‘The Walking Dead’ Season 10, Episode 10 ‘Stalker’ Review: Switching Sides

After last week’s claustrophobic and sexually shocking midseason premiere of The Walking Dead, the tables are slowly turning for episode 10, titled “Stalker.” We know that the Whisperer War is on slow-cook mode, but the stakes never fail to raise itself—especially this week.

Word gets sent out to Gabriel (Seth Gilliam) and Rosita (Christian Serratos) that a number of their friends weren’t able to make it out of the tunnels, all thanks to Gamma (Thora Birch), who seems to be switching sides. But just as they gear up for an extraction mission, Beta (Ryan Hurst) sneaks his way into Alexandria in an effort to bring Gamma back to Alpha (Samantha Morton) for some serious correction. Meanwhile, Daryl (Norman Reedus) hangs back to locate Magna and Connie. Along the way, Daryl finally gets some one-on-one action with Alpha, ultimately ending with both of them on the brink of bleeding out.

“Stalker” is one of those Walking Dead episodes that makes sure you’re heaving from anxiety all throughout. A fair warning, though—this article contains all the spoilers you could ever dream of, so tread with caution. With that, let’s jump right back to what happened in tonight’s episode.

Gamma Crosses Over to the Light Side

I mean, we kind of saw this switch coming. It was clear that Aaron (Ross Marquand) knew this back when they had nightly shrink sessions at the border. Now, Gamma decided to act on her gut feel and switch sides. She surrenders herself at the gates of Alexandria (getting punched squarely in the face by Rosita) and reveals the horrific cave incident that trapped Daryl and the anti-Whisperer horde crew. And although one might see this as Alpha’s ploy, Gabriel senses a semblance of truth into what Gamma wants to do. Of course, this new development is another complicated matter for Rosita—who seems to have developed PTSD following the brutal slaying of her hubby Siddiq at the hands of Whisperer spy Dante.

Bob Mahoney/AMC

Despite Rosita’s iffiness about Gamma’s real intentions, Gabriel decides to hear the former Whisperer out. Gamma reveals her breaking point and tells them about the time when Alpha forced her sister to give up the baby in the eleventh episode of season 9. It was that moment that made Gamma realize she’s on the wrong side of post-apocalyptic humanity. Alpha might have her cunning ways of purging all sense of humaneness from her followers, but Gamma sees through all the bullshit now more than ever. Gabriel organizes a search party and splits his group into two—one to scope out the area near the caves and another to guard Alexandria. Little does Gabriel know that this plan would yield horrific results.

Bob Mahoney/AMC

Elsewhere, Beta goes full-on Michael Myers and sneakily infiltrates Alexandria through a tunnel (one that I presume Dante had built so they can easily slip in and out undetected).

We Finally Saw Daryl Beat the Shit Out of Alpha (Almost, That Is)!

Last week, Daryl decided to look for Magna and Connie after the cave collapsed and Carol begged him to blame her for the clusterfuck. What he got in tonight’s episode was way better than expected. Alpha herself showed up to survey the cave entrance and Daryl decided to pounce on the opportunity. A full-on brawl began where Alpha was able to severely wound Daryl’s leg and the latter stabbing the bald bitch’s shoulder in the process. Deadlocked, both parties retreat and engage in a cat and mouse chase. They eventually hole up in an abandoned gas station where they both pass out from exhaustion and blood loss. Daryl almost got caught up with a small group of Walkers, but he was able to beat the shit out of them using the knife Alpha lodged in his leg.

Jace Downs/AMC

Now here’s where things get a little bit more interesting. With Alpha and Daryl blacked out, Lydia (Cassady McClincy) jumps to the rescue. She’s been watching all along like a true Whisperer. Alpha wakes up from her stupor and assumes Lydia is here to save her, but she only came to tell her mom to fuck right off. Their way isn’t the only way, after all. With that, Lydia leaves her passed out mother and takes Daryl somewhere safer. As soon as Daryl wakes up, Lydia tells him that she has finally decided which team she wants to play for, and it’s not with the Walker skin-wearing dumbasses.

Meanwhile, a couple of Whisperers convene at the gas station to rescue their fallen leader. There must be something really fucked up about Alpha because it turns out that her encounter with Lydia only fueled her hate even more. Alpha rises and begins reciting the Whisperer chant, “We walk in darkness, we are free. We bathe in blood, we are free. We love nothing, we are free. We fear nothing, we are free. We need no words, we are free. We embrace all death, we are free. This is the end of the world. Now is the end of the world. We are the end of the world.”

Jackson Lee Davis/AMC

I’m guessing this is the start of the Whisperer War, then? Cool. Bring it on, Alpha.

Beta Unleashes Halloween Night in Alexandria

Moments before Beta rained hell down on Alexandria, Gamma seemed to be fitting in quite nicely albeit stuck in Negan’s former cell. Judith (Cailey Fleming), the ever-open-minded Grimes, saw through Gamma and knew that she really did want to change her ways. Gamma reveals her real name as well—Mary (how pure can that be). It’s also evident that Gamma just happened to be in the wrong group at the wrong time. Judith passive-aggressively adds to Gamma’s guilt by saying, “if you only met us earlier, you wouldn’t be where you are right now.” No shit, little girl. But would you mind slowing down a bit?

Jackson Lee Davis/AMC

Gabriel’s search team treads on until nightfall, but that’s when he notices something off. By taking all his able-bodied men, Alexandria is left significantly defenseless. Incidentally, Beta rises from Siddiq’s grave and goes on a killing spree a la Michael Myers. He moved from house to house, killing everyone in sight and making sure they turned right after. As soon as chaos erupted, Beta set his eyes on Gamma. He ordered her to come with, but Gamma stood her ground. Luckily, Laura (Lindsley Register) came to her rescue and tried her best to incapacitate Beta. But Alpha’s top dog isn’t that easy to break as he easily flicked Laura’s attacks off, ultimately killing her (underwhelming death, I know). Gamma was able to escape, however, thanks to Judith.

Jackson Lee Davis/AMC

But it doesn’t stop there. After a gunshot wound (that luckily hit Beta’s bulletproof vest), a few hits from an angered Rosita, Beta was still able to get his hands on Gamma (who did a valiant effort of saving Rosita by surrendering to Beta). On the way back, though, Beta was ambushed by Gabriel’s crew and took off without Gamma.

In the end, Gamma was welcomed to the community with open arms. Rosita even shed her negative feelings toward her as they made their way to Hilltop for medical aid.

‘The Walking Dead: Stalker’ Overall Verdict

“Stalker” really did the favor of removing the bad taste of last week’s episode from our mouths. It’s fast-paced and packed with well-choreographed fight scenes, minus the overbearing dialogue that has plagued the show ever since. The set pieces for the upcoming Whisperer war are moving in a relatively fast manner that it’s beginning to feel like we’re a part of it. Whatever next week will bring, we’ll surely see Alpha hit back with a ferocity that only she can muster from the depths of her twisted, manipulative mind.

The Walking Dead continues Sunday, March 8th, with “Morning Star” at 9/8c on AMC. Watch the preview below: