Walking Dead Review
AMC
Sundays, 8 p.m.

~Warning: spoilers ahead~

Millions gathered on Oct. 13 to watch the season premiere for the pandemic that has possessed America, also known as The Walking Dead. I, myself, have been waiting months to devour this season, and have been anticipating the oncoming chaos promised by the creators. However, I can’t say I witnessed a bombshell episode. This didn’t surprise, though, because the past few seasons have always started slow and increased gradually.

Last time we saw the group, the Governor took off after massacring his people, Merle turned sort of good…and then died, Andrea reunited with Rick…and died, and Carl killed a surrendering boy from Woodbury, hinting his evolution into what some would call a killer, and others, a survivor. Eight months later, the remaining members of Woodbury have assimilated, Herschel somehow found a prosthetic leg, and Rick has appeared to have traded in his pistol for a plow. He, Carl, and everyone else are clearly fed up with all the bloodshed and simply want to survive in peace. However, trouble is a-brewing in the horizon: the Walkers are piling against the fences, a mysterious illness is spreading in the prison, and Rick is already beginning to see that he can’t just plant lima beans with a piece of straw in his mouth.

First of all, I did not initially understand the point of Creepy Clara from the woods, but I realize now that the scene was all about Rick; he and Carl both just want to live peacefully, but Clara’s tragedy was a sign that they will inevitably face death and violence. And I’m just going to put this out here: Beth has too many boyfriends that die. One thing that has been gnawing me (and every other viewer), though, is the disease stirring in the prison. Not only am I possessed with echoes of “What!?”  But I, for one, am thrilled that while the creators make sure to keep the Walkers as the main threat, they never neglect in bringing up realistic problems such as viruses that don’t turn you into mutant flesh-mongers (not immediately, at least).

But who is feeding the Walkers? Who is burning the bodies? Will Carl ever get a haircut? Hopefully, the next few episodes will bring answers…and probably more questions.