"Chupacabra" Review
“Chupacabra” starts with an awesome intro - it was probably my favorite of the series thus far. The episode opens with a pre-apocalyptic flashback - not years or months before the tragedy, but right at the cusp of disaster. The image of Atlanta being set afire with Napalm was creepy and effective.
The Walking Dead tries something new in “Chupacabra,” offering a character-specific episode. This is mostly about Daryl coming to grips with the loss of Meryl and his survivor’s guilt. It’s a tale about letting go and ultimately, finding oneself. The story was well done, and I wonder if The Walking Dead will feature these kinds of stories going forward. If so, I can quickly see The Walking Dead becoming a lot like Lost.
If we learned anything, it’s that Daryl is a survivor, and seeing him take out those two zombies was pretty badass. His getting shot by Andrea was an ironic twist after all he’d been through.
My biggest problem with “Chupacabra” is its unwillingness to move the story forward on the Hershel farm. Yes, tensions grow, but there isn’t much happening outside of the missing Sophia (and God, she’s been missing since the premiere - is there really any hope?). Furthermore, Lori’s pregnancy doesn’t feel as important as it should; likely because we’ve seen these kinds of stories time and again in television and literature.
“Chupacabra” ends with the interesting barn-full-of-zombies reveal. You already know how the turns out, but I’m about to find out in “Secrets.” I hope it’s a good one!
And, see? I told you this would be a short review.
-MP