The Walking Dead
Season 10 - Episode 14- "Look at the Flowers"
Daryl: Daryl was amazingly patient with Negan, rather than just killing him. He does not forgive Negan for past crimes (no one expected that), but he's not filled with rage anymore. I assume he's the one who leads Negan to Lydia, as both are seen in the same shack in the teaser for E15.
Carol: By now, she should have learned the age-old truth that revenge (in any form) never settles a troubled soul. Even as she pushed Alpha's head on the pike, one could see what was on her mind--Alpha still wins, as the woman she wanted to kill more beyond all reason now taunts her with her life of loss. She once told Rick that she did not say Sophia's name because she's dead (S4 - "Indifference"), but she will never "get over" the girl's death, no matter how "badass" she tried to be over the years. Same with the feelings brought on by Mind-Alpha quoting what Mika said of her mother.
So she returned to Alexandria after all...but in what psychological shape? She's not suicidal (at least I hope she's not), but there's a question about how she functions going forward, especially once she learns that Beta's horde is coming thanks to her plotting with Negan.
Mind-Alpha mentioned Carol writing a letter to Maggie--that's something to look forward to (in flashback when she returns?) as Maggie was informed about the Whisperers' victims--most notably her surrogate sister Enid.
Negan / Beta / Whisperers: Negan trusted Carol, but he should have had second thoughts about that. Even as he revealed the plot about Daryl's "girlfriend" (yes, I caught that--so even he observed some deeper connection between the two when he never spent much time around either once he was captured).
Beta....ugh. He's one sick freak, forcing anyone pointing out the reality of Alpha being dead to be bitten by her reanimated head. At this point. i'm not sure what would be the best way to get rid of him.
Recently, he murdered a Whisperer who recognized his voice from the past; now, he's freaked out after seeing a poster from his own past: he was "Half Moon", some sort of country music performer. Seems he cannot escape his past, no matter how much he pretends he's dead and can hear a dead head talking. Just when it appeared there was a crack in the door of his rubber room, he blasted that music to gather enough walkers to create an army for a final assault on the heroes. Sick as ever, he now believes he's merged Alpha with his own personality by wearing a part of her facial skin.
Ezekiel / Jerry: Jerry knew Ezekiel was leaving not just for the hope of finding new people, but to die away from anyone who cared. He did not want anyone to see him go through end-stage cancer. Thoughtful and so sad.
I guess animals are as overwhelmed by recent walker bites as humans are. The animal just dropped like a rock.
Eugene: So, he's off to find Stephanie and ends up running into an armed young woman who had to be one of the people behind that walker "set dressing" in town.
Rosita: Sigh of relief--for a second, I thought she was bitten, but she's still far from any shape to deal with what's coming.
NOTES: The title of this episodes is--of course--one of the most famous lines of dialogue from the WD franchise (one that has transcended it to a degree). While it threatened something horrible happening, I suspect the reference was not just about Mind-Alpha's trips down memory lane, but a way of Carol looking for anything calming & pleasant (as she instructed Lizzie to do) reaching for some sort of hope before the worst happens. Perhaps Carol returning to Alexandria was her act of doing more than looking, but embracing the flowers, so to speak.
The post credits message:
Last Episode Before
Season Finale Later This Year
...will hold true for the foreseeable future, thanks to current world events.
GRADE: A.