HOLLYWOOD—It’s the moment that we have all been waiting for: the mid-season finale of season six of “The Walking Dead.” This week’s episode ‘Start to Finish’ opened with a peculiar scene that saw Sam placing his plate of food near the landing, while coloring and playing with toys in his bedroom. One slight problem, the music playing in his bedroom was a huge distraction as a bevy of ants swarmed a cookie he left in his room. It was more of an analogy of the chaos that was dawning upon Alexandria.
With the gate now broken, the walkers descended into Alexandria and literally all hell broke loose in a matter of minutes. Rick, being the notorious leader that he is urged everyone to get back into their homes as Deanna did her best to assist him. Carol nearly met a dangerous demise after falling to the ground and sought shelter with Morgan. A pregnant Maggie was nearly walker food, and held onto dear life, as walkers grabbed after her. Gosh, only 10 minutes in, and the episode has me on edge.
Per usual Eugene froze up when he was approached by a walker; he had a machete in his hand, so what the hell? Jessie came to the crew’s rescue when they were surrounded by walkers. So the peaceful town is no longer peaceful. Enid was ready to throw in the towel, but Glenn tried to inspire a bit of hope into her. Wow, slightly stunned that he was aware that his wife was preggers, call it an instinct.
Sam was completely dazed when he heard all the chaos emerging in his house. Please, dear God please, don’t let the writers take us down a dark path in killing one of the kids? Carol and Morgan were forced to be honest with each other about their current predicament. Her tumble was having an impact on her ability to react with ease.
The town’s doctor found herself trapped with a member of the wolf crew who scared her to death. Jesus, this guy is creepy beyond creepy and he barely utters that many words. Are we sure he didn’t suffer a walker bite? Don’t do it, I was screaming at the TV screen for the town’s doctor to flee. While treating Deanna, Rick and Michionne discovered she had been bitten by a walker.
Rick broke the news to Jessie about Deanna’s current condition, just as Michionne and the town’s leader developed a deeper bond in a dire state of mind. Carl decided to confront Ron who was an emotional mess, and the two teens had a conversation about their fathers. Both realized their fathers are killers!
Ron pulled out a gun on Carl and a vicious battle ensued where the walkers stormed the house and Rick and Jessie fought furiously to get into the garage, just as the walkers decided to descend into the house. Carl covered for Rob, but not before demanding he hand over the gun he was using. Carl spoke a bit of truth about Rob’s dad he refused to acknowledge: daddy was not a good guy.
Rick was panicked when he realized Deanna had moved from her spot and was caring for Judith. He was literally seconds away from taking an axe to her head. To see Rick show so much compassion during Deanna’s time of need is a sign that our hero has grown during this life-changing event.
She begged Rick to take care of her son, Spencer; she forced him to realize to stop choosing between his people and those who are survivors just like him. Rosita, Tara and Eugene remained stuck in a garage as they wondered if the end is near. Tara was the voice of reason, as Rosita shared concerns about Abraham’s chances for survival. Eugene picked a lock, finally he makes himself useful, but the audience has no idea what awaits on the other side? Morgan continued to be concerned about Carol’s health, and for a few minutes so was I. It soon turned into a battle, as Carol attacked Morgan and fled to the basement.
The walkers broke into the home forcing Michionne and the others to go into attack mode to protect the crew. Carol came face-to-face with the member of the wolf crew who Morgan was determined to protect at all costs. What the hell is with this guy and what horror is the audience going to be forced to endure? Looks like Carol or Morgan will bid adieu before the episode concludes.
Rick used the bodies of walkers to help disguise themselves to plan an escape route. To see the dismantling of those walkers was beyond disturbing. Carol was on the verge of tears trying to reason with Morgan, and he was determined to prevent a death from taking place. In a touching moment, Deanna was at peace with dying, and preferred to fire a bullet into herself when she changed, instead of allowing someone else to take her out.
Sam was an emotional wreck and a fragile Jessie did her best to reassure her son that everything would be okay. Carol warned Morgan to step aside and a fight ensued between the two that allowed the lone wolf to gain the upper hand. Dammit, I knew this was going to happen. He freed himself as the town’s doctor did her best to reason with the psychopath, but Tara, Rosita and Eugene came to rescue, but they found themselves at a disadvantage. He took the town’s doctor as a hostage. Gosh, that was a sad moment to say the least.
Rick, Jessie, Carl, Ron, Michionne, Sam and Father Gabriel all escaped the home, just as Glenn witnessed from a distance his wife in a distressing state. Deanna fired upon the walkers, just as the rest of the crew walked towards sanctuary; Sam called out for his mother. I’m thinking to myself, what is this kid doing? He’s going to get them all killed. Whoa, that was a climatic mid-season finale, to make matters worse, I’m more torn about Carol and Morgan not realizing their stupidity placed one of their own in grave danger and for what?
I can’t wait till the rest of season six resumes; there were so many what-if’s and unknown moments with this episode. The audience got a tease into the chaos to come as Abraham, Sasha and Daryl came face-to-face with a new villain who demanded their weapons, hmm, maybe the name Negan rings a bell? Until February 2016 “Walking Dead” die-hards!
