Walking Dead Season 2

[Spring Bass]

I like Kirkman's explanation for the lone Walker: the zombie populations that were concentrated in the cities are starting to spread out, in search of food. I'm sorry to say that I didn't think about that.

[Relic]

The song at the end while the lone Walker stumbles through the field of gold was spot on.

here it is, if anyone is interested.

[So1ar]

I like Kirkman's explanation for the lone Walker: the zombie populations that were concentrated in the cities are starting to spread out, in search of food. I'm sorry to say that I didn't think about that.

so that means they can't live without food correct? which makes me ask how long can they last without food? eventually they would all just starve out right?

also, i felt a bit sorry for that kid in the trunk. every time they opened it rick and shane were staring down at the him like he just raped their mother.

[delete this account pls]

Yeah, the Rick and Shane parts were decent. Partly because those two guys actually have somewhat defined characters. I hope the writers realise how much better the show works when it really focuses on 2-3 characters and ignores the dead weight (seriously, we've had T-Dog in what, 14 episodes by now? And I still couldn't tell you a thing about him other than his physical appearance. The prisoner dude, who spent nearly half the episode tied up with a bag over his head, is a better developed character than T-Dog)

But yeah, if the show continues to crib from Lost and really focuses on one or two characters per ep, it could improve a lot.

The stuff on the farm, meh. At least they tried I guess? It's hard to care about the subplot centered around anonymous blonde girl #1 wanting to kill herself though. And if the goal was to deepen the viewers dislike or Lori, they sure succeeded with that.

I would have liked this episode far more if it hadn't included Lori's lecture that Andrea needs to help with the women's work and leave "men's business" to the men.

Don't you get it? Dale and his saggy old man breasts are imperative to the protection of the camp!

I'd feel better about Lori's attitude if it didn't seem like the entire show shared it. If it was just her own backwards opinion, a relic of her old life, I could handle that. But the show has treated Andrea, who holds the opposite viewpoint, as kind of needy and pathetic and not really up to the task of doing the 'men's work'.

And remember when Maggie was first introduced? As a horse riding, baseball bat wielding hottie who went on supply runs alone? Now she helps make meals and frets about her boyfriend.....

[Tears of Lys]

And remember when Maggie was first introduced? As a horse riding, baseball bat wielding hottie who went on supply runs alone? Now she helps make meals and frets about her boyfriend.....

Yeah, the writers are tone deaf when it comes to writing the simplest scene for women (and several other groups, I might add.) They are, however, quite good at coming up with gory ways of killing zombies. It remains to be seen whether that will be enough.

[kairparavel]

Herschel's family is a bit behind the grief/realization of a zombie new world, compared to the rest of the crew. Hence Beth laying in bed contemplating the point of living at this stage. Even with a barn full of undead, the folks on that farm were working under a completely different premise than the people that arrived. They had hope. Maggie developed an emotional attachment in a world that just shat in her hand when it became clear the barn zombies weren't getting cured. Living and surviving and having a reason to live and survive are two different things so I can see the change in Maggie being somewhat realistic. They'll all get up to speed soon enough.

Andrea was totally right in her assessment that people need to find their own reasons to keep going and live but her execution left plenty to be desired.

Why are people so anxious to see everyone leave the farm? To advance the plot? That's one thing. But the farm has resources, they're aways from civilization and they have numbers there. Leaving would be stupid, and we all know how much people here hate it when they go off and do stupid things...

Lori was from a small town in Kentucky, married to the sheriff. I doubt she ever had big wide-eyed women can do anything views of the world, so it would stand to reason that she still draws the line between men work and women work. Andrea is a big city girl and you can see how she sticks out against all the other female characters on the show. And yet, they waste her. I never had a problem with her character in the comics but I repeatedly want to punch her in the face in the show. But she was right though, for every shit thing that happens to Lori and the family, they manage to keep coming up roses while everyone has losses that are mounting. So that right there skews Lori's place in the world. She's seen the horrors but she's built on near misses and not complete loss.

[CloudFlare]

I'm sorry, I don't have my Zombie handbook handy, but shouldn't they avoid enclosed spaces like this municipal building?! :stillsick:

I got the impression that these zombies are different than the other zombies. Rick and Shane noticed that the two cop zombies don't have bite marks, so there might be a different transmission mode. The perimeter to the area was secured, which might indicate that the people were safe from the outside, but something hidden on the inside infected them. Maybe the people inside the building were infected by surprise?

There were some other oddities like the camp in the school bus, and the baby seat. Plus there were a bunch of food tins strewn about. And the intro scene didn't seem to quite match what happened later in the show.

I'd grade this episode around a C+. I liked the fact that Rick's wising up to the fact that their supply of ammo is not endless. I don't like the hauling around of the kid in the trunk. What's up with that? He's gotta "think about it"?? Don't you think you might use the skills you honed as an officer and talk to the kid a while and get a read on him? No. Throw him in the trunk while you barrel-ass around the countryside using up precious fuel.

Yep. It was also ludicrous that the kid went to school with Maggie and they didn't know each other. In the rural south the school would be *tiny* even if the kids were bussed in from all over.

Other issues with Rick and Shane's actions:

1) Taking one vehicle is unsafe. Sure, the car probably won't break down, but I wouldn't want to take the chance in Z-Country.

2) Why didn't they strip the guns off of the cops as soon as they found them?

3) If they're low on fuel, why didn't they just take the tanker truck with them?

4) If they're low on fuel, why haven't they been draining the tanks of all the vehicles they come across?

5) Killing walkers with knives is dumb. Find some scrap metal and make yourself a pike. Pointy end first!

[red snow]

I agree with a lot of your points, Bacon, especially that using a knife on it's own is dumb. I think you already argued why taking the tanker with them would be an even worse idea though. Surely the fuel has to stay with the majority - not two guys driving over 18 miles away. They should invest in some bicycles on the roof when going off on long drives. They may not be zombie proof but they'd get you from A to B quicker than by foot if need be.

As for Shane watching the walker on the way there and back. I didn't really see it as neglect (Rick should have also been able to spot it unless he drives with tunnel vision) but more a metaphor for his isolation.

[Howdyphillip]

On the Talking Dead, someone brought up a point that I found interesting. It was a question about Shane being infected. The line Rick gave about the officer's not being bit but just scratched was the key line in this, because later in the episode Shane stabs a zombie in the head, and then uses the same knife to cut his hand to use his blood for zombie bait. I kind of wonder if that is going to come in play.

[awesome possum]

Yep. It was also ludicrous that the kid went to school with Maggie and they didn't know each other. In the rural south the school would be *tiny* even if the kids were bussed in from all over.

I'm going to guess he was lying about that. I'm sure he heard the name Maggie thrown about by Glenn and/or Hershel a few times, but he might have been telling the truth. Though why he wouldn't say anything when he'd been held there for a week is beyond me.

I missed the opening of the episode, did it mention whether they'd bothered to question the guy in the week that he'd been recovering from his surgery?

[Reposado]

On the Talking Dead, someone brought up a point that I found interesting. It was a question about Shane being infected. The line Rick gave about the officer's not being bit but just scratched was the key line in this, because later in the episode Shane stabs a zombie in the head, and then uses the same knife to cut his hand to use his blood for zombie bait. I kind of wonder if that is going to come in play.

I don't think you can infected that way. it's stupid, but that's the way they have set it up. otherwise they have been playing with that type of fire since the beginning. They have never cared where zombie blood or bodily parts have gone.

[Alia of the knife]

I got the impression that these zombies are different than the other zombies. Rick and Shane noticed that the two cop zombies don't have bite marks, so there might be a different transmission mode. The perimeter to the area was secured, which might indicate that the people were safe from the outside, but something hidden on the inside infected them. Maybe the people inside the building were infected by surprise?

There were some other oddities like the camp in the school bus, and the baby seat. Plus there were a bunch of food tins strewn about. And the intro scene didn't seem to quite match what happened later in the show.

Yep. It was also ludicrous that the kid went to school with Maggie and they didn't know each other. In the rural south the school would be *tiny* even if the kids were bussed in from all over.

Other issues with Rick and Shane's actions:

1) Taking one vehicle is unsafe. Sure, the car probably won't break down, but I wouldn't want to take the chance in Z-Country.

2) Why didn't they strip the guns off of the cops as soon as they found them?

3) If they're low on fuel, why didn't they just take the tanker truck with them?

4) If they're low on fuel, why haven't they been draining the tanks of all the vehicles they come across?

5) Killing walkers with knives is dumb. Find some scrap metal and make yourself a pike. Pointy end first!

Now you've intrigued me, so I'm going to have to watch it again.

But yes, I've noticed that there seems to be differences in many of the zombies, as in last seasons "Dreaming" zombie that was "sleeping" on the bus when Rick came to Atlanta.

And thenm, it seems when Rick was escaping, that same zombie almost looked intelligent.

Maybe it's just me wanting to read something more interesting into the zombies.

[Myrddin]

Yep. It was also ludicrous that the kid went to school with Maggie and they didn't know each other. In the rural south the school would be *tiny* even if the kids were bussed in from all over.

No, I buy that. My high school in South Carolina had suburbs mixed with farms mixed with beach houses. Maggie seems like she'd be one of the girls in school all the guys would be aware of (ie one of the cute popular ones). So, it stands to reason that she might not be aware of his existence.

Now, why he never mentioned that connection while being on forced bed rest, that is ludicrous.

[Ken Stone]

And the intro scene didn't seem to quite match what happened later in the show.

This really bothered me because I couldn't tell if it was a mistake or if it was intentional. I'm guessing it was a mistake.

Yep. It was also ludicrous that the kid went to school with Maggie and they didn't know each other. In the rural south the school would be *tiny* even if the kids were bussed in from all over.

Yeah my kids go to a small rural school and they know everyone in their grade and the grades above and below them. Plus they know everyone in their brothers and sisters grades and kids who stand out. It would be very difficult to be in the same school with someone at the same time and not know them.

[red snow]

It was annoying how the intro was edited with a completely different timeline to how it actually panned out. It made it feel a bit more like a preview for the epiosde rather than a narrative trick.

I assumed the police zomnies not having a mark was a nod to the possibility that everyone is infected and you merely become a zombie upon death. The bites simply kill you through bacterial infection not through some kind of zombie virus. Otherwise I agree that the characters are too reckless with regard to zombie blood, scratches and food contamination. Actually the criticism still stands as it's never been implied that the characters have any idea of how zombiefication is contracted and they should therefore err on the side of caution.

Having a week or two pass with the kid never been interrogated or mentioning the connection to Maggie seemed a major oversight. I guess they just wanted to avoid a whole episode of interrogation and characters arguing over the kid's fate (which I'm sure the likes of Dale, Andrea and Herschel would have had a say in). Although now it seems that may happen in the next episode. Considering they took in the red neck guy i thought there may have been some willing to give him a chance. It's not like the kid will have any feelings of loyalty to his old gang considering they left him to die, It's a case of Rick picking the stupid middle ground. Shane has the right idea but they should have someone like Dale suggesting he join them.

[Spring Bass]

I don't think you can infected that way. it's stupid, but that's the way they have set it up. otherwise they have been playing with that type of fire since the beginning. They have never cared where zombie blood or bodily parts have gone.

They actually did care about it, very early on. When they did the whole "smeared in zombie guts to escape a surrounded building" tactic in Episode 2 of Season 1, they were careful to wear overcoats and plastic over that to keep from contact with the zombified body matter. Since then, though, it's been mostly ignored.

It's probably just a plot hole, like all the dead non-zombified people on the highway (assuming the "Everybody is infected" hypothesis is true).

[Alia of the knife]

On the Talking Dead, someone brought up a point that I found interesting. It was a question about Shane being infected. The line Rick gave about the officer's not being bit but just scratched was the key line in this, because later in the episode Shane stabs a zombie in the head, and then uses the same knife to cut his hand to use his blood for zombie bait. I kind of wonder if that is going to come in play.

I wondered the same thing myself.

(I have heard that the actor who plays Shane has signed on to a new series next year, so I'd say something will happen to him).

[Manhole Eunuchsbane]

Other issues with Rick and Shane's actions:

1) Taking one vehicle is unsafe. Sure, the car probably won't break down, but I wouldn't want to take the chance in Z-Country.

2) Why didn't they strip the guns off of the cops as soon as they found them?

3) If they're low on fuel, why didn't they just take the tanker truck with them?

4) If they're low on fuel, why haven't they been draining the tanks of all the vehicles they come across?

5) Killing walkers with knives is dumb. Find some scrap metal and make yourself a pike. Pointy end first!

THIS. A thousand times THIS! They don't need to get bogged down in the Zombie Survival stuff, but the groups learning curve seems to be stuck on stupid. You want to get within knife range of an enemy whose primary weapon is a bite? It's beyond stupid.

[Tears of Lys]

/snip a lot of good points. :P

Why are people so anxious to see everyone leave the farm? To advance the plot? That's one thing. But the farm has resources, they're aways from civilization and they have numbers there. Leaving would be stupid, and we all know how much people here hate it when they go off and do stupid things...

I agree. While I appreciate that we all would like more movement in the plot that leaving the farm would bring, I for one, if I were in that situation, wouldn't be in a big hurry to leave the comforts that the farm provides. The group isn't going to leave the farm until it's absolutely necessary - which will eventually happen.

And YES! A longer handled pointy implement would seem to be the obvious choice, instead of the "wait till the walker shambles up to you, gets up close and personal with his dripping gore, and then impale him through the skull" method that Rick seems to favor. I mean, really? REALLY??

[So1ar]

it's smart to start killing zombies with a blade instead of wasting bullets. but using a knife gets you way too close to something that bites! have they never heard of spears? or putting stakes around the camp? there are several other defensive tactics they can employ other than having dale stand on top of his RV with binoculars.