Had heard nothing but great things about 'The Walking Dead' from friends and IMDb reviewers. It took a while to get round to watching, both from being busy and also not being sure whether it would be my cup of tea. Finally getting round to it a few years ago and slowly working my way through it, having had a very long to watch and review list, 'The Walking Dead' turned out to be very much my cup of tea and as good as the hype made it out to be, have found it extremely addictive.
"No Sanctuary" was an outstanding start to the fifth season and one of the show's finest season premieres, its acclaim more than justified. The exceptional quality doesn't let up in the second episode "Strangers", not as dark an episode as the season premiere but it is not really one of the "calm after the storm" episodes. It is again one of Season 5's very best, if not quite of the whole show like "No Sanctuary" was. It's a tense and gutsy kind of episode instead of the quieter, reflective and action-light kind of episode. It is yet again a strong reminder of how Seasons 1-5 of 'The Walking Dead' to me were absolutely brilliant and seeing the show in its full glory days (Season 6 was uneven, Season 7 was a huge disappointment and am still debating whether to watch Season 8). It is as emotional, complex and as tense as one would expect, at the same time it has adrenaline and guts.
It still shocks me at how an intelligent, well-made (so much so that it is easy to mistake it for a film) show about zombies could be made when so many films have tried and failed abysmally to do so.
Like all the episodes of the show, "Strangers" is incredibly well made in the production values, with gritty and audacious production design, photography of almost cinematic quality, effects that look good, have soul and are not overused or abused and pretty frightening make-up. The music is haunting and affecting, having presence but never being too intrusive.
The writing is intelligent and thought-provoking, not as talky as some of the previous episodes, with lots of tension and emotional resonance and shows signs of character complexity and multiple layer storytelling. The ending is deeply disturbing and wrenched the gut in how shocking it is, one of the show's most shocking. The action is thrilling and uncompromising, evoking real terror and intensity, the episode containing what is a strong contender for its most stomach-churning in a powerful way reveal.
Appreciated the ever strong and still progressing story, where a lot happens and full of different strands without being confused or over-stuffed, and character building and that the pace is rarely dull or rushed, with a taut intensity in the more tense parts. The character writing and the character interactions are what is particularly great here, there are far more interesting 'The Walking Dead' characters generally than Bob but he is interesting here and sent off gut-wrenchingly. Father Gabriel makes a hugely promising first impression, one of the episode's interest points.
Everything is nicely paced without rushing through the more important parts, much of it being very taut. The world building continues to be stunningly immersive and effective. Direction is smart and atmospheric, some of the best of the whole show in my opinion, while the show throughout has been strongly acted and "Strangers" is no exception.
Concluding, outstanding. 10/10 Bethany Cox
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