The second and final season of what’s effectively a ‘young adult’ version of The Walking Dead is a more coherent and focused endeavour than its predecessor. Built around the hidden threat posed by the Civic Republic Military (CRM), it explores how the last survivors of the Campus Colony seek to expose the murderous nature of the CRM conspiracy and alert others to the danger.
The show also stitches itself into the wider canon of The Walking Dead. It reconnects with the story of Jadis, the former oddball leader of The Scavengers (and rescuer of the injured Rick Grimes), who’s now reinvented herself as a ruthless CRM enforcer. In addition, it reveals a glimpse of the situation in France (a place that Daryl Dixon will soon find himself sent to); and acknowledges the existence of walker variants (which its parent show did in its final few episodes).
As with Season 1, the plot is built on the relationships among the small group of young characters who set out on the road together in search of answers. Central to that is the dynamic between sisters Iris and Hope Bennett, now reunited with their scientist father Leo, and the complex relationship that they have with security operative Felix and the double-agent Huck. The sisters’ compatriots Silas and Elton also have reasonable storylines of their own, as the full extent of the CRM’s criminality is exposed. There’s a higher action quotient this time out, things are more tonally consistent, and the mini-series format concludes with a clear-cut endpoint. While it remains the least essential watch in this particular zombie universe, Season 2 delivers a welcome rise in quality.
THE WALKING DEAD: WORLD BEYOND Season 2 is available on Blu-ray now
