Spoiler Alerts Ahead

We get it, Glenn (or his dead body) is still not back. Two weeks definitely is a long time for a cliff hanger of this magnitude, and coupled with the relatively slow Morgan-centric episode from last week (which was, by the way, a thoroughly enjoyable background of an awesome character), “Now” seemed to drag on.

Most of the episode was inevitable from a plot development standpoint. The infighting among the Alexandrians when faced with the true face of the zombie apocalypse is certainly no surprise. Being surrounded by a mega zombie horde and being attacked by crazy scavengers, after all, is a certainly shocking for the sheltered citizens, but just a normal Sunday night for Rick and co. Also, the optimism that Maggie and Aaron (Ross Marquand) feel for the possibility of Glenn (possibly dead) and Nicholas (played by Michael Traynor—definitely dead) is predictable, and undercut by the fact that we saw zombies nibbling on at least one of the two.

Perhaps the most compelling storyline from “Now” is that of Deanna Monroe (Tovah Feldshuh), former Senator/current leader of Alexandria. It becomes obvious in this episode that Deanna has de facto abdicated her leadership role to Rick. She wonders around most of the episode with cold distant eyes and a blank stare. She is broken from her reverie/existential crisis/creepiness when her son gives a stirring speech in defense of Alexandria (only to later renege on his ideals, and steal food and other supplies from the pantry). Finally, she is shown to have a strong will to survive by viciously, and ineffectively, stabbing a zombie in the chest (rather than the head) with a broken bottle (she is luckily saved by her tactical error with the sudden appearance of Rick “was right all along about the brutality of the world” Grimes).

Other happenings in Alexandria revolve around Jessie Anderson (Alexandra Breckenridge), her shows her toughness by putting down a zombie, her motherliness by offering cookies to her son, and her romanticness by flirting with Rick near the end of the episode. Obviously all in a day’s work for someone who was like three episodes ago an emotionally unstable character. Anyway, let’s hope to have some closure with Glenn/Daryl and Abraham next week!