Season 5 | Episode 5 | Self Help [AMC] [SPOILERS]

NUTZZ

The Walking Dead - Season 5

Episode 5 - Self Help

Airdate - November 9th on AMC at 9/8c | November 10th on FOX UK at 9pm

A new set of issues confront our group while on a mission. Will they be able to push through and survive these challenges? Or better yet, each other?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d56S5YucYPI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wS0oSoNXI-U

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qyXvzWtg4nA

Morpork

6

The Walking Dead is the new Windows. A one crap, one great cycle. Today's episode: Windows XP/10

Nervous Wreck

Fairly bland episode. I'm glad Eugene finally 'fessed up to being a liar. Long time coming. Hopefully they'll turn back and join the group now because if the rest of their episodes as a side-group are gonna be this lame, I don't wanna watch them.

Oranage2

5

Morpork wrote: »

The Walking Dead is the new Windows. A one crap, one great cycle. Today's epsode: Windows XP/10

Is xp10 good?

Was a pretty mediocre episode, I thought the flashbacks were pointless except the last one obviously.
I like most those characters but none of them are strong enough to carry an episode imo. I'll give it a 6 out of 10.

willmunny1990

Average enough episode.

That group isn't nearly strong enough to carry an episode on their own imo.

Washout

3

Extremely poor in my opinion.

Basically back to there is no hope whatsoever

Timmyctc

8

Thought that was a great ep. Love the flashbacks with each of the different groups. Some strong backstory and I'm glad they've subtly changed the Military crew to a more believable group. A far cry from when they first arrived on scene and looked like a copy/paste straight from a comic.

Hopefully this wont be the ending of captain America. People genuinely only seem to like episodes that are all action. The first episode, for example, was fairly mediocre and has some equally mediocre dialogues but had some bad ass action scenes throughout. The story has largely been very good for all groups this ep was good to forward that imo.

Nervous Wreck

Timmyctc wrote: »

Thought that was a great ep. Love the flashbacks with each of the different groups. Some strong backstory and I'm glad they've subtly changed the Military crew to a more believable group. A far cry from when they first arrived on scene and looked like a copy/paste straight from a comic.

Hopefully this wont be the ending of captain America. People genuinely only seem to like episodes that are all action. The first episode, for example, was fairly mediocre and has some equally mediocre dialogues but had some bad ass action scenes throughout. The story has largely been very good for all groups this ep was good to forward that imo.

A lack of action isn't what brought this episode down; it was a lack of tension that did it. It's hard to care about anyone in that group. I like Glenn, Maggie and Abraham but in this episode, I didn't care about them at all cos there was nothing going on to make me do so. The chat in the dark between Glenn and Abraham was probably the best part of the episode but even then, it didn't really hold me.

PhiloCypher

7

Baffled by the poor notices this is getting in some reviews and in posts here . We moan about how cypher like some of the characters are on this show and as soon as they try and add some depth it gets called bland. I thought it was a great episode , we got new insight onto why Abraham and Eugene are the way they are and we get more complete sentences out of Rosita then we have since she was introduced last season.

Diabhal Beag

9

I thought that was the strongest episode of the season yet, arguably top 3 episodes of the entire show. Abraham losing it supported by the flashbacks, a fairly strong crew of characters and Eugene owning up and possibly getting put in a coma. I loved that. Way better than last week and so far I'm really glad I stuck with this.

Shane St.

Was okay episode. Not really sure where this season is going though

jimmy5694

3

I voted this four because nothing came out of this episode bar a little history lesson about Abe and Eugene. I feel that so much could have been done to make it allot better but now the group is back to nothing because of something that could have been totally avoided and progression could be further. I just feel that its starting to drag out and the author and producers are lost.
I could almost guarantee since Abe's mission is now compromised that there going to re-track back to Rick and perhaps find Daryl and fight the crew that Beth is with just a wild guess.

Soft Falling Rain

6

I liked it as it managed to separate out Abraham from the likes of Rick. It should be interesting to see where Abraham goes from here as he was someone motivated by having a cause. He's not like Rick who has accepted that the world has changed. Rick is motivated by purely surviving and helping others to survive.

duridian

8

Nervous Wreck wrote: »

The chat in the dark between Glenn and Abraham was probably the best part of the episode but even then, it didn't really hold me.

I quite liked the bit where Rosie got a bit of "aye papi!"
Is

Eugene dead after that upward punch to the nose?

SierraSierra 247

6

I thought it was a really good episode. Although, I say that every week after watching it and cursing the fact that the end credits always arrive too quickly.

I really enjoyed the flashbacks of Abraham. Added a bit of mystery, and a sense of helplessness turned new purpose.
The sex scene between Rosie and Abraham was also very welcome

Surely I am not the only one that knew there was something fishy about Eugene. His voice, mannerisms and just his way of being is incredibly annoying.

Really looking forward to next weeks episode.

MarkR

SierraSierra 247 wrote: »

I thought it was a really good episode. Although, I say that every week after watching it and cursing the fact that the end credits always arrive too quickly.

I really enjoyed the flashbacks of Abraham. Added a bit of mystery, and a sense of helplessness turned new purpose.
The sex scene between Rosie and Abraham was also very welcome

Surely I am not the only one that knew there was something fishy about Eugene. His voice, mannerisms and just his way of being is incredibly annoying.

Really looking forward to next weeks episode.

Abraham's family prefer to run off and leave him, because he kills some people (I think they were human) to presumably protect his family? It's not like she was expecting ghandi, she was married to a soldier! Like the same sex peeping. 😆

Still not a peep about the damn sister? I know she mentioned "them" at some stage, but come on!

Teyla Emmagan

I have never found Abraham interesting. Now suddenly he's IMMENSELY interesting. In a 'feel sorry for he poor bastard, what will he do next mode etc'. The thing about the family leaving him makes frick all sense IMO. Why would you leave the guy with the guns/military history in an apocalypse? Espc. when he is your husband/kids father. Of course he is going to be the safest person to be around in miles..

Never really saw anything believable in Eugene though. With his personality he would need to be savant to get the job he claims he has, and instead he reliably came across as a gormless idiot.

Gbear

5

Thought it was a bit ****.

They just happened to break down while 20ft away from some zombies and with conveniently placed obstacles to crash into.

Having read up to the relevant part, I knew for a fact that Eugene was a fraud so that didn't help much either.

I do at least like how they're keeping the methods of zombie-killing fresh and original.

DakarVert

6

At the start when the rolled the bus, They swerved to avoid 2 cars and ended up hitting a 4x4. On a longshot back the road after they get out it was clear (Except for the 4x4 they hit). Just me?

Zero-Cool

6

Glad the Eugene truth came out, now we can get back to see who darryl was hiding in the bushes.

5starpool

6

Better than last week imo. Hopefully all back together by the end of next week, but I doubt it.

Kirby

7

sheehy83 wrote: »

Glad the Eugene truth came out, now we can get back to see who darryl was hiding in the bushes.

I think it's fairly obvious it was Everbody hates Chris guy who escaped from the hospital in the beth episode.

The only other option is Morgan.

willowthewisp

4

Bit meh, Eugene's revelation wasn't really a revelation.
What was up the road? Just lots & lots of walkers?
Should have gone for the tractor in the field, and that fire truck has so much potential.

Slattsy

1

Slightly better than last week, so it gets a 2 from me.

Fairly sure last weeks and tonight's could have been combined into one, but no lets water it down and make 2 shíte episodes.

CastorTroy

Is there a reason they didn't finish the Beth story this week? For a second I thought I missed a second episode last week.

And I like how Tara took a peek as well, obviously at Rosita.

Timmyctc

8

Slattsy wrote: »

Slightly better than last week, so it gets a 2 from me.

Fairly sure last weeks and tonight's could have been combined into one, but no lets water it down and make 2 shíte episodes.

If you think that episode was 1 point/10 better than the worst possible of television imaginable then you're just taking the piss clearly.

Actually. If you thought last weeks episode was the worst episode ever in television history also you're taking the piss.

Basically you're clearly taking the piss.

thegreengoblin

5

That was probably needed but I thought it was fairly disjointed compared to other 'let's focus on...' episodes. In the comics Abraham's character is a very strong one and I was really looking forward to seeing how they dealt with his back story on the show. But I thought it was disappointing the way they handled it. We get 20 seconds here....another few seconds there...and then bang that's it.

But at least we've got the Eugene reveal out of the way so hopefully they can get back with Rick's gang next week and sort out the Beth stuff.

I know it's kind of stating the obvious but the show lacks major 'oomph' when Rick and Daryl are not around. It would be great if Abraham can step up and make his mark now.

expectationlost

i thought for a while the Abraham flashback was way before zombies and it was another back story about somebody who wasn't what he said he was, like he was some guy thrown out of the army for going postal in a supermarket over the price of beans, maybe it was meant to ambiguous until we see his family outside?

drumswan

2

The usual lazy writing is back. Get brand new bus in immaculate condition, drive it 15 miles, roll it and it bursts into flames. And nobody even bats an eyelid at the driver. So lame.

Tzar Chasm

6

willowthewisp wrote: »

Bit meh, Eugene's revelation wasn't really a revelation.
What was up the road? Just lots & lots of walkers?
Should have gone for the tractor in the field, and that fire truck has so much potential.

It looked like a refugee camp, the main road ran straight through the middle of it, 10,000 walkers only separated by some flimsy chain wire fences.

I kinda guessed that eugene was a bit of a spoofer the first time I saw him, so I googled him, wasnt he a highschool physics/chemistry teacher in the comics.

Also abes family seem to have bought it at the very start of the outbreak, so that would explain a lot about that.

Jofspring

3

Ya was fairly boring. Got the Eugene truth out of the way but thought the flashbacks for Abraham bar the last one were fairly poor. I just didn't have any interest in anything that was going on between any of the characters this week. Found myself losing interest quiet a lot and struggled to stick with it.

I agree with the post above that maybe some kind of combination of last weeks and this weeks episode would have made one good solid episode.

Haven't seen the next time on the walking dead so don't know what's coming up but fingers crossed it isn't just another full episode of what happened between Daryl and Carol.

The whole Maggie ignoring the fact her sister is missing is really bugging me also. No attempt at all to try find her or where she might have gone just makes no sense.

keano25

Shockin episode.

One thing that annoys me, these fires they start in doors, where do they vent too???

Richie71

5

Well so far this season we've seen three potential story lines wrapped up fairly quickly... Terminus, the Cannibals and now Washington. It's hard to see where this series is going, I just hope it doesn't focus on Atlanta too much longer. Maybe the writers realised we were heading down paths we've been before and they're closing them off to bring us something brand new

Also, when did a group of walkers stop being scary. Admittedly, I watched 3 1/2 seasons back to back last year but I remember when they were searching the prison and I genuinely feared what was around the next corner. Now, they're almost seeing them off with their eyes closed. I suppose it would be difficult carrying that fear week after week for 5 seasons.

Well here's hoping for a few twists and turns before the mid season break. Hard to believe we're 5 episodes in already!!

Timmyctc

8

drumswan wrote: »

The usual lazy writing is back. Get brand new bus in immaculate condition, drive it 15 miles, roll it and it bursts into flames. And nobody even bats an eyelid at the driver. So lame.

Driver thought the tyre burst but Eugene said he put crushed glass in the fuel tank that made something (I know nothing about cars etc..) blow which caused the tyre to blow.

drumswan

2

Timmyctc wrote: »

Driver thought the tyre burst but Eugene said he put crushed glass in the fuel tank that made something (I know nothing about cars etc..) blow which caused the tyre to blow.

That makes no sense and it doesnt explain why nobody even asks what happened. Like Maggie not asking where her sister is, it totally breaks immersion and is really irritating.

Sofiztikated

5

I think the engine was supposed to have exploded, with the glass in the fuel going to the combustion chamber. in reality, the engine would have just blow a gasket, few pistons maybe, more of a crunch to a halt.

Was a bit stange, if he'd said he sabotaged the tyre to cause a blowout, then it would have been more believable. A wheel blowing out when driving can he just **** altogether.

Shouldn't the fire truck have been running, to power the water cannon? But saw the door opening, zombies pouring out from a mile off. And why would someone scrawl the "Don't Dead Open Inside" type writing on the ground, rather than the wall, or door. That's just muppetry.

Glad the Eugene reveal was gotten out of the way, but it felt very rushed, just shoehorned in. Was it the knockout punch that did the damage to Eugene, or the face plant on the ground? Are we talking coma, and then them finding the hospital crowd now? And Eugene has lasted 500 odd days of zombieville, and only now picks up a knife? And he's still very pudgey and gooey round the edges. Someone been sneaking in some Twinkeys?

I know Mrs. Abe should have known he was a soldier, but still, him beating guys to death with a tin of Heinz would be fairly shocking for her to see, that her husband was capable of such violence. But then, maybe there was more to it. Read somewhere that they were supposed to be their neighbours, only the neighbours eventually went down the "Crack open skulls and feast on the goo inside" route, and got a bit rapey.

I didn't mind that it wasn't all action, but a lot of it felt a bit lacking. I like the universe, and the fleshing out of Abe and Eugenes meeting was needed, but some silly things were done. The Abe chat with Glenn in the dark was just that, dark. I couldn't see what the hell was happening. And why, when walking off from the 'sploded bus, did they walk off the road, into the tall grass, around the tree, and back onto the road, about 100 yards ahead?

6 for me, because it just above average. Wasn't particularly memorable, was completely godawful, contained zombies (especially Skidmark. Props to whoever did her outfit).

Jofspring

3

They walked on the grass to avoid the bus incase it exploded.

Paddy Cow

drumswan wrote: »

The usual lazy writing is back. Get brand new bus in immaculate condition, drive it 15 miles, roll it and it bursts into flames. And nobody even bats an eyelid at the driver. So lame.

It wasn't in immaculate condition though. They spent a whole day getting it road worthy. It's not far fetched to believe that one of the tires blew, which is what I thought happened before Eugene's bizarre confession to Tara.

drumswan

2

Paddy Cow wrote: »

It wasn't in immaculate condition though. They spent a whole day getting it road worthy. It's not far fetched to believe that one of the tires blew, which is what I thought happened before Eugene's bizarre confession to Tara.

It is far fetched to believe that one of the tires blew. Tyres dont just blow. And people dont just walk away from a burning upturned bus and neglect to enquire what happened or even mention that the bus is upside down and on fire.

Its a small point but the answer to what happened or why it happened, like many many things in the show, is 'because the it suits the plot'. Its difficult to suspend disbelief enough to engage with the story because the writing doesnt stand up to even the lightest critical thinking. The characters dont behave in a believable fashion, they behave like characters in a poorly though out screenplay.

DakarVert

6

drumswan wrote: »

It is far fetched to believe that one of the tires blew. Tyres dont just blow.

Not really, Bus would have been parked for a few months so tyres could be flatspotted from standing or have small little cracks from sun damage.

Not to mention the bus was old, So tyres wouldn't be new anyway.

A small crack could have got bigger due to stress and just blew.


Ever seen random bits of tyre at the side of a road? Not rare for a truck to blow out a tyre.

drumswan

2

DakarVert wrote: »

Not really, Bus would have been parked for a few months so tyres could be flatspotted from standing or have small little cracks from sun damage.

Not to mention the bus was old, So tyres wouldn't be new anyway.

A small crack could have got bigger due to stress and just blew.


Ever seen random bits of tyre at the side of a road? Not rare for a truck to blow out a tyre.

What were the chances of them getting into the bus, pulling out of the carpark and ten minutes later being without a means of transport, their bus being upside down and on fire, surrounded by zombies, suddenly making confessions they've held in for months and beating each other up. Its absurd. Even in a zombie apocalypse you need somewhat believable storylines, not just lazy plot devices to put the cast out in the open and in danger.

martomcg

7

DakarVert wrote: »

Not really, Bus would have been parked for a few months so tyres could be flatspotted from standing or have small little cracks from sun damage.

Not to mention the bus was old, So tyres wouldn't be new anyway.

A small crack could have got bigger due to stress and just blew.


Ever seen random bits of tyre at the side of a road? Not rare for a truck to blow out a tyre.

If you watch it closely - he is driving extrememly fast and when the engine 'blows' he loses control, swerving from side to side - this would definately cause old/worn tyres to blow.

I think the fact that they all walked away from it completely unscathed considering no one was wearing seatbelts to be a bit more ridiculous!

But you know what? Its a TV show and I'm ok with it!!

I'm also enjoying the fact that they're jumping in between the different story arcs in different episodes. Means we get a better look at some of the characters (including their back stories) and get to see different scenery in every episode.

People didnt complain half this much when they were stuck on the farm for what seemed like an eternity!!

Keyzer

3

martomcg wrote: »

I think the fact that they all walked away from it completely unscathed considering no one was wearing seatbelts to be a bit more ridiculous!

But you know what? Its a TV show and I'm ok with it!!

I'm also enjoying the fact that they're jumping in between the different story arcs in different episodes. Means we get a better look at some of the characters (including their back stories) and get to see different scenery in every episode.

People didnt complain half this much when they were stuck on the farm for what seemed like an eternity!!

1. I agree with this, not a scratch on any of them after the bus flips in the air.

2. Don't agree. Just because its a TV show doesn't mean the writers can treat the audience like idiots. I get that its a show set in a zombie apoc but there has to be some sense of realism. If a spaceship comes down from the heavens in the next episode is that ok just because its a TV show?

3. Don't agree. This group, even with Glen and Maggie, aren't interesting or strong enough to warrant an entire episode dedicated to them. Same for Beth last week.

4. Hated the farm. With a passion. The vast majority of season 2 on that farm was a bore fest. Second part of the season picked up partly due to the negative feedback the writers looked at on fan forums.

keano25

Can anyone tell me where the smoke from the fires they set in the library went?

GavRedKing

6

I thought it was a decent episode myself.

Finally got Eugene spitting out what must people thought, he was a bluffer and was only interested in self-preservation, no matter what the cost.

Abes back story is pretty tragic and the flashbacks were interesting to watch, also goes to show his anger issues when he assualted Eugene by the bus, hes known Eugene longer than anyone else but had no problem snapping and lashing out at him.

The hoard they seen by the road and farms, had that anything to do with the huge hoard that was seen back in season 3 was it?

obriendj

5

Keyzer wrote: »

1. I agree with this, not a scratch on any of them after the bus flips in the air.

2. Don't agree. Just because its a TV show doesn't mean the writers can treat the audience like idiots. I get that its a show set in a zombie apoc but there has to be some sense of realism. If a spaceship comes down from the heavens in the next episode is that ok just because its a TV show?

3. Don't agree. This group, even with Glen and Maggie, aren't interesting or strong enough to warrant an entire episode dedicated to them. Same for Beth last week.

4. Hated the farm. With a passion. The vast majority of season 2 on that farm was a bore fest. Second part of the season picked up partly due to the negative feedback the writers looked at on fan forums.

The walking dead has always done this. Separate groups get full episodes. It started with Woodbury and the Governor in season 3 and then continued in season 4. Remember Daryl and Beth sipping moonshine.
It just seems to way they do it and is different to Game of Thrones who seem to make sure every character is in every episode for at least 4-5mins.

It could be better to jump from group to group but they dont so once I see the same group before and after the opening theme. i know that we are with them for the episode.

What baffles me is why Eugene messed with the bus? he still wants to get to D.C. and the sooner the better.
I think that is where I would be heading. If you can get in, I reckon its locked down and secure.

obriendj

5

keano25 wrote: »

Can anyone tell me where the smoke from the fires they set in the library went?

I presumed they only light a fire to boil the water and then put it out so there wouldn't be too much smoke.
Seems like its summer time there so it would be quite warm and no need for a fire.

willowthewisp

4

keano25 wrote: »

Can anyone tell me where the smoke from the fires they set in the library went?

Eugene blew it in the same direction he has been doing since his arrival on the show...Blowing smoke up people's a**'s!

Keyzer

3

obriendj wrote: »

The walking dead has always done this. Separate groups get full episodes. It started with Woodbury and the Governor in season 3 and then continued in season 4. Remember Daryl and Beth sipping moonshine.
It just seems to way they do it and is different to Game of Thrones who seem to make sure every character is in every episode for at least 4-5mins.

It could be better to jump from group to group but they dont so once I see the same group before and after the opening theme. i know that we are with them for the episode.

I had noticed that trend before the most recent episode

Its my personal opinion that this structure doesn't work. If they jump from group to group for a couple of mins it puts us with the group (more or less) which we have been attached with for quite some time whilst slowly getting the audience acquainted with a new group/characters.

I'm not dissing the show, the fact that I'm on here commenting is down to my liking of the show. I just think from a writing point of view, it could be done a lot better.

caolfx

7

Thought it was a good episode.

As regards the group thing, I'd prefer if they didn't focus on one group for an entire episode. Occasionally is fine, but I just think it's easier to follow a timeline that by showing multiple groups per episode.

Thargor

6

So much stupidity in that ep only good thing you could say about it is that at least the writers seemed to have got the message to stop dragging stuff out the way they did with the farm and then the prison, hopefully get some progress next week.

By the way does anyone else just completely and utterly despise that one that joined them from the governors attack? The mousey faced one who had to show Eugene how to use a knife (?).

Seeing as they can kill zombies with such these these days they should think about just heading back to the prison and fixing it up anyway.