The Walking Dead: Every Season 2 Episode Ranked Worst To Best
2. Pretty Much Dead Already
Pretty Much Dead Already is the ultimate turning point in The Walking Dead's tone and narrative approach. Not only does Shane finally crack under the pressure of the secrets around him, but when the Survivors clear out the walker-infested barn they find Sophia and are forced to put her down.
There are three main arcs running through the episode: Hershel struggles with the idea that walkers aren't sick people, but monstrous shells of the people they once were; Shane tries to clear out the barn despite Rick's hopes to stay on the farm; and Daryl tries to keep Carol's hopes alive.
It's an emotional rollercoaster of an episode that races to its heartwrenching conclusion at full speed, pushing every character to their breaking point before that iconic sequence when an undead Sophia comes lumbering out the barn, ironically right next to them this whole time.
Between Shane's twisting psyche, the concluding barn massacre and the still-shocking Sophia reveal, Pretty Much Dead Already is where the series went from a very good show to a great one.