‘The Walking Dead’ Recap: ‘Outpost 22’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 1121 of ‘The Walking Dead’. To revisit the previous episode, click here.
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What we often forget about a grand fight for our freedom or the right cause, is that the battle will consist of ebbs and flows. Simply because the party we are challenging, wants their agency and their victory as well and will fight just as hard as we do to achieve their goals and that can make the battle ahead quite difficult and disheartening, even for the most seasoned of warrior. All because, they know that this is the hardest part of the battle and that they will need to dig deep and find that internal drive that is necessary to tip the scales and that is not an easy task. Because the road ahead is hard, and inspiration isn’t always present in the thick of it when the bad guys get a few good shots in.
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If anything, this particularly difficult leg of the battle is top of mind today, simply because the heroes of The Walking Dead were reminded of that reality during last night’s episode of the show. Because despite having finally defeated Lance Hornsby and getting an idea of how to potentially strike back at the Commonwealth, the road to victory was paved with difficulties in ‘Outpost 22’. For instance, while Gabriel, Rosita and Maggie were able to escape their escort, they found themselves back in the world with minimal weapons and protections, pitting them against the living dead and the unknown without a plan in mind, and that can wear on a person, in fact… it did upon Maggie for certain.

For she was faced with dealing with a member of the living dead that was a child. One that echoed thoughts of Hershel and her worst fears about him, and that made her fight difficult at times mentally. To the point where this seasoned and hardened warrior struggled with the right decision in the moment and thankfully… she ran into Carol and Daryl. Who allowed for her to vent her worries and refocus before a grand reunion took place with Gabriel and Rosita. Wherein they took too a moment to breathe and ponder upon their next moves… which involved going after the train that Carol and Daryl were keeping an eye upon. Since that would lead them home and get them intelligence on what they were facing before they went to save their friends. 

Which allowed for a push in the right direction to take place. Since the assault on the train was an outright success. A move that saved Connie since she was transferred to that train and all of the victories here, ones that included prisoners with information, really did make it appear as though the tide was turning and out heroes would finally have what they needed and wanted. But alas, their prisoners yielded minimal results, and one even took his own life to be saved from the horrors of the Commonwealth, putting them back at square one and unsure of how to save their friends. And of course, they were confused as to where to start looking for them without an ounce of information as to where they were taken, and they weren’t the only ones feeling lost in the moment.

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For their kidnapped friends and family were also uncertain of what to do next. Because they were outgunned and outnumbered and quickly forced into ugly servitude in this tale. Since the Commonwealth wasted minimal time in starting their hard labor sentence, after separating the group and well… that brought forth some dark times. For some of the folks they traveled there with, tried to run, and were gunned down in the process and being faced with the reality that this was their new life, put Kelly into a dark place and even left Ezekiel beside himself. Which was stunning, since he is always a source of inspiration for the group and always has a positive outlook on what tomorrow could and would bring in times of strife.
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A sour reality that even Negan realized wasn’t feasible and that prompted him to try and make nice with Ezekiel and formulate a plan for inspiration and freedom. One that did not come to fruition in this episode, but what mattered more about this segment, is that it hammered home the reality that things were dire in this moment and the fight ahead was going to be difficult and painful and truly, there needed to be a hard inspiration point, a rallying cry of some kind and believe it or not. Our heroes found it. For in the closing moments of this tale, quite the horrifying reveal came forth. In that, the dreaded Outpost 22 that everyone was concerned would be their worst nightmares come to life, where pain and suffering and cold and hunger would befall them… turned out to be nothing more than a supremely familiar place.

For Outpost 22 was also known as… the Alexandria Processing Zone… and it was formally known as the Alexandria Safe Zone. Making it clear that Pamela never intended for them to leave and had always planned to keep them under her thumb. But what mattered more here… was the sheer fact that this became the rallying cry that everyone needed. Since Daryl’s group found out what their home had been turned into as well and that motivated Maggie to point out that their home, everything they’d been fighting tooth and nail for, had been robbed from them and transformed into a symbol of hate from the symbol of hope it once stood for and well… that could not stand. It had to be made right, and that set the stage, for an epic showdown.

One where the Alexandria Alliance will undoubtedly give their all to retake that which belongs to them and drive the Commonwealth out, giving them the victory and strength, they need to finish the fight. But while we wait for that… we can once again celebrate another incredible episode. One that truly put the ugly of this world on display again and tested our heroes deeply and left them low on strength both emotionally and physically. All because rock bottom is where every good and heroic journey begins, and it doesn’t get much lower than this and this episode, also, leaves us as starved as a zombie for more. Because there are only three episodes left in this powerhouse saga and we simply have to know what comes next… and how this long and winding journey is going to end. Until next time.

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