Rick Grimes meets King Ezekiel as The Walking Dead return – Wellston Journal

Welcome to The Kingdom: Rick Grimes meets King Ezekiel as The Walking Dead returns mid-season

Rick Grimes and his crew began making plans to fight Negan and his sadistic Saviors as The Walking Dead resumed Sunday with its mid-season premiere.

The episode, entitled Rock In The Road, saw the group try and fail to get The Kingdom to go into battle with them, after King Ezekiel told them he could not put his people at risk.

But as the episode ended and the survivors found themselves surrounded by another unnamed, armed tribe, Rick flashed a smile that hinted he hoped to join forces with them.

A trailer for next weeks episode saw him tell the newcomers: The Saviors, they own our lives. But they will come looking and there is a way out.

The season seven winter premiere began with Gabriel filling a box with food and weapons and fleeing from Alexandria during his overnight watch.

The rest of the group, meanwhile, failed to persuade Gregory to team up with them and fight the Saviours together.

You people swore you could take the Saviors out and you failed, so any arrangement we had is now done, null and void, Gregory told them.

We arent trade partners, we arent friends and we never met. We dont know each other. I dont owe you anything. In fact you owe me for taking in the refugees at great personal risk.

Rick asked: Is that how you want to live? Under their thumb? Killing your people?

Sometimes we dont get to choose what our life looks like, Gregory said.

As the group walked out of Gregorys house, Enid led them to a small group who agreed to fight with them.

Despite the support, they knew they still lacked numbers.

Jesus led Rick and his friends to The Kingdom, where they re-united with Morgan and requested an audience with Ezekiel.

Morgan told them Carol had left, but omitted to tell them she could still be close by in the woods.

After initially standing open-mouthed at the sight of Ezekiel and his tiger, Rick told the King: Alexandria, The Hilltop, The Kingdom. All three of our communities have something in common. We all serve the Saviors.

Alexandria already fought them once and we won. We thought we took out the threat, but we didnt know then what we know now. We only beat one outpost.

Weve been told that you have a deal with them, that you know them. Then you know they rule through violence and fear.

We came to ask the Kingdom, to ask you, to join us in fighting the Saviors, fighting for freedom for all of us, Rick implored.

The group told Ezekiel and a shocked Morgan that Abraham, Glenn, Spencer and Olivia had been killed by The Saviors, while Eugene was captured.

Are you going to say you were right? Rosita asked Morgan.

No, Im just real sorry theyre gone, he said.

Rick told Ezekiel they were lacking people and weapons and guard Richard made it clear he wanted to join them in the fight.

We have people and weapons. If we strike first, together, we can beat them, he said.

Morgan, asked by Ezekiel what he thought, told him: People will die. A lot of people and not just The Saviors.

As Rick shook his head, Morgan added: If we can find another way we have to. Maybe its just about Negan, capturing him, holding him.

After Ezekiel declared he would announce his decision in the morning, Benjamin stumbled upon Carol in the woods, offered her water and told her the King would keep sending people to check on her.

Back at The Kingdom later, he relayed their meeting to Ezekiel.

She asked why I carry food and water in case I run into people, Benjamin said.

And you told her? Ezekiel asked.

The same season we should say yes to Rick, Benjamin explained. You saw their eyes. Theyre going to risk everything if we help them or not.

If we dont help them, if we turn away, they cant win. And if they do, somehow, they will have saved us and we wont have done a thing, Benjamin told Ezekiel.

Despite the pleas by Benjamin and Richard, Ezekiel greeted Rick and his group the following morning and told them he could not send his people into battle.

Pointing at their home, he said: All of this came at a cost. It was lives, arms, legs. The peace we have with the Saviors is uneasy, but it is peace. I have to hold onto it, I have to try.

Ezekiel offered Daryl asylum in the Kingdom so he could stay hidden from The Saviors and Rick instructed him to stay.

As the rest of the group left, Richard promised to help them fight.

It isnt about soldiers. Were making them stronger. The more food we give them, the more arms, the more everything. Every day any of us give them something they become harder and harder to beat, he said.

While headed back to Alexandria, the group came to a roadblock and a bomb set up to trap an approaching herd of walkers.

After dismantling the bomb to steal the dynamite, Rosita, Carl and Tara moved the cars back into place while Sasha and Jesus set off on foot to return to Maggie at the Hilltop.

Rick and Michonne attached the wires to two of the cars, sparked the engines into action and mowed down the herd of walkers.

After fighting off the walkers and climbing into a dynamite-laden SUV with the others, an explosion went off behind them in the distance as they drove away.

Michonne whispered to Rick: Were here. You can smile. We made it. We can make it. We can. Were the ones that will live.

The group returned to Alexandria just before The Saviours arrived to search high and low for Daryl.

After an unsuccessful search, Negans right-hand man Simon told Rick: If Daryl does turn up here two days from now, two months from now, hell, two years from now, just know theres no statute of limitations on this.

Keep that hatchet handy. Youre going to need it if he turns up here with you people and it wont turn out the way it did for your boy, Simon warned.

After The Saviours left, Rick asked the other members of Alexandria why the pantry was bare and they told him Gabriel had disappeared with supplies.

While Rosita cursed him, Rick refused to believe that he had turned on them.

Thats not Gabriel. He wouldnt do that to us, Rick said.

Rick soon found a notebook with the word boat scrawled in the back and took it as a message from the former priest.

They went off in search of Gabriel nad followed footprints to a house.

Rick and his group howeverfound themselves surrounded by a large, armed group.

While the others looked scared, Rick smiled.

The Walking Dead continues next week on AMC.

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Rick Grimes meets King Ezekiel as The Walking Dead return - Wellston Journal

Reviewed and Recommended by Erik Baquero