Last season's cliffhanger finale of The Walking Dead left us seeing the group in a not-so-happy reunion inside a train boxcar at Terminus, a former train yard inhabited by survivors, which the group thought could be salvation at last. However, in the world of the Walking Dead, it seems they can never catch a break either from the rotting corpses that threaten them at every turn, or from the bigger threat of other humans.
The season premiere, No Sanctuary, showed that the series can still deliver the bleak, heart-pounding action and drama that The Walking Dead has come to be known for. How did Rick and the crew fare against their captors at Terminus? Read on to find out!
Warning! Spoilers below for those who have not yet watched the first episode of season five. Read at your own risk.
The "sanctuary for all" promise that the signs pointing to Terminus indicated, as expected, turned out too good to be true, as it is proven without a doubt that the inhabitants were actually a cannibalistic cult, herding humans for their own consumption and survival.
The episode opens with a flashback narrated by the leader of the Terminants, Gareth, who reveals that their mistrust of newcomers to their train yard sanctuary began shortly after they put up the signs to guide the way and a group of bandits took advantage of them and attacked them.
That is when they decided that in order to live, they had to adopt the motto: "You're either the butcher or you're the cattle."
Then, we cut to a grim scene of Rick, Daryl, Glenn and Bob, on their knees and waiting for their throats to be slit open like cattle. The situation seems hopeless for the group, but who comes to their rescue - none other than Carol, who was previously banished from the group last season, to single-handedly saving the day.
Proving that she has turned into one of the best female action heroes on television, Carol, infiltrates terminus by disguising herself as a Walker, blowing up a propane gas tank using a stolen fireworks missile, and uses the explosion and chaos of Walkers entering the compound to rescue the group and beat down the co-leader of Terminus, Mary (Denise Crosby) all in one go.
And finally, in a delivery of karmic justice, the inhabitants of Terminus are left to be feasted upon by the walkers - as they had fed on the humans they captured in order to survive.
Freed from Terminus, what else awaits the group as they try to fight their way towards salvation? Find out Sunday nights, on AMC.
