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.

Last week, Rick and friends argued over whether or not to leave the prison for good (guess which choice won), while the Governor amassed an army out of any able-bodied Woodbury residents (regardless of age). Andrea decided to head to the prison in order to talk some sense into her old group, where she instead finally (finally) learned that underneath all his charm, the Governor is actually a pretty evil dude. She returned to Woodbury with the intent of killing Governor Phillip, but when opportunity knocked, she decided not to answer. What the hell Andrea. Everyone at the prison probably thinks he’s dead by now, so they’re going to be pretty disappointed to find out that he isn’t.

What’s next? Read on and find out! As always, there are plenty of spoilers below; you’ve been warned!

Episode Thoughts – ‘Clear’

Clear was definitely the most engrossing episode since The Walking Dead returned last month. It’s also the only episode in quite some time where we haven’t visited Woodbury OR the prison; are things getting old? Is it time for a change up?

Clear opens with Rick, Michonne, and Carl on a run for weapons (and baby supplies) in preparation for Woodbury’s inevitable attack. The trio (in their shiny new Hyundai) are headed for Rick’s hometown of King County, as the Sheriff’s department should still be pretty stocked with firepower. The three bypass a helpless hitchhiker before having to deal with a zombie horde; then they leave him behind AGAIN. I guess the car was full?

When they arrive at the sheriff’s office, Rick is perplexed to see that the place has been wiped clean. Only a single bullet remains, a far cry from the arsenal that Rick left just over a year ago (in Walking Dead years of course… it’s been almost 3 for us).

They decide to push further into the town; there are other places that may have guns, and they still need to locate supplies for Judith. It’s here that they start to notice that King County has gone a little weird; a pyre of burnt up walkers in the town’s courtyard, strange graffiti warning signs all over the place, and once they proceed further, walker traps at every corner. It doesn’t take long for the group to be fired upon, by the very same man who set up the traps.

Just when the battle is about to turn sour, Carl steps in to save the day (he sure has taken on the badass role since his mom passed). Rick works quickly; he confirms that the assailant is still breathing before removing his mask. Who’s underneath? Who else but Morgan; the man who all the way back in the pilot saved Rick’s life and told him all about the world he woke up in.

It’s at this point that Clear gets (and stays) both wonderful, and terribly, terribly sad. Rick carries Morgan into his current residence, and discovers that the man has lost it. Seemingly all to himself, the house contains a stockpile of weapons twice a large as the sheriff’s department ever had. The walls of the room are also covered with phrases, drawings, and the like that simply make no sense; the word “clear” is repeated over and over throughout the writing, almost as if Morgan has been keeping track of something.

But where’s Duane, you wonder? The camera pans ever so perfectly to the largest piece of writing in the room, ‘DUANE TURNED’. It’s at this moment you realize why Morgan is acting the way he is, and just why he’s gone crazy. You don’t know the half of it yet.

At this point, Michonne and Carl head off to do their own thing. Carl says that he wants to check the baby store for supplies for Judith, but he has ulterior motives and heads to a restaurant instead. Inside is a lot of walkers, and the only remaining picture of his mom. They use some of Morgan’s clever distractions to get through the building, and only run into trouble on the way out. Carl drops the picture, and Michonne goes back inside to get it (in a ridiculously short amount of time… without being noticed by any of the angry, hungry zombies). The two seem to make a pretty good team, and Carl seems genuinely thankful of Michonne’s help (even though it took him forever to accept it).

Back at Morgan’s, the guy finally wakes up, and for the first time in a long time Rick isn’t the crazy one. First he doesn’t recognize Rick, stabs him (which Rick barely seemed to react to… is stabbing not that big of a deal?), and tries to kill him before he is finally calmed down. It’s not until Rick shows Morgan his old radio before Morgan comes to; he first chastises Rick for not being on the other end of the radio calls, and then goes into one of (if not the) most emotional, well acted, heartbreaking monologues we’ve heard in the entire series. Morgan explains just what happened to his son, how he couldn’t (re)kill his wife, and just why he’s doing what he’s doing. Morgan has lost everything, and he’ll never accept anyone or anything again because of what he’s done. This is some insanely depressing shit; is Morgan simply trying to ‘clear’ the town of walkers so he can live easier, or is he doing it to ‘clear’ his conscience for not being able to kill his wife (thus causing the death of his son)?

Rick realizes that his old friend is gone, and for maybe the first time in his life, gives up. Strangely, he doesn’t give him a goodbye, thank him for the guns, or anything of the sort, he simply gets up and leaves. Carl is the only one to give Morgan a parting word, apologizing for shooting him, to which Morgan tells him to never be sorry.

Rick and Michonne seem to be getting along better, especially after sharing the fact that they both see/speak to dead people; our trio then fills their car with guns and supplies and heads on back to prison. They again pass the unfortunate hitchhiker, who hasn’t had the same luck that they have; his remains are strewn about the highway, blood covering a huge surface area. The car passes, reverses, and takes his supplies too before carrying on down the road. The credits roll, and that’s it for another week.

Again, Clear was the best episode since The Walking Dead‘s return from Winter break (it was also written by Scott Gimple; it’s clear he’s very capable of taking the reins as showrunner). It’s been some time since we’ve seen an episode so emotional, and it’s been even longer since we’ve had an episode simply dealing with the reality of the apocalypse instead of Woodbury vs. the Prison. We also spent the entirety of the episode bouncing between four characters instead of 20, making each action taken much more memorable and important.

It was great to see Morgan again, but it was heartbreaking to see him in his current state. Ever since that first episode, every Walking Dead fan has been waiting for the day that Duane and Morgan would show up again, whether it be to join our group or save their assess. The more melancholy reunion may not have been completely unexpected, but it’s certainly not what we wanted for such a memorable character.

Next week we’re back to fighting for the prison, and if the preview is any indication, Rick and the Governor are set to “talk” things out. Check out the promo for Season 3, Episode 13 – Arrow on the Doorpost below, and let us know what you thought of tonight’s episode!

Comic Comparison

There’s really only one event in this episode, and that is the return of Morgan Jones. As expected, things go a lot differently here than they did in the comic book.

Both reunions, of course, begin with Morgan making the first move; the AMC series has him shooting at Rick, Michonne, and Carl, while Kirkman’s book has him hit Rick with a shovel to surprise him. Unfortunately, Duane is also dead in both media, and that’s pretty much where the similarities end!

You just watched the episode, so you know what Morgan was like there; batshit crazy. He couldn’t kill his zombie wife, who later got to his son; he ended up having to put both of them down on what must have been the worst day of his life. The comic has him pulling a ‘Guvner; after Duane falls victim to some walkers, he ties him up in the house, hoping that a cure makes its rounds and lets him have his son back. He also begins to kill animals and people in order to keep his zombie son fed… the things a parent will do for their children, right?

While seemingly impossible in the series, Morgan’s not too hard to turn around in the comics. Rick quickly convinces him to finally let Duane rest, and Morgan then joins the group. He’s a good man, and quickly takes a liking to Carl as he reminds him of his own son.

I won’t say any more about Morgan here, there’s always a chance that he’ll make another appearance in the series, and then I won’t have anything to compare it too! The only other event from the episode was Carl and Michonne’s hunt for the Grimes family photo and supplies for Judith; baby supplies weren’t really necessary at this point in the comic, as Judith died at the same time that Lori did. Pretty sad stuff.

Four more episodes to go until the season ends! If you watched the preview for next week’s offering above, you know that negotiations are not going to go well, does that mean we’ll see a three episode battle for the prison (probably not… that seems a little long)? Will it be as bloody as it was in the comic book? Will Judith survive? Only time will tell!

As always, thanks for reading, and we’ll see you next week! You’ll probably want to check out the Walking Dead spoof from last night’s SNL while you wait for next week’s episode; it’s pretty damn hilarious! Watch it below!