Walking Dead Recap S2E12: Better Angels

Just one episode left until the finale, and that can only mean one thing, things are about to get crazy, or I should say crazier.

Shane, Andrea, Daryl, and T-Dog go to check on the surrounding fences where a walker had made its way through and mauled Dale. Dale was annoying, but he was honest, and now he is dead. The group’s burial of him is interweaved with the quartet’s zombie exterminating. There is a lot of anger in this group, and a couple of walkers take the brunt of it. The group may have lost more than just Dale, with him gone, they may have lost their humanity.

Hershel moves Rick’s group into the house. The creek is rising, and with it, the walkers are coming in. Rick locks down property for protection, and plans on releasing Randall again, though Shane still thinks it’s a bad idea. Honestly I’m with Shane on this one. The kid has been though a lot, and the group hasn’t been all that kind. I’d lead my  friends straight to them, and take the farm or burn it to the ground trying.

Hershel tells Rick he has no patience where Shane is concerned. Rick tells him that Shane has turned over a new leaf, obviously they’re not talking about the same Shane. Rick is still believing what he wants to not what’s in front of him. Shane is loyal, and delusional. He’s not gonna change. Rick asks Andrea to stay and help keep Shane in line, he needs to make sure that every time he leaves the farm all hell doesn’t break loose. Andrea suggests that maybe he needs to stop leaving. Whereas I don’t see Shane as a bad guy, just bad at thinking things through Andrea comes across as a petulant bitch. I know Shane is bound to bite it this season, Lori set things in motion long ago and Shane is just too volatile for his own good, but I wouldn’t mind Andrea enduring a slow painful death. She irks me more than Shane ever could.

Carl goes to talk to Shane. The boy has some serious guilt, and he should, but Shane although reluctant lets the boy speak his piece. Carl returns the gun that he stole, and tells Shane he saw the walker long before it killed Dale. Shane urges Carl to keep the gun for protection, but Carl wants nothing to do with it.

Randal struggles to free himself, as Daryl strengthens the barn.

Maggie invites Glen to stay with her. Hershel gives Lori his room, with the pregnancy, she’ll be more comfortable there. There’s a glimmer in Lori’s eye as she spots Shane adding extra support to the windmill and adds a lookout post. This is not going to go well for Shane. She asks why he isn’t waiting for help, she asks him to come down. Poor Shane, he listens to her voice her reasoning, her half-hearted apologies. She says that she doesn’t know whose baby she’s carrying, and goes on about how thankful she is to Shane, and of course Shane fall head over feet into this web. He’d forgive her anything, and it’ll cost him his life in the end I’m sure of it. I will not be sad when Lori dies, only that she doesn’t die before Shane.

Rick plans with Daryl where to take Randall. Rick and Darryl talk about his pulling the trigger on Dale, and leaves as Shane walks up. Shane asks after Carl, and tells Rick what Carl told him about the walker in the mud. He urges Rick to talk to Carl about it, but Rick is putting his foot down on this on. Shane offers to ride out with Daryl to set Randal free so Rick can deal with Carl, but Rick declines. Shane gives Rick the gun Carl stole from Daryl, and gives him and extra dig as he leaves.

Glen and Andrea try to get Dale’s RV going, but it won’t start. Glen tries to do what Dale taught him, and Andrea gives him encouragement. There are whole heaps of regrets about Dale, but it’s all done and nothing can change that now. Glen gets the RV to fire up.

Reinforcements continue all around the farm, and Rick finds Carl in the barn on look out. He gives Carl back the gun, and tries to give him comfort, telling him that he’s not to blame for Dale’s death, even though he completely is. Rick’s whole death speech is a bunch of crap, but Carl buys the whole thing.

Randall struggles to get free, until the sound of footsteps stops him. Shane has come for a little visit, that is surely to end badly. He draws his gun, but doesn’t pull the trigger. He sees the damage Randal has caused himself trying to get free.

T-Dog gives Daryl a few arrows, as he and Rick prepare to leave. T-Dog goes to retrieve the prisoner, but finds him already gone. Shane runs with him through the woods, telling Randal that he’s trying to help him get away. He uses Randal’s trust to gain information about his group. Shane tells Randal that he wants to join the group, and Randal believes him.  Poor stupid Randal, chatters away not seeing the danger he’s in. Shane easily breaks his neck with no remorse.  And then he wrestles with a tree, breaking his nose to make his story look good.

Shane returns to see the group looking for Randal. Shane comes with out of the woods, and sells his story for all he’s worth. Carol begs the guys not to go after Randal. But Rick, Glen, Daryl and Shane head out after the kid. Daryl is the only  one who voices his disbelief about Shane’s story.  All the factors don’t add up, and the lack of tracks doesn’t help. But Rick believes and so the men go on a merry chase.

Carl sits watch inside of the house, darkness now blanketing everything. Rick comments on Shane’s horribly broken nose. Daryl and Glen look for signs of Randal in the dark. Rick keeps his eye on Shane, surely he has to at least suspect what really happened. Daryl finds the Shane and Randal’s tracks from earlier, and before they can piece more of the story together, they’re attacked by walker Randal.

Shane leads Rick on a wild goose chase, and Rick questions Shane a little bit more, as Daryl and Glen examine Randal’s now dead body. They conclude that Randal died from a broken neck, dun dun dun.

Shane and Rick head back, and they’re still talking about what happened with Randal. Just come out with it already Rick, stop beating around the bush! Shane is uneasy, and Rick makes a show of putting away his weapon as he lays into Shane. Rick knows Shane’s plan. Rick foolishly thought everything was worked out, but Shane was just lying in wait. He thinks that Lori and Carl will get over Rick, they have before, but Rick tells Shane that he won’t be able to live with himself if he pulls the trigger.

Shane thinks that Rick is a destructive force, he sees weakness, and Rick may be weak ,but he’s trying to hold onto his compassion, something Shane abandoned long ago. Rick tries to give Shane a way out of this mess, to put this in the past, but it’s all a ploy. As Shane moves to take the gun from Rick, Rick sticks a knife in Shane’s belly, the last thing he ever wanted to do. Rick mourns this loss more than he has any of the previous ones. It doesn’t matter if it needed to be done, Shane’s loss is one that will be felt for a long time. I'm sorry to see Shane go, his death was a long time coming, and as much as I hated him, he was a voice of reason that the group will sorely miss. An angry, crazy voice, but there was still plenty of good reason there.

Rick sits next to a dead Shane, as Shane has flashes of zombies tearing into flesh. Maybe it’s the Queen Bee programming her hive worker, but it’s the last thing I expected to see during a transformation. Seriously, it should have been like Candy land, where brains taste like cupcakes or something, because crazed zombies eating flesh does not make me want to join up. But cupcakes, ah yes, that would make me happily maul some folks.

Carl finds his father, and Rick goes to him. Carl pulls a gun on Rick, as zombie Shane rises. Rick has no clue that Shane is about to eat him, when Carl pulls the trigger, and kills Shane for a second time tonight.

A zombie horde lies just beyond the field and heads towards the farm. More people are gonna die to usher in the new season 3 cast, and I cannot wait for the carnage.