Sunday night’s (October 13) season premiere of “The Walking Dead” was titled “30 Days Without An Accident,” but as you can probably imagine, the accidents ramped up — real quick. From zombie attacks to a brand-new threat these post-apocalyptic survivors may not be able to fight, here’s every big moment (spoilers ahead) from the episode:
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Farm Life
More than anything else in the hour, the opening shots of a real farm developing at the prison show how far they’ve come since last season. Rick’s even gone and buried his sidearm, quite literally turning swords into plowshares. OK, figuratively, but it’s still a stark difference from the bleak, empty war-torn prison of season three.
Daryl’s Job
As our survivors head off to pick up supplies at a supermarket, we got one of our absolute favorite moments: newcomer Zack has been trying (in vain) to guess Daryl Dixon’s pre-pocalypse job. He thinks he’s finally got it, guesses Daryl was a “homicide cop,” to which Daryl tells him that he’s not only dead-on, but that the gig was some, “real undercover sh–.” Norman Reedus’ dead-serious line reading nails this, and we’re still not sure if he was lying or not. (Guess we’ll just have to guess again on Monday.)
Bob Stookey Vs. The Wine Rack
There’s something off about Lawrence Gilliard Jr.’s Bob Stookey right away, and nowhere is this more pronounced than his struggle holding a wine bottle in the supermarket. He hesitates for a moment, deciding whether he should take the spirit (was/is he an alcoholic?). He eventually slams it down on the shelf, bringing the bookshelf down, trapping him underneath it. And then the roof caves in, and the Walkers start falling …
Daryl Fights The Zombie Horde
The whole supermarket fight was a collection of badass moments but none more killer than Daryl standing on a pile of rubble right under a hole in the supermarket ceiling, shooting down Walkers as they attacked. This was probably the biggest action sequence the show has ever attempted, and it only got crazier.
Black Hawk Down
Yes, crazier, as a helicopter crashed through the roof of the supermarket, smashing everything below it (including the Walkers). We don’t know how the show will top this, but executive producer Gale Anne Hurd has promised us it gets even bigger from here.
Story Time
Throughout the episode, we’ve been teased that Carol is running a story time in the library for the new kids in the group. Turns out, story time is just a front for Carol’s knife-training for children. Clearly, Carol won’t let the other kids suffer the same fate as her daughter Sophia in season two. Not only is it a shocking reveal, but Carl’s expression when he finds out he hasn’t been spying on one small vestige of his childhood, but yet another reminder of all the pain the world holds, is heartbreaking.
Rick Meets The Husband
So Rick meets a starving, insane woman in the woods. He heads back to her camp in order to see if they can join the group at the prison. And then it turns out her husband is a … something … under a blanket, and the woman tries to kill Rick. And when she can’t, she kills herself. What made this whole plotline work was — like Carl with story time — Rick’s hope that maybe things weren’t as bad deep down as he knows they are. Wonder if that whole “keeping the gun buried just below the surface” thing is some sort of metaphor?
0 Days Without An Accident
Back at the prison, Beth finds out that her boyfriend Zack is dead and calmly changes her sign from “30 Days,” to “0 Days Without An Accident.” Another big underline on how far Beth (and all of the characters) have come in a world where death is an everyday fact of life. And not even truly the end.
Patrick Takes A Shower
Just as we’re getting used to the new status quo, new kid Patrick starts coughing. And coughing. And can’t stop, until blood is pouring out of his mouth and he falls down in the shower. Moreover, unfortunately, dead in the prison doesn’t mean dead: It means there’s a Walker inside. Things are looking pretty grim, heading into episode 2, “Infected.”
