DVD Talk Forum - The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

No one mentioned the scene at the beginning with Daryl eating the worm. Why that character is considered a sex symbol by many continues to elude me.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by boogieman03 (Post 12397281)

Remind me who that is? It's been a while since I read the comic books.

Comic Spoiler:

Spoiler:

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

This post is way off on a tangent because of something I realized...

Even though property ownership rights aren't actually recognized in their world any longer - but if they were recognized, it means with both Hershel and Beth dead that their family property has been inherited by Maggie...

In other words, it means "Maggie's Farm" sort of exists in the world of The Walking Dead.

<iframe width='480' height='360' src='http://www.eyeneer.com/embed/572' frameborder='0' allowfullscreen></iframe>

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by bluetoast (Post 12397957)

Comic Spoiler:

Spoiler:

About F'n time! This season has been an absolute bore so far.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by funkyryno (Post 12397950)

No one mentioned the scene at the beginning with Daryl eating the worm. Why that character is considered a sex symbol by many continues to elude me.

I agree he's gnarly as @#$%.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by bluetoast (Post 12397948)

I dunno, I've only seen about 3 episodes of Friends. :D But I can see your point if you believe the themes are repetitive.

No, I'm mostly fucking around. Clearly people living in a post apocalyptic world would be consumed with misery, anger, and depression. Clearly they'll talk about it with each other because they literally have nothing else to talk about. No TV, no movies, no work gossip, no friends gossip, nothing at all. Even books are basically worthless because they move during the day and no power at night (not to mention the added weight of a book). You either sulk or talk. And honestly, I think they spent more time sulking then talking in this episode.

In general, I liked it. Mild spoiler:

Spoiler:

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

Haven't looked at many posts in this thread cause someone kind of spoiled (I diverted my eyes just in time) who the guy is that shows up at the end (I don't read the comics) - but I wanted to stop by and say that I actually really liked this episode - I see a lot of bashing on the interwebs saying it was slow and boring - not for me.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

Quote:

Originally Posted by bluetoast (Post 12397957)

Comic Spoiler:

Spoiler:

Thank you. I had forgotten about him. I thought that (more comic spoilers)

Spoiler:

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by boogieman03 (Post 12398006)

Thank you. I had forgotten about him. I thought that (more comic spoilers)

Spoiler:

Further comic spoilers

Spoiler:

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

Two stinkers in a row. I'm very close to dropping this one again.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by Rival11 (Post 12397987)

The downside of shows with huge ratings .... viewers that need mindless action at all times and complain that nothing happened if they don't get it. This was one of the best episodes of the season.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by DthRdrX (Post 12398096)

.... viewers that need mindless action at all times and complain that nothing happened if they don't get it.

This kind of argument was nonsense during the previous seasons and it's nonsense now.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

I actually liked this episode for the most part, though it felt like an episode we've gotten two or three times before.

Except for the J Crew model that showed up at the end, nothing in it was especially memorable except for that scene with Maggie and Daryl sharing a moment together.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

Quote:

Originally Posted by DthRdrX (Post 12398096)

The downside of shows with huge ratings .... viewers that need mindless action at all times and complain that nothing happened if they don't get it. This was one of the best episodes of the season.

I don't watch every show for mindless action but I do watch this one for it.

That is because it's not really good at doing anything else. The characters aren't strong enough to support episodes like this nor is the writing staff skilled enough to make the dialogue not sound like it was written by a 5 year old.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by sracer (Post 12396757)

I was puzzled by Daryl's reaction though. Did he and Beth really bond that closely during that one night that they spent holed-up in the cabin?

Daryl was in a dark place, and not just the night in the cabin, but over the course of several episodes she brought him back from the depths.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by Tom Creo (Post 12397256)

When Rick said 'We are the Walking Dead" I thought BOOM, jumped the shark. lol

Right from the comic. (For size)

Spoiler:

It sounded clunky in the comic too.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by Abob Teff (Post 12397484)

The only time they came close to reestablishing humanity was while at the prison. Here they established "government", made their only attempt at sustainable survival, and developed a sense of an organized society.

Comic

Spoiler:

I can't speak for the comics, but based solely on what I see in the show

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Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by hanshotfirst1138 (Post 12398248)

It sounded clunky in the comic too.

Yeah that moment was a definite eye roller. Especially since he said it like 3 or 4 times in a row.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by Rival11 (Post 12397987)

After the deaths of Beth and Tyreese, I thought this was a good episode to slow it down and let it all sink in. They're stuck in a deep funk and trying to find a way to push forward. :shrug:

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by MikahC (Post 12397715)

It appears you have decided to interpret rules of society as being analogous to, say, rules of chess. Whereas chess can have hard and fast rules, the rules of society are typically not as rigid. And they can vary from one society to another (just like here). And they can change over time.

Rule. Noun. An authoritative, prescribed direction for conduct

Uh ... Definitely don't agree with this assessment. I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and say maybe we are not agreeing on the vernacular. Perhaps a sociologist can step in and correct us, but to me ...

Rules are formal, fairly static, and violations are punishable in a defined manner. They can be changed through a formal process. You drive 56 mph in a 55 mph zone and you get a ticket for breaking the rule (no, you probably wouldn't, but a cop would not be wrong). You run down the basketball court without dribbling and you have to forfeit the ball for breaking the rule.

What you seem to be describing are norms. Norms are informal, change with popular opinion, and violations result in social punishment. Farting in church will earn you some dirty looks and people won't want to sit by you. Having sex with the cleaning lady on your desk is frowned upon.

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Originally Posted by MikahC (Post 12397715)

One of the reasons Rick became the leader is because he was responsible for maintaining law and order pre-outbreak. He's seen as "authoritative". People look to him to maintain order and I'd even say... humanity.

If you choose to believe this is a society with no rules, you're just not paying attention. The rules change (as they do in our society), but they're there.

I will agree with you on the reason Rick became the de facto leader of the group. I highly disagree that Rick is still maintaining any sense of humanity. I also highly disagree that our society's rules change based on the scenario. Our laws are developed in a reactionary manner, but they don't change on a whim.

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Originally Posted by MikahC (Post 12397715)

They're not heroes, they're protagonists. That said, your position simply isn't true. They may not have done as much as quickly as you (in your comfortable environment watching TV) thinks they should have, but they have. I think people watching are sometimes way too hard on these people. They've balanced trying to settle in with fighting off various groups and holding out hope there's a better place or even a cure. There's no mass communication. They can't be sure there's not a cure somewhere else. Sometimes they want to go find it. Sometimes they want to just hunker down (like in the prison). But just because you'd make different decisions at different times doesn't make the decisions our protagonists make automatically stupid. Rick was a small town Sheriff. These were not people heading up Mensa before the outbreak.

Agreed on being protagonists not heroes. Agreed (and laughing my ass off) at them not heading up Mensa! I will also grant you that me disagreeing with their choices does not automatically make them stupid choices. The stupid choiced stand on their own.

I don't have an issue when they have a purpose. If there is good reason to believe there is hope at the CDC, Fort Benning, or Washington DC then I would go. Choosing to wander around in circles rather than trying to develop a sustainable survival method irks the living shit out of me though.

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Originally Posted by MikahC (Post 12397715)

No, they're not. However, they can behave savagely (as people in our society do). They have very much attempted to maintain as much of their humanity as possible. I'm not sure how much you've seen of real savages, but they place no value on life, and thus have no guilt over ending it. That's not our protagonists, at least not yet.

A bit of a straw man since the vast majority of societies they've encountered have been untenable or wanted to wipe them out. Let's take Woodbury. If the Gov wasn't doing what he did, our protagonists would still be there. They didn't happen upon that society and decide to just take it over for themselves.

The Governor was bad news egged on by Merle ... but the rest of Woodbury? Nah, lets charge in and start a war and kill everybody.

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Originally Posted by MikahC (Post 12397715)

How "coincidental" then, that the prison is the only environment they've encountered where they felt able to do so. Certainly people can say they could have stayed in Atlanta just like the people in the hospital, but that's subjective decision as to whether that'd work. Maybe the hospital people would tire of fighting for resources with them. Maybe the hospital people would gather strength and come after them.

Agreed on the prison. As for the rest ... (sarcasm here) you're right - preemptive strike. Let's wipe everybody out on the off chance they will eventually turn on us because we were being unsufferable douchebags. :rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by MikahC (Post 12397715)

It's just not as simple as you're making it out. And one of the reasons I continue watching a "Zombie Show" when I have zero interest in zombies, is because the talent involved gets that it's not simple.

The actors ... yes. The writers/show runner ... no.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by Jason (Post 12398266)

I can't speak for the comics, but based solely on what I see in the show

Spoiler:

I agree with your assessment. Rick is a control freak with trust issues, not a leader.

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

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Originally Posted by majorjoe23 (Post 12397462)

I thought we had already gotten the "We are The Walking Dead" speech a few seasons back. I must have misremembered.

Yeah, I thought this speech came back in season 2 when Rick told everyone the CDC scientist said they were all already infected, and that regardless of how they die they become walkers. Was that not the case?

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

If thats true, why repeat it? lol

Re: The Walking Dead (S5E10) -- "Them" -- 2/15/15

If true, then the only people that were around then were Carol, Daryl, Glenn, and Carl. Everyone else joined the group after that.

[edit]I think Rick told them about what the CDC guy said after they fled the farm, so add Maggie.