At its best, stories from The Walking Dead Universe are nutrient dense. We fans are fed and nourished by them. After twelve years and six spinoffs, some may feel the ground has grown fallow. Thankfully, I am not one of those fair-weather fans. After all this time, I remain interested in the fates of Daryl, Carol, Isabelle, and Laurent, which accounts for my appreciation of season two, episode one: La Gentillesses Des Étrangers.
“La Gentillesse de Étrangers” - THE WALKING DEAD: DARYL DIXON. Pictured: Clémence Poésy as Isabelle, Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon. Photo: Emmanuel GuimierAMC ©2024 AMC Networks Inc. All Rights Reserved.
The Book of Carol returns to the beginning of Daryl and Carol’s story. I think the showrunner's goal is to make it clear that our characters will be taking their fight internal over the season's six-episode arc. Think about it. In the ZA, the four main characters are the consummate outsiders who share a trauma bond. Carol and Daryl are both survivors of physical abuse. Isabelle was a drug-using grifter, who operated outside the polite rules of society. And Laurent, raised by adults, was socially isolated from other children and groomed to carry the burden of humanity’s destiny. This trauma bond makes it hard for them to form healthy relationships and to fit comfortably into community. It’s worth noting that Daryl and Carol have repeatedly and consciously withdrawn themselves from their respective communities because they feel safer when socially and emotionally isolated.
Season two opens with Daryl ambivalent about his residency status in another community called the Nest. Daryl’s conversation with Losang, the Nest’s spiritual leader, makes it clear that he does not know how long he will stay. Unsure if he belongs, Daryl muses aloud to Isabelle, asking if anyone back home still thinks about him, even though Losang assured him that everyone has a place at the Nest if they choose to seek it.
“La Gentillesse de Étrangers” - THE WALKING DEAD: DARYL DIXON. Pictured: Melissa McBride as Carol Peletier. Photo: Emmanuel GuimierAMC ©2024 AMC Networks Inc. All Rights Reserved.
The story cuts to Carol. I appreciate the symmetry of Daryl asking the question, “Is anyone back home thinking about me?” The answer is, yes, because Carol is risking everything to find him. But why? Carol and Daryl are close friends but do not share the same motivation as Rick and Michonne, who, as romantic partners and parents, want to get home to their kids. While reconnecting with her old friend is personal, it is more important than that for Carol. Her journey is about bringing the fractured parts of herself together. To accomplish this, Carol will use all the skills she acquired along the way, such as watching the men at the location where Daryl went missing in the same way she and Rick had done before descending upon Terminus. This allowed her to roll up, subdue her would-be attackers, learn Daryl is in France, and steal a car.
In a network show, nothing makes it to air by accident. Therefore, I'd like to focus on how the music, Charlene’s "I've Never Been to Me" and the Grass Roots’, “Sooner or Later," speak to Carol's internal struggle. As a woman of a certain age, I know these songs well. I won’t take the time here but invite you to find the lyrics of “I’ve Never Been to Me” to see how closely they align with Carol’s story. The last cassette Carol listened to was a mindfulness meditation that said, “Start with a centering deep breath. Breathe in compassion and forgiveness. Breathe out fear and suffering. You are here. You are ok.” Carol is not ok! Her mental state may explain why she violently chucked the music cassettes out the window. Her ensuing car crash also drives this point home.
Carol eventually meets up with Ash, who triggers her unresolved trauma. Ash invites her to stay in the barn, which reminds Carol of the walker-Sophia-barn incident. He extends to her an invitation to dinner and places a Cherokee rose on the table, evoking the memory of the Daryl-RV moment when he gave her the same flower. He shares the pain of being the grieving parent of a child he could not save. All these incidents lead Carol to do some pretty screwed up things. First, she becomes incredibly snoopy, trying to get behind Ash’s electronically locked door. At one point, the property’s generator short circuits, causing the electric fence to open. The frustrating thing here is that Carol is at the fence when the electricity goes out, but she made no attempt to secure it. Instead, she breached Ash’s privacy and entered his locked greenhouse. Carol plays with a musical toy and sings along with-it knowing noise attracts walkers. She knows better. Predictably, the walkers breach the property and greenhouse, and Carol’s life is at risk. Most egregious, Carol uses the information about Ash’s dead child to lie to him about why she wants to go to France. She leads Ash to believe it’s about finding Sophia, not Daryl. I don’t know if Carol’s bad behavior is because she is in a Sophia-induced fugue state or if she’s acting intentionally to force Ash from his home. What do you think?
“La Gentillesse de Étrangers” - THE WALKING DEAD: DARYL DIXON. Pictured: Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon. Photo: Emmanuel GuimierAMC ©2024 AMC Networks Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Back in France, Daryl volunteers to be part of a Nest rescue mission. It's important to note that the Nest team meticulously planned to execute their mission. In terms of values and principles, the mission's approach was very Lasong, very Akido-like. However, when an explosive charge failed to detonate, Daryl impulsively showed himself and shot things up cowboy style. Daryl acted as Isabelle had commented earlier: “He did what was necessary.” However, when Daryl had the villain, Madame Genete, in his sights, he uncharacteristically hesitated, allowing Madame Genet to escape. Earlier, when talking to Losang, Daryl cautioned that waiting with respect to Madame Genet would be a mistake. Daryl just made a huge freaking mistake.
For years in the Walking Dead Universe, fans have joked that when the original cast showed up in a new place, disaster followed. This pattern was certainly true for Ash after Carol arrived. Ash eventually agrees to help, because the season is called the Book of Carol. Unfortunately, everything in Ash's world comes crashing down, forcing them to make a hasty retreat. To keep the horror fans satisfied, the special effects team included a few walkers that were killed by the plane's propeller and wings. These kills reminded me of S7E5, “Go Getters,” in which Maggie killed the walkers with a tractor. The walker kills have long ago stopped impressing me, but they still entertain me.
“La Gentillesse de Étrangers” - THE WALKING DEAD: DARYL DIXON. Pictured: Manish Dayal as Ash. Photo: Emmanuel GuimierAMC ©2024 AMC Networks Inc. All Rights Reserved.
In the end, Carol, who admits to never having flown in a plane before, nervously closes her eyes. She hears, “Take a deep breath. You are ok.” It is not clear if Carol is remembering the meditation tape or if Ash is speaking to her. As they speed through the clouds, she opens her eyes, and glances at Ash, who gestures toward the rising sun. He, for certain, says to her, “There’s nothing to be afraid of up here.” Of course, we know there are plenty of reasons to be afraid. We know Ash is likely making a one-way trip. This fact makes me a bit sad because I like him and have become invested in La Gentillesse des Étrangers—the kindness of this particular stranger. It doesn’t hurt that the actor portraying Ash, Manish Dayal, is devastatingly handsome.
So, what did you think of Carol’s actions so far? How many episodes do you think Ash will last? I would love to chat about it, so drop me a line or two.
Lynette Jones
