First Things First…
John and Quiet’s run-in with Agent Stone and his goons brought them a little closer together—or at least they’re not trying to kill one another anymore. The plan seems to be for John to drop Quiet off, but I have to assume they’re going to stick together, so I hope they continue bickering but also becoming friendlier.
After Stu helped them escape, only to get left behind, staring down the barrel of the lawmen’s guns, I’m anxious to see how he gets back in their good graces.
And will we see any more flashbacks to Agent Stone’s life before the world went to shit? Or was the whole point just to see the kind of disrespected cop he was, and why he snapped?
5 Things I Like
5. Not Knowing Old Things
“So I should already know the joke before you tell it? That’s idiotic.”
Quiet
Quiet doesn’t understand the structure of knock-knock jokes… Watts doesn’t know the difference between a chicken and a duck… with the fall of civilization, some really basic things are being lost.
4. On a Collision Course with Holy Men
We’ve already met lawmen and vultures on the open road. Now they’re teasing Holy Men.
John and Quiet have a close call but manage to avoid them. Amber also thinks at first that John and Quiet are Holy Men, which is why she poisons them.
The biggest tease, though, is the person crucified upside down on the side of the road with a “Got Milk” bumper sticker plastered over their mouth.
With just a few lines of dialogue, some bells chiming, and that one disturbing image, the show has established the Holy Men as another threat our protagonists will surely have to overcome in their travels.
3. City with Wheels, Not Walls
“You ever think about staying? I mean, the convoy is exactly what you and your brother were looking for, safe, secure… it’s a city, just with wheels instead of walls.”
John
When John and Quiet get captured in the beginning of the episode, it’s easy to assume their captors are villains. But nope…
Convoy is actually pretty cool. This group of big rig trucks drive in unison and have ramps that connect one to the next, so even as they’re on the move, their residents can float back and forth from truck to truck.
This is their permanent home. As John says, it’s a city on wheels instead of with walls.
There’s safety in numbers for them. Plus, they’re armed to the teeth. In fact, it’s so promising that John and Quiet both talk about the possibility of staying, even though they ultimately decide against it.
2. Granny and Watts
“I am the last of the old-timers. You’re taking the wheel now, Watts. So let me give you a nickel’s worth of free advice: The only thing more precious than gas, food, porno, water, is time—time with the people you care about. Don’t let some dumb bullshit take that time away from you.”
Granny Dread
Our time with Convoy is a lot of fun thanks to the two main characters we meet there, Granny and Watts.
Granny is a horny old woman who, as it turns out, is dying. But she’s a firecracker who shares some great advice before she checks out. She has a smart perspective on how to live a full life in this crazy world they inhabit.
Meanwhile, Watts seems a bit kooky at first. But we come to see she’s a lovesick woman who pushed away the love of her life out of fear. And, until Granny’s speech, she doesn’t seem inclined to try to get her back.
1. The Evolution of a Friendship
John and Quiet continue to find more common ground.
I love the scene in the abandoned movie theater, with John putting on Blankman with no sound, and the two of them filling in the dialogue.
They’re sharing more—like when John tells Quiet about Milkmen not living long—plus they’re goofing off together more, and even getting a little flirty.
But most importantly, after Quiet freaks out when she sees that John—trying to do something nice for her—has washed her brother’s jacket, it doesn’t ruin things.
Sure, she gives him the cold shoulder for a bit. But eventually, he apologizes, and she forgives him. She doesn’t try to kill him, or abandon him, or do anything like that.
It’s almost like it’s a regular friendship—with romance potential still intact.
0 Things I’m Mixed On
1 Thing I Don’t Like
1. Don’t Drink That!
C’mon… haven’t these two seen enough shit on the road to know that when a stranger hands you drinks, you politely decline so you don’t wind up poisoned and paralyzed?
Especially when the person handing you the drinks is a crazy plant lady, and you’re in the middle of a botanical hellscape?
I thought these two were smarter than this.
Tim Matassa
