The Walking Dead - S3E12 - Clear

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Previously on The Walking Dead “I Ain’t a Judas.”

We open with Rick, Michonne, and Carl driving down the road. No one is speaking. They pass a hitchhiker, who pleads to be picked up. Michonne doesn’t even slow down. I’m sure he’ll be okay.

Further up the road, Michonne gets stuck in some mud trying to drive around a wreck. It’s not long before their car is surrounded by walkers. Rick instructs everyone to cover their ears while he rolls down the window just far enough to put a bullet in a zombie’s head. Later - assuming he killed them all the same way; I doubt they ran off - he and Carl gather some twigs and other materials to help get the car unstuck. Carl points out that they wouldn’t have to do it if Michonne didn’t get them stuck in the first place. Rick says it was an honest mistake. He tells Carl that they have to work with Michonne for now because they have ‘common interests.’ Those being ‘we all want to kill the Governor dead.’

As Michonne gets the car unstuck, the hitchhiker appears down the road. He’s running and yelling for help again. They leave him. Hey, I’m SURE he’ll be okay.

 

They arrive at Rick’s old police station and find that the weapons have been wiped out. Rick suggests they head to some local businesses he knows had weapons behind the counter. Then they come upon Crazy Town. The main street of the town has been booby-trapped and spray painted with warnings like, “TURN AROUND AND LIVE!” Of course, our gang continues forwards.

 

A walker is just about to get caught on one of the booby traps when her head explodes. There’s a gunman wearing a helmet on a rooftop. He tells Rick, Carl, and Michonne to drop their weapons and their shoes and go. Well, we know that ain’t gonna happen. He gives them till the count of ten, which I think is very generous. And it’s just enough time for Michonne to decide she can make it up to the roof. Rick instructs Carl to run for the car and they break for it, Michonne heading to the roof. There’s a shootout, Michonne makes it to the roof but the guy is already on the street and about to shoot Rick when Carl steps out and shoots the gunman.

“I told you to run for the car,” says Rick.

Oh, Rick. When does Carl ever do as he’s told? “I had to do it,” Carl responds. Michonne gives Carl an appreciative side-eye.

They remove the man’s bulletproof vest and mask and… it’s Morgan! The guy from season one who saved Rick when he was fresh out of the hospital! Now that there’s a new (kinda) black guy, does this mean Tyreese has cause to worry? Probably.

 

Anyway, Michonne and Rick carry Morgan into his very booby trapped apartment. I mean, really. Even the ‘Welcome’ mat is booby trapped. There’s a bloody axe triggered at the top of the stairs and it’s… very bloody. Many people have ignored the spray painted signs, it seems. Also, Morgan’s apartment is filled with all the weapons from the police station AND all the weapons from all over the world. Holy hell. Our gang immediately start jacking his shit because that’s how they roll.

 

Rick has a sad moment when he finds the walkie-talkie he gave Morgan in season one. When he sees the words DUANE TURNED on the walls, he decides they’re going to wait for Morgan to wake up before they leave. He wants to make sure he’s okay.

“He tried to kill us and we didn’t leave him for the walkers. He’s had a good day.” I love Michonne. She ain’t tryna stay, but Rick insists.

Carl finds a map of their old neighborhood drawn on the wall. Morgan has marked off Rick’s old house as gone. Carl decides he wants to go to the local Babies ‘r’ Us for a crib for Little Asskicker. Michonne says she’ll go with. Rick says Carl should holler if he gets in trouble and he’ll come a’running. When Michonne stops to take care of a walker, Carl takes off because THAT’S WHAT CARL DOES. She catches up and is all, “What the hell?” They’ve already passed the baby store. Carl says he wants to get something else for the baby.

Back at Morgan’s place, he wakes up without Rick realizing it and takes a knife taped under the bed. When he attacks, they struggle and Rick gets stabbed. Morgan is super crazy and doesn’t recognize Rick. Then he begs for Rick to kill him. After Rick ties up Morgan, he finally convinces Morgan that he does know him. Morgan remembers turning on the radio every day for weeks and months, but never getting Rick. Rick apologizes, explaining that they kept getting pushed further into the country. Morgan confesses that he never used the gun Rick gave him to kill his zombie wife, and the one day he left his son Duane alone to check a cellar for food, he came up to find his zombie wife standing in front of the boy. Duane couldn’t shoot his mother, and when Morgan called for Duane, she attacked Duane. Morgan finally put her down, but it was too late.

And then someone started cutting onions in my living room. *sob*

For some reason not yet clear to me, Carl insists on going in a restaurant filled with walkers. And for some other unclear reason, the restaurant has caged rats tied to skateboards in it and the walkers are all preoccupied with trying to eat the rats. Convenient! So they sneak in and we find that Carl wanted a picture of him, Rick, and Lori that is mounted above the bar. I’ve heard of regular patrons taking pics in the restaurant and having it on the walls, but who the hell gives a bar a framed Sears family portrait? Whatever. I’m going with it. As Carl takes the picture, a zombie behind the bar grabs his foot, but Michonne puts it down with a stab to the forehead. They’re almost out of there, but they encounter a group of walkers chasing a rat. Suddenly, it’s walkers from all over the place. They make it out, but Carl drops the picture inside because THAT’S WHAT CARL DOES! He has to go back because the baby needs a picture of Lori to remember her by! Michonne convinces him to stay put while she goes back in for the picture. I swear, she was in and out in less than a minute with the picture and a rainbow paper mache cat because she’s a badass mofo.

Back at Morgan’s crazy abode, he refuses to go with Rick. He knows that if Rick needs all those weapons, there’s trouble. His job, now, is to clear as much of the dead as he can to atone for not killing his wife when he had the chance and allowing his son to die for it. Or something like that. Either way, he ain’t going and that means Tyreese’s role as the Sole Black Guy is safe… for now. Also, we should point out that despite the gunshot in the bar, Rick never came running for Carl. So much for “hollering.”

The gang prepares to leave as Morgan ties dead zombies to stretchers in the street… don’t ask me why. Carl apologizes for shooting him. Morgan tells him he shouldn’t ever be sorry. OK. Time to leave Crazy Morgan to his busy work.

They’re loading up the trunk with weapons (I spy arrows for Daryl!) when Rick stares off into the distance. Michonne asks him if he sees something. She tells him it’s okay to see things that aren’t there because she used to talk to her dead boyfriend. Aww. They’re bonding and… wait… she’s not a lesbian? Huh.

Rick lets her drive home to the prison. They pass the wreck on the side of the road again. And the hitchhiker. Except this time he’s in pieces on the side of the road. This time they do stop. To get his supplies. Cause that’s how they roll now.