Last night’s penultimate screening of The Walking Dead was a rather calm affair, and I began to fear that the series was taking a sharp right turn at Filler Avenue again. Luckily there were enough unexpected twists and a dramatic lead up to the final scene to keep episode five rolling. As expected it looks like the first series may conclude without answering some vital questions – how can they leave us hanging like this?
So far we are yet to hear anything from Morgan and his son Duane, and it looks like hand-less Merle Dixon won’t be making a return anytime soon. I would have thought by now that Rick would have made a few educated guesses about his wife’s affair with Shane, but it appears that Rick’s head is away with the fairies (or walkers for that matter). If he can believe that Shane gave himself those vicious scratch marks in his sleep, than I suppose Rick is a lot more gullible than I gave him credit for.
I didn’t expect the reason behind the zombie outbreak to be revealed, but if there isn’t even a teeny weenie hint or clue as to why it occurred given, I will be extremely disappointed! The latest question to arise is who is this Edwin Jenner guy (he may look familiar from The Truman Show), and why is he the only person alive in the Centre for Disease Control? (Or is he).
My gut instinct tells me that he can’t be trusted, and knowing Rick and the gang they have walked themselves into yet another tricky situation. Here’s to hoping that there was a logical reason for introducing a new character in the penultimate episode – but I have my doubts.
I always said that I was intrigued with how Andrea’s character would develop over time and last night she surpassed my expectations (turns out she can act). The intensity created over her sister Amy’s death almost became awkward, and it was difficult not to feel uncomfortable when she began apologising to the dead body strung across the ground. I was shocked when Andrea shot walker Amy in the head and the reality of the situation that the survivors faced hit me for the very first time.
The Carol Peletier pickaxe scene was one of the most disturbing moments I have witnessed in TV land in some time. The venom and anger in her eyes when she swung for her husband’s face made me feel like she was more of a threat than impending walkers in the camp (they will all be sleeping with one eye open after that).
As for the Jim storyline, boy-oh-boy was it a delightful twist. The man does not get half enough credit for his outstanding acting ability, and I truly was sad when he was left by the tree to turn into a zombie. I thought the writers would have played up more on the insanity that a person goes through before changing into a walker, and it would have been a perfect opportunity for so-called psychic Jim to spill the beans on another upcoming event.
No doubt we will probably see him at a later stage when Rick or one of the other survivors is forced to shoot him as a zombie. Once Jim was dumped off, the rest of the journey to the CDC building was pretty tame, and a bit more suspense would have kept viewers on the edge of their seats. However, I am not going to lie my heart was racing when I caught a glimpse of the rotting carcasses surrounded by a swarm of flies only to discover that Mr. Jenner would not open the door.
I believe the scene would have worked better if Shane was the one who spotted the camera moving, and gave the little spiel about how they were going to die if they weren’t let in. It would have been a nice touch for Shane to show that he did have faith in his friend’s decision. Rick needs to be given some flaws in the next series to make his character more plausible –it is impossible to believe that someone is that that perfect!
I am extremely intrigued to discover what lies beyond the bright white light of the CDU building. Could some of the survivors’ family members and friends be inside? With six days to go until the grand finale, I fear that this may feel like one of the longest weeks of my life.
Let’s hope it is worth the wait!
Laura Delaney
