Daryl and Rosita come face to face with the dark heart of the Commonwealth as it tries very hard to kill them and they get some unexpected help. Meanwhile, at the Complex, things get much, much worse even though more unexpected help arrives.

Zombie heist. If those words don’t make you go ‘Oooooo!’ then they really should. This is a ridiculously strong episode and it’s basically all action or the threat of it, seasoned with political intrigue.

In the A plot, Daryl and Rosita are essentially beat cops being read into their precinct’s institutionalized corruption and neither of them are okay with it. Daryl especially has been noticed by Sebastian and the inherent tension between the two powers a lot of the episode. What’s impressive though is that tension is entirely one-sided. Sebastian is so bought into his own hype that he’s a highly trained badass that he genuinely thinks he can threaten their families with impunity. The standoff that results is borderline hilarious, as Rosita instantly moves to cover Daryl as he in turn moves to cut Sebastian’s head off. It’s a moment we’re seeing a lot in this season; a subtle reminder that these characters have survived out in the world for years and they absolutely will not hesitate to kill anyone who threatens them.

It also serves to simultaneously make Sebastian even more weaselly and threatening. Weaselly because he instantly backs down, rewriting immediate history with a speed that would make modern politicians applaud. Threatening because he has money and power and he doesn’t care who he has to kill to protect it. That’s amply demonstrated by the most horrific beats of the episode. The first sees Daryl and Rosita discover a woman trapped in the house Sebastian has sent them to, part of a previous failed retrieval team who joined up to have her debts cancelled. The second is the offhand way it is revealed he’s sent thirty or forty people in there. Dozens of dead, blood on his hands to fill them with meaningless paper. When this kid goes down, and he will go down, it’s going to be biblical.

One last note: Mercer officially joins the good guys this week, rescuing Daryl and Rosita with Carol’s aid and making it clear that he’s powerless to stop Sebastian. At least, powerless for now. Also special respect to Carol answering how she knew Daryl was in trouble with ‘You didn’t show up for lunch,’

Over in the B plot, things are, if anything, even more tightly wound. The reveal that Negan lives at the Complex (called Riverbend), is married (again) and expecting a child is a little rushed but it also resonates with the core themes this season. Everyone’s looking for a home and Negan seems to have found one with Annie, played with clear eyed resolve by the excellent Medina Senghore. It also balances the slightly rushed flip for Carlson last episode. These are both men drenched in other people’s blood who have moved in exactly the opposite direction to one another. Carlson has embraced his inner demons and pays the price for it this episode with a spectacularly elaborate death (Shot! Falls off a building! Eaten by his victims!). Negan’s price is deferred and the moment Hershel realizes the man who saved his life killed his dad is absolutely terrifying. This is the consequence not of survival but of malice in The Walking Dead’s world. Negan has unpaid debts, and one day this small, furious boy will cash them in. I’m guessing that’s going to be a big part of Isle of the Dead, if not sooner, and the weight of that imminent tragedy almost bends Negan in half.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan is so damn good this season, mournful and resigned and at the same time just a little bit of the charming bastard of old shines through. You can change but you can’t leave yourself behind, and this episode is full of people learning that and the various prices they pay. One that, judging by the end reveal that Leah is the one who took the weapons, Maggie will be paying shortly…

Verdict: Action heavy, tension drenched and character focused this is a highlight of a highlight season. Who would have thought an 11 year old show could be this good? 10/10

Alasdair Stuart