“Welcome to the first day of the rest of your life,” says Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) to Sasha (Sonequa Martin-Green) as he prepares to tell her his plan to get things back on track in season seven episode 16 of AMC’s The Walking Dead.
As the season seven finale begins, Sasha is in darkness, holding still and listening to music on an iPod. There’s a flashback to Abraham (Michael Cudlitz) waking Sasha from a dream on the day they’re about to go with Rick to take Maggie to the doctor at Hilltop. The scene changes to Negan delivering breakfast and bringing her up to speed on what he has in store for Rick and the Alexandrians, and how he’ll get things back on track. Negan tells her that a few people will die – but not her. He reveals Lucille will take three. Sasha tells Negan no one has to die, but Negan is adamant punishment is necessary. Sasha still resists, so he offers to only kill one instead. Sasha agrees to only one dying.
Back at Alexandria, Dwight (Austin Amelio) is trying to convince everyone that everything he did for Negan was always for someone else. Daryl (Norman Reedus) stands just inches from Dwight, holding a large knife nearly touching Dwight’s face. Daryl knows Dwight’s talking about the same person who let him go and she’s gone now so he wants Negan dead. Dwight says Daryl knows him and that he’s telling the truth. Tara (Alanna Masterson) tells Daryl to kill him, but he doesn’t. Dwight tells Rick that Negan is coming tomorrow with some Saviors and that he can go out and cut down some trees to give them time to get ready.
“Keep talking,” says Rick (Andrew Lincoln). As Dwight drives off to do what he said, Daryl tells Rick no matter if he’s lying or not he’s going to kill Dwight when it’s all over.
At the Hilltop, Maggie (Lauren Cohan) is talking to Jesus (Tom Payne) and is thinking about leading a group to join in the fight at Alexandria, even though Rick wants the Hilltop to stay back as reserves. Jesus is happy Maggie’s making decisions for the Hilltop now since Gregory left, but whatever she decides she has to decide soon.
Over at the Kingdom, Carol (Melissa McBride) is in battle gear and heads out with King Ezekiel (Khary Payton) and his army to join in the fight at Alexandria. As they’re leaving, they come across Morgan (Lennie James) who’s also dressed for war, but he wants to go on his own. Both Carol and Ezekiel talk to Morgan and convince him to join them, promising together they’ll make sure Negan’s reign of evil and tyranny comes to an end.
At Alexandria, Jadis (Pollyanna McIntosh) and her junkyard people show up to get their guns and join in the fight against the Saviors. Rosita (Christian Serratos) takes some explosives and builds a bomb to use during the fight. Jadis ticks off Michonne (Danai Gurira) when she asks if Rick is hers. After Michonne confirms they’re together, Jadis declares she will lie with Rick after they win. Michonne, angry, wants them to just get to work and prepare for battle.
Negan and his Saviors come across a roadblock created by some downed trees and suspect Rick is on to their visit. Eugene (Josh McDermitt) asks if Negan will let him go on ahead and see if he can get Rick and his group to stand down to avoid any unnecessary bloodshed. Negan smiles and agrees.
Flashback to Abraham and Sasha talking about taking Maggie to the Hilltop, and Sasha tells Abraham she had a dream where he died. She says she wants them to stay put and not go to the Hilltop. Cut to Eugene escorting Sasha to get ready to help Negan put things right and telling her he’s glad she didn’t take the poison.
At Alexandria, everyone is in position when Eugene shows up and tells Rick he needs to stand down, that the jig is up. “Where’s Negan?” asks a disappointed Rick. “I’m Negan,” replies Eugene which causes Rick, Carl (Chandler Riggs), and Rosita to be both sad and determined. Rick gives Rosita the signal to set off the bomb, only it doesn’t go off. Rick and his group have been betrayed by Jadis and her people. (Seriously, who didn’t see that coming?!) Turns out she made a deal with Negan and is the little birdie he told Sasha about. All her people turn their guns on Rick’s group, instructing them to drop their weapons.
Negan appears and gloats about how dumb and pathetic Rick is, and then he has Dwight and Simon (Steven Ogg) bring out a large coffin, telling Rick that Sasha is inside. Negan goes on to tell Rick that he wants all their guns, all their lemonade, a person for Lucille, Daryl, and the pool table – or Sasha dies. “Let me see her,” replies Rick.
Another flashback shows Abraham kissing Sasha and telling her Maggie is carrying the future. He finally gets her to agree to go and help Rick take Maggie to the Hilltop. Next up is another flashback to Eugene giving Sasha an iPod with music to listen to while she’s in the coffin on the drive over to Alexandria. Sasha tells Eugene she hasn’t given up on him. Negan walks up and says to Sasha, “I know how tough this is and I want you to know I appreciate it.” On the drive over as Sasha thinks about her last private moments with Abraham and listening to the music, she takes the poison Eugene gave her a few days earlier.
When Negan opens the coffin to show Rick that Sasha’s alive, hungry walker Sasha comes out and attacks a very surprised Negan! This is exactly the diversion Rick and his team needs to open fire and begin fighting the Saviors. Rick turns to Jadis and tells her they can work out another deal but she just shoots him in his side and knocks him off the tower. Negan is wrestling with walker Sasha and is saved by a loyal Savior who ends up having his face eaten by Sasha. (You go get ’em, Sasha!)
During the battle, Michonne gets into a hand-to-hand fight with one of Jadis’ people who seems to be winning. As the shots slow and the smoke clears, it becomes obvious the Saviors are winning. Negan starts gloating again and taunting Rick who he forces to his knees by Carl’s side. Negan tells Rick he’s going to kill Carl with Lucille and after that destroy Rick’s hands. Rick replies, “You’re already dead.” As Negan prepares to bash in poor Carl’s head, Ezekiel’s tiger Shiva attacks and scares the hell out of Negan! Carol, Morgan, and Ezekiel arrive along with Maggie and her people from the Hilltop to save the day, with Ezekiel yelling, “Alexandria will not fall, not on this day!”
The fight continues with Carol, Daryl, Morgan, Maggie, and many of their friends driving both the Saviors and Jadis and her people out, making them retreat. After the battle, Rick and Carl search for Michonne who they thought cried out as she lost the fight with Jadis’ follower. When they get there, they find the lifeless body of the junkyard person. Rick and Carl enter their house and find a badly beaten Michonne barely conscious. Rick hugs her. (Never doubted Michonne for a second.)
Back at the Sanctuary, Negan asks Eugene how Sasha died and Eugene tells him she must have run out of air. “Maybe,” responds Negan as he turns to tell his army of Saviors they’re going to war.
In the final montage of scenes, Daryl finds a toy soldier with the words “didn’t know” on the back. Maggie and Jesus track down walker Sasha and put her down, and Maggie delivers a speech to everyone. Maggie also tells Rick that it all started with him and Glenn so long ago. “You were trapped. You were in trouble. Glenn didn’t know you, but he helped you. He risked his life for you and that started it all. Because Glenn was there for you that day, it changed everything.” Maggie goes on to say how they’ve become a family who sacrifices for each other and it’s all because of that day so long ago when Glenn helped Rick. She ends by saying, “Glenn made the decision, Rick. I was just following his lead.”
The Walking Dead Season 7 Finale Review:
Suspenseful, action-packed, and touching, episode 16 titled “The First Day of the Rest of Your Life” finally delivered the big battle The Walking Dead fans have been waiting for between Rick and Alexandria, the Hilltop, and the Kingdom against Negan and his Saviors. It also showed the supreme sacrifice from Sasha whose death and transformation into a walker was the distraction needed to save Rick and Alexandria, buying them the time they needed until the Hilltop and the Kingdom could arrive.
There were a few stand-out performances in this episode. Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan had a terrific episode, going from being his cocky and arrogant usual self to surprise and even fear when he has to wrestle with walker Sasha and discovers the other groups have teamed up with Rick. It’s a nice change to see the almost always-in-control tyrant having to scramble and make a run for his own life.
Another stand-out performance was delivered by Sonequa Martin-Green as Sasha. The flashback scenes of Sasha being close and intimate with Abraham on what would turn out to be their last private moment together showed a soft and vulnerable side of Sasha which Martin-Green perfectly portrayed. At first, Sasha tried to talk Abraham out of going because of her bad dream but ultimately came to realize he was right and that their place in the group was to take chances to help others survive.
One of the best and most emotionally impactful moments in the episode was the final scene in which Maggie lays out how everything they are to each other and the fact they all have become a family started back when Glenn decided to save Rick when he was trapped inside a tank surrounded by walkers. It’s an extremely well-written and poignant scene, taking the audience all the way back to the beginning of the series.
GRADE: B+
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