There are spoilers discussed below. You've been warned.

And we’re officially two for two with the start of season three of AMC’s The Walking Dead. Granted, the second episode was a bit toned down from the fast-paced first episode, but the excellent character beats throughout help make this episode another standout amongst the series.

Surprisingly, we get no time with Andrea and Michonne this episode. Instead, the entirety of this episode focuses on Rick and our group of survivors meeting the prison inmates teased at the end of episode one. The show creators and cast really do a solid job displaying the tension between Rick and, since his name is never mentioned I’m just going to call him “Latino Heat.” From the get-go, it’s established that something is very, very wrong with Mr. Heat, and the situation plays out pretty much exactly how you would expect it to with a guy so clearly off his rocker.

However, I am shocked that this plot point was dealt with so quickly. Again, The Walking Dead has been a rather slow-paced series (especially season 2), so to see them address the situation and move on so quickly is maybe another sign that the writers of the show have taken the criticisms of last season to heart, not dwelling on one thing for too long. It should also be interesting to see how the remaining prisoners factor into the rest of the season. Honestly, I feel bad for the poor guy with the sweet wax mustache. He seems legit, even if he’s an inmate for crimes unknown.

While Rick and the rest of his goon squad dealt with the inmates rather swiftly, we have still not seen this season’s big bad, The Governor, or his town of Woodbury. Sure, this episode teases the existence of Woodbury with the creeper watching Carol from afar in the woods while she practices a C-section on an undead corpse (really gross by the way). But that’s all we see. If there’s anything that’s going to be a slow burn this season, it’s probably going to be the reveal of The Governor and Woodbury, and their intentions. We’ll have to wait and see if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. Fans of the comic are probably dying to see the Woodbury stuff comes to life with real actors, but these first two episodes have smartly made the choice to establish a new status quo for our “heroes” before shoving them into another totally depressing situation (as if things aren’t already awful enough).

The other major talking point for this episode is the relationship between Rick and Lori. Clearly, this couple has some issues, which were briefly established in the first episode of the season where the two were barely on talking terms. All of that gets addressed here, even including a great meta line by Lori saying, “I know I’ve been a sh**y wife and I’m not going to win any parent of the year awards,” which is exactly what we have all been thinking since midway through season two.

With this season’s time jump, the Rick/Lori dynamic has become much more interesting and, honestly, I think it works better because we’re slowly going to get the pieces filled in for us. Also, I found myself actually feeling sympathetic for Lori during this episode’s final moments. Trust me, I did not expect that to happen… ever. But it honestly feels like she’s trying to atone for her (many) past sins. Now we just have to sit back and see if Rick accepts her distinct form of apology.

While “Sick” might not be as action-packed of an episode as last week’s “Seed,” it’s still another solid entry into this series. There were some great character beats all around (look at little Carl getting business done), and the devolution of Rick into a near spitting image of Shane is a truly fascinating turn for the character. To say Rick delivers swift justice is an understatement. It might be disappointing that we don’t get any more Michonne ass-kickery in this episode, but I’d gladly trade that for a stronger emphasis on the growth of our main cast, which is exactly what we got here.

Erik Norris is a freelance writer for sites such as ComicVine, IGN and CraveOnline.com. You can stalk him on Twitter @Regular_Erik.

Rick has pretty much turned into Shane now.

i cant wait for the Governer to show up.

Dude...

Rick Grimes is getting grimey!!!

Kinda interesting to see him pull away from Lori.

Funny as all hell when Herschel was coming to that the music was all cheesy and everybody thought he'd turn. I know I sure did.

@fps_dean:

Well, pretty much everyone did say last season that it'll turn into a Rick-tatership.

Loved it, I was hoping for some Governor in this episode....

LOVED IT!!!

RICk is a gangsta now damn crazy episode. and ofcourse the Black Guy dies first. I liked him.

Feel bad for Oscar and Axle though.

Who turned Hill Street Blues in to a zombie flick?

I was so shocked when Rick killed that guy. I'm glad that guy died though. He seemed like another Shane. I'm okay with Rick acting like Shane because knowing the comic, he'll get what is coming him. That Hershel thing dragged on quite a bit though. It is stuff like that that drags these episodes and makes them kind of boring. We're lucky there was more interesting stuff on the other side of the cut.

When he left the guy out in the court yard and told him to run........ AWESOME!!!!

Please, he is NOTHING like Shane. they were willing to give those guys a fair shake and then saw the prisoners' true colors coming out while clearing the prison, then when the guys ACTIVELY TRIED to take out Rick, he put down the conspirators.

Shane would have just killed them all and taken the whole food supply right off the bat.

@MadeinBangladesh: Was that actually Axel? I don't remember a name being said.

Why do the black Characters get  killed or hardly any screen time?! 

@MadeinBangladesh: nevermind I just IMDB'ed it and it was Axel, but I don't remember them naming him in the episode and I never trust any comic references in Walking Dead because the writers don't give a shit about comparisons with the comic otherwise we would have Tyrese in the show by now instead of T DAWWWWWWWWWWWWWGGGGGGGG

Maggie's scene with Hershel alone was really moving, got teared up there for a moment!

#OneLeggedHershel

Really solid episode. Latino heat was gonna die, either he would have driven Rick or Daryl to kill him or most likely he would have done bad stuff when he found out women were with the group. That guy was bad news. Season has been great so far.

It was good.

Also liked how Carl told his mom off. Don't get me wrong you shouldn't do that in our world but it's the ******* zombie apocalypse for christs sake he's not having a normal childhood he's growing up fast and he's the son of the leader.

Was kind of shocked they killed off most of the prisoners so fast though. I guess they're just trying to move through the prison stuff and get right into the Governor stuff.

I think Rick learned the Shane lesson well. He's harder now sure, but not to that Shane level. By the end, Shane wanted to kill anyone that wasn't in their group regardless. Rick still gave the prisoners a choice to live together as best as possible or die. Sure, he fixed the problem when it became obvious that there was going to be one, but he still led with the chance of coexistence.

I imagine wax moustache guy is the blonde right? He alludes to the fact that he's a theif cus he says "I like my drugs but I'm no killer" so that's where my money is.

Also I actually don't think Lori is a terrible mother. Wife yes definately, but I think she's doing the best she can by Carl.

FYI, "Latino Heat" character name is Tomas. Only reason I know that is because I watched "Talking Dead" afterwards and the actor was on the show. I felt kind of bad for the guy because Wil Wheaton was on the show and Chris and Wil just talked about the show. There wasn't really a lot to talk to the other guy because it was, "So, how did you prepare for what happened to you?"

Otherwise, I enjoyed this episode more than the last one. I'm always hit or miss with this show. Looking forward to some goodness in the next one with Andrea and Michonne.

Part of me cringed at Lori giving Herschel mouth to mouth but the other part wanted him to go zombie and bite her.

Did anyone else do a massive facepalm when Lori gave Hershel CPR? Aside from that painfully stupid act, it was another good episode.

I'm glad that Carl's running off turned out to be useful for once.

This episode was sick! I am sure I am not the first to use that joke. LOl. I think Rick is not turning into to shane, but I do believe there is a sign of crazy killer in him now. The prisoners he killed was the main ones causing trouble with the group. It had to be done. Shane wouldn't have reasoned with them, Rick did. Over all this Ep. was alot of fun to watch. I can't wait for next weeks though. MERLE IS BACK!!!!!!! :O

@AlKusanagi said:

Please, he is NOTHING like Shane. they were willing to give those guys a fair shake and then saw the prisoners' true colors coming out while clearing the prison, then when the guys ACTIVELY TRIED to take out Rick, he put down the conspirators.

Shane would have just killed them all and taken the whole food supply right off the bat.

agreed....Rick is behaving nothing like Shane....Shane was a psychopath...Rick is just being smart...the guy swung a machete at his face and threw a zombie at him...yeah I would have killed him to

so did anyone see the extra preview during the Talking Dead? Seems like someone from the first season has been hanging out with the Governor this whole time

Rick Grimes? No no no it's Grimey Rick baby.

@HortonDrawsAWho: Watch the language please.

@fps_dean said:

Rick has pretty much turned into Shane now.

Seriously?!? After last season's finale and this season's first episode as well as the comic special, it's really disappointing to have an episode without Michonne. She's supposed to be everybody's darling in terms of slashing zombies here. I know, the entire concept is not about killing zombies but survive in the first place but isn't Michonne the one with the smartest survival skills. Of course, it has to do with the original story from the comic book. Still... and this goes back to last week's discussion here... a slightly different direction wouldn't be such a bad idea. Good thing is, next episode will definitely feature Michonne, Andrea, and the Governor.

time for 5 min backup stories featuring Carl's solo missions, the kids awesome and hes growing up ina totaly inhospitable age. easily my favourite character on the show.

p.s. god bless the person who invented PVR

@AlKusanagi said:

Please, he is NOTHING like Shane. they were willing to give those guys a fair shake and then saw the prisoners' true colors coming out while clearing the prison, then when the guys ACTIVELY TRIED to take out Rick, he put down the conspirators.

Shane would have just killed them all and taken the whole food supply right off the bat.

and this is bad how?.. I miss Shane the dude was the man! gotta appreciate someone who isnt afraid to take care of business.. however I like the direction Rick is going in.

God Damn It.......  
God  
F^£$ing 
 Damn  
it.  
I waited through the WHOLE episode and not ONCE did I get a: 

And here I thought the Latino inmate with the black hair was the Governer. Seems like the producers of the show made a wink to the comic, since he looks exacetly like him :)

Mr. Heat's name was Tomas, as told by the actor who played him on the Talking Dead.

Really impressed with the pacing of the first two episodes. Somehow they've snuck in more zombie action, while still having plenty of meaningful character interactions and developments, a balance I think they've struggled to find. Boy is Rick is getting mean fast. Little does he know how he's preparing himself to lose more people and make tougher decisions and be a better leader. I love it. Oh and for everyone who says Rick is now just Shane, even though the show is a totally different entity, read the comics and gain some insight please. Or just grab some common sense and pay attention when you're watching the show

I've seen that other sites have called the leader of the prisoners Thomas. I can't confirm if it's something they've just made up but i would like to see the Thomas from the comics, but maybe they don't have enough time to deal with him. Nonetheless season 3 is a huge improvement and I enjoyed them a lot!

@doordoor123:

I know right , i was getting really angry by his behavior then i thought , it'll come back to him , so calm down

@Necrotic_Lycanthrope said:

@fps_dean:

Well, pretty much everyone did say last season that it'll turn into a Rick-tatership.

They did elude to that at the end of season 2, yes. But Rick doesn't really hesitate before killing anyone, unless someone talks him out of it. I guess Shane took issue with people objecting, which is still the difference.

Lie your icon... Sally forthhhhh....

Honestly, I feel bad for the poor guy with the sweet wax mustache. He seems legit, even if he’s an inmate for crimes unknown.

I wouldn't feel too bad for the dude with the mustache ... he comes off far too much like the;

Just saying.

My biggest issue of course is Rick, and frankly this development in his character is consistent with the comic book. He is just becoming 'too far gone', if I may use an expression from Kirkman's books, and is becoming the harsh and cold leader that Shane had already shown himself to be. Fact is, he is doing what he does because he feels he is responsible for the whole of Team Grimes, and therefore is compelled to act as he does for the benefit of not only Carl's and Lori's survival, but for the group's. Splitting Tomas' head open COULD be indicative of him doing what was right for the group, even if it also was as much getting back at him for what Tomas pulled in that cell block. Loosing Andrew to zombies outside reminiscent of throwing a Christian to the lions, perhaps that was just being a wee bit vicious. Nearly blowing off Oscar's and Axel's heads despite them saying they were innocent was Rick just simply going too far. That's the theme we are getting from season, and watch, it will force us as watchers of the show to think when the season finale comes "Gosh, who is the greater monster of the two...Rick or the Governor?" The real crazy moment for me though was Herschel in that moment that Lori checked on him. I thought he really had turned and had proceeded to bite her. Wow, haven't had a show episode surprise me like that for a while. Good stuff!

Season 3 is great so far... but I'm still a little put off by the show's dynamic of the Grimes. Go back and read the comics and thats a family that QUICKLY overcame any issues and stuck together. For Rick, Carl and Lori, NO ONE was more important than each other.

If... certain events... remain intact from the books, then they need to mend the Grimes family or else that event won't hold much meaning. Take Breaking Bad for example... its at the point where if Skylar were to die, in any way, most fans would cheer. That shouldn't happen with... certain peoples... in Walking Dead.

The episode is pretty good and I really like what is happening with Rick.

@rockwellfontana: I thought the music was funny, too. I felt like I was watching Twin Peaks.

I don't think rick is a carbon copy of shane. Shane was crazy, Rick is just very hard, hurt, but still calculated with a logical basis.

Where can I watch season one online?

@Jonny_Anonymous said:

God Damn It.......
God
F^£$ing
Damn
it.
I waited through the WHOLE episode and not ONCE did I get a:

Yeah man! I thought the big burly guy was going to be a negro version of Axel but alas, I will never see a human form. They couldn't really get anyone awesome enough to play Axel anyhow.