Warning, spoilers ahead:
Episode 4 was an emotional rollercoaster as Michonne and Rick began to rekindle their love for each other. Fans wondered if the two would ever find the love they used to have, but after doing so, the couple are now on the journey home to Alexandria.
Right off the bat, another cameo takes the audience by surprise. Gabriel, portrayed by Seth Gilliam, has returned. He was a character from “The Walking Dead” series, making his first appearance in Season 5. Back then, he was a very unlikable character and still is for most fans.
It is not a complete shock Gabriel made a comeback, as he appeared in flashbacks with Jadis when they visited each other once a year.
Rick and Michonne’s journey back home seemed too easy at first. They had nothing but good luck, especially when they came across a truck full of ramen noodles and sodas. It is questionable that anything like that would be left at this point in the apocalypse. They also stumbled upon an untouched park with a cabin in pristine condition. It seemed unrealistic for the writers to give Rick and Michonne a seemingly easy journey home.
A group of survivors attempts to rob them, but Michonne and Rick are not a duo to mess with. They disarm the people easily and even laugh at the attempt. It seems like a silly way to keep the show moving in the final episodes. But then Jadis finds them the next morning, pointing a gun in their faces.
It is also coincidental that Jadis found them. It is unclear how Jadis could know it was Rick and Michonne who drove off in the getaway car, especially when they were presumed dead. Unless she has magic tracking abilities, how she found them doesn’t make sense.
The episode’s switching between flashbacks and the present was also confusing. Jadis is called Anne to Gabriel, so keeping track of her personality becomes difficult. The only good part of the flashbacks with Gabriel is showing how much he opened up about his views of the CRM. He was part of big plans with the CRM, but it does not make sense why he would be involved with those plans directly.
Jadis explains to Rick that if someone from the CRM finds him and Michonne alive, it will be tracked back to her, and Alexandria’s files will be leaked. There was a shootout, and Jadis got away wounded after Michonne hit her with a hatchet. They quickly realize they need Jadis alive to recover the files. The group from earlier came back into play as part of Jadis’ plan. There are a lot of loose ends in this episode, making it frustrating to keep up on who is still alive or a threat.
Jadis finally sees her end in this episode, a death fans have been waiting for since she first arrived in “TWD.” She makes a good farewell speech, but the episode could have done well without it, especially when her speech was all about the people and communities she had lost. The goodbye was unnecessary because no one cared what Jadis went through. It was interesting to see her demise from a walker bite this far into the franchise, however.
The next plan for Rick and Michonne is to break into the base and get the files, one that seems too out of reach. Breaking back into the base that Rick worked so hard to get out of, especially after realizing in the last episode how much the place destroyed him, is almost annoying to watch.
The episode ends with the same beginning scene, showing Gabriel waiting for Jadis, only for her not to arrive. A helicopter from the CRM flies over him and he ducks in fear. Does the CRM know of Jadis’ fate? Are Rick and Michonne ever going to make it home?
Hopefully, the last episode is full of more action than this week. The hope for the finale is for Rick to be reunited with Judith and finally meet his son, RJ.
The series finale, “The Last Time,” will be released March 31 and can be streamed on AMC+.
