One of the most interesting part of this episode for me was this question.

1. First time it was asked by Daryl, totally unexpectedly. What has happened between the previous episode and this one that we have missed? Will we get to see it? Will we get to find out? The question suggests that Daryl has somehow figured it out that the girls are no longer in the cave, and Alpha must have captured them. How? A little montage of the process might have been helpful here. Unless: he doesn't mean Connie and Magna by "they", but Aaron, Kelly and Jerry. We saw the three following Daryl at the end of the last episode, and now he's alone.

2. At the end of the episode, the question is asked by Gabriel, when we see Aaron return to Alexandria on his own. For me this was the most chilling part of the whole episode: Aaron's face as he was telling them they didn't all get out of the cave and how they got separated. What the hell happened there? Where are Kelly and Jerry?

So we finally got an answer to Lydia's wherabouts, and her final decision on where her loyalty lays.
But we have Connie, Magna, Kelly, Jerry and Carol out there at least in three different places... Where are they? Not to mention lover boy Negan missing from the episode, apparently still basking in the afterglow somewhere near Lovenest La Trine.

Anyone has picked up any more clues to this question regarding our missing survivors?

 

Wow! I didn't think of that possibility! But then wouldn't he have followed them to see where they took them? Why wouldn't he know? I was thinking he might have found his way back into the cave and found them gone, and didn't see them coming out as walkers either, so he just presumed they were taken captive.

I got the feeling at the end of the last episode that the three of them were going to go with Daryl to help him get the two girls out. Kelly said "we can't stay here, we can't help them if we are dead" and it just doesn't make sense that she wouldn't go and try to help to rescue her sister and friend. After all they've been through, wouldn't they want to stay together? Of course they also needed to warn the two communities, and certainly couldn't trust Carol to actually do as she was told and go back to Alexandria. In fact she absolutely didn't, no surprise there.

Too bad, but it is unfortunately true right now. She just puts everyone in danger. Alone she might be able to do something amazing, without costing the rest of them.

I sure hope so!!

 

Lol. But then what? All this excitement will be over, two awesome villains will be gone, we will have buried some beloved characters, and we'd be onto the next group of adversaries... it's just how this story rolls.

 

Well, that's something to look forward to then. You're absolutely right about the cartoonish characters. It all started with Ezekiel, then Jadis, Negan... the show just sort of changed genre somewhat for a while. I must admit, I prefer characters when they're more fleshed out and stripped down to their core. The good thing is that eventually we got there with all these initially cartoonish characters.

 

Ha! It was just like that. I guess first she was delirious from the blood loss then she just got seriously pissed and used her wrath and hurt to get her to this completely liberated state of mind when she has now convinced herself to be invincible. All that bullshit coming out of her mouth, good lord. Whilst all Daryl wanted to know on his coming-to, how long he was asleep for, because he ain't have no time for shit like being unconscious when he has people to protect. I actually really enjoyed the contrast, and the recital of the mantra at the end.

 

I agree it’s interesting they play it like a bit of a mystery, generally speaking that’s fun, but if you’re emotionally invested in the characters who are affected, which I thoroughly am, then it’s maddeningly frustrating!