‘The Walking Dead’ S. 6, Ep. 3 “Thank You”: No One Is Safe

No one is safe in ‘The Walking Dead’ Season 6, Ep. 3, “Thank You.” As  Rick, Michonne, Glenn, Heath, and some other Alexandrians hustle through the forest, trying to redirect a herd and to make their way back to the  Safe Zone, Rick orders Michonne to keep moving forward even if it means leaving people behind.

Michonne refuses to give up, but as their journey continues, it’s clear not not all of the  inexperienced Alexandrians will make it back. Is she wrong to try? Does Rick have the right idea?

SPOILERS

Sturgess death seems to prove Rick wrong, foreshadowing certain death for those with an every man for himself mentality. When the group came under attack in the forest, Sturgess bolted. Later, the group finds walkers feasting on his carcass.

Michonne and Heath stop to nurse three injured Alexandrians. The three tell Heath and Michonne to leave them behind, a surprisingly nobel request from such an inexperienced group. Heath’s response, WE don’t leave people behind, not US, establishes a clear conflict.

Heath is understandably on the defense, but Michonne is quick to put his doubt in check. She defends Rick, explaining that Rick doesn’t have the luxury of Heath’s indignation. Heath may have been a runner from the beginning, but he’s never had to endure the horrors Michonne and Rick face. At this rate, that will soon change.

With Glenn out running a diversion, Michonne and Heath are alone with three injured people and the worst possible case scenario comes to fruition. The herd finally caught up to them.

The five are left with no choice but to run. As one injured Alexandrian falls, she tells the others to just run. A nobel death.

Glenn and Nicholas hustle to a distant building. Glenn’s plan was to burn the feed store and distract the herd to keep it away from Alexandria. Soon the two cornered in an ally– two versus a herd;  meanwhile, walkers tear at Michonne  and David as they struggle to climb a gate with Heath and one Alexandrian safe on the other side.

She makes it, but only at the expense of a fallen Alexandrian, David. It’s Heath now that urges her to keep moving as the three remaining group members watch the herd devour David- his goodbye note for his wife lost in herd. The three limp towards home. Glenn is not as fortunate.

Throughout the episode, Glenn and Nicholas make amends. Glenn helps Nicholas realize he wasn’t the frightened coward that he was before. Nicholas loses hope as Glenn tries to calm him. In the series’ most shocking moment, Nicholas says, “Thank you,” to Glenn, shoots himself in the head, tumbles onto Glenn and plunges them both to a gruesome death. Glenn lies screaming on the bottom of a pile of zombies as they eviscerate Nicholas.

Is Glenn really dead? As he falls from the dumpster, Nicholas is on top of him and during the ‘Talking Dead,’ Glenn is omitted from the memoriam segment of the show while Nicholas is recognized. Could Glenn survive, playing dead, disguising himself in Nicholas’s remains? Would the herd leave him alone after it devoured Nicholas? Scott Gimple, ‘The Walking Dead’s’ showrunner, noted on ‘The Talking Dead’ that viewers will see “some version” of Glenn in future episodes.

The scene cuts to Michonne who sees there’s no smoke in the distance. Heath tells her that doesn’t mean Glenn didn’t make it. Is this another nod to Glenn’s survival?  Michonne looks down at her arm to see the remnants of message she wrote to one of the fallen Alexandrians: “You’re Getting Home.” How will this loss change Michonne?  Can anyone even HAVE a home in this apocalyptic world?

Rick’s plan keeps falling apart. Rick finds himself alone in an RV on his walky-talky, urging his partners to stay the course even after hearing gunshots ringing from his home. He has faith in Carol, Maggie, and Carl’s survival. He recognizes he needs to stay the course for them and the others. Soon after, he is attacked by the armed Wolves that Morgan let walk away from the siege of Alexandria.

Rick blasts rapid gun fire through the RV that he’s driving, the RV that is integral to reaching Sasha, Daryl, and Abraham. The RV won’t start and as the camera angle shifts to an aerial shot, we see walkers surrounding Rick. Is all hope lost for Rick? Will Rick regret his plan? Is he learning that he cannot control everything and his fate is predetermined?

The scene cuts to Daryl, Sasha, and Abraham with the herd hot on their heels. Will we lose another major ‘The Walking Dead’ character? As Rick urges Sasha and Abraham to stay brave and to stay the course, Abraham says they aren’t scared. Are they not afraid to be the sacrificial lambs? Will they be forced to martyr themselves for the good of their friends and their new home?

What did you think of “Thank You?” You can leave your questions or insights in the comment section. ‘The Walking Dead’ will air a 90 minute episode next Sunday at 9:00 PM. Will viewers get any closure in Ep. 604?


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Author Profile: Consumer Expert Melissa O'Donnell

Teacher by day, pop culture consumer by night- Melissa lives for good stories and loves to share them with fellow TV, movie, graphic novel, and book enthusiasts. She also blogs about pop culture's influence on everything from her worldview to her relationships at undertheinfluence76.blogspot.com-- she'd love for you to join in on her journey.

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