They say you do crazy things in the face of death, but going just plain crazy? That’s reserved for guys like Merle, who certainly wasn’t the sanest person to begin with. And now that he’s been handcuffed to the roof of a building with a horde of zombies trying to break through the padlocked door, he’s willing to do whatever it takes to ensure his safety – even if that means begging to Jesus Christ himself. Of course, Merle knows better than to rely on old JC to solve his problems and decides that he’s going to have to free himself on his own. And wouldn’t you know it, that hacksaw is just a belt-length away from his reach. It’s a good thing he’s wearing a belt.
Not that anyone would miss Merle – except, of course, for his brother Daryl, who’s currently away hunting for deer when the scavengers return to camp. But before they deal with that particular situation, the survivors welcome back the group and are introduced to Rick, who is finally reunited with his family. Lori actually looks happy that her husband is alive, but Shane isn’t quite as relieved, as he’s forced to watch from afar as they reconnect with one another. In fact, Lori doesn’t want anything to do with Shane now that Rick has returned, and that includes him spending time with Carl. So why the sudden change of heart? Well, it seems that Shane told Lori that Rick was dead, and she’s not at all happy about him taking advantage of her emotions. That pretty much confirms what I initially thought – that Lori and Shane’s romance is fairly recent – but I’m still not sure what’s worse: Lori having an affair, or the speed in which she moved on after learning that her husband was dead. Neither one is very flattering.
Unfortunately, Rick is too busy playing the hero to realize what’s going on between his wife and best friend. After T-Dog informs him that he padlocked the door to the roof to prevent any zombies from getting through, Rick decides that he can’t leave Merle to die up there alone, and wants to go back to Atlanta to rescue him. It’s not exactly a popular decision, but when Daryl returns to learn about his brother’s fate, he agrees to join him on the mission. Daryl might just be an even bigger loose cannon than Meryl, and the scene where Shane and Rick had to restrain him was an excellent display of the show’s ability to sneak in a little humor:
Daryl: “You best let me go.”
Shane: “Nah, I think it’s better if I don’t.”
Daryl: “Choke hold is illegal.”
Shane: “Yeah, you can file a complaint.”
