TV Review: The Walking Dead S06 E11 “Knots Untie”

By Laury Scarbro

It’s been well over a week, and people are still talking about THAT scene between Rick and Michonne. Apparently everyone loves the idea of playing Hide the Pickle during the zombie apocalypse. Gotta have something to do during downtime right?

This week picks up right where last week left off, and apparently Richonne is going public in a very short matter of time. I do like the fact that Rick took a moment to make sure Carl wasn’t mad about it, and why would he be? Michonne already had the Carl Seal Of Approval as of last episode, and what business is it of Carl’s who his father sleeps with, anyway? Rick’s a big boy, he can make his own decisions. What really surprised me however, is Carl DECIDED TO STAY HOME. How’s that for character growth? Maybe if he’d been given the chance to make the decision himself all those other times instead of being told what to do, things might have gone different for him.

A contingent of the Alexandria group takes off for Jesus’s Hilltop community, but they are delayed when they spot an overturned vehicle that Jesus recognizes as belonging to his people. A rescue ensues, and eventually they’re back on the road. Arriving at the Hilltop community, Jesus takes Rick’s group to meet Gregory. Maggie is tasked with speaking to Gregory, you know, once they’re not filthy and covered in road dirt and walker goo.

I don’t like Gregory, and its pretty obvious Rick doesn’t like him, either. Think of the kind of guy who had to have the best of everything pre-apocalypse: he’s smarmy, arrogant, and accustomed to getting his way. It’s very likely he’s only in power at Hilltop because no one else has the cojones to stand up to him. Maggie holds up well against him, much better than Rick or even I would have.

A group returns with a message from Negan, which results in Gregory being stabbed and Rick’s group quickly snaps into action showing what they’re capable of. Really, this is why we can’t take them anywhere nice. It always ends in bloodshed and violence, with Rick covered in blood like some kind of maniac. Jesus steps in and defuses the situation, but not before Abraham nearly gets strangled, and Michonne jumps in to defend Rick–aww!

It’s not difficult to see that Jesus is more than what he appears to be, as he seems to have the ear of Gregory and can make him see what needs to be done for the people of Hilltop. Rick and company inquire about Negan, only to learn that Negan beat a kid to death in front of them, then made demands for half of everything Hilltop produces. Maggie then makes the agreement with Gregory that Alexandria will instead get half of everything, and in return, they will deal with Negan.

The main sideplot of this episode revolves around Abraham and his desire to make pancakes–that is to say, he’s having nesting urges and wants to settle down. The big question is, will it be Rosita or Sasha? Also of note, one of the people Rick’s group rescued was an obstetrician, and has access to prenatal vitamins. That’s good news for Glenn and Maggie, who should begin showing any time now.

I’m quickly becoming a fan of Jesus as well, and seeing him back at Hilltop, without all the hobo-gear, he actually rather does look a bit like how you’d expect someone of that name to look. He seems to be a good person, wise and diplomatic, and this episode went a long way towards removing any doubts I might have had about him.

It could also be said that Maggie’s offer is no better than what Negan had demanded, but it comes down to who’s going to give a better deal: one group who demands and kills to get what they want, or another group that will most likely deal with you fairly AND can provide you with a layer of protection against bullies like Negan. It’ll be interesting to see how things progress, now that the group know they’re not entirely alone in the world.

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