AMC’s The Walking Dead
11×07: “Promises Broken”
Directed by Sharat Raju
Written by Julia Ruchman

* For a recap & review of 11×06, click here.
* For a recap & review of 11×08, click here.
Negan, Maggie, Gabriel, and Elijah are travelling together through the woods and they’re at odds. Maggie wants to keep looking for food to help people in Alexandria, whereas Negan continually pushes against it, thinking it’s better to go back home. Negan says if he helps her do this they’re “even.” Maggie’s reluctant to agree to that. Yet they shake hands and agree. Maggie also wants to get back at the Reapers, as they see more human wreckage from the attacks group has committed.

In the Commonwealth, Eugene’s helping Stephanie clear walkers. Ezekiel and the others are doing the same. This is payment for their recently incurred debts. Poor Ezekiel’s not doing great in close, dusty quarters, yet he continues to try hiding it from his friends, even if they know he’s not getting any better. Princess isn’t having any of it, she wants to get the King some help; generally, they all want to get out of that dirty work. We see someone looking like they’re on vacation there, too. Class divide much? The cleaning work is for the construction of a “new development.” Speaking of, Yumiko’s having a meeting in a much nicer part of town, a far cry from her friends. But she’s making sure they take her seriously.
Father Gabriel says a few words over the corpse belonging to a friend of Elijah’s sister. Elijah wants to find his sister and also get his hands on the Reapers. Right now, Maggie and Negan have to work together. They’re going to make themselves a few masks. Simultaneously, Gabriel goes scouting, watching the Reapers. He notices the resident holy man, following him, and the two nearly end up in a duel of blades, but then the man leaves.
We find Daryl still with the Reapers when a patrol returns with no new information. This makes Pope angry, wanting revenge. Leah takes responsibility. So Pope sends Leah and Daryl out to do a bit of searching. While the pair are out there they talk. Daryl attempts to talk about Pope’s shortcomings, and it just seems like Leah’s hypnotised by the man.

Something I never thought I’d see: Maggie wearing a Whisperers mask. Negan’s teaching Maggie how to move and walk like a Whisperer. When Maggie stumbles a moment it draws a walker, so Elijah rushes in to help. She’s frustrated, but Negan thinks this plan could work. He looks legitimately thrilled to be working closely with Maggie and helping her. So strange; at the same time, nice to see, in a way. Interesting debate they have later about witnessing their people slaughtered. Much as I feel the Saviors deserved what they got, Rick and his people did kill a lot of folks, not necessarily all of whom were guilty. Maggie wants to be on a more moral side than Negan, and she’s definitely a better person than him, yet she can’t seem to admit the wrong in what she’s done, too.
Yumiko’s brother explains he doesn’t want anybody to know he was  a doctor in another life. They’re talking when he’s suddenly pulled away by armed guards. More and more, the stratification of society by class has continued in the Commonwealth; one of those enduring American qualities that won’t die. Yumiko goes to see Mr. Milton, who says he’s working on fixing things. I’m just waiting for the other shoe to drop, because the Commonwealth’s not what it appears to be to our survivors.

Daryl and Leah come across a man in the bush. The guy says his family’s nearby, that his wife is hurt badly. He seems desperate. Daryl wants proof, so the man agrees to lead them back to his family. Leah radios back to Pope, who orders her to kill the man and his family. What a brutal bastard. That won’t sit well with Daryl. Despite everything, he still has a moral code.

“You have to know your place”

Awesome to see Stephanie and Eugene together. Even better to see Eugene become a bad ass zombie killer, so far from who he once was back in his days of cowardice. They kill a bunch of walkers, only to get chastised by the dickhead with “private security” on vacation. While the guy’s acting like an asshole another walker creeps up and just about chomps his girlfriend. Stephanie saves the girl, spraying her with blood, and the boyfriend flips out, prompting Eugene to punch him in the nose. The bourgeois prick acts like they were attacked for no reason. Mr. Milton’s pissed when he finds out, because apparently the dickhead is someone special: his son.

This gets Eugene locked in a cell. He’s later visited by Mr. Milton, who setup the whole thing; Eugene was meant to save the young man, not punch him in the face. Milton wants to know the location of Alexandria now, but Eugene won’t give that up, just yet. Eugene wants guarantees of safety for his people, and Milton acts like that’s a foregone conclusion. But he may just have finally cracked, too.
Maggie and her zombie impersonator crew are going back to the place she once called home, while separated from her original group. They first let all the zombies out of a building, facilitated by their Whisperers getups.

Daryl and Leah follow the man back to where his wife and son are waiting. The wife’s in bad shape with a bloody wound. Leah advises the man to take his son and get out of there, and the wife agrees. A heartbreaking moment. The wife then readies herself to die, but Leah can’t bring herself to pull the trigger, so Daryl does the deed himself. Afterwards they get a call on the radio asking them to get back soon.
While Elijah’s walking with the horde he notices a Black woman amongst them and he starts to cry; he’s found his sister. Maggie offers him a hand to hold as they go on shambling with the zombies.