The Walking Dead: 7 Reasons Why 'After' Was The Perfect Premiere

2. Logical Reunion

One of the reasons that "Too Far Gone" was such a remarkable episode €“ with a heck of a cliffhanger €“ was the fact that the survivors lost more than their sanctuary. They also lost each other, split up into (mostly) unexpected new groups that will need to learn to work together to survive. Now, many viewers want the characters to reunite as soon as possible to have a chance at happiness and security before the next catastrophe strikes and somebody else is beheaded. Those reunions will undoubtedly be among the most cathartic of the entire series to this point, and hopefully well worth the wait. In a previous article looking at the rest of Season 4, I argued that none of the characters should reunite until much closer to the end of the season. After all, what was the dramatic point of separating everybody only to bring them all back together right away? Well, "After" proved me at least somewhat wrong. While the series would still benefit from keeping certain of the other groups from finding one another too soon, Michonne's reunion with the Grimes men was so gratifying and felt so uncontrived that Rick's and Michonne's heartbreakingly genuine smiles at the end of the episode felt truly earned. We were given a rare scene of hope that will carry us over into future episodes, and it was exactly what we needed to conclude an hour that began with the destruction of the prison.