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[TV Review] “The Walking Dead”: Episode 5.06, ‘Consumed’

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 “Consumed” delivered an extremely gripping chapter of The Walking Dead, following Daryl and Carol’s search for Beth.

While the surface elements at play were in top form,  it’s the deeply personal analysis of what brought these two characters to where they are currently, both physically and emotionally that packs the most weight. There is a theme of reflection, in perhaps the most potent and complex psychological study we’ve seen thus far in the series.

With countless instances of Carol’s reflection cast on glass surfaces, the dark and foreboding mirror image of the highway leading into Atlanta, this episode was packed with imagery of change. Something that shines through every moment both internally and externally. 

This is an infiltration mission, and an exciting one at that. Daryl and Carol follow the marked car back into the ruined city of Atlanta, and the excitement is palpable. The change of scenery is commanding, cementing the hopeless state of the world, as empty blackened buildings stand claimed by the dead.

It’s a thrill to traverse these areas again, especially with these two characters. As soon they enter the city, the threat looms with legions of walkers pouring out of the darkness towards our duo’s stalled vehicle. While escape is easily achieved, the sanctuary, which end’s up being some temporary housing once visited by Carol in another life, brings back painful memories of her past. A theme that was constantly explored in various situations from that point on.

Watching these two search for clues in an attempt to track down Beth’s captors was just awesome. They work much like a well oiled machine. Their complete confidence once stripped of their weapons by a desperate Noah is empowering and thrilling. I don’t know if an episode of this show has got me this pumped up since the fall of the prison. It was a much different kind of thrill, but every bit as potent.

The constant revelations on Carol’s mental state, told in part through flashbacks really got to me. These glimpses over the course of the episode are fantastic. We’re shown that Carol’s role at the prison allowed her to be the person she always thought she should be, and the utter sense of defeat she suffered after her exile. While her discovery of the fall of her former home, and the horrible loss of her adopted children left her empty inside.

It was made obvious that Carol still maintained the desire to keep her new found strength and willingness to make those tough calls, but her experiences left her with a profound fear of loss. A fear that almost made her abandon the group, if for no other reason than to spare herself from losing anyone else.

How the writers played all of this off of Daryl’s character, and the strong, compassionate man he’s become, was nothing short of brilliant. A device strengthened by some expertly crafted pacing and dialogue. The fact that a single episode could be this packed with character, while showcasing all the action, intrigue and suspense we’ve come to love, is simply stunning. I was completely engaged from start to finish.

The seriously haunting score by the incredible Bear McCreary combined with some seriously bad ass set design and the overall visual atheistic of the locals put this episode over the edge of awesome. The atmosphere practically oozed off my screen, inspiring me with a sense of loss, dread, and confidence all at once.

In one of my favorite instances of this, our dynamic duo investigates a van belonging to the people they’re after. Said van dangles precariously over the edge of an interchange while being pursued by walkers on either side. How this scene played out in the end was a little improbable (the van probably would’ve landed on it’s roof), but it was awesome none the less.

And how about finding out how Carol ended up in the clutches of our insanity besieged boys in blue?

So much for the intentional infiltration angle, but this is much more compelling as we now know that rescue will not come from within, but from our main cast of characters after Daryl’s return with Noah.

This to me was an episode that makes me wish there was a rating higher than 5. An episode that shows an incredible level of story telling finesse, while driving home one of the most important points that could be illustrated on this show: there is no such thing as a straight path in this world. A point that has drawn a certain amount of contention in previous episodes when character’s didn’t act the way the were ‘supposed’ to, or the way their previous characterization dictated they should.

These characters are constantly struggling to find who they are in any given moment. A fact illustrated in part by the role reversal undergone in regards to Noah’s fate in this very episode. When it comes to motivations and snap decisions, there are no constants, much like in our world. This is something I always wanted to see addressed in a more targeted fashion, and this did the job perfectly.

I’m absolutely shitting my pants to see what comes next, and as of this moment I’m anticipating what may end up being the finest mid season finale in The Walking Dead history two weeks from now.

What did you think of “Consumed?”

Were you disappointed in the lack of romance between Carol and Daryl?

Where do we go from here?

Can The Walking Dead continue its hot streak?

Are we heading back into Atlanta full force come mid season?

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[Review] Graphic Novel ‘Tender’ Is Brilliant Feminist Body Horror That Will Make You Squirm & Scream

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Tender Beth Hetland Graphic Novel

Beth Hetland’s debut graphic novel, ‘Tender,’ is a modern tale of love, validation, and self-destruction by way of brutal body horror with a feminist edge.

“I’ve wanted this more than anything.”

Men so often dominate the body horror subgenre, which makes it so rare and insightful whenever women tackle this space. This makes Beth Hetland’s Tender such a refreshing change of pace. It’s earnest, honest, and impossibly exposed. Tender takes the body horror subgenre and brilliantly and subversively mixes it together with a narrative that’s steeped in the societal expectations that women face on a daily basis, whether it comes to empowerment, family, or sexuality. It single-handedly beats other 2023 and ‘24 feminine horror texts like American Horror Story: Delicate, Sick, Lisa Frankenstein, and Immaculate at their own game.

Hetland’s Tender is American Psycho meets Rosemary’s Baby meets Swallow. It’s also absolutely not for the faint of heart.

Right from the jump, Tender grabs hold of its audience and doesn’t let go. Carolanne’s quest for romantic fulfillment, validation, and a grander purpose is easy to empathize with and an effective framework for this woeful saga. Carolanne’s wounds cut so deep simply because they’re so incredibly commonplace. Everybody wants to feel wanted.

Tender is full of beautiful, gross, expressive artwork that makes the reader squirm in their seat and itch. Hetland’s drawings are simultaneously minimalist and comprehensively layered. They’re  reminiscent of Charles Burns’ Black Hole, in the best way possible. There’s consistently inspired and striking use of spot coloring that elevates Hetland’s story whenever it’s incorporated, invading Tender’s muted world.

Hetland employs effective, economical storytelling that makes clever use of panels and scene construction so that Tender can breeze through exposition and get to the story’s gooey, aching heart. There’s an excellent page that depicts Carolanne’s menial domestic tasks where the repetitive panels grow increasingly smaller to illustrate the formulaic rut that her life has become. It’s magical. Tender is full of creative devices like this that further let the reader into Carolanne’s mind without ever getting clunky or explicit on the matter. The graphic novel is bookended with a simple moment that shifts from sweet to suffocating.

Tender gives the audience a proper sense of who Carolanne is right away. Hetland adeptly defines her protagonist so that readers are immediately on her side, praying that she gets her “happily ever after,” and makes it out of this sick story alive…And then they’re rapidly wishing for the opposite and utterly aghast over this chameleon. There’s also some creative experimentation with non-linear storytelling that gets to the root of Carolanne and continually recontextualizes who she is and what she wants out of life so that the audience is kept on guard.

Tender casually transforms from a picture-perfect rom-com, right down to the visual style, into a haunting horror story. There’s such a natural quality to how Tender presents the melancholy manner in which a relationship — and life — can decay. Once the horror elements hit, they hit hard, like a jackhammer, and don’t relent. It’s hard not to wince and grimace through Tender’s terrifying images. They’re reminiscent of the nightmarish dadaist visuals from The Ring’s cursed videotape, distilled to blunt comic panels that the reader is forced to confront and digest, rather than something that simply flickers through their mind and is gone a moment later. Tender makes its audience marinate in its mania and incubates its horror as if it’s a gestating fetus in their womb.

Tender tells a powerful, emotional, disturbing story, but its secret weapon may be its sublime pacing. Hetland paces Tender in such an exceptional manner, so that it takes its time, sneaks up on the reader, and gets under their skin until they’re dreading where the story will go next. Tender pushes the audience right up to the edge so that they’re practically begging that Carolanne won’t do the things that she does, yet the other shoe always drops in the most devastating manner. Audiences will read Tender with clenched fists that make it a struggle to turn each page, although they won’t be able to stop. Tender isn’t a short story, at more than 160 pages, but readers will want to take their time and relish each page so that this macabre story lasts for as long as possible before it cascades to its tragic conclusion. 

Tender is an accomplished and uncomfortable debut graphic novel from Hetland that reveals a strong, unflinching voice that’s the perfect fit for horror. Tender indulges in heightened flights of fancy and toes the line with the supernatural. However, Tender is so successful at what it does because it’s so grounded in reality and presents a horror story that’s all too common in society. It’s a heartbreaking meditation on loneliness and codependency that’s one of 2024’s must-read horror graphic novels.

‘Tender,’ by Beth Hetland and published by Fantagraphics, is now available.

4 out of 5 skulls

Tender graphic novel review

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