After the last week’s episode that was entirely dedicated to Abraham’s mission to D.C. we finally find out what has happened to Carol and that her injuries are, indeed, real. This episode seems to be devoted to giving the viewers a general feeling of just how much time has passed and how although walkers are a manageable threat, you are never really safe. In “Consumed,” we see a world filled with the dead and the only live people around either wanted to steal your weapons or also kill you like the walkers.

The episode begins with a flashback, where we are following Carol prior to her rejoining Rick and the others at Terminus.

We see how lonely that period of time was for her but also how self-sufficient she has become. We also see her reaction as she approaches the prison where we see smoke billowing from the tree lines.

We continue on in the present situation where Daryl, with Carol riding shotgun, continues to chase after Beth’s captors. As they arrive at Atlanta, we get our first real good look at the city since Rick’s very exciting departure in Season 1. Although the massive mobs we saw swarming the tank are no longer present, the city is definitely not a safe zone by any means. There are walkers everywhere, meaning if you get backed into a wall, you were basically fresh meat. However, I thought it was brilliant how the producers made it seem that Carol and Daryl are not necessarily disturbed by the threat of a walker pounding outside of the car’s window. In fact, the threat came more from whether or not Officer Gorman (ohhh, what a glorious death his was!) would approach the car to take out the walker. Also, the ease and almost nonchalance motion Carol makes as she kills the walker by rolling down the window was a great image to leave the viewers with as we delve further into the episode and more in Carol’s past.

They attempt to follow Gorman but due to the lack of gas stations, the car is out of gas and will not start up. They seek shelter in literally a shelter as walkers close in on them by breaking into the ground floor through a service entrance. Carol seems to know her way around the place which leads you to think it had something to do with her abusive and very deceased husband, which is something we hadn’t really been reminded of since her progressive transformation into a badass.

Her past is brought up again when Daryl and her go to investigate some banging they hear as they settle into the night. Unfortunately, it is a woman and her child. Daryl stops Carol from going inside to have to deal with putting down another child. They go to bed and Carol awakens to Daryl burning the bodies of the individuals inside of room 7. We see a big difference between how Noah attempts to survive and experienced duo Caryl.

It seems this episode is meant to remind us just how far Carol has come as an individual as well (with a little Daryl, always some Daryl crossbow action PUHLEASE!). Even in how Carol deals with the death of the children she has taken under her wing is an interesting transition, because let’s be honest, not many made of those kiddies made it out of that prison alive either. Look at her back during the discovery of her walker daughter, Sophia. It was heartbreaking and her final death was something Carol did not even want to happen. Although Daryl is unaware of the circumstances behind the deaths of Lizzie and Mika, he realizes that Carol had to deal with them in the fashion that has become customary among the group in these very long years.

The scene returns with Tyreese carrying Lizzie’s body and Carol helping with the digging of the graves of the girls. She looks up to see the flames that are still rising from the prison. Me thinks the smoke may be a metaphor.

Back to the present! Carol and Daryl are moving through the streets of Georgia, searching for signs of the Grady group. They head into the Skybridge via parking garage after some nifty Zippo action from Daryl, only to find that it is occupied by walkers who were maybe shot? but definitely killed in their sleep.

We can see in the distance that this is not all that is waiting for them, as we see some activity going on through some blinds. They just barely fit through the chained doors that leads to the other building connected by the bridge. The office they wander into not only has a handy water cooler, but a great view of a Grady medical van that had been abandoned on the highway. Daryl’s pointing skills are also awesome and smushy.

Carol and Daryl also have a deep conversation about how they are all different people from where they started. In case you have not noticed, they are really trying to pound this idea into your idea in this particular episode..hell, this season. *guff Daryl* “The reason I said we get to start over…is because we gotta”

Daryl also provides an art critique, his take on that abstract piece added a little bit of humor to an otherwise depressing situation. They crawl back through into the bridge and encounter…..NOAH! Daryl gets his crossbow taken away from him. Carol is stopped from unknowingly shooting Beth’s only hospital friend by Daryl who assumed all Carol was going to do was kill him. They deal with the walkers Noah cuts free to escape and then chase after him. Apparently Noah bolts the door and they are unable to follow. Caryl now are down to three bullets but still continue on their trip to find Beth.

 

Oh, also a lot insights into Carol and we see a book about treating victims of childhood abuses.

More flashbacks include Carol is burning the bodies of the sick that resulted in her perilous and lonely journey after her exile from the prison.

They are walking on the highway bridge towards the white van which has been left abandoned, after crashing into the guardrails. They climb into the van as walkers begin to close in around them. Daryl, determined to find some evidence of Beth’s location delays them enough to cause them to become bottle-necked on the highway.

Good news was they found Grady Memorial labeled underneath a stretcher. Bad news, well..they were forced back into the van and now have walkers pounding against the back of a rather precariously positioned van. There is apparently only one choice which is to… buckle up and hold on as the van goes crashing down. The airbag deploys for Daryl and walkers are literally dropping down off the bridge. After the initial jump, which was not even that noticeable, Caryl just lay there for a moment to recover as blood slowly drips down the window.

The group is definitely injured enough that Carol needs the support of Daryl to walk past a split walker and Carol seems to have popped her shoulder out.

As Daryl and Carol are recovering in an alley, we are reminded again of the abuses she faced when she mentions she has faced worse. However, despite their pains, the two continue on their path towards Grady Memorial.

Daryl finds a handy machete, they have acquired some snack size Lays chips to munch on and converse over their past while they scope out the hospital from their perch. We learn that Carol had stayed at the shelter they encountered upon entering Atlanta in the beginning of the episode. We also are told what metaphor the producers are trying to force into your head which is that with each smoky incident, a new evolution of Carol would appear. A WILD CAROL HAS APPEARED! SHE USES FURY ATTACK! IT IS SUPER EFFECTIVE!

Daryl cleverly inserts a “we aint ashes” to make her feel better when we hear a door closing, which at this point, we know is not something that is good.

They find Noah getting manhandled and unable to handle one walker. We see him trying to stop a walker with a bookcase and Daryl tackles him, causing it to fall on top of him.

After some begging, Daryl storms off because he is super pissed at the man who almost caused their deaths. Carol still cannot leave someone to be eaten and almost reverts back to helpless Carol between the screaming and the cries for Daryl not to leave him like that. Her arm seems to have brought more than pain back to Carol’s overall character. As she finally turns around to deal with the walker, Daryl like a badass, kills the walker while also puffing on his cig.

LAST FLASHBLACK. FINALLY. Carol is seen in her muddy walker get up that we know has been part of her survival tactics during her lone journey, where she continue to see smoke rising. Her lack of reaction was again, to show how stoic she has become in dealing with approaching danger and the possibility of death.

Daryl continues to smoke his cig while lifting the bookcase off of Noah. We finally learn more about the hospital as Noah attempts to get them out as soon as possible because the Grady group would have definitely heard them. We have the last little parts of the season’s episode all connected together.

The three take off running with Daryl doubling back to help Noah. Carol takes off into the street and is hit by the Grady group. We see Gorman running out to place her on the stretcher, thus connecting us back to Beth’s first glimpse of unconscious Carol.

It was a good thing Noah was there to hold Daryl back although, I’m assuming it was more the words, “We can get her back, we can get them back,” not Noah’s strength. They continue to move around the city in order to return back to the group back with Father Morgan. They are able to find a working truck that is in incredible condition. Apparently, Noah is who Maggie sees Daryl bring in and it would seem our gang is becoming rapidly embrioiled into another war.

And because the walker action was rather..minimal, I will leave this delicious shot just for you readers who have made it ALLLL the way down here.