Walking dead season 8 episode 1

The cast and crew are hoping the 100th episode is how The Walking Dead gets its groove back. Andrew Lincoln has called season 8 his "favorite season in a long time," a season that brings "the swagger and the mojo back," and one that's "reminiscent of seasons 1-4." This is exactly what fans want to hear after the slow, slow slog that was season 7. (The group's main mission in the second half was to acquire guns, and what happens in the season finale? They. Lose. Their. Guns!) But it's also something we've heard before with previous seasons that never paid off that hype.

The show's recent panel at New York Comic Con became a time to air some of those frustrations. Moderator Chris Hardwick would ask the cast a question and, in many cases, the actors would have to sit and smile for a bit as they'd be drowned out by fans shouting their own comments. Lennie James was musing about Morgan's hesitation to become violent when one audience member shouted, "Just do it!" And before Austin Amelio could get a word in about Dwight, another fan bellowed, "I hate that guy."

When we finally pick up with Rick Grimes in "Mercy," we do get a sense that the old Rick (and the Old Man Rick) is back. He's more militarized, more brutal, and he's ready to relinquish his command of the group once this is all done — and thank God for that because he's not exactly the best strategist. While we shouldn't start judging this season as the best yet, the opening makes one thing perfectly clear, and it's something else the cast membershave been sayingad nauseam: The gang is ready for war.

It's difficult, however, to discern when some of the moments glimpsed before the credits take place. We can figure that Rick's rousing speech to the troops is happening in real time. The same goes for Daryl's secret arrow relays with Dwight, and Carol and Tara tracking a herd of walkers. (Side note: Did you catch

There’s a sense that showrunner Scott Gimple and director Greg Nicotero are trying to bring the show back to basics. At heart, The Walking Deadhas always been the story of Rick Grimes. A point is made in the show’s 100th episode to remind fans that none of the other characters we know and love would be a part of this story without Rick. “Mercy,” as the episode is called for a reason I won’t divulge here, feels as much a celebration of Mr. Grimes as the show itself.

Last month, Lincoln teased that the Old Man Rick bits from the SDCC trailer would become “somewhat clearer after the October premiere.” I don’t want to say too much about that except that the episode does begin to address the myriad questions surrounding this much older Rick, but I finished “Mercy” with the sense that this particular storyline will continue to be teased out through the rest of the season. It feels like The Walking Dead is borrowing from Lost here.

As for the other characters, virtually every member of The Walking Dead family (who is still alive) makes an appearance. The episode puts most of its cast to work, as the combined armies of Alexandria, the Hilltop, and the Kingdom begin to plan their attack on Negan and his forces. “Mercy” also gives us just the right amount of the bat-swinging villain, which is to say just enough for him to do his game show host bit before moving on to something else. 

But as much as the episode is about moving the story forward – and it does in a big way – it’s also a nostalgic look at the show’s past. There’s a particularly interesting scene with another character that plays like an homage of The Walking Dead‘s very first episode. It’s a nice touch without overdoing it.

I should say at this point that I’ve loved every Walking Dead season premiere since I started reviewing this show for Den of Geek, in

1st episode of the 8th season of The Walking Dead

"Mercy" is the eighth season premiere of the post-apocalyptichorrortelevision seriesThe Walking Dead, which aired on AMC on October 22, 2017. The episode was written by Scott M. Gimple and directed by Greg Nicotero, and serves as the 100th episode overall of the series.

This episode focuses on the combined attack, involving the communities of the Alexandria Safe-Zone, the Hilltop Colony and the Kingdom, against the Sanctuary, thus starting the "All Out War" story arc. It also introduces the character Siddiq, portrayed by Avi Nash, who plays a significant role in the upcoming story arcs in the comics.

Plot

The Militia, a coalition of people from the Alexandria Safe-Zone, the Hilltop Colony and the Kingdom, prepare for war in an alliance to fight the Saviors. Rick, Maggie, and King Ezekiel lead the respective communities in an assault on the Sanctuary. Meanwhile, Carol, Morgan, Tara, and Daryl lead a large horde of walkers toward the Sanctuary via controlled distractions.

Shortly after, Rick's convoy arrives at the Sanctuary and simultaneously fire warning shots. Negan steps out with his lieutenants—Dwight, Simon, Gavin, Regina (Traci Dinwiddie), and Eugene. After being taunted by Negan, Rick tells the lieutenants that he will let them live if they surrender, but reminds Negan that he will kill him. After none of the lieutenants accept Rick's offer, Negan tells Rick that he lacks the numbers to win a fight against the Saviors and instructs Gregory, the leader of the Hilltop, to come out. Subsequently, Gregory steps out and asserts that the Hilltop stands with Negan, and the punishment to any Hilltop resident for fighting against the Sanctuary is banishment for the offenders and their families. Jesus, speaking for all the Hilltop soldiers there, shouts that the Hilltop "stands with Maggie", refuting Gregory's power. Infuriated, Simon, after deciding he's no longer useful, agg

The episode is interesting from a formatting standpoint. Rick’s fantasy is interspersed with close-up shots of Andrew Lincoln’s woozy eyes and sweat-dripping forehead. At some points, Rick and Ezekiel and Maggie give rousing speeches to the assembled fighters about their destiny, and how they’re about to take control of the future and put it in the hands of good people, not despotic Fonzie and his crew of flunkies. Interspersed with both the fantasy of peace and the preparation for war is the actual combat promised by the season 8 promise of “all-out war.”

One of the focuses for this season isn’t the human element, it’s the omnipresent threat of walkers. They’re both a weapon and a complication in “Mercy,” as several times Rick and company’s plans are almost upset by walkers getting in the way, but the walkers are also the main weapon that Rick is going to use against Negan and the Saviors. You can’t call a place Sanctuary when it’s not much of a protection against the walkers at the gates, right? Fear and panic are a great way to destabilize a tinpot dictatorship, because no matter how many of the folks on top are armed and willing to kill, the subjugated masses always have numbers on their side.

It appears that with his allies at Hilltop and the Kingdom, Rick has numbers on his side too, because he’s willing to throw away the element of surprise in a bold attack on the Saviors compound and yet he’s not willing to finish the job despite wasting hundreds of bullets shooting out windows and killing sentries at Negan’s various outposts while sending others of his team out on a wild zombie chase. With Dwight giving Rick and company inside information, and actively misdirecting his companions, it gives Rick a good advantage, but there’s a downside to the way Rick is conducting his attack. If he’s doing this simply to cause division in the Saviors, to encourage others to rise up agai