It will be interesting to see how the “uninitiated” perceive this season finale.  Will it be a satisfying end to the first chapter of Team Grimes’ transition into residence in Alexandria, or will it feel like the story is still not kicking into high gear?  Even if the overall pacing was deemed acceptable, was it necessary for this finale to be extended another 30 minutes?  And those are just questions for the viewers unfamiliar with the direction of the source material; for those aware of the story beats, this was even more likely to end in frustration. 

The “action” in Alexandria was perhaps the most disappointing.  My expectation, based on the pacing (and the source material) was that the “trial” would take place in the middle of the episode and the Wolves would at least come knocking by the end.  What else could justify the longer running time, after all?  Sadly, the decisions about Rick were streamlined to the extreme, so much so that new subplots had to be generated to keep up any sense of momentum.



The issues with Glenn/Nicholas and Father Gabriel were meant to underscore the point that Rick’s “family” was able to maintain perspective and handle any destructive tendencies, yet in both cases, characters and situations were strained to the breaking point of believability.  How exactly did Glenn survive that Walker attack, and how many times must Nicholas betray everyone before there’s a penalty?  Father Gabriel was equally a threat, yet not in a way obvious to anyone within the walls; when the truth comes out, how can he be seen as anything less than a liability?  At least Eugene has useful skills!

The final moments played out exactly as they did in the source material, though I’m still irritated that Deanna never demonstrated the pragmatism that the original leader of the town did.  Deanna learned the harsh lesson that Rick was trying to send, thanks to Pete’s murderous rage, yet that’s part of the pacing problem.  Rick has been proven right, but he hasn’t been proven as the right person to lead Alexandria to its next phase of existence.  Nor does he necessarily have the total backing of the town.  What’s all too subtle is the realization that Rick was “right”, and yet, he also realizes his own faults in how he handled sending that message.  Fending off the Wolves, in the source material, was the necessary next step in the process.



That’s apparently being shunted into the early parts of Season 6, though I’m now worried that it will dominate the entire first half of that season.  Aaron and Daryl’s encounter with the Wolves’ trap, along with Morgan’s conversation with them, tells me that it’s highly unlikely this is the introduction to the endgame-level villainy of Negan; on the other hand, the Wolves (unnamed in the comics) are being given a backstory not unlike the Hunters, in that the threat they pose is now more palpable.  Rick’s leadership in helping the town deal with the threat is crucial, but it feels like this is more about stretching out the encounter to give time for the writers to play with the character interactions a bit more.







There are a few critical subplots that should have been happening already that will, inevitably, be moved into the first half of Season 6 as the threat of the Wolves comes to a head.  But that likely means that the next story arc will be moved into the second half of Season 6, and that’s a bit maddening at the current pace.  I’m not begging for mindless action, since the writers have shown in episodes like this that they can inject what they need along the way, but if the focus is on character conflict, they can explore that without relying on a snail’s pace approach.