1 of 18
The Walking Dead season 2 shambles on with its fifth episode "Chupacabra," but how does it hold up to the comic book continuity? The search for Sophia continues as Daryl embarks on a solo mission that takes a deadly turn, while Rick continues struggling to keep the survivors in line with Hershel's rules and Lori debates what to do about her pregnancy. So what's next for The Walking Dead?
As AMC's incarnation weaves in and out of storylines from the books and adds its own original characters and its own developments, we've compiled an in-depth guide for fans of the comic as well as AMC's The Walking Dead to enjoy. Check it out, and let us know your opinions of The Walking Dead's "Chupacabra" in the comments below!
SHANE AND LORI BY THE ROADSIDE
AMC: Flashing back to before the campsite, Shane attempts to learn what he can from a car radio while Lori, Carol, Sophia, Carl and Carol’s husband Ed talk up ahead in a massive highway jam. When choppers fly overhead, Shane and Lori investigate in the woods nearby, and share a tender moment against the backdrop of the military napalming the streets of Atlanta.
THE COMICS: Volume 2 “Miles Behind Us” opens on a similar flashback of what led to Lori and Shane’s roadside tryst, while Carl sleeps in the car nearby, but we’re never given any indication of other nearby survivors, especially Carol or Sophia. Unless Shane and Lori were okay with a few peeping toms at their roadside romp, it’s safe to assume the other cars weren’t populated.
FIRST LADY LORI
AMC: Carol requests that Lori be the one to present Hershel with their offer of making dinner, as being Rick’s wife makes her the “unofficial First Lady” of their group.
THE COMICS: This mostly holds to the comics, where Lori was also seen as something of an authority figure by virtue of being Rick’s wife, though later she’d later make the decision to leave authority to the men of the group. With a baby on the way, protection was more important than questions of sexism.
THIS JIMMY FELLOW
AMC: Jimmy, Hershel’s daughter Beth’s boyfriend, offers up his services to the group in their efforts to search for Sophia, even lying to Rick that Hershel had condoned his involvement.
THE COMICS: Jimmy shares no Walking Dead comic counterpart, but physically and narratively his role resembles that of Hershel’s youngest son Billy Greene, who would also occasionally join the survivors’ more dangerous missions without his father’s permission.
MAGGIE AND GLENN, THE MORNING AFTER
AMC: While she’d come around by night’s end, Maggie again coldly rebuffs Glenn’s amorous advances in spite of their earlier tryst, joking about his performance and her uncertainty over even liking him.
THE COMICS: Not so! Clearly in the honeymoon phase of their relationship, Maggie never once wavered in the early days of their relationship, sneaking off with him at every opportunity and even tossing the L-word around fairly quickly.
SHANE AND RICK’S HARD DECISIONS
AMC: Out searching their grid for Sophia, Shane lays some hard truths on Rick, namely that his pathological need to save the young girl continually weakened and endangered the group, and that they all needed to move on in their search for Fort Benning.
THE COMICS: Their woodland conversation is almost an exact mirror of early chapters of the comics, in which Rick insisted the group needed to move on, while Shane remained adamant about staying put in the case of eventual military rescue. In both cases though, Shane seems to place his faith in the strength of the government.
LORI’S GOOD NEWS TRAVELS FAST
AMC: As of “Chupacabra,” Lori and Glenn are still the only ones to know of her pregnancy, as Glenn expresses shock that she’d yet to tell Rick.
THE COMICS: Out on the road, Lori made sure Rick was the first to know of her pregnancy, before informing the entire group moments later. Their reaction was predictably that of concern, but Rick assured them they’d cross the more difficult bridges when they came, and for now the news was happy.
HERSHEL’S RULES
AMC: Irritated by Daryl borrowing one of his horses without permission and Jimmy joining in the search for Sophia, Hershel once again reminds Rick that the survivors need to follow the rules on his property during their stay.
THE COMICS: The Hershel of the comics was far less concerned with people following specific rules, but at least we got an answer to where the house’s power comes from! That’s been bugging us since “Save the Last One.”
HEY, MERLE’S BACK!
AMC: Welcome back, Michael Rooker! Though only a hallucination of Daryl’s out in the woods, AMC’s most notorious original creation Merle Dixon returns in all his two-handed glory to challenge his younger brother into surviving his injuries, and remembering where his loyalties truly lie.
THE COMICS: While Merle has no comic counterpart by a longshot, it’s Interesting that Daryl would hallucinate his missing brother in a time of need. Rick, Michonne, and likely others have all hallucinated conversations with loved ones past when faced with intense periods of duress.
But speaking of hands…
MERLE REQUESTS A HAND
During Daryl’s climb out of the pit taunted by his imaginary brother, Merle issues a very telling statement for fans of the comic, asking Daryl to “grab your friend Rick’s hand.” Merle obviously blames the loss of his hand more on Rick for handcuffing him to that Atlanta roof than T-Dog for failing to free him, but could this be a sign of things to come?
Now, Robert Kirkman and several others have all gone on record indicating that Merle would NOT turn out to be the AMC Walking Dead’s incarnation of the Governor, who famously chopped off Rick’s hand for disobedience during his time at Woodbury. It remains to be seen if AMC would ever go through with chopping off the hand of its lead character, but who’s to say if not the Governor, there might be another survivor present looking to even the score if AMC Rick ever makes it to Woodbury?
HERSHEL ON MAGGIE AND GLENN
AMC: Hershel manages to figure on his own that his daughter Maggie shares some kind of relationship with “the Asian boy” Glenn, and only lightly presses his daughter not to give him more cause for concern than he has with Jimmy and his other daughter Beth. Maggie dismisses Glenn as a friend, but reminds her father she’s old enough to make her own decisions.
THE COMICS: Hershel found out about Glenn and his daughter Maggie the hard way, stumbling in on the two in bed together in her room, and nearly assaulting Glenn in anger. Maggie stands up for her beau by insisting they’re in love, and that at 19 she’s old enough to make her own decisions before Hershel storms out.
It’s also worth noting that in “Chupacabra” Glenn specifically identifies Maggie as 22, three years older than her comic counterpart.
DALE IN EVERYBODY’S BUSINESS
AMC: Perhaps preoccupied by Andrea’s cold demeanor toward him, Dale presses Glenn not to get involved in other people’s affairs, particularly Maggie and the edgy women of the group, and apparently hasn’t noticed anything unusual about Lori’s behavior of late.
THE COMICS: On paper Dale made a rather frequent habit of nosing his way into other people’s affairs, particularly Rick and Lori. Dale suggested to Rick that something seemed off about the way Shane behaved with Lori as far back as the camp, and after learning of her pregnancy urged Lori to take it to her grave if indeed the baby belonged to Shane.
ANDREA GETS HER GUNS
AMC: Perhaps jumping the gun a bit (no pun intended), Andrea resolves that she’d rather defend the camp than do laundry and stations herself atop the RV with a sniper rifle and a cowboy hat! She doesn’t quite have the magnificent aim of her comic counterpart just yet, narrowly missing serious injury to Daryl with a graze rather than a complete headshot.
THE COMICS: Andrea’s uncanny marksmanship had been observed ever since she started training at the campsite, but it wouldn’t be until the group reached the prison that she took to utilizing a sniper rifle to defend the other survivors.
HERSHEL WANTS TO DEAL WITH WALKERS
AMC: When Daryl’s return is mistaken for a walker shambling his way onto Hershel’s property, Rick asserts to the other mounting survivors that Hershel wants to be the one to deal with walkers, advice Shane and the others ignore. Andrea believes on the other hand, “I think I can nail it from here.”
THE COMICS: A walker (in this case Daryl) appearing on Hershel’s property bears resemblance to an incident in the comics where a zombie shambled his way onto the group’s makeshift firing range, and rather than letting Rick “get it from here,” Hershel subdues it on his own to throw it in the barn with his other “dead ones.” As the AMC survivors don’t yet know of Hershel’s philosophy on the undead, the live-action farmer doesn’t hear of the threat until Andrea’s shot rings out.
THE GROUP DINNER
AMC: Having followed on Carol’s idea to cook dinner for everyone as a thank you to Hershel, the survivors all partake in a group meal, somewhat fraught with tension considering Rick’s argument with Shane, Hershel’s unease with the rest of the group, and Otis’ death still hanging in the air. In spite of the atmosphere, Maggie propositions Glenn for another rendezvous at a location of his choosing.
THE COMICS: The dinner occurs without much thought or tension, the survivors admiring Hershel’s bountiful set up on the farm. The only conflict comes from Glenn, who dejectedly observes Carol cozying up to Tyresse and leaves to sulk outside. Once there, Maggie makes her first pass at Glenn by questioning why he looked so sad and offering herself up.
DARYL AND CAROL…CARYL?
AMC: Much as the comic Lori left dinner to take a plate to Carl, Caryl leaves to take a plate of food to the injured Daryl, kissing his forehead for his efforts in finding Sophia and contradicting Merle’s words by insisting he’s every bit as brave and valuable as Rick or Shane.
THE COMICS: Comic Carol indeed cozied up to someone as the group ate dinner on Hershel’s farm, but her beau Tyreese has yet to appear in the AMC's The Walking Dead. While she’s also older than her comic counterpart, might the AMC Carol develop an interest in Daryl, who did more for her daughter than her former husband Ed ever did?
INSIDE HERSHEL’S BARN
AMC: Before Maggie has a chance to read his intentions, Glenn makes his way over to Hershel’s barn after dinner, only to discover that the farmer keeps a barn full of walkers, which he and the other survivors weren’t supposed to know about!
THE COMICS: Precisely as you saw on screen, the comics Hershel kept a barn full of his “dead ones,” including family, neighbors and any strays that wandered onto the property. However, he didn’t mind telling Rick or the other survivors what he’d been doing, answering Rick’s questions about the barn the moment he asked if the group could sleep there.
What did you think of The Walking Dead season 2 episode five, "Chupacabra?" Did we miss anything else from the comics you might have caught?
Let us know in the comments, and be sure to check back next week for our in-depth comic-to-TV comparison of episode six, "Secrets"!
Want even more Walking Dead? Be sure to check out our in-depth-comparisons of the first four episodes right here!
The Walking Dead 2.01 - "What Lies Ahead" Comic-to-TV Comparison
The Walking Dead 2.02 - "Bloodletting" Comic-to-TV Comparison
The Walking Dead 2.03 - "Save the Last One" Comic-to-TV Comparison
The Walking Dead 2.04 - "Cherokee Rose" Comic-to-TV Comparison
You may also like -
Falling Skies: Can it Fill the Void Until The Walking Dead Returns?
The Walking Dead Casts David Morrissey in 'Governing' New Season 3 Role
Spoilers: Why is Billy Ray Cyrus Returning to 90210? Plus: The Walking Dead, Fringe, The Vampire ...
Watch the First 3 Minutes of The Walking Dead Premiere "Nebraska"!
The Walking Dead Sneak Peek: Rick Pleads with Hershel in Episode 2.07
The Walking Dead 2.06 "Secrets" Review
This show's decline has taken it to a point that is well beyond disappointing, and into a realm of improbable awfulness. Can't watch anymore.
I've heard some people aren't liking the show. What is it you find so awful?
for me its the poor writting, acting and inconsitancy of story flow. plus ZERO action. i agree with them, it sucks this season.
I find most of the acting pretty on the level, even if I'm not crazy about Andrew Lincoln's wooden Rick. As for action, what about the high school mission, or Badass Daryl this week?
Season 2 is so TERRIBLE. Is so freaking draining. There still on the 5th episode finding that stupid lost girl.
True, the search for Sophia hasn't really picked up any steam, but now that we've seen Hershel's barn, things should definitely be ramping up!
They need to find that stupid girl already. The only interesting thing is why the hell there is a barn full of walkers.
Isn't it crazy how long they've dragged out the search for Sophia? Who knows what they'll find anymore?
As for the barn, you'll certainly find out why in the next episode, but you could always pick up the comics! But if you can't wait until then, re-watch some of Hershel and Rick's conversations from "Bloodletting" for some insight on what Hershel believes!
i must agree the little girl thing is toooo long! She's probably found by the crazy left behind at the mall' that cut his own hand off! or she's probably a little zombie! or just walking around by herself or with someone new!… N yes I wonder why their is a barn full of walkers'…. Is the dr. making them a cure! what is he doing? some crazy stuffff! that makes me fricken wannna know already!
They've devoted so many episodes now to fruitless missions, how can they do anything else at this point but "oh, there she is."? I'd bet that as the mid-season finale, there will probably be something new on Sophia in episode 7.
And if Dr. Jenner at the CDC couldn't figure out a cure, I doubt that a farmer with veterinary training will crack that one!
lmao… true!..
You know what gets me tooo, Is when the farmer said no GUNS on his property…. While he has a barn full of walkers'….. thats creeeeeepy! lol
I think the two are more or less related, as Hershel clearly has a "no killing zombies" policy, which if everyone carried guns on the property would certainly make for a whole lot of itchy trigger fingers.
I'm getting annoyed with the search for Sophia… Not to mention that its an hour long show that we wait a week to see and then end up with about 33 minutes of the show. I understand that in the first season there was a need to make people want more and leave people asking questions but in this second season they are losing people because who wants to wait a week and turn off the tv and have 10 different questions about the show nagging them until the next one comes on. Its suppose to be The Walking Dead and I'm not seeing any dead people HELLO! Its more like watching soaps now and whats going on in whos life and why, who slept with who, and whos going to be the bad person this week. If I wanted to watch soaps I can watch them Monday thru Friday for an hour each day. Last season each episode was eventful and exciting but it got to the point. This season is leaving me with too many questions from week to week.
lmao….. SOAPS! you got me there! This episode we saw 3 zombies killed! besides the ones in the barn that the farmer is hiding!
At least there aren't as many nagging questions as LOST! But I understand the frustration. They've made a clear choice to focus more on character debates than zombie kills, but that's a double-edged sword.
WAIT, hold on there. there is no way you can compare Lost to TWD. Lost was brilliant , written perfectly and acting was top notch. every episode was exciting andadventureous. That is NO WAY whats happening with The Walking Bore
They only comparison is that they're both shows that like to draw out their mysteries beyond single episodes, though I found LOST far from perfect. The Walking Dead just needs more interesting plot threads than searching for a lost little girl for seven episodes.
I can see why everyone is so upset. Clearly it would be a much more enjoyable show if every single mystery were solved every single week, everything wrapped up in a neat little bow; it'd be like watching Scooby Doo, but with more zombies. "Hershel had Sophia all along!" "And I would've gotten away with it too, if it hadn't been for you meddling kids!"
If you don't like the show, then fine, don't like the show, but the argument that there shouldn't be multi-episode plotlines is just silly, and one that could be as easily applied to EVERY HOUR-LONG DRAMA in existence. I'm sure Breaking Bad would be much better if Walt were killing a rival meth dealer every other week, after all.
True, not every mystery can be solved within a week's time, but I think I get all the Sophia hate. The show's hanging more than half of an entire season on the search for a missing character we don't particularly know or like, and either resolution is going to feel pretty anti-climactic at this point.
I really like this season I dont know why theres so much hate. The show revolves around peoples interactions with each other in an “end of the world” situation, its not meant to be an action packed, fast paced killing zombies show. Its really building the characters, and this season is opening alot of doors and extending this series into something massive which I like. The point of this, as any, show is to keep you guessing – its called entertainment. People want to know, but they thrive on being patient.
It's almost hard to judge this second season, given the first was so short and we know all about the behind-the-camera production difficulties of season 2. The action sequences have certainly taken a backseat to character development, but I wouldn't mind a bit more tension beyond "let's look for the little girl" every five seconds. Barn full of walkers, ahoy!
Honestly, there is nothing wrong with the girl missing, think about it, if they found her, they would have to leave the ranch, and if they did that, then what? This is a marvelous situation to keep the characters in a location where they are introduced to the other lives touched by the "End of The World" scenario. A show where zombie's just get their heads blown off every day over and over again would be unrealistic, and boring. If a Zombie situation actually happened where do you think the most turmoil would be for people who survived the initial "invasion", popping zombie brains, or the struggle to maintain our morality, sanity, and general humanity? Once again, there is nothing wrong with having the girl missing for so long, some shows made their entire plot around of something like that(Twin Peaks, anyone?), but the girl missing is not the point of whats going on. The Second Season is brilliant, and in my opinion, one of the most enjoyable things I have ever watched. That's the problem with society these days, they want everything handed to them, they want to be spoon fed.
around something like that*
Agreed, there's much more to The Walking Dead than just the "zombie kill of the week," but I can understand people's frustration at the Sophia storyline. Considering how few episodes to the season, it's a very thin story to be stretched out as long as it has. Sophia doesn't HAVE to be the reason they stay at the barn, but the writers aren't willing to force the Hershel conflict yet, so they spin the wheels on Sophia.
Sophia for all of you who "watch the show" that apparently dont know her name. I'm not saying that there was anything wrong with looking for her or the fact shes missing.. my point is that there are zombies…no food(well there is but I dont know if a 12 year old has the skills to find it) and well its just getting boring. Lori is pregnant, Hershel is INSANE, and Shane is a mad man! I am in no ways "complaining" I just want to it to be as interesting as it was last season. The comics are alot more in depth so I dont get what the fuss is all about. No the entire story cant just come out in one week and I understand that but WE DIDNT EVEN KNOW THE LITTLE GIRL… maybe if Carl had gone missing it would be a little more interesting. But he didnt did he? I mean for all of you that know so much… in the comic Carl would have already killed Shane by now to protect his dad. That would be interesting… I mean watching the cast kill zombies every week is by far more interesting than spending half of your 35 minutes looking for a little girl.. no one even knew her name until she went "missing". There is nothing wrong with them being there and think about it…it doesnt all depend on Sophia… no one is leaving until Carl is better! DUH so actually THINK about things next time.. Sophia didnt go missing in the comics and there are a ton of those. With that being said Carl wasnt shot this early in the comics either. I just wish it was like last season where I was on the edge of my seat for every episode. Its not like that this season… I can almost guess what is going to happen before it does.. when I saw Maggie's face while reading what Glenn had wrote to her I KNEW SOMETHING WAS WRONG! I dont want to be able to guess whats going to happen before it happens I want to feel surprised.
I'm not trying to sound mean or rude. I only watch one show on TV every week and it happens to be this one and I dont want to be disappointed thats all I ask.
I have a *feeling* the next two episodes will really bring the noise as far as zombie drama.. Peace, Mercutio. 'Tis well.
I have to agree that this show has gotten worse They should have gotten either sophia as a zombie or as a dead person so that the story could move on Frankly its turning into a parody of itself.
It's not out of the question, but killing off or zombifying a little girl? They did it in the opening scene of the very first episode, but that wasn't a character they knew. Not sure if AMC would ever go that dark.
Sophia will return as a zombie and now that Hershel has been concealing zombies, they'll just add Sophia to the mix. Then its off to fort benning to find a cure while hershel and the rest take care of the girl and the rest of their walker friends. Oh, and Maggie will go with Glenn and the gang against Hershel's wishes and there will probably be drama lasting a good 5-10 minutes … Andrea will either stay or go, just to get away from Dale. And I think Jimmy will die soon. Lori will tell Rick about being pregnant, and he'll try and have her stay at Hershels' with Carl as the rest go to Fort Benning. And Shane will probably try to stay too to "watch her." Watch her in bed with him is what he hopes… Hopefully the mentally handicapped Rick can figure out what is going on soon… Thats the wrap for the rest of the season. No more reason to watch…
Some very interesting theories, but keep watching! And agreed on Jimmy, the dude is total zombie bait.
Really. Find the girl or get going. Ratings still stong 6+ million a week, but should start to fall if things do not move along.
From what I hear, they won't have to worry about ratings drop-off after what happens in episode seven…
While I agree that the Sophia storyline should have been dealt with by now, I am seriously surprised with some of the comments I've read on here. Season 2, for me, has been far superior to Season 1, and I thought this episode was one of the best so far. And for those moaning about the show having mysteries? Go and watch House MD or as someone else said, Scooby Doo, if you want a 'case of the week' show where everything is nicely wrapped up and spelt out for you.
I'm a fan of season two as well. Perhaps if people were already familiar with the comic beats, they might have had more patience with what was likely coming up, namely Hershel's barn.
Well firstly, I have been reading the comic-to-tv comparisons for a while now and it’s awesome. I like the way they remind me of what happened in the comics, especially those in the earlier issues, and they make the deviations much more clearer. Your observations are spot on and you’ve caught some great screenshots that’s exactly like the ones in the comic!
The Sophia storyline is bugging me too, ‘cos I can’t think of any way they’re gonna resolve this plot satisfyingly. Maybe Sophia wandering into the farm as a zombie? The group’s gonna come head-to-head with Hershel after finding out about the barn, and as we know from the comics, Rick’s gonna want to clear out the dead in the barn, so Sophia’s turning would probably result in a dilemma and would probably split the group once again. Carol, for one would probably start supporting Hershel’s way of handling the situation? I don’t know, surely Sophia’s return has to have emotional impact in some way or it’d be meaningless.
But my other problem with the show is how underdeveloped T-Dog’s character is. The fact that he’s not in the comic demands a greater need to explore this character more, like the way they did with Daryl. I understand T-Dog isn’t as interesting a character as Daryl, but if we’re gonna keep him around, I’d love to learn more about this guy and connect with him. Right now he’s just tagging along and he’s as much a stranger to me as the Jimmy guy.
But otherwise, this season is amazing. I may complain about some things but still, I’m enjoying this season A LOT. It stayed true to the comics while offering some real interesting deviations. Love the genuine, raw emotions and the brilliant acting.
So, how did Hershel’s farm get power in the comics?