We're already at the halfway point. This season is sure going by fast. Although, having a six-episode first season isn’t really helping out matters. Let’s see how frogs, squirrels, and the Boondock Saints spice up the lives of those living the zombie apocalypse in this week's recap.
- From the start, we’re trapped with Merle as he loses it and the show makes sure we feel every second of it. They Drag. It. Out. From the chapped lips, to the zombies at the door, to the bloody wrist, and the hacksaw just out of reach, by the time we reach the opening credits, I actually feel bad for him.
- I’m always interested in how shows try to connect us with characters. Usually they have a redeeming quality that makes us root for them. Merle has no redeeming qualities, but we still connect with him because he’s in a situation none of us would ever want to be in: handcuffed and hopeless.
- What a nice family shot. Lori’s cutting Carl's hair. Shane’s cleaning the ol' shotgun, and there’s talk of catching frogs! Plural. Too bad we all know this is the last happy scene these three will have together.
- "You ever eat frog legs?" "Ewwww." "No! Yum." Don’t let Lori and Carl deceive you, they are delicious. Also, the way Shane mocks Lori with that high-pitched girly voice? Awesome.
- Why did Glenn go to the camp with the car alarm still blaring? Didn’t we learn that zombies are attracted to sound?
- "That alarm was echoing all over these hills, hard to pinpoint the source.” Well, Mr. Dale, I guess you just have all the answers.
- Aw, a loving reunion between everyone. Cherish this moment folks, it's likely to be the only truly upbeat scene this entire season.
- And Lori gives Shane the WTF look. End cherished moment.
- "Words can be meager things, sometimes they fall short". Truer words were never spoken in a post-apocalyptic zombie show. Rock on Dale.
- Apparently every other survivor is an awful human being. Way too put too many logs on your fire, Ed. Now you’re going to make the wife you beat on a regular basis pull the log off? Blech.
- "Maybe half a dozen geeks could fit through it at any one time." Well, we made it 20 minutes into the episode before using the word “geek” for zombie. Sigh, I guess I give up. The fact that they haven't even uttered the word “zombie” by the season’s midpoint means it’ll never be used to describe the dead.
- The family albums! Hey, whatever happened to Morgan and his kid? We haven’t seen them since the first episode. They were the best.
- It's hard to tell what Lori's feeling. Clearly she isn't going to tell Rick about Shane, and Rick going into a coma / almost dying seems to give her perspective. Maybe she’ll really give their marriage a second chance? I mean, she kept Rick’s ring for him; that must mean something.
- "He won't wake up." Way to be a creepster before sexing, Lori.
- "Look at them. Vultures." Not the Challenger! It’s too soon!
- The camp defenses are pretty ingenious. Anyone else notice the string of cans that’ll make noise if zombies walk into them?
- Wow, it takes a while to bring down that deer-eating zombie. Sucker sure can take a punch. They really need to use less blunt object to bring down the dead. Like swords. Swords would be perfect for the anti-zombie arsenal (if they ever found any).
- Oh my God the head is still alive. Kill it with fire! Or, an arrow to the brain works I guess.
- Merle’s brother, Daryl, is played by Norman Reedus, one of the brothers from the Boondock Saints! All he needs is some rosaries and rope…
- "Merle! Got us some squirrel!" Aw cute, Daryl makes rhymes.
- What do you do when you learn your brother is handcuffed to the top of a building? Retaliate by throwing squirrels.
- I'm very conflicted about whether or not they should rescue Merle. On the one hand, I feel bad for Merle ever since the first scene of this episode. On the other, it's stupid. Stuuuuupid.
- "You went through hell to find us. You just got here. You're going to turn around and leave?" I can see why Lori and Rick had troubles in their marriage. As altruistic as he is, Rick is putting Merle (and guns and the walkies) ahead of the family he just reunited with. Technically, Daryl and Glenn by themselves would be able to carry out the mission, but Rick has to be the good guy.
- What do girls talk about when washing clothes? Vibrators of course!
- The scene between Shane and Carl / Lori is absolutely heartbreaking. All Shane's has is those two and Lori goes nuclear on their relationship. Shane made the mistake of telling Lori that Rick was dead, and now it costs Shane everything.
- By the way, the bow is the coolest weapon so far.
- Shane takes the rage from being dumped and puts it into beating up Ed. At least the bad people in the show seem to take quite a beating.
- Interesting how the zombies are gone from the locked door near Merle. What could that mean?
- Hey, my Saw movie comment from the previous episode was kinda right on! Merle cuts through his own hand in order to escape. Ick. Of course the episode ends here. But really, how is Merle going to survive? I mean, Buster Bluth made it a season or two being handless, but this is something else entirely.
Well, this episode was pretty much the mid-season set up for the last few episodes. We have our band of heroes roaming the city, life at camp ripping apart at the seams, and yet, no one has gotten bitten by a zombie yet. I wonder if anyone will be bitten before the end of the season. If I had to guess, my money would be on T-Dog, he just is always there in the background, and something needs to happen with him. Any other guesses?
