Put in a new surround sound system a few weeks ago, then just rewatched from the beginning. If you're watching without surround sound, stop, buy one, and start over. There is so much more going on that I swear I was missing.
I think the best way to kick off the new year is to be binge watching breaking bad for the 5th time. Happy New Years to everyone!
It's the holiday season, the Walking Dead Franchise's popularity is waning... what better chance for a quick cash grab than some Fear the Walking Dead holiday specials?
Being December 31st, who wouldn't want to rock in the new year with....
Nick Clark's Rockin' New Year's Eve?
Instead of a ball descending over Times Square, they could dangle Victor Strand over a dam. But Colman Domingo would get to wear something sparkly and glittery, so he wouldn't mind.
At midnight it would look something like this, and then this.
And if we go back a few days, what about....
"Fa la la la la, la la la la... the Walking Dead, a Christmas Spectacular"?
This would be a Christmas special in the vein of The Star Wars Christmas Special, except more cheesy and with less Wookies unless you count Dillane's haircut.
It would be set somewhere in the early part of Season 2 and it would be folks preparing for Christmas aboard The Abigail. Daniel would be visited by the ghosts of Christmas Past, Christmas Present and Christmas Future... and of his dead wife and his former victims for good measure.
Alicia would have an Elf On the Shelf. Every morning she'll wake up and give it an update, including of the boat's exact location. She'll never question why the elf has an antenna.
Ofelia will start writing a letter to Santa, wishing that he and Mrs. Claus were her parents instead, until she realizes she'd be isolated and spending her entire time helping her new father at his job and looking after her new mother and her life wouldn't be any different.
Nick would spike the eggnog.
They'd track Santa on The Abigail's radar until they realized it was really that big ship that was following them instead.
Strand would plot to go ashore and steal Christmas presents from Mexican orphans until he learns the meaning of Christmas.
Chris would beat someone to death with a candy cane.
It would be awesome.
There could also be a "The Great British (actor) Baking Special", in which Sam Underwood and Daniel Sharman teach viewers how to make such dishes as Frankfurter Dillane (steamed in beer, with candy cigarettes poked in it like toothpicks), Coleslaw Domingo and Alycia Debnam Curry.
AMC is really missing a lot of opportunities!
.....as someone who has only watched the series on a Netflix binge, I have no idea how you original viewers did it. Not only are the commercials killing me, but it also gives me a glimpse of what it must have been like waiting for each new episode week after week. I cannot even imagine the waiting between seasons. You people are the real MVP's.
It starts at 11am ET / 8am pacific. You can watch it here.
I swear I'm not a corporate shill, I just think it's a really cool idea that might have been forgotten about since it was announced. Shannon and Ferrell have standout chemistry, particularly with their more 'wholesome' duos.
edit: They shot some announcement spots in character to give you an idea: here's one
I just started yesterday and I'm nearly on season 3 already. Which sucks a bit since it's only four seasons total. I haven't been so into a show since Black Sails. Another show that ended before I was really aware of it.
With this being from AMC, the same network that has breaking bad, mad Men and the walking dead (maybe they should have marketed this and other shows during commercial breaks instead of the show people are already sitting there watching) and with the popularity of stuff like silicon Valley how on earth did this show not find an audience?
I'm going to assume a lot of it is because it wasn't on netflix. At least I only just now had it recommended to me on there.
Anyone else just now watching this? I'm still baffled that I didn't know about it. It's right up there with all of my favorite shows. Did it win any awards or did it fly under the radar critically too?
The opening credits are awesome too on top of everything.
Have the show and comics diverged enough that I can start not caring about comics spoilers? this is considering that I only care about the show canon, in other words comic specific storylines don't bother me. so are there one or more major comics spoilers that will eventually become a show spoiler that I should avoid?
Besides Rick or Carol i couldn't care less if anyone were to be killed of these days, i feel like most of the people these days just are not likeable like they were in earlier seasons, i just dont think i would be sad if say a Tara, Rosita, Eugene, Aaron, Daryl(s6+), Michonne (Since Richonne) Jesus etc were to be killed off. Maybe its because the cast has gotten so saturated in the past seasons?
But i go back to earlier seasons where i genually felt bad when say Hershall, Dale, Beth, T-Dog, Tyreese, Lori, Oscar & Axel Even Jim and he was only around for 3 Episodes when they were killed off. Even shane who was supposed to be a somewhat type of villan was kind of sad to see go
Im just curious if anyone feels the same way about not carring about the new cast of survivors and if so why do you think that is?
PS Happy new year :)
Two TV specials.
The first special occurs weeks before the Season 8 premiere and after the trailer is released. It serves as a prologue to All-Out War. Nothing major happens in the episode; nobody dies, no major character changes. Essentially, it's about 60-90 minutes of watching everybody actually prep for the war.
Here's some of what would happen in the prologue:
What would make this a great idea is that we wouldn't be so confused trying to understand why they can't agree about prisoners and what the plan actually is and how there is an unlimited supply of ammunition. It's boring stuff, but it'd be totally optional to watch. And it would help us understand things in a much clearer way.
I think it'd also be cool to do a sort-of epilogue after All-Out War. It'd be a shorter one, happening right after the finale ends. Basically, we watch the communities rebuild themselves and the epilogue ends with Rick holding Judith, Michonne at his side, looking at Alexandria being rebuilt from afar.
I think that this prologue would've solved most of the problems we have had with S8.
I'm relatively new to the series and have been watching the whole thing at a fast pace so I could be missing things. The cliffhanger was great in my opinion because it left so many questions and had you on the edge of your seat the whole time. Was it the wait in between seasons, the dissatisfaction of no ending, or it being a more forced link between season 6 and 7?
This may not be the place for it but I don't know who else to ask at this point. A friend told me she had seen it on TV before, but we can't find it. This happened in Norfolk VA on April 13th 1997. Her name was Mary Franklin and she was raped and murdered by James Edward Davis, a 17yo. Her nickname was "The Angel On Hickory Street". To date I've only found one article online for it but my friend swears there was a crime show about it. Thanks.
As of this morning all recent seasons of Bob's burgers is up on the Canadian server for Netflix. Glad we got a platform to finally watch it
I think all of us have noticed that since Season 7B, we haven't seen much violence, walkers getting stabbed or people getting shot, at least not from the usual persepctive, it's made in a way that we can't see anything. In season 8 the thing continues, added to the fact of bad sound effects for the gunshots and other things. AMC is really cheap with this show, so that might be it, but we're they really trying to censor things sometime ago?
Just saw a promo on AMC during the Br Ba marathon...
Since TWD subreddit has their own "top 5" thread going on, I figured it'd only be appropriate to do one for Fear as well. Below are my personal top five favorite episodes from the first three seasons:
I just finished watching breaking bad (yes, finally did it), incredible show but one thing bothered me.
Walter to me was not really trying to survive. He was a Drug Kingpin and as such was in no shortage of means to just have a Lung Transplant (Lungs of his particular blood type fetch around 185.000 USD on the Black Market).
His disease had not propagated at the time it could have been done, and so he could have survived.
Yet... I think it is one of the flaws which made him such a charismatic lead, he was completely suicidal yet used his shortened time on earth as deadly motivation. Something which set him apart from Gus Fring who took his deadly motivation from the death of someone close to him.
Thoughts?
PS : Another thing that bothered me is that he never dumped Skyler, as she did never even try to understand him, was not truly supportive of him and went as far as wishing death on him. In his place, I would totally have dumped her, took off with the kids and found myself someone more loyal.
I am the biggest Breaking Bad fan and don’t get me wrong, I like BCS.
However, overall, I’ve found the slow progression to Saul being quite punishing. Watching him practice elder law? Err ok. Starting a small legal practice and facing the difficulties of running a small business. Oh fun.
I feel like Vince could have transitioned Jimmy to Saul in 1.5 seasons and we could’ve watched him be the Saul we loved from B.B.
I’ll continue to watch, but man, if we don’t get full Saul during season 4 I’m probably out.
I've only just started watching it but I'm 5 episodes in and I can't stop watching.
I'm not even sure how I'd describe it to a friend because it has so much going for it. I really love how they all do so many oddballs things to pay the bills, get food, etc. There's so many crazy things going on. It's such a great show so far.
If you haven't tried the show yet, you should really give it a chance.
yep. cancelled
dark matter is on top of my list
was master of sex cancelled on 2017?
i haven't watched the latest season of dirk gently and sense8, yet. but I'll eventually watch it.
I’m a 20 year old man and I cried like a little boy when “baby blue” was sung throughout Walt’s walk through the meth lab.
I have some final thoughts. Respond with your own interpretations below
I didn’t hate skylar or Marie, I disliked Jesse until season 4.
Walt for me was doing meth in the beginning to help his family with money, but also because it felt good. I think the major change happened during season 4. That’s when it wasn’t about the money anymore, it was about being powerful.
I’m sad that junior hates Walt, hits some personal notes for me, i think skylar will eventually tell him what really happened to hank eventually, especially when the 10 million randomly pops up.
Jesse and Walt, wow, I understand that Walt manipulates Jesse(mostly in the last 2 seasons) and that he uses others to get his deeds done. But I think even though Walt is the biggest anti-hero ever, he still cared for Jesse.
Maybe he didn’t love him, but he respected him, he needed him. And I don’t know why.
My favorite scene was when Jesse was standing in front of the car, Walt just got off the phone with Lydia. They just stare, and shake heads, acknowledging each other, I personally think it’s a mutual “goodbye, it’s was fun. I respect you”. Then Jesse rides off, smiling, happy to be free of his demons, or at least try and move on.
Thoughts on Jesse and Walt during the final scene?
I loved the series, such a powerful show.
Based on the 107 episodes of the show (up to 8x08), what episode is your personal opinion of when the show should have ended? Your opinion could be that it hasn't occurred yet.
Mine is 6x09. The final episode would have had Carl in a hospital bed just like Rick started the show. The final enemy would have been a massive herd of zombies. It ties home the first enemy being the last enemy. Carl would hear Rick's last words of the show "I want to show you a new world." This could be a world where his son is alive and safe after losing an eye. The group realized that they can defeat morally-ambiguous humans and zombies.
This eliminates the huge question of why Hilltop, Kingdom, and the Saviors did not notice Alexandria beforehand. Why did they not attack? The Saviors mention they were aware of the community in 6x15, if I recall. There would be no open-ended plot points, as Jesus and everyone would not be introduced. Jesus' character development would not be reduced either compared to the comics.
Glenn, Sasha, and Abraham would not be dead. Negan's language would not be butchered. The 6x16 cliffhanger would not have happened. The slow pacing of Season 7 would not happen. Writers of the show would not have diminished in performance. The aimless gun battles of Season 8 never happen. Carl is alive and his character arcs aren't tampered with. Carl does not go from wanting Negan dead to randomly being comfortable with sparing Negan. Jesus doesn't exist to go from murderous to peaceful without reason.
Morgan does get to re-enter the story and have his Eastman episode. Heath is fine and never has an unclear disappearance where no one ever talks about him again. Deanna's death is implied based on the circumstances of what we last saw. The group has settled into a new home for good. Unfortunately, however, we still have dumpstergate, Dwight, and the Saviors mentioning Negan in 6x08, I think.
In season 1 episode 7, as Jimmy is meeting with the Kettlemans at the diner, a waitress comes by and offers to refill their coffees. Jimmy and Mrs. Kettleman say no thanks, but Craig Kettleman holds out his cup and the waitress completely ignores him. I just thought it was a funny and neat little detail that is in line with his type of character
Why some people call Stannis: The Mannis ?
I just need to thank everyone that has been pumping this show’s tires for the last 10ish months since it got released. I started the show last week based on all these recommendations, and finished it today, and it was without a doubt one of the best new shows of 2017. It may be my favourite season of tv from any streaming service so far. Can’t wait for season 2. Everyone that hasn’t watched it yet, if you’re considering doing so - do it.
I watched a bit of this show a year ago and I want to start again but I don't want to have to watch stuff I've already seen, I'm past the bit where the maori fellow gets shot and falls out of the helicopter and then the mum and the step son find that other community with the old fellow with the cowboy hat, particularly the scene where the mum is up at a tree on a hill and the old fellow with the hat comes up to talk to her.
Forgive me if this topic has already occurred here, if it did I wasn't aware.
Also, I'm what you call a "casual" fan so please don't rip my head off for not knowing more about the story.
Anyways it would be cool to see a movie about the Wights/ Walkers/ Children of the Forest and First men.
I mean a prequel about the COTF and their lives up until the First Men arrived, and a bit more depth into the creation of the WW.
If the battles and stuff were epic enough (I don't recall all the details) it sounds like it would make a brilliant movie.
Maybe it could end with how the.... Wall was built and how the WW leader guy ended up hiding/ building his armies.
What do you guys think?
Mine are that S5 of House of Cards wasn't that bad and actually great television and that the most recent season of The Americans was the best season of the show, especially with the growth of Paige as a character. I also enjoyed seeing Gabriel's story come to an end and see growth in his character.
What are yours?
The show has continued and continued to disappoint me and I am not sure I want to continue watching. Would you guys advise just reading the comics instead?
Mine in no particular order would have to be: - Days Gone Bye - Clear - Too Far Gone - The Grove - No Sanctuary
Honorable mentions to Nebraska, Killer Within, Internment, Them, JSS.
I still watch, maybe because of the first 3 seasons, but even hen I watch it just isn't the same. Maybe it is just me or the nostalgia, but I just feel too many original characters died. I know deaths need to happen, but I feel like they killed characters that would've been useful. I get Rick, Daryl, Morgan, and Carol being alive. But I wished they kept characters like Dale or Hershel, Andrea, Abraham, or even someone like Bob Stocky alive. I know people will feel they were useless, but for my opinion they were more important than characters the show chose to keep alive. Like with Dale, he was my favorite character the first two seasons. He spoke sense to the group and If eel he would've been such a good moral character still. It would've fine if they killed him in like season 5, but it pisses me off some other characters, who I feel were just useless, lived for like 4 seasons. Honestly I just feel these new characters aren't too likable or strong physically or mentally for me. No offense to Tara, Rosita, Jesus or Eugene, but they are just not strong enough for me to be invested too. Dale, Andrea, and Abraham were just likable. I also feel there are no strong characters who can dos shit other than Rick and Daryl. In season 2, you had Rick, Daryl, Shane, T-Dog, and Glenn. The new characters are just soft and not likable. If hey kept Abraham he would've been a good body to keep and even someone like Tyrone would've been way more useful than that Jesus dude, who just complains all the time. It is complicated, but I still will watch the show because I invested a fair amount into the show. They need to get out of Virginia and need to go somewhere with a reason. IDK if they want to make this show into Days of our Lives, nut they need to find a conclusion to the show by season 12 the latest. I think they need to find out the reason why this outbreak occurred and maybe if there could be a cure. They need to get to that DC arc back and see fit hey can contact government officials, if there still are.
I can't seem to recall at all.
Edit: I feel like an idiot, and yes I watched the Black Mirror episode - that's how I realised it.
Edit: http://ift.tt/2Cp5srk
I got my girlfriend to watch Game of Thrones, I was afraid that she would lose interest because of the lack of understanding of who the characters that they refere too are so I took it upon myself to be the graceful boyfriend that I am and explain the small details to her while not trying to spoil it. During that time I noticed that the show gets so much more depth after knowing the characters and gives you a better experience focusing on their backstories. Highly recommend it to fans who watched once to do it again! You will enjoy it!
Why is this not a thing?
My favorite: "That dead widow's alive, guns a-blazen!"
I always see Yosimite Sam in my mind when I think of that line.
At the rate they are dragging these seasons along,it's going to be harder to make Bob Odenkirk, younger than his breaking bad Saul
So after all the events that happend until Episode 8. How do you feel about Negan. We have seen that there is still Human inside Negan but can we forgive him after everything he did.
Personally, as much as I love his character, it wouldn't make sense to me if they kept him alive. It would turn me off so much.
Anyway I was just wondering if any of you would Still want Negan to live after AOW?
I don't have a lot of time, so I guess i'll just watch a couple of episodes... I don't know which episodes tho... Face off maybe?
And I've got to say, even with all the praise this show has received (particularly on reddit), it's consistent quality is vastly underrated.
Jake (Andy Samberg) has managed to develop into a good character while keeping the same sense of humor. High praise from me since I couldn't make it through half of Hot Rod. And I rank Dodgeball as one of my favorite movies.
Amy is still a bit neurotic but flexible. The actress (Melisaa Fumero) is really very good at showing a range of emotion, and feels very genuine. I'm surprised I've never seen her before.
Captain Holt manages to be a gay black captain without coming off as some sort of prop for jokes or belittled. Really he's the way I think homosexual characters should be treated in television. His sexuality is shown as no weirder than any other character trait, he is treated fairly by those close to him and is protected by his friends and family, yet strong enough that he doesn't really need it.
Terry Jeffords (Terry Crews) is every bit as good as I could had heard. The episode where he gets harassed by a white cop was powerful, even if the other cop was a bit of a strawman. It's a half hour show, not like there's time to introduce a nuanced sub character. Terry's interactions with Holt were FANTASTIC in that episode.
Gina Linetti (Chelsea Peretti) is a great balance to all the more serious characters. In the few episodes when she left on maternity leave (after the actress had a baby with her real life husband Jordan Peele), you really could miss her.
Rosa Diaz (Stephanie Beatriz) is bad ass and stays that way. Her romance are with Adrian Pimento was great. I'm sorry he's off the show now; but the show has handled her bisexuality very well.
Charles Boyle (Joe Lo Truglio) is absolutely perfect in his role as dedicated father, foodie, and Jake fan-boy, without being grating; which is a tough balance.
Scully and Hitchcock make for great background characters that never seem to progress. But that's kind of the point of them. They put in their time and are just waiting for retirement, so the fact that they don't develop feels perfectly natural.
Somehow the show has managed to go 5 seasons without becoming a caricature of itself. The characters have been consistent, while still developing, the emotion in the right scenes is powerful (for a comedy) and the humor is thoughtful and perverted, all at the same time. I'm really impressed by whomever put the show together.
But the thing that I like the most is that Jake and Amy's relationship has never gone through the stupid clichés that television almost always uses. No arguments that could have been resolved by simple communication, no empty misunderstandings of common issues, no trying to change each other out of some thinly veiled attempt at drama. You have two people who clearly love each other, respect each other, and support each other. It's a healthy relationship between two very different people, which you don't see much of on television anymore.
Anyway, this is a lot longer than I'd intended. 99!
I've submitted this before, but with fewer details. Sorry for any formatting issues.
There has been a great deal of time dedicated to Daenery's altruistic ideals surrounding free-will and slavery. This pertaining to a great number of things: her dragons, the Slaver's Bay region, the Unsullied, Dothraki, Missandei, and even herself (a slave in a sense to both her brother and Drogo).
Ever since Bran saw the creation of the Night King at the hands of the Children of the Forest (through the insertion of dragon glass into his chest), I've believed that Dany would undergo this same ritual in order to face and ultimately defeat The Night King. I also believe that Jon will be the one to help her do so (but that feeds into my Lightbringer theory).
Once "Queen" (but not in the sense that she ever expected) she will truly live up to her title as "breaker of chains" and free the biggest group of slaves yet: the wight walkers. Allowing for them to move on to the afterlife.
Additionally, I'm doing another rewatch of the series and can't help but to think about her vision. She walks into the throne room as ash or snow falls down around her. She approaches the throne and, just as she's about to touch it, walks away from it. Suddenly, she is now walking beyond the wall. While I initially thought that I was way off with this theory, I'm beginning to think that it might not that far from the truth. Then again, I'm usually wrong about this kind of thing.
That we'll see Howland Reed before the end of the series?
I mean, Meera left on unresolved tensions. She must've gone back to her father. And he's one of the only people alive that knows the truth about Jon. I feel as though the showrunners would really drop the ball if they don't show bring him in for at least a scene or two.
So, has this been mentioned before? I think that damn witch poisoned Drogo the first time she washed his wound.
It’s been awhile since I watched breaking bad, how did Walt get Brock to ingest the flower?
While it is certain that there are many different reasons as to why many people may have disliked or disapproved of Carl's foreshadowed death to end the Mid-Season Finale, after having roughly three weeks to settle down and truly dissect the situation, there is nothing truly incorrect or wrong with Carl's possible death except for the single-most important aspect to any television series:
Believability and Consistency in terms of both Plot and Characters.
In this case, that of the most important character in the television series: Rick Grimes.
Disclaimer: Having never read The Walking Dead comic book series and instead only exclusively watched The Walking Dead television series, I base all of my following thoughts only on what is actually seen within the television episodes, nothing more, nothing less, so if the comic books may disagree, I apologize in advance.
Given this fact, the reason that Carl's death is by far the worst mistake that The Walking Dead could make is because everything that has been presented to the audience for the past 8 seasons has demonstrated to us that Rick is a package deal with Carl, and not the other way around: If Rick Grimes were to die in the next episode, with Carl still fully alive and well, Carl could and would continue, as his character's history has established that he has a future in mind, and that his existence depends on no one's outside of his own. The kid witnessed his mother die during childbirth and then put a bullet into her head afterward and is still walking around relatively sane to this day. The guy is a legend.
Meanwhile, time and time again the show has proven to us on multiple occasions that the character of Rick Grimes cannot exist without Carl. Rick's past, present, and future all revolve around ensuring the health and safety of one person and one person only:
Carl.
Rick Grimes does everything that Rick Grimes does for one reason and one reason alone: his son, Carl. Carl is Rick's only purpose in life, his only source of motivation and the only reason that he does anything that he does. Without Carl, Rick would have no compass by which to guide his life, with absolutely no sense of direction or self. Without Carl, Rick Grimes has nothing. Carl is Rick's everything: his past, present, and future, all of his joy, and all of his sorrow. Sure, Judith exists, but compare the way Rick feels for Carl to the way he feels for Judith and, right or wrong, the comparison does not even come close.
In order to continue the series, The Walking Dead is going to need to take Rick Grimes completely out of character, to the point where he won't be recognizable as Rick Grimes. If the show were to remain believable and consistent with its protagonist, the resulting plot would need to revolve around Rick Grimes' brain completely and finally snapping all the way, removing any sense of fear or self-preservation, and have him go on yet another suicidal rampage, only this time, headed directly for the Sanctuary, where he will massacre hundreds of Saviors singlehandedly, deal the killing blow to Negan, and finally end the war, before ultimately succumbing to his wounds sustained throughout the rampage, dying alone on-screen, and thus ending the series, leaving the door open for the various spin-offs to commence.
But that won't happen, because AMC is full of greed and wishes to milk this series as much as it possibly can until it is forced into its cancellation. Therefore, the most likely scenario is that Rick will be "Crazy/Depressed Rick" for 3-6 episodes before coming to his senses either close to or during the season finale, winning the war, and then letting Negan live and going on to the next season as if nothing happened only to repeat the same story with a different evil group at a different location. If the Rick Grimes we have known from Season 1 Episode 1 all the way through Season 8 Episode 8 were to have his son die, there would be no mercy or hesitation whatsoever for any being, living or dead, and indirect suicide would be the only likely outcome for Rick. Anything less would be completely out of character and 100% inconsistent and unbelievable as to who Rick Grimes is and what his goals, ambitions, and motivations as a character are and have always been. Nothing and nobody in the television series will ever be able to replace Carl in Rick's heart and mind, and thus the character the audience has known for 8 seasons will cease to exist. Instead, a shell of Rick will take over from this point on, which will make for a depressing and disappointing show indeed.
That, and that alone, is what is so wrong about this.
Does anyone think Little Sam could possibly have any significance in the story?
Anyone have any pictures of other rooms decorated in the same fashion, links to places that sells and ships to Norway, suggestions and more? My girlfriend and I are decorating our living room for the first time and we want to go all out - goblets, stark banners and so on!
TL;DR at the bottom.
Many criticize Renly Baratheon for taking a claim to the throne but often don’t consider what would have happened if he was successful. The two major talking points I’ll be talking about are why Renly becoming king would have been the best scenario and why he would was the best candidate out of the 3 kings who wanted the Iron Throne.
Why Renly becoming king would have been the best case scenario for Westeros
To start out, let’s look at the scenario that did happen with Renly having died by Stannis’ shadow child. Robb Stark was unsuccessful and died in the Red Wedding, Stannis failed to take King’s Landing and died at The Battle of Winterfell, and the Lannisters won The War of The Five Kings with Joffrey sitting on the Iron Throne with Margaery Tyrell at his side. The war went on for years, thousands died, the Stark family was devastated, Westeros is destroyed, the legitimate Baratheon bloodline was gone, and the Lannisters had power over Westeros.
Renly died with 4/5 of his army aligning themselves with the Lannisters after his death, Stannis states Renly’s bannermen except for the Tyrells sided with him. According to the wikis, 20,000 of Stannis’s army was from Renly, and Renly stated to Caitlyn that he had 100,000 men at his command, making the Tyrell contribution to his army 80,000.
Many people say Renly should have supported Stannis’ claim and gotten the Tyrells to join Stannis, but miss the point or motivation behind the Tyrells backing Renly then backing the Lannisters after Renly’s death. The answer is simple: they wanted power through Margaery becoming queen. If you look at the bathtub/shaving scene with Loras and Renly then the attempted sex scene with Margaery and Renly, it’s quite clear they were trying to gain power through him making a claim on the Iron Throne, even before Joffrey and Tommen were known bastards.
So quite predictably, the Tyrells sided with the Lannisters after Renly’s death since they wouldn’t be able to marry Margaery to Stannis, but Stannis didn’t have the people knowledge to guess why the Tyrells sided with Renly. Since the Tyrells sided with the Lannisters after Renly’s death, Stannis failed to take King’s Landing, Robb Stark failed at creating an independent North, and Joffrey sat on the Iron Throne when all was set and done.
But what if Stannis hadn’t killed Renly? What if Renly had crushed Stannis’ army the next morning then took King’s Landing? If that had happened, he would have had 100,000 or so men at his command to take King’s Landing, more than 4 times the army Stannis used, and about 3.6 times the Lannister army and King’s Landing garrisoned soldiers combined. Lannister reinforcements wouldn’t have been able to reach them in time with the overwhelmingly more soldiers Renly had, and even if they had, Renly likely would have still won due to sheer numbers.
So Renly takes King’s Landing, Joffrey’s head is on a spike, and Renly sits on the Iron Throne, what now? With the Lannister army either devastated or away from King’s Landing, Renly would be able to help Robb defeat them, and create a pseudo independent North and the war would come to a close. The Stark family is alive and strong with a pseudo independent North and no Red Wedding, the war ended in one year instead of five, Westeros isn’t a ruin, the legitimate Baratheon bloodline is alive and strong, the Lannisters are dead, and Westeros has a king they love.
It’s clear that Renly becoming king would have been the best scenario for Westeros, yet Stannis dragged out the war for much longer than it needed to with catastrophic results by killing Renly.
TL;DR: Renly dying resulted in the Stark family failing and dying in the Red Wedding, Stannis failing to take King's Landing, Lannisters having power, Westeros being a ruin, and the war going on for 5 years. Renly not dying would have resulted in the Stark family being successful with no Red Wedding, a successful siege of King's Landing, Lannister family being dead, Westeros being mostly in one piece, and the war ending within a year.
Why Renly would have made a better king than Stannis or Joffrey
-People loved Renly far more than Joffrey or Stannis.
People loved Renly, that’s why everyone went to him instead of Stannis while Stannis was only able to muster up 5K men to fight for his cause. Stannis is an incredibly unlikeable person and not one who’s able to inspire love or loyalty as many characters have stated in the show. If we look at the books, Stannis is so unlikeable that even his brother in law sided with Renly.
Joffrey was hated by his people as well, there were riots while he was king and when someone threw a mudpie at him, he ordered his guards to start killing people. He bullies his people with his sadistic ways and make them fear him instead of love him. If we value what the people want and what would be best for them in any way, it’s clear Renly would have been best fit for the job.
-Renly was a far better diplomat than Stannis or Joffrey.
The biggest example of the diplomatic difference between Renly and Stannis is the handling of Robb Stark wanting to be the King of The North. Neither wanted to lose half of their kingdom when they became king, so what do each of them do? Renly offers Caitlyn a pseudo King of The North title to Robb, as long as Robb swears an oath of fealty to him, citing how Baratheons and Starks have had a long and prosperous history working together. Pretty good, right? It leaves everyone happy and does bring up a good point of them working together in the past being massively successful for Westeros.
How does Stannis reply to Robb Stark wanting an independent North? In the scene with Renly, Stannis, and Caitlyn, Stannis complains about Caitlyn being next to Renly then stating to her about Robb Stark: “The Iron Throne is mine, by right. Anyone who denies that is my foe.” He doesn’t ask if Robb is actually interested in the Iron Throne or just an independent North like Renly, doesn’t offer a possible solution or compromise that would make everyone happy like Renly, instead he gets upset at Caitlyn and digs his feet into the ground even deeper, blinded by what he thinks is his by right.
Is that the kind of king who would be best for dealing with situations and conflicts that come up between his seven kingdoms? No. The best king would be the one who comes up with a compromise and solution that everyone is be happy with, such as Renly did with Robb Stark.
Joffrey doesn’t handle people well, that goes without saying, from starting riots due to killing people, to holding Sansa at crossbow point because he’s bored, to being an overall cruel king. Any diplomacy done is either fucked up by him, or completely manipulated by Tywin Lannister who only has his legacy’s best interests at heart instead of everyone’s.
-Renly is the most progressive of the three kings who wanted the Iron Throne.
Renly does what is just and fair, without caring if it’s socially correct or the norm, which is why he made Brienne part of the Kingsguard as she had wished. Stannis is incredibly socially conservative, banning brothels in Dragonstone and is a religious fanatic, burning people alive to gain favors with the Gods. In the scene with Joffrey and Margaery, Margaery talks about Renly wanting anal sex and Joffrey acts disgusted and claims he has been thinking about outlawing it, despite it not hurting anyone.
From these few examples, it’s clear that Renly is the only one of the three that looks to what’s right, not the way things are “supposed to be” or what they feel grossed out by.
-Renly is the only one of the three who hasn’t done cruel things.
The worst thing Renly had done was claim he’d be the best king against an illegitimate bastard and a brother no one wanted to be king. What’s the worst thing Stannis had done? Burned his nonbeliever brother in law alive, used blood magic to kill his brother, nearly choked Melisandre to death because he was frustrated, tried to kill his nephew as a sacrifice until Davos was able to convince him otherwise, burned his daughter Shireen alive in front of his army, and led to his wife hanging herself.
A king who resorts to burning loved ones alive for good luck from the Gods has no business or suitability being king. He’s a stubborn fanatic whose blinded by his religion and what he thinks he deserves, without any regard for those it’ll harm or what’s the best scenario for people.
There’s a laundry list of cruel things Joffrey has done, but off the top of my head: abused and killed prostitutes, held Sansa at crossbow point because he was bored, had someone’s tongue cut out or his hands cut off because he didn’t like the song, nearly force drank someone to death, and abused Sansa.
TL;DR: Renly becoming king would have been the best case scenario for the Starks, Westeros, and everyone except for Stannis and the Lannisters. Renly was the most loved, the best diplomat, and the most progressive of the three who wanted the Iron Throne, and isn’t cruel like Stannis and Joffrey were.
Pretty much the title.
In the comic books he played a huge part in the war because he was able to produce bullets for the survivors, in the show they flew past it and everyone now has infinite ammo. Are they going to revisit it at all? Negan talked a bit about Eugene making ammo for the saviors but nothing came of it.
Pretty big spoiler for the latest episode of TWD coming up, on mobile so cant tag properly.
So we all have heard the whisperers theory right. And now we know that Morgan crossing over likely won’t be in a flashback, but actually happening after the current events of TWD. This means that season 4 of fear needs to cover almost 2 years of the outbreak, and if they are gonna become the whisperer then this is where it needs to happen.
I know this makes no sense, and most likely won’t happen, but is it at all possible that the walkers who bit Carl were whisperers who were training at being “in character”? It would be so stupid and such a cop out moment but I just needed to throw this out there, since Scott is currently running both shows it’s not impossible.
I doubt Chandlers dad would lie like that and I remember Chandler making a post about half a year ago thanking the show that was quickly deleted so I already convinced myself this theory is bs hah
But then again the TWD Twitter was hyping up season 4 of fear which could again be a argument for the theory.
Who is in your opinion the most innocent, somewhat recurring character in the series ? The first person I thought of was Manuel, Nacho's father, but Stacy and Kaylee pretty much also. Share your thoughts !
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So... Jamie Lannister describes when he was about to stab Aerys he kept saying burn them all, burn them all, burn them all.... As far as i can remember Hodor did the same thing when Bran fucked his head up. So what if the three eyed raven(old man) actually meant Aerys to use the wildfire as a way to kill white walkers. While the plan backfired and ended up killing the Mad King. He wasnt even mad when you think about it from this perspective ?
Season 5 episode 7 at around 0:44 watching from netflix. As walter gets out of the car a guitar theme starts playing but i cant seem to find what its called Anyone know?
T-Dog by Oscar, Oscar by Tyreese, Bob by Gabriel, Tyreese by Noah. Almost always 1 episode in between.
An orangutan could have worked too. Heck, I would take a chimp and they're viscous little assholes. Domesticating is more improbable than the dead coming back to life. In theory, at least the show has some unknown medical cause behind the walkers. Some sort of virus/parasite hybrid. Why would a tighter suddenly show love and loyalty to a human. There's nothing in nature to back that up. Great apes have far more emotional intelligence than a tiger.
This is something I've been wondering about since the first two seasons, especially after the episode TS-19. We know that there were some people, like Dr. Jenner who did not have the virus, and unbeknownst to Rick's group, did the blood tests to see if they had the virus. (Although he secretly told Rick that his group was infected, and Rick kept the secret throughout season 2). Of course, Jenner became exposed when he let Rick's group inside the CDC, but he didn't care because he knew that since he was running out of power, he would no longer be able to work on the cure anyways, and was contemplating suicide anyhow.
And in Shane's flashback where he tried to rescue Rick from the hospital and had to hide from the cops / military (who were wearing PPE because they had presumably not been exposed), because they were killing everyone, not just walkers, but everyone else because they knew that the general population had the virus, even those who had not been bit. Also, the reason why the military bombing the city could possibly be an explanation of why the govt was willing to kill everyone, not just the walkers, in the flashback where Shane, Lori, and Carl were on the highway getting out of the city.
That tells us that those few actually existed, who unlike Rick's group, knew facts about the virus, like Dr. Jenner, and explains why the cops/ military were killing regular citizens and bombing cities. So I'm wondering if there are people who have been able to avoid exposure, who might even be a threat to our survivors. What do you all think?
Ok I just finished watching rouge one again and notice how when the guy with the heavy French accent was aiming at the imperial troops it look like how Sasha was aiming at negan with her sniper
In S04E1 of Black Mirror, Jesse Plemons stars in the season opener as the main antagonist, and Aaron Paul makes a hilarious cameo at the end. You guys should check it out on netflix.
Because last season only 1 thing happened, and everything else what a whole lot of stuff almost happening.
It didn’t feel tacked on to me at all, instead like the long awaited conclusion to the series
I don't even want to spoil the premise for anyone who isn't aware of it, but it started off as just kind of clever, and then became so gripping after a couple episodes I couldn't stop. I very rarely binge shows, but it was just a perfect execution of its premise and I couldn't stop.
Highly recommended. Deserves all the emmys.
The Gore is 1 of the things that made this show amazing for example Axing the walker for guts in S1 Carol Pickaxing Ed's head, Merle's hand, Horse getting eaten, T-Dog's arm getting cut opened on the car in S2, well walker, Guy who gets his leg implead on a metal gate Most of No Sanctuary. These are just a few examples the list goes on. Now they won't even show someone getting bit. They need to bring back the GORE.
It just seems like such an arbitrary amount. Not 15. Not 20. He insists on 17%. Is there some reason for this I’m unaware of, or did they just pick a number out of a hat?
(Some spoilers ahead depending on your development as a fan!!!!) I say Maggie and Daryl. I think the Maggie answer is obvious, but I will elaborate if necessary. I also think Daryl has been given strong development. His recent actions make many fans like him less. But remember he felt responsible for Hershal's death. Then he lost Beth and she died. And he literally got Glenn killed. Yet he still refused to call himself "Negan." Mad respect for Daryl and the manner in which he's been written. If these things happened to you IRL, would you still be super-talkative or would you just grunt your way through?
I guess in anticipation of the new season on January 3, 2018 Fox has made them free to watch. US region locked.
I'm re-bingeing Breaking Bad and just saw the commercial in S2E8. It's awful. Anybody learning video production would learn enough, quickly enough that their first green screen assignment wouldn't look anywhere near that bad. And yet, the commercials he made (that I've seen--I'm like a season behind) in Better Call Saul are pretty awesome. Anybody know of a reason other than typical timeline inconsistency that his commercials six years later look so bad? Is there an actual explanation in the plot that I've missed?
In regards to the ending of season 7 leading up to season 8.. what is the current state of the realm?
North: Ruled by King in the North Jon Snow, pledged to Daenerys (So is he back to Lord Paramount and Warden of the North??)
Riverlands: I think technically Baelish was the last official LP of the Riverlands being granted Harrenhal.. or were the Freys also granted Harrenhal and LP of Riverlands? I forget. I'm guessing Edmure Tully would technically be in charge now? Though still a hostage.
Iron Islands: Salt King Euron Greyjoy.. or is he a LP again since he's "under" Cersei?
Westerlands: Uh.. Cersei probably is taking control by force. Not sure who the next technically living heir should be though. Tyrion? He said he's not sure he's a lord anymore though since he killed his father. Other than him IDK?
Vale: Robin Arryn, not sure who his ward will be though. Waymar Royce?
Iron Throne/Crownlands: Cersei obviously.
Reach: Supposedly all Tyrells are gone, obviously not the case in the books but regardless. Tarlys were I believe made LP of Reach and Wardens of the south.. but they're gone. So one could argue Samwell Tarly is? But technically not as well since he swore the night's watch vow. I'm guessing it would fall the to Hightowers next, assuming no other Tarly familys like was the case with Tyrells.
Dorne: I mean the Sand Snakes never would have been in charge anyway, Arianne would be ruler, but not in the show. So I think they will just ignore it because I don't even know who else could be ruler in the show at this point.
edit: Derp forgot one of the reasons I made this post;
Stormlands: ??? in the future maybe Jon and Dany legitimize Gendry and make him lord of storm's end, but who is at this point in the show? Selwyn Tarth is the only named lord I can think of in the show. Maybe Davos somehow via Stannis?
Does this sound right?
During Season 2, Rick and Shane's relationship deteriorated when Rick found out that Shane doubted his ability to keep the group safe and wanted to usurp him as leader.
With the death of Lori and now Carl, it would be a good idea to have a scene of Rick remembering Shane's words about keeping his family safe; this again fits with the nostalgia theme of this season. Another, possibility in how this can play this out is that we can have an Illusion of Shane appear as a manifestation of Rick's psyche that could give us a visual idea of the conflict going on inside of him over his inability to lead, and protect those around him.
In S5E4 theres a dead guy with a hospital badge from the hospital mentioned above. But the episode is based in Atlanta and St. Ignatius Hospital is in Washington. Anyone know more about this?
Stuff finally happens again! Comic relief character Theon captures his very first castle, which has trickle down effects for all the other Starks. Meanwhile, Jon Snow starts off his own little story of not being able to execute charming redheads.
Thanks everyone who's been following along so far. Come chat on the Discord and such, links are on the blog.
This is such an incredible concept for a show. I'm not talking only about the story of the episode itself, but about the ending.
A show about a Star Trek-esque crew of sentient AIs navigating throughout an MMO-style procedurally generated universe and having to deal with actual real-world players could be absolutely fucking hilarious, and the show could follow the crew and in each episode focus on the RL-players encountered and their actual outside lifes as well. Just think of the shittalking online trolls in mmo's and online shooters and imagine them being actual life-threatening enemies to the Callister crew...
I mean.. I can't be the only one seeing a really really fantastic concept here
To be fair, I could have, because I've been forced to watch it by Sling TV which has the WORST video player in history. This might get a little long as I try to sort my thoughts.
Ok so in the end of Season 6, as we know, the Alexandrians were making a break for the Hilltop to treat Maggie. Right before this, it seems that Abraham revealed he had feelings for Sasha, they started dating, and Rosita was pissy (I assume because of her own lingering feelings for Abraham).
Ok, so group meets Negan in S07 opener, Abraham dies, and Sasha and Rosita both are devastated. I did not see any scene where Rosita's feelings towards Sasha had changed, to my knowledge so far Rosita still harbored a grudge against her for "taking" Abraham from Rosita, even though it's clear that what Abe and Rosita had is over.
End of S7, Sasha goes walker on Negan. Whole group from Alexandria is understandably upset by this. By S8, most of them seem to have gone from grief to PISSED, waging war with Negan. This, too, is understandable.
Now we are 8 episodes in, and Rosita has had an attitude problem this whole time. I chalked it up to grief. In S8E7 (maybe E8, not sure) it comes out that she's actually upset about Sasha's death. Whoa, hold the phone. Why? When did they go from being angry to being besties?
I dont expect Rosita would be happy about Sasha dying, but the dramatic attitude problem seems to be a bit too much for someone she was so angry with, isnt it? Someone please explain this to me.
TL;DR: I thought Rosita was still angry over Sasha and Abe's relationship and depressed over Abe's death, turned out in S8 she's depressed over Sasha's death, wtf?
I honestly cheered when it happened.
The character was referring to it and I kept saying to myself please play the full theme, please do it and it happened during the intro.
Mr. Robot season 3 was really amazing. Loved the whole season after a season 2 that was still good but didn't manage to grab onto me like season 1 did. Season 3 did grab onto me and did more than that. Little things like the Knight Rider theme were so damn great.
I truly believe that Dany needs to die in order to make a strong ending for GOT. Don't get me wrong, she's by far one of my most favorite characters. But the fact that she's been so strong and invulnerable in the show --at least before her dragon died-- has become obsolete, possibly even boring. We need a twist to make the show more exciting and realistic like it used to be.
Dany's greatest wish, the one she's endured all her troubles for, is the crown of the seven kingdoms. I strongly believe she should not get her wish, she should instead have to sacrifice herself in order to save another character or just to defeat an enemy of the realm.
I want her to die realizing that her greatness doesn't stem from an iron throne or a Targaryen heritage, but from the principles she upholds. A sacrifice of her greatest desire in favor of her most noble beliefs. That's what makes a true hero. That's what Azor Ahai is all about.
We've seen a glimpse of this when she risked herself and went to the north with her dragons to save Jon and company from the Night King. And with her dragon dead, I think she's starting to realize that she'll have to sacrifice way more to get what she wants. Except, is her desire a crown or the salvation of humanity?
I want it to be the latter, and if it's that really the case, I think she should be put in a position where she has to choose either her life or the accomplishment of her goal. Because that will cement her as the true hero of the show, even more so than Jon who is the embodiment of a hero. Why? Because she'll be giving up something she has always desired for the benefit of others, while Jon never really had something other than honor and his father's approval to aspire for, and he doesn't have to give up these two things to become a hero.
Well, that's what I think. What do you guys think about this ?
This is silly and all, but I thought it was curious.
Peter Jackson's team made Tolkien's Smaug (aka Smaug the Golden, the Last of the Great Dragons) much bigger than the original book version. Here's a drawing by Tolkien himself depicting the dragon:
And here's a approximation of the film version:
Which turned out to be really accurate:
But Balerion... George Martin's Black Dread was even more of a giant flying mass:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_q7_37YcvKs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcyN_tH25R4
Book Smaug: about 25 meters (80 feet) long. Film Smaug about 60 meters (200 feet). And Balerion, judging by books and show... 80 meters (260 feet) long. TV Balerion is smaller than books Balerion, but not too much smaller.
No wonder Aegon conquered kingdom after kingdom. With such a flying beast under his command he could have taken any realm he wanted.
Next step for the authors would be to make the dragons almost the size of Godzilla. It almost feels like a competition to see who's dragon is biggest.
And that was how it ended, the death of the whole group. Biggest twist ever
The final episode and issue for 2017 have both been released so let's do our best of survey!
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How else does Gus start tracking Mike if not for Nacho informing him of Mike's intention of killing off Hector ? Also it is highly unlikely that someone from Hector's crew is working out of their domain secretly and GUS won't know about it. I think Gus and Nacho go as back as atleast when Nacho orders a hit on Tuco. I don't think he will take such a bold step without someone like GUS assisting him. They also have a thing in common. They both work for the cartel and not in the cartel unlike the Salamanca.
How will actually go out? I know there will be some heart wrenching goodbyes (the thought of him kissing Judith goodbye is killing me), but are we really going to have to watch him suffer until he dies, then watch someone have to put him down? I can't express how awful that would be for me. Can he at least go out fighting, maybe distracting a group of walkers or taking on some Saviors so the rest of them can escape? He argues it's the best thing for everyone, they try to talk him out of it, and he finally says I have to, then just goes for it because it's actually true.
Title
On the cusp of season 4 of Black Mirror, it occurred to me that it'd be a much more exciting experience if Netflix released it at say 7 pm so I could meet up with my friends and we could all watch a chunk of it together.
As it is, Netflix releases their content rather unceremoniously which I believe hurts them because a) it's not an event and moreso b) it would help consolidate the time of conversation about the show.
Edit: I'm not trying to say this as like "this is what I want", although I would want it. I moreso am trying to say I think it'd be good for Netflix and its content.
Jimmy dressing and acting ridiculously to get fired from Davis and Main or Jimmy and Marco conning people?
It's obvious the show writers don't give a crap about sticking to the script so why not really change game and introduce zombies that can run/sprint, jump over fences, and open doors? The current walking zombies have become more of a nuisance at this point than a threat. I don't feel like the survivors are in any danger of getting killed by a walker without the usual ninja tricks. It's not like it will affect the major storyline, and it will make every scene with zombies more intense and action filled.
What say you TWD fans? Running zombies yay/nay?
Title.
I'm rewatching the series, again. I noticed a comment Morgan made when he was freaking out and attacking Rick in his apartment. He said, "people wearing dead people's faces". Since the development of Morgan going to Fear and their timeline being behind that of TWD, do you think he will encounter the whisperers? Do you think that's just crazy Morgan spewing crazy? I remember reading someone's detailed post about the timeline of both shows and where Morgan would be at the end of FTWD season 3, I just can't find it. Let me know what your thoughts are and if there's any significance at all. Thanks
So a lot of people bring up the points that at the beginning of the outbreak the military and world would easily be equipped to deal with walkers and that there wouldn't be that any given that you a. need to die of natural causes or murder to turn or b. need to be bitten even though everyone already has the virus. People also like to bring up that since everyone already has the virus that the bite only kills them because of the amount of bacteria present in the rotting corpse. But then this would mean a bite could probably be treated with capable doctors in the groups and it also means if a bite was given by a fresh zombie it would probably not have an effect. I think my idea of how the virus might work could possibly address both of these concerns. Of course it's all speculation and I like that the show never reveals too many details about the virus itself.
I think that perhaps the walker virus effects people differently which can be explained by a. some people are less naturally immune to it than others like you might see in real world diseases or b. everyone has a different "amount" of it. Either of these explanations bring me to my next point that in the early days of the outbreak there were mass deaths of those who were weaker against the effects of the walker virus and everyone alive in the show now has stronger natural defenses against it so that they can tolerate it in small amounts. This could also explain how a bite will still infect people when everyone is already infected. It simply overwhelms them. It would explain why a bite has such uniform unique symptoms that I don't think you'd see if it was just bacteria in the walker's teeth that killed the victim.
If there were mass deaths at the beginning of the outbreak it could explain how the world was overwhelmed by it and unable to respond to the quickness of it.
I don't know if there material I'm forgetting that contradicts my theory or if Fear The Walking Dead (I haven't watched it) show something different. I think though it could be consistent with what we know so far about it.
This is the only show I can think of when every character is attractive, even Daryl.
Was anyone ever able to figure out the artist that covered David Bowie's song Heroes that played during the scene where Alicia attends "bible study" with Gretchen and her friends?
That version of the song is such an ear worm and I'd love to snag a full version of the song.
I've been one of the biggest apologists for this show for a long time now.
I didn't mind the dumpster - I was just relieved Glenn was still alive.
I accepted the S6 cliffhanger - I really enjoyed the finale and premier and I even had my own reasons for agreeing with the decision.
I coped with the apparently sloppy use of guns and the trash people - they might not be my favourite parts of the show but I tried not to let them bother me too much.
But no longer.
Carl's death was too much for me. It was too obviously done for shock value, and the circumstances and rumours that arose concerning Chandler being fired pushed me over the edge with regards to the show. Since then I've had a lot of thoughts about exactly where the show went wrong, and I finally came to a similar conclusion to I'm sure many other fans of the show: the S6 finale cliffanger, and more importantly, the handling of the entire Savior arc.
I believe that the show could have been handled in a much more effective way, not only to keep it fresh, but also to deliver one of the best season the show has seen.
The lead up until Negan's introduction was good, in fact I would go as far to say that aside from the cliffhanger, S6E16 is one of the best, most intense episodes of the entire show, however the first major mistake made was in who the victims of Negan were.
Although it is generally agreed (as far as I know), that Abraham and Glenn were suitable, poignant deaths, I do not think that they were the most effective. Looking back upon the line up, I believe there were two people whose deaths would have had a greater and more relevant impact on storylines going forwards, while also providing realistic, unforced shock value for the audience.
Daryl and Maggie.
It has been clear for a little while now that the writers do not know what to do with Daryl, and, despite him being a fan favourite, having him brutally murdered in front of the group would have broken them just as much as losing Abraham or Glenn, while also showing the audience that Negan is a serious and dangerous villain. By killing Maggie, a similar effect would be reached. It could create an interesting diversion from the comics, by seeing how Glenn would be able to cope with losing his wife and unborn child, and by seeing the potential for a conflicted character who starts to stray away from his normally moral self. This might have led him to leaving Alexandria for the Hilltop and leading a (similar) storyline to Maggie, thereby not straying too far from the comics, but also providing a refreshing change.
Abraham's storyline could also be an interesting diversion from the comics. Having him stay alive would negate the posibility of the moody Rosita storyline, which was also one of the major negatives for people throughout S7. It could also allow the show to explore his relationship with Sasha a bit better, and also show him being an important right-hand man to Rick, since Daryl would not be around anymore.
I think just by this switch, the show would already be off to a better start for S7, and hopefully allow it to avoid many of the mistakes that it made.
Aside from this, I think other important alterations that should have been made are:
1) Having stronger connections to the Oceanside community, rather than just Tara, and having one of their group join Alexandria on a temporary/permanent basis in order to remind people of the alliance and to keep them in the picture rather than just have them disappear for an entire season. 2) Make the trash people 'normal'. I was on board with an extra group from the comics, but the way they were handled was very underwhelming. Had they been an intelligent group of scavengers, they would have been far more appealing, and the betrayal would have felt more organice. 3) Given a more coherent idea about the strategies of both sides and the numbers/weapons that they had at their disposal. As it is for 8A, the writers have just been throwing fighters at each other with seemingly no care for any realism regarding the impact that this would have on the communities. 4) Do not kill Carl. Why would you do that? It is beyond belief. If they wanted a significant death in this episode there was numerous other options, but I think no major death would have been the best choice. They already lost Alexandria, the Hilltop rebellion has been repelled, the Kingdom has lost all of its fighters. That is enough loss, and the ending would still have been poignant with all our main characters cowering in the sewers, not knowing what to do next.
I think those are the main changes that I would make, but I think it goes to show that if the writers gave more thought to substance rather than spectacle, the show could easily have gone on a different route that I believe would be much more effective.
Obviously it is hard to know how my ideas would have turned out, and I'm sure in reality they would not be as good as I'm imagining, but then again, I'm not a writer for one of the biggest and most popular television shows on television.
Despite everything, I will carry on watching in the hope that things may turn around for the better, but I'm afraid I'm not hopeful at all. My only idea to salvage this now is to wrap this storyline up as quickly as possible and move onto something completely original, staying away from the comics. I'm aware this is a risk, but I think it has a higher chance of success than trying to carry out arcs that centre around a character that has just been killed off.
Sorry for the long post, I just thought I'd air my thoughts and see what people think about it.
TLDR: Kill Daryl and Maggie instead of Abraham and Glenn, have a better Oceanside plot, drastically alter the trash people, pay more attention to strategy and don't kill off Carl.
I get that Robert Kirkman said that they aren’t zombies but I’ve always wondered which is the best ‘zombie genre’ series/film I mean obviously there’s the walking dead but what about z-nation or zombie land plus many other great masterpieces That’s just a little food for thought
I've been wondering how exactly the writers were going to go from 'Rick lost his son in the middle of a war with the guy bombing Alexandria and terrorizing everybody' to 'Rick lets Negan live and they're BFFs in a season or two and it's pancakes and sunshine for the rest of the show'. To me, that seems like a huge amount of ground to cover for Rick to not do the thing he's repeatedly said he's gonna do - including in the trailers - which is: kill Negan.
If Carl's death is going to be pitched as some sort of moral push for Rick not to go down that road, something other people have been saying around this sub, it can't be the only push. There's just so much bad blood around everybody right now. But with JDM also turning Negan into more of a cash cow/fan favourite, the writers pretty much have to keep him alive, and therefore have to explain how these two can in any way, shape or form coexist when - again - they have literally both turned to the camera and said, "Not happening."
Enter Simon.
8x05 was all about Negan standing by not wanting to kill people, or at least only wanting to kill the minimum necessary number of people to keep order. But we also have half of a community (Oceanside) that's been wiped out, a car with speakers rolled through the Hilltop's gates to let in Walkers, and some past behaviour that Negan was concerned about 'backsliding' into at Simon's suggestion of wiping the Hilltop out.
Does anyone else think that the writers are going to have all that be Simon's fault? From what we know about Negan in the show so far, letting Walkers loose into the Hilltop is massively wasteful of people's lives. Anyone or everyone could've been bit, which is not Negan's MO, since his punishments make specific, public examples out of one or two chosen victims. He even prefaced Alexandria's bombing with three minutes for people to surrender, and that was during a Scorched Earth attack. But Simon's in charge of the Hilltop, and he's pretty crazy, so he might've taken it upon himself to go the extra mile and expose everyone to that kind of danger as a creative/extreme interpretation of Negan ordering him to keep the Hilltop in line. Simon's the one who's cool with doing a 'fly-by', after all, so maybe the writers will have it that the really bad stuff is actually news to (and not approved by) Negan at all.
I mean, Carl can't exactly plead for sense and morality if Negan really is that bloodthirsty, and I think the show is aiming for some 'We're not so different, you and I' between Rick and Negan anyway. This might explain how Negan's an asshole, but not that much of an asshole because hey, just like Rick who had to get a little crazy when he first got to Alexandria, Negan had to as well, but neither of them personally went overboard. That's someone Rick can keep in jail instead of executing, 'cause Simon is/was the true psycho, and Negan's new biggest crime was letting Simon be in charge in the first place.
Thoughts? Did they do this in the comics?