“I Ain’t A Judas” is a very interpretive title to episode
311 of the Walking Dead, evoking religious themes sprinkled throughout the
episode that finds Andrea making first contact with the Grimes crew since
getting separated in Season 2.
She finds a world completely upside down from Season 2,
seeing old members like Lori, Shane and T-Dog gone while new members like Merle
of all people now part of the gang.
She finally meets up with Michonne, who finally explains Andrea’s
betrayal truly hurt her. Andrea
counters, saying Michonne really poisoned the group by spreading
half-truths. “I told them the
truth,” said Michonne.
Andrea’s visit is a peacemaking mission slyly endorsed by the
pathological liar The Governor, who finds out about her “escape” from Woodbury
after the creepy Milton runs off to tattletale. But The Governor tells Milton to assist her, though it’s not
explained why. Could he have wanted
to use Milton to gather intel on the prison?
That desire was realized when the ousted Tyrese and his crew
stumble upon Milton and Andrea mutilating a walker to be used for cover. The Tyrese gang is invited to Woodbury,
where they unwittingly agree to divulge the layout of the prison after being
kicked out by an “unhinged” Rick.
Rick is still in a fog of craziness in the opening of the
prison. He can’t seem to make a
decision on whether to leave the prison, despite everyone turning to him for
answers. He soon stalks off, with
Hershel screaming at him to make a decision.
“You once said this isn’t a democracy anymore,” said
Hershel. “Now own up to it.”
Carl soon follows Rick out only to tell him he needs to step
down as leader of the group.
Carl, the youngest of the group, has replaced Lori as Rick’s closest
confidant. His maturity in a
zombie-filled world has been achieved enough for Rick to say “he’s ready” for
battle.
Speaking of family relationships, Daryl is back with the
Grimes clan. But he’s brought back
some family baggage, namely Merle, who’s reluctantly ingrained in the
crew. He’s now become a bargaining
chip for Daryl’s loyalty to the group, though Merle is showing some signs of
playing by the rules. He reveals
an understanding of the Bible, sharing a moment with Hershel of his biblical
know-how. But at this point the
audience can’t forget it was Merle who set the wheels in motion in having the
Grimes crew go to war with The Governor.
Andrea, on the other hand, is a victim of happenstance but
tries to clean up Merle’s mess. She
has a key talk with Carole, who tells her she must put the conflict to bed,
literally, by showing the Governor “the greatest night of his life.” Her conflict comes to a head when after
she backs down from stabbing the Governor after sleeping with him. In keeping with the central theme of
religion, could the episode title refer to Andrea? Whether she’s loyal to the Governor or his greatest betrayal
can clearly make her a Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus by giving him up
to the Romans.
She’s now in a tough position given she’s the last to defect
back to the Grimes. Will her
disloyalty break The Governor?
Another burning question is how did Andrea know about the prison?
Be that as it may, a war is now brewing between The Governor
and Rick, who is now gearing up for battle mode. He heads out for a run, with Michone and Carl in tow. The episode was more even-keeled than the previous bloody
episode. This one shows a war is
now brewing, and though The Governor drew first blood, Rick will likely win the
war.
The religious theme certainly fits with some of the
conflicted characters. From Daryl
and his loyalty/disloyalty to Merle, Andrea’s loyalty/disloyalty to The
Governor, Merle and his loyalty/disloyalty to the Grimes crew, and Rick and his
loyalty/disloyalty to his own group.
Given the grammatical style of the title, and his knowledge of the
Bible, the title could be coming out of Merle’s mouth.
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