Review - The Walking Dead TS-19

Sunday night was the explosive season finale of The Walking Dead. My take on the season finale? Read on (spoilers ahead).

The episode starts off with a flashback of the world going downhill fast at the hospital where Rick was recovering. Shane is running around frantically looking for a doctor or nurse to help get Rick out of there as the military are shooting the infected in the hallways. What's particularly eerie here is that the guards appear to be willing to shoot anyone on sight, regardless of whether or not they're confirmed to be undead. The building is slowly becoming overrun as the power goes out Shane attempts to hear any heartbeat or pulse from Rick, but nothing. With Walkers taking over he closes the door behind him and puts a gurney in front to keep them out. It was a great a way to start the episode as it gives Shane more of a human side and being a great friend.

The episode flashes back to the present and the survivors rush in the CDC to be greeted by a gun toting scientist who makes sure none of them are infected and seals the door back shut. Going down into an underground bunker they are relieved to find some comforts from the world they lost such as showers, warm beds and booze. They have a big feast that night with plenty of booze (some getting drunker then others). Remember how I said earlier it was good to see a more loyal side of Shane? That's forgotten pretty quickly as he makes an unwanted, drunken advance on Lori.

After everyone is up and going eating breakfast they begin to get answers from the scientist about what’s going on and how far this pandemic has gone. He shows them the last bit of research he did on the infection showing a pretty cool display of how the brain dies and eventually comes back to life. The survivors also learn why he is the only one left at the CDC as everyone else fled or committed suicide. He had a deadline to complete as much research as possible, as the giant timer counting down towards zero in the main computer room signifies an emergency decontamination of the entire CDC building. This is the contingency plan of the CDC to trap all the deadly viruses and weaponized chemicals as well from ever getting out by heating the air and blowing it all up.

The last few scenes of the season finale are probably the most dramatic scenes all season (and of any show in general really). The survivors are faced with a choice: die now or die later. It was an extremely powerful scene that really made each of them think about their fates and whether or not they felt it was worth continuning on out there in a world full of undead and uncertainty. It be great if all of them made it out alive, but considering this is The Walking Dead you can probably guess that a few stay behind, resigned to meet their fate. As Rick was leaving Dr. Jenner pulled him over and whispered something into his ear; not knowing what he said should be a great plot point that becomes a bigger deal in the next season. The remaining survivors all pile into their cars and peel out of there in a loud fashion, leaving you wanting more and making that second season seem so far away.

This was a phenomenal last episode for a great new show. If you didn’t get a chance to see any of them find a way to as you won’t regret it (already available for preorder!). This first season was so freaking awesome and I really enjoyed seeing the first part of The Walking Dead again. Overall, it showcased some of the best television I've seen in a long time, with perfectly casted characters that showed exactly what it could be like to survive in a zombie apocalypse. Kirkman's work has always been more about the people and less about the zombies and the TV show captured that perfectly. The last episode was a great sendoff for the season and if the next season is as good as this one who knows how long this show could go for.