TWD 5x04 "Slabtown" episode discussion... **SPOILERS WITHIN*

[MinionZombie]

Yeah, I completely fail to see the problem with this week's episode, aside from the fact that it was a break in pace (and sorry, that has to happen sometime). I've been seeing a lot of interesting comments online in various places regarding this episode - former Beth haters turning around on the character and enjoying this episode. As for pace - damn straight - you can't be up-to-ninety all the time as it'd become tiresome, boring, repetitive, and ultimately meaningless. The troughs help define the peaks, and vice versa, you need the rollercoaster, the ups and downs, the quiet and the loud, the rough and the smooth, you absolutely need that contrast. One thing I am really looking forward to is Rick showing these fools how law enforcement should be acting in an apocalyptic scenario Hell yeah! I'd love to see Officer Friendly rock up there, whip out his Python and start swinging it around ... ... hang on a minute...

[Christopher Jon]

One thing I am really looking forward to is Rick showing these fools how law enforcement should be acting in an apocalyptic scenario Getting people killed with his poor choices and lack of leadership?

[ProfessorChaos]

I swear, they could have an entire episode with just one character out in the woods taking a poop, trying to find a substitute for toilet paper, and attempting to escape a single walker and some of you guys would still cream your jeans and defend every single scene. It's almost as if the show can do no wrong with some of you guys. I'm sorry, I guess I must have misplaced my rose-tinted fanboy glasses. This episode was such a step back in my opinion. I sincerely hope that the next episode gets the story back on the right track....And I realize that the show can't be balls-to-the-wall every single episode, but the ones that are supposed to be more cerebral and try to get a deeper meaning across usually fall flat in my book. I'm still optimistic about this season, and that is really saying something compared to how I have felt about the majority of the show since the break in the middle of season 3. However, I will echo the sentiment that someone made about the group getting too large, and I really don't want them to start adding new characters just yet until they kill a couple more off. With too many extra characters, it is harder to be emotionally invested and connect with the main ones.....fingers crossed for next week, and in the meantime I'll start looking for those fanboy glasses again.

[MoonSylver]

Not necessarily. I think there's just different expectations from different viewers, & different levels of satisfaction or dissatisfaction depending on those expectations. I thought this episode was aight. Not great, but ok. I liked the look at the city & at a different group. Mostly it was a bit of filler & has me curious as to what's going to happen next.

[facestabber]

Getting people killed with his poor choices and lack of leadership? Is the statement coming from someone that has never had to lead in a stressful and deadly environment? At times I feel Rick Grimes is the antichrist to some of you.

[Buzzbomb]

With Noah gone AWOL at least Joan's mob had the good sense to pick up Carol. ....At least their laundry will still get done.

[Neil]

Are people saying that was Carol wheeled in at the end? I actually rewatched it carefully and didn't recognise her. Looked like a bloke to me? Guess it would be a more appropriate ending though!

[MinionZombie]

With Noah gone AWOL at least Joan's mob had the good sense to pick up Carol. Dawn. Joan was the girl who got her hand/lower arm cut off. Are people saying that was Carol wheeled in at the end? I actually rewatched it carefully and didn't recognise her. Looked like a bloke to me? Guess it would be a more appropriate ending though! Did you have a blindfold on or something? It was blatantly Carol!

[Neil]

Did you have a blindfold on or something? It was blatantly Carol! Wow! I guess in my defence I was watching that bit sitting in bed watching our 20" TV! But I even swivelled my head around to see the face better! Wow!

[Trencher]

Pardon me? Seems like a rather out of place racist comment. Only non-white people with crazy hair can be good? Lol no. Point is that it was obvious that they were evil from the beginning. Because people like that are "always" evil in TV shows just as there was no suprise that the Vatos gang were good guys because people like that are always good guys in TV shows and movies. Off course exceptions to this TV rule exist but the issue is the lack of surprise by watching the events unfold. Again this only apply to TV and movie shows not reality at all.

[Wyldwraith]

Buzzbomb raised an excellent point: While it's understandable that essentially nomadic, hand-to-mouth types would become feral in a post-apocalyptic environment, and understandable that even some groups blessed with secure shelter and relatively abundant resources will still go bad, the problem I'm having is that essentially everyone who isn't Team Rick are almost entirely amoral. Even the Vatos, who are supposed to represent good people stuck in a horrible situation, behaved in a reprehensible way for much of their interactions with Rick & Co. Logically, it stands to reason that there must be other groups which have learned to walk the knife-edge between the pragmatism required to survive their harsh environment, and retaining some level of humanity. Don't get me wrong, I would EXPECT that groups like the Claimers and the Terminians would dramatically outnumber those groups that have retained common human decency. That said, the groups which retain a moral code shouldn't be so extremely outnumbered by feral savages that we never see any such groups. I could think of several ways that survivors could've well, SURVIVED, up to this point. Just an example: During the initial chaos of the zombie apocalypse, people would, among other activities, have made major runs on the gas pumps. The same could not be said of the DIESEL supply. One long-haul trucker happens to pick up whatever survivors he/she encounters along the way....they retrofit the trailer into a secure mobile apartment and voila, a viable survivor group.

[MoonSylver]

#teambeth Never the less I feel that this episode had only half an episode of content. It was too slow. I think they went for a slow pace to give us the chills when we came to realize that the hospital was run by bastards. However them riding around in black cars with white crosses on them, all the people in charge where white with conservative hair cuts and wearing spotless police uniforms whit shiny badges prominently placed there never was any doubt that they were evil to the core. As a result I thought they were going to be more evil than they were. The hospitaliers would rape and give you a beating if you did not clean their shorts while the villains we met before would rape, torture, kill and eat you. (And some of them would probably eat your shorts afterward) It does not have the weight the writers thought it would have. The actors were great and it made the story bearable but in the end all that matters is if Beth escapes, these villains are just a bump in the road IT DOES NOT MATTER IF THE BOSS OF THE HOSPITAL UNDERSTANDS THAT HELP IS NOT COMING OR NOT! I understand that the writers wanted to contrast the noble Vatos to the evil cops but that is just a rich boy fantasy that belong to the old world. It does not work in reality and it would certainly not work in the zombie apocalypse. That said the actors were good and the story were allright just paced slow and the fans want to see what happens to Rick and company. Me personally dont hate skipping back and fourth as long as the stories are whole. No jumping back and fourth in episode please. Pardon me? Seems like a rather out of place racist comment. Only non-white people with crazy hair can be good? Lol no. Point is that it was obvious that they were evil from the beginning. Because people like that are "always" evil in TV shows just as there was no suprise that the Vatos gang were good guys because people like that are always good guys in TV shows and movies. Off course exceptions to this TV rule exist but the issue is the lack of surprise by watching the events unfold. Again this only apply to TV and movie shows not reality at all. I wasn't sure of their motives until I saw this guy... ...then I was pretty sure they were up to no good.

[AcesandEights]

I will admit, when Officer Gorman first showed up in the cafeteria I was surprised his first lines didn't include: "Well lookie here..." - - - Updated - - - Wow! I guess in my defence I was watching that bit sitting in bed watching our 20" TV! But I even swivelled my head around to see the face better! Wow! Time to get them eyes checked, Neil...

[MoonSylver]

Now that I get a better look, is that Tyreese?

[MinionZombie]

On groups who generally function well...   We will be seeing such a group - or groups - in future, we just haven't got to that point in the overall TWD story yet. Gorman was a bit dastardly in a fairly obvious manner, but then again I suppose there's little reason for him to hide his nefarious tastes. It seems to be happening quite openly in that place, not flagrantly right in front of Dawn, but she damn well knows about it (hence what Joni said to Dawn just before her arm got cut off). I wonder if Dawn wanted to save her to keep a 'rape target' around for the sick entertainment of assholes like Gorman, to help keep them in check? Possibly keep them off her own person too? ... *shudders* ... when you start thinking more about this episode, the creepier it gets. Gorman's arc was just this one episode, so it had to be handled quite quickly, but I do agree that they could have toned him down a bit in his first scene. He was instantly recognisable as a bad apple from the get-go, it would have been nice if he'd been toned down a bit in that first scene so he was a little more 'coldly pragmatic', rather than 'sex for cafeteria food or else'. After that you'd then notch him up - e.g. the lollipop scene as-is, and then continue as-is from there. - - - Updated - - - Now that I get a better look, is that Tyreese?