What’s Good: How about that grenade?!?! Didn’t we just know that would show up again?
I’ll go ahead and give the obligatory SPOILER warning because it is hard to discuss what I liked about this episode without getting into the main “shocking” event of the episode.
One of the things that made issues 7-12 of TWD (the comic series) so gripping was the feeling that these folks were never going to be safe. After they left Atlanta, they found a couple of sanctuaries where it looked like they could start a new life, but they didn’t really work out. Heck, it still hasn’t worked out by issue #79. So, I was a little concerned to see the gang find their way into the fortified CDC compound at the end of the last episode mostly because of my continuing fear that the creators of this show won’t “get it” and that they’ll somehow screw up the excellent source material.
Well, have no fear, they “get it.” And the reason I know that is that the CDC setting lasted for only one episode. This captured a key feeling from the comic series that you have to think way, way, way back to the beginning to remember. It was the feeling that perhaps these folks are safe. Maybe they’re done running for their lives, only to have that safety brutally ripped away and seeing the agony on the survivors faces when they realize they have to go back…out there. That’s what the plot device of having the CDC go into self-destruct mode was. It was the show’s creator’s way of tossing these folks right back into the frying pan after giving them a nasty tease of being safe. Ouch!
Beyond being a bait and switch for the audience, the CDC also served as a plot device to explain, “This is everything we know.” I’ll talk about the negative aspects of this below, but I don’t mind this simple bow to TV audiences who want ANSWERS NOW, DAMMIT!
The show is doing great stuff with the Rick/Shane/Lori relationship. It was great that they showed how Shane tried to save Rick as the zombies were overrunning the hospital. Shane was pretty obviously trying his best to save his friend and just couldn’t figure out how to do it. Shit happens sometimes in a situation like that and it’s pretty clear Shane didn’t think, “I’m so glad he’s dead. Now I can sleep with his wife.” It also makes it more understandable why Shane keeps pestering Lori. You almost feel sorry for the guy. The world is ending and he thought he’d found someone to cling to, only to have that ripped away. There’s also the matter of what Dr. Jenner whispered to Rick right at the end of the episode. I’m 99% sure I know what it is, but we’ll have to wait until season #2.
Final tidbits… I loved the scene when everyone looks at Rick (when they’re trying to escape the CDC). They weren’t cheering for Shane and Darryl to chop down the door. They wanted Rick to find a way out. Moreover they expected him to find a way out. And how great is it that the overly crowded cast of characters has been chopped down to our established folks from the comics plus T-Dog and Darryl? I kinda like both of those characters.
What’s Not So Good: I think the show’s creators made a bit of a mistake to reveal that the U.S. government is completely dead and gone and that they know nothing about the why and how of the zombies. I guess a TV show has to live with the fear of cancellation, but it seems a little early to take that bit of hope away from the characters. It just seems that you could have dangled the promise of finding a government stronghold for a lot longer (although I guess there could still be one out there). I also didn’t like that Jenner confirmed that this was a global outbreak. That is never confirmed in the comics and I enjoy wondering if the gang could find safety by sailing a boat to St. Martin. That’s what I’d do.
A couple of other little annoyances… Why not just have Dale and Andrea kiss? And why haven’t we learned T-Dog’s real name yet? And WHY is Shane driving a Jeep Wrangler without even the canvas panels? Won’t the zombies just reach in and bite him?
Conclusion: A very solid season finale. What moron at AMC only ordered 6 episodes of this show? The show’s creators “get it” and proved that with this episode even if they did have to develop a few plot points a little faster than necessary. See you next fall for Season #2!
Grade: B
– Dean Stell
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Conclusion