“Weapons, food, medicine, this place could be a gold mine,” says Rick (Andrew Lincoln) to his band of survivors after discovering a semi-abandoned prison in the very first episode of Season 3 of AMC’s cable channel hit horror series The Walking Dead.
Rick, Lori, Glenn, and the other survivors have managed to make it through winter by going house to house and eliminating the few “walkers” who might be occupying the buildings. However, as the audience sees in the first few minutes of the episode, the army of zombies that chased them off Hershel’s farm at the end of season 2 is still wandering the area and pursuing any possible food – including them. This keeps the group constantly moving and never able to stay in any shelter for very long.
While Rick and Daryl (Norman Reedus) are hunting for some food they come across a prison that seems to be abandoned, except for the walking dead roaming the grounds. Rick and the others decide to clear out the “walkers” and make the prison their new safe house which seems ideal, especially with Lori’s baby due in a few weeks.
Meanwhile, Andrea (Laurie Holden) has teamed up with a new character, a sword-wielding survivor named Michonne (Danai Gurira) who saved her in the forest from some very hungry zombies at the end of Season 2. A strong friendship and bond seems to have developed between these two women, which becomes clear when Michonne delays leaving the immediate area.
Their hiding place has been increasingly invaded by hungry flesh-eaters, and unfortunately, Andrea is still too sick to travel. However, she insists they leave now while they still have time to slip away unnoticed by the “Walkers.”
The Walking Dead Season 3 Episode 1 Recap
“Seed” brings the horror series back to the small screen in action-packed, zombie-slaying carnage that almost equals the finale of Season 2. The execution of the zombies outside the prison and on the grounds is very well planned and handled by Rick, Daryl, Glenn, and the other survivors. Once inside the prison, a handful of the survivors go searching the different dark cell blocks not knowing how many flesh-eaters might be lurking around the next dark, damp corner. It’s both suspenseful and terrifying and reminiscent for anyone who’s ever gone through a haunted house near Halloween for a thrill.
The production design for this series is still excellent, with all kinds of different zombies roaming the woods, houses, and a prison. A truly original scene in the episode is during the second fight as they’re moving deeper into the prison. Rick and his group come across some “walkers” in riot gear, making it incredibly hard to destroy them. The prison, which promises to be the location for some of the drama for at least the first half of Season 3, is extremely well-designed and looks about as real as any prison in a big-screen Hollywood film.
With a baby on the way and zombies lurking and roaming in different parts of the prison, as well as a member of Rick’s survivors attacked by a hungry, ugly flesh-eater (no, it will not be revealed here who it was), Season 3 is looking to be a truly scary, dark, engrossing and perhaps the best season yet of this apocalyptic series.
GRADE: B
