Glenn leads a group on a mission to restore power to Alexandria that results in a violent disaster, while Abraham joins a group in help to build Alexandria that ends in a test of heroism and fortitude for him. Meanwhile, Rick investigates a neighbor’s owl sculpture that was mysteriously trashed.
“Consumed” follows Carol and Daryl in pursuit of the mysterious vehicle that belongs to Beth’s kidnappers. The dynamic duo make good progress into the city eventually making their way to a safe house while running into the occasional zombies along the way. The hour proves harmless enough for the pair of seasoned veterans, and while at times exciting, “Consumed” it is a predictable, voyage into the heart of Atlanta. But despite a lack of suspense and horror, “Consumed” is a welcome return to two of the show’s most compelling characters; and an episode that gives two of our least talkative survivors a chance to express themselves. The journey is the destination this week. “Consumed” gives Carol and Daryl some much-needed breathing room to examine how much they’ve both changed in five seasons.
Ever since Scott M. Gimple took over as showrunner, it’s become clear that he and his team of writers have tried, as hard as they could, to put to rest any unfinished storylines and unanswered questions left over from season three. Yes it took some time to clean up after the mess, but to be fair, he did have to continue from where Glen Mazzara left off. This meant killing off busloads of extras who we never got to know – killing of The Governor once and for all– and blowing up an entire prison, forcing our survivors to move forward. “Inmates” served to get things moving ahead even more. By structuring the episode as a series of vignettes, not all in chronological order, we catch up with the all prison survivors who weren’t featured last week. Beth, Daryl, Tyreese, Glenn, Maggie, Sasha, Bob Stookey, Lizzie, and Mika are all accounted for.