REVIEW(ISH): THE WALKING DEAD, Episode 5

When I say that The Walking Dead almost lost me before finishing its first season, I'm not kidding. Great TV has spoiled me, and my meager attention span wont tolerate mediocrity. A run of bad episodes is enough for me to drop a show six seasons in; this show went from brilliant to crap in the first two weeks, and only managed to work its way back to 'kinda good' by episode four.

And then this week's "Wildfire." Wow. Half-way in and it's already the best episode of the season. After last week's blindsiding zombie attack finale, all of the show's subplots boil over. Everything happens. Devastating grief and the most horrific tension since the pilot. A escalating series of character moments builds toward an abrupt shift in the third act with the showstopping introduction of a new character. This is not the same series that aired last week. Gone are the bouts of clunky, expository dialog, the broad stereotypes, and the substitution of action for genuine suspense. This is the show the pilot promised us.

There are more bodies to be buried. While the traumatized survivors mourn, lingering tension between Rick and Shane erupts in a debate over Rick's latest plan: convoy up and head for the CDC building a couple hundred miles away. And... that's all that should be said. This is the kind of episode you really don't want spoiled, a turning point for everyone involved: the characters, the show, and the audience. With "Wildfire," the show finally delivers on the promise of its spectacular first airing. I'm hooked. Again.