Review of The Walking Dead season 9 episode 2: A Farewell to Arms

Overall Impression of TWD902

Once again, The Walking Dead delivered a quality episode. Season 9 has been quite good so far as a follow-up to a disappointing conclusion to All-Out War and it has changed the narrative of the story in a huge way.

As a reader of the comics, it’s interesting to see so many things happening that aren’t directly out of the graphic novel…but that’s not a bad thing. In fact, it helps to keep the storyline fresh and separate it from the source material.

However, every time I see Aaron I think of the comic book version of Rick Grimes with that short haircut, beard, and now with him missing an arm. It seems like this might be too much of a coincidence, but the resemblance is uncanny!

Back to this episode, the balance of good and bad while splitting the attention between major and minor characters was masterfully done. It never felt too stale or slow at any point, and even when the episode focused on developing a story, it was done in a way that was intimate and interesting.

The end of the episode leaves fans wanting more as well. While Justin, the character who got jumped in the woods, will likely be disliked by viewers (and rightfully so), it was still interesting to see that the disappearing people are likely doing to whoever or whatever is out there.

But with the developing relationship between Anne and Gabriel as well as seeing Maggie loosen her grip on The Hilltop a little and a great walker fight, this was an episode that was extremely enjoyable, yet pushed the story ahead in a big way.

Episode grade: 9.2/10

The Walking Dead will return next week for season 9 episode 3. In the meantime, let us know what you thought of episode 902. What were your favorite and least favorite parts? Discuss them in the comments section below!