With the Walking Dead second season about to start (which we intend to do weekly episode reviews on) we're doing 6 recaps of the previous series to bring us up to date
The opening scene of
this pilot is one of the best I've seen. We see the protag in an
obvious disaster zone, surrounded by wreckage and scraps of people's
lives – including children's toys. He is carrying a petrol can,
looking for a resource most of us today take for granted. It is
eerily silent except for the buzzing of insects clinging to the
corpses of the dead. And then we see the Walker – a child, a little
girl (evocative of all what we're supposed to protect) even carrying
a teddy bear. And he shoots her.
A perfect introduction
to the world of the Walking Dead..
Which is followed by a rather pointless scene with Shane (thus beginning my series long dislike of Shane who never has the decency to be eaten which I just call rude) complaining about women and Rick complaining about his relationship and relationships until Rick is shot in a shootout (Shane, alas, is not shot).
Rick awakes in a
hospital bed – and the dying flowers next to him show he's been
unconscious a while – and after it quickly becomes clear the
hospital has been wrecked and he's all alone – except for the
bodies. And we're treated to one of the most on-the-edge-of-your-seat
filming I've seen in a long time. I kept screaming at the screen
“don't go in there! Don't open that It's dark! Get out of there!”
Leaving the hospital we
get a greater sense of how widespread the carnage is, the mass
grave, the wreckage, the destruction. This is really a wonderful
scene for how great the scale of this was. We also see the very first
Walker – bicycle lady who has her own very powerful, very sad
webisodes. I have to say I found Rick's reactions a little... off
here. There was surprise and then... bemusement? Not how I'd react
(admittedly I'd probably react by having the screaming meemies right
there). But I liked how the Walkers were also presented as tragic
victims
Rick runs home,
unsurprisingly, to try and find his family – but the house is
abandoned. This acting I found much more true – it's not just sad
or shocked or scared, it's utterly overwhelmed. Rick knows his family
is alive because all their photo albums are missing – which I can
see – not sensible but definitely what people will cling to.
He is smacked across
the head by a shovel and he wakes up restrained to a bed by Morgan
and his son Duane. This is the first introduction we have to the
paranoia of strangers, of having to check to see if they've been
bitten or not, of not being able to trust until you're sure. With
even good people who want to help having to be very careful before
they can. I also appreciate how Morgan tried to maintain his
standards and values – a blessing at the meal, not tolerating his
son swearing, even as the world falls apart he holds on. We also see
one of the other tragedies of the time – loved ones who are now
Walkers as Morgan's wife tries to enter the house. We see this again
later as Morgan cannot bring himself to kill his wife and later when
Rick feels he has to put down a Walker that used to be a colleague –
a lot of mixed feelings with what to do with a Walker you knew.
In the police station
to re-arm and shower – again another great scene on how much things
have changed, with hot water becoming a luxury. I'm, impressed with
this first episode how many little scenes like this there are to show
how much the world has changed without being blatant. Rick decides to
head to Atlanta and Morgan will follow, keeping in touch with
walkie-talkies.
As Rick approaches
Atlanta he tries to call for any help, he contacts a refugee camp
outside of Atlanta but he can't hear their responses. In the camp is
Rick's wife Lori and son Kyle – and Shane (who isn't dead) who is
quick to lay down the law and be grossly condescending and
patronising to Lori (sadly, she doesn't kill him).
Running out of petrol,
Rick swaps his car for a horse and arrives at Atlanta – and
supposed safety. Except it's eerily empty - except for the gazillion
Walkers who block several roads and bring down his horse forcing him
to run and hide in a tank, trapped and surrounded. I'm actually
shocked they did this and wonder how many complaints they got. I mean
violence against people is one thing – but violence against an
animal? And against horses? That tends to rile people up! You can
slaughter a bus full of school children but gods' help you if you lay
a finger on a kitten
It all seems very
hopeless... until the radio comes to life.
