'The Walking Dead'- Requiem For A Hero

When season five was about to commence, Executive Producer Greg Nicotero warned us we’d be losing several characters this year.  For my part, I kind of ignored the notion, thinking there’s no way any of my favorites would be included, especially those within the core cast.  I stand corrected!

The mid-season finale ended as fans across social media went into shock upon the unexpected death of Beth Greene (Emily Kinney), whom we thought had been successfully rescued from the “hospital from hell”, run by cut-throat cop Dawn Lerner (Christine Woods).  But things severely go awry when Dawn says Noah (Tyler James Williams), who found Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and told him where Beth was, could not go with them!  Though Noah agrees to stay, a seething Beth took the opportunity to take out the cold bitch by stabbing her in the jugular with a pair of scissors!  In an instant, the sound of a gun shot ripples through the air! It all happens so fast!  Beth is dead!  But in one of the most well-deserved comeuppance moments Daryl (Norman Reedus), who immediately breaks into tears seeing Beth’s blood pour onto the cold hard floor, steps forward delivering the final kill shot to Dawn!  The entire group is devastated, having failed to deliver Beth safe and sound back to the family.

I’d say that when the series ends, the one scene fans will immediately go to when talking about The Walking Dead, is the iconic picture of Daryl carrying Beth’s limp body in his arms, to the horror of her sister Maggie (Lauren Cohen)!

In speaking with Amber Dawn Fox who played Officer Bello, she had nothing but great things to say about the entire cast and crew as she recalled the day that scene was shot.

According to Fox, it’s tough to get on The Walking Dead; however after applying to be an extra in a film Norman Reedus is starring in, the studio contacted her asking if she’d be available for a non-speaking part on The Walking Dead. Of course being a huge fan of the show she jumped at the chance (who wouldn’t) and suddenly found herself in one of the most pivotal scenes of the series with almost the entire cast!  Fox had no idea what scene she would be in until a few minutes prior because with no speaking part, she was not privy to the script.

She said everyone was amazing, Reedus, Lincoln and the others introduced themselves and welcomed her.  The scene took two days to film due to multiple shots needed including close ups, etc…  Fox said it was an incredible experience.

The mid-season premiere on Sunday picks up just seventeen days later as Rick, Tyreese (Chad Coleman), Michonne (Danai Gurir) and Glenn (Steven Yuen) accompany Noah to his neighborhood only to find it has been decimated!  Not willing to accept the inevitable fate of his twin brothers, Noah recklessly races to his house with Tyreese who insists, “Me first” and enters with his left foot first (in some cultures it’s an omen to walk into a person’s home with your left foot first).  Little did he know the unsuspecting abode would be his undoing! While looking at photos posted on Noah’s bedroom wall, deep in thought, he’s suddenly bitten on the arm by a Walker!

Tyreese begins to suffer from blood loss and shock. Things start to get really strange as he goes into fever dream-hallucination state.

It’s interesting that Tyreese, whom I characterize as the moral compass of the group, appears to be terrified to accept his fate.  Who better to show up in such a scary moment than Lizzie (Brighton Sharbino), Mika (Kyle Kennedy), Beth and Bob (Lawrence Gilliard, Jr.)?

Throughout season five, the moment Tyreese really struggled with was the fact he hadn’t killed Gareth’s (Andrew J. West) minion Martin (Chris Coy) when he had the chance.  One of his crosses to bear is his guilt that maybe if he had killed Martin, Bob would still be alive and his sister Sasha (Sonequa Martin-Green) wouldn’t be suffering the way she is.  While Tyreese tries to let go of the anger and hate, Sasha is completely opposite, choosing to let it fester.  I don’t know how she’s going to take the news that not only is the love of her life Bob gone, but now her brother!  

As the fever dream continues, Tyreese’s fear heightens when not only Martin begins taunting him, but  also “The Governor” (David Morrissey) starts taking his digs!  Talk about a nightmare!  The poor guy probably thought the devil himself had come to snag his soul!  In a haunting moment “The Governor” belittles Tyreese and his unwillingness to do what must be done to survive in a post-apocalyptic world.  For those that don’t remember, Tyreese was one of the men under “The Governor’s” control before things went haywire and he, along with Sasha and Michonne escape from his grip.  I think it was one of the bravest things he ever did!

Tyreese continues to bleed from the bite, the virus slowly creeping towards his heart and all I kept doing was screaming at the screen- where’s Rick, Michonne and Glenn!  They finally show up and hack off his infected arm.  However though they finally get him out of there, it’s too late. The loss of blood is too great.  In a final moment, Beth, Lizzie and Mika tell him “It’s okay to let go.”  He does.

Beautifully crafted, I’d say this is one of the best episodes of the series.  I loved that we were able to take a trip down memory lane so-to-speak, seeing characters that Tyreese felt he wronged, feared or wasn’t quite there for in some way.  It really allowed the character to come full circle as he unburdened his soul, finally letting go.  What I find really interesting is that Sasha wasn’t with them on this little side trip.  I think she’s never going to forgive herself, believing she should have been there to protect her brother.  She already has a deep, festering black hole still grieving for Bob, so what will this do to her?

Another thing I liked was the symbolism of the radio throughout his fever-dream state, which reveals how his father taught him to always stay informed and understand what’s going on. This is exactly what he did once the virus hit.  Highly intellectual, Tyreese was not cut out for this type of life and while he clearly struggled throughout, he was not afraid to stand up for what he believed in or how he felt about any given situation.  He became a calming force within a rough, unpredictable, perilous quest to find some kind of peace on earth.

*A little side note- if you thought you recognized the voice on the radio, that was Andrew Lincoln using his real accent!

So what’s next for the gang?  Michonne wants to stay in the neighborhood, though it’s been compromised and tried to get Rick to agree.  He’s not willing to do so.  The plan is to head to Washington D.C.

Even through what all our survivors have seen, the gang is disturbed upon entering the busted through perimeter of the suburb and notice a lot of half-bodies laying around. What does this mean?  Executive Producer Greg Nicotero who directed this episode, said we will learn more as the season comes to a close and warns it’s not over! There’s no rest for the weary and Nicotero promises the gang is in for a whole lot more as they fight to survive in the post-apocalyptic world. Hang on because much more craziness is coming!

As for Beth and Tyreese, RIP my friends.  You will be greatly missed but never forgotten as you both were in probably the best episodes of the series.

Listen to my full interview with Amber Dawn Fox and follow me on this blog for all the latest reviews and interviews for The Walking Dead.