Deux Amours – As the fifth episode of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon begins, Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) watches Laurent Carriere (Louis Puech Scigliuzzi) sitting on the edge of the boat. Azlan (Hassam Ghancy) tells Daryl that the Nest is a special place. Once Laurent is there, he’ll be nurtured and groomed to be the leader she’s destined to be. When Azlan asks if he is a Christian, Daryl jokes that they kicked him out of Sunday school. Azlan tells him about Abram before asking how he ended up so far from home. In a flashback, Daryl is confronted by a man who asks if he needs help. The man drives him to a local settlement.

Once they arrive, Daryl hears a man speaking French on the radio. He watches Juno (John Ales) joke with a young boy nearby. The man comes back and gives everyone instructions about what to look for. For instance, they won’t take children, elderly people, or short people. The young boy tries to convince some of the others to team up. Azlan believes it was hard however Daryl got there. He says they’re about 200 kilometers or 124 miles to their destination. After the intro, Daryl captures some walkers. Juno and his men bring them back as captives. They’re surprised when Daryl returns with even more.

Daryl urges the young boy to go home to his girl while getting his jug filled with gasoline. In the present, Daryl asks Azlan if he has a date. Azlan explains it is almost time for prayer. Laurent rushes over to show Daryl what he caught. Daryl wants to show him how to gut the fish because he needs to learn how to take care of himself. They talk about the people they miss. Daryl tells Laurent about Judith, RJ, Connie, Ezekiel, and Carol. Laurent tells him not to worry because they’ll all be together again. When Isabelle (Clemence Poesy) gets up, she is told Monsieur Quinn will be by soon. Quinn (Adam Nagaitis) arrives moments later. He has a warehouse full of things so she can go and take her pick.

Isabelle says it’s not for her. Quinn wanted to prove to her that he was going to keep his promise. He just spoke to some Pouvoir blokes who told him that Laurent made it out of the city. Quinn asks how long it’ll take for her to see him differently. Isabelle has locked that part of herself away so she will need to pray on it. Laurent talks to Daryl about reading the Quran. Daryl doesn’t pray. Instead, he believes in pulling his own weight. He shows Laurent how to prepare the fish even if he doesn’t want to. Isabelle searches for something. She appears to make a makeshift knife before asking God to forgive her for what she is about to do. Daryl heard that Le Havre is the only place to find something still floating.

Azlan says Genet controls the port in Le Havre now. He believes their leader, Losang, can help Daryl secure a boat home though. Daryl says it is his kids that suffer when a man dies in someone else’s war. That gets passed down to their kids until no one even remembers what caused the war in the first place. When Azlan first got to the nest, he wanted to die because he had lost his wife and son. Losang asked him to fix a watch and told him how important it was. After Azlan got it fixed, Losang told him it no longer mattered because he had found another reason to live. Laurent prays. In the past, Drew and Juno mess with the young boy while Daryl fills his motorcycle with gas.

They eventually agree to consider letting the boy come with them if he chops wood for them. Daryl shows him how to do it and asks what he is doing there. The boy wants to take his girl far away to California where it is supposed to be better. Quinn tells Isabelle that he can be a better man for her. Isabelle starts kissing him while reaching for the weapon in her pocket. He says Abraham sacrificed his only son and Isaac was saved. In the end, Abraham was redeemed. Isabelle apologizes before saying it has been so long. Quinn understands she isn’t ready so he is willing to be patient. He says they have all the time in the world. When he returns to Anna Valery (Lukerya Ilyashenko), she breaks a glass in front of him and leaves.

In the past, Daryl manages to get in touch with Carol over the radio. He tells her he is in Maine by the coast. Carol says it takes some getting used to, but he doesn’t have to worry about her. Daryl promises he’ll be there in about a week. Carol says something about someone coming back before the reception is lost. In the present, Daryl hears walkers and kills one. He tells Laurent to say put and steps outside. Azlan has been injured after killing a few walkers. He tells Daryl to just get the boy to the nest. Azlan gives Daryl a pocket watch with a picture inside. Daryl is instructed to follow the river to find it. Azlan gives Daryl his knife to use to kill him. Daryl buries him. After saying goodbye, Daryl and Laurent continue to the nest.

The boat is missing. Once Daryl realizes Laurent cut the rope, he takes his knife and throws it into the water. He calls him worthless before saying he should’ve left him where he found him. Laurent explains that everyone he cares about is gone. When he gets to the nest, Daryl will leave him too and he doesn’t want to be alone. Daryl apologizes and says it will be okay. Isabelle contemplates killing herself. The servant brings her breakfast. The eggs are fresh and delivered by a friend. Once Isabelle is alone, she finds a note hidden in the eggs. Daryl tells Laurent there will be a whole bunch of good people at the nest.

Laurent questions why he can’t come with him. Daryl promised Isabelle he’d drop him off at the nest so she’ll come looking for him there. When a vehicle approaches, Laurent drops his stuff as they look for a hiding place. In a flashback, Daryl gets into a fight with Juno after learning that the boy is now a walker. He notices rope burns on his neck too. Once the fight is split up, Daryl accuses Juno of killing him. In the present, Daryl tells Laurent to follow the river until he finds the place in the picture. He gives him a knife and says he’ll be right behind him. After Laurent leaves, Daryl gets caught by the guards. They want to know where the boy is. Daryl pretends not to know what they’re talking about.

They threaten to take Daryl’s eyes if he doesn’t cooperate. Eventually, Laurent returns to stop them from doing that. Quinn gives Isabelle a gift before revealing Madame Genet has invited him to a gathering at Maison Mere that she calls “De Gualle Day”. Isabelle has been thinking about going back to the way things used to be. They can’t move forward if they keep looking back. She says they should start over. Isabelle goes with him to meet Genet. They go inside and witness torture before Genet approaches them. Genet (Anne Charrier) says one of the guards accepted a bribe to let people out they wanted to keep in. Quinn tells Anna she has no idea what she’s done. Then, he tells Genet that he can explain this.

Genet says she’ll give him time to gather his thoughts. They lock him in a cell with Daryl. Isabelle is taken to Laurent. Genet sees how people fall for the story they’ve been telling about the special child. Genet explains that some people think the Union is against her so she wants to show them the opposite. Although Laurent says it is a lie, Isabelle tells him he must do whatever Genet says. Quinn blames Daryl for getting caught. In a flashback, Daryl is put on a boat with Juno. As they try to put them in a cage, Juno says they need to fight this or they’re going to die. They’re locked up. Later, guards rush in, attack one of the prisoners, and drag him out.

They feed the prisoner to the walkers. In the present, Daryl is going he is going to lunchtime. Genet explains to Laurent that there will be a show and it won’t last long. Then, he will come out and greet everyone. Genet tells the crowd that they’ll celebrate the rise of the 6th Republic. In the past, Daryl fights the guards when they try to feed him to the walkers. He grabs the keys and quickly sets the other prisoners free. Genet tells everyone that today is the day they ushered in a new France that is free of the tyranny of the elite. She continues her speech as Daryl is led through the halls. In the past, Juno and Daryl try to escape using a small boat.

Although Juno is killed, he manages to get the boat into the water. Daryl is brought in front of everyone and given a weapon. Codron (Romain Levi) watches as a walker is brought out for Daryl to fight. Someone shoots it in the neck with some type of drug. Isabelle tells Laurent not to look. Codron tells Daryl that he dies today for his brother. Daryl grabs the ax and prepares to fight the walker.

 

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon Review

The fifth episode of TWD: Daryl Dixon was a decent way to set up the finale with Daryl in a life-or-death showdown with a super zombie of sorts. At the very least, the ending of the episode was enough to make viewers want to watch the finale even if there is no chance Daryl will be killed. The hope is that there will be an intense battle for at least a few minutes before the story moves forward.

On the other hand, some aspects of the series aren’t great and some are even banal. When Genet is speaking to her people, it feels a little like Sir Oswald Mosley in Peaky Blinders or any other similar character. That type of angle isn’t effective in a series like this because it just doesn’t fit. It is also a struggle to genuinely care about the characters.

Daryl is the exception considering how long viewers have been following his journey. There isn’t any sense of danger there because Daryl’s death would mean the end of the series and that is extremely unlikely. TWD: Daryl Dixon will probably never be a masterpiece and it may never be peak The Walking Dead, but it is watchable enough to be a good way to kill an hour on the weekend.

This episode scores a 6 out of 10. Recaps of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon can be found on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support our independent site at this link. Learn more about advertising on Reel Mockery here.