Is this what Jesus meant by resurrection of the dead?

Hershel and Rick bring it up in this week’s Season 2 Finale’ of The Walking Dead.

This week we saw the true devastation “a herd” could bestow. Utter chaos swept the farm, and the group began to scatter. In the midst of this pandemonium, Rick was focused, doing everything he could to keep the group together.

This show always provides great lessons about leadership, and Rick continues to assume that central role, making tough decisions and seeking what’s best for the group.

Shane and Rick finally face off… and Rick makes a very tough decision.

But isn’t that what this show is all about?

The creators of The Walking Dead are providing more answers and more closure each week as we approach the Season 2 finale. This episode helped wrap up some of those dangling plot points. For example, I was glad to see Lori and Shane resolve things at one level- especially knowing now that it was their last chance to make things right.

Have you ever seen the movie 12 Angry Men? It’s a classic film from the 50’s that has basically every awesome actor from that decade, and the plot revolves around one juror trying to convince the other 11 that a man is innocent.

Dale would have done well in 12 Angry Men. He seems to constantly be the voice of moral reasoning, and this week he had one of his finest moments- which will be his last for obvious reasons. His speeches and actions draw us once again into the moral dilemma story arc that questions what rules really are rules when there are no rules- right?

This week’s episode really delves into some of the deeper emotional conflict that has been a consistent undercurrent during season 2. We finally have the confrontation between Rick and Shane that needed to happen, and once again Rick demonstrates his resolve and wisdom in a difficult situation.

Shane’s reaction was almost surprising- he looked more humiliated than defensive. What great symbolism to have him staring at the lone walker meandering in the field when they were driving back.

Crazy tension is starting to mount as our survivors are beginning to realize the living can be just as dangerous as the dead- perhaps even more.

The danger is coming from within as Shane continues to unravel like a frayed sweater in a room full of kittens, and unfortunately there is a Team Rick and Team Shane line being drawn in the sand.  Not to mention enormous pressure coming from the outside as we discover that our friends in the bar from last week weren’t kidding about having lots of other friends-with lots of guns to boot.

I really hate it when I think I’m right and I end up being wrong- although it happens more than I would like to admit.

Sometimes it’s just little things that don’t matter all that much in the grand scheme of things, but there have been times when I was totally convinced that I was doing the right thing, but in the end I couldn’t have been more wrong.

This week’s episode of The Walking Dead really brings this idea out and shows how our propensity for self-justification can really be gravely (no pun intended) mistaken. It started with a look of Rick’s face that shows he may have regretted his choice to shoot Sophia, and it ends with Rick being resolutely Bad-A in defending himself and his cohorts in the bar.

What does it mean to be ‘human’?

That’s a question that philosophers and theologians have struggled with for centuries, and this week’s The Walking Dead episode brings the discussion to the table in a fascinating manner.

Even the title hints at the topic, as Shane reveals that he feels ‘pretty much dead already’, and his actions validate his sentiment. Shane seems to have lost what it means to be human as his attitude has decomposed from a ‘best friend’ role into a semi-raging maniac.