This issue felt very cinematic in that it had a little bit of everything. It had a shootout at the Wal-Mart where Andrea is forced to face the fact that maybe she has become a little too effective of a killing machine. Sharpshooter though she may be, Andrea is beginning to understand that there is a big difference between sniping zombies from a distance and gunning down actual human beings. Tyreese was absolutely right as he tried to comfort her. She had no other choice but to gun the Governor’s cronies down, but killing (even justified killing) should never become too easy in the zombie apocalypse. If it reaches that point, there exists a very real danger of that person losing his or her humanity in the exchange. This is how Governors are created, and Michonne (given her rather apathetic attitude towards slicing and dicing those men) may be in danger of such a fate if she is not careful.

Then there is Lori’s pregnancy, which has felt like it has been going on for two years now! The newest addition to the Grimes family decides to come into the world at the most inopportune time, which raises the stakes considerably. As daylight begins to fade, Alice makes it crystal clear that it is absolutely crucial that the generator stay up and running (despite the bitter pill to swallow that they are abysmally low on gas). This is when Billy gallantly yet somewhat naively promises he’ll do everything in his power to keep the generator up and running. Then poor Dale agrees to help him and ends getting abandoned by Billy, knocked unconscious, and awakens with a zombie gnawing on his ankle. So yeah . . . The title of this issue could be “Dale’s Really Terrible, No Good, Lousy Day.” Due to the placement of Dale’s bite, I’m hopeful that this isn’t the end of him, but we will just have to wait and see. Even if he does survive this, however, it speaks highly of him that he was more than willing to lay down his life to help Lori and her unborn baby. Just a couple years ago, this group of strangers may barely have spared a second glance to one another, but the zombie apocalypse has forged them into a cohesive (if often dysfunctional) family unit. Of all the myriad of horrors the zombie apocalypse breeds, it is encouraging to know that love still finds a way to shine. Love is most precious, after all, when times are most desperate.

As for Billy, yes, his running away was cowardly. But we must give him a little slack. Up till this point, Billy has been somewhat sheltered by those around him (especially Hershel who simply cannot bear the thought of losing another child). Billy simply did not have the mental currency at this point to pull off his mission that he undertook so hastily, and unfortunately his unpreparedness may cost Dale dearly. Sheltering works for a time, but there will always come a time when it hurts those it’s designed to protect (or someone else). This is true in the real world, but it’s especially true in the zombie apocalypse.

In the case of the failed gasoline run by Billy and Dale, it ends with all hope seemingly lost for Lori and the baby. However, right at the eleventh hour, Tyreese’s group returns with all that gasoline they serendipitously rounded up from the National Guard station. This unexpected aid from another quarter can be looked at one of two ways. One way is that the author simply needed a coincidental appearance of gasoline so that they could solve the generator problem. But the way I choose to perceive it is that a Great Author is still at work even in the shattered world our survivors find themselves in. Whether one looks at situations like this and sees a coincidence or a miracle, the fact is that there are times even when it seems most desperate that Hope can find a way to not disappoint. more