TV FInale Showdown: Boardwalk Empire vs. The Walking Dead

Forget fancy lead in sentences, I thought last night's finale of "The Walking Dead" was weak at best. It left me completely un-excited for the next season and worse, left me questioning why I really enjoy the show in first place. For me the most exciting part of the show was the last 3 minutes, when our heroes/victims finally got back to stopping the dead from walking with their axes, shotguns, pistols, and crossbows. AMC knows their audience, and the audience wants some zombie killin. Prior to that, we basically got a groovy explanation of how zombie brains work complete with an Enya soundtrack, great they're dead, but they walk, I get it.

That being said, where did the show leave us? Our survivors are back on the road, that's all, destined to go to another quarry where they can post up, catch fish, hunt zombie deer, and brood about how screwed they are. Yes, I know that the doctor, (expertly played by Noah Emmerich) whispered something to our hero Rick, but he could have been talking about another hot shower location and not something crucial (you realize that twice on this show, characters have enjoyed hot showers in montages). Don't get me wrong, I like seeing zombie heads explode as much as the next guy, but I'm going to need a little bit more plot to keep me truly interested.

Speaking of important conversations we can't hear, last nights "Boardwalk Empire Finale" featured one hell of a trio speaking about something which really will impact next season. Nucky's brother Eli, his father figure Commodore, and his metaphorical son Jimmy all met and plotted while the rest of the country celebrated the election. This is how you set up a second season, with three characters of different power levels scheming on how to take down the central protagonist of the show. 

Did you catch the shot in closing montage of Jimmy Darmody walking along the ocean? It looked just like Nucky walking the ocean in the opening credits, that's foreshadowing yo.  The show is once again proving to be exciting, visually gorgeous, and loaded with metaphors. The final montage set to "Life's A Funny Proposition" was brilliant in how it showed all the characters both where they've been and where they are heading. And while both shows have second seasons shrouded in mystery, only "Boardwalk" has created drama through their characters emotions and actions, not the characters skill at bustin' zombie skulls (although that still is cool).