'The Walking Dead' Season 8 Episode 5 Review: 'The Big Scary U'




Once again, The Walking Dead completely drags out the cold opening. They are just beating a dead horse when they show Gregory in terms of flashbacks.  We already know what he did, why he did it, and why we hate him, so why waste that much time on a flashback? It doesn't help that his character is so unlikable and has no redeeming qualities.

Once the episode started to get going, I had a great time! After waiting 4 episodes we finally get to see what Gabriel is up to and it is worth it.

Gabriel was introduced way back in season 5 and since then has been a hit or miss character. I didn't think his character was all that interesting after being around him for 2 seasons, but this new episode proves he isn't the old Gabriel we know.

We get a nice throwback to how far Gabriel has come since he was first introduced and his interactions with Negan were the best parts of the episode. These two characters are polar opposites and now they are stuck together and surrounded by walkers.

I liked how Gabriel had guts in this episode, he wasn't afraid at all to stand up to Negan. He called Negan an asshole, didn't do what he was told and admitted that he was part of the satellite station ambush. Then what used to be the weakest character on the show attempted to take Negans gun to get the upper hand. Moments like these make me appreciate how far The Walking Dead has come and season 8 is giving a lot of development and appreciation to characters we've all come to love. 

The lighting and cinematography in Negan and Gabriel's prison was nothing short of fantastic. It was dark, moody, and generally pretty terrifying. Jeffrey Dean Morgan helped even more with his calm mood and attitude that made him feel in control. Negan even started whistling as walkers began to break their way in. 

Negan and Gabriel then cover themselves with guts and walk out into the crowd of walkers. The dead eventually realize the two characters and Negan and Gabriel must fight their way into the Sanctuary. The makeup and special effects shined during this screen and the camera work and editing made it feel crowded, uncomfortable, and terrifying. 

This was a fun pairing that will probably never happen again, but I'm glad it happened in the first place. I'm glad we got a bit of Negan's backstory and I really hope we get to see the two characters again in the future. Maybe, after All Out War, Negan will be taken as a prisoner and Gabriel goes to preach to him every day. I would love to see that down the road! That is if Gabriel survives.

Moving on from the main characters of this episode, we finally see some conflict between Rick and Daryl. I can't even remember the last time those two fought, they have had such a strong bond for a majority of the show. That made for an emotional, but a little too short, fight scene between two fan favorites. It does worry me a little that Daryl is doing this, especially since he knew that Carol was alive. Also, the choke hold being illegal was a fun callback to Rick and Daryl's first fight in season 1.

The weakest part of the episode was when we got an inside look at the Sanctuary. The Sanctuary leaders, minus Negan, try to figure out what went wrong and what they have to do moving forward. It was a boring debate throughout the episode until they came to the conclusion that there is a traitor in their midst. That didn't really affect anything this episode, but I have a feeling it will in the future. I'm also curious to see the dynamic between Eugene and Dwight, especially since I think Eugene suspects Dwight as the traitor but isn't positive yet.

The Sanctuary workers got upset when their leaders wouldn't do anything and there were signs of a riot. However, Negan makes an appearance and with nothing more than a whistle he shows how much power he has over his people.

Overall, I enjoyed this episode. Gabriel and Negan scenes were definitely the highlights of the episode and the debate club at the Sanctuary slowed things down quite a bit. Regardless, I'm excited for next week's episode.

I give this episode 7/10 starts.


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