Thoughts On... The Walking Dead Season 3 Episode 2 - Sick

Hey there.  Last week's episode was pretty cool and this week's was even better.  If you are not watching AMC's The Walking Dead then you must not like great television entertainment.  lol  Anyways, the third season started with plenty of excitement and this episode definitely continued down that trend.  We finally got a glimpse of another group and we find out what ends up happening to Herschel.  If you haven't seen this episode, step away and check it out.  There will be SPOILERS in this post.  Now here are my thoughts on...  The Walking Dead S3: E2 - Sick.

The inmates

So the people that Rick's group encounters are actual prison inmates.  Turns out that they were locked in the prison food storage area and were left in there by a guard in an attempt to protect them from the outbreak of zombies that entered the prison.  I want to believe that they really were inmates but a part of me thinks that there is more to them.  The leader of the inmate group, Tomas, was very edgy knew his way around the prison very well.  It could be that he was in there for a long time or it could be that he and his group's job was to patrol the prison for outsiders.  Why do I think this?  Tomas claimed they were in the food closet for a good 9 months or so, yet, when Rick and the inmates agree to split the food down the middle, the place is stacked with food.  If they were in there for so long, I do not believe that there would have been so much food in there.  Then again... it is feeding a prison but I figured that food supplies would replenish what was lost.  But the big question is... if they were trapped inside a supply closet, who let them out???

Just call me, Lil Rick

Carl is beginning to show himself to be a little bad ass himself.  Last week's episode showed him carrying a gun and providing cover fire for Rick.  This week, he goes off by himself to look for an infirmary to look for medical supplies, killing 2 walkers like it was no big thing.  Lori tore him a new one but Carl, being the only child in the group, is probably trying to prove himself to be an asset to the group.  No one told him to go look for supplies, he went off on his own and we do not see any of it.  It's just brought up for a minute or two and that was all it took to see Carl in a whole new light.  His intentions may mean well, but that carelessness may lead him and possibly the group into some trouble down the road.

I also wanted to bring some focus on Rick's character.  I noticed that Rick makes decisions for the group and that is that.  He, alone, made the decision to cut off Herschel's leg and the show made a conscience effort to show the group's silence before Rick grabbed the medical ax.  When the group confronts the inmate group, Rick is clearly the alpha male and asserts himself so.  He doesn't give in to the demands of the inmates and actually deals for half of the food supply in exchange for "house cleaning."  During the episode, we see Rick kill Tomas and we see him show no mercy to another inmate that runs off and runs into a group of walkers.  Rick locks him outside and lets the walkers have his way with him.  Eerily similar to how Shane walked away from Otis.  Also, at the end of the episode, Lori and Rick have a very brief heart felt moment.  Rick almost immediately recognizes it and squashes it goes any further.  Again, Rick walks away and leaves Lori distraught.

Another big story line played that out in this episode is Herschel.  At the end of the last episode, we saw Rick making a decision of cutting off Herschel's leg in hopes of avoiding the zombie bite from turning Herschel into a walker.  We learn that Carol was partially trained by Herschel to be a makeshift medic and good thing too.  Carol takes charge of Herschel's well being and directs the others to what is needed to keep Herschel alive.  Carol even goes as far as gathering a walker cadaver to practice cutting open a body, just in case it's needed of her.  As for Herschel, we have yet to see someone recover from a zombie bite and even though the episode ends with a semi conscience Herschel holding his girl's hands and showing signs of improvement, I'm not so sure he's out of the woods just yet.

Lastly, the episode is called Sick.  Who exactly is sick here?  Is it referring to Herschel?  He was bitten by a walker, he nearly bled to death, and if it wasn't for Lori breathing life into him, he could have turned into a walker by now.  Or is the episode referring to Rick?  Rick is not the same guy that we were introduced to in the first two seasons.  He is definitely the man in charge and so far, he has let anyone that he has come across know it.  Or can title there simply to remind us that they are all sick?  Rick had to explain to Tomas and his group that they are all carrying the "walker" disease.  That once they die, they will all come back as walkers.  Interesting title to say the least.

So what did you guys think of the episode now that you've had a few days to digest the show?  We haven't seen much of Andrea and Michonne just yet but according to the sneak peeks, next week's episode will be Andrea and Michonne heavy AND... MERLE is in it!  I've seen some posters of Merle in them but I didn't want to get too excited about it.  What if he comes back as a dream, vision, or flashback?  I don't think that's the case this time around, but still... I can't wait to see him back on the show!