Because of conflicting TV shows Sunday night, I was only able to watch the most recent episode tonight and it was REALLY worth the wait. The wife and I have multiple shows we like that are on different nights so we alternate to keep things fair. Next week is going to be the finale so I have to watch it real time. FYI, mucho grande spoiler alert if you have not yet seen the episode.

This episode starts off with the burial of Dale and four of the more aggressive characters (except T-Dog) going out and taking their aggressions on some harmless flesh eating zombies. The episode moves along and for a while it’s just some background character story with Lori telling Shane how much she cares for him and how thankful she is for what he did for them. Also, Carl confides in him about seeing the zombie that killed Dale in the mud and how he couldn’t shoot him. And then finally, Shane confronts the kid in the barn and is conflicted on how to kill or get rid of him. After dwelling on it, smacking himself around trying to figure it out, he decides to let him go. Well, not really. Instead he concocts a plan to make it look like he escaped by smacking his face on a tree and get the group riled up to go after him. You don’t really know it yet but once it’s all over you can see how the writers were ramping up the Shane character only to kill him off. What is it about T-Dog that makes him such a background character, he’s almost a non character.

Moving right along we find Shane, Rick, Daryl and Glenn going after the kid who “escaped”. Daryl and Glenn eventually stumble on to him and he is now a zombie. However, he is a zombie without being bit. For as backwoodsy and redneckish as Daryl is, he’s smart and he notices things. Not to mention he figures things our very quickly and formulates plans effectively. Back with Rick and Shane, they are going out farther and farther away from everyone. As time passes Rick figures it out and realizes Shane is going to make his play and try to get rid of him. What I don’t know is how Carl gets out that far without anyone else knowing he’s gone and more directly, how did he track them?

Anyway, things happen, plans unfold and Shane decides he is going to Kill Rick. Blah blah blah, they talk back and forth and finally Rick is able to pull a knife and stab him. Carl meanwhile sees this all unfold from afar and pulls his gun. The screen has weird zombie flashes that don’t make much sense to me until they flash to Shane with his eyes glassed over and very subtly twitching. What they were trying to portray was the Zombification of of Shane due to dying and not just being bit. While walking and talking to Carl Rick does not see or hear Shane get up and start walking towards them. Carl being the “crackshot” that he is shoots Shane in the head thereby killing him…again.

Final scene is a hoard of zombies walking over the foggy meadow towards the farm. Ok, don’t get me wrong as I love this show…however, some things don’t always make the the most sense to me. This time for instance is the whole Carl making his way out there and shooting Shane in the head concept. 1. He is a kid and can’t have that good of aim yet. 2. He in no way could track them that well. 3. how did his mother let him out of her sight long enough for him to get there when there is supposedly a crazy kid on the loose who could get the jump on Shane and run loose.

The entire time I am watching the episode unfold I am on the edge of my seat. I’ve become so invested in the characters that I felt horrible when Dale was gutted and they had to shoot him. Not to mention I sort of felt bad for the kid they had locked up because he may have been a product of his environment. And, the whole background story between Glenn and Maggie is quite touching and give the show a bit of hope for new romance. So you can see I am a fan and the show itself has me engaged enough to blog about it. What I think happened was they need to edit it in to the right length for an episode and ended up editing too much. Or, they did not think through how Rick ends up killing Shane twice. Since it is about zombies, or walkers, and end of days type stuff you have to think they would get a bit hokey. As long as people are watching, talking, blogging, tweeting and discussing it, they must be doing something right. Especially since I cannot miss an episode.

Regardless, I really do love this show and for as much as I am trying to rationalize a world full of zombies, the writing is top notch. How are they going to replace a main character like Shane? Are they going to promote Daryl or T-Dog to be a more prominent part of the team? Will they pick up another person along the way? How will the Shane/Zombie story effect Lori and Carl and their relationship with Rick? How are they going to survive the next episode with tons of walkers coming after them, making it through the barb fence and attacking them all? And most importantly what is up with the the dead characters becoming zombies without being bit? Has the virus mutated? Is it airborne or in the water or food supply? Are their carriers who and not infected until their heart stops and then it manifests? So many questions and I have so few answers.

So I leave you with this image…RIP Dale.

Tell me what you think…I am dying to hear it.