The Walking Dead Ep. 409: After

The Walking Dead, Season 4, Episode 9: After

TV rating

TV-MA

ZPAA rating

Teens and up

Offensive content

A bit of swearing, especially from Carl; typical gory zombie kills for the show though nothing especially nasty or ugly.

Synopsis & Review

The story picks up right after  the Governor's attack on the prison where half the people died while the other half fled at some point. This episode follows Rick and Carl, who fled together, and Michonne, who is on her own after killing the Governor.

Rick and Carl have issues to deal with. Carl struggles with his desire to be a grown up, to be independent. He's a bit rude to his dad and swears some to try to establish himself. He gets his chance at independence when they spend the night in a random house. Rick doesn't wake up in the morning, so Carl does some looting in the neighborhood after he draws away a couple of zombies from the door. It's a character-building experience for Carl.

Michonne has issues to deal with. She struggles with her desire to be alone. We finally get to see some of her back story that has been hinted at before. For her, it's a character-revealing experience, through which she makes a choice that is sure to make everyone happy.

Overall, I found the episode a little slow. Carl's character arc in the episode, while good and interesting, could have been done in half the time they took. Michonne's arc was better paced but also could have been trimmed down. I'd like to know about the others--where are Maggie and Glenn? What about the bus? Was Judith taken by a walker or a human? I'm looking forward to answers next week!