The Walking Dead 5×15 Review: Try

The first thing that comes to mind about this episode of Walking Dead is that it was nearly as disturbing as last week’s “Spend“, though in different ways.

To be honest, overall I’m not very happy with how “Try” progressed. I feel like they jumped back and forth between story lines too much, to the point where it feels like they’re really rushing to put pieces in place for next week’s season finale… and I’m worried that in doing so, they’re losing a lot of the ground they’ve gained lately.

My biggest gripe with the episode is how little we know about the aftermath of Aiden and Noah’s deaths (and Tara’s serious injury). Yeah, Asshat Nicholas got his interview with Deanna, but what about Glenn and Eugene? Rick may know the truth from Glenn, but if Deanna interviewed anyone other than Nicholas, why haven’t we seen it? Eugene didn’t appear at all, and Tara only got a passing mention! This just seems like a careless way to handle such a horrible – and important – event. The biggest “clue” we got was Deanna leaving Carol’s casserole on the steps and burning the note that came with it…but at the same time, Deanna didn’t appear to just believe Asshat Nicholas’ story. If the writers are trying to give us mixed signals with her, it’s working.

But there certainly aren’t any mixed signals with Sasha. She’s obviously suffering from some serious PTSD, and the only question now is how much farther they’ll take things with her. I have a bad feeling that if she doesn’t take a few steps back from that line she’s toeing, she won’t last much longer.

One good thing that came from Sasha’s scenes was some interaction between Michonne and Rosita. And for a moment I hoped that the three of them were having a sort of girl power moment, killing the walkers. A kind of insane moment, sure, but fitting for what they’ve been through. As understandable as Sasha’s reaction was (especially considering her current condition), it certainly put a damper on an otherwise great scene.

I will say that I’m definitely interested in Enid, for her own story as well as for her interactions with Carl. I’ve heard that some people aren’t sure she can be trusted, but I’m hoping that’s not the case – I would rather her be a sort of kindred spirit, especially as Carl is likely to have some pretty big issues to deal with in regards to Rick.

Before I delve into that mess, though: it’s obvious that Daryl and Aaron are closing in on whoever has been slicing zombies in two and/or branding them with a “W”…and apparently also doling out some pretty gruesome deaths to other people. Of course, ninety-minute finale or no, at this point I’ll be surprised if the season culminates with these “Wolves” actually attacking Alexandria, especially with the way “Try” ended.

Which brings me back around to Rick, because wow, was he intense in this episode! From his first confrontation with Pete, to his conversations with Deanna and Jessie, to the all-out brawl and the speech he gave at the end, he certainly wasn’t shying away from putting it all out there. But again, it all seemed too fast. While I completely understand Rick wanting to help Jessie get out of an abusive situation, some of the things he said – and basically all of the promises he made – were a bit much considering he barely knows her.

Still, when he and Pete started fighting I was almost relieved that they were going to get this out of the way…but once again, Rick started saying things he shouldn’t. Yes, he may be right, but he should have known that it was still way too soon to start making a speech like that. Especially after beating the crap out of the “town doctor”. And punctuating the whole thing by waving a gun around…definitely not Rick’s finest moment.

That said, I’m not sure anything could have prepared me for Michonne showing up and clocking him over the head. Now, “Try” had a few too many ups and downs to begin with (which led to the pacing being off), and I’m honestly still trying to figure out whether or not I’m okay with that ending. Regardless, I think they took a couple of steps back with this episode; I just hope that they can make up for that in next week’s season finale.

Author: Tara Lynne

Tara Lynne is an author, fandom and geek culture expert, and public speaker. She founded Ice & Fire Con, the first ever Game of Thrones convention in the US, and now runs its parent company Saga Event Planning.

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