‘The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon’ Recap – ‘Paris Sera Tourjours Paris’

9/25/2023

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon in Episode 103 of ‘The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon’ - ‘Paris Sera Tourjours Paris’. (Photo Courtesy of Emmanuel Guimier/AMC.)

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Three of ‘The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon’. To revisit the previous episode, click here. Also, this piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the series being covered here wouldn’t exist.

It really is quite amazing what The Walking Dead Universe is accomplishing at this moment. For not only are we getting fresh adventures with characters that we love, the kind that are original and exciting, but we are being treated to so much more. For instance, long term hopes and dreams for zombie fans everywhere are coming to fruition through these new chapters, and we are enjoying intimate takes on concepts that are rarely explored in zombie fiction. Not to mention, the stories are epic in nature and scary, and continue to wow us with their scope and well… never were these elements more evident than during last night’s episode of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon on AMC. Because ‘Paris Sera Tourjours Paris’ took the time to give us all of those things, and it accomplished that feat, by way of one unsettling opening.

For the destination that Isabelle wanted Daryl to reach, to use the radio and get the whole ball rolling was a twisted bust. For not only was the radio no longer operational, because its operator felt the need to cannibalize the parts to play music in this silent world once again, but that operator had in essence, lost his mind in isolation. Because he was so obsessed with finding catharsis and beauty through music, that the man straight up took the walking dead from outside his abode and turned them into a twisted orchestra. Wherein they were either mutilated and integrated into certain types of instruments or used to play them in creative ways. Giving rise to a horrifying symphony of living death that left Daryl upset that he did not assert himself harder on just getting to Paris, and well… once Isabelle was satisfied that this trip was fruitless… it was off to the City of Lights.

Wherein, we were treated yet again to another moment that zombie fans have outright craved and called for. Specifically, another look at what a big city would look like under the control of the living dead and well… Paris did not disappoint. For it was in essence, a beautifully haunted city of the dead. One that still harbored echoes of its former majestic landscape, since the Eiffel Tower was still standing, but not without its severe scars and damage. Perhaps serving as something of a metaphor for Daryl and the many others that made it through the horrors of the end. Still standing, yet different. And of course, the city in and of itself was an eerie echo of what once was. For it was filled to the brim with corpses that hungered for flesh and that is what brought about its haunted nature, and this really was quite the treat for zombie fans and fans of horror since the franchise continues to support showcasing what the world would look like under the rotten thumb of the walking dead and the wonder of this episode’s world-building didn’t end there.

Eric Frey as The Conductor in Episode 103 of ‘The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon’ - ‘Paris Sera Tourjours Paris’. (Photo Courtesy of Emmanuel Guimier/AMC.)

Because this is a story that also took the time to inform us… what life would look like in another big city years after the dead seized control of everything and well… people would indeed endure. For the group finally caught up with Fallou. A kind gentleman that ran a small community that was hidden away from the prying ears and mottled eyes of the living dead, where people could live in relative safety and well, his community was a success. For so many were in this place and thriving and even new generations were being born here, and of course… in order to find Daryl safe passage back to the remnant of the United States of America, a trip into the city was necessary. One that brought to bear, a nightclub in the middle of the apocalypse. Where people were finding joy in old concepts again and living life without worry for a change and well… these were definitely some epic and delightful moments to enjoy for certain, the kind that were balanced out nicely… by intimate moments.

Specifically, ones that revolved around the importance of confronting our past and how difficult that can be. Because part of the reason that Isabelle did not want to come to Paris, was to avoid dealing with the realities of the past. For this was a city that brought out the worst in her, and it of course, featured a bevy of bad memories about the end of the everything. But… she had no choice but to confront those memories in every sense of the word, for it was the only way to move forward. But also because… some of her echoes were walking around and hoping for a warm bowl of flesh, and while that alone would have been enough to point out how hard it is for us to confront yesterday and how important it is to healing and growth, the show had one more surprise regarding that to send our way, courtesy of that lovely club that she and Daryl ventured to.

Because in that place, was perhaps her greatest challenge from her past. For it turned out that her beloved Quinn, the ‘friend’ that tried to help her escape, only to ask her to abandon her sister and her nephew… survived being abandoned on the side of the road and gave this club life and offered promises and favors in getting Daryl home… in exchange for telling Laurent that he was in fact his father. A move that Daryl wanted no part of… just out of principle of never letting someone that offered up such abuse and coldness (because what kind of dad wants to abandon his kid before that child is born?) to have agency or power. But what mattered more, was that Isabelle handled with this grace and strength. For she found agency in returning home, despite her concerns and came to realize that even at the end of the world, there was no escaping what came before, and that it needed resolution, and that made for some powerful storytelling for certain.

Clémence Poésy and Adam Nagaitis as Isabelle and Quinn in Episode 103 of ‘The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon’ - ‘Paris Sera Tourjours Paris’. (Photo Courtesy of Emmanuel Guimier/AMC.)

But of course, there was mention of scares being present it this tale as well, and those came forth… via people and their capacity for evil. For while all of this was going on, Codron was making waves behind the scenes. Specifically, by planting himself in front of Genet, to inform her that he was the best man to bring in Daryl Dixon and that he would serve her well in Paris going forward. To which she agreed since he had the finest intelligence available regarding Daryl via the trinkets left behind at the monastery and well… when he went to work, terror followed. Because soon he was at the club and used his power to engender fear in the hearts of anyone that looked his way, which of course, prompted Quinn to spill the beans on where Daryl was hiding inside the city. Which of course… brought forth a night of total terror for those good people Daryl and his friends were staying with.

Because just like that, Codron and his men were inside the compound and ransacking the place to find Daryl, and well… it wasn’t long before Daryl was facing real trouble. Since these brutal men had no qualms using guns to try and bring Daryl down, and despite Mister Dixon’s ability to escape detection well, Codron was relentless and more or less… thought like Daryl and was able to find him when Mister Dixon worked to remove himself from the situation. Which led to quite the battle royale between both men, one that ended with more trouble for Daryl when the rooftop he fought upon gave way, sending him deep into an abyss of the unknown. All of which reminded us that the man is the most dangerous monster in this franchise through and through, seconded only by the walking dead themselves… who were also scary here.

Since we saw another variant in Paris, a burner with the intelligence and strength of the walkers that the Commonwealth’s army encountered in the final episodes of TWD, and of course, having the City of Lights be populated with ghostly and rotten corpses is chilling in its own right and really, in the end, all of these elements brought forth one amazing episode. One that was epic in scope and powerful to say the least, courtesy of its intimate character moments and the moments of joy present here, and this story also brought us inches closer to understanding why Daryl made one bad decision after another, since we are now aware of the fact that he is harboring some bitterness and pain from something critical happening back home. Which he may need to heal here, in France, and well… all this episode does is leave us as hungry as a walker for more. Because this is just great storytelling, the kind that is putting the best elements of The Walking Dead Universe on display and we simply need more. More of this engaging story and more intimate moments with Daryl Dixon, so we can understand his pain and see him heal from it at last… to have his long-awaited happy ending. Until next time.

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