The Walking Dead: Season Two Doesn’t Let Up in its First Episode

As if anyone needed to be reminded, the world of The Walking Dead is a pretty grim place. Zombies roam the earth, and the remnants of humanity fight for survival, usually at the cost of what made them human in the first place. There are no happy endings, and every single day is a struggle against the endless hordes of undead, and the scattered living who are usually worse than the zombies.

A couple weeks ago the second season of Telltale’s TWD episodic series came out, and the focus this time around is all on Clementine, the nine-year-old girl who was the co-star of the first season. In season two, she has to rely much more on herself for survival, and the first episode is an emotionally grueling tale that transforms Clementine as she loses whatever innocence she has left.

My intention was to sit down and play a bit of the episode last night, but I ended up playing through the entire thing, which took me a little over an hour and a half. I have a ten-year-old daughter, so I was immediately sucked into the idea of this young girl having to keep pushing forward in a world where death is literally around every single corner.

I’ve read a good chunk of The Walking Dead comics and have caught up on the TV show as of this most recent season. But I would have to say that Telltale Games’ The Walking Dead adventures games are my favorite incarnation of the universe. The interactivity of the games provides a level of depth to TWD universe that you just can’t get anywhere else. Whether or not that’s a universe you want to get in-depth with is a question you’ll need to answer, because this game pulls no punches. It’s not a “fun” story to experience, but it is powerful and expertly told.

The first episode of Season Two was a great opening act to Clementine’s next chapter. I just hope that somewhere out there in the dark, there are at least a few moments of peace for her.