The Walking Dead (TV Series) Dead Weight (2013) User Reviews

A crossroad!

[and_mikkelsen · 8/10 · 24 January 2024]

This was another refreshimg episode that develops the Guvernnor further as hebstands at a crossroad where he can either choose to become Brian... or The Guvernnor aka Phillip Blake!

I really enjoyed the inner conflict that you could see! I liked the subbtle way it was told, as it was more his actions that defiened him rather than his words! He was affraid of who he would become.. affraid that he liked the things he did, and affraid that he would once again loose what he had gained!

There were a couple of memorable scenes, like the one with Martinez! You can see the darkness.. slowly taking over, and I love that he seems affraid of it!

The end promises something big!

The Governor We Know Is Back!

[g-bodyl · 8/10 · 29 January 2015]

This is the seventh episode of the fourth season of the Walking Dead. So this was fast. After one episode showing the Governor as a man, we seem him back to his normal self here: a murderous psychopath. I'm not sure if we needed another episode designed for solely the Governor, as I would like to get back to our main characters in the prison. But the episode is good and the ending hints at another promising confrontation.

In this episode, "Dead Weight," The Governor and his new friends are welcomed into Martinez's group, but this time Martinez is the leader. But the Governor has different plans. He kills Martinez and another guy to assume leadership.

Overall, this is a solid episode, but I'm not sure if this episode and last episode could have worked better as one. But it's nice to see where the Governor stands and the cliffhanger is pretty good. I rate this episode 8/10.

Character Development Is Out. Murderous Governor Is Back.

[slightlymad22 · 7/10 · 1 February 2015]

Another episode of AMC's "The Walking Dead" where we don't see Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and the rest of our core cast.

Plot In A Paragraph: The Governor and Megan are rescued from the pit by Martinez, who is now in charge of a small camp of survivors. Martinez has made it clear that he's in charge, not the Governor. As time goes by, the Governor decides that the leadership of the group is very weak. He's tries to leave, but he realises they will all have to relocate and he knows exactly where they should resettle.

I'm not a fan of these epiosdes, any sympathy dredged up for The Governor in the last episode is gone, as he is clearly back to his murdering dangerous best. Or worst depending what way you look at it!!

This episode brings things back up to the end of episode 5, so the mid season finale, should feature our core group of survivors again.

The Rise Of Philip Blake...

[jesusum · 10/10 · 31 October 2015]

The things are kept interesting, after a refreshing pair episode to clear our minds from the prison, now bring us a different side with the same formula of chronic suppressed a mass murderer, Philp is slowly taking control of the situation in a pretty cool way , we get in the skin of the governor and demonstrating what can be a cold person misjudged step earning the respect of tough guys .

Another chapter refreshing as I said the same formula and new environment, another point is the cruelty and evil needed to be the leader, of course not before enjoy it and that is a very focused chapter shows the true sadistic feelings to fight for something.

An episode with some inconsistencies as the death of Martinez without taking advantage of it ... (but it was great and very cruel) .

Good points :

1) is entertaining 2) new scenarios 3) more cruelty 4) The final

Bad points:

1) inconsistencies in the story

Total: 9.4

Great Episode! Really Picked up the pace.

[ematrudo17 · 10/10 · 25 November 2013]

Every week I look forward to the Walking Dead despite it's flaws. I see people write reviews bashing the show as if their experts. There are complaints about pointless things that most people would disagree with. But lets not dwell on that. Despite being another Governor-centric episode, this weeks episode was really well done. The pace quickened and the background music was really well placed and done. From the opening scene, the light music set a dark theme. This episode has it share of frights, action, suspense, and just utter awesomeness. Lots of things are tied up quite nicely and the cliff hanger is one of best we have seen in awhile. It sets up all out war for the mid season finale. From the promo, it shouldn't disappoint. "Slow" scenes were for the most part pretty scarce this episode and the characters were usually always doing something. But when there was a slower scene, it made sense and was interesting..considering the suspense and dread that was nicely draped over the majority of the episode. This season has by no stretch been bad. Stop hating and enjoy the show. Learn to enjoy slower scenes because lets face it..action all the time isn't always a good thing. This episode currently has 8.2 rating but it defiantly should be somewhere in the 8.4-8.5 range. After last weeks slower paced episode..this one was thrill ride. Next weeks mid season finale should raise the bar higher.

The Governor is still the same man.

[snwbatz · 8/10 · 3 February 2023]

At the end of the last episode we saw the Governor reunite with Martinez. We see Martinez has become a leader of sorts for this group of people. And the Governor and the people he met in the last episode join the group. The last episode made it seem like the Governor was a better man. But we see that the Governor isn't a changed man. At every opportunity he gets to reclaim power he takes it like killing Martinez when he's drunk and near a pit full of walkers. Or when he kills Pete who's next in line to be in charge. The Governor will stab you in the back if it will benefit him in any way. If you like the Governor or are interested in what's happening with him I think you'll like this episode. And if you were looking forward to him being a better person sorry that's not the case.

Not a dead weight

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 1 September 2018]

Had heard nothing but great things about 'The Walking Dead' from friends and IMDb reviewers. It took a while to get round to watching, both from being busy and also not being sure whether it would be my cup of tea. Finally getting round to it a few years ago and slowly working my way through it, having had a very long to watch and review list, 'The Walking Dead' turned out to be very much my cup of tea and as good as the hype made it out to be, have found it extremely addictive.

""Dead Weight", more eventful and gutsy than the previous episode "Live Bait" if not the adrenaline rush of other episodes before and since, does lack other episodes's tautness but it is still a very well done episode. It is yet again a strong reminder of how Seasons 1-5 of 'The Walking Dead' to me were absolutely brilliant and seeing the show in its full glory days (Season 6 was uneven, Season 7 was a huge disappointment and am still debating whether to watch Season 8). It is a thought-provoking episode with some tension and emotion, though these two are stronger in previous and later episodes.

It still shocks me at how an intelligent, well-made (so much so that it is easy to mistake it for a film) show about zombies could be made when so many films have tried and failed abysmally to do so.

Maybe "Dead Weight" has spots where it is too coincidence reliant and there definitely could have been more subtlety, failed redemption is a heavy theme but there were times where it could have been dealt with a little more sympathetically.

Like all the episodes of the show, "Dead Weight" is incredibly well made in the production values, with gritty and audacious production design, photography of almost cinematic quality, effects that look good, have soul and are not overused or abused and pretty frightening make-up. The music is haunting and affecting, having presence but never being too intrusive.

The writing is intelligent and thought-provoking, a bit heavy on the talk at times but intrigues still, with lots of slow-burning tension and emotional resonance and shows signs of character complexity and multiple layer storytelling. The more eventful parts are suitably uncompromising.

Appreciated the ever strong and still progressing story, where there is never the mistake of being confused or over-stuffed, and character building, which the episode has a bigger emphasis on, and that the pace is rarely dull or rushed with a mix of alertness and breathing, with some intensity in the more tense parts. The character writing and the character interactions are what is particularly great here, the further development for the Governor was appreciated and it fascinated as well as resonated.

Everything is nicely paced without rushing through the more important parts, not exactly taut all the time but not dull. The world building is already stunningly immersive and effective. Direction is smart and atmospheric while the show throughout has been strongly acted, David Morrissey here is terrific yet again, very commanding with a foreboding edge.

On the whole, very good but it is understandable if it doesn't work for some. 8/10 Bethany Cox

The "Character Development" Is Gone: The Psychopath Is Back

[claudio_carvalho · 6/10 · 26 November 2013]

The Governor, Alisha, Tara and Meghan are welcomed by Martinez's group of survivors. After a patrol of Martinez, Pete, Mitch and the Governor, Martinez plays golf on the roof of a RV. Out of the blue, the Governor kills him and Pete takes the provisional leadership of the group. The Governor also kills him and then he threatens Mitch to assume the leadership of the survivors.

"Dead Weight" is another episode where the writers continue to stall the fans. The last episode was a waste of time, but many viewers have written the clichés that it would be "a great character development" of The Governor. Now the psychopath is back with the leadership of a group; therefore, back to the end of the Season Three, except that it is a different group. The interesting part of the series, the group in the prison, is again forgotten. Now there is only one episode before the break in December and the writers will certainly interrupt the show in its climax. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Dead Weight"

Note: On 15 April 2016, I saw this show again.

Another governor episode. But this time, it literally makes me angry.

[XueHuaBingYu · 6/10 · 14 October 2019]

Before I watched this episode 7, I happened to read some of the comments on a website. Most of them said they didn't understand what this episode is for and what it is. They said they needed to watch the talking dead before they watched the walking dead. That being said, I find this one quite a mystery.

I think what people don't understand is maybe those headless zombies and that cabin with some heads inside it. Although I don't know why there are so many headless zombies and heads, but I take it is another mystery. I kind of want to see how the hell happened in there.

In the previous episode, I thought that governor guy changed a little bit better than before. He was helping and kind. But as I've said in my previous review, bad guy will always be bad guy. They will never change no matter how long the time takes. As I've thought, that governor guy did terrible and bad things. I really want to kill him while I was watching this episode, you know?

It's so sad to see Martinez died. Although he wasn't that good, but he wasn't that bad. I just sad to see he died in that damned governor's hands. He already knows that governor guy is very bad. He took him in. He shouldn't take him in no matter what. That was the biggest mistake he's ever done.

I also kind of want Mitch to die. Robbing others just for them is the terrible thing you ever do. In this kind of situation, everyone is the same. They also want to survive, and the others want to survive too. Robbing others just for them to survive is very bad. And that man who Mitch killed, I kind of agreed with Pete. He didn't need to kill. That old man might have lived. He should have given him a chance. So, I think he's very wrong with everything.

I think it's going to be very sad in the next episodes. That damned governor guy is about to take the prison and a lot of people will die because of it. If I see that scene, I might want to kill that governor guy more and more. I don't even know I can take it. No matter what, I'll keep watching because I want to see how that governor guy dies.

Overall is that I really hope that they would explain about what happened in the cabin and also, I hope that they will make the governor guy's death the best because I'm desperately looking forward to it. If his death doesn't satisfy me, I might stop watching this show.

The tension builds as the Governor's plan to take over the prison begins to take shape, setting the stage for a dramatic confrontation

[fernandoschiavi · 8/10 · 9 March 2024]

The Governor's return to leadership is explored further as he takes control of a new group and sets his sights on the prison. The episode delves into the Governor's manipulation and deception, showing his willingness to do whatever it takes to protect his new "family." The tension builds as the Governor's plan to take over the prison begins to take shape, setting the stage for a dramatic confrontation. The episode also explores themes of power and control, as the Governor seeks to assert his dominance over those around him.

The major flaw of this two-parter is that, as told, there really isn't enough story to justify spending two episodes on it. It's not hard to understand why the writers wanted to: by giving Brian a full hour in "Live Bait" to get to know Lily, Megan, and Tara, they had a chance to get inside his head in a way that made his actions in the following episode more powerful. And even "Dead Weight" had sluggish spots. In particular, Brian's sudden decision to try and get his family out of the camp after he kills Martinez and realizes the new leaders might not be so friendly (and that he might have to kill again) is a pointless plot cul-de-sac; it's arguably there to reinforce Brian's feeling that he's trapped, but it's not necessary, and even the neat visual of a muddy road full of zombies doesn't really redeem it.

Still, this was one of the highlights of the season so far, and goes a good distance towards helping to shore up some of the questionable aspects of the Governor's character. By forcing us to piece together his motives, the writers have succeeded in making the man more than just a vague collection of potential threats. He now has a very clear purpose, and woe betide anyone he decides is in his way. Early in the episode, Martinez tells him and the others that he won't allow any "dead weight" in his group. It sounds like a threat, but turns out to be hollow; Martinez is a decent enough, and it's hard to imagine him stabbing anyone in the back who failed to live up to standards. The Governor, though? To the Governor, everyone is weight. It's just that some of them aren't dead yet.

Good episode but contrived in parts

[snoozejonc · 7/10 · 2 December 2021]

The Governor and family join a new survival camp.

This is a fairly good episode with some effective scenes that builds strongly towards a confrontation at the prison.

Another episode focussed on the Governor is very much necessary as 'Live Bait' felt like half a story. The previous character development has somewhat halted during this episode and it feels like business as usual for the character as The Walking Dead's primary antagonist. It has to be said this was quite predictable.

The writers theme of whether characters can 'come back' after going through certain experiences and committing heinous acts in the name of survival is addressed directly by the character's arc in these two episodes. There are moments where it works very well, particularly the scene where in the midst of doing something brutal the Governor says "I didn't want it" and numerous scenes in 'Live Bait'.

What makes it slightly harder to swallow are the amount of contrivances that lead the character back to the prison and seemingly so quickly. In all, he finds a perfect substitute daughter, falls into a camp of survivors with a leadership crisis (and a tank!), has his escape blocked by a mud bath of zombies, saves the substitute daughter from near death by zombie, is apparently forgiven for murdering someone's brother, and on first sight of the prison has a clear shot of the one person he wants to visit revenge upon.

None of the above is badly done. In fact the scenes are at the usual high standard of filmmaking for TWD, plus David Morrissey is on top form throughout. As an overall narrative though it feels like a stretch and maybe even slightly pointless just to bring the character back to the prison for another fight. However, I will reserve final opinion to see the outcome of the confrontation.

Visually it is fantastic as ever. The zombie mud bath is very creepy and some of the cinematography that uses the surrounding landscape is fantastic.

Predictably the unpredictable "Governor" is back.

[alsation72 · 3/10 · 29 November 2013]

The Governor as a character ... sorry he makes no sense to me. What are his motives? He is just as likely to kill someone as help them and its tedious. There needs to be some level of consistency. What's his back story? Is he psychotic for any reason?

Totally unconvinced that he could just stumble around with zombies falling behind him for no particular reason. Just a few episodes ago that young, upbeat couple had been killed collecting fruit, but the governor just swishes his shoulder to th side a little and that gets rid of them. Sorry not buying it.

Still its nice to get away from that dreary jail and that stupid flu and the ever-serious Rick. I wonder what Carol's doing?

One of the best episodes this season

[Josh_The_Third · 9/10 · 1 December 2013]

I wasn't very impressed with the previous episode seeing the sudden focus on the governor and his "new life". However, "Dead Weight" very much justifies this new direction the show has taken.

Although finding himself some sort of family, as we viewers know, the governor did not change for good and is still the same dangerous man he was last season. But not only that. While in the Woodbury arc he was a just another liar-turned-murderer, in this season we see him grow into a fully-fledged psychopath.

I like to compare such survivalist nut-case characters to Shane, but in our case the governor has outdone Shane's sins tenfold. We got a real villain on our hands, and even though his character development did not flow so well until now, I congratulate the writers for successfully creating such a cunning & seriously evil character.

What I also find amazing about this episode is how many scenes, like the chess game, the hole in the ceiling and the golf game with Martinez are multi-dimensional: they have these echoing analogies about them, each one showing us the working of the villain's inner world, the starkest one being when he is in front of a pack of zombies stuck in the mud. That scene almost spells out this episode's bottom line: This guy is a m-o-n-s-t-e-r.

Lastly, the analogy works on another level even, as looking at this group we get a sort of a Deja-Vu feeling..we have seen this kind of tragedy unfold once already, didn't we? Man, what a great episode!!

We Needed You Governor, Badly

[TheFearmakers · 9/10 · 30 October 2019]

Not only do they find a horrible prison to horribly survive in, but there is a deadly pig flu rampant, and with all the other things that cause death, this was overkill. The Governor's story in the previous season was the only worthwhile part. Andrea as a stranger in a strange land, Woodbury had its own beginning, middle and end, unlike the prison which is just long, and boring with Rick, who is a likeable actor but he drawls and hams like William Shatner gets legendary crap for. And here again is a beginning, middle and end for The Governor, starting out with nothing, we see him continue his rise from the last episode.

"The Walking Dead" Dead Weight

[xebxxlcs · 24 November 2013]

Something new unfolds at a camp outside the prison; the addition of new members may threaten peace. The mortal threat of the living has been a disturbing, central theme throughout the series of "The Walking Dead."

Never was that theme more pronounced as in Season 3, when the Governor, who presented himself as an attentive, protective leader of Woodbury, ultimately killed several members of that town and destroyed it.

Caesar Martinez, one of his cohorts, witnessed the Governor's apparent emotional breakdown and abandoned him in the beginning of this past week's episode.

And now Caesar has returned for the upcoming episode titled "Dead Weight," leading his own group with his own approach toward survival.

The episode's title is bloated with possibilities as to how Caesar perceives his role as leader, especially since his group is exposed to walkers and possibly other survivors in the woods, a scene reminiscent of survivors in Season 1.

As the clear leader of this new group, Caesar even states that "dead weight" won't be tolerated.

Could the dead weight be Tara, Melody and Megan, the group the Governor has adopted to protect?

Could the dead weight be the headless body tied to a tree with the sign "liar" attached to his chest?

Or could the dead weight be the Governor and his proved instability?

In Season 3, the Governor's dominance overshadowed Caesar's persona, in many ways. He was mainly depicted as an accomplice to the Governor's biddings, particularly when the Governor and he killed living soldiers and stole their weapons.

But this season should expose more about Caesar's character and whether the Governor will participate in his regime.

With the Governor standing outside the prison alone in episode 5, fans know he survived more than six months after the fall of Woodbury.

Serving as flashbacks, episodes 6 and 7 present new challenges and new people the Governor, the protagonist, must adapt to. But whether these people survive the walkers and the arrogance of Caesar and the Governor will be seen.

Below are two previews of Sunday's episode. The long clip is an actual scene from the episode; the short one provides an overview.

More character development episode!

[mm-39 · 7/10 · 26 November 2013]

Dead Weight episode is another character development episode. The viewer experiences more character development of the governor. One experiences the governor's personal softer side as a family man. The dark side of self interest, and malice is predominant in Dead Weight. The Governor kills and disposes of anyone who is in his way coldly, and uses deception/lies to manipulate the group. The Governor is a true psychopath, has no remorse which is mixed in with great organizational and leadership skills. One sees why the Governor ran Woodbury. One can compare and contrast and see why Rick does not want to be like the Governor and has a moral conscience. Dead Weight is a build up for the Governor wants another object which is Rick's prison. I believe the story is about the tale of two characters the Governor and Rick. Tough people, and the difference in leadership? One experiences the arguments of moral consciousness and reason as the thesis for season 4. Seven out of ten.

Better than last episode, but still quite boring

[i-am-so-original · 7/10 · 28 November 2013]

This episode saw a rise in the Governor storyline, although it was still quite a boring and somewhat uneventful hour of television.

The episode showed the Governor slowly become taken by the dark side again, events in the story making him spiral out of control and begin to take on his Governor role again, as much as he does not want to ("I don't want it!", he screams at Martinez in one of the episode's best scenes), but he has to. This group needs a strong leader, and no one will take on that role. The two new leaders are arguing constantly, one wanting to take a darker route and do what needs to be done, one being too kind for his own good and letting another party go with potential supplies. "Brian" takes over, doing what needs to be done for the good of the group, and that means doing some things he is not proud of, which leads to the episode's ending in which the Governor begins his plot against the prison. It was a good hour of character development for the Governor, showing how his Brian persona will not suit him in these times of need, and that his newfound group of friends (family?) need protection, which leads him to the prison takeover. It's a good bit of development for the character rather than having him be purely evil as seen in Season 3; we now see him do things for the good of the group and we understand his motives rather than being a psychopath as we've previously seen.

While the character development was good, the episode itself suffered from a slow and plodding hour. While I understand it was a character motivated episode, it was done quite slowly and uneventfully, as the hour itself seemed to drag. And that's the problem with these last two episodes - they have been too slow and uneventful to be an entertaining piece of television. Character development needs to be understood through entertaining means - we need to see, relate, and understand why these characters do the things they do, and while this episode did these things, it did so in an uninteresting way.

The new characters were as annoying as they were last episode, especially the new character of Tara. I understand she's a strong female character, but it seems to me like she is faking her toughness. I don't understand why she needs to seem tougher than she actually is (pretending to be a cop, showing off her knowledge of guns), and it just comes across as annoying.

Overall, a good episode of character development, but shown in an uninteresting way, and the new characters remain too annoying to be relatable or enjoyable to watch.

+ Good episode for the Governor + Promises an interesting turn for the character and for upcoming episodes - Boring and uneventful - New characters suck