The Walking Dead: 6 Things "Coda" Got Right (And 4 It Didn't)

2. God, That Priest Is Dull

Speaking of things audiences would rather not see, does anyone really give a crap about Father Gabriel? The guy is such a wet blanket he makes Toby Maguire look positively charming. The idea of a man of the cloth's faith being tested when the demonic dead have seemingly returned from hell to plague the Earth is interesting in concept, even if it is a theme that's been explored in countless zombie (and just horror) stories throughout history. It's being handled in such a ham-fisted, cliché manner, though, that it's hard to get invested. Especially if you're not a god-fearing faithful like Gabriel €“ and good gravy, that's an on-the-nose name €“ in which case, who cares about his crisis of faith when people are off getting killed elsewhere? This week took the insultingly basic symbolism to an even lower standard than Crossed did which, if you'll recall, involved him getting sad that they were cutting up his pews to barricade the doors of a church, and struggling to wrestle a zombie because she was wearing a crucifix necklace, which also made him sad. What a drip. This week he found himself in a school yard, where he picked up some dirty magazines €“ in anything sacred? What a disgusting world! Perhaps we deserve to be condemned to this zombie-filled wasteland. Perhaps that is god's judgement. Who cares. When the rest of the cast are so capable at dealing with the undead, and as used to this world as the audience, seeing somebody struggle so much just isn't interesting or believable.