The Walking Dead Season 5 Episode 11 "The Distance"

The fight's over. You gotta let it go. 

Everyone is sitting around the barn relaxing. Maggie walks in with Aaron. Daryl walks up armed and searches Aaron for weapons even though Maggie says she already took his weapons. Aaron goes to shake hands with Rick but stops when he sees everyone ready to take him down. Maggie gives Rick the weapon Aaron had with him. Sasha tells them that Aaron has a camp nearby and wants them to audition for membership. He tries to make a joke about auditions and dance troupes but our gang is having none of it. He says it's a community not a camp. His job is to convince them to come back with him; he doesn't decide who gets in. He understands their hesitancy and tells Sasha to give his bag to Rick and pull out an envelope that has photos. Daryl interrupts him and says no one cares. We see a photo of a reinforced wall. He talks about the importance of security. People are the next most important factor. Rick's group can make them stronger. Rick walks up to Aaron and punches him.

Michonne tells Rick that the look she gave him was not a "attack the guy" look but rather a "he seems like a nice guy" look. Rick wants Aaron tied up and his bag searched. He tells the group to look out to see if they see anyone. Maggie says that he didn't hurt her or Sasha when he had the chance and they didn't see anyone else out there. Carl found a flare gun in the bag. Aaron understands they are being cautious. Rick says that he has a flair gun to signal his people so he wants to know how many are out there. Aaron asks if it matters. He says that no matter what he says Rick won't believe him. He says he is the one that left the water for them in the road. Daryl wants to know how long they have been watching them. Aaron says long enough to see they didn't turn on each other or were afraid of the zombies following them. They are survivors and people. People are the most important resource in the world. The group looks at Rick. Rick asks how many others are out there. Aaron says there is only one other person out there with him. He offers to drive them to the community to show them. Aaron says he and his friend drove out in separate cars and parked them as close as they could before the storm blocked them. He says if he wanted to ambush them he would have done it by lighting the barn on fire. Michonne wants to check it out. She is not sure that Aaron is lying. Maggie isn't either. Rick says her way is dangerous and his isn't. Michonne says that passing up a place where they can live, where Judith can live, is dangerous. They need to see this through. They can handle themselves. Glenn offers to go with them. He asks Abraham if he'll go. Abraham says yes, so does Rosita. Rick gives Glenn his gun. If they don't come back in 60 minutes he will come looking for them. The rest of the group goes to secure the area and Rick is left alone with Aaron and Judith. Aaron tells Rick he used to work for an NGO that delivered food and medicine to the Niger River delta. Bad people pointed guns at him. Rick and his group are not bad people. Rick responds, "Just because we are good people doesn't mean we won't kill you." This is very true. If the others don't come back in an hour he will put a knife through the base of Aaron's skull.

Michonne and the others make their way down the road. Glenn tells them to have their weapons ready and if anybody comes towards them they should fire at them. Michonne questions that order. What if the person has nothing to do with this? Glenn says, "If they are like us we should be afraid of them." Another valid point. While Rick's group may be good they are dangerous and have killed many people before. He wonders why Aaron would want them in his group after watching them and seeing everything they have done. Michonne's reply says it all, "People like us saved a priest. Saved a girl her rolled up to the prison with the Governor. Saved a crazy lady with a sword." Glenn is still unsure. We see a man hidden behind a tractor looking at them.

Judith cries. Aaron tells Rick there is a jar of applesauce in his bag. He isn't telling him this to trick Rick but to stop Judith from crying so she doesn't attract walkers because he knows he will be left to die. Rick grabs the applesauce and wants Aaron to eat some first. Aaron says he doesn't like applesauce. Rick insists and Aaron relents. Then Rick tries some and gives some to Judith. Aaron tells Rick in their community they can find a place for Rick and his people where no matter how much Judith cries no walkers will harm her. Rick tells him he has 43 minutes.

Glenn and his group find the cars. An RV and a sedan. Michonne points out that Aaron was telling the truth. They hear someone in the bushes and a couple zombies stumble out. Rosita and Abraham kill them. They check out the RV. Abraham finds cans of AMC approved spaghettios. Abraham asks Rosita if she thought he was going to hurt her back when he had his breakdown after Eugene told everyone he lied. She says no. That's not him.

The group has returned with the food they found in the cars. Rick tells Aaron that the food is now theirs. Rick still isn't sure about going to the camp. Michonne says they need this so they are all going. She tells the others to speak up. Daryl says the barn smells like horse poo. Rick says they are going. He asks Aaron where the camp is but Aaron says he drives people back but won't tell them where it is. Michonne says he won't be driving he wants to get home he needs to tell them where it is. Rick wants to go up a different road than the one Aaron mentioned. They will go at sundown. Sasha doesn't think that is safe. Rick wants to sneak up at night in case they are bad people. Aaron insists no one will hurt them. He says Rick's plan puts them in danger. Rick says if Aaron tells him where the camp is located they will leave this moment, but Aaron refuses to say. Outside Michonne asks Rick if he was for real when he said they were going to Aaron's community. He asks her what she heard when she walked up to both the prison and Terminus. Her answer is nothing. Rick tells her he has to decide when he gets there if he will take his family inside. He is not sure anything could convince him to do so. But he's going to see.

That night Rick, Glenn, Michonne, and Aaron lead the caravan. The rest of the group follow in the RV. Rick finds a bunch of license plates. Aaron says he is collecting them to put up in his house. Michonne asks him if he has his own house. He tells Michonne to look for herself. She looks at the photographs and notices there are no people in them. She gets suspicious and asks him the three questions. Aaron has killed many walkers, two people because they tried to kill him. Rick finds a listening device in the car. Rick starts to freak out that the other guy might have one too and heard their plan. Glenn slams on the brake as he hits a walker on the road. The road is filled with walkers. Glenn just drives through them. He keeps going so the RV could get out. He continues hitting walkers until the windshield is covered in blood and they can no longer see. Rick gets out but doesn't see the RV. Glenn says they got away. The car won't start and zombies are approaching. Aaron keeps saying they have to get out of there. Michonne gets out of the car and pulls body part out of the hood. All of a sudden not too far ahead of them a flare is shot in the air. Aaron says it is over and he needs to leave now. Aaron makes a run for it and escapes into the woods. Michonne says their group will think they shot that flair and that is how they will find them. They follow Aaron in the woods with zombies in tow. They quickly get surrounded by zombies. Glenn gets separated from them. A zombie attacks him from behind but he kills it. Glenn finds Aaron fighting off a zombie. He begins to walk away but turns back and helps him. He sets Aaron free and begins to walk away but Aaron tells him they can make it together. But they can only make it together. Glenn said that and Aaron was listening.

Michonne and Rick call out for Glenn as zombies come towards them. Rick shoots a flare into a zombie. Just when it seems like they will be overrun by zombies the zombies are shot down by Glenn and Aaron. They find the road but don't see the RV. Rick tells Aaron if this is a trap his people will die tonight. They walk towards the direction of the flair. Someone whistles and another person whistles in return. Daryl comes out of the dark. They found the group. Aaron keeps calling out for an Eric. Eric is on the floor with a broken ankle. He tells Aaron he is okay and that he likes Maggie. Aaron and Eric kiss. Aaron was worried when he saw the flair go up. Eric says it is Aaron's fault because he loves Eric and love makes him do stupid things. Eric gives Aaron a license plate for his collection. Aaron admits he lost the car. They laugh. Rick comes in the room. Eric is all friendly and Rick just says his name. Aaron joins the others outside. He thanks them for saving Eric. He owes all of them and will pay them back when they get to their community in Alexandria. Rick agrees that they should leave the next morning. Rick wants to keep Aaron separated from the rest. Glenn talks Rick into letting them stay together. He can't give up everything else. It does matter. Rick relents.

The next morning Noah offers pain pills to Aaron. Aaron asks him about his leg injury. Noah says it happened during the zombiepocalypse. Aaron says they have a surgeon in Alexandria who might be able to fix Noah's leg. Eugene and some of the others play cards. Abraham drives and Rosita sits in the front. She points out the Washington Monument. A check engine light is on. Abraham says, "We can make it." They are now stuck on the side of the road. Glenn says they only need another battery and walks over to the side and finds a spare battery. Abraham asks how he knew where it was. Glenn doesn't reply but we all know. Thanks, Dale. We miss you. Michonne tells Rick, "The fight's over. You gotta let it go. I know it's hard. After its kept you warm and fed and alive. But the fight. It turns on you. You gotta let it go." Rick says that that is what Bob was trying to tell him. "What to risk. When it's safe. When to let someone in. The rules keep changing." It did for Michonne. Rick takes a moment before they get back on the road. He find an abandoned shack and pulls a blender from the debris. He hides his gun in it.  They pull up to the gates of Alexandria. No one is there. Children can be heard laughing and playing. When Rick hears this his expression changes. He relaxes. Michonne smiles at him and asks if he is ready. He says yes. He turns off the car, grabs Judith from the backseat, and joins the others outside. Carol tells Rick, "Even though you were wrong, you were still right."

Final Thoughts
-It is interesting to see the change in Michonne. Compare her in this episode to season 3 Michonne arriving at Woodbury. Everything seemed good and normal in Woodbury but she sensed that something was off. Now she is willing to take Aaron at his word just for a chance at a place to live. She now wants to live not just survive. All of this has happened because she is now part of a family. Being with Rick has changed her from a crazy lady with a sword to a woman with a family and hope. Lets hope it all turns out for the best.
-While everybody was treating Rick like he was crazy in this episode I completely understood his cautiousness and even paranoia. After his encounters with the Governor and the residents of Terminus it would not be easy to trust anyone touting that they have a sanctuary. He is the only one with children in the group.
-The Ricktatorship didn't last very long in this episode. Michonne was fighting it from the very beginning. She was even able to get Glenn to see her point of view. He started off agreeing with Rick, even ordering his group to shoot anyone they encountered on the road. But after seeing that Aaron had pretty much told them the truth about everything he decided to trust him and to stand down Rick.