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TV Review: The Walking Dead 6.6 “Always Accountable”
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Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon - The Walking Dead

The Walking Dead
Episode 6.6 “Always Accountable”
Directed by Jeffrey F. January
Written by Heather Bellson
Starring Andrew Lincoln, Danai Gurira, Melissa McBride, Lauren Cohen, Norman Reedus, Chandler Riggs, Michael Cudlitz, Lennie James
AMC
Air date: Sunday, November 15, 2015, 9pm

Warning – SPOILERS for The Walking Dead Season 6…

In the previous episode, 6.5 “Now,” of The Walking Dead, Rick had returned to the Safe Zone, and so had Michonne and her group, after the community was attacked by the Wolves. While the audience knew what happened to Glenn and Nicholas, the residents still held out hope for their return — and every fan of the show is still waiting for a miracle that would bring Glenn back. What neither the residents nor the audience knew yet is what happened to Daryl, Sasha, and Abraham. The trio had continued with the original mission to lure a pack of Walkers away from the Alexandria Safe Zone, while Rick and Michonne’s respective groups went to deal with the Walkers that had been drawn away from the path by the loud horn emanating from the Safe Zone, which was under attack by the Wolves.

On this week’s The Walking Dead, Episode 6.6 “Always Accountable,” we finally got to see what happened to Daryl, Sasha, and Abraham in a story that stays solely on them and their encounters.

Meaning – still no Glenn news, and nothing new yet with the Safe Zone residents.

While the parts with Sasha and Abraham were revealing for their respective characters, the real draw of this installment was, not surprisingly, with Daryl, who over the course of six seasons continues to prove why he’s a favorite. He’s a man of few words, but he’s really awesome in so many ways.

We find out that after luring the Walkers the appropriate distance away, Daryl, Sasha, and Abraham start on their way back to Alexandria. Unfortunately, they are ambushed by gunfire soon after, and Daryl on his motorcycle becomes separated from Sasha and Abraham, who had been in a car. Who could be lying wait to ambush people on the road?

Abraham suggests they go back to Alexandria, as he figures Daryl will eventually make his way back there, but Sasha thinks they should stay put and wait for Daryl to find them, since he’s a tracker. Good call, Sasha!

The twosome head off the road into the nearby town, where Sasha marks “Dixon” (Daryl’s surname) on the door of the office they take refuge in. During this episode, we see that while Abraham had previously been worried that Sasha was being self-destructive, he’s actually the one right now that has a wild streak. Sasha has made her peace with everything going on, and isn’t trying to get herself killed. But Abraham? He’s looking for danger now. In one scene, he goes up the roof, where he finds a truck with RPGs (rocket-propelled grenade launcher) and cigars. Nearby is a Walker hanging off the roof, with an RPG slung over it. Abraham decides to climb out near the Walker and tries to get the weapon without killing it, even though he easily could have put a knife through its eye and be done with it. He goes so far as to scream in the Walker’s face! He eventually gives up, and returns to the truck to light up a cigar. As he does, the Walker slips from roof, leaving behind the RPG!

When Abraham returns to Sasha with his bounty, he basically tells her “I know you want me.” She laughs a bit, and asks him why he thinks that. “A man can tell,” he responds. This whole exchange seems to be setting up an Abraham, Sasha, and Rosita love triangle, as Sasha tells him he has some stuff “to take car of.” Hmm… I never got the impression that Rosita and Abraham were in love; more like they were just “doing it.” But, in the previous episode, we saw Rosita crying while on watch at the Safe Zone, presumably because Abraham had not returned. Something tells me there’d be a lot more love triangles in the zombie apocalypse than what we’re seeing on The Walking Dead.

But, we’ll worry about the love entanglements at another time. For now, it’s time to turn our attention to Daryl. After he’s separated from Sasha and Abraham, he rides his motorcycle off the road and into the woods, which are all burned out. Injured, he collapses to the ground. He radios for Sasha, Abraham, and even Rick, but no response. Around him are blackened trees, and Walkers burned to a crisp, but still with the slightest tinge of undead life to them, one of which has a motorcycle helmet on. It’s actually kind of sad.

Daryl musters up his strength and covers up his bike while he goes out to look around. Wouldn’t you know it, he finds people! But, it’s not good, of course. There are two women, who immediately start saying how they earned everything they took with them, which means nothing to Daryl, who is then knocked out from behind by a man, and then tied up. When Daryl fully comes to, he learns that this group has him mistaken for someone else. “I ain’t who you think I am,” Daryl says, but the man threatens to shoot him if he keeps talking. Keeping quiet is not something Daryl has a problem with. If anything, he’s too quiet, as we see later on when they actually start talking — he never bothers to be like “Hey, I’m not with the people you were running from.”

Anyhow, the two women — Tina and Sher — and the man (I don’t think they ever said his name) have a mission of their own, to find “Patty,” so they take Daryl with them. Tina doesn’t seem well, and Sher was very concerned about keeping her hydrated. This trio seems good-natured — they give Daryl water, too — but desperate. We learn that they are the ones who lit the forest up. They also talk about giving Daryl over to “them” — presumably, this is the same “them” who ambushed Daryl, Sasha, and Abraham earlier.

Who are these people and who exactly is the group they are fleeing from? The male survivor mentions stuff about having to bend the knee and having to do everything for a roof and safety. “We should have never trusted you people,” the man says, believing that Daryl is part of the group he no longer wants to be a member of.

Eventually, they reach the destination where “Patty” should be: the Pattrick Fuel Company garage, which is filled with Walkers. They realize that “Patty” is gone. Here’s where Tina starts to pass out, and Daryl takes this opportunity to escape, and with their duffle bag, too! Though it seems uncharacteristic of Daryl to steal like that, the fact is that his crossbow is there there, so it had to be done. After digging into the bag to get said weapon to fight off a very green Walker, he finds a cooler filled with insulin, which is obviously what Tina needs. Having a conscience, Daryl actually returns to his former captives to give them the medicine — and perfect timing too, since here comes a truck bursting through the forest with the people these three survivors were fleeing from.

Men get out of the truck, with one guy calling out that they should come back and pay for what they took, as well as the time/fuel it took to come for them. “You know the rules,” they shout. They shout back that the “rules are batshit” and that they won’t “kneel” anymore — which seems to be a big issue with them, because the man had said this to Daryl, too. Daryl helps his former captors escape, and even baits a trap for one of the pursuers, who falls for it and gets bit on the arm by a Walker. Someone named Wade arrives to help his bitten friend, immediately chopping off half the injured man’s arm to stop the virus from spreading and turning him. This is something we saw with Hershel in a previous season when he was bit in the leg, so these people also know this survival method. Wade then walkie’s to his group that it’s time to leave, saying that “he” only wanted to take it so far and that “he” only “wants asses that are willing.” Who’s “he”? We never find out here.

With the group gone, Daryl and his former captors are free to leave. They soon come upon an area with two dead bodies lying on the group encased in something — looked like glass. Tina recognizes them as kids she used to babysit, so she leans down over them to place flowers on them, and… that’s when they open their eyes and grab her horror-movie style. Tina gets pulled down (although she seemed almost as though she just laid down between them!!!!), and Daryl springs into action, taking out the Walkers, but it’s too late for Tina, who’s bitten. (Really, Tina? How did you survive this long!?!??!)

While the men dig Tina’s grave (dammit, Tina!), Daryl begins to ask the man the three Rick questions: How many Walkers have you killed? (only a few dozen); How many people have you killed? (None.); Why? (Because once you kill, there’s no going back.) These were the right answers, because Daryl — who prior to the mission to lure the Walkers away had become a recruiter for the Safe Zone — decides to offer them a chance to come back to the Safe Zone with him. It’s obvious that Sher and no-name guy would be a good fit in Alexandria.

But…. that would be too easy.

As Daryl starts to lead them out, explaining that they’ll meet up with his two friends first, the man and woman turn on him. It’s obviously not out of malice, since they know he’s already saved them AND returned to them to give them the insulin even though he could have just kept going. And what he’s offering does sound good, but these two are skittish and have no real experience in the “real” world. Plus, when they take his motorcycle and drive off, Sher tosses him bandages and tells him to patch himself up. They seemed to have been under the protection of this group, whoever they are, since the beginning of the end, so it’s not surprising that they would run back to them now out of fear. They are foolish, and they don’t know how much better they could have it, if only they had trusted Daryl, who proved repeatedly that he’s a good, trustworthy person. But nope, off the idiots ride, and with Daryl’s signature weapon with them.

“I’m sorry,” Sher says as they ride off on Daryl’s motorcycle, leaving him stranded and wounded.

“You’re gonna be,” he replies. Don’t we know it!

Blood dripping down his arm, Daryl digs into his pocket and pulls out the wood carving he took from nameless guy early on. We know they haven’t seen the last of each other.

While many an episode of The Walking Dead has ended in despair, thankfully, this one does not. As we wonder how Daryl is going to make it way back to Alexandria, he comes across something in the forest, hidden. It’s “Patty,” one of the Pattrick Fuel Company trucks!!!!!!!!

Back at the office where Sasha and Abraham are waiting to be found, here comes Daryl rolling down the block in the truck. The shot of the three of them driving away was pure bliss.

We then hear Daryl try the walkie again, calling for Rick. There’s nothing but static at first, but then there’s a faint sound. He calls out again, and we here a meek “Help” in response, ending the episode.

WHO is calling for help??!!!?!??!?!?!?!??!?!!?!??!

It couldn’t possibly be Glenn, right? (Norman Reedus has already said it’s not, but can we really believe that?)

Will they take the truck to go find that person? Is this a trap set up by the new group?

We know that the villain Negan is coming this season, and will be played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan, so there’s a good chance this new group is his people, known in the comics as The Saviors, and that Negan is the “he” Wade was referring to. The attitude of this group fits the profile of The Saviors, who use mafioso-style protection tactics to control communities. They also have a points system where people “earn” their items like food — and in this episode, Sher repeatedly says how they “earned” the stuff they took with them (in this case, the insulin).

Also, the fact that the male who captures Daryl is never identified has to mean something for the future, as does the carving that Daryl takes from him. Could the unnamed man be Dwight, a Savior who eventually teams up with Rick against Negan? It’s likely, I’d say, although the way the TV show works, he could be a mixture of characters or someone new all together.

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1 Comment »

  1. Story Sync refers to the man as “D”, so I’m betting Dwight.

    Comment by Jerry Oliver — November 16, 2015 @ 11:56 am

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