Who are we?

That’s the big question of Season 4’s season finale, almost dwarfing the pressing issues at hand, like who these shrewd deceivers at Terminus really are.

The answer to this ladder question was never provided, as our group was finally reunited in the most unpleasant of circumstances at the end of the episode. The Walking Dead fans are forced to dangle on this colossal cliffhanger for the entire summer! (I haven’t been this anxious since someone shot J.R.! Sorry to those under 40 who have no clue what I am talking about.)

Sadly, the season finale of Season 4 probably left us in more suspense than any other season thus far. The only comfort we have is: 1. At least our group is all together again (save Beth) 2. And the confidence in Rick’s Rambo-like stare into the camera before he uttered the last line of the season…

“They’re screwing with the wrong people.”

(I think of Michael Gross in Tremors. “Broke into the wrong rec-room.. didn’t ya!”)

But the battle against the prevaricators of Terminus was not the forefront of this season finale. Instead, this episode peered into the

Season 4 has been quite a ride so far, starting with the struggle from within the prison, to the battle that tore down the walls, and the struggles our scattered group has faced on their own. Sunday night we’ll finally experience the end of the line… or “Terminus” … if you will.

So how can we prepare for the conversations The Walking Dead Season 4, Season Finale will provoke?

First

Terminus: n. [tur-muh-nuhs] 1. The end of the line.  2. The end or extremity of anything. 3. The point toward which anything tends; goal or end.

In 1837 the Western and Atlantic Railroad drove a post into the ground declaring the end of the line, or “terminus” for the railroad. This post still stands in present day Atlanta. The 19^th century city was actually called “Terminus” for a few years, toying with a few other names until 1845 when it was changed to “Atlantaca-Pacifica,” which was quickly shortened to Atlanta, the official name from 1847 to present.

For weeks The Walking Dead fans have been wondering about a place called Terminus. In the fallout of the prison massacre our scattered group have all encountered

Is killing wrong?

The verse, “Thou shalt not kill” comes to mind (in the King James, no less), but yet if we explore the scriptures, we will also find countless examples of capital punishment to protect the weak and take care of murderers. (for example, Duet 19: 11-13)

So if someone is going to kill your baby, is it okay to kill them?

This week’s The Walking Dead episode was ripe with discussions about situational ethics. In the first 10 minutes, Carol and Mika duked it out about morality

“It’s not good for the man to be alone.” (Genesis 2:18)

We’re 13 episodes into Season 4, five episodes since the great schism, when the prison was attacked and all our favorite characters fled the prison in different directions with no rendezvous point (mental note… always set a rally point).

The episode title is “Alone,” and when we are offered a glimpse into Bob’s backstory, we begin to understand his motivation to stick together as a group. Bob knows alone and he doesn’t want to experience it again.

In the flashback to Bob’s past, we see Daryl and Glenn use their zombie apocalypse litmus test on Bob, asking him the “three questions” revealed in episode one of this season:

How many walkers have you killed?

How many people have you killed?

Why?

Bob answers honestly, and reveals his desperation to join any group—anything to avoid being alone. Apparently Bob didn’t

Overcoming your past, dealing with grief, graduating to adulthood… all important issues provoked by this episode of The Walking Dead.

At a glance, some people might say this is episode is about drinking. After all, Beth embarks on a quest to get her first drink now that her father is gone and she’s having to grow up and survive life on her own as an adult. Sure, the episode realistically portrayed what this rite of passage might look like during the zombie apocalypse. No fake ID’s required… just a lookout to make sure you aren’t killed while your guard is down. But this episode goes far deeper than Beth’s first sip of hooch, and her true-to-life reaction: “That’s the most disgusting thing I’ve ever tasted.”

This episode is about moving on.

Loved the opening shot of this episode, a trio of haphazard zombies reaching up for a dangling deflated mylar balloon flapping in the wind. Purposeless beings, grasping aimlessly for the most accessible distraction.

But the episode quickly digressed with too many “Really?” moments, much like last week’s episode. I love this show, but for four seasons, despite its fictional premise, it has maintained a respectable realism. Sadly, the last two weeks contained several moments where audiences were obliged to check their brains at the door