Does Rick Leave the CRM on The Ones Who Live?
Summary
- Rick Grimes is persistent about staying with the CRM, even when his wife Michonne returns to take him home.
- In The Ones Who Live Episode 4, Michonne works tirelessly to get through to Rick and convince him there’s a life worth living back in Alexandria.
- The end of Episode 4 has Rick make a decision once and for all about his predicament.
The Civic Republic Military (CRM) is the big-bad that will literally blow up houses in The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live. They have bombs, helicopters, thousands of soldiers, John Locke as their leader and something sketchy called an Echelon Briefing. Michonne is new to the CRM, so naturally, she’s a bit rebellious. She doesn’t mind drawing attention to herself, clearly showing she’s an “A” rather than the “B” she’s been labeled as. Unfortunately for Michonne, Rick has been subjected to the CRM’s psychological conditioning.
In The Ones Who Live, Rick has become less of a human being and more of a mindless soldier with only the mission in his head. Michonne begins to wonder if her husband is the same man he was before the bridge explosion, even after she threw him out of a helicopter for a time-out. In Season 1, Episode 4, “What We,” Rick and Michonne get into several arguments about Rick’s acceptance of his fate. Thanks to coincidental timing, Rick and Michonne may have found the perfect opportunity to slip out of the CRM with no repercussions. But “may” is a very strong word in this scenario.
Rick and Michonne’s Fake Deaths Are the Perfect Cop Out
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After taking shelter in a powered apartment complex, Rick and Michonne discover that the helicopter they escaped from conveniently crashed into the building as well. This means the CRM is going to believe everyone is dead, including Rick and Michonne. It’s all they need to get away, but he’s not budging, even when the CRM destroys the evidence of their existence. His faith in the CRM isn’t wavering, not because he truly believes in the CRM, but because he worries about his children’s safety. He now knows he has a son named RJ, who adds another layer to his overprotective fatherly instinct. Michonne is devastated by his refusal to be a father to his children, so she has to go for the big guns: Carl Grimes.
The son who should’ve been Rick’s legacy is the key to unlocking the old Rick and throwing this new one away. Rick’s dreams of Carl were the only thing keeping him alive and mentally stable at the CRM. But just like Carl in real life, those slipped away too. She begs Rick to see things from Carl’s optimistic perspective: What would Carl do in this situation? Would he sacrifice his well-being and life for an enemy that doesn’t care about him? No, Carl would invest in something worthwhile, like a family or a community that looks out for each other. With this in mind, Rick agrees to leave the CRM with Michonne in a cool, yellow electric car as the helicopter and building crumble to the ground.
Jadis Is Too Smart to Fall for Rick and Michonne’s Tricks
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Rick and Michonne may have driven the yellow electric car into the sunset, but their beef with the CRM is far from over. Jadis is still a major issue, and has proven in the past she’ll go to the ends of the Earth to obey the CRM’s no-tolerance policy of secrecy. Season 1, Episode 3, “Bye” hints at Jadis seeing through Rick and Michonne’s future plans to escape. Having a personal history as both friend and foe to the couple, Jadis fully believes that Rick and Michonne can do anything together. It’s why Rick is suddenly on her radar, which begs the question if Rick really believes Jadis wouldn’t spy on Alexandria or the Commonwealth to confirm their deaths.
The CRM is the most suspicious and paranoid organization in the world, so they don’t just have a one-step routine to get rid of the evidence and go home. “What We” has another slight plot hole that puts a damper on Rick and Michonne’s plan, besides Jadis being a nosy neighbor. When Rick and Michonne fell out of the helicopter, there’s a high chance the pilot or another passenger reported the incident to higher-ups before the helicopter crashed. This means that Jadis is probably on a scouting mission already.
What’s the Solution to Rick and Michonne’s CRM Problem?
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There’s very little chance Rick and Michonne will make it far, since the CRM has eyes everywhere. Even if the couple make it back to Alexandria, Rick will be living the rest of his life looking over his shoulder for the CRM, since the psychological conditioning he endured doesn’t just go away when he escapes his captors. It’ll take years for Rick to adjust to normal life again, if there’s even such a thing as that. Physically, Rick has escaped the CRM. but mentally, there is another beast he’s yet to tackle.
Rick’s situation with the CRM is similar to what Maggie is currently experiencing with Negan in The Walking Dead:Dead City. Maggie distanced herself from Negan in The Walking Dead finale, letting him live so that he can raise his child. She had every right to kill him for murdering Glenn, but Maggie was the bigger person in this case. Six years later, she finds herself in a position where she has to work with Negan. All of these feelings she’s bottled up have been released once again because she’s never mentally escaped the torment Negan caused.
Likewise, Rick could find himself coming face-to-face with the CRM in the future. The organization’s expansion is growing every year, so it’s bound to happen. Once this event occurs, all the memories of being beaten down and broken by the CRM’s drilling will come flooding back. Rick doesn’t want to be put in this position again, but more importantly, he doesn’t want his family to endure rigorous abuse thanks to the CRM.
Rick is in a tricky scenario right now. Michonne’s idea of escaping without notice is a pipe dream that only works in a perfect world. No one can blame her for wanting to achieve it, but she doesn’t know the CRM like Rick does. So what’s the solution? Killing Beale won’t do it, though he isn’t the sole mastermind behind this entire operation. Beale does have dozens to hundreds of other higher-ups ready to fill his shoes.
Hypothetically, Rick and Michonne could wipe out every higher-up of the CRM since they’re all meeting at the Cascades base soon. But even that’s far from a fathomable end to the CRM’s reign. This means Rick and Michonne will have to swallow the giant pill of spending more time as undercover operatives with the CRM to make a slow change. Peace comes at a cost for people who are willing to work for it, even if it means throwing away their entire lives.
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The Ones Who Live Episodes |
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Episode 5 – “Become” |
March 24, 2024 |
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Episode 6 – “The Last Time” |
March 31, 2024 |
New episodes of The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live premiere every Sunday at 9:00 PM ET on AMC and AMC+.
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live
The love story between Rick and Michonne. Changed by a world that is constantly changing, will they find themselves in a war against the living or will they discover that they too are The Walking Dead?
- Release Date
- February 25, 2024
- Cast
- Frankie Quinones , Andrew Lincoln , Danai Gurira , Lesley-Ann Brandt , Pollyanna McIntosh
- Seasons
- 1
- Franchise
- The Walking Dead
- Creator
- Scott M. Gimple and Danai Gurira
- Production Company
- American Movie Classics (AMC)
- Streaming Service(s)
- AMC+
