a bonding moment digging the graves for Lori, T-Dogg and Carol. (Carol's whereabouts is still not determined at this point.) I also find Hershel to be a possible leader for the group, however,his lost of leg might put some doubts to the strength of his conviction. Glenn and Maggie's relationship also proves strong and might be the right persons to take care of little Ass Kicker. Carl seems to be still grieving but have responded more to his baby sister's cry for attention and an undeniable attraction towards Emily.

While all this was happening, Rick found himself inside the room from which Lori met her end. He didn't find Lori's body there but a trail of blood. There, he finds a bloated walker. It seems clear that this lucky scavenger ate all of Lori's remains. Rick sticks his gun inside the zombies mouth and fired. Still unfinished with his act of gore, he stabs the belly of the zombie repeatedly as if he wanted to kill what is inside of the pregnant-like corpse. Then, a RING!!!! The sounds snaps Rick from his exhausted state and he move to answer it. I was left with a thousand questions in my mind. while the credits started to roll. Why is there a phone there? Why does the phone seems so old? Who is calling? I thought communication and power lines are all out? Now I find myself suffering from a week of waiting. Bummer!

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The Walking Dead 3 Episode 4: Lori's Death

Found on flickrcc.net

Season 3 ushered in new characters to the show which means there would be others making an exit. So, expect the unexpected. For me, the expected is an unexpected shocker.

A dead deer being dragged by an unknown person outside the prison fences. Then he cut the chains, opened the gates, and left the rotting deer corpse there to lure walkers to come in. You know that this plot to kill would end in tragedy. And it did resulted in some life changing events that would affect Rick and the rest of the survivors.

While this unknown troublemaker does his evil scheme, our group of survivors are in high spirits after they have secured their new found home within the cold walls of an abandoned prison facility. Hershel is recovering very well. Lori, Emily (Hershel's youngest daughter) and Carl presented the old man with crutches he can use to start walking again. Talk about puppy love, Carl and Emily - the way these two talk and look at each other makes Hershel and Lori uncomfortable. While the group is admiring all these, they were surprised by walkers moving through the prison compound, and the survivors are separated while fleeing from this surprise attack.

Suddenly the prison alarms went up. The loud noise attracted the walkers from outside the prison. Rick, Daryl and Glen was surprised to see that gates were opened and chains were cut to let these deadly invaders in. Rick immediately suspected the remaining prisoners, Axel and Oscar, did this act. (By the way, Axel was revealed in earlier scenes to be a biker and very good bike mechanic.) The two, however, denied the accusations thrown at them. Suddenly more walkers were attracted by the loud sirens, Rick had no choice but to work with the prisoners to find and shut down the generators.

In the meantime, Hershel and Emily were able to find a secure place behind some prison fences. Lori, Maggie and Carl, however, were forced to retreat inside their prison bunkers but only to find more zombies there. They manage to hide from the walkers but suddenly, Lori goes into labor. Maggie tried to assist her but Lori started to bleed and cannot deliver. She pleaded to Maggie to do an emergency C-section to save the baby. Maggie was able to deliver the baby from this haphazard operation but Lori did not survive. Carl witnessed all this and was left no choice to put a bullet into his dead mother. It is still hard to believe dead people turns to zombies. But putting a bullet on a dead man's head is still a hard standard operation procedure to do. Poor Carl. It must have been difficult for him to do it at his age. But he had to when Maggie didn't had the courage do so. With the baby in her arms, Maggie and Carl left the room in the hopes to rejoin their comrades.

Meanwhile, T-Dog and Carol also were also chased by walkers inside the prison. While fleeing, T-Dog is bitten. Carol tried to help him but it is too late. When they were cornered by walkers down the hallway, T-Dog sacrifices himself to let Carol escape outside. Carol drop her head scarf while running out the door.

Rick and his group were able to find the generator room while being chased by walkers. Rick is ambushed in the generator room by Andrew, who is now evidently the unknown plotter that lured the walkers in from the other side of the prison. In the scuffle, Oscar got Rick's lose gun. It was such an intent moment when he pointed the gun at Rick and Andrew. He shoots at Andrew instead, siding with Rick whose group he and Axel want to join.

When they manage to find their way outside, they shot walkers feeding on T-Dogs corpse and found Carol's scarf beside it. This made them believe Carol was taken too by walkers.

When Carl and Maggie reunited with the group outside, Rick was in despair when he saw the baby and no Lori. He collapse in mourning with the death of his wife. I just wanted to go back to episode 2 where I failed to mention the scene where Rick and Lori finally had a heart to heart talk. That, when I come to think of it, is the start of them being a couple again. Somehow, Rick made amends with Lori. I was somehow assured that their shaky relationship would get better as the series progress. Now I realize that it was the last tender moment between the two.

At Woodbury, events are starting to unfold for the Governor to find Rick and survivors at the prison. Andrea's fascination of the town fortress grows as her fondness to Phillip, aka, The Governor  grows strong. She also made amends with Merle and a map of the farm's location where she last saw Daryl and the rest. This made Merle's resolve strong to find Daryl. He disclosed this information with the Governor and his intention to find his long lost brother.

Meanwhile, Andrea's indecision to leave this place made her relationship with Michonne strained. Michonne, on the other hand, did some investigation on her own. And what she discovered increased her suspicions of the town and of the man who runs it.

I still can't believe that Lori is dead! T-Dog is gone too. How will this affect Rick and et al? And how will the group dynamics change when Axel and Oscar joins the group? What happened to Carol?

The Walking Dead Episode 3: Welcome to Woodbury

Found on flickrcc.net

Welcome to Woodbury. That is where Andrea and Michonne end up reuniting with Daryl's big brother Merle. Woodbury is a town with a thriving population of 73 ruled by the Governor. He is enigmatic yet there is a sense of mystery behind his calm demeanor. He and Michonne are much alike in this regard and I can't wait to know their stories as the series unfold.

So how did they end up in this small fortified town? The  episode started with a military helicopter crash. Andrea and Michonne went out to investigate. While scouting the crash site, the two women encountered encountered armed men who intend to scavenge the wreckage and look for survivors. There was one soldier - Welles who survived the crash. All the others are dead which instantly turned and immediately dealt with by the scavengers. From Andrea and Michonne's vantage point, they thought that these men were killing off the survivors of the crash.

Zombies were also attracted to the site. I thought Andrea and Michonne will be run down by the incoming zombies but, surprisingly, they were ignored. Probably they were masked by the stench of the two zombie pets of Michonne. The all of the sudden, Michonne zombie pets got agitated as if they wanted to overrun the scavengers on their own. Michonne had no choice but to cut their heads off to silence them.

Then Merle appeared behind Andrea in that eventful reunion.

In Woodbury, several facts about the Zombies were revealed. They call zombies as biters In Woodbury. Milton, the right-hand man, adviser, zombie expert and tea maker of the Governor made several observations regarding Michonne's pet zombies. Take away a zombies arms and jaws make them docile and compliant. They are effective zombie repellent as well though the reason still unclear. He also said that zombies might remember a little of who they were. He describe it as an echo of their past human life. This is the instance where Andrea and Michonne were told that people, at the moment of death, turns to zombies.

I thought Woodbury is a place of salvation. As much as how the Governor tries to win over the two women in staying. Andrea seems to be more settled. And from the looks of it, she is somewhat smitten to Woodbury and the Governor. Michonne, on the other hand,  remains skeptical.

As it turns out, every place has its own secrets as well. Woodbury is not as welcoming as it portrays. After Welles disclosed the location of his group, the Governor lead a team to track them down. But this was not a rescue mission but an intent to seek and destroy the soldiers all for their vehicles, weapons and supplies to bring back to Woodbury.

And that evening and at his residence, the Governor, unable to sleep, retires with a glass of whiskey in a private room watching three rows of aquariums filled with the animated heads of walkers. Among them are Michonne's pets and Welles.

===================

The Walking Dead 3 Episode 2

Photo by Alex //Berlin _ Alexander Stübner

At the end of the first episode, we are left with 5 baffled surviving inmates as they watch Rick hack away Hershel's infected leg . As it turn out, they have been locked out in the prison's cafeteria for almost a year; oblivious to the zombie world. They must be so pissed that their almost perfect hiding place with food stores had been infiltrated. It is inevitable, I guess, as they would have died anyway, most probably of boredom.

So what happens to the 5 surviving inmates in the penitentiary? Well, Rick, Daryl and T-Dog gave them a rude awakening. Three of them didn't made the cut. The big black dude died by his fellow inmate's hands for being too cuddly and soft with the zombie situation. This de facto inmate leader didn't like Rick too; as he attempt to kill Rick by pushing a zombie at him. So Rick hacked a machete on his skull and stop his rebellious ways. And the leader's cohort -- Rick chased him towards a den of ravenous zombies. 

I am amazed how Rick has changed. He has had it with the word trust. He has also become quick and decisive. Morality is out the window. It's voice died together with Dale (Season 2). No more discussion of what is good or bad; wrong or right. There is no more Shane at that end of that debate. Rick has taken those two person in himself. Decisions are made in just a split second. Human life, no matter how scarce it has been, is so cheap. Rick only need the ones that got his back. It sucks but its become the core group's way of survival.

Yet, there still reason and fair play in Rick. He is still a man of his word. With the help of Daryl and T-Dog, He clear out a cell block for the two surviving inmates and gave them half of the stored food.

All that happened while the rest of the group concentrated on Hershel. A person severely wounded like that brings a unsettling dilemma . Is he going to survive or not? Handcuffs are a must in a dire situation like this. Remember how Shane quickly turns after Rick killed him. If he dies, Glenn is there to deliver a swift blow to the head.  

Who is going to deliver Lori's baby? Carol... So she goes out with Glenn to get a lady zombie to practice doing a C-section. Someone watches from a far as she does that. Who could it be?

Now, if Hershel survives, how can he keep up with only one leg? 

Hershel survives. So we will see... 

Everything moves so fast in the zombie world.

The Walking Dead comes for the Third Time

Image: 'Old Wood'

Did you watch last night's premiere of The Walking Dead on Fox channel? What an awesome start. I did miss all the zombie apocalypse survivors (whats left of them, that is) a lot. They all look so skinny and zombie like. I guess who wouldn't be when being relentlessly pursued by zombies left and right. In particular, three characters had change drastically over the season jump.

One is Rick. Yes, he still his calm, dependable and night and shining armor guy. But something has change in him. He become a bit cold but you can see there is a hurt buried deep within. He been specially cold to his wife, Lori. I guess the ghost of his best friend, Shane, still haunts him. Then there is Carl - Rick's son, who is somewhat still a boy yet has matured over the season. I guess a child really has to grow up so fast is a very stressful environment. And the last one is Hershel who had a look of devastation after being chased away from his precious farm. Would an old guy like him last the grueling life of whats to come?

They are all at their wits end running away from hoard of zombies that follows them to no end. They run from house to house, taking with them expired cans of dog food and a poor barn owl. They scavenge as they go while evading the prey that seems to be always a breath away.

And what about Andrea. Don't you worry about her. I think she has the better situation accompanied by the samurai wielding Michonne and her pet zombies. I wonder what is Michonne's back story. I can't wait to see her more in future episodes. I am trying my hardest not to put her name name in Google.

Is a prison really a good place to live and hide? I don't think so, especially if its full of zombies. I guess they had to take the risk. There are 3 basic things you need to survive a zombie apocalypse: 1) food, 2) guns, ammunition and weapons, and 3) medicines all of which maybe found in that big zombie-filled prison facility. And, of course, one important person to have on your team is a doctor. Lucky for Lori she can talk to Hershel about her pregnancy woes. Talk about a zombie baby, huh? What if the baby dies inside her then becomes a zombie. That is totally crazy yet it seems so possible since everyone who dies quickly turns to a zombie.

Another big reveal about zombies: They can play dead and bite your feet. So the old myth is true. It is really bad luck to step over the dead. Poor old Hershel. Rick had to play surgeon and cut his bitten leg off. That is really the major cringe moment of the episode.

Surprise! The surviving prisoners watched their ordeal in horror. Exciting episodes up ahead.

A first bite at Falling Skies

Do you wonder what will happen when aliens invade the Earth? You then have Falling Skies. I had the chance to catch up one episode of Falling Skies on AXN Asia channel this week. It makes a captivating story. To me it does because I am one guy who dream of being in space and have the chance to see what is out there, aliens included.

I do picture aliens as humanoid beings with big dome heads. Skitters doesn't look like that.  Rather, they are insect like creature. But they don't seem to be primal like the aliens we see in the "The Alien" movie in associate them with. One thing is certain so far, they didn't come here to eat us but just to scare us and  make a slave out of us. I wonder how it feels like to have that centipede like remote control attached to your back. Talk about putting chills to your spine literally.

Not only that, human survivors have to contend with the Mechs, the biped robot companions of the skitters. I do wonder why these robots are bipeds considering that their companion and possibly makers are the multi-legged skitters. Then again, this seem to be a multiple alien kind of invasion as some other alien will reveal itself as the show progress.Well the show looks so good so far.