Wow.
This episode was one of the finest hours of television I’ve ever seen and it made a promise for the next season that I’m not sure it can keep.
There will be minor spoilers in this review, so, please bear that in mind. I’m very glad I wasn’t spoiled beforehand, so unless you’ve already watched the episode, I’d recommend skipping my review.
As I write this, my heart is still beating faster and my adrenaline is up. This show jolts my emotions every episode and this episode accomplished that much more than any other. I didn’t think it was possible to give us a better episode than the one that came before it, or the one before that. But they built so cleverly and carefully toward this season finale that I’m sure even Frank Darabont is proud, despite being mysteriously let go.
The thing I loved most about this episode was the handling of Rick’s confessions about Shane. He spent as much time in the episode as possible deflecting it, first from Carl, and then from the entire group, but when he has Lori alone he tells her. The scene was stirring and the acting was top notch. Andrew Lincoln gave it everything he had, but the more stunning performance in the scene was Sarah Wayne Collins. I’ve always thought the test of an actor is not what they’re doing when the focus is on them giving lines, but what they do when they’re reacting. And the look on Sarah Collins’ face as Rick makes his confession… top notch. You could truly see the gears working in her head, turning over the consequences in her mind. For an actor, to do that over and over again in the course of many takes is difficult. It’s truly a gift to perform dramas for us.
But the next time Rick confesses, in front of the whole group, Andrew Lincoln succeeded in sucking all the oxygen from the air with one, brief line. “I killed my best friend to save you people.”
It was an incredible moment.
But not more incredible than the two hints of what season three holds. The first, was Andrea’s saviour, Michonne. Michonne is one of my favorites from the comic and with announcements about the Governor coming into the story next season, her involvement had been a massive question mark hanging over my head. Now that she’s in it, I’m dying to see more. Her entrance into the show is, perhaps, one of the greatest and most satisfying moments of television I’ve ever seen.
The second hint of season three was the final shot of the episode: the pan up over the lake and our first glimpse of what looks to be a prison.
The tone and tenor of the next season is going to be as different from season two was from the first season. And I think Hershel will be filling the void Dale left and Andrea, angry for being left behind, might become the loose cannon Shane was.
But who knows?
I certainly don’t. I’m just along for the ride. And between this show and The Clone Wars, the wait over the summer may well kill me with anticipation.