The Walking Dead- Season 2, Episode 13: Beside the Dying Fire

"This isn't a democracy any more..."

So that’s the explosive finale all done and dusted; after so many episodes with Herschell’s farm as a sanctuary it’s all over, just like that, and just because an unstoppable herd of zombies happens to pass by. So now I’ve finished Season 2 I can go back and finish other series where I’m midway through a season before blogging any other non-current telly- namely Buffy, Angel, Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD and Game of Thrones.

What an episode, though, truly drawing a line under the season just gone while also pointing forward- who was that hooded figure with the two pet zombies who saved Andrea from certain death by zombie in the woods? What is that massive complex of buildings just behind everybody at the end?

But this is zombie action from the get go and it’s clear that this is it: Rick doesn’t even have time to answer Carl’s awkward question about how Shane died before zombies try to overrun them. There are confused scenes as people fight, panic, don’t know who’s alive and dead, and finally flee. All the minor characters, predictably, die. Herschel tried to go down defending his farm before Rick saves him and there are a number of superb set pieces in the best zombie action we’ve seen all season; can we have more of this in future please?

Glen finally mans up and tells Maggie that he loves her, predictably in a moment of brief respite from the peril. Everyone manages to rendezvous successfully, with Darryl being as competent, gruff and casually racist as ever. But what do they do now? This is made worse by Lori’s reaction to Rick’s confession that he kills Shane. This later leads to an extraordinary outburst from Rick to the whole group, openly telling everyone what he did, how he feels and exactly what they can go and do if they disagree. It’s an acting tour de force from Andrew Lincoln.

The season ends on a high. But I’ve mixed feelings about The Walking Dead. It’s well-written, shotcand acted, but by its nature it’s a format with limited scope, and I’m not sure I’ve enjoyed it all that much, as you can see by the slow pace of how I’ve watched this season. Will I return to blog future seasons? Let’s see.