The main change-up here was Carl getting nabbed and Negan -- as the absolute epitome of a grandstanding, monologuing "big bad" who likes to spare adversaries because they amuse him with their spirit and fortitude -- trying to impress the revenge-driven teen by showing off his cool life of "luxuries." Negan was the leather jacket-clad "Uncle Jesse" this week, trying to woo Carl away from his grim life back in Alexandria with Rick and covert him. To Carl's credit though, despite being slightly caught off guard by Negan's harem of traumatized sex slaves, he resisted, and his story this week was probably the best storyline the boy's had on the show to date - outside of having to shoot his own mother.Carl also got to gun down a couple Saviors on his way out of the truck and that was fairly badass. BUT, you have to wonder just how far Negan's fascination with Carl really goes. Really, Negan can lose two guys just like that and not physically punish Carl in some way? What will his men think of those lives going unavenged? Sure, they're all "Negan," but do they really appreciate being treated this disposably?
If Negan falls in the midseason finale, he'll go down as one of the most flawed villains on the show. Carl even called him out for sparing the lives of people he probably shouldn't have. Of course, the names brought up were Rick and Daryl when, in fact, it's the women who are mostly trying to take Negan out. The question though now is: Will someone kill Negan simply because SO many people are out to kill him or will everyone's plan fail because they're not aligned? Sasha and Jesus have their own scheme going. Michonne's off on her own (we think), Rosita is in the same area as Negan now (and she has a bullet!) and Carl already blew his chance.
Plus, you figure other communities that have axes to grind with Negan will have to play into any real form of effective retaliation - like Hilltop and the Kingdom.Carl learned a hard lesson here about trying to take matters into his own hands. No, not due to the slight psychological abuse he suffered when Negan decided to make him talk about past trauma and sing "You Are My Sunshine." No, Carl's actions, more or less, led Negan directly to Judith. Negan's now plopped on a porch, sipping lemonade, and making googly eyes at the girl. Will this be his bridge too far though? How will Rick react to this? He's submitting to Negan in order to protect the ones he loves, including Judith, so will Negan take the girl from him? Will that be the ultimate cost for Carl's mistake?
"Sing Me A Song" certainly wasn't without its interesting moments - most specifically, some of the interactions between Negan and Carl (plus some pivotal Rosita/Eugene exchanges.) Again, this was Carl's best material in a long while and Negan's morbid curiosity with him is one of the most intriguing elements of the season. If anything, Negan's giving the show's B and C players some decent revenge arcs. Others are stepping up while Rick is shrinking back. Still though, this episode was also kind of an overlong mess. The show still seems to think, for whatever reason, that all-Negan-all-the-time is a good tactic. It's actually sort of a disservice to Jeffrey Dean Morgan's performance. The worst thing you want from this type of playful villain is for him to wear out his welcome, and Negan's been coasting on borrowed appreciation for weeks now.There was so much in this week's episode that could have been cut out. The burning of Mark with the hot iron. Whatever the hell's going on with Spencer. Negan's weird conversation with Olivia. Why did he all of sudden care that he hurt her feelings? The last time he was in Alexandria he was set to kill her, on the spot, for something that wasn't her fault. Sure, he could have been "playing nice" for the sake of Carl - but what good does that do after Carl already watched Negan bash Abraham and Glenn's skulls in?
Elsewhere, Rick and Aaron found some sort of zombie-filled protection pond during their last-ditch scavenging efforts. The need to sneak some scenes into this week's chapter is understood since the next episode is the big fall finale, but why should we care about Rick finding something for Negan when we're also watching, ultimately, three or four different side stories involving characters trying to kill Negan? Is Rick going to find some huge prize? Maybe that's it. Rick uncovers some treasure that will appease Negan and send him back to the Sanctuary, all trespasses forgiven.
More likely though, someone's gonna die next week. Rosita's plan seems destined to fail and it'll either cost her, or Eugene - or both. Eugene's cowardice being brought up again makes me feel like he's due for a hero moment, though with a character like Eugene that usually signals a final moment.