The Riddle of Samson—“out of the eater, something to eat; out of the strong, something sweet”—is cited towards the end of “Self-Help.” It can be a portentous build-up to Eugene Porter’s inexorable reveal, an homage to Stephen King’s third Dark Tower, or both, but the scene in which the riddle is cited, with Maggie (Lauren Cohan) interacting with a usually po-faced Eugene (Josh McDermitt), is pivotal in telling the deeper nuances of the scheming ‘government scientist.’ His reveal is a wee overdue, and perilous in that it overlaps with Beth’s distress at Grady last week—they make a twinning inquiry on value in a new world of violence and power—but in the whole the episode is broadly entertaining and intriguingly unhinged, which suits justly its two key characters.
Abraham Ford (Michael Cudlitz), monomaniacally obsessed in getting Eugene across cities to Washington, harbours a dark past. Eugene Porter, latched on the idea of survival even though unskilled, strives for a surviving present. What is clear of these two people is that they are not stupid; and what is unclear, as ever in the world of The Walking Dead, is their future. The massive hoard on the horizon is a vivid representation of that future, of the why and the how and the what-it-means to carry on. Abraham somewhat explains a third of this, in plain Darwinian theory, to Glenn. “Gotten to a point where everyone alive is strong now,” he says. “We have to be.” Which is true for everyone. The series have come to the point where the walkers have been relegated as backdrop threats, almost a thing of the past, human beings becoming a much larger threat be it eye-patched psychos or a band of cannibals. The Walking Dead has come to a point that it gets to focus sharper on the weak, those who can be easily disposed, die, valueless in the new world that has become.
While Beth in last week’s “Slabtown” discovered her willingness to rise beyond her weaknesses, Eugene opts for inventiveness. Comic book fans have been waiting for his reveal that he is not a ‘government scientist’ that he claims, almost over its due time (there have been scarce screen time for Abraham, Eugene and Rosita), but McDermitt’s portrayal is spot-on, and Cudlitz’s portrayal is spot-on, and the whole of the episode is spot-on—the wait is all worth it.
The interaction between Eugene and Abraham proves more interesting, one of the many symbiosis in the series; twisted still, for sure, but an interaction just as compelling. A key sequence in the episode is Abraham’s flashback, rationed sporadically in nervy increments throughout the episode. The end of it reveals his first encounter with Eugene in the beginning of his elaborate lie and the unmasking of the phantom we knew of him prior to this knowledge. It’s pivotal to both characters because it hints Abraham’s knowing of Eugene’s lie, and Eugene’s exploiting of Abraham’s skills. One needs diversion, the other needs respite—both are found in each other’s company.
Towards the end Eugene gets beat up and it is made uncertain if he lives on, giving us two cliffhangers at this point of the season: one, Carol’s arrival at the hospital, seemingly injured; another, if Eugene survives Abraham’s beating and if Abraham endures his memories flashing back, of his wife and children’s passing. At the hazard of repetitiveness, I say, as ever in the [new] world of The Walking Dead, the future of the survivors remains unclear.
Tell us what you think of this week’s episode!
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Next Episode’s Promo:
Stray Observations:
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- Next episode should tie things well. Honest. I’m excited.
- “Cards on the table, I was watching them. I believe they know I catch an eyeful on occassion, which isn’t to say it’s their thing. It’s not mine either. It’s just that I admire the female body and I consider this a victimless crime that provides both comfort and distraction.” ~Eugene, re: On dignified peeping…There is a good ounce of humour in this episode: Eugene’s mullet, Eugene’s mullet, and Eugene’s mullet. Oh, and Glenn too. He’s great. When Maggie isn’t around his guilt-trip.
- Tara’s holding on to Eugene’s secret is a sweet if shoehorned way of developing her character. She needs a better arc. But yeah, she’s sweet. Probably’d die when you least expect it.
- Rosita (Christian Serratos) has minutes of dialogue here. Yay! A portent of demise, too. If it is in TWD fashion, I guess it will be a metaphor for domestic violence. I mean, have you not seen Abraham lose the screws of him?
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THE EPISODE IN ONE QUOTE:
“I want to say it’s never easy. That’s not the truth. It’s the easiest thing in the world now.”
~Sgt. Abraham Ford
(Michael Cudlitz)
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