Daryl Dixon Season 3 kicked off on a high note, although it wasn’t without flaws. Plot armor and convenient writing made things feel a little too easy for Carol and Daryl in London. But after two seasons of middling writing where Daryl felt wildly out of character, I’ll take it. Melissa McBride and Norman Reedus have enough chemistry to keep me pressing the darn play button every season, but this time, I’m actually glad I did. Now, I’m happy to report that Daryl Dixon Season 3, Episode 2, “La Ofrenda,” remains just as engaging as the premiere episode, if not better.
With a fresh canvas to build on, Episode 2 delves into a Spanish village with secrets and introduces new characters for our duo to bounce off. While The Walking Dead spin-offs have a bad habit of killing off barely developed supporting characters, the people we meet here seem to have staying power. Overall, Season 3 feels different. Maybe because it’s more secure in its premise now that Melissa McBride is in for the long haul. And for that, I’m not complaining.
Finally, We Get Supporting Characters To Care About
The episode opens with a concussed Carol watching two young lovers kiss each other against a waterfall backdrop. Apparently, she didn’t fall off that cliff like Daryl thought; she just got distracted voyeuring. “They’re so perfect,” she says to Daryl, and honestly, she isn’t wrong. Justina (Candela Saitta) and Roberto (Hugo Arbués) have a sweet little love story that has me invested already.
With Paz (Alexandra Masangkay) and the king’s wife (Greta Fernández) also getting the early beginnings of a rekindled forbidden romance mid-episode, this is the most romantic action The Walking Dead franchise has seen in a long time. Apparently, Daryl Dixon Season 3 can write compelling love stories as long as Carol and Daryl aren’t involved.
Anyway, Justina and Roberto… why do we like them?
Well, they’re kind, even though the world is against them. Come to find out, their village, Solaz, partakes in an annual ritual where they select a girl—yes, some of them are literal girls—to return with the self-proclaimed King of Spain (Gonzalo Bouza) to be married off in exchange for protection, weapons, and other goods. Put a big question mark on the “married off” part because who knows what actually happens to them? The one thing known for certain: these girls never come back, and the people of Solaz aren’t happy about it.
For the softies in the audience, this sets up a compelling forbidden romance with high stakes. Justina has the potential to be married off, and Roberto will do everything in his power to stop that. The pair feel like real people you can’t help but root for. And later, when Roberto’s dad, Antonio (Eduardo Noriega), invites Carol and Daryl into his home, despite disapproval from the town, the sacrifice and intimacy make the family unit feel safe. Right now, these three supporting characters are the main homies, and God help anyone who does them wrong.
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Okay, Spain Is Cool
When compared to Season 3, Episode 1, this episode already feels improved in terms of convenient writing. In Spain, Carol and Daryl meet resistance. They end up with medicine for Carol and a place to stay, but not without obstacles. The mayor and uncle to Justina, Fede (Óscar Jaenada), isn’t too happy to have strangers in his town and pretty much only agrees because Antonio convinces him. “They saved our kids, no?” he reminds Fede. So, we witness Solaz through the eyes of Carol and Daryl, outsiders thrust into a new world that doesn’t want them there.
In true American fashion, they expect everyone to speak English—yes, even after an ongoing apocalypse has cut the United States off from the rest of the world. However, the series does a solid job of intersplicing the Spanish and making it the default language between locals, as it should be.
With Carol and Daryl arriving right as “La Ofrenda,” which translates to “The Offering,” kicks off, lights, festive decor, and long feasting tables occupy most of the scenes. It’s not anything we haven’t seen before. But it proves that The Walking Dead continues to be a cinematography treat, even when it stumbles in other areas.
More interesting is the “La Ofrenda” itself. Clearly, things aren’t quite what they seem, and Daryl Dixon Season 3 isn’t quick to offer answers, which makes for a compelling mystery. As I write in my notes below, there’s a The Handmaid’s Tale vibe in Solaz that helps underscore why Carol—a woman, a mother, and daughter—is more willing to get involved with the local politics than Daryl, who remains hellbent on getting home. (Ironic considering he lacked that same motivation in France.)
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Daryl Dixon Season 3, Episode 2, Continues Making Carol and Daryl the Stars
Let’s be real. Daryl felt like a supporting character through most of Daryl Dixon Season 1. Come Season 2, that improved (I guess), but Season 3 marks a noticeable change for the better. The last episode kept the focus on Daryl and Carol by limiting supporting characters, aside from poor Julian. However, even here, as Darly Dixon starts fleshing out its world, the narrative never strays far from our dynamic duo.
In Episode 2’s early beginnings, Daryl goes, let’s just call it what it is, “protective husband” mode by holding Justina and Roberto at gunpoint in the name of getting Carol help. It’s a reminder of why we fell in love with these two in the first place: Because they’ll do anything to help the other person, even if it makes them look like a scumbag. There’s also a hint—just a hint—of that “touch her you die” energy that Daryl frequently slips into with Carol. And yes, that leaves me shaking my head at David Zabel, going, “Okay, you don’t want us to ship them, but you clearly see what you’re doing here, right?”
My one, picky critique about Carol is this damsel-in-distress thing she has going on. And listen, I get it. She bonked her head, she got a nasty injury, and Daryl performed half-hazard surgery on her with dirty hands and only alcohol to dull the pain. Of course, Daryl will take the lead while she recovers, and of course, Carol trusts him to do so. Still, she seems a little too passive and, dare I say, kind. She’s a lot more trusting than she has been in the past, but maybe that harkens to what she confessed to Daryl last episode on the boat, “I feel this peace. Lighter. I’m kind of excited for what comes next moving forward.”
I’m all about character development, but this is the woman who blew up an entire community, burned Saviors alive, and shot a child. When it comes to survival, she is ruthless, and I hope we get to see that side of her. Daryl’s back to survival-above-all-else Daryl, so I’m ready for shoot-first-ask-questions-later Carol. But, hey, if that’s the worst thing I have to say about Season 3, Episode 2, then I call it a success.
Other Thoughts
- Carol is a voyeur.
- Daryl is, too!
- Are Carol and Daryl sharing one bed at Antonio’s, or is there another one in the corner? I need to know for science.
- Roberto vents to Daryl about the town destroying his relationship with Justina. Daryl: “So, do you have any tools I can borrow?” Come on, Daryl, at least pretend to have emotional availability.
- Carol and Daryl CANNOT stop staring at Justina and Roberta kissing. Like, give them some privacy.
- Love The Crucible energy from the guy being hung by his arms. It’s brutal but gangster!
- What in The Handmaid’s Tale is going on here?
- Daryl and Carol go from being unwanted outsiders to sitting at the same table as the King of Spain. Okay? Yeah, that makes sense.
- “El Porko?” I mean, I guess Daryl is trying.
- The king is suspicious, right? There has to be something even more sinister behind “La Ofrenda” than it appears. Although bartering goods for
womengirls is already pretty darn awful. - Grandma just told Carol off!
- The mayor’s narration over Daryl’s fight scene… chef’s kiss.
The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon airs new episodes every Sunday at 9p.m. ET on AMC.
