Beta ‘auditions’ Negan for the Whisperers. Eugene makes a new friend. Carol and Daryl go scouting.

Without making a big deal of it, Carol has emerged as the de facto leader of the show’s core characters. Pushed past the edge by the murder of her adopted son, she’s become the most Rick-like of the leads, always pushing, always looking for an advantage on their enemies. This episode dives deep into that idea and is all the stronger for it. McBride and Reedus are, by some distance, the best elements of a great cast and seeing their easy camaraderie, and willingness to call each other on their bullshit is genuinely sweet. Not to mention disturbing when Carol’s real plan, to torture the location of Alpha’s horde out of a Whisperer, is revealed.

Elsewhere the episode is on lower key ground but no less impressive for it. Thora Birch’s Gamma meets Aaron and begins an awkward bonding process that she’s clearly deeply conflicted about. Eugene makes a friend from Season 11 via the radio and the show also briefly becomes a comedy.

Seriously.

Ryan Hurst’s hulking frame next to Jeffrey Dean Morgan is just instantly funny. When you add the fact Beta barely whispers and Negan never shuts up it becomes very funny. When you throw in the fact that Beta is superior to Negan in every way bar one? Hilarious. The two bounce off each other in arguably the only comedy montage ever to involve skinning and it is glorious.

More importantly, the episode fills in a couple of gaps. We get a good look at how the Whisperers operate and we also see Beta off his game for the first time. This culminates in a wonderful moment where he basically leaves Negan to die and Negan responds with a combination of joy and annoyance, congratulating his enemy on his first wisecrack. That title fight is most definitely coming and when it does, it’s going to be one for the ages.

Verdict: Wide in scope and tight in execution this drives the season along and is another really strong entry in the best run this show has had in years. 10/10

Alasdair Stuart