The Walking Dead: TS-19 Rewatch
December 13, 2014 8:26 AM - Season 1, Episode 6 - Subscribe
In the Season 1 finale, the group finds shelter at the CDC, and Rick learns a disturbing secret. Of course, the relative safety and comfort doesn't last long...
... and here it is: the episode of The Walking Dead that was so bad I stopped watching for over a year.
Jenner was an exercise in 'tell, don't show.' Nothing but lectures and arguments, complete with a completely inexplicable refusal to tell them the most important piece of information to support his argument. Plus the dreadful CGI display about 'here is your brain on the zombie plague.'
Worse was Dale's willingness to literally die to save Andrea, but neither of them displaying much interest in Jacqui. It was stomach churning. (Dale's dialogue was too: 'The matter is settled?' Really?)
In retrospect, I might have continued to watch the show despite just how bad this was if not for Vatos, but it was clearly a trend. (I later went back and caught S2/S3 out of morbid curiosity, but the show was mostly a disaster until S4, IMO. The first time I went 'yay, more Walking Dead next week' was after the S4 premiere.)
posted by mordax at 11:19 AM on December 13, 2014 [5 favorites]
Jenner was an exercise in 'tell, don't show.' Nothing but lectures and arguments, complete with a completely inexplicable refusal to tell them the most important piece of information to support his argument. Plus the dreadful CGI display about 'here is your brain on the zombie plague.'
Worse was Dale's willingness to literally die to save Andrea, but neither of them displaying much interest in Jacqui. It was stomach churning. (Dale's dialogue was too: 'The matter is settled?' Really?)
In retrospect, I might have continued to watch the show despite just how bad this was if not for Vatos, but it was clearly a trend. (I later went back and caught S2/S3 out of morbid curiosity, but the show was mostly a disaster until S4, IMO. The first time I went 'yay, more Walking Dead next week' was after the S4 premiere.)
posted by mordax at 11:19 AM on December 13, 2014 [5 favorites]
Carol had Rick's grenade in her purse.
The whole episode.
posted by cashman at 12:36 PM on December 13, 2014 [2 favorites]
The whole episode.
posted by cashman at 12:36 PM on December 13, 2014 [2 favorites]
Yeah this was essentially where I gave up too. I realized they were never going to do the Andrea of the comics any justice. Sure there she's a stereotypical Strong Female Character but that is so much better than... this. I stuck it out through the first half of season 2 and kept up on what filters through the popular consciousness but so not interested in ever watching any more.
posted by yellowbinder at 12:36 PM on December 13, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by yellowbinder at 12:36 PM on December 13, 2014 [1 favorite]
I almost gave up after the pilot. I'm glad I didn't though.
A funny thing about this episode was that for a time that TS-19 gif where Jenner's wife is shown on cat scan or whatever and dies, comes back, then is shot? That went around on Tumblr and a lot of people actually believed it was real. Too funny.
posted by cashman at 6:55 PM on December 13, 2014
A funny thing about this episode was that for a time that TS-19 gif where Jenner's wife is shown on cat scan or whatever and dies, comes back, then is shot? That went around on Tumblr and a lot of people actually believed it was real. Too funny.
posted by cashman at 6:55 PM on December 13, 2014
... and here it is: the episode of The Walking Dead that was so bad I stopped watching for over a year.
You're not alone. I abandoned it until I happened entirely by chance to see the excellent Season 5 opener.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 11:57 PM on December 14, 2014
You're not alone. I abandoned it until I happened entirely by chance to see the excellent Season 5 opener.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 11:57 PM on December 14, 2014
As an Atlantan, the CDC was one of those things that kept throwing me out of frame, mostly because I recognized the "CDC" as the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center and I kept thinking a ballet troupe was going to dance through at any minute. It did not help me take this final episode, which felt forced and overly melodramatic, any more seriously.
posted by Panjandrum at 1:46 PM on December 15, 2014 [2 favorites]
posted by Panjandrum at 1:46 PM on December 15, 2014 [2 favorites]
Worse was Dale's willingness to literally die to save Andrea, but neither of them displaying much interest in Jacqui. It was stomach churning.
Oh my god, yes. What was that all about?
"I've decided to kill myself"
"OK, have fun with that"
"Me too."
"NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!"
posted by misfish at 7:23 PM on December 15, 2014 [2 favorites]
Oh my god, yes. What was that all about?
"I've decided to kill myself"
"OK, have fun with that"
"Me too."
"NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!"
posted by misfish at 7:23 PM on December 15, 2014 [2 favorites]
Oh my god, yes. What was that all about?
I think it simply didn't occur to them that this was wrong, honestly.
posted by mordax at 10:56 AM on December 16, 2014
I think it simply didn't occur to them that this was wrong, honestly.
posted by mordax at 10:56 AM on December 16, 2014
I think it was a combination of things. When Andrew was watching over Amy, waiting for her to reanimate, Dale came and talked to her about his now-deceased wife. I think that and some other moments were supposed to be showing that Dale felt a special connection with Andrea over the lost of a close loved one, almost to the point of feeling a responsibility for that specific person. So when Andrea was giving up, Dale felt that his connection with her meant he should help her want to live.
He had no such scene/connection with Jacqui. I was disappointed that T-Dog got all wide-eyed when Jacqui was giving up, then T-Dog just let himself be taken away, and just kind of gave up on her. No hug, no moment, just - okay, I'll never see you again, peace out.
And I think the other thing is that the writers just didn't treat Jacqui like they would a white character. Especially not a white female character. Jacqui arguably saved all their lives by rolling over on Jim. And they just let her go. The most she's gotten since is being a voice on the phone and having Andrea, I think, say she missed Jacqui a couple seasons later.
posted by cashman at 7:33 AM on December 17, 2014 [2 favorites]
He had no such scene/connection with Jacqui. I was disappointed that T-Dog got all wide-eyed when Jacqui was giving up, then T-Dog just let himself be taken away, and just kind of gave up on her. No hug, no moment, just - okay, I'll never see you again, peace out.
And I think the other thing is that the writers just didn't treat Jacqui like they would a white character. Especially not a white female character. Jacqui arguably saved all their lives by rolling over on Jim. And they just let her go. The most she's gotten since is being a voice on the phone and having Andrea, I think, say she missed Jacqui a couple seasons later.
posted by cashman at 7:33 AM on December 17, 2014 [2 favorites]
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posted by sammyo at 9:52 AM on December 13, 2014 [1 favorite]