The Take Off And Landing Of Everything (Album) - Elbow

Elbow have become national treasures in recent years, ever since their 2008 album The Seldom Seen Kid won the Mercury Prize, they have ascended in the general public eye. Their status was enhanced further when they were called upon to write the BBC theme for the 2012 Olympics. Consequently the release of a new Elbow album feels as though it needs to be treated with a certain degree of reverence. There isn’t really much call for apprehension at this stage, especially since they have already proven that success has not affected the quality of their output.

The opening track is my favourite from the album: ‘This Blue World’ is a stunningly beautiful song that feels almost like an album in-and-of-itself over the course of its seven minute length. I may even go so far as to call it a ‘perfect Elbow song’. The song unfolds slowly, creating a serene, starry landscape of sound for Guy Garvey’s wistful and contemplative lyrics, pondering the significance of every moment leading up to the start of a relationship: “Was the universe in rehearsal for us?” It's sublime!

The electronic underscore that runs throughout ‘Charge’ puts me in mind of the scrolling text introductions of old Sega games. The song has more bite to it than many of the band’s most recent releases, punctuated through the angrier lyrics: “Glory-be these fuckers are ignoring me / We never learn from history”. ‘Fly Boy Blue’ sounds a bit more like something from the pre-Seldom Seen Kid days, with the occasional blasts of electric-guitar and saxophone cacophony before transitioning into ‘Lunette’ which has a float-y quality that is very akin to some of the quieter moments from Leaders Of The Free World (‘The Everthere’ and ‘Great Expectations’ come to mind).

Similarities to older albums continue at the start of ‘Honey Sun’ before the song actually begins, and a brief glimpse into the studio is gleaned. As the group are practicing there is a loud clatter, followed by Guy Garvey very audibly exclaiming “Jesus!” Moments such as these have been less prevalent in recent years, so it’s nice to hear them make a return. ‘Honey Sun’ itself is also rather similar to some of the band’s older work (it wouldn’t sound out of place on Cast Of Thousands alongside songs like ‘Not A Job’ and ‘Buttons and Zips’).

‘New York Morning’ is the most natural choice to be the lead single out of all the songs on this album, as it’s probably the most readily accessible. That doesn’t cheapen its quality though (not at all) as the song has some beautiful sentiments within it about the idea of possibility. This is all captured through the verbatim, thought-process lyrics and the shimmering musical soundscape which builds into a triumphant crescendo-ing refrain.

When the track-listing was released a couple of months ago there was something that particularly stood out about the song title ‘My Sad Captains’ although I couldn’t be quite certain why this was the case. Then I realised that it is lifted from a Shakespeare play, explaining both my liking for the title as well as my lack of familiarity with it beforehand (Anthony & Cleopatra is a play I have yet to work on/see performed). The track has a steady hand-clapped beat to accompany its deliberate pacing, and includes a very moving distant-sounding trumpet fanfare in between the lyrics. The song describes Guy Garvey’s group of drinking friends (the titular ‘Sad Captains’) “with whom [he] choose[s] to lose [his] mind”. It is a very well-crafted song, and another of the albums highlights.

Title track ‘The Take Off And Landing Of Everything’ is a heavily layered song that begins instantly and maintains its lively energy and pace right the way through until it eventually fades away. From out of the silence that is left behind, emerges the ominous sounding album closer ‘The Blanket Of Night’. The verses trudge along through their own murky bass-heavy depths, before the synthesised chorus erupts from within. This shift in tone is expertly handled and the transition from one into the other and then back again is very slick.

The album overall seems to be an amalgamation of the band’s back-catalogue – taking everything that they’ve released up until this point, and expanding upon it. The album has received plenty of positive reviews already – and to be honest, I don’t think that this album was ever going to be bad – but I don’t think it is the band’s best ever. There are a couple of weaker tracks that fall a little short of the high standards that have been set elsewhere – ‘Colour Fields’ feels a little bit by-the-numbers, and ‘Real Life (Angel)’ doesn’t really do much for me at this stage, maybe it will grow on me. That said, the album has more than enough solid tracks to earn its place alongside its predecessors, and both ‘New York Morning’ and ‘This Blue World’ are masterpieces which deserve praise. It’s worth getting the album for these two tracks alone, but The Take Off And Landing Of Everything has more to offer.

The Walking Dead: Season Four - Alone

The established trend of episodes focussing on smaller groups of survivors continues with another Rick-less episode. Daryl and Beth’s adventures continue, and we also catch up with Maggie, Sasha and Bob as all roads appear to lead towards Terminus (“The End”).

I was caught off-guard by the pre-credits montage which followed a bedraggled-looking Bob as he made a lonely trek through miles of forest, deftly avoiding confrontations with Walkers. I didn’t realise at first that this was a flashback until Daryl arrived on his motorbike alongside Glenn. One of the fortunate things about the show’s current format is that it allows for characters like Bob to get more development, which wasn’t very possible back at the prison (he was only significant to me because he played D’Angelo in The Wire, and also because Bob is a relatively prominent figure in the tie-in novelizations).

After a tense near-brush with death as the three of them fought off a group of Walkers in the fog, Bob and Sasha took the majority of the focus as Maggie slipped away during the night, determined to find Glenn on her own. They headed down the train tracks to catch up with Maggie – and to ultimately arrive at ‘Terminus’. Sasha appeared to have lost a lot of hope, and Bob was required to be the optimist. Sasha was fearful of heading to the sanctuary for fear of discovering that Tyreese might have died, and so made the decision to hole-up in an apartment in the nearest town. Bob appealed in favour of continuing on towards ‘Terminus’ because surely other people from the prison would have also seen the signs (good intuition there!).

Maggie was leaving messages in Walker-blood for Glenn to follow – letting him know that she’s still alive, and where to go – which is as good a plan as any other (let’s just hope that there aren’t any other survivors called Glenn or Maggie out there, otherwise they might get very confused!).

Bob remained optimistic, but it wasn’t enough to convince Sasha to abandon her plans: especially when she found an abandoned building to make into her new home. Bob then ‘tried something’ and kissed Sasha – there had been a few romantic implications between the two of them throughout the episode – but she stubbornly made an effort to follow through on her intentions. However it didn’t take long for her to realise that it wasn’t the smartest plan, and it also appeared that fate was on hand to point this out to her as well. Upon looking out of the window she saw Maggie outside, and quickly made her way down to help her fight off a group of Walkers. Nobody can survive in this world alone.

After last week’s episode I was very pleased to see a continuation in the Daryl and Beth saga, although by the end of this episode it appears to have come to an end. The two of them had a number of standout moments in this episode before everything went to hell (as is so often the case in The Walking Dead). One such moment saw the pair of them taking a moment to pause at the grave of an unspecified ‘Beloved Father’, a scene where no dialogue was necessary, and saw the two of them grow closer as Beth grabbed onto Daryl’s hand.

The two of them made their way into a funeral parlour which was suspiciously well maintained (heavily implying that someone was still inhabiting it) and also had a well-stocked kitchen. This allowed for a few brief moments of respite, including a grimly comical scene where Daryl bedded down for the night in a coffin (the most comfortable bed he’s had in years!), Beth played the piano and sang very sweetly, and the two of them were able to enjoy a ‘white trash brunch’ of peanut-butter and jelly, diet soda and pigs feet.

The unlikely romance between the two was growing throughout this episode, but in The Walking Dead moments of happiness or peace tend not to last long, and sure enough – as if on-cue – just as the two of them shared a very palpable ‘moment’, there was the sound of commotion outside as their alarm system was tripped. This brought a whole herd of Walkers rampaging into the house, and Daryl effectively sacrificed himself to allow Beth to escape. Being Daryl, he was able to fight his way out of a room filled with Walkers – using ingenuity and creating barriers – and he managed to get himself out of the house, just in time to see a car driving away (apparently with Beth).

Daryl runs after the car until he can’t run any longer, and upon arriving at a literal (and figurative) crossroads the chances of finding out where Beth was taken seem highly unlikely. Exhausted, he slumps down in the middle of the road, where he is eventually discovered by the villainous group of marauders who overturned the house where Rick was last seen. Fortunately Daryl is a tough son-of-a-bitch, and is welcomed into their ranks. Although this group have already proved their nefariousness, with the finale now approaching, the many separate plot-lines of the latter half of this season are now showing signs of coming to a head.

The episode is able to end on a more positive note, as Bob is reunited with Sasha and Maggie. Bob’s story within this episode was able to come full circle – he’s been separated from groups before, and made his way out on his own, but now he no longer has to.

Then just to give one final tease, we see Glenn discover a sign for ‘Terminus’ as well. I’m now feeling excited as to what’s going to happen when the finale comes around, as it surely has to see the various parties arrive at the mysterious sanctuary. But what will happen when they get there?

The Walking Dead - Season Four: Still

This week’s episode focussed entirely on the characters of Daryl and Beth, which is a bold move on the part of the writers; primarily for the fact that Beth has always been a secondary character, but also Daryl – despite being a clear fan-favourite – has rarely been made the main focus of storylines within the show. Quite a challenge then for Norman Reedus and Emily Kinney – but the two of them rose to the occasion, and their characters both got a lot more focus and development than they ever have before.

It’s becoming something of a trend on the show lately for there to be lengthy scenes without any dialogue – meaning that the actors have to rely on their gestures, expressions and also the strength of their characters to compensate and hold focus. I don’t think that there was a line of dialogue for at least seven minutes (and Daryl held out even longer). The episode started with a very tense and frightening scene which saw the two of them hiding in the boot of an abandoned car, while a group of Walkers swarmed around outside – just inches away. The two of them held their weapons close, and sweat poured freely from their foreheads. The two of them remained there through the night, and then in the morning they stripped a few parts from the car and continued on their way – without a single word exchanged.

Things became tense between the two at several points, Daryl seemed keen to rough it out in the wilderness, but Beth was having none of it – and then in light of all that has happened she embarked on a mission to find some alcohol to have her first drink. Some grim humour emerged from this, in the form of Daryl’s dismissive opinion concerning Peach Schnapps – “Is it good?”, “No!”  - but the uncomfortable, tense atmosphere wasn’t exactly alleviated.

Daryl reverted to his more sullen and distant self, but then he also became a frightening presence following an ill-advised game of “I never” – I’ve often thought of The Walking Dead as being a bit like Lost and this scene reinforced that further.

In a scene slightly reminiscent of the barn shootout from season two (which was conveniently alluded to when Beth referred to Sophia) a drunk Daryl tried to force Beth to learn how to fire a crossbow, and used a stray Walker for target practice. It was a genuinely alarming scene because Daryl is usually a quiet and reserved presence within the show, so seeing him erupt created a feeling of unease because it seemed like he’d completely lost control, and might do something he’d later regret. It made complete sense though, as even the toughest people can’t bottle up their emotions indefinitely.

The references to events from season two really shone a light on how much Beth has suffered, and all that she’s lost. These events seem a lot more relevant now that Beth is getting a lot more attention - up until now she’s just been Maggie’s sister who occasionally had a scene where she looked after baby Judith – but now the show has decided to give her a more prominent role, which has some weight behind it as she has been around for quite some time now.

This episode gave one of the strongest and most grim views of the post-apocalyptic world: people reduced to scavenging, living rough, isolated from any sort of civilisation.  The feeling of hopelessness was palpable at numerous points in this episode, particularly when the survivors contemplated the possibility that everyone else from their group could very well be dead – and they’ve no evidence to suggest otherwise as they seem to be a great distance from where everyone else ended up.

This could potentially open up new possibilities for the show, because it seems like a plausible notion that Beth and Daryl might not reunite with the rest of the group – maybe they’ve ended up too far away. There’s no real way to know how close or how far they are from the others. Will they find their way to ‘Terminus’, or is this episode an indication of the way things will be for these two from now on?

Frozen Britain (New Song) - James

Although they are not the most successful band to hail from Manchester, they are almost certainly the most beloved – and to be completely honest, that probably means a lot more. There is something inherently likeable about James, they appeal to the everyman, they are masters of their craft, and have built up an extensive canon of music that is both recognisable and identifiable, as well as being profound and timeless. They are associated with writing music that “makes grown men cry” – something that not many other bands can claim. 

And now, fresh of the release of The Gathering Sound – a full career spanning box set – the band have just announced that June 2^nd will see the release of their latest album La Petite Mort (a French expression which translates as ‘the little death’ and is a euphemistic term for an orgasm).

Since reuniting, the group have released one full studio album (2008’s Hey Ma) and two mini-albums in 2010: The Night Before and The Morning After. All three of these releases have solidified the staying power of the group, and proved that their reformation was not just a temporary thing.

Echoes of those mini-albums run through ‘Frozen Britain’ (it’s more akin to tracks from the livelier of the two albums: The Night Before – such as ‘Crazy’, ‘Shine’ and ‘Hero’). The track is full of vibrant energy, despite this being their thirteenth album the group are showing no signs of slowing down. Tim Booth is not playing it safe either, but throwing caution to the wind: the repeated chorus line of “Emily come to bed” is performed with gusto and confidence. He then brings the song to a close with emotionally-charged repetitions of the album’s title, as well as references to the eponymous Emily.

This bodes well for the rest of the album. I for one will certainly be buying it, and I eagerly await the arrival of the first single – ‘Moving On’ – at the end of April.

The Walking Dead - Season Four: Claimed

With the group still scattered in the aftermath of the destruction of the prison, this episode continued the trend of following several separate groups: we caught up with Rick, Carl and Michonne, and also followed the exploits of Glenn and Tara – along with their new companions Abraham, Rosita and Eugene. That new characters were introduced, and not killed off in their first episode solidifies the fact that they will be here to stay – at least in Walking Dead terms.

The episode began with Tara getting familiar with Abraham, who actually demonstrated an aptitude for killing Walkers that made his having survived this long make complete sense. He brought a bit of humour to the art of zombie-killing, and then saved on bullets by bludgeoning three Walkers with a tire-iron and the butt of a rifle. Tara noted that he was smiling as he did it – which is unusual to say the least – to which he cryptically stated, “I’m the luckiest guy in the world”.

There was the briefest moment of light relief between Michonne and Carl, after she reflected on that fact that one of the things she missed was Soy Milk. This didn’t last long as the conversation lead onto the issue of Judith, which killed the mood instantly. The two of them then had to pair up and head out on a scavenger hunt, while Rick – who is still pretty banged up – stayed at their temporary refuge. Rick attempted to get some rest, and even indulge in a bit of recreational reading (I didn’t see what book he was reading, but I doubt it matters that much as he’ll not likely finish it). This didn’t last long at all, as Rick’s rest was disturbed by a largely unseen group of evildoers. Poor Rick!

When Michonne is the talkative one in a partnership, it’s a sign that things aren’t going so well. Chandler Riggs continues to do a good job playing Carl, but it doesn’t change the fact that the character is hard to watch or engage with – the sullen, sociopathic teenager. Michonne was fleshed out even further this week though, as she revealed to Carl that she had a three year old son (the first person she’s told since the outbreak). There was also a surprisingly poignant scene when she wandered through a children’s playroom and discovered the decomposing corpses of a whole family – who had chosen to be together. Danai Gurira once again did a very good job of acting without any dialogue.

I was really interested in Abraham’s character, and became particularly invested when he dropped the bombshell that his companion Eugene knows how the outbreak started. Unfortunately this didn’t lead to any answers, and the group’s journey to Washington D.C. was swiftly derailed; first by Glenn’s stubborn nature and desire to find Maggie, and more significantly by Eugene (the alleged ‘smart one’ of this new group) demonstrating a severe lack of survival skill.

Supposedly by this stage the zombie-apocalypse has been in effect for well over a year (somewhere close to a year and a half I think), and yet there are people who don’t know how to fire a gun properly who have somehow lasted this long. Eugene’s clumsy handling of firearms, not only wasted a load of bullets and showed off a terrible aim, but also ruptured the fuel tank of their truck. Nice job idiot!

Eugene has proved his status as a liability to the group, but he apparently knows important information, which could potentially lead to a cure. Is this completely legit? He was conveniently vague when asked about what he knows. Despite the fact that he hasn’t exactly endeared himself to the viewers, the character does have a purpose, which will hopefully lead to answers later this season. Abraham proved his worth, and is an entertaining presence - so that should make Eugene's presence more tolerable (Rosita didn't do much of anything in this episode, so I'll hold off on forming an opinion on her character until a later date).

Rick meanwhile spent the majority of the episode trapped under a bed, trying to mask his ragged breathing in order to avoid detection. The scary group who infiltrated the house were more than happy to choke one another over minor misdemeanours (once again, how have these people lasted so long if they’re so willing to kill one another?) Rick moved stealthily through the house, trying to avoid being caught, providing some tense moments as he had given his gun to Carl, leaving himself defenceless. He managed to get out of the house, and reunited with Carl and Michonne. Luckily the guy on guard duty had terrible depth perception, as he didn’t see the man crouching below him, or the two others as they approached the house. The three of them got the hell out of there, and arrived at a sanctuary named ‘Termnius’, where they will supposedly be reunited with more of their group.

If the preview for next week’s episode is anything to go by, next week’s episode looks set to be entirely focussed on Daryl and Beth. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, indeed last week I said that I’d be willing to see them get more focus, but with all the questions raised in this episode it seems a shame to have to now wait even longer before picking up those storylines again.

The Walking Dead - Season Four: Inmates

After last week’s episode placed the focus on Rick, Carl and Michonne in the aftermath of the battle at the prison; this week’s episode focussed on everyone else. The remaining survivors have all been split into small groups, and each mini-group received roughly the same amount of focus. This was an interesting approach, as it gave some of the show’s secondary characters some much needed spotlight.

The show began with Beth providing a voiceover – a diary entry – chronicling the group’s arrival at the prison. References to Lori being about ready to give birth act as a reminder as to just how much has changed since the start of the third season – before The Governor arrived on the scene. This speech also highlighted the significance of the prison, as Beth stated that they could live there for the rest of their lives. All of this was spliced over footage of herself and Daryl running through the forest and fighting off Walkers, because… well the show can’t go too long without a moment of Daryl being awesome!

I was glad to see Beth get a bit more focus as she has been a peripheral character for a very long time – even though she’s been around since the second season. Since the two of them are isolated they are left to ponder whether anyone else even survived. For a long stretch Daryl remains sullen and silent, perhaps the ongoing predicament has hit home: what are they hoping for? What is the endgame here? They can fight and survive for as long as possible, but where will it ultimately lead?

Beth manages to goad him into tracking other members of their group, but they only find a group of Walkers feeding on the unidentifiable remains of a recent victim. Beth said at the start of the season that she was done crying, but I think we all knew that was an indication that something would occur further down the line that would lead to tears.

During their tracking they encountered some footsteps and some trampled grapes: and we learned of their origin, as well as the identity of the mutilated corpse, during the following sequence. Lizzie and her sister Micah have escaped the prison alongside Tyreese and baby Judith. This reinforces the notion that unless you actually see a character die, then they are probably still alive (although we never actually saw Lori die, but I’m pretty sure she’s dead – hence the use of the qualifier ‘probably’!).

Carrying a baby turns out to be a big problem for this little group, as Judith – unable to understand the danger they are in – simply won’t stop crying. The noise will attract Walkers, and the group have very few resources to defend themselves as it is. After telling Micah that they have to stay together, Tyreese bafflingly leaves the two girls alone with baby Judith, while he attempts to rescue some nameless others from a Walker attack. This could have gone very badly as Lizzie appears to attempt to suffocate Judith in order to stop her crying. It is an unsettling image, but fortunately it doesn’t come to fruition as the girls are rescued by Carol (nice to have you back) and together they make their way to a sanctuary. We don’t have time to find out any more about this ‘sanctuary’ though because it’s time for the next sequence.

Maggie, along with Sasha and Bob head in the direction the bus was headed in order to find Glenn. I have to say that it was mighty lucky that – aside from Glenn of course – nobody that important was on the bus, as they had been attacked and had now all turned into Walkers. The scene was well paced, and although I was fairly sure that Glenn wouldn’t have died in an off-screen incident, Lauren Cohan’s performance had me pretty convinced that something bad could have happened. Maggie slowly made her way onto the bus and encountered a Walker with similar hair to Glenn, and who was also wearing black t-shirt (just like Glenn). We didn’t see his face though, which provided enough deniability, but as far as fake-out’s go it was pretty decent.

I have no idea how Glenn was able to get so far away from the bus, especially considering the condition that he was in before everything went down. Nevertheless his prison escape was a very entertaining scene, especially the first person view behind his riot-squad visor. That was a gutsy move, running straight through a swarm of Walkers, and not firing a shot. Also Steven Yeun managed to get in on the silent-expressive acting, like so many of his castmates, before he loaded up and busted out.

Glenn then paired up with Tara, the one surviving member of The Governor’s army, who didn’t fire a single shot once she realised who she was following. Based on what she said it would seem that her sister Lily – who was last seen putting a bullet in The Governor’s head – had been swarmed by Walkers in the field. Is that true? It seems like a bit of a cheap way to kill off a named character.

Once the two of them had escaped the prison, Glenn was hit with the revelation that Hershel was killed by The Governor: he was probably the last person to find out. In the aftermath of a scuffle with a few stray Walker’s the adrenaline must have worn off and reminded Glenn that he is still unwell, as he passed out. This meant that he was unconscious for the arrival of some new characters – who readers of the comics will probably know, but since I haven’t read the comics I’ll have to wait another week to find out. They seem to be well equipped whoever they are.

I enjoyed this episode, particularly the sequences involving Beth and Daryl, and Glenn. I actually wouldn’t have minded if their scenes had received more time. I really like the desperation brought about by the group’s new situation, and the fact that a lot of these characters are not part of the main-cast (those who appear in the opening credits) creates a greater sense of risk concerning their safety. I am very interested to learn more about this ‘sanctuary’ and also these new characters. Are the two connected? We’ll have to wait and see.

The Walking Dead - Season Four: After

The fourth season of The Walking Dead has finally resumed, and this latest character-driven episode demonstrates the consequences of all that has happened thus-far. In the aftermath of the mini-war at the prison, the group are all scattered, coping with their losses, and the feeling of hopelessness is really sinking in.

The opening scene has parallels with the ending to the very first episode of the series (‘Days Gone Bye’) with the image of a large group of Walkers swarming around a tank, and a dead horse that has been gutted by the scavenging undead. Any wild speculation that The Governor was still alive was completely laid to rest with the image of his dead body with a bullet wound in his forehead. Michonne wandered amongst the desolation, decapitating a few Walkers along the way, before luring a couple of stragglers into being her new ‘pets’ (for want of a better word). She is about to leave when she encounters the re-animated head of Hershel (I had been afraid something like that might happen – it was a sad sight) which she put down. There is no dialogue in this opening scene – which sets the tone for the majority of the episode – allowing for the weight of all that has occurred to be felt. The group had made an effort to re-establish some form of society, but that’s all over now – everyone is now reduced to a primitive fight for survival once more.

This intimate episode only follows three of the survivors: Carl, Rick and Michonne. The relationship between Carl and his dad is in a very tense state, with Rick in a very bad way, and Carl harbouring a great deal of pent-up resentment towards him. Michonne meanwhile is finally given some backstory as she has been something of a mystery since her first appearance.

With Rick barely able to stand, emotionally bereft, and heavily battered and bruised after his near-fatal encounter with The Governor, Carl decides that enough is enough, and begins to rebel against his father. Ignoring his father’s commands, and disregarding his authority before really twisting the knife with a mention of his temporary father-figure (and Rick’s former best friend/old rival) Shane.

Rick’s breathing is choked and ragged, and during a scene in which he looks into the mirror, he has even started to look a bit like a corpse. He spends a large section of the episode completely unconscious. This allows Carl to let-loose on his Dad, blaming him for all that has happened, and everyone they’ve lost. He then declares that he feels that he is capable of surviving on his own, and that he doesn’t care if Rick dies. It is a powerful scene, for which Chandler Riggs deserves praise; the character has undergone such a huge transformation since the start of the series, and the actor has grown up alongside the role. With Carl at the centre of this episode, this seems like the first proper chance to see just how much he has changed.

It takes a couple of close-call encounters with Walkers to make Carl realise that going-it-alone is not the best course of action to take. These scenes did a very good job of making it seem as though Carl was really in danger, I was fairly sure he wasn’t going to die, but when the possibility of a timely intervention is removed from the equation the tension-levels increase. Carl then realised that he didn’t really want his father to die, when he found himself incapable of pulling the trigger when he thought that Rick had turned. 

Overall it was a tough episode for Carl, although he did at least get to eat a whole tin of chocolate pudding!

Michonne meanwhile is a more capable lone-survivor than Carl, and she returns to the way she was when we first encountered her: leading a pair of armless, toothless Walkers around, in order to hide amongst the undead hordes undetected. Things have changed though, and in an eerie dream-sequence we are offered brief glimpses into her previous life – in which we learn that she had, not only a boyfriend, but also a son. This sequence was unusual as it blended elements of flashback with elements of dream/nightmare style. All taking place in a flashy apartment, but showing the gradual breakdown of her friend and lover as the effects of the apocalypse wore on them. The assumption is that these two much have been her original ‘pets’ from when she first arrived in the season two finale.

She spent a large amount of this episode wandering along with a small group of Walkers, until eventually flipping out and killing them all – including her new ‘pets’, deciding that she’s not going to face this world alone again. She then took a moment to herself when she cried over the memory of her lover and her son. I don’t know if we’ll learn more about Michonne’s past, but I would be interested in seeing more. Danai Gurira did an excellent job in this episode; moments of heightened emotion have always been used sparingly with her character, so they always feel significant when they occur. With a glimpse into her past, and a visual sign of exactly what she has lost, this episode brought us closer to Michonne on an emotional level, than perhaps we’ve ever been.

The episode was deliberately paced, and did not contain much dialogue – which really allowed for the characters and the world itself to shine through. It was the right decision to follow up an episode like ‘Too Far Gone’ with one like this, as the extent of damage done to these characters was really showcased, as well as heightening the desperation of everyone’s situations now that their stronghold has been destroyed. Next week the focus will be on the other survivors, and while I doubt their characters will get as much individual focus as the ones in this episode, I will be interested to see where they’ve ended up.