"The Walking Dead" Episode 201: Pleasure To Eat You!

The much-anticipated fall line from Aberzombie & Fitch

AMC's The Walking Dead premiered Season Two last night, and picked up right where it left off. For those unfamiliar, here's a synopsis of Season One and an explanation of the series:

People try not to get eaten by zombies.

Now that we're up to speed, let's move on to last night's premiere, which was worth the incredibly long wait we had to endure from the end of the first season.

The first twenty minutes were tense and suspenseful, as our caravan of survivors ran into a road block of abandoned cars, and as they tried to gather supplies, were set upon by a herd of the undead.

As they scrambled to hide under the vehicles, I realized why this scene was so nail-biting: I had no idea who was going to live and who was going to die. Aside from a couple of the leads, any of these characters could be lunch, which raises the stakes considerably.

When little Sophia is found by a couple of the walkers (zombies), she runs screaming into the woods, and the rest of the episode is spent searching for her, while touching on a few open story lines from Season One.

Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), Sophia Peletier (Madison Lintz), Carol Peletier (Melissa McBride), Lori Grimes (Sarah Wayne Callies), Carl Grimes (Chandler Riggs), T-Dog (IronE Singleton), Glenn (Steven Yeun), Andrea (Laurie Holden), Dale (Jeffrey DeMunn), Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) and Shane Walsh (Jon Bernthal)

ZOMBIE BAIT: The cast deals with family issues and infighting, but what are their chances of survival?

Rick: If you want to live, it's best to stick as close as possible to this former sheriff. Compassionate but tough, he was feared dead at the outset of the zombie invasion, and the first season saw him reunite with his son and his wife, who mourned his loss by sleeping with his best friend. He spent this episode searching for Sophia and being blamed for her disappearance by her mother. SURVIVABILITY: There wouldn't be a show without him.

Sophia: Girl with doll. Screams a lot. Can fit under cars easily, but her impatience almost made her a zombie appetizer. SURVIVABILITY: Still missing at end of Episode One, but it's unlikely TPTB would dispatch her so early in the season.

Carol: Sophia's mother, she survived an abusive husband in the first season, and is trying to find her way in this new world. SURVIVABILITY: The question is not only can she survive, but can she finally learn to live! I give her half a season until she's eaten.

LORI: Rick's wife, she found comfort in the bed of his best friend Shane when she thought Rick was dead. Bears striking resemblance to That Bitch Tea Delgado. She spent this episode angry at Shane and defending Rick. SURVIVABILITY: She's part of a triangle and may be pregnant. She's not going anywhere.

Carl: Rick and Lori's son. Plucky kid who has seen his father disappear and come back numerous times. He took Shane as his surrogate dad, but is confused why Shane is now cold and distant, and doesn't play "sleeping bag wrestling" with his mom anymore. SURVIVABILITY: He's the son of the main characters, he's not in danger! Well, except for being shot in the closing scene of this episode.

T-Dog: In the first season, his main claim to fame was having run-ins with racist survivor Merle, who was eventually handcuffed to a rooftop pipe by Rick to keep him under control. When the band of survivors had to flee the building, T-Dog rushed up to free Merle, and accidentally dropped and lost the handcuff key. Whoops! When the group later came back to rescue him, Merle was gone, but his handcuffed hand remained. In this season's first episode, T-Dog sliced his arm open escaping from the zombie horde, and spent the entire running time bleeding and useless. I hope there's more to his character than "clumsy oaf." SURVIVABILITY: He could very well survive to the end of the series ... or step on a rusty nail and die.

Glen: Saved Rick's life in the first season, he's young, smart, and quick, but didn't have much to do in the season opener. SURVIVABILITY: Very high, as he's managed to escape many dire situations already.

Andrea: Switches between strong and confidant woman and complete hot mess (sometimes in the same scene). She watched her sister get killed last season, and has been suicidal ever since. She spent this episode complaining that no one trusts her with a gun, begging Shane to let her go with him if he decides to leave the group,and blaming the kindly Dale for not letting her end it all. SURVIVABILITY: Will she find a reason to go on? It'd be anticlimactic if she didn't

Dale: Older RV owner and father figure to Andrea. He convinced her not to kill herself last season, and she resents him for it. SURVIVABILITY: Well, he owns the RV.

Daryl: Merle's younger brother, he may be slightly less racist than his missing sibling. Like it or not, Daryl is one of the strongest members of the group, and you definitely want him beside you when the zombie herd approaches. SURVIVABILITY: Since Merle is likely to show up again a some point, Daryl will be sticking around for a while.

Shane: He was Rick's best friend and fellow lawman before the world changed. He abandoned Rick in the hospital in the first season, and later hooked up with Lori. He'd like nothing better than to replace his pal permanently. In this episode, he picks up where he left off, and sulks about, threatening to leave the group. SURVIVABILITY: Provides most of the non-zombie drama, so I don't see him leaving.

ROTTING-BEEF CAKE: C'mon, you know you'd hit it.

CARNAGE SCORECARD:: It was a disappointing episode for the zombie invasion, as they didn't manage a single human kill. Let's add up the gore and pain!

ZOMBIES - Screwdriver through eyeball, icepick through brain, 2 skulls crushed, arrow through head, disembowelment looking for girl chunks, sharp weapons stolen by young boy, head split open by ax, butcher knife through eye, churchgoer sliced open with weird pointy thing.

HUMANS - Arm cut while being clumsy, Woman terrorized and can't put gun together, boy shot while admiring deer, group tricked by fake church bell, hurt feelings, girl still missing.

You can see five minutes from the premiere below, and we're curious how many AE readers are fans of the show. Did you watch, and what did you think of this season's first episode?