Welcome to Walking Dead Weekly! As the title implies, each week (bearing a new episode of course), we’ll be taking a look at the latest episode of the AMC series. I’ll let you know how I felt about each weekly offering, and will also compare it to what Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard were doing with the comic at the same time.

It’s been seven days now and I’m still thinking about what we witnessed last week. Killer Within offered a nice mix of the West Georgia Correctional Facility and apparent safe haven of Woodbury (though honestly the time we spent in the town was nowhere near as interesting as the events at the prison). Absolutely everything went to shit for Rick and the gang thanks to the reappearance of the much-less-dead-than-expected Andrew. We lost two (or possibly more) core characters during the incredibly intense 42 minutes, and the episode closed with Rick’s heartbreaking reaction to the death of his estranged wife.

Killer Within was my favourite episode of the series, bar none. How did this week stack up? You’ll have to read on to find out! As always, there are plenty of spoilers below! You’ve been warned!

Episode Thoughts – ‘Say The Word’

Killer Within’s intense, heartbreaking conclusion left me absolutely pining to get back in this world. The death of Lori Grimes was an insane event that I’m sure few saw coming (I know I didn’t), and that few are likely to forget. For possibly the first time since the series began, my jaw literally dropped as I watched what unfolded, and season 3 of The Walking Dead solidified its place as by far the most memorable season yet.

Say The Word began on a completely different note than I’d expected. Rather than the deep melancholy of our survivors after the deaths of some of their best friends, the episode faded in to a celebration (for reasons unknown) in the town of Woodbury. The scene was akin to the opening of season 3 of Lost (our first look at the Others in their very own society), confusing and completely opposite of what you had prepared yourself for. This was an awesome feeling, and one that subtly let you know that before Say The Word would come to a close, even more strange events would unravel before your eyes.

During the gathering Andrea asks the purpose of the celebration, and the answer she receives is an absolutely perfect response: “Mere words cannot adequately describe the festivities ahead”. This again foreshadows the fact that you’ll be asking yourself what the hell is going on before the episode comes to a close (and believe me, you will).

Before we head back to the prison, we’re treated to a side of Governor Phillip that we haven’t yet seen: loving father. After a long day of governing, he tells his daughter about his day while brushing her long brown hair. Oh yeah, she’s a fucking zombie. Didn’t I say AGES ago that this guy was sick?

The opening credits roll, and we’re brought back to the prison just moments after Killer Within came to a close. Rick is in shock, and seems unable to see or hear anything that is happening around him. The rest of the survivors are trying to calm the crying newborn, and quickly realize that the child will starve unless they can locate some formula. Without saying a word, Rick grabs an axe and heads into the prison determined to split some walker skulls.

In Woodbury, Michonne is sick of living without her sword, so she heads into the Governor’s office to take it back. She hops out a window before she’s seen, where she finds a rather horrific sight: caged walkers. Why would the town be holding walkers? She takes care of the group rather quickly, but not before someone spots her.

Things in Woodbury get interesting quickly past this point. After a quick altercation with Phillip, Michonne determines that it’s time for her to leave the town. She gives Andrea an ultimatum: she either leaves with Michonne (the woman who saved her from certain death, and cared for her for months upon end), or she can stay in the town that isn’t what it seems to be, the town that Michonne has been warning her about since their arrival. Andrea of course chooses to stay in Woodbury, for the Governor is a seductive gentleman (if only she knew).

Glenn is busy digging graves at the farm. The really interesting thing here is that he tells Oscar and Axel (who the group seems to be treating a bit better now) that they need three of them. There’s T-Dog and Lori of course, but who is the third? Did Carol fall victim after T-Dog sacrificed himself to save her? Glenn passes digging duty on to the two remaining inmates and decides to go console Rick. Rick is fucking crazy and has none of it: he looks at Glenn as though he’s about to kill him before throwing him out of the cell block. All without saying a word.

Apparently baby formula isn’t too hard to find, as one of the first houses that Maggie and Daryl enter seems to have an abundance of it (though I’m not complaining, the last thing I wanted was a Sofia length search for some freaking baby food). The pair returns to the prison to feed the hungry newborn, and it already seems as though a third of the group didn’t just die.

Back in Woodbury, the Governor accompanies Andrea to the much anticipated festivities of the evening. She’s disgusted, and rightfully so: think of a gladiator battle, but with less weapons, and chained zombies around the outside of the ring. The governor assures her that the event is staged, that nobody will be hurt, and that this simply helps the town to blow off steam.

The Woodbury reveal shows just how sick people can get for a little entertainment, but the scene that closed the episode is sure to draw even more questions. A tired, suicidal looking Rick, covered in blood and zombie parts after the hellish day he just had, hears a phone ring. He stands, approaches it, and puts it to the ear. As he says “hello”, the episode cuts to black, leaving us wondering for another week, WHO IS ON THE OTHER END?

As is typical with this season, Say The Word was entertaining as hell. That being said, I’d probably also note that this fifth episode (in my opinion) is the weak point of the season so far. Sure there were a some interesting reveals, but few important events or realizations occurred, and I had a few other issues that remained with me through the duration of the chapter. First, CG effects were noticeably worse in this episode than they’ve been in the past, just watch Rick axing up those walkers if you need an example. Second, DID CAROL EVER EXIST? How does the entire group get through the day without ever asking “hey guys, has anyone seen Carol?” Is that who the third grave was for? You’d think someone would at least mention something.

That being said, seeing a new side to the Governor was an interesting twist that I’m sure people weren’t expecting. Why is he keeping his daughter there? Why does he act as though she’s still human? Why does the town of Woodbury love watching people fight so much? Who the hell was on the phone?

I’m sure we’ll be getting at least a few answers when the next episode hits. As always, We left the show with a preview for next week’s chapter, Hounded.

Comic Comparison

As the third season of AMC’s version of The Walking Dead continues to progress, the fork between the screen and paper versions of the media continues to spread.

As I mentioned last week, the death of Lori Grimes was exponentially different between the two versions. In Robert Kirkman’s edition, Lori (and not-so-newborn) baby Judith fell victim to the Governor’s minions. They literally took a shotgun blast right in front of Rick and Carl, an event that was sure to haunt the father and son for the rest of their lives. Most of the other survivors also perish in the comic at around the same time. Of course, the show had Lori die giving birth to the child, who at this point still remains unnamed. For these reasons, the quest for baby formula is one that was never necessary on paper, but takes up a healthy piece of Say The Word.

Rick’s handling of Lori’s death is also extremely different between versions. AMC depicts him going on a silent, zombie slaughtering rampage, while on paper his reaction is much less kinetic. Kirkman has the man get sick (whether simply physical, or sick with guilt and remorse I’m not certain), almost to the point of death.

While still on the subject of death, if AMC has really killed Carol off (which I doubt at this point), it was a very different death from the one she would suffer on paper. Kirkman has the character go batshit crazy after she finds her partner cheating. She willingly lets a zombie bite her, which obviously leads her to die and turn into a walker herself. Again, I doubt that AMC has killed her off at this point: I can’t see them spending an entire season searching for her dead daughter, only to not even give her a mention when she disappears from the group.

Say The Word finally introduces us to the zombie gladiator battles that we saw much earlier in the comics, though the show has them introduced to us in a friendly manner, with a character we know simply watching. In the paper version, our survivors were to be part of the games.

The character of The Governor is one that (at this point anyways) appears to be vastly different between media. As in the comics, Say The Word introduced us to the man’s daughter, but his relationship with her in the AMC series seems much, much more innocent. David Morrissey’s portrayal of the character (even though he does bad shit) is one that has you constantly questioning the true nature of the character, while in the comic, there was nothing at all to question, the guy was disgusting 100% of the time.

Another positive change that’s hard to put into a picture: we’re seeing way more of Woodbury than we ever got to in the comics. This is fantastic! The place is interesting as hell, and I’m always happy to get a glimpse into what weird shit is going on there.

As you can see, things are moving along quite differently between the two versions. In saying that, I should also say (if it hasn’t come across as obvious) that I’ve been thoroughly impressed with season 3 of the show. By far it’s been the most enjoyable season, and while not every episode can be on par with last week’s wonderful Killer Within, we’re still lucky to be getting TV this good every week.

As always, thanks for reading! I’ll be back next week to cover Hounded.