Yeah, me too. I thought that the Governor was going to pull out his “Mr. Charming” persona, and play “good cop” to Merle’s “bad cop”. Instead, he pulls out “Mr. Psychotic”… Go figure!
Does anyone think that the scientist studying Mr. Coleman got bitten? Just a nip, maybe, but that’s all it takes.
Human Action: I think the Mr. Coleman interlude implies that the Woodbury residents are very aware of their situation, and are invested in their survival, rather than being in the thrall of The Governor and in denial about the apocalypse.
Is this all the evidence you have to refute my proposal that Wy is in denial? For one thing the populace of everyday working folks are the ones I’m saying are living in such a way as to be in denial and embracing the past. The people in charge aka the Gov is not so much in the same state of mind as he knows he has to stay on top of the situation in order to remain in control.
There is no evidence that anyone outside the core group knows anything about Mr. Coleman. I think my whole premise is backed up by the doctor who had never even seen a walker or had to deal with one. How can he possibly help if he doesn’t comprehend the entire situation? I agree that research is necessary, but not in total isolation.
That’s now how one is zombified, at least not exactly. Everyone is infected; you turn when you die by whatever means, as long as your death doesn’t involve the massive brain damage required to put a zombie down. Zombie bites are dangerous because they can lead to a lethal infection, but they don’t make one a zombie. So if the scientist got a tiny nip, he’d just excise the flesh around the wound and then treat it.
Are we in agreement that Mr. Coleman was a Woodbury resident, who when his cancer became advanced, agreed to help Milton with his experiment? Presumably Mr. Coleman was one of the everyday working folks, and yet instead of dying at home, he opts to help the town’s zombie research. I think that’s telling.
We don’t know how much, if anything, the everyday Woodburyites know about the research program. I doubt they are told specifics, but they probably are aware of it’s existence. They wouldn’t approach Mr. Coleman with an offer that he might refuse, if the whole thing was ultra-secret.
Furthermore, we have seen that the whole town turns out for Ultimate Zombie Smackdown with Merle and the gang. I don’t think enjoying regular zombie fighting exhibitions is evidence of living in the past, or denying the grim reality of their situation.
Also, while Merle has a hardcore group of warriors (the ones who went to the helicopter crash, for instance) who serve as an expeditionary force, there seems to be a larger group, like the bow girl, who work shifts guarding the walls, and are thus confronted by walkers constantly.
Lastly, Milton has seen walkers. We saw him studying the still-animated heads of Michonne’s pet zombies. What was gleaned in his conversation with Andrea was that he’d never seen the act of turning, from human corpse to walker. Andrea had, with Amy, and this is why she is convinced that nothing of the human remains, while Milton (or The Governor, or both) wanted to study the issue, possibly in reference to The Governor’s daughter.
Good points, HA. Perhaps I would be more inclined to accept that the townfolk were more in the moment if there were some militia training going on or if they seemed more concerned. I know they’re not in Complete denial, but pushing unpleasant thoughts to the back closet seems to be the case with many of them.
Just the idea that all weapons are banned except for militia seems idiotic. As contrasted to Rick asking Darryl if everyone had a gun and a knife. Maybe denial is the wrong term. Perhaps they are just like many of us are today always expecting the ones in charge to take care of all the problems. Not working too well for us now is it?
We haven’t really seen enough average Woodburyites to know what their daily life is like. Other than The Governor, Merle, Milton, and the expeditionary force, we’ve met:
- A doctor, who worked on Andrea but refused to discuss why they’d been brought to Woodbury.
- A tour guide, who showed Andrea and Michonee around.
- A girl who mans the walls with a bow.
- Mr. Coleman
And that’s it. We know they have a curfew, and enjoy zombie fights & cookouts, but the show has spent very little time on Woodbury itself, compared to the screentime The Governor and Merle get.
Do we know this to be the case? Andrea and Michonne were disarmed, but they weren’t residents.
That probably sums it up, but isn’t the prison group in the same boat with Rick as unquestioned leader? Having Shane as an opposing viewpoint was probably beneficial, and it’s been lost.
:dubious:
The Gov explained to Andrea and Michonne the rules that had to be abided by and one was no weapons.
Prison group not at all like those who expect those in charge to solve problems. Many examples of the group acting individually and in small groups to get something done. Most recently, when Rick was busy on the phone, Darryl and Glen organized run to get formula and instigated work on generators. Also, even Carl shot walker before Rick said whether they would save Michonne or not.
I know that so far we haven’t been privy to the lives of many of the residents, but you don’t see any lining up to voice protests or questions to Gov. They seem to be content with status quo and swallow any story the governor tells them. Michonne was the fly in the ointment, constantly questioning and snooping. If she had stayed around I don’t think her prospects of planting a garden were very likely.
I’ll have to rewatch that scene.
It could be that the prison group’s problems are simpler and more immediate: food and shelter; whereas Woodbury is a larger, more stable society with more complex problems: research, entertainment, energy policy, training up new members of the expeditionary force (Gargulio). Thus, “getting something done” looks very different in the prison than it does in Woodbury.
If you lived there, what would you protest about? You dislike the weapons policy, (assuming there is a ban), anything else?
Michonne did the snooping, but Andrea did the questioning, and yet both were welcome to stay. If Michonne had opted to remain in Woodbury, I expect that she would’ve joined the expeditionary force and gone on supply runs and such. We know from her encounter with the hermit in the woods that Michonne’s not particularly moral, so I doubt that she’d have much problem with something like shooting down National Guardsman. What seemed to bother her about Woodbury was a feeling of deception, rather than what the deception was covering up (which is amusing, considering how deceptive she was with Rick). People that stab hermits and throw them to zombies shouldn’t throw stones.
I think that’s how he gets the human fat for his torches.
Considering he was living with the dead and decaying dog, he had to have suffered some sort of break at some point.
Oh, somehow I missed that scene!
I’m pretty sure when Glen was listing the people in the group to Merle, he only listed dead (or presumed dead, in Andrea’s case), which I thought was nice. Of course, with most everyone being dead, those were his only choices.
When they first walked in the dog was laying on a blanket or bed. I remember because we had just bathed our dog, so she looked thin and pathetic like the dead dog and I felt bad for both dogs…
I saw some kids riding bikes in Woodbury. It reminded me of the Cracked article that wondered why people don’t generally use bikes in zombie flicks. They’re efficient, faster than walking, silent… yet people would rather trudge for some reason.
What course of action would you have recommended instead?
Bicycles in film and television are reserved for nerds and kids.
- Keep talking, instead of grabbing the shotgun.
- Leave out the back door.
If you MUST grab the shotgun…
- Once the hermit ran for the door, tackle or trip him.
- If all else fails, let him run out the front door. Then at least HE’s choosing a course that leads to his death, since he was warned about the walkers. And you get your diversion anyway.
Where are you getting the notion that that ramshackle little shack had a back door?
When they chucked the hobo corpse out the front, they left out the back door.
Probably that.