Last week’s episode of The Walking Dead saw a major change of opinion for a character who had previously toed the line.
With Eugene (Josh McDermitt) on trial, and Pamela Milton (Laila Robins) determined to see Eugene hang, it seemed likely that Eugene’s days were numbered.
Yumiko (Eleanor Matsuura) even went to Mercer (Michael James Shaw) to try and sway him in their favor. Still, the Commonwealth’s army leader insisted that he would not do anything against Pamela’s law.
Well, that was until the end of the episode, when he surprised everyone. Not only with his unscripted sweary line but because he was finally going to save someone because it was right and not because it was Pamela’s orders.
Now, as we head into Episode 23, the consequences of Mercer’s humane action will be explored.
And, with only one more episode after this remaining of The Walking Dead, it is no surprise that someone’s life will hang in the balance by the end.
Alexandria is reclaimed
We open the penultimate episode of The Walking Dead with yet another voiceover by Judith (Cailey Fleming). She is speaking of her family, those she misses, like her biological mom, and those who are dead or missing, like her brother, Carl (Chandler Riggs).
She is also getting ready for war.
Because this little a** kicker is determined to protect all of those she now considers her family.
Alexandria has now been reclaimed, and it turned out that all of the kids were being held there, so they are now safe again. Well, most of them. Rosita (Christian Serratos) and Father Gabriel’s (Seth Gilliam) daughter is still missing.
Meanwhile, the rest of the kids are expected to stay at Alexandria while the grownups play war, but Judith is taking none of that crap and insists on coming along.
So the grownups. Just. Let. Her.
Because this won’t end badly at all…
It’s time for Pamela to go down
While everyone is prepared to bring down the Commonwealth, Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) is the only one really prepared to say it out loud: Pamela must die.
And he seems to think he and Maggie (Lauren Cohan) are the ones to do it. However, we all know how Maggie feels about Negan, so this will be an uphill battle.
Seriously, he should probably read the room a little better and approach Carol (Melissa McBride) but then how would he and Maggie end up in The Walking Dead: Dead City together?
The train to Busan the Commonwealth
Catching the Commonwealth’s train back to the main community, some home truths come out.
Most notably, Negan and Ezekiel (Khary Payton) have a heart-to-heart regarding how bad Negan used to be and how much he has changed now that he has a wife and child to put first.
And he knows damned well that everyone else in the group is better than him, so they all deserve to live, not him.
Of course, Maggie is quietly listening to all this, and I guess that’s how they wind up on the same team in the spinoff series.
Meanwhile, Judith is chatting with Carol and Daryl (Norman Reedus) about how she misses her family, just to really hammer home that something bad is going to happen.
Eugene is A-Okay
Eugene is finally reunited with Max (Margot Bingham) and Yumiko, both of who thought he was about to lose his head, so it is a happy reunion.
Mercer also has a trusted guard along with him, but others are not nearly as trustworthy.
And, considering Mercer has had to tell Pamela that Eugene somehow miraculously escaped captivity, Pamela already has her on the ball and looking out for anything suss. I.e., Mercer.
Even still, it doesn’t take long for Princess (Paola Lázaro) to get in touch with Mercer and work out they are all on the same page now.
However, Eugene has to be left to his own devices, and he is told to stay low and hide, something that Eugene usually excels at.
But not today, Satan.
He will be the master of his destiny and quickly helps out after knocking out a guard who is searching for him.
He later takes out another guard and helps the main crew because of it.
A horde is coming
Pamela has decided on a tried and trusted method of controlling the masses, who are now riled up after Eugene’s trial brought out some home truths about their leader.
Once again, a horde is being brought to the walls of the Commonwealth, and their arrival is the excuse Pamela needs to lock everyone up while they “deal with it.”
She also has Mercer arrested because she knows he is up to some shady s**t.
He knows something weird is going on with the horde outside and tries to warn them as he is being taken away, but no one is interested in that.
This means no one is prepared when smart walkers start climbing the wall and f**king s**t up, but not in the way Mercer declared in Episode 22 of The Walking Dead.
People are going to die, but all that Pamela cares about is the elite, so to h**l with all the plebs, let’s just lock them up and let the walkers deal with them.
At least the Commonwealth guard who has been snooping on Mercer has finally worked out what a horrible trash human Pamela is.
Trapped in the crowd
Along with the smart zombies, Aaron’s (Ross Marquand) group is also pretending to be walkers to escape the Commonwealth guards on the hunt for them.
And before they arrive at the Commonwealth, they finally make it to a secure unit. Well, most of them do.
Jules (Alex Sgambati) is the first to get stuck in the crowd, so Luke (Dan Fogler) follows her.
Elijah (Okea Eme-Akwari) is another one that remains trapped in the horde, and in the process of Lydia (Cassady McClincy) trying to save him, she gets bitten.
And we all know what that means.
However, whether or not Lydia survives the field surgery remains to be seen. She’s alive for the moment but has lost a lot of blood.
And Elijah’s fate? No idea on that front, either.
Although Jerry (Copper Andrews), who headed out to find them, winds up with Jules inside the Commonwealth, so at least they’re okay.
The terrible thing that happens to Judith
The Alexandria group manages to sneak into the Commonwealth in the middle of the horde crisis.
However, things soon go awry.
Coming in through a tunnel that Mercer has purposely cleared, they wind up in the main hub, which is strangely deserted. Just as they realize things are suss, they are hit upon by guards.
A shootout ensues, and poor Judith gets shot in the process. And by Pamela, no less.
And that b***h insists it is their fault Judith got shot, not hers. Please let Negan and Maggie take her out in the Season 11 finale. Please.
Now the race is on to get her to medical attention, but, unfortunately, AMC has decided to leave us all on a cliffhanger in that regard, so we all have to wait until the finale episode ever of The Walking Dead to find out.
The Walking Dead airs every Sunday night at 9/8c on AMC.