Following the horrific events at the end of last week's episode, "Wildfire" deals with moving on in an intensely personal and moving way. The writers are unafraid to take the foot off the gas pedal and let scenes linger, giving us close looks of characters trying to cope and deal with their situations.
Andrea, reeling from the death of her sister, spends the first half of the episode mourning over her sister, refusing to let anyone near them. Jim, bitten by a zombie, struggles to keep sane despite the onset of fever. And the entire group, stricken by the loss of personnel and in need of a safer area, tries to keep their emotions in check in the worst of situations.
In the end, however, there comes a point where taking actions is a necessity. Andrea shoots Amy's zombie in the head, Dale decides to sit on the side of the road, leaving the group behind, and Shane goes with Rick's plan to go to the CDC. No one is sure what the right decision is, but decisions must be made regardless, and in times of uncertainty, every choice is that much more painful.
When the group does reach the CDC, it appears to be empty, but the audience knows there's a guy in there who's been working for a while to no avail. The guy has all but given up and isn't going to open the door until Rick pleads desperately. With the big door opening at the end of the episode, everything is thrown sideways. It's kind of early to tell, but it looks like the show is really deviating from the comics, and that may be a good thing in the long run.
Score: 9.2/10
