[cleojakob]

plus didnt Rick leave a note/supplies on the Glenns stolen car at the quarry tellin Morgan where they were heading?? Im almost positive he did!

Rick most certainly did. I forgot about that.

[leon the pig farmer]

Here's a brief review of "clear".

This episode really wasn't what I was expecting. I'd like to see more like this, scavenging and scenes that make you think. especially loved the hitch hiker. That was great writing.
The guy was running around shouting and hollering and his mess tin was clanking away. Rick and his group knew they were dealing with an idiot liability. Loved the way they just ignored him and drove off. They knew something was up.

Meeting Morgan again was touching, especially the death of Morgan's son. The way Morgan described his wife killing his son was awful, brilliant writing and acting.

Ok, you guys are not gonna like this, but the similarities with Jericho are now way out of control (IMHO) I wish i'd never seen that bloody Jericho show.

Morgan in Jericho had a house full of weapons and food. Morgan in TWD has a house full of weapons and food and there's the on going war between the 2 camps.
Except Morgan in Jericho wasn't insane.

I liked the way that the characters are now brave around walkers, even nonchalant.

Do walkers eat other animals? I never caught that early on, I thought they only smelt Humans?

Michonne, she was more likable in this episode. It's great getting to know her character. Carl and Michonne had some good scenes together, they bonded. Cool.

I hope to see more of Morgan. I loved his town full of freaky booby traps and signs. Awesome. I want to see more of that.

Glad we never got any Woodbury in "Clear", I'm over that town and the war.

Anyhoo. That's my review.

[meesha1971]

Here's a brief review of "clear".

This episode really wasn't what I was expecting. I'd like to see more like this, scavenging and scenes that make you think. especially loved the hitch hiker. That was great writing.
The guy was running around shouting and hollering and his mess tin was clanking away. Rick and his group knew they were dealing with an idiot liability. Loved the way they just ignored him and drove off. They knew something was up.

Meeting Morgan again was touching, especially the death of Morgan's son. The way Morgan described his wife killing his son was awful, brilliant writing and acting.

Ok, you guys are not gonna like this, but the similarities with Jericho are now way out of control (IMHO) I wish i'd never seen that bloody Jericho show.

Morgan in Jericho had a house full of weapons and food. Morgan in TWD has a house full of weapons and food and there's the on going war between the 2 camps.
Except Morgan in Jericho wasn't insane.

I liked the way that the characters are now brave around walkers, even nonchalant.

Do walkers eat other animals? I never caught that early on, I thought they only smelt Humans?

Michonne, she was more likable in this episode. It's great getting to know her character. Carl and Michonne had some good scenes together, they bonded. Cool.

I hope to see more of Morgan. I loved his town full of freaky booby traps and signs. Awesome. I want to see more of that.

Glad we never got any Woodbury in "Clear", I'm over that town and the war.

Anyhoo. That's my review.

They have shown walkers eating a horse, a deer, and I believe a dog at one point. Rick and Daryl found some kind of small animal inside that walkers stomach they dissected when they were looking for Sophia. They also showed them eating cows on the farm - and they had Maggie and Hershel talking about how the herd of cattle would draw walkers to the farm since the weather changed and they wouldn't get stuck in those bogs. Walkers will pretty much eat any living thing - or fresh corpse. Morgan used rats in cages - which was pretty clever because the walkers would keep trying to get them and the cages would protect them so all Morgan would have to do is keep the rats alive.

I think you're just going to have to deal with the similarities to Jericho because any story in an apocalyptic setting is going to have similarities no matter what they do. It's unavoidable because there are situations that would occur in that setting regardless of what caused the apocalypse. Finding food, drinkable water, and shelter is the big thing in any apocalyptic story. Dealing with human enemies is the other big thing - no way to avoid that because other survivors will always be the biggest threat regardless of what caused the apocalypse. In TWD, the apocalypse was caused by a zombie uprising, but the zombies were going to become a manageable threat once they figured out what they were dealing with, how to kill them, and how to avoid them. Zombies can't think or plan so they really aren't even as big of a threat as wild animals would be. Wild animals use stealth while hunting where zombies just come at you when they see you. Zombies won't be having meetings to come up with strategy on how to break into your shelter to kill you - or trick you some way so they can kill you - and steal your supplies either. They won't duck or dive for cover when you shoot at them. The real suspense in a story like this comes from dealing with human enemies who can think, plan, and use stealth. They'll deal with the governor, but he won't be the last - they will have to deal with other human enemies as the story moves forward.

[the Walkin Dude]

Good review Leon, i am not positive but in the show that Dale got killed in i think the walker was munching on a dead cow. Also when Glen and someone i forget who went down to the sewer at the Dept. store they were trying to escape in Atlanta, i think the walker behind the locked grate was munching on a rat.

[Dr Cank]

good one "the walkin Dude" I forgot about the previous walker vs. rat encounter. I was going to add didn't Maggie feed the barn captive walkers chickens?

+1s for both of ya! excellent menagerie of zombi tapas

[meesha1971]

good one "the walkin Dude" I forgot about the previous walker vs. rat encounter. I was going to add didn't Maggie feed the barn captive walkers chickens?

+1s for both of ya! excellent menagerie of zombi tapas

I forgot about the chickens, but yeah - it was Patricia who broke the chicken's legs and fed them to the walkers in the barn.

[the Walkin Dude]

Man, i am a total idiot, i totally brain farted on the chickens.

[walkerbait13]

And there was that walker below the building in the sewer that was eating a rat.

[?youfollowme?]

I posted this in another thread, thought more people would read it here. Ben from twd game was from stone mountain. I thought that was a nice game easter egg

[Deadringer]

Anyone else notice the menu No KIA's messages in Morgan's room?

Didnt see that - I tried to read a lot of what was on the wall, so much crazy shit. I still wonder what 'IBBEN' means, if anything?
I guess guess the set designers went on a binge of bath salts and went decorating

[Steph]

Didnt see that - I tried to read a lot of what was on the wall, so much crazy shit. I still wonder what 'IBBEN' means, if anything?
I guess guess the set designers went on a binge of bath salts and went decorating

According to my google search, it's a small island north of the Dothraki sea in the world of GoT. That would be very badass if the set guys scrawled that over the walls as a shout out to GoT.

[Uninfected Walker]

Going along with the writing on the walk did anybody notice the "Eugene turned". Nice little comic easter egg.

[Uninfected Walker]

Walk=wall

[Judari]

I don't think it's the last reckless thing we'll see Carl do either, but I do think this was a good start to him learning that teamwork is a good thing and lying about where he's going - or sneaking off without telling anyone - is not. Unfortunately, the occasional reckless decision is to be expected even in adults - particularly when driven by strong emotions - so I'm not expecting any miracles. However, I wouldn't compare that situation to a child falling from a tree either. A child being caught falling out of a tree may or may not understand the pain and injury such a fall could actually cause depending on whether they've experienced it before or if they've seen something like that happen. Carl knows exactly what would have happened to him if he had been alone and marched into that cafe as he attempted to do before Michonne stopped him. He saw what one walker did to Dale and there were several walkers in there who would have "woken up" as soon as he stepped in. That particular situation was a good lesson in and of itself because Carl had lied to Rick about where he was going and, had he been alone, he would have been killed without his father having any idea where he was. Michonne stopped him from reacting emotionally and rushing back in to get the picture and the way she helped him get it reinforced the lesson that it's better to work with others. It's certainly not an instant cure for recklessness, but it does address the problem and plant those seeds in Carl's mind.

I wouldn't count the situation with Tyreese simply because Rick did put Carl in charge when he left to go to Woodbury and Carl didn't actually sneak off in that scenario. They heard people screaming and Carl told the others that he was going to check it out. Doing that alone was not a good decision, but he did at least tell them where he was going and why. Sneaking off without telling anyone is more problematic. Carl thinks he's following Rick's example in situations like that, but he hasn't really stopped to consider that Rick doesn't try to handle things like that alone or without telling anyone what's going on, where he's going, etc... That's what Lori tried to explain to Carl when he sneaked off to find the infirmary by himself, but Carl didn't want to listen to her. He expected praise for finding the infirmary and being able to handle himself and he couldn't understand why anyone would be upset because nothing bad happened. At 12, it can be very difficult to visualize all the things that could go wrong - particularly when you're trying to prove yourself and/or imagining yourself to be the hero. Carl needs to learn how to stop and figure out what could go wrong because, anything that can go wrong, generally will go wrong. I think this experience was a big step in the right direction and I hope we'll see more of that with Carl.

I compared it to the tree because regardless if the child understands the dangers or not, the same air of indestructibility is present. Carl's problem is he knows the dangers and doesn't seem to care or just does not acknowledge them. I think you are correct in that Michonne was trying to show him the value of team work and the dangers of not relying on others but I just didn't see it sink in at all with him. At this stage and all he's been through with Dale and the walker and just surviving this long, those seeds should already be planted. Heck, the seeds should be a rain forest at this point. I just think if someone dying because of his carelessness didn't plant seeds, Michonne saving him wont either as its not the first time he has been saved from walkers, he has been running from them for months.

I still count the Tyreese situation because he was still going alone and had no idea what he would encounter so it was reckless. IMO sneaking off isn't the only qualifying factor in the reckless of Carl's actions but I do think it does make the action just that much more reckless if he does sneak off. I was thinking as well where he could have gotten the idea that going off on his own was a good idea and while my first thought was Rick I realized, like you that Rick always has a plan and rarely if ever goes it alone. Thinking about it I realized its more Daryl that goes off on his own. Even though Daryl hasn't done this as much in S3 as he has in S2 perhaps Carl thinks that in order to prove himself to his dad he has to be more like Daryl since Daryl is his dad's right hand?

[meesha1971]

I compared it to the tree because regardless if the child understands the dangers or not, the same air of indestructibility is present. Carl's problem is he knows the dangers and doesn't seem to care or just does not acknowledge them. I think you are correct in that Michonne was trying to show him the value of team work and the dangers of not relying on others but I just didn't see it sink in at all with him. At this stage and all he's been through with Dale and the walker and just surviving this long, those seeds should already be planted. Heck, the seeds should be a rain forest at this point. I just think if someone dying because of his carelessness didn't plant seeds, Michonne saving him wont either as its not the first time he has been saved from walkers, he has been running from them for months.

I think the difference stems from really understanding the dangers. On the farm, they all became complacent because it appeared to be a safe haven with natural barriers preventing walkers from getting to them. When Carl encountered that walker in the woods, it was stuck so he didn't see it as a threat to him. Even when it pulled one leg free and managed to grab his ankle, the other leg was still stuck so Carl was able to get away. I think Carl believed that walker would not be able to get out completely - what scared him was the idea that the walker could have pulled him over to him more than the idea of him getting out of that bog. Dale's death made them all realize that the changing weather made it possible for walkers to get on the farm and Carl felt guilty because he didn't kill the walker himself. I think his current behavior reflects that guilt - he seems to think it's necessary to do things on his own to prove himself. That was the seed planted when Dale died - he should have killed that walker himself.

Michonne explained things to him in a way he could understand. There are some things you cannot do on your own - and some things you shouldn't try to do on your own. This is how we get things done - not I or you, but we. The emphasis was on working together in order to survive. That situation was very different from the single walker stuck in a bog on the farm. There were more walkers there and none of them were stuck. Alone, Carl would have been killed and I think he does realize that now - or is starting to at least. This is really the first time that Carl has faced a threat like that. The single walker on the farm - a couple of walkers when he was looking for the infirmary - Carl didn't really see those situations as major threats to himself. Walking away from them unscathed didn't help that attitude. This time, he has to acknowledge that Michonne saved his life in that cafe - he would have died if she hadn't been there. I think that will have more of an impact on him.

I still count the Tyreese situation because he was still going alone and had no idea what he would encounter so it was reckless. IMO sneaking off isn't the only qualifying factor in the reckless of Carl's actions but I do think it does make the action just that much more reckless if he does sneak off. I was thinking as well where he could have gotten the idea that going off on his own was a good idea and while my first thought was Rick I realized, like you that Rick always has a plan and rarely if ever goes it alone. Thinking about it I realized its more Daryl that goes off on his own. Even though Daryl hasn't done this as much in S3 as he has in S2 perhaps Carl thinks that in order to prove himself to his dad he has to be more like Daryl since Daryl is his dad's right hand?

The only reason I don't count the situation with Tyreese is because Rick told Carl he was in charge while he was gone. Carl acted based on that - he was the leader until Rick returned and he has it in his mind that's what a leader should do. When Hershel tried to stop him, Carl countered by telling him that's what his dad would do. Carl was partially wrong because Rick would not have gone alone, but nobody corrected him on that. It was a mistake, but it was made due to Carl not really understanding what it means to be a leader and mistakenly thinking his dad would have handled it the same way.

You make an interesting point about Daryl though. Carl is trying to emulate his father - as evidenced by his comment to Hershel - but he is also influenced by Daryl. I think Carl has come to admire Daryl quite a bit - going back to that day he encountered that walker on the farm, it appeared that he was looking for Daryl when he went into the woods. He went to where Daryl had set up his camp by himself - played with the motorcycle, took the gun, etc... Carl's confusion about how Rick would handle things could stem from his view of Daryl as well. Daryl was always more of a loner and that has only changed recently. In a way, Daryl had to learn that lesson as well - if he hadn't gone off by himself in Chupacabra, things would have gone smoother for him that day. Daryl doesn't really do that now, but he did when they were on the farm so I can see where that would influence Carl's thinking.

Mostly I think Carl is just trying to prove himself and thinks that he needs to do things on his own in order to do so. That's pretty common with kids. From the two year old insisting "me do it" to the teenager begging their parents to let them go to that party or concert without chaperones. It's all about independence really. Carl was forced into adult situations at a young age because of the ZA, but he is still a pre-teen. Lori's efforts to shelter and protect him naturally led to him rebelling because he wanted to prove himself as a valuable member of the group. He wants to be seen as independent and capable of taking care of himself. The problem is that they now live in a world where the problems typically involve life or death situations so Carl is going to have to learn that doing things on his own is not always going to be feasible and accepting help doesn't mean he's not independent or capable of taking care of himself.

[SteadyEddie]

Eyefuck is definitely the wrong usage. I don't care what urban dictionary or a lame meme says.
What happened, is that Rick and Carl gave her the STINK-EYE.
THAT'S what happened.

Urban dictionary would disagree with you lol. http://www.urbandict...p?term=eye fuck

This is actually the first time I have seen that exp<b></b>ression used to insinuate anything other than a sexual look. Their looks say more "Are you f*cking kidding me" rather than come hither imo, but to each their own. I don't judge people for the type of feels TWD gives them

[kataurmayor]

Getting back on subject.. I have to say andy lincoln was right this was best episode since the pilot.. It was like part 2 to days gone bye if it was a movie.. Anyway the writing was perfection on this one.

[backwoodsroamer]

Michonne at last showed some actual humanity and personality. She was good with Carl, partly because she comes across as a bit adolescent IMO. But after her words to Andrea last week about wanting to hurt her, Michonne has some ways to go before I’ll think of her as anything but petty, mean-spirited and immature.

I agree that Carl is a typical child/adolescent who believes he is invulnerable. If Michonne hasn’t been with him, he would not have survived.

I was thinking I had imagined this. Michonne seemed more like an older, yet not an adult sister, which was the perfect approach for Carl. He just needs a little nudge here and there, not a push. She treated him as an equal which often works well with many precocious children, but few adults ever try it.

The almost playful attitude Michonne had in parts of this episode should have rang false after the way she's been depicted so far, but for me at least it seemed perfectly played.

[Cammi]

I was left with such bittersweet feelings. I was so happy to see Morgan but so sad to see how his past year has been and that he isn't coming to the prison. I had hoped he would come with them but I understand why not. He might have lost less people in his life the past year than Rick has, but he's been so isolated, it was sad. Guilt is tearing him up so much, I really do hope this brings Rick back.

I also enjoyed the interaction between Michionne and Rick at the end. When he was looking out theSUV window, I kept thinking back to Shane and 18 miles out when he was watching the roamer in the field, a moment of self reflection for both Rick and Shane. I was confused on why Michionne was driving though, just seemed odd.

It was nice to have a break from Andrea and The Gov, I enjoyed this episode quite a bit. Is it wrong that I told my son that I wouldn't ever eat him and that I give him permission to shoot me guilt free?

I think his allowing Michonne to drive back was his way of "relininquising leadership" as Carl has suggested. I also think it's an indication that he's trusting her (and Carl's judgement) a little more. I'm glad because I really wanted Michonne to be incorporated into the group as she has so much to offer.

[Cammi]

I wasn't thinking that. But their visit to King county raises a question: what's so great about the prison anyway? Morgan had a pretty decent setup right there with plenty of guns and food too. Why not bring the group back to king county? It seems safer than the prison at this point. It didn't look overrun with walkers and Morgan was able to stay alive all by himself for over a year, so why can't they?

That's a very good point!!!!! That thought did cross my mind.

[Valleyaggie]

I think the difference stems from really understanding the dangers. On the farm, they all became complacent because it appeared to be a safe haven with natural barriers preventing walkers from getting to them. When Carl encountered that walker in the woods, it was stuck so he didn't see it as a threat to him. Even when it pulled one leg free and managed to grab his ankle, the other leg was still stuck so Carl was able to get away. I think Carl believed that walker would not be able to get out completely - what scared him was the idea that the walker could have pulled him over to him more than the idea of him getting out of that bog. Dale's death made them all realize that the changing weather made it possible for walkers to get on the farm and Carl felt guilty because he didn't kill the walker himself. I think his current behavior reflects that guilt - he seems to think it's necessary to do things on his own to prove himself. That was the seed planted when Dale died - he should have killed that walker himself.

Michonne explained things to him in a way he could understand. There are some things you cannot do on your own - and some things you shouldn't try to do on your own. This is how we get things done - not I or you, but we. The emphasis was on working together in order to survive. That situation was very different from the single walker stuck in a bog on the farm. There were more walkers there and none of them were stuck. Alone, Carl would have been killed and I think he does realize that now - or is starting to at least. This is really the first time that Carl has faced a threat like that. The single walker on the farm - a couple of walkers when he was looking for the infirmary - Carl didn't really see those situations as major threats to himself. Walking away from them unscathed didn't help that attitude. This time, he has to acknowledge that Michonne saved his life in that cafe - he would have died if she hadn't been there. I think that will have more of an impact on him.



The only reason I don't count the situation with Tyreese is because Rick told Carl he was in charge while he was gone. Carl acted based on that - he was the leader until Rick returned and he has it in his mind that's what a leader should do. When Hershel tried to stop him, Carl countered by telling him that's what his dad would do. Carl was partially wrong because Rick would not have gone alone, but nobody corrected him on that. It was a mistake, but it was made due to Carl not really understanding what it means to be a leader and mistakenly thinking his dad would have handled it the same way.

You make an interesting point about Daryl though. Carl is trying to emulate his father - as evidenced by his comment to Hershel - but he is also influenced by Daryl. I think Carl has come to admire Daryl quite a bit - going back to that day he encountered that walker on the farm, it appeared that he was looking for Daryl when he went into the woods. He went to where Daryl had set up his camp by himself - played with the motorcycle, took the gun, etc... Carl's confusion about how Rick would handle things could stem from his view of Daryl as well. Daryl was always more of a loner and that has only changed recently. In a way, Daryl had to learn that lesson as well - if he hadn't gone off by himself in Chupacabra, things would have gone smoother for him that day. Daryl doesn't really do that now, but he did when they were on the farm so I can see where that would influence Carl's thinking.

Mostly I think Carl is just trying to prove himself and thinks that he needs to do things on his own in order to do so. That's pretty common with kids. From the two year old insisting "me do it" to the teenager begging their parents to let them go to that party or concert without chaperones. It's all about independence really. Carl was forced into adult situations at a young age because of the ZA, but he is still a pre-teen. Lori's efforts to shelter and protect him naturally led to him rebelling because he wanted to prove himself as a valuable member of the group. He wants to be seen as independent and capable of taking care of himself. The problem is that they now live in a world where the problems typically involve life or death situations so Carl is going to have to learn that doing things on his own is not always going to be feasible and accepting help doesn't mean he's not independent or capable of taking care of himself.

Excellent analysis, Meesha. I agree 100%.

I was thinking I had imagined this. Michonne seemed more like an older, yet not an adult sister, which was the perfect approach for Carl. He just needs a little nudge here and there, not a push. She treated him as an equal which often works well with many precocious children, but few adults ever try it.

The almost playful attitude Michonne had in parts of this episode should have rang false after the way she's been depicted so far, but for me at least it seemed perfectly played.

I agree 100% with you as well, Roamer.

[Dr Cank]

In regards to Rick and crew having a setup similar to Morgan's.

I fear Morgan had never encountered a herd before. Rick witnessing the massive numbers of walkers first hand, knows that Morgans defenses, though effective against maybe one or two dozen walkers at a time, would be overrun by a herd. granted you can hide from a herd, wlkers are quite persistent and eventually you would need to exit into streets crawling with walkers.

[Singlyme]

I just think if someone dying because of his carelessness didn't plant seeds, Michonne saving him wont either as its not the first time he has been saved from walkers, he has been running from them for months.

I'm thinking we may see a change in Carl under Michonne's influence. The smile he gave Rick while packing the car seemed to denote approval, if not admiration. She knows how to handle him. Everyone else in the prison has other things to worry about. Carl has the designation of being the kid who has to grow up quickly. Michonne was more a buddy to him than anyone has been thus far on the show. More than that, she didn't view his need of the picture as something trivial, but something worthy of risk.

When Rick made the comment, "I see things," it seemed to me a healthy step in admitting he hasn't been in the best mental health. She identified with the revelation and allowed for it. Yes. I see good things for this threesome. Tight trust and friendship - between all three.

[SteadyEddie]

I think his allowing Michonne to drive back was his way of "relininquising leadership" as Carl has suggested. I also think it's an indication that he's trusting her (and Carl's judgement) a little more. I'm glad because I really wanted Michonne to be incorporated into the group as she has so much to offer.

I thought the same thing. It symbolized Rick trusting others to handle some of the leadership, the decision-making. You put people in leadership positions, you have to trust them.

[Cammi]

It was great and also painful to see Morgan again. I hope he can make peace with himself and join Rick's group at some point. Overall this was a great character development episode and like many are saying, I'm glad Michonne is opening up more and gaining the trust of Rick & Carl. Rick knows she's an incredible asset to his group and I'm thinking he's going to want to keep her around.

I seriously doubt that Morgan will go to them, though. It would make more sense for them to go back to where Morgan is as a group (even if it's just during an escape and they're going to pick him up.