TWD 7x09 "Rock in the Road" episode discussion... **SPOILERS WITHIN*

[MinionZombie]

Please keep all talk of episode 7x09 "Rock in the Road" specifically inside this thread. If you have a theory for a following episode, please use the "spoiler tags" (visit the HPOTD FAQ to find out how to use them if you don't already know). Similarly, if you're going to discuss plot points from the comic book, please use "spoiler tags" - not everyone is up-to-date on them, and some people don't read them at all. Enjoy! Season 7B, folks! Directed by: Greg Nicotero Written by: Angela Kang

[facestabber]

Happy to be reunited with my tv family. Question. When Simon showed up at A, did Rick have his .357 holstered and Simon missed it?

[JDP]

Why were they handling the dynamite and the RPGs as if they were ready to blow up just by breathing on them??? They were removing the blasting caps from the dynamite bundles, without which it would make them very difficult to detonate, so there was no need to handle the sticks with so much care. And the RPGs are designed to withstand normal handling without going off, otherwise soldiers would not carry them around into combat situations where very careful handling is not possible. Also, I hope that they actually took those blasting caps with them after they removed them from the dynamite bundles. Without them they are going to have a heck of a hard time trying to set off the dynamite. - - - Updated - - - Happy to be reunited with my tv family. Question. When Simon showed up at A, did Rick have his .357 holstered and Simon missed it? No, when he and the group come back to Alexandria he does not have the revolver with him. He must have left it hidden with the explosives they stole from the Saviors.

[katholiday]

I don't know how they do it, but they done did it! Fantastic. Optimistic. A couple silly things, like why wouldn't Negan just grab Rosita, Sasha & Michonne and add them to his harem? -Or why would Negan's men leave Michonne her sword...? The child seemed to convince the King, but the King didn't take his advice... Other than that... Just very enjoyable. -And what was all those Hill-top troops marching about for? Pretty obvious somethings goin' on...! An' ya gotta admit, they sure did not tone down the violence! -One other small thing... Aaron's Husband sure cleaned up fast after Negan's men tossed the, "whole-place". It was spotless! And all of Aaron's stuff was just folded up so nice and ready to go! Good thing Rick hid his gun before Negan's men showed up! Please view and comment on my living -dead tribute, "The Walker" www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EIsv6QmEHk

[MinionZombie]

Wooooo! "Slice Capades" ... that is all. Damn that was an awesome scene - and I dug the bit with Rick in the car as they escape, out of breath and a bit shaken, feeling that he'd "pushed it". He's gotta get back into his groove, but it was nice to see a bit of humility there and a bit of fear as he returns to the saddle. Okay, what else? Xander Berkely is nailing it as Gregory - he's got the small time, desk-bound politician thing that the character has totally sorted. All his "Ricky" and "Margaret" stuff was quite entertaining ... RHETORICAL!!! Loved it when Daryl called him out on his uselessness, too. Gotta love the "Jerry!" moment when Ezekiel's trying to do his King thing, and the 'oh yeah, I forget to mention the tiger' bit. Morgan - might he be skewing back towards a more pragmatic centre ground? He's fighting it, no doubt in denial about the reality of it and that in this situation you can't deal with a vicious enemy in a softly-softly manner ... I wonder if we'll see him eventually join the war effort. The bit about the death of Fat Joey meaning that "Skinny Joey" would now just be called "Joey" made me chuckle, too. All round a solid episode. Not like some mid-season premieres we've had in the past where it's really intense in a quiet way or really intense in a loud way (e.g. 4x09 for the former, 6x09 for the latter), but I dug it and it felt good and pretty well paced. What's up with Gabriel, though? I assume he's taken action to hide the supplies in some sort of attempt to keep them from The Saviours - a secret hiding place for them - but FFS, Gabriel, you got some 'splaining to do! Who is this new band of masked warriors? Yet another community? Hopefully we don't get too overloaded, but the scale of the fight against The Saviours is clearly being tooled up to be epic, I'd say. I bet we'll have to wait until Season 8 for that, though. Ooh - did anyone catch the Day of the Dead reference in this episode? ... TWD 7x09 Memes:   http://deadshed.blogspot.co.uk/2017/...n-walking.html ... Happy to be reunited with my tv family. Question. When Simon showed up at A, did Rick have his .357 holstered and Simon missed it? I thought that myself, but it seems Rick didn't have his gun on him - good thing, too, he's not supposed to have it (and it would be evidence that they had met up with Daryl, who is now in-hiding at The Kingdom). Why were they handling the dynamite and the RPGs as if they were ready to blow up just by breathing on them??? They were removing the blasting caps from the dynamite bundles, without which it would make them very difficult to detonate, so there was no need to handle the sticks with so much care. And the RPGs are designed to withstand normal handling without going off, otherwise soldiers would not carry them around into combat situations where very careful handling is not possible. Better to be safe than sorry. Rosita knew what she was doing fairly well, but the others are just getting instructions right then and there - how many had ever held a stick of dynamite, let alone an RPG, before? I'd be handling them with kid gloves, too. A couple silly things, like why wouldn't Negan just grab Rosita, Sasha & Michonne and add them to his harem? -Or why would Negan's men leave Michonne her sword...? The child seemed to convince the King, but the King didn't take his advice... Other than that... Just very enjoyable. -And what was all those Hill-top troops marching about for? Pretty obvious somethings goin' on...! Negan's policy on his harem is one of choice. The character is very much against non-consenting sexual encounters, so that is why he always offers women in his world a choice on whether they want to be in his harem. It's not particularly far from the line, but he doesn't force any of them to join up - but he does offer incentives - although he also dishes out punishments to any pre-apocalypse husbands who hook up with their harem-joined wives (Dwight is on a thin line regarding that one, IIRC). I'm not sure he'd want Rosita in his harem after she shot Lucille, and he'll be aware that Sasha had something going on with Abraham, and he likely knows that Michonne is spoken for ... and/or he hasn't got around to asking yet. Marching about in The Kingdom, you mean? They take a more active role in the outside world - they have to, serving The Saviours, after all - so they train men up so they have a better chance of survival beyond their walls (unlike Alexandria where those who went beyond the walls barely knew how to take care of themselves).

[JDP]

I thought that myself, but it seems Rick didn't have his gun on him - good thing, too, he's not supposed to have it (and it would be evidence that they had met up with Daryl, who is now in-hiding at The Kingdom). If you taped/DVRed the episode you can go back and see it, clear as day: Rick does not have the revolver with him when he makes it to Alexandria. We can plainly see the empty gun holster as he is entering Alexandria. He's only carrying the hatchet on his belt. Better to be safe than sorry. Rosita knew what she was doing fairly well, but the others are just getting instructions right then and there - how many had ever held a stick of dynamite, let alone an RPG, before? I'd be handling them with kid gloves, too. Rosita is not the only one with experience handling explosives. Remember that those very RPGs they "stole" were in fact stolen from them by the Saviors first.

[Moon Knight]

Awesome! The highway scene was wonderful! Loved how scared Rick was at the end of that scene. Added so much to the scene. "Just because we slept with the same dead guy doesn't make us friends." Haha This episode brought the group together along with newer characters like Jesus and Ezekiel. That's how it should be done.

[MinionZombie]

Rosita is not the only one with experience handling explosives. Remember that those very RPGs they "stole" were in fact stolen from them by the Saviors first. Abraham had experience with them, no doubt, with his military background ... but he's dead and gone now. So only Daryl had any real experience with them - he used the RPG against the biker group and also the walkers - other than that nobody else has touched them. This episode brought the group together along with newer characters like Jesus and Ezekiel. That's how it should be done. Aye, it's a good way of welcoming newer characters into the familiar fold. Episode 7x06 was an example of how it won't really work when you've not got a big key player and only have a supporting player (albeit one who is cool and likeable) to lean on as a swarm of new faces are chucked at you. 7x09 benefitted from a big chunk of the main gang meeting Ezekiel, and we as the audience had already met Ezekiel (and know his how his whole shtick works), so it wasn't so abrupt. Hopefully, with some big players (e.g. Rick, Michonne) getting to know this new band of tooled-up survivors will work better than with Oceanside.

[JDP]

Abraham had experience with them, no doubt, with his military background ... but he's dead and gone now. So only Daryl had any real experience with them - he used the RPG against the biker group and also the walkers - other than that nobody else has touched them. Rick has also handled explosives before (he blasted the windows of the CDC building with a grenade to be able to escape.) Morgan evidently has handled explosives as well, his arsenal had a crate full of grenades, some of which in fact ended up being part of the arsenal of Rick's group (Daryl destroyed the Governor's tank with a grenade down the gun barrel.) Know-it-all Eugene might also know a few things on the subject, seeing as he also knows how to produce ammo for the guns. Plus it is a bit unlikely that none of the other group members would have volunteered to learn how to use both hand grenades and RPGs, just in case something happened to Abraham or Daryl someone else would have to take over the handling of these weapons. It is a bit difficult to believe that this group is not familiar with handling explosives this late in the game.

[MinionZombie]

Rick has also handled explosives before (he blasted the windows of the CDC building with a grenade to be able to escape.) Morgan evidently has handled explosives as well, his arsenal had a crate full of grenades, some of which in fact ended up being part of the arsenal of Rick's group (Daryl destroyed the Governor's tank with a grenade down the gun barrel.) Know-it-all Eugene might also know a few things on the subject, seeing as he also knows how to produce ammo for the guns. Plus it is a bit unlikely that none of the other group members would have volunteered to learn how to use both hand grenades and RPGs, just in case something happened to Abraham or Daryl someone else would have to take over the handling of these weapons. It is a bit difficult to believe that this group is not familiar with handling explosives this late in the game. The only people on that stretch of road were: Rick, Michonne, Carl, Jesus, Tara, Rosita, and Sasha - so Daryl's experience with weaponry is meaningless as he's not there, and we've only seen him handle an RPG twice and that one time he used a grenade. Being that RPG ammo is scarce (and ruddy loud when it goes off), to say the least, nobody could have any practice with one. Sure, Rick used a grenade one time, but it's hardly the same as dynamite and RPGs, is it? Handling one type of explosive one time doesn't give you much knowledge about other types of explosives - if you've handled a handgun it doesn't mean you suddenly know how to properly shoot an assault rifle or a sniper rifle beyond don't point the shooty end at someone you don't want to threaten/harm/kill. Dynamite in particular can become unstable in the wrong conditions, can't it? So obviously they're going to be careful - moreso when they're dismantling a set up that they themselves didn't construct. Plus, when Rick uses that grenade, he's careful about it and is practically crapping himself after he pulls the pin. IIRC, when he initially finds the grenade he handles it quite carefully - he's a small town Sheriff, not a solider. Daryl's a special case and no doubt grew up around all kinds of weapons and improvised explosives screwing around with Merle and various types when he was growing up. He's the most confident when it comes to fighting and battling - but his abilities mean little in that scene as he's not present, and with various other things to deal with at any one time, who's to say they all sat down with Professor Daryl for a detailed lesson in handling explosives? Especially if they don't have any to hand with which to get some hands-on practice. Tara putting the RPG in the boot of the car? I've looked at that again and it's hardly a case of handling it with kid gloves, she's just not chucking it in like a sack of coal - besides, Tara hasn't touched an RPG before. You can assume they've all been trained in how to operate a tank, or a jet fighter, or defuse a bomb (silly examples, but the point stands) - but we've not seen anything like that, so it's meaningless to assume such things unless we either see them doing such things or they specifically mention it in a line of dialogue. I don't recall dynamite being featured in the show before - so therefore the characters are likely to not have experience with it. Rosita got some experience from somewhere, but the details are vague. The seven out there on that stretch of road are all proficient in general weapons (handguns and rifles of different forms), but dynamite that's been sweating away in direct sunlight? Come on - and their care whilst handling was proven justified: Rosita leaves a particular bundle aside as she doesn't like the look of it - sure enough as they're driving away: KABOOM!

[JDP]

The only people on that stretch of road were: Rick, Michonne, Carl, Jesus, Tara, Rosita, and Sasha - so Daryl's experience with weaponry is meaningless as he's not there, and we've only seen him handle an RPG twice and that one time he used a grenade. Being that RPG ammo is scarce (and ruddy loud when it goes off), to say the least, nobody could have any practice with one. Sure, Rick used a grenade one time, but it's hardly the same as dynamite and RPGs, is it? Handling one type of explosive one time doesn't give you much knowledge about other types of explosives - if you've handled a handgun it doesn't mean you suddenly know how to properly shoot an assault rifle or a sniper rifle beyond don't point the shooty end at someone you don't want to threaten/harm/kill. Dynamite in particular can become unstable in the wrong conditions, can't it? So obviously they're going to be careful - moreso when they're dismantling a set up that they themselves didn't construct. Plus, when Rick uses that grenade, he's careful about it and is practically crapping himself after he pulls the pin. IIRC, when he initially finds the grenade he handles it quite carefully - he's a small town Sheriff, not a solider. Daryl's a special case and no doubt grew up around all kinds of weapons and improvised explosives screwing around with Merle and various types when he was growing up. He's the most confident when it comes to fighting and battling - but his abilities mean little in that scene as he's not present, and with various other things to deal with at any one time, who's to say they all sat down with Professor Daryl for a detailed lesson in handling explosives? Especially if they don't have any to hand with which to get some hands-on practice. Tara putting the RPG in the boot of the car? I've looked at that again and it's hardly a case of handling it with kid gloves, she's just not chucking it in like a sack of coal - besides, Tara hasn't touched an RPG before. You can assume they've all been trained in how to operate a tank, or a jet fighter, or defuse a bomb (silly examples, but the point stands) - but we've not seen anything like that, so it's meaningless to assume such things unless we either see them doing such things or they specifically mention it in a line of dialogue. I don't recall dynamite being featured in the show before - so therefore the characters are likely to not have experience with it. Rosita got some experience from somewhere, but the details are vague. The seven out there on that stretch of road are all proficient in general weapons (handguns and rifles of different forms), but dynamite that's been sweating away in direct sunlight? Come on - and their care whilst handling was proven justified: Rosita leaves a particular bundle aside as she doesn't like the look of it - sure enough as they're driving away: KABOOM! What are the odds that these people have had plenty of time and opportunities to get acquainted with handling grenades and RPGs and they all mysteriously have "passed"? In a dangerous world populated mostly by zombies and lawless rival groups??? Somehow I don't think so. These people seem very much interested in learning how to use any weapon they can lay their hands on. Even a self-admitted "coward" like Eugene has become acquainted with using weapons. Their very lives depend on it. Tara and Michonne are handling the RPGs as if they had never seen one before. Modern dynamites are made with long-term stability in mind. They are not like the older kinds that could "sweat" nitroglycerin after long storage. The "kaboom" might have been caused by some of the advancing zombies. They probably triggered some of those fuel tanks which were left behind with whatever sticks of dynamite were not considered to be in good enough shape to take with them.

[Buzzbomb]

What was the Day of the Dead reference??? BTW - The highway thing reminded me of "Juan Of The Dead"...

[Moon Knight]

What was the Day of the Dead reference??? BTW - The highway thing reminded me of "Juan Of The Dead"... DR Tongue made a cameo.

[JDP]

What was the Day of the Dead reference??? Look at the zombie that we see right before Jesus takes the Alexandrians to meet the Kingdomers.

[MinionZombie]

What are the odds that these people have had plenty of time and opportunities to get acquainted with handling grenades and RPGs and they all mysteriously have "passed"? In a dangerous world populated mostly by zombies and lawless rival groups??? Somehow I don't think so. These people seem very much interested in learning how to use any weapon they can lay their hands on. Even a self-admitted "coward" like Eugene has become acquainted with using weapons. Their very lives depend on it. Tara and Michonne are handling the RPGs as if they had never seen one before. Modern dynamites are made with long-term stability in mind. They are not like the older kinds that could "sweat" nitroglycerin after long storage. The "kaboom" might have been caused by some of the advancing zombies. They probably triggered some of those fuel tanks which were left behind with whatever sticks of dynamite were not considered to be in good enough shape to take with them. Explosives are loud and extremely dangerous, and not particularly tactical. Would you want to hump around heavy, dangerous, and loud (when they go off) explosives as you struggle to survive in the zombie wilds, or would you rather have handguns, rifles, shotguns, assault rifles, sniper files (some of them silenced, perhaps)? They make noise, too, sure, but they're infinitely more practical to use, more flexible, and particularly in America there's more chance of people understanding how to use them (or being trained easily). The ammo situation would be infinitely more favourable, too - surely, even in America, any old chump can't just stockpile grenades, dynamite, and RPGs? The only use for explosives in the zombie apocalypse is like The Saviours set them up to be, or how Team Rick are likely planning to use them (to blow some serious shit up at a specific location as part of a war). Day to day in the zombie apocalypse? Fairly useless. Therefore, why would they have searched them out, let alone wasted time trying to learn about something they'd rarely be able to use when they've got more pressing matters at hand (day to day survival out in the wilds - e.g. pre-Prison, finding food and supplies, securing the fences at the prison etc)? Tara, pre-apoc, was - if IIRC - either a relatively new police patrolman, or attempted to get into the police academy but didn't make the cut. She had experience with handguns, but that was about it IIRC. Even if she was a full blown police officer, she wouldn't have been running around with RPGs and dynamite, nor grenades. Michonne - she was a mother and had an office job. She learned her skills on-the-job out there surviving, but those skills didn't include explosives. Eugene has started to learn how to shoot and use a machete - not explosives, nor was he there at the highway. The big explosion was specifically the 'bad dynamite' that Rosita didn't like the look of. She references that directly in her dialogue, and the explosion is in the centre of that ditch where she left the dynamite. The fuel tanks were, IIRC, nearer the cars on the tarmac. Interesting side note - that highway is the same highway from Season 2.