By the way, if you haven't seen it yet, check out this Walking Dead Special Effects Reel. It's interesting to see how many seemingly normal scenes are actually green screen shots. I was particularly amazed at how many of the zombies are CGI creations!
• OK, this is just nitpicking, but why were Rick and Shane driving Randall 18 miles away from the farm? Sure, it makes for a good title, but why wouldn't you pick a nice round number like 20?
• I was expecting a bit more of an epic battle between Rick and Shane than what we got. Shane appears to be tamed for now, but I'm betting things will flare up again right around the end of the season.
• That Randall sure knows how to keep a secret. He knows Herschel and Maggie (but I guess somehow they don't know him?) but he doesn't mention this fact until Rick's ready to turn him loose to fend for himself. Wouldn't it have made sense for him to say something earlier? If he'd said, "Oh Hi, Maggie. Hello, Mr. Greene" as soon as they brought him to the farm, wouldn't they have most likely let him stay? Or was he afraid Shane would kill him on the spot?
• Rick's decree that they need to use their knives more makes sense, but he needs to be more careful. He slices open his thumb and uses the blood to lure the security guard zombie, and then appears to stab it in the head with a knife held in his now wounded hand. How easy would have been for some tainted zombie blood to get into his cut?
Shane did the same exact thing when he was trapped on the school bus.
• After the two zombie security guards are put down, Shane notices that they don't have any bite marks on them. I'm not entirely sure, but I think they're planting a little seed here in reference to the comic book. In the comic Rick & Co. discover that you don't have to be bitten by a zombie to turn into one. Anyone who dies, even of natural causes, will come back as a walker. It was a big revelation in the comic as the characters realize they can never win-- no matter what they do or how long they survive, they're doomed to eventually become zombies. It gave new meaning to the title, "The Walking Dead." Is that what they were setting up here?
• The zombie attack in the parking lot was really well done. I especially enjoyed Rick's zombie pig-pile scene. It reminded me of Gimli the Dwarf being crushed by orcs and wargs in The Two Towers. Rick gets extra points for creativity for shooting through a zombie's head at the one behind it.
• Wow. Did Lori just diss Andrea for standing guard and protecting the farm instead of doing laundry? As Archie Bunker would say, you're a pip, Lori. A real pip.
• Andrea apparently really believes that old "If you love something, set it free" mantra. Mopey Blonde Girl has given up hope and wants to off herself and Andrea's response is, "Why that sounds just fine. I'll just walk a thousand yards this way and leave you to your work."
I guess I dozed off in psychiatry class the day they said "If you try to kill yourself but not too hard, it means you want to live."
• Why does Rick blindfold Randall again for the trip back to the farm? He already let on that he knows the Greenes, so he likely knows the location of the farm as well. What good does blindfolding him do now?
• I'm confused by the zombie in the field. As they're driving "18 miles out," Shane stares thoughtfully out the right side window and sees a walker staggering through a field. Later on the way back to the farm, Shane stares thoughtfully out the right side window and sees the same walker still staggering through the field. How did he see the zombie on the same side of the road both times? Did the zombie cross the road? Or is Rick driving back to the farm in reverse?
