The Walking Dead episode 301: One man’s prison is another man’s home
By Wade Wainio
The dynamics of The Walking Dead shift to corrections as Rick Grimes and the other survivors look to find sanctuary within the walls of a prison.
Given the downfall of Hershel’s farm, The Walking Dead‘s season 3 premiere (“Seed”) finds Rick and crew seeking a new home at a prison.
There are a few complicating factors (other than reanimated, man-eating corpses, of course). Rick’s wife Lori is very much pregnant, and without the luxuries of modern medicine. It’s also apparent that everyone has been scavenging for quite some time, going from house to house and hoping for the best.
To show us just how desperate things are, we see Daryl shoot one of his trademark arrows into an owl, which leads to the question: “How good is owl meat, really?” Obviously, a zombie outbreak isn’t an ideal situation for a vegetarian (not to get political here, but you know that’s not entirely untrue).
There are some refreshing elements of the episode. For example, I should mention the opening zoom-out shot — starting from deep inside the pupil of a walker’s eye, expanding outward into the greater scene. It’s a very cool way to start the episode, and it suggests that a very zombie-focused future is near, whereas season 2 dealt a little more in purely human matters (though zombies did wreak havoc, to be sure).
The other refreshing aspect is that the group finds a place, and it’s quite a place indeed: The prison! Instantly, a whole new set of dynamics take shape. The prison itself becomes a character, almost like Hershel’s farm (and that accursed barn!) functioned as a character in season 2.
We are introduced to the concept of prison courtyard fence zombie sticking, which is apparently quite easy — a jab to the head and that corpse is dead! Our gang makes it look so easy, but one has to remember that they’re pros. One also gets the sense that the fences may be symbolic. Of course, just as Freud supposedly said “Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar,” the same could hold true for a prison fence.
One this is for sure: The prison is a stark contrast to last season’s survival method. Hershel’s farm was particularly wide open, with few walls and a lot of open fields. The prison, however, is all about walls, fences, posts for armed guards, limited access and possibly limited escape. Does that translate into safety, from both walkers and humans? Not far into the group’s prison adventure, there is already a hint of what lies ahead, as the group deals with a bunch of walkers — including some classic ones in riot gear. Cool! Who can forget that special moment where Maggie stabs one of those suckers under its mask, and flashes that bright “I got one!” smile?
Prison or not, human survival will hinge on available supplies of food and water, weapons, possible transportation and communication. In other words, it’s very easy to predict that a prison will not necessarily be safer than anywhere else. Still, our intrepid survivors wish to feel safe for a time, and who can blame them? All that running around, eating owls and god knows what else is bound to take its toll. Accordingly, Rick wants everyone to stay locked inside past the morning. In fact, he regards it as a possible permanent location.
Of course, those at the prison aren’t the only survivors from the second season. We also learn that Andrea is alive and well, and similarly scavenging with a katana-carrying lady named Michonne. Andrea is revealed as having a fever, which has Michonne out looking for medicine. No doubt they are also seeking a new home, and perhaps a new start with a new group.
Their spirits have been tested, and will continue to be ’til the end of their days. Nevertheless, one gets the sense that these two are a hell of a team in their own right, with Michonne’s trusty guard walkers and her fighting skills, coupled with Andrea’s sheer survival skills (when backed into a corner, the lady’s got some fighting skills).
Back to the prison, we already get the sense that the enclosure isn’t perfectly safe. It is, after all an enclosure, which by itself does not spell security.
If you have a wide open space it means you can run. If you have a bunch of walls around you and a zombie (or a human) is after you, you’d better be well armed, well protected, or well prepared to die. You are short on options otherwise. Aside from that, you are living and sleeping in a prison. That alone could have its disadvantages, aside from whatever’s going on outside.
More from Undead Walking
- Walking Dead alum Jayson Warner Smith promotes new film, Chipper, watch it now
- Walking Dead actor Chandler Riggs filming new movie in Tampa Bay
- Why is there no season 12 of The Walking Dead?
- Will Morgan Jones find Rick Grimes in The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live spinoff?
- Watch Tales of TWD actress Jillian Bell in Prime Video’s Candy Cane Lane
At the same time, the social dynamics from season 2 haven’t totally disappeared. Poor Lori Grimes confides in Hershel that she ruined her family. She also wonders what hill happen if her baby dies, or what she’ll do to the baby if she dies during childbirth. It’s a grim question, but a legitimate one.
Meanwhile, as everyone decides it’s best to have a look around, they do so. As everybody but Lori explores the prison, it turns out they have bitten off more than they could chew — a significant amount of prison walkers give chase! Before long, one of them bites off more of Hershel than it can chew, and our hero undergoes some amateur surgery from Rick. Off that leg goes — ouch! But will it prevent the walker infection?
On top of that, yet another issue unfolds: There are prisoners alive in the prison, who witnessed the amputation and are, well, prisoners. Holy mackerel! How will the gang proceed? With caution, or will Rick start to Shane things up? As you can see, the action is palpable, and it seems like Rick and crew just aren’t totally safe anywhere. Perhaps the prison just wasn’t a great idea in the first place.
Next: All TWD season 3 main character deaths
Either way, they are there now, and must face whatever the future has in store. It’s an interesting take on seeking a new home in a crisis, where each new place seems less safe than the last.