The Walking Dead: Season Two: Episode One Review

All That Remains does its best to obliterate whatever remnants of childhood Clementine still clings to. At times it is astoundingly grim and equally shocking. There are two scenes in particular that will force your heart into your throat and your stomach out toward the other end. One is a supremely clever narrative twist which would probably have you applauding if it weren't for the fact that at least one palm will be clasped across your mouth. The other is a more straightforward but also agonisingly drawn-out sequence which puts you in control of performing a grisly but necessary act. Neither are particularly pleasant to watch, but there's an underlying logic to each event which saves these scenes from being shocking for their own sake - important given there's a child at the centre of it all.


All That Remains does a superb job of shifting the focus onto Clementine as the central character, but this in itself causes problems for the episode, primarily in terms of relationships with other characters. Put simply, Clementine finds herself in the company of a new group of less caring, less trustworthy survivors, and there isn't really enough time within the episode given to forming a bond with any of them. Telltale's narrative economy is still on full display, of course, so characters are established very quickly. Friendships and conflicts are evident within the first few minutes of encountering them. But that's entirely inside their own circle, which Clementine is very much apart from. This also means that when given important choices relating to these characters, there's less emotional attachment involved, and it's much easier to be pragmatic about the situation.


The other major issue with All That Remains is that it ends rather abruptly. It gives you a major choice, there's about five seconds of action, and then it cuts to black. It feels like you're halfway through a narrative sequence rather than the end of one. It's worth noting that the choice in question does appear to have a significant effect on the story, and won't be undermined later by the narrative as happened several times in Season One. But it's also nothing we haven't seen before, and has less impact simply because we've only been in the company of these characters for about half an hour.


In sum, All That Remains is a decent, but not spectacular beginning to Season Two of The Waking Dead. Clementine carries the narrative thread superbly on her own, but she shouldn't really have to do that. The fact that these new characters are introduced to us in a lump means we have very little time to garner an understanding of their traits, and establish the right bonds to make those crucial decisions which are the hallmark of the series’ work. That being said, again, it's only the first episode, and this is a longer series too, with another seven rather than four to go and it still does enough to make us excited to see what's around the corner.