Walking Dead - Season 3, Episode 11 - I Ain't a Judas

Several episodes in Walking Dead season three have seemed a little filler-y at times, but "I Ain't a Judas" is the first one I can remember in quite some time that is nearly all filler.  That doesn't mean it's a bad episode.  Overall, it's pretty average.  Not destined to rank among the great, memorable Walking Dead episodes, but also not terrible enough to be truly regrettable.  It just kind of is.  One thing the creators of the show have become pretty skilled at is delayed gratification.  Just when I think I know what's going to happen next story-line wise, Walking Dead loves to pump the brakes.  And "Judas" is a prime example.  

I was certain this episode would begin or end with The Governor knocking down the gates of the prison with tanks and an army of gun-toting Woodbury denizens.  We didn't get that, but we did get, in the grand tradition of Walking Dead forebear Lost, an Andrea-centric episode.  Now, Andrea is, for me, a character who has vacillated between tolerable and despicable throughout the course of the show, never quite managing to rise to the level of likable   She is kind of the last guard of truly meh Walking Dead characters after the chaff-eliminating campaign the show has been on as of late (looking at you, Lori).

Andrea may not be the most exciting character (or fifth-most exciting character) on the show, but "I Ain't a Judas" manages to be a not terrible episode in spite of that fact, which is probably saying something.  "Judas" is short on truly memorable moments, but it does feature the return of Tyreese and crew (who apparently left the prison at some point? I must have missed that scene) and a burgeoning relationship between Merle and Herschel (who can't that guy become a father figure to?).  Reunions also abound as Carol and Daryl share a tender moment, and Andrea is reunited with everyone. 

The latter reunion fizzles just a bit because the prison crew have known for some time that Andrea was in Woodbury, and, vice-versa, Andrea has known about Rick and company as well.  Thus, when the groups finally do meet, it smacks more of "hey, it's you" than "emotional reunion".  I do realize that some aspect of that was by design in order to illustrate that Andrea is now an outsider to Rick and his people, but I just felt the scene lacked a needed emotional punch.  Of course, it was dynamite compared to the meeting of Andrea and Michonne, two characters who are supposed to share some special bond but have all the chemistry of a wet gym sock and a half-empty tube of toothpaste (yeah, I went there).  

So "I Ain't a Judas" ain't a classic episode of The Walking Dead.  But if trends continue, the next episode could be.  I suspect that "Clear" could be the one featuring The Governor, tank(s), and a lot of guns.  Sounds like an intriguing combination to me.  It should also be interesting to see what role Tyreese and his people will play as those events unfold.  And there was no Rick crazy stuff in this episode, so we can probably look forward to a little bit of that in "Clear" as well.  So be there or get your head bitten off. Until next week, Walking Dead-ites!