This article contains major spoilers from The Walking Dead’s “No Way Out” episode.
We’ve seen things go wrong on The Walking Dead before, but it’s a rare thing when a situation implodes quite as spectacularly as it did for the Anderson’s during the midseason premiere on Sunday night. For those who want to relive that bit of madness from “No Way Out,” here’s where everything went wrong for Jessie, Ron, Sam and Carl…
It’s not as though we didn’t have good reason to think that these characters’ viscera-drenched stroll through the zombie-herd would go wrong. Even if we put aside the slim odds that attempting this tactic would work more than once in this reality, we needed only to take stock of who was involved. Rick, Carl and Michonne were pretty reliable, in the situation. And though she looked terrified, baby Judith’s not often a problem. Even Gabriel, whose track record for bravery isn’t good, proved to be relatively stable through this situation.
But then you have Sam, a timid child who seemed to be unraveling bit by bit with every appearance, and his trigger-happy brother Ron. Factor in Jessie, a kind and well-meaning woman who probably wanted to believe her children were holding it together much better than they actually were. They never had a chance.
The dominos were lined up to topple, as darkness fell and Carol’s gently-spoken threats whispered through Sam’s mind as he began to really see the walkers around him. He lost it from there, and his panic promptly undid him. Watching her son get devoured by zombies, Jessie went next. Too stunned by grief and terror, she didn't fight back, nor did she even think to let go of Carl’s wrist, which forced Rick to have to chop her hand off to release his son from her grip.
Watching all of this was Ron, who’s still pissed off at Rick for killing his dad, and seemed fully prepared to blame Rick for what just happened to his mother and brother. The second he gets his hand on the gun, he takes aim. Of course, he fell for one of The Walking Dead’s most classic blunders; never turn your back on Michonne, especially if you’re pointing a gun at her family. Michonne’s not the first Walking Dead character to kill a kid. The fact that there’s an actual list developing is disturbing enough. But it’s doubtful she hesitated when she saw Rick and Carl in danger.
The final shocker in this sequence is when Carl lifts his head, and we see that his eye has been shot out. He falls to the ground, and we’re left, very briefly, to wonder if he’s dead or dying. He’s not. He just lost his eye, which is an event comic book fans have anticipated for a while. The above clip doesn't include the chills-inducing sight of a terrified-looking Michonne, slashing a path to the house so that Rick can bring him to safety.
Carl lives. As for the Andersons, they join the growing list of deceased characters who died a gruesome death. And there’s a bit more heartbreak and loss for Rick to shoulder.
We break down all of the best jaw-dropping moments from The Walking Dead’s “No Way Out” HERE.
