After the fun and surprises from the previous episode, I didn’t quite know what to expect in ‘Knots Untie’. I didn’t think the writers would continue steering the show far from its dark depths, and although they haven’t quite returned to the doom and gloom of seasons past, they’re definitely experimenting with some interesting new themes for the series.
This episode was all about Abraham; his feelings, his indecisiveness and, ultimately, his choice. Filled with more excellent one-liners, including ‘umping bugglies’ and a hilarious query directed at Glenn about bizquick and pancakes, it’s hard not to feel connected to Abe as he struggles his way through this episode.
After Eugene’s lie about a cure came to light, Abe lost his purpose in the apocalyptic world; everything he had considered solid, everything he was working towards disappeared in an instant. As well as that, he got used to not having to think about anything other than getting Eugene to Washington and any niggling thoughts of uneasiness about other parts of his life just weren’t important enough to dwell on. However, this week’s episode has made it very clear that Abraham spends a great deal of time now working through those issues, and this episode is just the climax of that.
The main point of inner conflict for Abraham is his relationship with Rosita and his burgeoning connection with Sasha. During the episode, the group saves a man who was about to die by a flustered Abraham’s hand. Afterwards, the man said that when he was facing death his wife’s face was all he could see. This was mirrored near the end of the episode when Abraham was almost strangled by an angry Hilltop resident. Far from being terrified or enraged after the encounter, he is elated because he now knows what, or rather who, he wants to be with for the remainder of his days. Although we don’t see who he sees when he almost blacks out, it’s quite clear who he chooses.
The most exciting part of ‘Knots Untie’ occurred when the group finally come across another community, the Hilltop, thanks to newcomer Jesus. Comic readers (myself included) were very excited to see how similar the aesthetic was to the black and white pages of the original story, and seeing as the show has been honouring the comic more and more, I had high hopes for the groups’ first meeting.
Unfortunately, besides Jesus and Gregory (who I hated from the moment he opened his mouth), the rest of the Hilltop residents are duller than dull. Try to remember the face of just one and their features will likely be fuzzy. Hopefully they evolve into more interesting characters if we’re going to see more of them but, so far, we’ve seen many more memorable personalities in previous seasons who were killed off almost straight away, so for now their lack of substance is a flaw but I’m sure that’ll be fixed in time.
Although I’ve been really enjoying the episodes of season 6b, the pacing is starting to trudge along a little for me. I know there was a new director for the last episode, and it was a gamble to slow down scenes until they were almost too stretched out, but it just about worked due to the nature of the episode. ‘Knots Untie’, however, could’ve used tighter edits between scenes to give a sense of urgency. Tension and anxious nail-biting introductions are what this show usually has in spades when it comes to the introduction of a new arc, and meeting the Hilltop crowd should’ve been no different, so I’m a little disappointed that things seemed so casual.
However, these minor directing issues were dwarfed by the fast-paced and just overall excellent fight near the end of the episode, with one of the most fantastic scenes from comic to screen that I’ve seen so far. Rick spitting out a confused and casual “What?” among startled and distressed onlookers was perfect as it showed how Rick has become so accustomed to violence that a little neck stabbing is almost boring. Some of the best performances in the series are usually accompanied by a one-word line that’s absolutely nailed by a talented actor, and this time is no different.
It’s almost a rite of passage for Rick to be drenched in someone else’s blood when he meets a group of new people. It’s how he says ‘hi’. Although he didn’t make the best impression on Gregory, Maggie takes up the mantel and shows that she’s made of tougher stuff than she looks. She ends up wrapping up a deal with Gregory that seemed unlikely at best at the start of the episode, so I’m excited to see where they take her character. As for Glenn, all he seems to have done for the past few seasons is love Maggie and worry about her, so it would be nice to see him flip out or develop a little more, as he seems a bit like he’s stuck in character limbo right now.
Overall, ‘Knots Untie’ was another good one (if a little uneven at times), and although it’s great fun to absolutely trash an episode that’s nothing but a disappointment, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the show since the start of season 6b. Here’s hoping the streak continues!
What did you think of the episode? Let me know in the comments if you agree!
