Editor’s Note: The below contains spoilers for The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live Episode 2.

The Big Picture

Episode 2 of
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live
effectively clarifies multiple timelines.
Danai Gurira brings depth to Michonne’s vulnerability.
Andrew Lincoln’s appearance propels the story forward.

Last week’s premiere of the long-awaited The Walking Dead spinoff The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live featured an epic reunion between Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and Michonne (Danai Gurira), two anchors of the franchise whose departure from the flagship series was a massive loss creatively and emotionally. The Ones Who Live’s pilot efficiently got us up to speed with Rick and what he’s been up to since the bridge explosion in Season 9. The spinoff’s second episode, “Gone,” shifts the series’ focus to Michonne as we dive deep into the side characters that she met on her quest to find Rick.

Michonne Has To Make a Choice in ‘The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live’

Whereas Episode 1 was like a wholly new series and an exciting change of pace from what we were used to with The Walking Dead, Episode 2 of The Ones Who Live feels like a return to form. Instead of continuing on the exhilarating trajectory that Rick got us on, “Gone” slows things down, feeling more like an extension of the main series more than anything else. The episode does beautifully bring everything with Rick and Michonne full circle, but it takes two-thirds of a somewhat unnecessary supporting character backstory to get there.

The end of last week’s episode reunited us with Michonne, who was wearing the mysterious Samurai apparel we saw in The Walking Dead series finale. If you’re also wondering how the hell she got that armor, that’s answered relatively quickly. And, no, it’s not the Gap. A title card tells us it has been six years since the bridge explosion (presumably right around when Michonne left the show in Season 10 to search for Rick) and we are, once again, getting to know a new community.

This group has a rule that they don’t stop to save anyone in their group who suddenly finds themselves in a bind, which is, like, the opposite of what a community is. Through some exposition, we learn that the man and woman Michonne saved, Bailey (Andrew Bachelor) and Aiden (Breeda Wool), belong to this community, and Aiden’s sister Elle runs the place. Gurira’s Michonne carries a very “thanks, but no thanks” attitude regarding joining the group, and really wants to keep her travels to Bridger’s Shipyard in New Jersey moving. But it’s thanks to Nat (Matthew Jeffers), a plucky no-nonsense member of the community with a heart of gold, that Michonne is convinced to join them instead of going north and getting caught up in “the migration,” a weird phenomenon involving a bunch of walkers, well, migrating during this time.

‘The Ones Who Live’ Episode 2 Should’ve Focused More on Michonne
Image via AMC

Weirdly, Michonne doesn’t feel like the star of her own episode. It’s not necessarily that she isn’t in the episode enough, but rather, she seems to be competing for screen time with these new ancillary characters. While Nat, Bailey, and Aiden prove integral to Michonne’s narrative in The Ones Who Live, a lot of dialogue is dedicated to getting to know who these three newish characters were before. Despite their circumstances, they are a relatively sunny bunch, and end up bringing out a smiley side of Michonne we don’t often get to see.

For a brief moment, Michonne declines their offer and decides to go solo (but at least she now has a horse and some armor to keep her company). Her attempt at this, as well as her radioing home to Virginia to Judith and RJ, proves futile. Michonne indeed bit off more than she could chew with the horde of “the wailing,” but thankfully for her, Nat, Aiden, Bailey, and a few others choose to follow Michonne and leave their heartless community behind.

The episode slows down and takes its time, literally having them joke around with each other beside a campfire. It’s a bit odd how Michonne’s personal circumstances so easily convince them to abandon their community and follow her in search of Rick, though this does make their outcome all the more devastating. The chipper energy these characters have is instantly deflated when a CRM helicopter drops chlorine bombs, drying out everyone’s lungs and throats, putting a definitive pause on their plans, and giving these characters a much-needed reality check.

Michonne Continues to Look for Rick, Despite What Others Think

As Aiden dies, she croaks to Michonne to not risk her life searching for Rick but to instead go home to her kids in Virginia. After Michonne kills Bailey once she turns, an also shaken Nat says that he also doesn’t think this search for Rick is worth it. It’s easy to forget that it’s been six years since Michonne last saw Rick, which to outsiders, does make her journey seem extra foolish.

Related The Ever-Expanding ‘The Walking Dead’ Universe: A Beginner’s Guide to Every Spin-Off Project Rick Grimes, Michonne, Daryl Dixon, Maggie, and Negan aren’t going anywhere.

She eventually makes it to Bridgers Terminal, the alleged safe haven Rick was potentially at. Rather than finding him, Michonne and Nat discover a desolate harbor full of mounds of burnt and fused-together walkers. Still, Michonne holds onto hope (and Rick’s boots) as Nat tells Michonne to “believe a little bit longer,” which is what the Japanese message on the iPhone with Rick’s name says.

Everything hits Michonne all at once, and she completely breaks down into tears. In this moment, Gurira shows an emotional vulnerability we aren’t quite used to with Michonne, which is a heartbreaking yet beautiful surprise. She realizes her efforts to search for Rick are more irresponsible at this point than anything, considering that she has children back in Alexandria who need her. Nat reassures her that going home doesn’t mean giving up and that she can still believe Rick is out there, somewhere.

‘The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live’ Nicely Balances Timelines
Image via AMC

When the episode catches up to the present, it finally picks up speed, and the series has actual stakes again. As Michonne and Nat make their way to Alexandria, the ominous whirring of an overhead helicopter rightfully sounds off alarm bells in their heads. The Ones Who Live has so far done an excellent job of tying up loose ends and bringing everything full circle, even for those unfamiliar with The Walking Dead: World Beyond. We’re quite literally in the exact spot where the previous episode ended, and being afforded this context and cohesion is immensely helpful, especially given how much time jumping the franchise does in either direction.

Michonne and Nat successfully shoot down the helicopter, killing Okafor and forcing Rick to make a crash landing. She slides back into badassery when she ruthlessly slices through the CRM soldiers, telling them to look her in the eye as she slits their throats. It’s not that The Ones Who Live has to be brutal to be good, but it’s moments like this and Rick’s hand-chopping decision that takes us back to the “kill or be killed” mentality that was ingrained in us in the early seasons of The Walking Dead.

Rick and Michonne Reunite (Again) in ‘The Ones Who Live’
Image via AMC

Knowing everything we know now, Rick and Michonne’s reunion has a whole new meaning. As expected, the lovebirds burst into tears and passionately kiss, and Rick asks if the kids are alive. Then, reality and fear lock into our fearless former sheriff’s eyes. It’s very unnerving to see Rick in such a frightened state, especially given how confident, defiant, and in control he was when confronting Okafor. Rick radiates a helplessness that is similar to the one we saw when his wife Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies) died. Though this time, he quickly channels this desperation into a plan of action. It’s a potent, emotional scene that Lincoln adeptly steers.

Rick shakily tells Michonne that they can’t act like they know each other and Michonne can’t show she’s a strong leader, or else they will likely off her (and probably him) immediately. Speaking of “offing,” the jump scare of the episode goes to when Nat, right after seeing Michonne reunite with Rick, gets shot in the back by a half-away CRM soldier. Seriously, you can’t not jump at that scene. The death of Nat, Bailey, and Aiden reaffirms the notion that they were simply plot devices to get Michonne to where she needed to be, though the extended time we spent with them did make it seem like they would be around for the rest of the season.

Don’t Mess With Jadis in ‘The Ones Who Live’
Image via AMC

Episode 2 of The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live ends on a chilling note with an old, powerful friend that Rick really should’ve considered. Michonne whips up a fake backstory that hides her abilities and knowledge of Rick and the group, and the CRM buys it. Michonne, now wearing the orange-striped CRM jumpsuit, sneaks off with Rick to make out and relish (ever so temporarily) the fact that they are “safe.”

Their plan to work together from within the system to escape is completely thwarted in the episode’s final two minutes. Pollyanna McIntosh brilliantly returns as Jadis, who we met way back as a Scavenger. She’s been integral to Rick’s life in more ways than one. For starters, she not only rescued him in the helicopter after the bridge explosion, but she saved his ass when she said he was a B, not an A.

It seems that Rick is forgetting that Jadis knows, after watching Michonne’s observation, that the story she spit out is completely untrue. She even knows that they planted the katana in Nat’s hand to make it seem like it was his. As she sits in Rick’s apartment and drinks his alcohol, she ominously reminds him of what she’s let him get away with and of their “longstanding deal.” For Jadis, it’s pretty simple: if Rick tries to escape, everyone he cares about will be killed. McIntosh’s introduction to the series is nothing short of epic, and her menacing confidence was a strong finish to an uneven episode.

The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live REVIEWEpisode 2 of The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live explores what Michonne has been up to in her search for Rick, with the episode picking up speed when the two reunite and make it to the CRM.ProsThe Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live Episode 2 effectively gives context and clarity to the numerous timelines.Danai Gurira isn’t afraid to let Michonne get vulnerable.Andrew Lincoln’s brief appearance in the episode injects the story with adrenaline and propels it forward.Pollyanna McIntosh’s return as Jadis is an epic way to raise the stakes and tease the rest of the season. ConsEpisode 2 feels repetitive and uneven at times, focusing on supporting characters’ backstories rather than Michonne.

The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live airs Sundays on AMC at 9 PM EST and is available on AMC+.

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