And we roll on to week two of Season 2, Part 2 of The Walking Dead! This has spoilers.

Last week’s episode was basically a summary of Part 1 of the season, leaving my recap a recap of a recap (BRAHHHHMMMM). But it ended strong with Lori flipping her car on the interstate in search of Rick, who was busy being pinned down with Glen and Hershel in an abandoned pub after the killing of two aggressive Jersey-sounding survivors from Philly. OH! Fugetaboutit! Gabagool! Racial epithet!

The first half hour of “Triggerfinger” might be some of the finest minutes of the series thus far. It opens with Lori awakening from her car crash, pinned inside the vehicle in the middle of nowhere in the dead of night. Scary enough, right? Nay! Zombies are also trying to push themselves through the mangled car frame, jagged glass peeling back their rotting, bloody skin. NOW YOU”RE SPEAKING MY BLOODTHIRSTY NERD LANGUAGE, AMC!

*HITS INHALER* 

Just last week I bemoaned the series’ lack of imagination concerning zombie sequences and this week answered in spades. I’m sorry I ever doubted you, Hit Zombie Cable Series! Forgive me.

And then there’s Rick, Glen, and Hershel’s pub situation. Turns out the dead Philly guys had a bunch of jittery friends who happen to be armed. Rick, Patron Saint of dealing with unreasonable assholes, tries, in vain, to reason with them, only to evoke gunfire. He, Glen, and Hershel return fire, attracting walkers. They end up making the tough decision to flee with a young, impaled guy who was just shooting at them. I know, I know. Thank God, a 17th cast member.

Mr. Cobain, Mr. Hutchence, and Ms. Winehouse… Ima have to ask you to step back.

The standoff at the pub is great, white-knuckled scariness. The “conflict with other survivors” element of zombie stories has only been brought to the forefront in the last decade or so, probably starting with 28 Days Later, in which a squad of soldiers become the main antagonists. It’s a concept The Walking Dead has dallied with before. There’s ol’ Mearle Dixon, running around somewhere minus one hand, or the CDC professor who was super ” ” and tried to murder everyone. Last night’s pub shootout was Walking Dead‘s most successful attempt at the concept to date, making the enemy survivors faceless, nervous, and believable foils to Rick and company. If someone had killed any of our crew, would Rick and the gang act any different? Maybe, maybe not, but the series continues to prove that zombies are a fantastic side dish to a healthy serving of moral quandary.

Is it just me, or did last night’s episode resolve itself really quick? I’m not going to lie, I was ready for a few episodes of Rick negotiating his way out of the bar and Lori wandering alone through the woods. I’m fine with moving on, but how does a series spend seven hours of television looking for a little girl and then neatly sweep aside two stickier, scarier situations in thirty minutes? It’s another weird call for a series that’s already become known for making them – we’ll see how it plays out.

“Sorry about murdering your friends and everything, but we got about 8 minutes to wrap this up.”

The rest of “Triggerfinger” backed off into usual dramatic territory. Lori returns to the farm safe and sound and young Carl learns that his mom is pregnant. An awesome “birds and the bees and the zombies” talk could have ensued, but instead there had to be more static between Glen and Hershel’s daughter. Man, getting laid during a society-ending apocalypse sure is terribly complicated, huh Glen?

But Shane remains the issue at hand. Once again, he privately professes his love for Lori, who now suspects that he could be a murderer, and maybe even lied about Rick’s condition at the start of series to get in her pants. Yeah, it’s about time someone said it, but it only reminds us what a stand-up dude Shane used to be. The sitch gets more awkward when Lori reveals to Shane that Rick knows about her and Shane’s affair. I can only imagine the tense “I know that you know that I know that you know” stand-off we’re in for when Rick and Shane finally butt heads.

Let’s be fair: Shane did loose his marbles at the end of the first half of this season (Jesus, AMC, just air full seasons), but for the last two episodes, Shane’s worst offenses are refusing to shake hands with the old men – he’s been grumpy, but not a dangerous maniac. Rick can’t even deny the fact that if Shane is a murderer, Rick has now murdered too – both men doing it for the good of Lori and Carl. Writers: You’re doing it right. Shades of gray are the way to go. I don’t know want to know what corner I want to be in.

Better alert the music department, though; those high tension violas at mere mention of Shane’s name in the final shot seem to imply he’s cackling in a thunderstorm somewhere, curling his handlebar mustache.

See you in seven.

Rob is an accomplished screenwriter and has worked in the industry for several years. He blogs about film at his website, “Heroes are Boring”.

People, people, people. The Walking fucking Dead.

This should go without saying, but here there be spoilers:

Season 2, part 2 is finally here and debuted last night to what I will assume are pretty impressive numbers. It seems like only yesterday that Rick and crew had been taken in by farmer Hershel Greene during their search for little Sophia, only to find out ol’ Hershel had a soft spot for walkers, keeping a barn full of them right on his property. Both Carl and Daryl got clipped by friendly fire, Andrea got busy with Shane, Glen got busy with the farmer’s daughter, a preggers Lori finally told Rick about her and Shane, Shane lost his ever-loving shit, and the crew finally found Sophia a member of Hershel’s quarantine, leaving Rick to gun her down. -phew- Lordy! Did I miss anything? Oh yeah, Dale kept his nose firmly planted in everyone else’s business and T-Dog definitely said some black guy stuff.

There. All caught up. 

The group’s time on the farm was a largely a zero sum game and while one can appreciate the emotional gravity of Sophie’s appearance in episode 7, a lot of fans felt the reveal was more shell game than plot twist. This is the weird line that Walking Dead, um… walks. Is it zombie pulp masquerading as nuanced cable series, or a nuanced cable series garnished with animated corpses? In the case of the latter, zombie fans, always willing to watch bit-player survivors dodge zombies for tangible goals (guns, food, the high ground, etc.), are more than willing to turn up their noses at Walking Dead‘s lofty, and often flawed, narrative execution. Would S2P2 speak to these frustrations, re-rack the chambers and get guns blazin’ and brains splatterin’?

Last night’s “Nebraska” answered with a rousing “MAYBE!” For forty minutes, the group dealt with the aftermath of the barn incident, which is appropriate – it was a big deal. The issue is that everything about this aftermath served as an introduction rather than any forward movement for the characters. Rick is guilty, Shane is angry, Dale is wary, Carol (Sophie’s mom) is sad, the rounds are made. Example: when Shane fetches the truck and sees Dale watching him, I rooted for a handshake, hoping the two guys can put their tense forest moment from episode 7 behind them. Instead, the dialogue recaps that moment, reminding us (and informing new viewers?) of their stand-off. Same with Glen and Hershel’s daughter, Maggie (is Glen staying or going?). AND Lori and Rick’s discussion on child rearing during a zombie fallout (what kind of world are we bringing life into?).

Being right all the time: hard work.

It’s all good… but familiar. It’s a mistake the show often makes: getting larger ideas right and details wrong. Remember how the CDC lab didn’t work out in Season 1? Of course it wasn’t going to work out, but it shouldn’t have not worked out in such a goofy way. In the case of “Nebraska,” yes, there should be a character-focused regrouping after the barn incident, but not to welcome new viewers to the fold. Jesus, AMC, you aired episodes all day to do that.

But then there was the last 15 min or so. “Nebraska” finally drove into new territory, and in the case of Lori, flipped the car over on the interstate. But that’s a plot line the show is comfortable leaving for later, the real centerpiece is Rick’s confrontation of Hershel at the bar. Out to drown his sorrows and admit his hopelessness, Hershel drinks for free in an abandoned watering hole (which, you gotta admit, is a pretty sweet perk of a zombie apocalypse).

Anyway, Rick reasserts his leadership and convinces Hershel to return to the farm… just as two new survivors arrive. From Philadelphia, the two guys open with some pretty friendly “howyoudoin’”s and “irregardless”s, but quickly voice interests in visiting the farm. Rick doesn’t like these guys. Hershel doesn’t. Even Glen is tense. And when push comes to shove, Rick puts his fast draw to work and kills them both. It was, undoubtedly, the “OH SHIT!” TV moment of the week (Although, I heard Skrillex and Chris Brown won Grammys last night. That seems to call for some cursing, too).

Less vacant staring, more Johnny Walker.

It’s sudden, harsh, shocking violence, something The Walking Dead hasn’t depicted in a while, if at all. Zombie-killing is fun and visceral, but it’s hard to ignore how much obligatory its become, exhibit A being Andrea’s scythe moment at the top of the episode. Zombie kills have become humdrum, but when a human bites it, that’s still powerful.

Previews showed that the Philly guys will have lasting consequences, but I was more curious about the line “Nebraska” drew between Rick and Shane. We’re all expecting a rivalry between Rick and Shane for leadership of the group, but “Nebraska” flips the script: It’s Shane who has a tender, understanding moment with Carol and Rick who resorts to being cold-blooded. For two guys who have been steady, polar-opposite courses, “Nebraska” hints that both men are capable of middle ground. Shane’s loosening hinges almost single-handedly fueled season 2 and it’d be a colossal misstep for the series to balk on Rick vs Shane, but if last night’s reversal only further complicates the issue, I think we’re in for some gnarly showdowns.

Next week: Will Lori’s pregnancy be affected by her car crash? Will Rick get pinned down by gunfire at the bar? Will Daryl deal out some more sweet crossbow kills? Good to you have you back, Walking Dead, warts, lesions, rigor mortis, and all. See you in seven.

Rob is an accomplished screenwriter and has worked in the industry for several years. He blogs about film at his website, “Heroes are Boring”.

These are hard times for the swarm…

This is only one of many upcoming content initiatives. Keep an eye out!

In my days playing WoW (admittedly quite long ago) there was a commonly shared thought amongst my inner circle of gaming buddies: “This would be so great if it had a single player component.”

Obviously we weren’t referring to a straight 1-1 conversion, where large, empty plains populated by various beasts with repetitive AI would pose serious monotony without a multiplayer population. What we were yearning for was a fast paced, open world action/adventure RPG with massive emphasis on character customization and an enthralling setting. Something less ambitious and a little lighter than, say, an Elder Scrolls game, but larger and more open than your standard Fable.

Enter Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, a game that finds the proper balance between detailed character construction and whacking the living crap out of faeries with various blunt, sharp, or magical items. The game comes out tomorrow, so I thought I’d give the demo a whirl with three very important questions at the very front of my mind.

Why should I care about this game?

First and foremost, it’s rooted in the widely beloved world of Forgotten Realms author R. A. Salvatore, creator of the cult hero Drizzt Do’Urden. If that’s not enough, Todd McFarlane and Ken Rolston are major contributors in art and design respectively. These are some pretty badass dudes when it comes to sword and spell fantasy. That was enough to convince me to download the 2+ gig demo.

It’s also a noteworthy in its implementation of open-endedness. Today’s highly polished entries into the genre, particularly from Bioware, have emphasized plot influence over character development. Your decisions are more about defining your character’s morality or attitude than your character’s abilities. There are class selections, sure, and even some item discrepancies. Once you choose a path, however, it’s largely linear. Bethesda games allow for more diversity, but are less rooted in traditional RPG math, as it were.

Kingdoms seems to place ability, attribute, and equipment customization above all. During the demo, I got to try every variety of basic weapon, various spell types, and specific attribute configurations that didn’t feel permanent. It was a similar sensation to constructing a role-playing character on paper with an eraser handily available. The game’s destiny system also supplements traditional class choices, allowing characters to create their own personal jack of any or all trades.  As for plot influence, I was given a relatively standard array of dialogue choices during character interactions, but was left largely with the silent protagonist vibe. It’s a lot less about what I say and a lot more about how I choose to brutally massacre that giant spider over there.

Is it fun?

Initially I was a bit intimidated by the breadth of the skill trees. I feel like you have to read for several minutes before you can really gain a proper understanding of how the character development works in the long term. Mousing over the various posibilities felt a bit onerous, and more casual players may be scared away by that particular aspect. What will win them back, however, is the combat system. Good lordy is it smooth.

If you’ve played WoW, you know that attacking computer controlled enemies isn’t the most visceral experience. Most MMO’s are a bit divorced from their own combat, utilizing targeted auto attacks and specific unmissable abilities. It’s refreshing, therefore, when a game that feels so much like an MMO allows me to take specific action to trigger an individual attack. Stringing together combinations only amplifies this satisfaction. I didn’t do 18hp of damage to that faerie, I hit that faerie right in its smug, faerie FACE.

Once I hurdled the initial learning curve of ability development, I found myself having a hell of a good time with the game.

Is it worth $60?

Absolutely not.

I’m sorry, I really am. I know I’ve spent the last several paragraphs describing what sounds like a pretty kickass RPG, but it just does not have the level of polish required to justify the highest cost available in today’s gaming market. That exclusive territory is reserved for your Skyrims or your Diablo III’s.

The graphics, while occasionally striking, feel a little dated and derivative. As excited as I was about the involvement of Todd McFarlane, the overall aesthetic bears a disappointing similarity to Blizzard’s previous work. That said, it’s by no means an ugly game, it just doesn’t establish anything distinct or remarkable. It’s adequate, nothing more and nothing less. The same can be said for the plotline, which is introduced in an opening cinematic complete with a cackling villain. There’s a long, elaborate backstory for the setting, but the in game dialogue embraces established archetypes instead of trying to push anything forward. Nothing to write home about.

What we do have is an absolutely phenominal $30-40 game. There’s a charm to the game’s universe, and it feels like exactly the type of thing that’s fun for thirty minutes or six hours at a time. I may not be picking it up on launch day, but I will be picking it up the second it goes on sale.

The round of 32 included several fantastic games. In Group B, Leenock and Fin put on an extremely creative show in their first match; in Group C, Lucky put on a fantastic display of the power of Zerg air units on Bel’Shir Beach in his final Bo3 with MVP; and in Group F, Genius and sC showed us what happens when two evenly matched players reach the extreme late game of TvP.

It also showed us that some of the players were not quite ready to compete amongst the best. Sad to say it, but IdrA looked shaky. He was uncharacteristically unable to capitalize on a lead during one match against Lucky. Whatever the cause of his erratic play, he must overcome it in Code A. EG’s latest acquisition JYP also seemed outmatched. I can’t really blame him, though, as he was in a group of three studs from team MVP.

He also wasn’t alone in his difficulty. To put it in perspective, 7 of 8 new Code S players were knocked out of their groups, PartinG being the only exception.

Now that the round of 32 has ended, the remaining 16 players must prepare for a far more difficult group stage starting Wednesday, Feb 1st.

Group A

The Players: Mvp, GuMiho, Curious, aLive

The Story: There are a lot of intriguing things about this group. It’s a regular circle of aLive has beaten Curious who’s beaten GuMiho who’s shown he can hang in there with talented Terrans (Bomber comes to mind). The clear favorite is Mvp, but if history has shown that he’s susceptible to bouts of bad play. It’s interesting enough alone to see if he’ll maintain his reputation as the world’s premiere Terran.

As for the other three, Curious entered Code S last year with a chip on his shoulder. He’d massacred his way through Code A (smashing opponents including GuMiho) only to get knocked out in the round of 32 by Marine King and aLive. Now that he’s returned, he may have the most to prove. Then again, aLive is currently without a team, and may want to strut his stuff to potential buyers following his exit from TSL. GuMiho is definitely the weak link here, but upsets are possible.

Mvp
Curious
aLive
GuMiho

Group B

The Players: MMA, Oz, Puzzle, SuperNoVa

The Story: MMA has a bone to pick with Oz. The two met head on in the Ro8 in GSL November and Oz barely pulled out the win. A rematch between the two holds epic promise. Oz is coming in off a third place finish in Code S, but may fall victim to the dreaded “Runner up” curse (a common thread amongst some of the GSL’s finest players). Puzzle may have the PvP skills to overcome the crafty Oz, but he will be trying to overcome his history of being knocked out of Code S by strong Terrans. He’ll have his hands full with MMA and SuperNoVa, two of the best. After a recent drop to Code A, SuperNoVa will have a lot to prove, but a recent victory over MC shows he can handle a top Protoss (or two).

I’m on the fence about Oz, but I think this will be the group of the Terrans.

MMA
SuperNoVa
Oz
Puzzle

Group C

The Players: MC, GanZi, Jjakji, PartinG

The Story: It’s been a long climb for MC. After becoming the first and only champion ever to be demoted to Code B, the Kratos Protoss has adapted his timing-based play to be even more precise and deadly. He found his way back into Code S in November, making full use of the MLG/GSL partnership. After falling to Code A once more, he redeemed himself after defeating Bomber. His recent victory at Home Story Cup may not have involved top opposition, but it came with casual ease, like it was a forgone conclusion. Now that he’s exclusively representing SK, he has the extra motivation to prove that leaving oGs wasn’t a mistake.

He’ll have his hands full with reigning champion Jjakji, GanZi, and a surprisingly potent PartinG. While Jjakji has shown no signs that he’s deteriorated from last season, GanZi managed to defeat him handily in the Ro32. On the other hand, GanZi has a history of playing gatekeeper, of being “almost there” but never there. Then there’s PartinG. Raise your hand if you thought PartinG would go 2-0 in his group? No hands up? That’s what I thought. This guy probably feels like a million bucks, and could harness his momentum in the coming matches.

MC
PartinG (UPSET ALERT!)
GanZi
Jjakji

Group D

The Players: NesTea, DongRaeGu, MarineKing, Genius

The Story: “D” certainly stands for “Death” in this round of 16. Holy moly, two of the best Zergs? The perennial runner up? That guy who won BlizzCon that one time? Yikes. NesTea doesn’t need much of an introduction. He’s the winningest Zerg in the history of the game. DRG has a metric ton of hype surrounding him, but is as of yet an unproven commodity in the individual leagues. I honestly don’t agree with the constant assertion that he’s one of the top 3 Zergs in the world, but I will certainly grant him top 10. MKP is still trying to prove he can actually win a GSL. Someday he may, but with a group like this it won’t be today.

Which leaves us with Genius… Outside of last season, Genius has never dropped out of Code S. When he did finally fall to Code A, what did he do? He immediately went mass phoenix into carrier/mothership and WON. That’s the kind of awesome dude we’re dealing with. I hope he manages to surprise everyone this year, and I think he can do it.

NesTea
Genius
MarineKing
DongRaeGu