TWD 8x08 "How It's Gotta Be" episode discussion... **SPOILERS*

[Trin]

I am generally one of the negative ones who gets a reputation for disliking most TWD episodes. And I agree with several of the commenters who are tired of the plot contrivances and WTF moments. But I will defend the show in that it is no worse now than ever, and none of that keeps me from watching it. I'm not really that invested anymore. The reason for me is simpler than bad plot or characters dying or pacing issues. For me, it is simply that the show is no longer about survival against a zombie apocalypse. It is now a character study and the conflict is 99% derived from interpersonal or inter-community disputes. The show is no longer hitting the sub-genre that fuels my highest level of interest. I do like Negan. I didn't like him at first and I didn't see his value to the Saviours as making sense or having a purpose. I've changed my mind on that after seeing more of the inside workings. While his code of conduct is brutal it is logical, orderly, and I can see how it has kept the group running. Regarding Carl, I am not terribly upset to see him bitten, but I'm annoyed at the circumstances and timing. I feel like they undermined any meaning that came from his actions by having him screw it up so badly he'll die for it. He was defying Rick's position and has now proven Rick correct. Plus, it just feels hackish that Carl gets bitten in a scenario that they've confronted successfully hundreds of times.

[MinionZombie]

That of course would sort of hark back to Romero's original Day script I really must re-read that as it's been so many years since I last gave it a going over. I am generally one of the negative ones who gets a reputation for disliking most TWD episodes. And I agree with several of the commenters who are tired of the plot contrivances and WTF moments. But I will defend the show in that it is no worse now than ever, and none of that keeps me from watching it. I do like Negan. I didn't like him at first and I didn't see his value to the Saviours as making sense or having a purpose. I've changed my mind on that after seeing more of the inside workings. While his code of conduct is brutal it is logical, orderly, and I can see how it has kept the group running. Regarding Carl, I am not terribly upset to see him bitten, but I'm annoyed at the circumstances and timing. I feel like they undermined any meaning that came from his actions by having him screw it up so badly he'll die for it. He was defying Rick's position and has now proven Rick correct. Plus, it just feels hackish that Carl gets bitten in a scenario that they've confronted successfully hundreds of times. 1) "no worse now than ever" ... hmmm ... I'll be honest and say that it's not quite as good as it used to be, there's some sloppiness that has crept in here and there and some rough edges, but they tend to fix things season-by-season, but in the last couple of seasons they've also ended up injecting new problems that need to be fixed. The peak of the show was Seasons 4 & 5, but that's not to say that it's no longer good, because it is still good and I do still enjoy it an awful lot. It'd just be nice for some of the issues to be fixed ... but I also remind myself to focus on the good things in the show more than the bad things, as it's so easy to run your opinion down if you just look at the bad bits and ignore the sheer amount of good. We're so spoiled now. Remember the dark days of the late 90s with sod all happening in the zombie world? Admittedly it's gone overboard in the culture now, but well... 2) A fix from Season 7 into 8A. They never quite explained the mechanics of the Sanctuary and of Negan himself, but they nailed it this season - especially with that episode that showed the inner workings as a power vacuum presented itself, like in the wake of Stalin's death or something. The paranoia, panic, 'top table' manipulation, and civil unrest etc were all excellent and made it one of the best episodes of TWD ever for me. 3) But surely surviving these zombie encounters is going to end badly sooner or later? Wouldn't it be more unrealistic for nobody to get bit in such a struggle? Carl's wound was very similar to that of Deanna, too. She got into a horizontal tussle with a walker and got bitten on the stomach/lower back IIRC. As for not enough focus on zombies - yeah, the past season and a half has maybe not had enough zombie stuff. Season 6 had that excellent period of time (basically all of 6x01 through 6x09) where they had to tackle a giant herd. It'd be silly to always be battling zombie herds, and you can only squeeze so much drama out of walkers - you need the human-on-human drama as well to balance things out and provide much deeper stuff to chew on generally - but some more walker threat would be very much welcome again. Inject a bit more of that 'zombie survival' aspect again - e.g. like we had in Season 6. Those scenes with Glenn and Nick desperately trying to get around the encroaching walkers got increasingly tense as it unfolded. That gradual encroachment is beyond chilling - the inevitability of it, they'll get you no matter how many you put down, they just keep coming relentlessly, and if you pause for just a moment too long (or at all) you'll get yourself cornered and then you're screwed. Scary stuff!

[Moon Knight]

Carl had to have gotten bitten in a way that didn’t involve Negan or the Saviors in order for his death to push the story forward. And like MZ said, I love that some people, especially main characters, can still get bitten if not careful. They could have shot that scene a bit better but I understand why they chose that particular route.