The Walking Dead, Season 1

And just like that, season 1 of "The Walking Dead" is over.  It seemed like it just began.  Oh wait....

The season finale was a great way to end the season, except that it didn't leave that big of twist for next season.  It just...ended.  No big "OH MY GOD" moment.  There didn't to necessarily need to be one, but that's how TV shows work.  Maybe it's good that the producers decided to not do this in the end.  I must say, the producers are really going away from the comics, but doing a hell of a job with theses stories.  The CDC echoes some of the comic book arcs, but not to a degree where comic book fans can expect everything that is going on.  Which is one of the biggest advantages of the show.  It left moments like the touching moment between Andrea and Dale actually up in the air.  Near the beginning of the show, it seemed like it would take small detours, but follow that plot point for point.  Now, I have no clue as to what is going to happen next season.  I can speculate, but I don't actually know.  We can guess that they group might run into the Governor or the prison, but we don't 100% know.  Maybe Shane will be around for a lot longer than we thought.  And Lori being pregnant hasn't even been discussed or hinted at (at least I don't think so.  Might need to do some re-watching just in case).

I was kind of hoping that big holy crap moment was going to be Shane dying at the end of the episode.  But I like the way the writers are treating him, so I'm not going to complain that much.  Speaking of Shane, I loved the beginning of the episode and how they explained the bed being outside the door.  It's a small thing, but adds to the mythos and is very enjoyable.  I hope the writers/producers continue with this next season.  Seeing everyone act as the outbreak hit would be interesting.  I don't want to see the survivors before the outbreak.  This isn't "LOST." But expanding on little things said in the comics is a great idea.  Maybe we could see how everyone got together.  There will be lots more room to show things when you don't have to cram everything into six episodes.

Overall, I call the season a massive success.  It took some courage to not only adapt a comic book into a TV show, but for it to be so violent and get the point across that it isn't about zombies.  The actors stepped up and the writers changed the stories just enough to keep everyone interested.  Comic book devotees and non.  Thankfully, the second season will be a full 13 episodes.  Sadly, we have to wait around 10 months for that second season to begin.  Time to have a few marathon sessions in that time.