By Spencer Pressly
Even though it hasn’t been a year since the second season of “The Walking Dead” ended, fans couldn’t wait for season three to premiere. The show has been known as not only one of the best zombie shows out there, but one of the best shows period.
Season 3starts off strong and does not disappoint. Whether you are a fan of killing zombies or character development, the premiere episode has you covered.
After leaving Hershel’s farm, Rick’s group has now been surviving by going house to house in order to survive the winter. Now that they are running short on time until Lori’s baby is born, they need to find a safe place to stay for as long as possible. The group finds a prison and decides to take it for their own in the hope of finding medicine, food, and safe shelter.
On the other side of things Andrea has been surviving with the help of the Katana-wielding Michonne. Andrea got separated from Rick’s group and Michonne saved her life. Ever since then the two have spent the past months helping each other survive and getting to know each other better.
This leads to a very different feeling when compared to the past two seasons. Now that both parties have been surviving for quite a while they all seem to have gotten used to doing whatever it takes to survive. Still, the show does take a few liberties that are hard not to question when it comes to everyone in Rick’s group being a great shot and landing headshots on every zombie they come across.
The zombies are as great as ever when it comes to makeup and creativity. The prison introduces a new challenge to the survivors with zombies in riot gear, which can’t get cut through or shot and requires stabbing them under the helmet.
Being inside a prison really changes the dynamic of the show while also having more of a creepy feeling. Even though the characters are relaxing and singing you will still notice zombies are close by at all times.
As far as Rick is concerned, his relationship with his wife Lori has become cold and distant. His son Carl is no longer a nuisance to the group and contributes as much as the rest even though he is the youngest.
All the characters in Rick’s group get a chance to show the change they have undergone since leaving the farm (besides T-Dog, of course). This episode focuses more on the prison instead and hopefully later episodes will show more even coverage between the two groups.
The premiere episode hits on everything a season premiere should cover besides a few gripes. Once you get past everyone being an amazing shot and patiently wait to find out more about Michonne and Andrea’s story, everything you need to get excited about the upcoming season is here. If all of that wasn’t enough, the cliffhanger makes fans’ wait for next week’s episode feel like a month away.
Contact Spencer Pressly, staff reporter, at spressl2@jccc.edu.