Guest Blog by Robert Mills, Destrus76's Mind Debris
The Walking Dead; Season 7, Episode 14
“The Other Side”
Five Points From Episode 7.14
**Beware SPOILERS in our discussion**
Follow @SUPERflixMoviesThe push to the finale of season 7 is finally here. The episode started tonight with the inner workings of the Hilltop community as they begin their preparations to take the fight to Negan and The Saviors. The episode ended by putting Rosita and Daryl in place outside of the Sanctuary while Sasha makes a final desperate decision to go it alone.
Gregory The Weasel
This is no surprise to fans of the comics and for astute viewers of show. You could see it coming a mile away that Gregory will do anything possible to hold on to power. He’s too much of a weasel to openly oppose Negan, and he’s always going to choose to side with whichever group he thinks has the upper hand. Gregory is going to do whatever it takes to hold on to his grip on the Hilltop. The teaser for the next episode hints at drama to come with our new weasel.
Abraham’s Wake
I’ve been waiting a while for Sasha and Rosita to get some alone time and hash their differences out. They both lost the man they loved earlier in the season. Sasha was ‘The Other Woman’ to Rosita. The tension in the sequences between them was well played. They both want to take down Negan as a vindication of their love for Abraham. This underlying tension really drives their scenes forward in this episode. It creates some suspense asking which will win out, their jealous or their desire to kill Negan.
Sasha’s Exit
I called this last week. Sasha was a character that has outlived her usefulness. The dynamics of her relationship with Abraham are gone now that Abraham had a run-in with Lucille. Couple that with the fact that she has already been announced as being part of the cast of the new Star Trek series, and it was a forgone conclusion that Sasha was going to be a casualty this season. Yet, she still may make her mark on the show with one final show of the powerful force she has become for the group.
Doctor Harlan
If they’ve gone to recruit Harlan from Hilltop, then what does this mean for Eugene? The reality is that Eugene is more of a chemist and scientist, so Harlan should be the new MD at The Sanctuary. It creates some potential tension for Eugene in his new home. Yet, it creates a vacuum at the Hilltop. They will most certainly have dire need of a doctor now that they don't have one. That's just the way it goes.
Eugene’s Choice
Eugene really wants to stay inside The Sanctuary...but what is his play? Does he really feel useful at The Sanctuary? Is this all about staying close to Negan so that HE can be the one to avenge Abraham, or has he actually started to feel like he belongs with The Saviors? Could he be so fearful of Negan that he won't even run when he has the chance? You never know with Eugene. He had countless chances season after season to step up and shed his label as a coward. He never really did.
This week was a step back down from the superior episode that they put out last week. It did have two stand out moments with Daryl and Maggie finally talking about what happened. The same finally happened for Sasha and Rosita.
Now we can start the war.
Several pieces are being maneuvered into place for the last 2 episodes of season 7. Will they be able to ratchet the intensity up next week to deliver a satisfying finale, or will the doldrums that have overwhelmed this season continue on through to the end of season 7? Tell us your predictions for the final two episodes or what you thought about this episode.
Join us next week at the Five Points for more Walking Dead.