The Walking Dead truly has become an all encompassing universe. Like Lord of the Rings, Star Wars and Pokemon, TWD has books, games and television shows to give true fans a firm grasp on everything happening in the fantasy world they love so much. Kirkman's writing is at it's best when he covers the idea of children growing up during the zombie apocalypse, and like Carl in the books/tv show, Clementine is a fascinating character. I was really excited to play season 2's newest chapter, and see just how Clem is progressing now that Kenny is back.
I found myself approaching the new decisions with extreme cynicism. Like Clem and crew, I've been around the undead block a few times, so I had Clementine react as such. She's seen a few mad pyscho leaders in the first season, so I treated the new d-bag (Carver is his name) with absolutely no respect, even when he punished Clem's friends for her disobedience. The new woman, Bonnie, turned the group over to Carver's group, and I made sure that Clementine blamed her viciously for the murders that resulted from her betrayal, even when Bonnie tried to sincerely apologize. In a world with no law enforcement, I find it funny that these villains believe they have more freedom to do bad, when I think the opposite should be true. When you do wrong to a single person, one who has no police or government to seek justice from, you are creating a situation sustainable only by vengeance.
Carver isn't anyone special, which I found kind of disappointing. He enters the story by tying up the entire group, then killing a couple men and torturing a couple more. He then brings us all back to his camp, where he employs the predictable forced labor and brainwashing techniques. I made sure Clementine refused to see any merit in cruelty, and when Carver takes her up to his office, to have a very serious conversation about switching sides, the game gave me a rare opportunity to see just how far my real world societal outlook could go. I had Clem explain that evil is not necessary, that there is no yin and yang, and that forcing your opinion of "right" on anyone is a betrayal of the human experience. I then beat him to death with a crowbar.
One of my favorite comedians, Kumail Nanjiani plays a one-armed wise cracker in this episode, and I was a little shocked at just how natural his jokes were in such a bleak environment. This episode is great, and just like the books, I feel like I am really growing with these characters. Clem and Kenny have been around since the very beginning, and though they are so radically different now, there remains a bond that was forged through Lee's death, the prison-school, and the kidnapper who kept his wife's zombie head in a bowling bag.
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