Walking Dead Finale

[cdb]

Something from the finale is annoying the living crap out of me. Overall I have few complaints, the show wasn't what I expected or wanted, but I'm more or less satisfied with the story so far. However, two things occur.

First, what the hell is up with Herschel and his critique of Carl? I do believe I heard them say, "Drop the weapon," not, "Slowly hold the weapon out and inch your war towards us, but don't drop it," which is what the kid did. And you've got Herschel and the blonde chick and Carl, or put more succinctly a crippled old man and two kids. How hard would it have been for an 18 year old guy to get the drop on one of them and end up with a hostage?

Carl made the right decision. He didn't 'gun down' that guy, he killed him because, after he attacked their home and shot large caliber weapons at their friends, the guy did not drop his weapon when caught and so ordered. This is likely going to turn into another God damn multi episode arc that will be pointless.

Second, fucking Andrea. How many pathetic needless pauses to talk did she have to take? I like the show because it's not standard horror, but for the finale, and specifically for her part in it, they relied on some of the most idiotic horror movie tropes of all time. Very disappointing.

[Scary Gary]

With the Carl thing, I think they were trying to make it ambiguous. It really didn't work though.

And Andrea - her character has been annoying from the get-go. So I wasn't surprised that series of scenes was as annoying as it was. I must have said to the screen "Bitch, move!" at least twice before I told her "shut the fuck up and move it". In the end, at least the resolution was satisfactory.

Overall, I really have no problem with the show. I have not read any of the written material, so I am not married to any particular storyline. I intend to catch up with it all once the series has run its course.

[cdb]

I'm familiar with some of the story of the comics. I could care less about plot changes, just the kind if shit with Andrea, that annoyed me a great deal.

[bishop746]

I agree with Gary, they wanted it to be ambiguous as to whether Carl should have shot him and it just did not work. Carl was completely justified in killing him. I was shocked when Hershel brought it up to Rick; I couldn't believe they were going to try to make a big deal out of that. It was an attempt to draw a distinction between the Governor and Rick and their decisions to kill or not kill. Carl blamed Rick for not killing the inmate that later killed Laurie but in fairness to Rick he did try to kill the guy, he thought he locked him in a courtyard filled with zombies. However, maybe that was Carl's point; he has no problem getting his hands dirty and Rick left that to the Walkers to do.

All and all I liked it but I did laugh when the town girl told the Gov: "THat was a massacre!" Massacre? I'm not sure any of Rick's group even killed anyone!

[bigmac]

Okay, spoilers ahead!




I figured they'd abandon the prison, as going up against the Governor and his troops would be suicide. However, as they decided to stay and fight, I think their trap was not well planned out. They would have came up with a way to lock the enemy in the tomb with the zombies, rather than give a vastly superior force the chance to escape. It makes you wonder how that group has survived for so long.

The world has taken a dramatic change, with zombies running amok and most of humanity taking a turn to the dark side of our nature. The idea of mercy getting people killed has surfaced at several points in the series, but only Carl's moment with the kid brings home the idea that acts of compassion might be outdated or deadly at this point. Carl did the right thing, in my mind, as the kid didn't drop his weapon and was potentially trying to get close enough to gain the edge on the group. Rick, on the other hand, as acted with compassion at times, but the screenwriters have let him off the hook, by either making things work out right, or eliminating the threat entirely, as is the case with the kid from the town in Season Two, where Shane was made to be the villain.

Speaking of Shane, keeping him alive was a wasted opportunity. The script could have turned dark after the scene with the barn, with the group splintered into two factions, and offered a commentary about whether a change in moral standard would keep everyone alive, and the cost it would extract from each character. If people followed Shane's example, how long would it be before they could not live with the decisions imposed upon them, and what would the tolls be upon their psyche, and their souls?

Perhaps that's too much to ask of a cable network, as it would make some characters (mainly Rick) seem less "heroic" and possible alienate a good portion of their audience. That's a shame, as an exploration of such gray lines could turn this show from just an enjoyable show with some great zombie kills to a program that offers a look into the steps we would take to stay alive, how far we would allow ourselves to fall so we could wake up the next morning, still breathing.

[Stuart]

Overall, a really good season.

Carl was absolutely right to take the guy down. You tell someone to drop their piece and they say “come and get it”, you don’t ask again. If this was meant to illustrate Carl’s itchy trigger finger, the scene just didn’t pull that off. If it was meant to remind us that Hershell is a weak-kneed ninny, it worked just fine.

I agree they really didn’t defend the prison very well at all. It was frustrating to watch. Maybe the producers played it out that way because they needed to reduce the Woodbury group and make the governor even crazier than he already was, but they didn’t want Rick’s group to be seen massacring anyone.

The whole Andrea situation was beyond tedious and her predictable (and welcome) demise made for a damp squib ending. I think Merle’s death would have made for a better climax.

[Scary Gary]

Just to expand on my point about the ambiguity of Carl "gunning down" the kid. The whole thing in my opinion was a set up by the writers for the Rick/Carl confrontation at the end. That confrontation shows Rick how his behavior has affected Carl, resulting in Carl's "cold" actions. In turn, that is what changes Rick into accepting the Woodbury weak and meek; to show Carl that civility is still a necessity in that world. It is a stark contrast to the episode several weeks ago where they passed the hitchhiker several times, leaving him die (and then swiping his gear afterwards).

[cdb]

Apr 2, 2013 22:09:18 GMT -5 bigmac said:

Speaking of Shane, keeping him alive was a wasted opportunity. The script could have turned dark after the scene with the barn, with the group splintered into two factions, and offered a commentary about whether a change in moral standard would keep everyone alive, and the cost it would extract from each character. If people followed Shane's example, how long would it be before they could not live with the decisions imposed upon them, and what would the tolls be upon their psyche, and their souls?

I was kinda glad they killed him, much as I liked his character, since I felt that arc had run its course. Now I'm thinking it would have been interesting though to see Shane morph into a governor like figure himself, and I think Lori getting killed due to Rick's decision making would have been the perfect catalyst for a war between the two splinter groups.

I loved the episode where they discovered the barn was full, and you see Shane looking in with his face framed by the two doors. That's classic comic book framing, and his face has just the lining and subtly exaggerated features to make it look like someone almost drew than freehand. I was sorry to see him go, I'm more sorry now that you brought up this idea.

Perhaps that's too much to ask of a cable network

I think a lot of things will fall into this category of restriction. In the end though, I'm super happy this show exists. It's well written, well acted, well produced, and just overall cool. This finale was a bit of a let down for me, not because of general quality issues with the show or the cast, but because of a couple of cop outs I didn't agree with: Andrea's stupid death; the governor's slaughter, the screw up of the Carl situation, as I agree he was totally right to do what he did. Those things, and the fact that nothing seemed resolved on any level leaving the show to feel like a mid season show, is what gets me.

But, I will be watching in October. And I have to admit I'm kinda glad the governor is still around, even if only in spirit.

[bigmac]

I'll be there in October as well. It's not high art, but it's a fun zombie soap opera. And I don't say that as a bad thing. Any show that has me walking 5 blocks to the local bar showing it every Sunday night has to be enjoyable. ;D