TV Review: The Walking Dead – Season 7, Episode 1

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

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EPISODE 1: The Day Will Come When You Won’t Be

THE HOOK: Rick and his crew are now at Negan’s mercy, but they’ll soon learn that he’s anything but merciful.

The following contains MAJOR SPOILERS, so I don’t recommend reading this if you haven’t watched this episode

THE LOWDOWN: And that folks, is Negan. Watching the Season 6 finale, non-comic fans may have thought, “This guy’s intense, but he’s also funny,” landing them on the fence about whether or not to hate him. After tonight however, I think the vote’ll be unanimous. Negan’s the first villain to really push the crew’s buttons as far as the show is concerned. The Governor was supposed to be just as bad, if not worse, but that didn’t translate from page to screen leaving many fans unimpressed (myself included). I think the good folks at AMC learned from this mistake and as such, we’re getting the Negan we deserve—albeit with a profanity filter, which leaves me shaking my head. So they have no problem showing a dude take a bat to someone’s skull until it looks like lasagna, but saying the dreaded “F” word is taboo? I don’t like it, but I’ll roll with it.

I liked the episode’s dramatic unfolding, when it comes to the scene in question. Yes, it was a hell of a long wait to see who gets the bat, but the twist was worth it. I hate losing Glenn, but I truly didn’t see it coming. That said, it happens exactly like that in the comics, minus the Daryl interference—something that will emotionally crush Daryl to his core. Abraham was already dead, so Glenn was the pick of the litter. I don’t like losing Abraham either, and although I figured it was him or Daryl, I was left leaning toward Daryl simply because losing Abraham wouldn’t carry enough of an impact. I guess the writers felt the same way. To take two of them was a ballsy move, but I like it.

This episode was really about Negan breaking Rick, which again was a smart avenue to explore, rather than just kill the two, leave the truck and say “see ya next week.” Sure, that still leaves an impact, but not like almost making Rick hack Carl’s arm off. I have to admit, from the second Negan asked for the axe, I was worried. Rick loses his arm in the comics, but I know the writers used that to beef up the tension and mess with us (I mean, come on, like you weren’t thinking it when he pulls out the rubbing alcohol). But then to go the Carl route? Damn, even I was cringing. The whole thing was extremely well done. My hat’s off the whole crew, but Jeffrey Dean Morgan looks to be having the time of his life playing Negan. This is going to be one hell of a war.

THE WALKING DEAD SEASON 7 premiere was electrifying in all the right ways. They may have made us wait, but they certainly didn’t cheapen the moment. We got our money’s worth, with interest. That said, Negan’s made the same mistake Rick did. He never should have let Rick live. I know, I know, killing him makes him a martyr and the rest of the crew probably wouldn’t have followed him. And that, right there is the point, Negan sees the potential in having this crew work for him through Rick, and I get that, but it’s a mistake. Like Rick said, “not today, not tomorrow”, but something tells me that axe will find its way between Negan’s eyes at some point. We’re off to a great start, and my expectations are sky high for what I hope will be a phenomenal season.

ZOMBIE KILL OF THE WEEK: The Rick and Negan tag team on the noosed up walker that separates his head from his body.

BLOOD AND GORE: If you need more blood and gore than what you got tonight…you’re a sick motherf*cker.

COOLEST SCENE: Negan nearly having Rick chop off Carl’s arm. Yes, Glenn’s face being mashed was nuts, but seeing as how I knew it happened in the comic, the Rick and Carl scene felt fresher.

FINAL VERDICT:

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