That was amazing and totally unexpected.

Total curveball from the graphic novels. I'm sure most readers were like me and thinking that a main character would die tonight, but not that one. It almost feels like the writers knew it and milked it, too. :)

That was some outstanding TV.

I hope they kill off/recast Sarah Cailles. She ruined many episodes of PrisonBreak. And she's killing this show.

We're to believe that Otis put the girl in the barn. Or was Hershel lying the whole time?

Good question.

I'm leaning towards believing that Hershel knew that Sophia was in there and that was part of why he was trying to convert them to his thinking (that they could be cured) or trying to make them leave so that her mom would be spared the agony. I don't see any way that they don't clarify that in the next episode, unless someone like Daryl or Shane just shoots Hershel (doubtful).

I actually think Cailles is playing Lori pretty close to how I would have imagined her. Moody and not so subtly questioning/doubting Rick is part of Lori's MO. I thought this was one of the best acted episodes of the series. Carl and Glen have been much better this season and this was one of the few tolerable performances of the series from the guy that plays Shane (still can't get over the drinking/crying/shower scene, though).

Found an answer I guess.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvdnH...e_gdata_player

I hope they go for a full 22 episodes next season.

I don't like this crap where they take two months off.

IMO they were barely able to create these 7 episodes. I can't imagine how badly stretched out a full season would feel. Especially with AMC slashing budgets like they have been.

I watched Talking Dead and Kirkman said that it's true that Otis was the one who captured the walkers and put them in the barn. Shane killed off Otis before they were even able to mention Sophia had been missing.

So, as always, Shane is to blame.

Really glad that story arc is over. Became way too much of a crutch for the writers to get from point A to whatever point B will end up becoming. It was a good episode but the entire storyline was contrived.

Kirkman interview:'Walking Dead' writer Robert Kirkman talks midseason finale shocker | Inside TV | EW.com

This one deserves a big ol' "LOL".

True dat

Character in the graphic novels?

Yeah. One of the central characters and one that I am sure they have been dying to introduce.

Is there any place to watch the new episode? I forgot to DVR it and my Comcast On Demand doesn't seem to have it. My beef is they never rerun the episode until Thursday or Friday...

I don't know for free, but you can get it for 2.99 from Itunes

Ya think? ;)

We haven't read the novels around here but just from bits & pieces I've picked up on, both my son & I think that has the potential to be one of the greatest characters in the history of television.

Glad that that's over and people are listening to Shane.

Or a Left 4 Dead crossover!

That ending sure caught me and the wife off guard. Redeemed the story arc a bit. Still hope to god they get off of the farm.

Thinking the first half of the season over a bit and it occurs to me that I never gave much thought to the visit to the housing community that Shane and Andrea took.

They found that hole in the wall and giant pile of dead Walkers (or were they just dead bodies) that appeared to have been placed in one place (i.e. someone moved them and it wasn't Walkers. I guess it is possible that there were other survivors there?

I assumed that was a nod to something from the source material, seemed similar to what I've read was one of the first locations where that version of our merry band tried to take refuge.


I didn't think much about that, other than to think it was the scene of a major confrontation & the walkers fell there during combat.

I feel like the only Debbie Downer left in this thread, so I'm going to stop posting and only check once in awhile if I keep watching. I just wanted to say that this ending was something a couple of friends and I joked about as being a stupid ending to the Sophie thing, once we found out the barn had zombies in it. So I guess there are my thoughts on that ending. I'm kind of looking forward to see what Shane as leader can get going, but I'll probably wait until the second half of the season is over before I watch again.

Don't worry. While you may feel like the only Debbie Downer left in this thread, there are plenty of reviews that I've read who really hate this show and feel the same way you do.

I wouldn't hold my breath for that to happen. I'd give no better than even money that he's alive at the end of the second half-season finale.

I'm feeling Rick will end up killing him at the end of the second half.

Not in the least, though the end of the season made up slightly for the truly boring and bad rest of it. I saw one TV critic on twitter recommending "stuck on the farm" as a phrase for a creatively stalled show from now on and I can't disagree. I like how this show will have the organic ability to change the cast as it goes on because right now there aren't many characters I give a damn about.

I wonder how much this "stuck on the farm" business has to do with the show's budget cuts? I remember some comment over the summer where AMC apparently wanted more interior shots and locations, and less outdoor action scenes and sets, to save on the budget. Keeping most of the action limited to the farm and the surrounding wilderness would likely save a lot of money.

Here's the piece I am referring to:

AMC's Crazy Ideas for Cutting Costs on The Walking Dead

AMC's decision to cut the budget dated to the previous fall, when the network instructed Darabont to produce 13 episodes for a second season, up from six for the first season, for less money. Not only would the show get a lower budget, but AMC also decided that Walking Dead would no longer reap the benefit of a 30 percent tax credit per episode that came with filming in Georgia. Now the network was going to hold on to that money.

At the time, a source says, the show's producers decided not to get into a confrontation. "To have a fight over a number when they didn't know what the show was going to do didn't make sense," says this source. But when Walking Dead began to break AMC records, those involved figured that a negotiation would take place and the cuts might be reduced.

But this source says that AMC had its own ideas about how to make the show more cheaply. The show shoots for eight days per episode, and the network suggested that half should be indoors. "Four days inside and four days out? That's not Walking Dead," says this insider. "This is not a show that takes place around the dinner table." That was just one of what this person describes as "silly notes" from AMC. Couldn't the audience hear the zombies sometimes and not see them, to save on makeup? The source says Darabont fought "a constant battle to keep the show big in scope and style."

There is an overwhelming amount of foreshadowing that .

dola-
It seems that AMC is just unwilling to provide the budget for a show like this. I wish they would just sell it off. I read that they were somewhere around 3.5 million/episode the first year. And now are at almost a million less for these episodes. I'm guessing that the show was sold to Netflix for roughly a million/episode, so they basically have to be making money hand over fist.

I can take a bottle episode or two per season, but with these basically no-name actors, we should be able to get more action and adventure.

Yeah. They were pretty much telegraphing it that entire last episode. The only surprise was that it didn't happen as the midseason cliff hanger.

Haven't read the comic and didn't get the foreshadowing.

I'd like the character development better if Rick does it over Carl.

Can't compare too much to the comics ... Sophia is still alive in issue 91 and current timelines put us around issue 12.
I loved the last episode, thought it brought to a head a lot of stuff that was simmering. Definitely need to speed things up in the second half though.

I still love the show, but, they really, really need to pick up the pace or it just becomes a day time soap with occasional zombies.

Some article I read in the past said they specifically cut the budget of Walking Dead to pay for the increased costs of keeping Mad Men going. Personally I love both shows. It would have been nice for them to pony up the money for Walking Dead as well.

Especially considering Walking Dead has better ratings.

It figures that this group of idiots would kill the person who has been the most capable and willing to look out for the groups survival. Even Daryl went off the deep end willing to die to find someone who probably wouldn't be found.

But, much as I hate to say it, MM probably draws more ad revenue because of the demographics. It's a small audience, honestly a lot smaller than I imagine most people realize, but it's a particularly affluent one. That makes it an easy sell to high-end advertisers (BMW, Mercedes, etc) because they have relatively few targeted options for television.

edit to add: I chose "draws more ad revenue" intentionally, given the higher costs for the show I don't think we can say something stronger like "more profitable".
But it's definitely an easier sell.

I reckon that's true. I've never watched "Mad Men", but I know a lot of people who do and most would fit that demographic. I also always watch "Walking Dead" on the DVR, so I have no real idea what kind of advertisers buy air time.

Thread always gets bumped during Sunday Night Football, and I never click on it until the DVR gets around to it. Way after game or the next day.


Kinda felt odd not seeing it up there.


See you kids in Feburary.

Finally got around to watch the last few episodes-was fun getting caught up in the thread here knowing what was going to happen and what the likely reaction would be.

Have to say that while I was surprised that Sophia was in the barn, and happy that part of the show is finally over, I'm hoping that Herschel and his group did not know she was in there-that Otis brought her in before any one knew who she was and didn't tell anybody before his untimely death. Because seeing the mother grieving like that-you'd have to have a heart of stone to just not tell her at some point-or if Herschel really wanted them gone to have her "found" near the farm so Rick's group could deal with her then be on their way.

I can't see this group surviving very long if Shane is going to be the new leader-he's so far gone off the moral and sanity deep end that he'll likely now have no qualms killing people who disagree/try to rebel against his orders. Starting with Dale probably. It's likely a bloody ending for him coming sooner rather than later. I have to say I was really rooting for Dale to kill him in the swamp or at the barn at the end there.

I liked that Carol was finally coming to grips with her daughter's likely death instead of constantly grieving-her scenes with Darryl were nice I thought-now though she'll likely be back to constant grieving.

The last scene was great of course for its surprise moments and horror at what happened, but the part I liked the most actually was Glenn looking over at farmer's daughter and asking her if it was okay if he joined the firing line.

It's a shame that monetary concerns are keeping the show from reaching the heights it could. I think the show works best when they are on the move, finding out more about this new world they are in, while under the near constant threat of the zombies. I'm glad they got to flesh out the characters a bit, but its time to amp up the tension part of the show again.

I believe he knew, justifying the deception on the basis of "saving" Sophia. The one obvious flaw with my belief is why he let them keep searching instead of pushing them harder to leave.

Yeah I mean he could have told Carol, convinced her to stay in the hopes of finding a cure for her daughter, then told the others to leave because they were against keeping any of the Walkers in the barn alive.

I am of the belief that he didn't know she was in there. That Otis brought her in himself one night and the conversation sort of went like this:

Otis: I found another one out in the creek. Brought her in.
Hersehl: Anyone we know?
Otis: No.

And that was it.

Then Rick, Shane and Carl show up, Shane and Otis go to get the medical supplies and Shane kills Otis before Otis ever learns that they were looking for a little girl, the one who might be in the barn.

I like this point, but I think Herschel knew that telling any single one of them would risk that person telling the rest of the group. We all know what happened when that became a reality.

I tend to agree with HB's point that Otis brought her in and was killed off before they had a chance to tell Herschel and Co that they were missing Sophia.

The trailer for the second half of the season makes it pretty clear whether or not Hershel knew.

saw that myself during Hell on Wheels and was a great teaser.

I didn't watch it, but a friend watched The Talking Dead.

Supposedly they addressed it on there and stated that Herschel didn't know.

I didn't watch the trailer that others are mentioning.

No way they kill Shane off any time soon. The tension he creates now is one of the best parts of the show.

I don't watch Talking Dead.

They really need to have this explained very clearly in the show, since it's the most obvious question.