The Walking Dead season 9 episode 7 recap: Stradivarius

Michael Cudlitz makes his directorial debut on this week’s revealing episode of The Walking Dead. Here’s your recap of season 9 episode 7, “Stradivarius.”

This week’s episode of The Walking Dead begins with a terrified Rosita running through the woods. She’s alone and she has blood on her face from a nasty head wound, and she’s running in such a way that suggests that she’s not entirely sure of where she is or if she will be able to keep running much longer. What’s more is that the walkers around her are talking. They’re breathing heavily, and they’re talking.

She eventually passes right out.

Cue the credits. We’re about to meet the Whisperers…or are we?

At Casa de Daryl, Carol tells Henry to watch for her old pal’s traps (holes in the ground with pointy sticks in them). She spots the motorcycle propped against a tree. She asks him about the boat not being fixed since her last visit (note: she has visited him before), and then she asks when he last ate. Daryl’s dog runs up and grabs a bite to eat and Daryl praises him, telling Carol that the dog ate the day before.

Michonne and the caravan make their way along the road. Siddiq tells her that he’s glad she changed her mind about the new people. He thinks she likes them because she’s going through all of this trouble. She does like them, but she doesn’t trust them.

In the back of the cart Magna says that she’d rather stay where they are, but Connie is looking forward to taking the win and going somewhere safe. Kelly says they can find their rig and move on eventually. Yumiko tells Michonne that Magna has been out of sorts since Bernie died. He used to get under her skin and then she embraced him. “Like family,” Michonne says. Michonne says that the only reason she’s doing this is because she promised her daughter to take them to safety. Yumiko asks about the Hilltop, and Michonne admits it has been a while since she has been there.

We get our first look at the Hilltop. It’s a fully agrarian society, with the fortified walls and big main house we knew from before. The crops are thriving and they have their blacksmiths and rudimentary engines run by bicycles (to do laundry). Enid is the doctor, and it looks like someone unexpected is running the show: Tara. But is she really in charge? Tara moves with ease between the residents, checking in, asking questions. She meets with Diane, then she heads back to the house, where Jesus is upstairs listening to music.

Tara says he has been listening to Georgie’s music, and Jesus says it was a nice gift. He’s reading a letter from Maggie and says she’s doing well. Tara gets down to business and runs all of the Hilltop business by him and he listens but he has a dazed look on his face. There’s a noise complaint in one of the trailers and he says it’s because she gave a kid a kazoo, which she shrugs off easily because of course you give a kid a kazoo when you happen to find on. She congratulates him on being elected leader once again, and he blows it off. She chides him for pretending like all of this is new to him, and he gets up and walks away without getting through her list.