The Walking Dead Review: Service (Season 7 Episode 4)
The Walking Dead Season 7 Episode 4, “Service,” is slow-moving and not a lot happens. Again. Plus, stuff doesn’t happen for about 25 minutes longer than a usual episode.
The first three episodes were also slow-moving and/or not a lot happened, and it’s getting repetitive to keep mentioning it, but that’s apparently just how it is in Season 7.
I thought we were done with the introductions after last week, but I was wrong.
Some people back in Alexandria still haven’t met Negan, so they don’t totally understand the threat he poses and why Rick is giving in. Which means we need to go through yet another “let’s see how terrible Negan can be” situation to get everyone on the same terrified page.
The best thing to come out of this episode comes from the two subplots: the ladies on this show — the ones who make up only 6 of the 18 series regulars — are definitely going to be the ones leading the fight against Negan.
Rick’s decision to just try to cooperate with Negan is understandable. It’s probably the best decision. He’s the leader, and he doesn’t want to get anyone else killed. But Negan is so focused on Rick that maybe he won’t see Michonne and Rosita coming.
Michonne’s initial plan of practicing her sharpshooting skills was a smart one, even if Rick told her it was futile. Even though Rosita doesn’t know what Michonne was up to while she was gone, the two have the same idea. Rosita just wants one bullet from Eugene, and one bullet is really all they need.
Rick says they’re not fighting because they’re outnumbered, but honestly, if they did manage to take Negan out from a distance, would the threat be as severe?
There are plenty of Saviors, but there doesn’t seem to be a clear hierarchy. Negan mentioned that Dwight was one of his “top men” last week, but he’s never mentioned having a specific Number 2.
Without Negan, who would the Saviors look to for leadership? Would multiple people try to take over? And surely some people might try to leave without Negan there to either threaten them or promise them safety. Would it be like how the Winkies just… stopped being evil after Dorothy melts the Wicked Witch?
The point: if they take out Negan, would the Saviors stick together and still outnumber them, or would they self-destruct as everyone clamored for power?
We’re already halfway through the first half of the season, so the answer to this question may not come for a long time, if Season 7 keeps up this pace.
We’ve all watched The Walking Dead before, so we all know a big fight against Negan is coming. At this rate, it’s hard to see if much of anything will actually happen before then, or if it’s all just a slow, slow build to the big final fight that we’ll eventually see — in 2017.
OTHER THOUGHTS:
- In the promo for next week’s episode, it looks like we’re heading back to the Hilltop. Hopefully Maggie, Sasha, and maybe even Tara will join Michonne and Rosita on Team “Let’s Kick Negan’s Ass.”
- Holy cow, Rick actually talked about Shane and Lori. When was the last time someone even said their names?
- How sweet (and sad) was it that Enid still had the balloons she and Glenn used last season?
What did you think of “Service”? Did you think it needed to be supersized, or could they have fit everything into one hour? Share with us in the comments below!
Reviewer Rating:
User Rating:
The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9/8c on AMC.
Katie Houlis
Katie is a recent college graduate who spent most of her free time at school binge-watching shows like Battlestar Galactica, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Fringe, and Hannibal. She has watched every single episode of Lost at least ten times each (yes, even “Stranger In A Strange Land”). Current favorites include a bunch of comedies, lots of superhero shows, and a few shows with quite a bit of murder in them.