Andrew Grevas
Tales of the Walking Dead Episode 4, titled “Amy; Dr. Everett” follows an episode that felt the most like fan service since the debut of this new spinoff. Would Tales of the Walking Dead Episode 4 go back to anthology-style tales or venture back into familiar territory? It was the former, and in my humble opinion, made for another great installment in this new series. We’re about to get into heavy spoiler territory, so proceed with caution.
The Science of It All
Watching shows in the Walking Dead universe, it’s easy to think that much of life just stopped happening as the focus of those left living shifted to survival. But Tales of the Walking Dead Episode 4 introduced us to Dr. Everett, a man who was studying how zombies (walkers) operated and how they functioned and behaved while the rest of the living population tried to avoid them.
This instantly, to me, felt perfect. Of course there would be a scientist out there studying zombies. Someone with a research-driven mind would surely want to understand them. While I don’t want to keep harping on last week’s episode, this was exactly the kind of fresh narrative ground I wanted to see covered.
Dr. Everett early on encountered Amy, a woman separated from her friends who were trying to venture into a “dead territory”—a place where humans traditionally hadn’t fared well and Dr. Everett picked this as his home because it was free of humans, allowing him to study.
Perhaps the most interesting observation discussed in Tales of the Walking Dead Episode 4 was that the Dr. had noticed one zombie leaving food for those behind him in the pack. He was taking care of those in the herd who may not be able to hunt for themselves and was ensuring that they would have something to feed on.
This was a huge observation. Have zombies always been like this and we just hadn’t seen it yet? Or are they evolving? If it is a case of evolution, what can we expect in the future from zombies? Tales of the Walking Dead Episode 4 gives us a lot to think about here. If every human in the world is destined to become a zombie after death and zombies are now evolving, is this just a new version of the human race? Will zombies eventually rid the planet of humans and once it’s just them, become the dominant species and possibly become more human-like as they go?
Mother Earth
Another interesting observation from Dr. Everett in Tales of the Walking Dead Episode 4 was that humans have been the cause of most of the Earth’s problems, with an insinuation being made that zombies were a course-correcting tool designed to run humans off, so we couldn’t cause any more harm to the planet.
For those seeking a “why,” this is a plausible one. We’re likely to never get an answer as to why the zombie apocalypse has happened beyond what we got in the Season 1 finale, but here in Tales of the Walking Dead Episode 4, we got some food for thought at the very least.
One more interesting note from this episode was that Dr. Everett wore a coat made of zombie skin and he was left alone by the zombies. This was a fascinating advancement on what we’ve previously seen, where characters would cover themselves in zombie blood and guts to hide amongst them, or how The Whisperers were masks made of zombie skin. Apparently, all you need is a coat made of zombie skin?
Connections to the Walking Dead Universe
Unlike the two previous episodes, there weren’t many direct connections to the larger Walking Dead universe here in Tales of the Walking Dead Episode 4, which is fine—this episode’s primary focus was on adding to the mythology of zombies, which was a welcome element to this episode.
I for one, don’t necessarily expect anything from Tales of the Walking Dead Episode 4 to work its way into the main series narrative, Dr. Everett included, but it is world-expanding information that as an audience will enhance further viewing of the main series (and spin-offs).
Tales of the Walking Dead Episode 4 will likely divide the audience some, with there being a camp that doesn’t feel the need for this type of story and then those like me that appreciate the Twilight Zone-inspired stories that help with the continuing world-building, with solid writing, interesting characters and food for thought.
My biggest takeaways are about the evolution of zombies. Tales of the Walking Dead Episode 4 gave us a lot to think about. Can this zombie apocalypse ever end or is this Mother Earth’s way of replacing humans at the top of the food chain?
