We open with Carol speaking to Lizzy behind quarantined glass because of the flu out-break in the prison. The child and several others are still confined until Daryl, Tyrese, Michonne and Bob make it back with supplies from the college. The exchange between our favorite 40 something Jamie Lee Curtis replica and this eerie little girl is quite compelling. The entire conversation is about change, but the analogy of dying and turning into a walker is used here to explain a greater change, the change a person goes through when they have to make a hard decision. As they speak we see cut-aways of Rick packing a vehicle he and Carol will take on a run, but the foreshadowing is almost too obvious. Rick is clearly contemplating Carol’s fate. Flashbacks of Karen’s murder seem to torment our anti-hero cop but not in that creepy, I still see Lori walking around in her pajamas way. Carol is clearly not the woman we met in the first season. Her hair is spiked; old woman cleavage is showing and she has a machete ready to split any walker in two! She tries to justify her actions to Rick on their road-trip, but it falls on deaf ears. She would have probably got a better response out of him from a game of Marry, Fuck, or Murder. They raid a house and end up finding two survivors. Our first official hippies of walker-land are unmistakably unprepared for this world. They need 5 or 6 bullets to take a walker down and don’t know that a blow to the head will take one out.
We finally catch up to our favorite band of Zombie killers. Tyrese, Michonne and Daryl are on the road and seem as comfortable as kittens in laundry. And then there is Bob. I seriously wondered how long it would take the “other” black guy in the zombie apocalypse to die. He has the swag of a Star Fleet ensign beamed down to some M-Class planet with the OA team. Bob is struggling with addiction and he confides in Daryl. Daryl in turn absolves Bob of his past sins – ya know, the whole getting Zach eaten thing that happened in the premiere episode.
Carol and Rick have a great dialog about the necessity of murder while raiding a house and both make pretty good arguments. Carol has accepted her role in the new world and has become a threat to Rick. After looting the college for Herschel’s goodies and running into some much needed walker action Bob proves how worthless he is by refusing to drop a bag containing a bottle of ill-gotten booze into a school of biters. See what I did there? What happens next is precious. Bob reaches for his gun when Daryl threatens to toss the liquor into the walkers. NOT A GOOD IDEA BOB! Daryl punks Bob with the exchange of a sandbox brawl. I was immediately taken back to 4th grade. As non-violent as it was, it was intense and resulted in Bob getting his gun confiscated by Daryl. I felt bad for Tyrese and Michonne, they had that look like, “Ninjas always gotta mess it up for somebody!”
The end of the episode does not disappoint. Rick has made the decision to exile Carol. He claims it’s for her own good, but it is apparent that he is afraid of her. The decision to banish her, I think, can be attributed to more of a power struggle than differing opinions. Remember, Rick has killed how many to protect the good of the group? Rick is trying to establish his dominance over Carol, and when she will not submit to him, his response is to kick her out. Not only are the morals behind his decision fuzzy, but we at Hush Comics believe that this is a HUGE strategic mistake. She is one loose end you don’t want to unthread. A million things could go wrong. She could meet up with the Governor and combine forces; she could lead an army of creepy Brady Bunch girls, she could taint the prison’s water-supply. In all seriousness, where is she really gonna go? Would you just accept that you had been banished from the only ones in this world alive to you and go on about your merry way, especially when nobody else knows her secret? Either way, we feel like this decision will come back to bite Rick. See what I did there?!?!
After the past few episodes have focused on primarily the disease spreading, it was a refreshing change of pace to get back to some good old fashion zombies “soap opera” action. While the fallout from Carol’s exile is just beginning, my stomach is already churning from what will happen. Will Carol somehow find and join forces with the Governor? Will Daryl, in his angst, abandon the group and search for Carol the same way he did Merle? Is Tyreese going to find out and really get in a fight with Rick? Mostly though, I think it’s about time for Rick’s hand to go (“Are you a righty or a lefty?”).
“Indifference” is my favorite episode this season and I can’t wait to see what happens to Carol next. Yeah, I said it; Carol! There are a lot of waves about to be made from Rick’s decision, and I don’t think it will be a welcome choice, even after the truth comes out. Hush Comics gives “Indifference” a solid A for it’s great character-defining moments and the monumental decision to get rid of Carol (for now…).
written by John Soweto and Sherif Elkhatib
All images credited to AMC Television
Hush Comics 