Season Finales

Last night was the season finales of Boardwalk Empire and The Walking Dead.  Yeah, six episodes constitutes a full season, sounds pretty crazy to me.

Boardwalk Empire

Okay, this show gets better each week.  The various plots are starting to tie together.  The Republicans won the election, and Nucky seems to have rekindled his relationship with Margaret.  I loved how after his press conference Eli was all pissed at Nucky (even though Eli got a nice payday, but I'll get to that in a second) because of the way Nucky just uses everyone, even his own brother.

After the election though, Nucky has the mayor tell the new sheriff that he will be resigning and Eli will become the sheriff once again.  This was obviously Nucky's plan all along, but Eli does not have the patience nor the vision to see the big picture...or does he?

The boys from Chicago come to town to help broker a deal between Nucky and Rothstein.  Nucky will help Rothstein out with his baseball troubles and Nucky gets $1,000,000 in return, as well as the location of the remaining Delasio brothers.  Jimmy and ol' half-face make short work of them, with Al Capone helping take one out in a nice scene where he shoots the guy and then grabs his food and eats it. 

Speaking of Al, I love the change we see in him.  I love how he went from not very serious to giving Charlie Lucciano a little verbal slap down about making jokes.  This is the Al Capone that will someday be the most feared gangster in the country.

Jimmy is starting to resent Nucky (basically called him a pimp) and goes to visit his father (the Commodore).  It turns out that the Commodore went to prison and Nucky was supposed to take over for him until he returned, but it seems that Nucky has pushed the Commodore out.  The Commodore has a plan to make Jimmy the new ruler of Atlantic City with a little help from Eli.  I am excited to see how this will play out.

I also love how during this era there was still such a high price put upon pedigree.  The Commodore says that Nucky was the son of a drunken something (fisherman or dock worker, or something like that) and he is not fit to be a man of prestige.  Reminds me of Mad Men and how Pete Campbell always feels he is superior because of his family. 

The Walking Dead
I have to say I was mostly disappointed with the season finale.  Granted it was only the sixth episode, since AMC execs were short-sighted and did not order more episodes, so we have not really had time for a massive buildup.

Inside the CDC, we learn a good bit about the disease.  This was actually cool and something that was not in the comic book (unless I missed it somehow).  The doctor explains that the disease shuts down the brain, but then restarts it.  They use some fancy computer program to show that instead of the synapses firing throughout the full brain, it just restarts the stem.  So the disease must use the host as a carrier, right?

Unfortunately the building is about to explode because they are running out of power and it is designed to destroy itself and all the harmful diseases stored inside.  The crazy doctor wants to keep everyone inside because it would be better to die that way then to face what is outside. 

Obviously Rick does not agree.  The doctor lets them go, but a few remain inside.  Andrea refuses to leave until Dale sits beside her and says that if she will not go, neither will he.  They have a nice moment and then she goes with him.  The black girl decides to stay and explode with the doctor.

Outside, they escape the zombies easily and get back to the vehicles and make a nice getaway.  The real question is where will they go and what horrors will they encounter next season.