Episode  7, When the Dead Come Knocking

Summary:

The seventh episode opens with Merle catching up with Glenn. Needless to say, Merle has an axe to grind. He still holds a grudge because of a little thing like having to cut off his own hand. Merle wants to know about his brother and the rest of the group. He asks Glenn hard.

Back at the prison Michonne gets attacked when the zombies smell her blood and passes out from loss of blood and exhaustion. Carl and Rick end up saving her just in the nick of time.

After saving Michonne the group finds out that Glenna and Maggie are being held prisoner, and they decide that a rescue mission is in order.

In the meantime the Governor takes Andrea into the “lab” and she gets to see what the people of her new community are up to. And I was glad to see that they strapped their patient down.

The end of the episode leaves us hanging. The rescue team is almost there, but Glenn and Maggie are in real danger.

Things I loved about this episode…

• Carl taking down two zombies before they can get to Michonne.
• Carol’s reunion with the rest of the group.
• Andrea’s butt. It is quite nice. I am wondering if she lost a bet with the directors and has to do all the semi nude scenes this year.
• Carl picking his sisters name.
• Glenn kicking some walker ass while taped to a chair.
• How everyone is just totally relaxed as they get out of the car, leaving behind the walker in the dress. Walkers are just part of the background now.
• The swarm on the trail when the rescue team is trying to get to Glenn and Maggie. There is just something about a zombie horde that rocks.
• The crazy redneck in the hut in the woods. Ima just living in the house in the woods. I think he drank too much moonshine. The fact that they used him as food to distract the horde was awesome.
• The old man trying to bite the idiot Milton. Damn you Andrea for saving the moron. You should have let him get bit.

Things that I didn’t like about this episode…

• Merle threatening to cut off Glenn’s nose and then beating the crap out of him. I really like Glenn and Maggie. Their love affair is a bit of sunshine and hope in a very grim world. I really don’t want Glenn or Maggie to die.
• Do we ever get to find out why Michonne is so pissed? She had some bond with Andrea so clearly she is capable of having some relationship with other people.
• The Governor making Maggie take her shirt off. I pray that Glenn gets to kill the b#st@rd.
• Maggie telling the Governor about the prison. I get that she was scared, but she gave everyone up. Her sister and her dad are there.

Red Dawn (2012) 3 Out of 5

I was so excited to go see the remake of Red Dawn. Unfortunately things went down hill quickly. My oldest son opened his box of gobstoppers and dropped them on the floor. Everyone in the theater turned around and took a look. Great way to start the night.

I remember seeing the original Red Dawn when I was ten or eleven and loving it, so the remake had a lot to live up to. Remakes are such a dangerous game. You have to be different enough to be interesting and yet similar enough to pay homage to the original work.

It is a tough line to walk.

In this case, I think they should have called the movie, “Russia Invades” or “Korean Menace” or “The TV Show Revolution device was weaponized by the North Koreans”. You know, something like that. I think if I wasn’t comparing the movie to the original it would have performed better.

On the positive front, the action scenes were plentiful and there were numerous well done gun battles. There are also some nice shots of Adrianne Palicki’s rear and the oriental tattoo on the small of her back. I’m hoping that was really hers, and not just added for the film.

On the negative front, a lot of the homage paid to the previous Red Dawn film was heavy handed. The tracking device and both how it got there, and what ended up happening because of it were very well done. In this version, it made no real sense either in how it was applied, and or the outcome. It felt like it was added in because it was a box that had to be checked, so even if it made no sense, so be it.

The other part that bothered me a bit was that Josh, oh, I’m sorry, I meant Matt, needs a haircut. I can’t look at him without wondering where Drake is. Maybe if he had cut his hair and looked just a little bit different I wouldn’t have flash backs to Drake & Josh every time he appeared on screen.

Then there is Erica, Matt’s love interest, who apparently get’s put on a bus by the bad guys for random trips. Where was she going? And why when Josh was saving her did none of the other prisoners on the bus seem to care about the keys to their cuffs or escaping as well?

And then there was the ending, which I found to be just a tad too corny even for my taste. Josh’s speech and then the mustang with the chain gun were just over the top. And I love Mustangs. I love my 2007 Mustang and think a chaingun on the back would rock.

In the end I didn’t feel like I got robbed of close to forty bucks for three people to go see the movie, but it wasn’t a movie that I walked away from thinking, “Wow, that was really awesome.” Maybe it will go over better when it comes out on DVD and I can watch it on my couch with a beer in my hand.

If I could give one word of advice to anyone thinking they have a shot at surviving once all hell breaks loose, it would be to make sure you practice your survival skills. Having a years worth of food and thousand rounds of ammo do you no good unless you have the skills to survive along with them.

Airsoft is the best thing that ever happened to survival training in my book. I used to play paintball, but it was so expensive compared to airsoft, and the range sucked. There is a reason why paintball fields are built narrow and short, because otherwise you are better off taking hand fulls of paint balls and throwing them.

Airsoft has much better range and you can play all day for less than twenty bucks, or even less, depending on how much you spray and pray.

I’ve had a good twenty or thirty airsoft guns over the last couple of years, but the KWA is the keeper. It has awesome range, shoots hard and has awesome accuracy.

I also bought a high capacity drum mag for it, so when I need to provide covering fire I don’t have to stop and reload every twenty seconds.

Pros-

• This gun is accurate
• Great feel
• Well built

Cons-

KWA KM4A1 Carbine, 2nd Generation AEG, 2009 Model airsoft gun

I hope you enjoy a safe holiday and don’t run across any zombie turkeys.

Isn’t it the truth though?

How many bankers are going to survive? How many lawyers? As a whole I think they are less likely to be ready to kill thralls/zombies/walkers.

So make sure you have a few redneck friends. We are the ones who are going to save your ass!!!!!

Episode  6, Hounded

Summary:

The sixth episode of the season opens Merle and several other of the governor’s men hunting Michonne.

Meanwhile at the prison, Rick picks up the phone and talks to a mysterious girl. The girl seems to offer safety and security, but I’m not sure if it is all in Rick’s head or if it is real. I’m afraid it is all in his head. I’m not going to believe it’s real until someone else hears the phone ring.

While it would be easy to think the name of the episode “Hounded” is about Michonne being hunted, I think it is more about Rick’s subconscious torturing him. Yep, that is exactly what it is. It costs the episode a point on the quality scale.

The twist in episode six is that Merge gets a hold of Glenn and Maggie while Michonne ends up at the prison with the baby formula that the two of them were supposed to be scavenging for.

Things I loved about this episode…

• The “Go Back” bitergram that Michonne leaves for Merle and the other guys tracking her. Arms in the shape of the “G”, legs making the “O”, and then a torso on its stomach for the back.  Just awesome. 
• Michonne kicking some ass. She takes out 50% of Merle’s team with a few quick swipes of her sword. She does take a shot to the thigh, but we’ll have to see how bad it is. Turns out it is not too bad. She had strength enough to ambush Merle and his surviving partner again.
• Daryl telling Carl about hos he lost his mom. It was sad and touching at the same time.
• Merle shooting his surviving partner. It sounds strange, but I like the fact that he is true to himself.
• Michonne is bloody hurt, but the walkers move on by. I think it is the first time she realizes she can mask herself with the smell of other walkers.
• The governor and Andrea talking. He is starting to lose it I think, which is very well played.
• Andrea might be a slut (she slept with Shane as well as the Governor) but she does have nice legs.
• Carol is alive!!!  They buried her scarf, not her!!! It was nice to have a bit of happiness in episode six.

Things that I didn’t like about this episode…

• Andrea going over the wall and stabbing a walker. Why would you put yourself at risk when you could kill it from a distance with a bow.
• Rick losing it in the mechanical room with the phone. If it is all in his head I’ll be pissed. I like Rick, I don’t want him to go nuts. (and yes, it is all in his head we find out later in the episode)
• Oh crap, Merle meets Glenn and Maggie. You should have just shot him Glenn.
• Bad security measures. Come on guys, when the prisoner, Daryl, and Carl and exploring they get “surprised” and use way too much force to kill the one walker. Maybe you should keep one person in the hall as a guard at all times?

Savages (2012) 3 Out of 5

Okay, my heart is still racing from watching this movie. It really kept me on the edge of my seat, but I can be easily stimulated, so keep that in mind.

The movie opens with two of the hottest sex scenes I’ve scene. I was never a fan of Blake Lively, but I would give her one of my kidneys after seeing this movie. And I’d take it out myself…..with a pen knife. She plays smoking hot and sultry like no other. She makes the love triangle thing seem believable, even if her  “Wargasms” line was horrible.

For reference, here’s the girl:

Okay, back to the movie. If it was just the first thirty minutes I’d have given it five out of five. Blake was that good in the first two opening scenes.

The movie itself kept you on the seat of your pants. You are never quite sure which way things are going to break, so I guess if you like thrillers, you will love this.  My problem with it was that while the violence was very gory and quite graphic, the action scenes tended to be too far apart for me.

One of my favorite parts is when Chon puts a knife into John Travolta’s characters hand, telling him he’ll do anything to get Ophelia (O) back. It gave me the same feeling that watching the phone call scene in Taken gave me.

I guess that is the reason that it got a three and not a five. I was expecting the girl to get saved with a few more action scenes and for Chon to kick some more ass. So while it was a great tense thriller, I wanted more action in my thriller.

Episode  5, Say The Word

 

Summary:

The Governor’s people are living it up, enjoying the high life that the Governor has bought them, though they are ignorant of the price.

The episode has a lot of great reveals about the Governor’s town. You find out that the Governor is out of his mind (no surprise) and that he is keeping not only his daughter but a small horde of other walkers locked up as well.

Some interesting bits are dangled out there as well. The science geek complains about using all the power for the party while he has experiments going on. What is he doing? I’m sure it is nothing nefarious – you too right?

Meanwhile, while all that is going along, Rick is losing it, going on a walker killing spree with an axe. Glenn ends up going after him. The question is, is he just killing to vent or is he going looking for Lori?  And they never really showed Lori getting shot, they pan away and you hear the shot, but maybe Carl couldn’t do it?  Does Rick end up coming face to face with Lori Walker? Or is his whole deranged episode really come down to the safety of the group? If he kills all the walkers in the cells they wouldn’t have to worry about doors being thrown open again. Then again, maybe he is just losing his f’ing mind.

Things I loved about this episode…

• The creepy reveal about the Governor and what he keeps hidden besides heads in fish tanks. The daughter zombie thing was creepy and a good surprise.
• I love the way that Daryl is gung ho and ready to roll when the baby needs formula. Although if I was Glenn there is no way I would have let Maggie go.  Not because I think Daryl would do anything to her, but man up. If someone is going to end up in danger, I’m not letting my woman walk into it.
• Rick going on a zombie killing spree when he loses it.
• Holy crap, there is something very sick about the notebook full of dashes.
• Michonne going ninja on the Governor’s stockpile of walkers. You go girl, but I think you may have just pissed some people off.
• Michonne really is pretty wicked with that sword. She took it from the Governor like he was a noob.
• Glenn talking about T-Dogg. It was very touching. I love the backstory they give each character.
• Nice, at least the science nerd from the compound was smart enough to wear something bite proof. I’d be wearing frickin chain mail if I was on walker harvest duty.
• Daryl has the best quote of the episode. “Hello Dinner.” After he shoots the possum in the day care closet.
• Andrea finally starts to get it after Michonne tells her no one is allowed to leave and then Merle stops them when they try to get to the gate. And then mind f*cks them by opening the gate.

Things that I didn’t like about this episode…

• Daughter zombies. Come on, how many times do you have to see someone keeping a family member and it turns out poorly? Put a bullet in her head and have a nice ceremony to remember her by.
• Al’s car lot commercial. How did this get onto AMC? Did he buy ad time when it was dirt cheap before the series became a hit? Or do I live in such a crappy market that he can buy time here dirt cheap?
• Come on Daryl, cover Maggie’s ass while she’s digging around for formula. Some of those hands on the wall looked to have bloody overlays on them. (This part actually had my stomach clenching.)
• Poor Carl, when he is asked if he has a name for his little sister he names all the dead girls. I liked Daryl’s name better. “Lil Asskicker”
• What the hell is going on with Rick? Who was the walker that he shot? I thought he was in the closet where the baby was born at first, and was going to find Lori as a walker. (thinking that Carl botched the job)  But I have no idea what is going on now.
• Walker boxing? What the hell? Would normal people really find that enjoyable after the apocalypse? Especially without a fence between them and the walkers? Maybe if the fight was in a cage and a bit boxer could be easily contained, but it just looks crazy stupid. Even if they really pull the walker’s teeth like the Governor says.
• So is Carol dead? They found her head scarf but never her body right? Or did they and I missed it? There were three graves dug.