"I already helped you once. Ain't happening again."
"Consumed" is all about reminding us how much Carol has changed. She's gone from a timid person who was trapped in an abusive relationship to a cold and focused zombie killing machine. The days of screaming at the sight of a walker are long gone. Now, she'll casually look one in the eyes and thrust a knife into its head without hesitating at all. We get an excellent amount of insight into the character and there's a good teaser for what'll come next, but what this episode also does really well is hit us with the harsh reality of what this world has become.
The score really enhanced the episode's atmosphere, making the emotional beats way more powerful and all of the tension far more gripping. Then there's the constant reminder that nowhere is safe. The groans of zombies are frequent and we see various places where humanity failed to thrive. Whether it's a camp that has fallen or stumbling upon a corpse, you can immediately tell there's a story there and it illustrates just how little hope is left.
The opening sequence may have not been necessary or shed any significant, new light on Carol -- something which technically applies to much of the episode -- but it was still a really engaging way to open the show. It's a well acted and well shot sequence and the song -- both the lyrics and the music -- was especially fitting. In fact, many of you will probably think that much of this episode is filler and, well, you wouldn't be wrong. It's slowly moving the pieces into place for the next big story and a few mandatory developments occur that'll set the stage for what's to come (
This one's all about character, but you can't have an episode of The Walking Dead without just a wee bit of zombie killing, can you? Sure, this one has all of the usual arrows, knives, and bullets going into zombies' heads, but there's also a good surprise or two along the way. The make up really delivered and there's some delightfully creepy bits. One close up kill looked a little too fake -- especially when everything else was impressive -- but it's a minor gripe and the good definitely outweighs the bad when it comes to zombie scenes.
"Consumed" does an awesome job pulling us into the zombie apocalypse's tense and haunting world, but that bit with the van took a lot of suspension of disbelief, didn't it? Firstly, we're talking about the group's two biggest badasses now throwing caution out the window as they know zombies are approaching. Then you have them get back into the van instead of fighting their way through so they can flee. Now, I'm not saying they'd go all terminator on each of the zombies, but given how gifted these two have become at killing the undead, you'd think they'd be able to escape on that big highway. Kill a few, shove others into the other ones, so on and so on. Just clear enough of a path so they can keep on the move. Secondly, how did that van land on its wheels? All of the shots right before the impact made it look like it would land on its roof. What followed that landing was great, but the landing itself was pretty baffling. Also, aside from how Carol winds up at the hospital, the developments for the bigger picture are basically what many of us were expecting. That's not necessarily a "bad" thing; it's just a matter of seeing how it's handled from here.
Minor gripe: That shot of the road leading to Atlanta was a nice nod to Season 1 (there's a few others scattered throughout, too) and having it take place at night reminds us of just how much darkness these characters have endured since then. However, having Daryl follow the dude with that little distance between them took me out of the moment a little bit. Yeah, the lights weren't on, but you'd think he'd keep a little more distance if he's following someone!
The Carol and Daryl team-up (there's a new comic for you, Robert Kirkman) is pretty much one extensive character study. If you find yourself really connecting with Carol, you're going to appreciate the handling of this journey and how her dynamic with Daryl continues to change. It's loaded with tension as we revisit some familiar spots from the first season and, as expected, there's some really satisfying zombie encounters. When all is said and done, "Consumed" is another great episode in Season 5.