The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live Review - Rick & Michonne Shine In This Played-Out Apocalypse
- Rick and Michonne are great characters
- The show solves several ongoing mysteries
- Michonne is mischaracterized
- The concept of "The Walking Dead" shows is a little played out
"The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live" is the third spin-off of the original show since it ended. The other two were about rivals Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and Maggie's (Lauren Cohan) trip to rescue her son in New York City in "The Walking Dead: Dead City," and fan-favorite Daryl's (Norman Reedus) accidental trip to France in "The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon." This is the first one, however, that involves two star-crossed lovers. They're a little older than the typical lovers of most stories, but Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and Michonne (Danai Gurira) are connected in ways that transcend time and space — or at least most "Walking Dead" stories — even if it's mostly because neither of them have died so far.
That doesn't mean they've had a lot of screen time recently. Lincoln left "The Walking Dead" in Season 9, and Gurira followed him in Season 10, well before the main show's finale. Neither character was officially killed off, however — a big achievement for "The Walking Dead" — and while the two have been seen in brief cameos since, it was clear we'd have to wait beyond the main show for the two to come together again. What was initially going to be a movie for television and then a series of big-screen films has ultimately become this six-episode show (four episodes were made available for review). Hopefully, by the time the show has ended, we'll be left reassured about the durability of Rick and Michonne's love — but at the two-thirds mark, it's hard to say. After all, events continue to swirl around them that seem dangerous, either because both characters are too strong-willed or because they're too attached to each other.
While I can't reveal much, I can tell you that Rick is, in fact, in the hands of the Civic Republic Military (CRM) and he's not happy about it. In fact, he's tried to escape multiple times over the years, but the CRM won't let him go no matter what he does. Michonne, meanwhile, has recently found herself with a caravan of people in her debt. While she asks for a horse in return, she gets much more when several of the individuals decide to follow her instead of sticking with their group.
Rick and Michonne, star-crossed lovers
Like many of the other "The Walking Dead" shows, the zombies aren't really the point here. In fact, perhaps even more than other shows in the franchise, the people are the real problem in "The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live." While the zombies are an ever-present force, the people have even more reasons to kill. This is especially true of the CRM, who have a mandate to remain secret despite having built a city where thousands of people work and that supports a military of impressive proportions. Nevertheless, they're happy to indiscriminately blast away civilians outside of their city, although we have no idea why.
Moreover, we have no idea why they want Rick, but some light is shed by Maj. Donald Okafor (Craig Tate), who has an idea that if he can get an A — a person who's a leader — into power, he might be able to change the CRM from the inside. Rick is certainly a leader, but he's also not interested in being part of the CRM. Or so we think. And that's where a great deal of the drama comes from.
Michonne, of course, doesn't see the point of the CRM or anything that would keep her and Rick apart, and she says so in more ways than one. But she's at the mercy of other forces when it comes to whether she'll ever have the opportunity to reunite with Rick, and if she does, what he'll be like. After eight years with the CRM, he's so beaten down and sure that he can't leave that it'll take a miracle to convince him to go, and Michonne will have quite a time trying.
Michonne's mischaracterization and the issues of the show as a whole
This leads me to the show's biggest flaw: Michonne talks too much. When we first met her back in Season 3 of the original show, she was the strong silent type. Since then, she's gradually come out of her shell, but I would by no means call her extroverted. So it's hard to understand why she talks so much in this show. While it could be a product of her changing further over the years that have elapsed since we last saw her, more likely, it's because when you have two people leading a series, you need both of them to talk. That doesn't make Michonne's characterization quite right, though, and I found it a bit disconcerting, especially in Episode 4.
But perhaps more importantly, the entirety of "The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live" is a little bit played out. Not because of Rick and Michonne, but because the whole concept is overdone. The key is whether the shows can find enough that's unique or original about them to rise above the status of being another "Walking Dead" show. That said, Rick and Michonne are great characters, and the series solves several lingering mysteries from the mothership drama, including what the designations "A" and "B" mean when classifying people (the Bs are everyday people just trying to survive) and why Rick has been unable to get away from his captors. Plus, in a unique bit of art direction, at one point, "The Ones Who Live" takes us to a luxury condominium complex complete with climate control and a Roomba, the likes of which are familiar in other shows but brand new to the "Walking Dead" universe.
As a result, "The Ones Who Live" is just good enough to keep its universe fresh ... for now. However, there are plenty of things that could change that for the worse. Most specifically, how do you stick the landing on a show like this? While I haven't seen the last two episodes, I'm dreading the outcome. This is "The Walking Dead" after all, and endings here are rarely happy or definitive. However, if there's one couple we wish the best for, it's Rick and Michonne. After all this time away from one another, they deserve it. But the fourth episode left me uneasy and alarmed — not because it's sad, but because it ends on such a happy note. The good times can't last. And who knows what that will mean for Rick, Michonne, and their family.
"The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live" premieres on AMC and AMC+ on February 25.