SPOILER ALERT!
Episode 15 had the feel of a parable, and opens with Rick’s treachery. He’s discussing turning over Michonne to the Governor with Daryl and Herschel. Daryl, the former racist scumbag who is now the moral center of the group, expresses unease: “This isn’t us, man.” Rick doesn’t hear him, can’t hear him, and goes off to recruit Merle to the dastardly plot.
Rick walks up on Merle as the one-armed man is tearing apart mattresses in search of “a little vacation,” reminding me that addicts, even in the apocalypse, never stop wanting to use. Merle, with a lifetime of bad choices and wrong turns, lays out the reality for Rick, which has the effect (probably intended) of undermining Rick’s resolve, even telling Rick he doesn’t “have the spine” to sell out Michonne. Merle casually describes the true character of The Governor, in all its horror, and lets Rick know that handing over Michonne means certain torture. “You’d let that happen … for a shot,” Merle says, meaning there’s no guarantee Woodbury wouldn’t still massacre them, since they’re an obvious threat. “You’re cold as ice, Officer Friendly.”
We see that, luckily, Merle is right. Rick doesn’t have it in him. Rick gets startled off his restraint-gathering mission by a vision of Laurie, with Herschel’s reading of Scripture floating along on top of his conflict, weaving into Rick’s consciousness and pulling at the threads of his indecision. His surrender becomes his release, and as he unwinds the Ethernet cable from his wrist, he’s letting go of a lot more than electronic peripherals.
Merle’s conversation with Carol foreshadows the theme of the episode – is Merle “with us” or not; how does he (can he) become a righteous man; how does he “make it right”? How does anyone? Merle’s conversation with Daryl also highlights the shifted societal landscape – how much of our humanity, or what we considered “civilized” or “right” is translatable or even relevant to this new world? Throughout the episode, we see Merle’s struggle to be “right” (it is a testament to the writing of this show that Merle is so sympathetic in this episode). His moral journey is a literal journey, leading right back to The Governor.
As they make their way to Woodbury, Michonne makes her case for Merle’s soul, in a sense. She never pleads for her life, just offers him an alternative to the point-of-no-salvation route he’s currently on. The “compliments” she gives him – he’s not like The Governor, he’s not an evil man – aren’t offered out of desperation or deception. She calmly offers him redemption in the simplest terms possible: “We could just go back.” His childish refusal quickly gives way to her release.
Merle, rather than face a future where he might have to grow into a decent human being, chooses instead to self-immolate and go out in a big, loud blaze of glory. Sadly, he doesn’t snag the biggest fish on his way out and is instead reduced to a Walker – the ultimate humiliation – leaving Daryl to dispatch him through tears and stabs.
Was anyone else slightly grossed out by Glenn’s method of harvesting an engagement ring? I mean, I know these are different times, but is having a diamond really THAT important?
Maybe it’s just the burgeoning anarchist in me, but I LOVED Rick’s abdication of authority. His speech indicating that he’s no longer the leader and setting the stage for an absence of leaders in the group makes the most sense, of all the political options. “I couldn’t sacrifice one of us for the greater good because we ARE the greater good. We’re the reason we’re still here, not me. This is life and death. Hoe you live and how you die – it isn’t up to me. I’m not your Governor. WE choose to go. WE choose to stay.” He devolves into democracy there at the end, but I’ll forgive him for that.
I watched this episode twice, because the first time I didn’t take notes as I was watching it, which makes these little recaps a wee bit difficult to write. There’s a lot here, lots of layers of meanings and philosophical questions that I missed the first time. If you haven’t seen the season finale yet, I encourage you to go back and see “This Sorrowful Life,” again.
Many thanks to deviantARTist KevinStiles for letting us use his awesome zombie bite tattoo design for this post’s illustration.
