The Walking Dead Recap: The Road to Hell Is Paved With Reinventions

The artsy start of this week’s episode of The Walking Dead made it seem like it was going to be one of those ponderous, introspective outings. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that.)

But as fast as an arrow can fly through the air, the relative calm was shattered, and by the end of the hour, one of my (your? our?) favorite characters was six feet under, and another (whom I know most of us love) was on their way out. WTF?!?

‘I SHOULDA KILLED ‘EM’ | As “Twice as Far” began, gentle as daybreak, we learned that Morgan had finished building his jail cell (to “give us some choices next time,” he explained to Rick); Rosita was sleeping with Spencer (who wooed her with “beef jerky stroganoff”); and Daryl was as haunted by the fact that he hadn’t killed Dwight (the Savior fugitive who stole his bike and crossbow) as Carol was by the fact that she had killed Paula & Co. When he asked his gal pal what her and Maggie’s captors had done to them, Carol ruefully replied, “To us? They didn’t do anything to us.”

‘YOU DID GOOD’ | After informing Daryl and Rosita that there was an apothecary nearby, Denise insisted on accompanying them on the run. (As she pointed out, she is trained with a machete!) Along the way, she opened up to them about Dennis, the twin brother who’d taught her how to drive a stick (so much better than Daryl did). When a downed tree forced them to hike the rest of the way, Daryl — ever the rebel — left the women rather than join them on the shorter route, following the tracks.

The trio reunited in time to raid the pharmacy, but neither Daryl nor Rosita were in the slightest inclined to let Denise do much more than… well, stand around and shop for a Dennis keychain. So, when they heard a walker trapped somewhere in the store, Denise — eager to prove that she’d been transformed into a fearless badass — investigated… and then nearly hurled when she discovered not only a really ripe walker but what appeared to be a drowned child, as well. (What else would you call that mess? Kid soup?)

Afterwards, Daryl — closet softie that he is — tried to cheer Denise up by giving her props for leading them to the apothecary’s treasure trove of drugs and asking about her twin, who was apparently as angry as he was brave. “Sounds like we had the same brother,” cracked Daryl. (RIP, Merle.) He even joined the women on the tracks for the trek back to the truck.