Originally Posted by gashead:
“But it has worked. Maybe Daryl's still holding out in his mind and is not completely cowed and broken yet, but Rick certainly is. As he said (or at least, my interpretation of what he said) he's not willing to get into a war he knows he can't win (at this stage). He's not in charge, Negan is, and whatever Negan says, goes, as far as Rick's concerned. Michonne had a weapon that Negan didn't know about, but Rick handed it over because he was terrified of what would happen if Negan later discovered it, and Rick knew there was a very good chance of that. Negan's act may all be a front to maintain control, but we know he's not bluffing. He's a very dangerous and violent man who will use, condones and encourages extreme violence in an instant to maintain his power.”
On the other hand, he's keeping it secret that Maggie is still alive. In my view that's both inconsistent and stupid. Hiding guns is relatively easy. Hiding a person is harder, especially if they have a baby. Maggie nearly got caught immediately at Hilltop: she might have been seen dealing with the zombies and fires the Saviour's set; Gregory might have succeeded in turning her in; Saviours might have found her when searching Hilltop for food. Rick could have just said he left her with her husband's body and didn't know what happened to her after, but instead he lies.
So given that, why not also hide some guns? Rick has made a lot of bad choices over the years, but for me agreeing to unilaterally disarm is his worst. He's given away the future of his people. It's pretty clear from what happened at Hilltop that appeasement won't work with the Saviours for long.
Originally Posted by gashead:
“Although, now that you mention it, what is odd is why Gregory should have looked so nervous and shifty, when - from Simon's p.o.v. - all he was doing was giving them a pretty great gift. Why be nervous about that?”
From Simon's p.o.v. Gregory looked shifty because he was going to conceal the whiskey. He only gave it up because Simon pressured him into doing that.
Originally Posted by len112:
“In that timescale Negan's been told that Maggie has died and been buried but she's managed to walk and recover at the Hilltop . Carl and Enid have walked to the Hilltop in what seems to be a couple of hours , it's very confusing”
Maggie had a van to get to Hilltop, and then a couple of days to recover. There were three days between Glenn dying and Negan turning up at Alexandria. Presumably Carl and Enid moved a bit quicker for having the skates, and it may have been more like 5 hours than 2. According to
the wiki the distance is only 20 miles.
Though this episode did make it clear that Negan had no idea Alexandria and Hilltop were in communication, had not known that Maggie was ill, and had not known that her illness was forcing Rick to take her to Hilltop. That makes the previous season finale all the stranger. Negan must have blocked all the roads out of Alexandria, not just the ones that led to Hilltop.
)
