# The Walking Dead; 5.02 "Strangers" (open spoilers) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 20, 2014, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868 "2014-10-20T00:12:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2014, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/161 "2014-10-21T22:05:13Z")
> [@gytalf2000](#): > > Yeah, this annoys me as well. A nice, sharp, long-hafted weapon is ideal, with a sword or big knife as a secondary weapon. Having a gun is great, but it is going to be noisy and attract more zombies. I dress out at 115, and would have a problem easily reaching to the average zombie’s head. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2014, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/162 "2014-10-21T23:11:36Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > Oh, you could read the “Chekhov” brand on them, too? Ha! 😃 > [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > so the AR-15 with the half-full clip is right where the zombie chow owner dropped it… > > So there is no reason, at all, for the tribes that haven’t completely lost it to be well-dressed, well-fed, well-armed I’m sure this has been posted _ad nauseum_ but I’m going to say it anyway: _STOP WITH THE AUTOMATIC FIRE, ALREADY!_ They’re not making any more ammunition. Automatic fire is of little use when you need to make head shots, and one bullet in the brain is all you need. I hate how they are conveniently short of ammunition when the story needs them to be, and then they’re flush with it when they want to show rock’n’roll eye-candy. And there are too many automatic weapons. I can buy M-16s/M-4s, and even a few MP-5s. Assault rifles and submachine guns can be had from dead soldiers, National Guard, and some law enforcement agencies. They _might_ find the odd one that someone converted illegally, collected legally, or that was in a museum. But most of the M-16s/M-4s are going to be civilian semi-automatic rifles. Especially the AK-types. And I’d expect to see more Mini-14s in the mix, too. But the big thing that bugs me is their waste of ammunition. Unless I had to use a gun, I’d rather use a machete or pole-axe. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2014, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/163 "2014-10-21T23:26:47Z")
That’s the thing. The characters frequently act like it hasn’t been two years. It’s like the whole outbreak happened a few weeks ago. I still can’t believe the priest has just been hanging out by himself for two years. Oh, that reminds me. What’s up with the scratches & carvings? Morgan saw one that looked meaningful, but I guess it wasn’t anyone in Rick’s group that did it. Then we have more scratches on the church, and then there was a scratch on the tree where Bob got clonked on the head. Was that a random scratch on the tree? I couldn’t tell if it was a scratch made by the weapon used on Bob, or if it was there before. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2014, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/164 "2014-10-21T23:30:18Z")
I think the automatic rifles and machine guns might be more for enemy humans rather than zombies. But will work on both in a pinch. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2014, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/165 "2014-10-21T23:36:36Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > That’s the thing. The characters frequently act like it hasn’t been two years. It’s like the whole outbreak happened a few weeks ago. > > I still can’t believe the priest has just been hanging out by himself for two years. > > Oh, that reminds me. What’s up with the scratches & carvings? Morgan saw one that looked meaningful, but I guess it wasn’t anyone in Rick’s group that did it. Then we have more scratches on the church, and then there was a scratch on the tree where Bob got clonked on the head. Was that a random scratch on the tree? I couldn’t tell if it was a scratch made by the weapon used on Bob, or if it was there before. Well, there’s more than one kind of scratch going on here. 1. You have your garden variety zombie claw marks; that’s what Carl found on the side of the church. 2. Then you have that scrape on the tree when the Termites klonked Bob on the noggin. I’m thinking that’s just a scuff from the whack. 3. Then, there’s the mysterious, cryptic crosses within a circle, clearly made by a party tracking our gang (?), for seemingly nefarious purposes. This latter is the one Morgan was following, and it’s my theory now that he witnessed these guys, whoever they are, doing something nasty and is now tracking Rick’s gang, and knowing this, Morgan is determined to catch up with them and interfere before they hurt them. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2014, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/166 "2014-10-21T23:42:00Z")
It could be a mark left by the Termini, but I have a feeling we haven’t met the mystery carver yet. The church scratches and the mark on Bob’s tree might be part of a theme though. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2014, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/167 "2014-10-21T23:49:24Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > Then we have more scratches on the church, and then there was a scratch on the tree where Bob got clonked on the head. Was that a random scratch on the tree? I couldn’t tell if it was a scratch made by the weapon used on Bob, or if it was there before. That was definitely not just a random scratch, it was an intentional mark of some kind. > [@cmyk](#): > > I think the automatic rifles and machine guns might be more for enemy humans rather than zombies. But will work on both in a pinch. Which is why they shouldn’t use the guns on zombies so often. Besides wasting ammo, gunshots attract _more_ zombies and humans. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2014, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/168 "2014-10-21T23:56:41Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > That was definitely not just a random scratch, it was an intentional mark of some kind. > > Which is why they shouldn’t use the guns on zombies so often. Besides wasting ammo, gunshots attract _more_ zombies and humans. Well, you start out stabbing their brains, but zombies have an annoying ability to spawn out of no where in huge numbers and then you have to switch to auto. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2014, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/169 "2014-10-22T00:24:04Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > Well, you start out stabbing their brains, but zombies have an annoying ability to spawn out of no where in huge numbers and then you have to switch to auto. No, there’s never any reason to switch to auto. Bullets anywhere but to the head are completely ineffective against zombies, so it would be easier, faster, quieter and much less wasteful of ammo to aim for the head and fire single shots. And besides wasting ammo, there are reload times to consider. Hmm, I wonder if a BB gun would be enough to kill a zombie. Very little noise, and a pocket sized container could hold thousands of rounds. Have we seen anybody use air guns before? ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2014, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/170 "2014-10-22T00:30:59Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > No, there’s never any reason to switch to auto. Bullets anywhere but to the head are completely ineffective against zombies, so it would be easier, faster, quieter and much less wasteful of ammo to aim for the head and fire single shots. And besides wasting ammo, there are reload times to consider. > > Hmm, I wonder if a BB gun would be enough to kill a zombie. Very little noise, and a pocket sized container could hold thousands of rounds. Have we seen anybody use air guns before? We probably aren’t going to see BB guns for the same reason we do see automatic gun fire. It’s cool. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2014, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/171 "2014-10-22T00:32:03Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > Hmm, I wonder if a BB gun would be enough to kill a zombie. Very little noise, and a pocket sized container could hold thousands of rounds. Have we seen anybody use air guns before? I had a Crosman BB pump repeater. It takes ten or more seconds to pump it up to its highest velocity (IIRC, they warned against pumping it more than ten times), and then you had to load the BB by working a bolt. I’m sure it would penetrate a skull at close range, but I don’t know if it would penetrate enough for a kill. OTOH, they’re fighting sponge-head zombies. There are other air guns with much higher velocity than the old Crosman. These tend to be single-shot ones. On mine, you crank down the barrel and insert a pellet (.177 or .22 – interchangeable barrels). When you close the barrel, it’s charged and loaded. That would probably do for zombies, but it’s a bit slow. FWIW, it does sound a nice _CRACK!_ when fired. I want to call air guns ‘pneumos’. I picked up the term from _Battlestar Galactica_ back in the '70s. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2014, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/172 "2014-10-22T00:40:37Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > I had a Crosman BB pump repeater. It takes ten or more seconds to pump it up to its highest velocity (IIRC, they warned against pumping it more than ten times), and then you had to load the BB by working a bolt. I’m sure it would penetrate a skull at close range, but I don’t know if it would penetrate enough for a kill. I had a Benjamin .22. It was impressive to a grade school kid used to .177 BB guns, but I don’t think it would penetrate a skull and do damage to the brain. It might sometimes, but I wouldn’t want to bet my life on it. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2014, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/173 "2014-10-22T01:18:53Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > \ OTOH, they’re fighting sponge-head zombies. > \ Spongehead Squarezombie 😃 ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2014, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/174 "2014-10-22T12:02:45Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > 😕 > > How do you figure being dropped causes a bulge? A bulge has to indicate pressure coming from inside, no? Canned goods remain edible(assuming proper canning) for at least a decade, maybe more. Some foods will have a bad texture or color or otherwise breakdown(mostly veggies and fruits) but they are still edible years past the exp. date. Cans go bad either immediately or only when the seal is breached via rust etc. Bad cans are obvious through rust or bloating. The risk of botulism is way overblown, assuming the cans seal has not rusted through or bloated. Modern canned goods have a plastic coating inside the can to stop it rusting from the inside out(ever wondered why cans are white inside). EDIT:Michonne’s wig is looking absurdly fake, but it really has from day one. They even have her wear a bandana where you’d see the hairline. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2014, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/175 "2014-10-22T12:08:30Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > Maybe that’s why cannibalism is such a big taboo - humans just taste so damned good, if we found out, we’d all be eating everyone else. There was a movie called Ravenous where is was a plot point that eating human flesh gives you power and makes you crave it, the protagonist accidentally consumed human blood and the villains are “wendigos”. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2014, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/176 "2014-10-22T12:12:13Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > And there are too many automatic weapons. I can buy M-16s/M-4s, and even a few MP-5s. Assault rifles and submachine guns can be had from dead soldiers, National Guard, and some law enforcement agencies. They _might_ find the odd one that someone converted illegally, collected legally, or that was in a museum. But most of the M-16s/M-4s are going to be civilian semi-automatic rifles. Especially the AK-types. And I’d expect to see more Mini-14s in the mix, too. You know, I am able to go with all of the assault rifles because they’re in Georgia. Half the people I know from that area can convert an AR-15 to fully auto without too much trouble. Hey, it’s not like they’re going to miss anything good on cable. But I agree with the overuse of ammo. You’d think they’d figure out that it attracts unwanted attention. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2014, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/177 "2014-10-22T12:33:54Z")
> [@GrumpyBunny](#): > > But I agree with the overuse of ammo. You’d think they’d figure out that it attracts unwanted attention. M-16s now fire a three round burst instead of full automatic, do they not? ---
**Author:** ![brewha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@brewha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brewha)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2014, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/178 "2014-10-22T12:35:03Z")
I had the opportunity to fire a fully automatic Thompson that had been converted to use .22 shells. It had a 100 round drum magazine. If I were going to carry an anti zombie weapon, that would be my choice. Much quieter than an assault rifle, enough power to puncture a zombie skull, and the choice between semi and fully auto. Plus, I could carry a 1,000 rounds on me. ---
**Author:** ![brewha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@brewha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brewha)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2014, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/179 "2014-10-22T12:38:02Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > M-16s now fire a three round burst instead of full automatic, do they not? Yes, the A2’s fire a 3 round burst. They don’t have the option for fully auto. But, that’s still a waste of 2 rounds. If you miss the head on the first shot, the next two have very little chance since the next two round around going to go slightly higher than the first. 3 round burst works well when you are aiming for center mass and fire low. I guess there’s a chance that the first round could hit the geek in the gut and one of the next two get it in the head. ---
**Author:** ![kiz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/7feea3/32.png) [@kiz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kiz)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2014, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868/180 "2014-10-22T12:56:19Z")
Did anyone catch that the zombie with the glasses was the woman in the photograph with Gabriel? I finally caught the episode On Demand yesterday while trying not to read this thread. I had no idea Gareth’s crew was already munching on Bob’s leg at the end there…or to me it was so subtle that I didn’t automatically make the connection (I’m presuming they just sliced pieces from his calf or thigh because Bob otherwise wouldn’t still be alive…?) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-5-02-strangers-open-spoilers/701868.md?page=10)