Better Angels (The Walking Dead)

"**Better Angels**"
"Better Angels"
The Walking Dead episode
	Carl aims his gun at a reanimated Shane, who slowly walks towards Rick.
Episode no.	Season 2; Episode 12
Directed by	Guy Ferland
Written by	Evan Reilly; Glen Mazzara
Original air date	March 11, 2012
Guest appearances
	IronE Singleton as Theodore "T-Dog" Douglas; Lauren Cohan as Maggie Greene; Emily Kinney as Beth Greene; Michael Zegen as Randall Culver; Scott Wilson as Hershel Greene; Jane McNeill as Patricia; James Allen McCune as Jimmy;
Episode chronology
← Previous; "Judge, Jury, Executioner"	Next →; "Beside the Dying Fire"
	The Walking Dead season 2
	List of episodes

"Better Angels" is the twelfth and penultimate episode of the second season of the post-apocalyptic horror television series The Walking Dead, which aired on AMC in the United States and Canada on March 11, 2012.

Following the death of Dale Horvath in the previous episode, this episode presents a shift in attitudes amongst the group members. This episode features the death of Shane Walsh (Jon Bernthal). This episode explores the depths of Shane's antagonistic behavior culminating in his murder of Randall (Michael Zegen) and ultimately a fatal confrontation with Rick where he meets his own untimely demise, as Rick kills Shane before Shane unexpectedly reanimates without having ever been bitten.

Dale's death also influences the character development of Carl Grimes who has shown increased maturity in confronting the reality of the death of people close to him and the consequences of his actions. This mental growth is displayed when he properly uses his gun to dispatch a zombified Shane and save his father's life.

As creator Robert Kirkman describes: "That scene right there, Carl would never have had the strength to pull the trigger and save his father from Shane zombie if he hadn't had that ordeal with Dale and felt responsible for killing Dale because he wasn't able to shoot that zombie".^[1]

^ Sacks, Ethan. "'The Walking Dead' creator Robert Kirkman explains deaths of major characters serves purpose -- and leads to more dying". NEW YORK DAILY NEWS. Retrieved 14 March 2012.

[1] Sacks, Ethan. "'The Walking Dead' creator Robert Kirkman explains deaths of major characters serves purpose -- and leads to more dying". NEW YORK DAILY NEWS. Retrieved 14 March 2012.

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