The Walking Dead Mid-Season Finale: 4 Ups & 4 Downs From 'Hearts Still Beating'

1. Fighting Back

Well, that was a long time coming. Almost as soon as Negan killed Abraham and Glenn, and Rick was shown to be a broken mess, the question of when would the fightback start has been asked.

Various characters have shown signs that they're ready for rebellion - Rosita, Michonne, Sasha, Carl - and some of that plays out here, such as Rosita shooting at Negan. Obviously it fails (hitting the bat is a bit ridiculous, but at least she tried), but it helps light the spark.

Of course, all this was waiting for was Rick Grimes. It was never going to go ahead without him, and now - after the deaths here, everything else he's witnessed, and a telling conversation with Michonne - he's ready.

The closing moments were a bit too heavy on everyone standing around smiling at one another, but Daryl and Rick's reunion hit a nice emotional beat, and it's good they've moved on to this stage of the story. It's nicely setup to escalate throughout the second half of Season 7, bringing the Kingdom into the fold too, and progressing into a war against the Saviours.

Now, onto what the episode didn't do so well...