TWD 2x08 "Nebraska" episode discussion... **SPOILERS WITHIN**

[MinionZombie]

Okay folks - the final six episodes of Season Two are underway, so have at the discussion! Remember - keep all discussion of the episode WITHIN THIS THREAD - many forum members don't get to see the episode until days later (e.g. my fellow Brits and I don't get to see it until the following Friday night at the earliest - five days later), so please don't post any spoilers or general info in other discussion topics or in the shoutbox - thanks for your consideration in this matter.

[ProfessorChaos]

damn, that last scene was intense. i could feel my heart beating, even though i knew exactly how things would turn out. cool to see rick kicking ass and taking names for once. this last half is gonna be awesome, can't wait till next week!

[bassman]

damn, that last scene was intense. i could feel my heart beating, even though i knew exactly how things would turn out. cool to see rick kicking ass and taking names for once. this last half is gonna be awesome, can't wait till next week! Indeed! Seeing Rick take those guys out was a breath of fresh air. He's becoming the hard ass Rick from the comics. Not a bad episode at all. The second half of season two has started out on an appropriate bang...

[AcesandEights]

damn, that last scene was intense. i could feel my heart beating, even though i knew exactly how things would turn out. cool to see rick kicking ass and taking names for once. this last half is gonna be awesome, can't wait till next week! I also agree! And damn do the previews for next week look hoppin'!

[White_Zombie]

Did any one notice how rick shot the fat guy in the head even though he was already dead? My speculation is DR.Jenner told him you don't need to be bit to turn, that's why fatty took an extra shot to the melon. I think taking two .357 rounds point blank is enough over kill, so why waste a bullet? I also speculate that group was scouting the farm, after all they mentioned it with out out getting a definite answer from Rick. When the other group finds out two of it's members were killed i bet they're going to assault the farm, either with firearms or bring walkers in. Another thing with the Lori crash plot, this group might find the wreck on the road and take her hostage. It has strong potential to go that way. Oh yeah, i suspect Herschel's daughter was scratched by her zombie step mother and infected.

[Wyldwraith]

So...first impressions of the first episode of the season's 2nd half, At first, I felt like it dragged a bit and kept rehashing dialog from the midseason finale. Thankfully though it soon picked up. Dale has finally made his snake-in-the-grass move against Shane, which to me at least is very hypocritical, since Dale in the same breath is talking about unifying the group and stopping things from going to Hell. Honestly, had I been the listener instead of Lori I would've been of the opinion (based on his tone and how he phrased what he chose to say) that what was sticking in Dale's craw the most was the majority of group members voicing their belief that Shane's decision to clean out the barn was justified and understandable. Dale even went so far as to directly link the idea that everything is going to Hell on the farm because of people seeing things Shane's way and backing him up when it was put-up-or-shut-up time. Last thing I'll say about Dale in this initial feel of the episode is that while we viewers know Dale has correctly guessed what happened to Otis, Dale's openly voicing his accusation to that effect without anything to substantiate it has 0% chance of accomplishing anything positive, and quite a good chance of causing still more strife and internal dissension within the group in an already tense situation. Moving on, I felt like the Lori car wreck was VERY POORLY timed! We were already full up on surprise injuries leading to life-threatening situations. That car accident (which was WAY overdone with the multiple flips) was too much too soon. Especially with the girl from Herschel's group that got grabbed by her still-not-dead Walker mother, and who, while they've yet to spell out what's the matter with her and are guessing shock...after violent close contact from a Walker's clutches and the sudden racing heartbeat + very high fever...is either meant to be a red herring about whether she's been infected, or the last chapter of the barn's tragedy. The scene in the bar was getting a little thick, but understandably so, until the pair of what were obviously raiders showed up. Rick wisely beating them to the punch and gunning them down before they could do him and his in was, hands-down, the single most pragmatic and tortured-moralizing-free decisive bit of action on Rick's part. The first decision and follow-through actions that a) Made me feel like he had the training and experience we're supposed to believe he has as an ex-cop, and b) Was the first indication that Rick can voluntarily bring himself to pull the trigger (no pun intended) in a difficult situation where the action hasn't been all but forced on him by another's action(s). Kudos to Rick, he gets a Shane Gold Star. All in all, the episode had its faults, and CERTAINLY wasn't as strong as the opening of Season 2...but it had some solid good points as well, that give me hope for this half of the season.

[ProfessorChaos]

Did any one notice how rick shot the fat guy in the head even though he was already dead? My speculation is DR.Jenner told him you don't need to be bit to turn, that's why fatty took an extra shot to the melon. I think taking two .357 rounds point blank is enough over kill, so why waste a bullet? i seriously hope this isn't what jenner said to rick, given how many scenes have had dead bodies sitting idly in cars. still not sure what else it could be, but it better be worth the wait. been almost a whole season since that conversation (which is probably like two weeks max in TWD time).

[White_Zombie]

i seriously hope this isn't what jenner said to rick, given how many scenes have had dead bodies sitting idly in cars. still not sure what else it could be, but it better be worth the wait. been almost a whole season since that conversation (which is probably like two weeks max in TWD time). The speculation alone kills me, and i really hope I'm wrong because if I'm not it's gonna poke some serious holes in the credibility of TWD world.

[Moon Knight]

The last 15 minutes were awesome! I also liked that little moment Shane spent with Carol. That was cool. -- -------- Post added at 11:12 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:11 PM ---------- The speculation alone kills me, and i really hope I'm wrong because if I'm not it's gonna poke some serious holes in the credibility of TWD world. This.

[Publius]

The final scene was awesome, I've been waiting to see an encounter between groups of survivors with that kind of tension. Boneheaded move on Lori's part, though, part of me hopes she gets eaten for that.

[childofgilead]

Very enjoyable episode. The only part that stuck in my craw was possuming mom zombie. Aside from the timeline and infection vectors, I don't think that the creators care enough to have a firm timeline or everybody who dies comes back/bitten to be infected continuity to really care at this point. Carl went from bleeding out and having his insides shredded to up and about and hanging with mom in the farmyard. Clearly, to the showrunners, a cohesive timeline isn't a priority. That being said, the performances were by and large really good I felt. I don't buy for a minute that this is the first episode that Darabont had zilch to do with, but based on the "coming up this season" little blurbs we got, I'm really stoked. "Sorry brother."???? Surely this is just some kind of trick, no way they would spoil a reveal like that on a preview..would they?

[Ragnarr]

Good episode! While not technically a "season opener" and in fact a continuation of a split season, it made sense that there would be a clean-up after the "Barnmagedon" shootout. Sort of like the down feeling the morning after a party at your place; kitchen is trashed, empty beer bottles everywhere, and hungover friends shuffling about like... zombies. Lori crashing is a lame development in my opinion. Thinking it ONLY happened so Daryl can have a guilt moment for turning her down about going into town. Hey TWD writers, Daryl having a guilty moment being an important plot point? (*yaawwwwn*) Yeah okay sure. Go Rick!

[Thorn]

Good episode! While not technically a "season opener" and in fact a continuation of a split season, it made sense that there would be a clean-up after the "Barnmagedon" shootout. Sort of like the down feeling the morning after a party at your place; kitchen is trashed, empty beer bottles everywhere, and hungover friends shuffling about like... zombies. Lori crashing is a lame development in my opinion. Thinking it ONLY happened so Daryl can have a guilt moment for turning her down about going into town. Hey TWD writers, Daryl having a guilty moment being an important plot point? (*yaawwwwn*) Yeah okay sure. Go Rick! My thoughts exactly as I watched this unfold, it was setting up a white knight moment for our favorite Hillbilly Ninja to ride in on his hog and save the day. As to my thoughts on the episode, I enjoyed it for the most part. Criticisms: - Bar scene with Herschel took a bit too long, and kind of covered the same ground too much. It could have been shorter and given us more time for at least one more zombie kill. - Loved Rick's scene in the bar after the boys from Philly showed up, great acting, solid action. My one criticism and while yes it was supposed to all feel very wild west, and Rick was using the mirror to watch his six... no good cop let's a man stand behind him who is a potential risk with or without guns. He could have positioned himself differently showing more police training, savvy, and common sense. - I really don't want to spend too much more time on the farm, and do not want to spend more "sick time" "injured person" drama there especially. How many people have we had to watch sick, or injured on the farm? Yes it is a drama, sick people who might die is a dramatic tool, but I am over it for now. Move on please. Will this be the "everyone who dies, for any reason, will re-animate as a zombie" I think that this is the plot tool they will use to deliver that message to our survivors but I still am not interested right now. This is not ER, House, or even Scrubs. I am over the medical sick person crap. - Shane, I sense Shane will soon be dead. The scene where he was washing Carol's hand was the tool by which they try to pull some viewers in to see him as not such a bad guy, almost redemption, making him more likable in a way so that when they kill him he will be more sympathetic. It is a common tool used by writers in these cases. That said it was a stark contrast to the Shane coming unhinged scenes we see, and to everything else that is going on so it seemed out of place to me. He has been nurturing with Carl and Lori, but I have never got that sense from him with the group he is more the tough alpha dog not the den mother. So I really didn't like the scene at all, though as discussed on the talking dead he was talking more about him than anything else further showing his selfish nature, and I guess possibly pushing his agenda a bit. Compliments - Thank god it is back on waiting for it during the break was worse than the hunt for Sophia (I kid I kid) - Loved Rick's bar scene as far as him showing what he is capable of, also for introducing more tension into the show. Especially human tension in the comics they had a number of run ins with unsavory survivors and some of them shocked the hell out of me. While this was more of a run of the mill "we want your women and your beer" survivor groups on the surface at least it was still a well acted scene, and Rick showed his cold blooded side where he just does what needs to be done while sticking to what is right. His hand was forced, he was protecting the group. He did what needed to be done and did it in cold old west bad ass sheriff style. Using his brains, his communication skills, and then cold steel when there was no alternative and he didn't blink skipping from one to the other. Love a character who thinks before acting, and talks before shooting, but does what needs to be done and does it well when he has to. - Carl came off well foreshadowing part of what he is and what he can become. Comic book Carl is a lot differen't than TV show Carl but there is an evolution there I think we are seeing unfold well, and as an actor I think the kid is starting to nail it. - The aftermath of "barn-ageddon" was great to see, and the jump scare with the mother not being "quite dead" enough was a great reminder to how dangerous things were and can be, and to keep us on our toes. It served as a great reminder to the survivors as well. - Some of the dialogue between Rick and Herschel was amazingly well written so kudos to the show writers. - Great zombie make up on the zombie hit by Lori, slowed down he looked great even when bouncing off her car.

[Wyldwraith]

I still feel that Lori's car accident was overdone, dramatically speaking, and cliched to boot with the whole taking her eyes off the road to look at a map being held against the front of the steering wheel. I've seen that EXACT SAME SEQUENCE numerous times. One of the Leprechaun flicks did it, Dracula 2000 did it, and the entire gamut of CSI shows have done it. To say nothing about hardcore action flicks. I wouldn't have minded so much if they'd stuck to her instinctively veering to avoid the Walker and off the road and simply turned the car onto its side as she hit a raised portion of uneven shoulder of the road. The multiple high-speed side flips honestly made me cringe. Though I agree it was all about creating a guilt-moment for Daryl, and probably a ride-to-the rescue situation as well. I liked how things culminated in the bar with the two raiders. The tension was very palpable and the thin veneer of false amiable Q&A came off as very real and lead in to Rick's actions very well. My one gripe is based on what we see in the preview blurb. Glenn was keeping watch at the door, and then suddenly he was away from the door and near a side wall of the bar as the raiders came in. Fine and all, but if the buddies of the 2 raiders killed by Rick were so close as to come rushing over to in effect pin down Rick, Glenn and Herschel before they could exit and reach their car, why was there no hint of their presence when Rick and Glenn drove up? I mean the town was pin-drop SILENT when they came in. Silent enough that anything but remaining still would've made perceivable noise. The raiders, juxtaposed against that brooding silence rather felt like they just appeared out of nowhere. Perhaps that was the writers' intent, but it just seemed a bit weird to me once you add in the appearance of the buddies of the two dead raiders. Still, I agree with a lot of the good points made previously.

[Thorn]

I still feel that Lori's car accident was overdone, dramatically speaking, and cliched to boot with the whole taking her eyes off the road to look at a map being held against the front of the steering wheel... Completely agree with this, it was lazy writing or over dramatic special effects people, or poor directing or a combination of all. I really didn't like how it all went down. I would even be okay with her just hitting a walker and losing control and running head on into a guard rail. No need for the Dukes of Hazard hay stack jump and flip(s).