Well, it’s sort of what I thought it would be and sort of isn’t. And I guess that’s high praise for something that has the premise in the title itself (I’m not being sarcastic.) Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol’s second episode pulls off as much unpredictability as possible for the kind of show it is. So, while you can blame it for playing things too safe, it’s actually not lazy with the conflict it’s trying to get us to care about.

Genet’s origin

Since we’ve only known France in its post-apocalyptic form in The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, it makes sense that we’ve forgotten that these characters had whole different lives before the end-of-the-world sort of event. And it’s all the more weird to imagine Genet as someone who was normal before all this; how can someone normal become, well, this? But believe it or not, Genet was just another wage-earning woman at a job that barely saw her as a person. More accurately, though, given she worked as janitorial staff at the Louvre, art meant way more to her employers than human beings, so it hardly would’ve made a difference if they treated Marion Genet as they treated people. The apocalypse upturned the world for them, so the janitorial staff didn’t need to go ahead with the protests anyway. They were kept safe inside the barricades that were only put there to safeguard the art as they watched their loved ones fall prey to a then-unknown terror. Genet watched her husband get torn to shreds. Her heart hardened looking at the original Mona Lisa. And now, as a fierce contender for the political throne of Paris, she still has the Mona Lisa painting ornamenting a now-drab wall of the Maison Mere. The painting is the ice-breaker between the two formidable women, Genet and Carol. I think Carol can somewhat read Genet. There’s almost this sense that Genet thinks she’s as ambiguous as the face of the woman in the painting, something people have been trying to read for ages. So when Carol says that Mona Lisa looks sullen to her, she’s actually trying to poke at Genet’s insecurity over being seen as a wounded person acting out in pain. Carol does another smart thing. She lies about being a tourist who got stuck in Paris when the world went to hell.

Carol finds out where Daryl is

Having a bilingual buddy around has made things relatively easier for Carol. Remy’s worried about his husband, but he’s also there for Carol as she learns the ropes at Genet’s camp. She’s obviously seen her fair share of nonsensical dictatorial figures doing whackjob things to assert power. So it doesn’t really come as a shock to her when she sees the doctor inject people with some substance and kill them to produce super-Walkers or something. Carol knows how to keep her head low and her diet non-cannibalistic. But there’s a time-crunch, and she really needs to find Daryl especially now that she’s seen the condition France is in. Luckily, she finds Codron in the kitchen. He’s been beaten within an inch of his life, but he’s still not let go of his spine. Codron feels for Carol when she tells him how much Daryl means to her, and even though he’s not entirely sure, he tells her where the Nest might be. Carol’s been hardening herself and telling herself that it’s okay to manipulate people to reach her destination. But since she really is a good person inside, she’s slipped up. She’s trusted Remy too much, going as far as telling him where she’s headed and asking him to come. After all, Carol’s new here. She didn’t know that information is a commodity in a France that’s being ripped apart in a war between religious extremists and political extremists. By the time she realizes that Remy ratted her out in exchange for reuniting with his husband, Carol’s a prisoner in Genet’s lair. It can’t be a good thing that Genet now knows where Daryl is. But nothing good is happening at the Nest anyway.

Losang’s a total nutcase

In her chat with Carol, Genet was a total girl’s girl bonding with her over their shared experience being women in a world run by men. That couldn’t have been anything but sincere. Even though her ways are all messed up and way too radical for her to ever reach her goals, she is coming from a place of actual pain. She’s got a striking amount of empathy for the working class, and she’s ruthless to whoever bullies them. Another thing Genet’s on point about is how L’Union’s been on a mission to control the masses with lies dressed as hope. Sure she’s blind about how she’s doing the same thing except with fear and violence, but she’s read Losang and his cult of faithfuls right. Learning the truth about the cause she desperately believed in and worked for costs Sylvie a lot. She’s made to look like a madwoman for saying that Losang’s planning to kill Laurent, and when she becomes too big of a problem to contain, she’s practically made to jump to her death. The thing is, Losang is lying to himself more than he’s lying to the people who look up to him. It’s very clearly one of the extreme outcomes of the depression brought forth by the apocalypse. Like Genet said, people have been trying to make sense of all the chaos in the world throughout history. Some painted it on a canvas–some like Genet took up arms–and people like Losang and his followers deluded themselves with an imaginary savior who’d them from this insurmountable hopelessness. He’s twisted enough to use a turned Sylvie for an exhibition of Laurent’s powers in the “ceremony.” Luckily, Daryl, Isabelle, and Fallou have already hopped the towering wall to save the little boy. But while Fallou and Laurent get away, Daryl and Isabelle are caught by the hounds of the L’Union.

Will Carol become a Walker?

If you ask me, I would’ve preferred an easier road to love and happiness for Daryl. I know, I know. That wouldn’t have made for a very thrilling experience for the audience. So I guess what I’m saying is that I wish the show didn’t hinge Daryl’s romantic future on the central conflict. The man’s always had a hard enough time as it is. And you’re telling me that he falls in love after a lifetime of being terrified of it and they’re both caught and locked up by a bad guy? That’s too mean. At least they’re in the cell together. And even though that whole future they’re dreaming up seems really unlikely an outcome for their circumstances, at least they have something fueling their fight against the religious fanatics. It’s undeniably endearing to watch Daryl open his heart to someone. So you know it really stings when Isabelle gets taken away by Losang. I don’t think Losang’s going to hurt Isabelle right away. I think he’s going to use her to pressure Daryl into cracking and giving up Laurent’s location. I know Daryl’s already offered. But Losang knows Daryl’s anxiety isn’t bad enough for him to be telling the truth now.

Things really couldn’t have coincided in a more explosive way in the 3rd episode of Daryl Dixon season 2. On one side, we’ve got people who believe that their entire faith hinges on a little boy who’s supposedly special. On the opposite side, we’ve got a woman who’s been trying to make an army of Walkers because she’ll wage the “war to end all wars.” Carol lied to Genet about the reason behind her search for Daryl. What she didn’t account for when she told Genet that she wanted to kill Daryl for something in the past was that Remy’d already told Genet everything. Remy knew Daryl is someone Carol cares about deeply. So it’s actually Carol who’s being played when Genet drives her to the warzone with the promise that Carol will get her chance to even the score with Daryl. The people at the Nest don’t even know about the imminent attack. But the fact that Genet is basing her whole offensive stance on an experimental substance that’s not even ready really evens the playing field. She wants to let an army of her juiced-up zombies lose on the Nest. And in the ending sequence of this week’s episode, it looks like Genet wants Carol to join her army of the undead. I’ll be honest with you. I don’t think The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon has it in itself to kill off the woman in this season’s title. Something or the other will end up saving Carol from the horrific fate of dying, coming back as a Walker, and attacking her best friend.