Well, I guess it’s back to the plot, then.
After last week’s episode basic gave us the quintessential, near-perfect, solo Daryl Dixon adventure that finally embraced the western gunslinger aspect the character has always carried since the first moment he swaggered on screen. However, I suppose it’s time that we actually got back to the main story at hand as numerous triangles, twists and confrontations have been gradually brewing that finally seem to be paying off.
Thus we get an episode of Daryl Dixon that tries to play catch up in the most all encompassing ways it can as it flings large action scenes, numerous flashbacks, various love stories in different forms (burgeoning, doomed, hopeful) and even an assassination attempt in order to shift everything along in time for next weeks finale. However, The Walking Dead has inadvertently face-planted before when the demands of the show force it to juggle too much at once. But with the season gaining some much needed momentum after the last two weeks, it’s still all to play for.
After his little side mission, Daryl returns to storyline A and resumes his search for Justina and the El Alcázar convoy that holds her and is joined by Paz who reveals what what pretty obvious all along, that she had a past relationship with Guillermo’s newest “queen” Elena, and wants to take the opportunity to get her back. Teaming with refugee fighters who want the self proclaimed king of Spain in the dirt, the group launches a ballsy attack to kill Guillermo while saving Justina and Elena.
Meanwhile, back as Solaz del Mar, Fede’s evil deeds are getting ever more ruthless as he attempts to have the wounded Roberto poisoned to keep him silent about his iffy deals with Guillermo. Thankfully, Carol discovers this and realises that Roberto has to be moved out of town sooner rather than later, however, as her feelings for Antonio grow ever more turbulent (spotting him showering will do that to a girl), she finds him still reluctant to leave. It’s here that we finally discover his past and the animosity that runs between Antonio and Fede and unsurprisingly it comes from a tragic romance. It seems that both loved a woman named Maria, but ultimately Antonio won out and the two went on to have Roberto – but on the day the zombie virus kicked in, Antonio’s documentary filmmaking career caused both him and his beloved be caught in the blast of an exploding car thanks the the separatist group, ETA.
Wracked with guilt, Alberto never told his son the real reason his mother died and that’s what Fede’s had over him this entire time. But with a failed poisoning now changing things, Antonio isn’t going to remain under his former love rival’s thumb anymore. Even if the truth costs him everything.
It seems that love is well and truly in the air during this episode of Daryl Dixon as numerous relationships simultaneously hit major speedbumps during its duration. The obvious one is the attempt to get Justina back for Roberto and while these lovebirds have been separated for quite a few episodes now, the attempts of Daryl and Carol to protect and/or save them still provide the backbone of the season. From Daryl’s point of view, he’s somehow managed to catch up to his quarry despite taking time out of his busy schedule to help a leper colony and even more conveniently, Paz now has an opportunity to do much more than look good in her cool, gunslinger hat as she hooks Dixon up with refugees and wages war on Guillermo.
This season has always seemed to do its best work while in motion and Contrabando is no exception. Possibly realising that they started the season way too slow, the showrunners have upped the action content considerably since the attack of Solaz del Mar two episodes ago, and once again the centrepiece of the episode is yet another sizable setpiece that sees Daryl, Paz and a bunch of friends wage all out war on Guillermo as he squirms within his motorcade. While the action itself doesn’t offer anything particularly new in the details (human gunfight ends in a draw when Walkers intervene), or even much in the way of resolution (neither Justina or Elena are rescued), the tone of the shootout actually succeeds in giving something more than another spirited bout of shooty bang bang. With the rather underutilised Paz finally taking more of a centre stage and cutting a rather impressive figure as she flings knives into her enemies, the fact she’s doing this to rescue her lady love manages to stir up a bit more desperation than just an assassination attempt. Maybe it’s all that Spanish influence, but watching a woman dressed like a gunslinger desperately trying to save her amore from both her evil husband and even her own colleagues who would render Elena collateral damage to achieve their goal, feels very much like something out of a shamelessly lusty romance novel. Add to this Daryl trying and failing to rescue Justina and clutching at her hand as the truck she’s locked in drives off, and it really does seem that director Daniel Percival is shooting for that pulp penny dreadful feel.
The thing is, despite some typical Walking Dead flaws, he almost nails it, shaking the rather ponderous plot awake with an injection of doomed romance. Too much about the episode doesn’t ring as exciting as it could because the previous episodes hadn’t given certain aspect enough weight. Had the Paz/Elena angle been more fleshed out, her mission could have felt genuinely desperate and gripping and even though there’s genuine regret in Dixon’s eyes as the convoy escapes, he’s not actually Justina’s boyfriend, so it doesn’t work quite as well as it could. However, thankfully this vein of romance continues through to the other characters too – namely Carol getting to act adorably flustered as her feelings for Alberto reach their zenith and the two share a kiss. It’s nice to see Carol get some legitimate soppy stuff once again and seeing this tough, resourceful woman get thrown for a loop by spotting Alberto naked is an adorable high point for a character that’s not really been used to her full potential much this season. But while their union is probably doomed in typical Mexican telenovela style, we get even more outpourings of the heart with the story of how Antonio’s wife, Maria died and why it’s been the engine that drives the animosity between him and former rival suitor, Fede. Told via footage Antonio shot during his time as a filmmaker, it’s a really nice touch that the show sets it on the day the zombie plague struck Barcelona as it makes a tragic end to a love story even more harrowing when a scorched Maria returns from the dead. Hey, things may be getting romantic, but it’s still The Walking Dead.
While not a patch on last week’s episode and admittedly hamstrung by some earlier, sloppier plotting, Contrabando still manages to enfuse some much needed life into the main plot just in time for next week’s finale. Whether the heart on the sleeve romance aspect will follow through to the climax or we’ll get an explanation for Daryl’s random childhood flashbacks will remain to be seen, but Daryl Dixon proves to be on something of a hot streak thanks to the addition of the mushy stuff.
🌟🌟🌟🌟
We Have Issues 