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It's been a long two years.

The creative decisions, marketing, and spin surrounding DD and TBOC have made me seriously question my place here. This saddens me as I've invested more time in TWD than I have with any other show. It feels like treading water. Like I'm floundering in the sea, waiting for someone to throw me a life jacket. I just want someone to reel me back into the safety of the ship.  

I feel like we’re all floundering in our own way and that’s why fandom has been such an incredibly hostile environment since 2022. I’ve seen fans lash out at those who express concern or ask difficult questions about TBOC’s worrying direction of travel.  I’ve seen fans downplay glaring issues and use denial as a coping mechanism: some fans can see that something is deeply wrong with how Caryl is being positioned and marketed, but they pretend that everything is fine or will be fine eventually. "Sure, Caryl might not go canon in TBOC. Sure, they might not have a good arc *this season*. Sure, TBOC might not live up to expectations, but Carol and Daryl are together again! That's all that matters!"

Guys...what are we doing here? You wouldn't have to make all of these qualifications if tptb were giving you an emotionally satisfying story. It makes me so sad when I see people desperately trying to spin straw into gold. You deserve better. You deserve so much more from a show which is supposed to champion and celebrate your two favorite characters.   

The way I see it is this: when you like something, you don't have to think about it. You have an instinctive reaction when you genuinely enjoy something. You have an instinctive reaction to quality storytelling, positioning, and marketing. When you watched Caryl's iconic scenes for the first time (let's say the Terminus reunion), you didn't have to think about why you liked it. You were too busy being caught up in the emotion of it. It immediately felt right because good storytelling speaks for itself.

On the other hand, if you're doing mental backflips to justify why certain things are "fine, actually!" then things aren't fine. Take the title of the spinoff: "Daryl Dixon: The Book of Carol". When that title was originally announced there was widespread confusion, disappointment, and anger. Importantly, even Carylers who were broadly supportive of DD expressed disquiet upon hearing this title. For a moment, pro-DD Carylers correctly identified that the show was not positioning Carol and Daryl as equals. That Carol had been relegated to the sidelines. Some people later talked themselves into liking the title - I felt so sad when I saw people twisting themselves into pretzels to explain why the title was acceptable. Guys, you wouldn't have to do this if they'd just given us a decent title. If we'd been given a title that positioned Caryl as equals, we would have had an immediate and unambiguously positive reaction.

To be clear, this isn't a call out post. But if you are one of those pro-DD Carylers? I want you to remember how you felt when you first saw that title. Because that confusion? That hurt? That sinking feeling? They were authentic emotions. You knew something was wrong when you saw that title. The same way you knew something was wrong when you saw all the nun-baiting in DD.  

I wanted Carol/MMB to return just as much as anyone, but I also know that Carol's/MMB's presence can't save this show alone. I fear that TBOC is going to feel like seasons 8 and 11 of TWD. Yes, Carol's there. But as we've seen in the past, presence doesn't equal quality storytelling. It's like a win on a technicality if they're not interested in using Carol/MMB to their full potential.  I'm deeply worried that Carol/MMB will be relegated to the sidelines - in the same way that Carol has been relegated to the sidelines in the title. Let me say that again: she's been relegated to the sidelines in her own show. I'm not privy to what goes on behind closed doors, but I have a hard time believing that "Daryl Dixon: The Book of Carol" was the title pitched to MMB when she agreed to come back. 

I'm not interested in watching a show where Carol and Daryl are physically present, but they are emotionally, spiritually, and intellectually absent. I worry that I'm going to feel like I'm watching alien body snatchers rather than watching Carol and Daryl. Sure, they look and sound the same, but something is so off about them. I'm worried that they're going to feel like strangers to me. I'm going to be looking at them and thinking, "Where are those characters I used to love? What did they do to you?"

Let me say this: if you're angry or sad about the way things have turned out that doesn't make you a bad fan, you know? It doesn't mean you're bitter. It just means you know when you're being mis-sold. Don't let anyone make you feel bad for having standards. 

There will always be a place in my heart for Caryl, but there’s no place in my wallet for AMC. I’m not interested in watching Zabel’s alien body snatcher versions of Caryl. Wanting Caryl’s story to be penned by someone who understands the characters and cares about their story shouldn’t be a big ask.

Israel is now bombing 1.7 million civilians trapped in Rafah, threatening an imminent invasion of the last “safe place” in Gaza.

Israel is committing the worst crimes in modern history, and Western regimes are calling it “self-defense”.

Never forget. Never forgive.

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As it is now, I'm not going to watch their retconned Best (platonic) Friends Tour, aka Daryl Dixon - Book of Carol. That's a hard pass.

11 more days! 11 more days! 11 more days!

https://x.com/freakwharf/status/1785293987084902705?s=12&t=i1APa9vRrSkMFX4tD6czgQ

What a way to promote Carol’s return in the Book of Carol. Well done! Bravo!

https://x.com/jameslucasit/status/1782823940810756398?s=12&t=i1APa9vRrSkMFX4tD6czgQ

Video of the greats reading Shakespeare. Judi Dench, Laurence Olivier, Richard Burton, Peter O’Toole, Damien Lewis, Patrick Stuart, Ian McKellan, Tom Hiddleston, Alan Richman. 💙💙

Book of Carol. Melissa McBride, Norman Reedus to appear at the Tribeca Film Festival Festival in NYC June 8, 2024 at 8pm.

💯💯this!!!!!

With AMC's Upfronts this week and "The Book of Carol" promotion on its way, I don't think it's too much to ask for everyone involved to show Carol Peletier and Melissa McBride the respect that they deserve. She is nobody's fucking "right hand" woman. Carol and Daryl are partners. Melissa and Norman are co-leads. Equally vital to the show. They should be equally billed and if they aren't, that is not a reflection of Melissa's commitment or value to the show. All that proves is how vile and petty her co-workers are.

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rewatching that trailer, it rly hits how unbalanced it is. you have carol over here actively trying to find daryl, and having all this callback stuff (the bow, the motorcycle), like her entire goal is to reunite, and then you have daryl doing... idk, france shit? being a Man with a Gun who is Shooting Bad Guys for Reasons probably. with like, no mention of carol at all? "to find home is to find each other," except we're gonna make that totally one-sided apparently, bc we can't jeopardize our male lead's sexy bachelor status when we still have so much super necessary, super asked for ship-baiting to do. like, why bring melissa in at all if you're not actually going to make caryl's relationship the focal point of the story?

idk man, hopefully it's just a shitty trailer, but i feel like i've smelt this odor before...

Elite Eight

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Do reviewers even watch the show?