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The Walking Dead Season 8, Episode 8 Recap: "That's How It's Gotta Be"

Welcome to Bleeding Cool's weekly recap of AMC's The Walking Dead Season 8 with the series' righteously intense mid-season finale, 'How It's Gotta Be'.

Wow. Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and his coalition were beaten but not broken, driven underground by a newly emboldened Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and the Saviors. Instead of an ending, this year's mid-season finale serves as a beginning: the beginning of an all out final assault that will decide everyone's fate.

Except for one, whose fate was decided for them in the last scene…

So my overview/recap of the episode is waiting patiently for your eyeballs below, along with some Spare Parts that I picked up along the way that I thought you might find interesting. You can also check out the transcript of my live-blog of the episode here or by clicking the link after the video.

But one quick thing before we get our recap under way…

Just to be clear, this is not a "formal review" — more of a recap/review/stream of consciousness mash-up "monster" all its own — but I will be covering some themes and takeaways involving major and minor plot points from the episode. Just something to keep in mind before watching or re-watching the episode. Definitely not looking to have angry fellow geeks outside my apartment with pitchforks and torches because I slacked off on the spoiler warnings.

You can take a look back at last Sunday's live blog of 'How It's Gotta Be' right here.

Thanks for joining us this season, and make sure to be back here in February 2018 for the second-half of The Walking Dead's eighth season. Here's a quick look at what's ahead, and look back at the key scene from the mid-season finale:

The Walking Dead Season 8, Episode 7 Recap: "I Am a Small Person"

Bring Out Your Dead! 807: Bleeding Cool's The Walking Dead LIVE-BLOG!

The Walking Dead Season 8, Episode 6 Recap: "Who Am I to Choose for Them?"

Bring Out Your Dead! 806: Bleeding Cool's The Walking Dead LIVE-BLOG!

The Walking Dead Season 8, Episode 5 Recap: "Things Change, Man"

Bring Out Your Dead! 805: Bleeding Cool's The Walking Dead LIVE-BLOG!

The Walking Dead Season 8, Episode 4 Recap: "And Yet I Smile"

Bring Out Your Dead! 804: Bleeding Cool's The Walking Dead LIVE-BLOG!

The Walking Dead Season 8, Episode 3 Recap: "He's Not Worth Killing; Not Yet, Anyway"

Bring Out Your Dead! 803: Bleeding Cool's The Walking Dead LIVE-BLOG!

The Walking Dead Season 8, Episode 2 Recap: "Fake It Till You Make It, Baby"

Bring Out Your Dead! 802: Bleeding Cool's The Walking Dead LIVE-BLOG!

The Walking Dead S08E01 Recap: 'You're Gonna Make Me Count?'

All Out 'Dead': Welcome To Bleeding Cool's The Walking Dead Live-Blog!

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