“Death is death, it’s always been there.” – Rick
The back half of The Walking Dead’s second season starts with an episode that is tonally much different than anything we’ve seen from the show to date.
“Nebraska” is decidedly darker and more nihilistic than previous episodes, and I for one think that is a good thing. A show set in a post-zombie apocalypse world should be nihilistic. It’s taken a while, but we are starting to see indications that The Walking Dead is willing to embrace this hopeless worldview.
There is a scene in the second half of “Nebraska” that reads like a thesis statement of this newfound ideology.
Herschel (Scott Wilson) has fled the farm in a storm of grief over Shane’s (Jon Bernthal) decision to free, and then shoot, all of the walkers penned inside the barn. Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and Glenn (Steven Yuen) track him to a nearby bar that Herschel often frequented in his drinking days. After nearly an entire bottle of scotch, Herschel breaks out his big monologue. First, he accuses Rick and his people of being “like a plague” that swept into his farm and destroyed everything in its path.
When he’s finished blaming Rick for all of his problems, Herschel turns his anger inward. He admonishes himself for being foolish enough to believe that his loved ones were just “sick” and would eventually get better. They’re not sick, they’re dead, and they have been for a long time. Finally, he lets go of hope.
This loss of hope is the central theme of the speech, and the episode. Slowly but surely, the characters on The Walking Dead are beginning to realize that there is no savior. There’s no safe haven, no cure. There is only survival. Survival at any cost.
Shane has always been my favorite character on the show, mainly because he was the only one to recognize how foolish and naive it is to hold out hope in a world in which hope died a long time ago. He knew it was silly to spend all that time chasing after Sophia (Madison Lintz). He also knew what he had to do in regard to the walkers in Herschel’s barn. By the end of “Nebraska” it appears that other characters, specifically Rick, have decided to embrace the What Would Shane Do philosophy.
At the end of the episode, Herschel’s big speech is interrupted when two strangers burst into the bar. Dave (Michael Raymond-James from Terriers, yay!) and Tony (Aaron Munoz) appear friendly at first, but soon it becomes clear that they’re after the location of Hesrchel’s farm. A tense stand-off ensues, and when the situation gets really hairy Rick pulls his service weapon blasts Dave and Tony.
After the double-murder Rick shows no remorse. Zombie or no zombie, he’s willing to put down anyone who threatens him and his people. In a world without hope, the only thing to hold onto is survival. Survival at any cost: that’s What Shane Would Do.
Lingering thoughts on “Nebraska”:
- Although I quite enjoyed this episode, there were still elements that had me shaking my head. Why in the world did Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies) decide to head into town looking for Rick? Rick knew it was important to get home quickly so Herschel could help the girl in a shock-induced coma. Why would Lori risk leaving the farm to tell Rick something he already knew?
- In the past, I’ve commented about how awful Andrew Lincoln’s southern accent is. Well, The Walking Dead has a new champion of terrible accents: Aaron Munoz. Tony’s Boston accent (at least I think that’s what it was supposed to be) was just embarrassing.
Some stats and info about The Walking Dead, “Nebraska”
TV SHOW – The Walking Dead
SEASON/EPISODE – Season 2, Episode 8
AIRED ON – February 12th, 2012
NETWORK/STREAMING SERVICE – AMC
GENRE – Horror, Drama, Zombies, Thriller
CREATED BY – Frank Darabont
CAST – Norman Reedus, Melissa McBride, Lauren Cohan, Christian Serratos, Josh McDermitt, Danai Guria, Seth Gilliam, Andrew Lincoln, Ross Marquand, Chandler Riggs
This review originally appeared on TV Geek Army.