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Shane Walsh

Discussion in 'The Walking Dead TV Characters' started by Walker Shane, Dec 3, 2012.

  1. warhorse78

    warhorse78 New Member

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    I liked Shane at first. I thought he was a fantastic character, although it was shady to be having a relationship with your best friend's wife (I actually thought they had something going on before the ZA) but I think he was already cracking watching the military open fire on US citizens. And he just kept going deeper and deeper into that crack. He tried to rape Lori at the CDC, he was aiming his gun at Rick when he wasn't looking, and I think the tipping point was when he left Odis to die. He might have been slowly coming back when we seen how he was caring for Carol after she finds out what happened to Sophie, but I think he was slowly going insane and it would have been a matter of time before he completely snapped and went nuts. If he had lived long enough to see Lori die, that could have been the final trigger.

    Too bad though, the writers just didn't let him leave when he was about to. It would have been bitter sweet to see him work out his inner demons and then one day cross paths with Rick and the survivors, and be reunited with his daughter.
     
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  2. Zvivor

    Zvivor Well-Known Member

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    Yes, I think these are all good points.
     
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  3. ShaneFan

    ShaneFan Well-Known Member

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    @Zvivor - thanks...I don't mean to write such novels about Shane, but I'm passionate about SW!

    @warhorse78 - Welcome to TWD Forums! I hope you enjoy it here.

    Shane is a complex character. To be honest, when I first saw TWD and they showed him messing around with Lori, my first thought was "wow, what kind of friend is he if he's messing around with his best friend's wife". I've read the theories about Lori and Shane going on before the ZA. My thoughts are Shane harbored feelings for Lori and once the ZA happened, when he was getting her and Carl out of King County, he grew attached to her...and she to him, since she thought Rick was dead.

    I agree that it's very possible that he started to "crack" or even toughen up when he saw the military opening fire on the living.

    The thing with the CDC...my thoughts are (and it's just my opinion)...I truly don't think it was Shane's *intention* to rape Lori. The first thing he said when he found her in the CDC was: "I'm gonna tell you a few things and you're gonna listen to me." She had cut him off and assumed the worst about him. She was treating him like dirt even though she didn't know the full extent of what he went through to try to get Rick out of the hospital. And when he does try to explain that living people were being killed, Lori accuses him of leaving Rick there. No compassion, no understanding at all for what Shane went through or tried to do for Rick. This is why I don't like Lori at all, but to stick to the topic...

    I believe he went to see her with the intention of getting her to listen and understand what happened and why he lied--that it wasn't malicious on his part. I do think however -- he let his emotions get in the way -- he was drunk -- which is not an excuse -- and he wants back what he had with her before Rick returned---this includes the love-making, her listening to him, giving him the benefit of the doubt...And yes, he forced himself on her to the point where she got scared and had to push him and scratch him to defend herself. He was wrong to do that, and yet, (it may sound crazy), but I don't believe he wanted to humiliate her, dominate her, make her feel powerless -- and anything else associated with rape. That's just my .02

    With Otis...Shane gets vilified for this almost all the time. He told Otis to go on ahead of him--Otis didn't because he was good-hearted and wanted them both to get out alive. The thing with Otis one of those things "doing the wrong thing for the right reasons". Yes, it's morally wrong to murder someone and leave them to get killed (or be used as walker bait), but Shane's mindset was if he could get out of there, then he can get the supplies to Carl, so that Carl can live...instead of both him and Otis dying and then Carl dies too.

    With holding Rick in his sights -- Shane was jealous of Rick and angry at him, because when Rick came back everything went downhill for Shane. He lost leadership of the group, Lori rejected him, then she didn't want him talking with Carl. I'm not saying this makes it okay, but I can see why he felt the way he did.

    He was trying to do right by Carol -- finding her after the barn incident and washing her hands, apologizing because he didn't know Sophia was in the barn.

    I wish he had conquered his inner demons too. Rick needs Shane now more than ever, but since he's dead, I'm hoping Rick will carry with him what Shane told him about fighting to survive.
     
    #1203 ShaneFan, Mar 7, 2017
    Last edited: Mar 8, 2017
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  4. warhorse78

    warhorse78 New Member

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    Thanks Shane fan for the warm welcome. I'm not going to lie, Shane was and still is one of my favorite characters. He really is a great man that took upon himself to lead a small group of people out from harms way the best he could. Personally, I really don't like Lori because I find her to be one of those manipulative women that like drama. She tells Rick that he needs to get rid of Shane, Shane himself knows he's becoming a burden to the group so he gets ready to leave, and look who talks him out of it, Lori. First she don't want him talking to Carl, then she gets mad when Shane tries to do what she asked and distance himself from Carl. Like I said, she liked to manipulate things for the sake of drama.
     
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  5. Zvivor

    Zvivor Well-Known Member

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    I agree 100% with your analysis. On the OTIS, issue, I posted so many years ago when the episode aired, that if I were Carl's mother, I would be eternally grateful for what Shane did, and the fact that Shane kept it to himself, haunted though he was about what he had done.

    The horrible, horrible on the spot decision Shane had to make about whether he would die and risk Otis dying also, with Carl dying as a consequence, is not one I would wish on my worst enemy. Shane bore the burden of his choice in silence like the great man he was. Then, Lori, egged on by guilt, by southern values of being a wife, by Dale and Hershel -- who was at first grateful, turned and dirty double crossed Shane. She told Rick Shane was dangerous -- for inexplicable reasons. The moment where Lori apologized to Shane and said the feelings he had were not just his was the most heartbreaking moment in this series, even until today with all its tragedy. Bernthal's ability to portray that heart-break was astounding. Even considering we can watch movies going back to the 1920's on TV, I have never witnessed the power of Bernthal's acting in this moment. And I knew at that moment that Lori's confession she loved him too had probably signed his death warrant because, if there was hope to save Lori and Carl, he would not be able to stand by and watch Rick go along with Hershel's delusions. We're seven years in and the power of these Shane moments still move me.

    I also completely agree that Shane was not trying to rape Lori at the CDC. His drunken groping was an attempt to remind her of the powerful sexual love they had. That's all. He meant no harm. But she was being the high and mighty Southern Belle -- and if you have ever experienced that, you know what I am talking about.

    Lately, I haven' liked Rick so much. He WAS a great military strategist. But sucks as a leader of a society, but he suck as the leader of a community that needs to rebuild farming, food resources, manufacturing, etc. et I've been wondering -- what if someone produced an alternative TWD in which Shane lived and Rick died? Wouldn't that be fun?
     
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  6. ShaneFan

    ShaneFan Well-Known Member

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    @warhorse78 - you're welcome! I hope you'll continue to post with us.

    Shane is my favorite character. I like almost all TWD characters, but he's the one that resonates with me the most. I agree that he did a great thing trying to lead the small group and keep them safe.

    With Lori...a part of me wants to try to understand what she was feeling: angry that in her mind Shane "lied" to her, and confused by her feelings for him and Rick -- who she is unhappily married to.

    And yet, I tend to see it more as you do: that she was manipulative -- intentional or not. The fact that she even hinted to Rick that "you would kill to protect those you love" and then goes on to mention getting rid of Shane...Or how she treated Shane like dirt without even giving him a chance to explain what really happened--much of that behavior, I attribute to her guilt in having the affair with Shane. Exactly--Shane considers leaving, and then Lori asks him to stay. Lori says "don't talk to my son" and when Shane tries to brush off Carl because Lori told him she doesn't want him speaking to Carl--then she gets mad at Shane-again!

    I want to find something redeemable about Lori, but it's hard to do so, seeing how horrible she treated Shane.

    I wanted to add that I liked the actress who played as Lori Grimes -- Sarah Wayne Callies. I thought she did a great job portraying Lori Grimes. I found this article about how she was happy that Lori Grimes was hated:

    http://undeadwalking.com/2015/01/12/sarah-wayne-callies-proud-lori-grimes-hate/
     
    #1206 ShaneFan, Mar 10, 2017
    Last edited: Mar 11, 2017
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  7. ShaneFan

    ShaneFan Well-Known Member

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    @Zvivor

    Thank you. The thing with Otis...did Lori know what Shane did to get those supplies back to Carl? She was grateful to him, and then again, when Dale told her that he thinks Shane murdered Otis, Lori did defend Shane somewhat...she said Shane's not a murderer.

    The fact that Shane kept what happened to himself is part of what led to him spiraling downward. I can't even imagine committing that act and then keeping it to myself...it would push me over the edge, I'm sure. It's an awful decision to make, it haunted him...it keeps showing up when he talks to Andrea about it "not being easy taking a man's life". Do you think Lori told Rick that Shane is dangerous so that she wouldn't have to reminded of her affair with him? That's what comes to my mind.

    What part did Lori tell Shane that the feelings he had weren't just his? Was this the windmill scene when she gives him that over-the-top phony apology? I hated that whole scene. She should've left him alone. She knows he harbors strong feelings for her. If all she wanted to say was "thank you for you what you did for me and Carl"...then just say that. She shouldn't have made it sound like she may've had feelings for him or how "things got confused between us." Just say thank you to Shane and walk away. Or better yet, leave him alone.



    She shouldn't have said or implied she loved him...I felt awful for him in that scene. I understand what you're saying about Shane not wanting to stand by and go along with Hershel's delusions, but still...she pull him towards her, pushes him back -- yo-yo treatment.

    The CDC scene is very controversial. Many fans see it as Shane trying to rape Lori. I can see how it would trigger sexual abuse/assault/rape victims. But overall, I never believed he intended to rape her. It was a poor attempt to bring back what he had with her, the love and intimacy. Because she tried pushing him off and he got more forceful until she scratched him---I see why people view it the way they do, but I don't agree. I haven't experienced the high and mighty Southern Bell. What is that about?

    I saw a comic book image (based on TWD comics) showing what if Shane had lived and Rick had died, but I'm not sure it's an actual comic book. I'm having trouble uploading it for this post. I would definitely read an alternative version of Shane surviving. Rick is at times a good leader, other times his decisions are questionable. Difference is, Rick still gets support from the group, whereas Shane was isolated.
     
    #1207 ShaneFan, Mar 11, 2017
    Last edited: Mar 11, 2017
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  8. ShaneFan

    ShaneFan Well-Known Member

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    Alright, Shane Fans...here's another video I found on YouTube. The song fit Shane perfectly...

     
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  9. Shane357

    Shane357 Active Member

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    This is a touchy subject, and while this doesn't excuse Shane's actions, what he did to Lori was not rape. It was sexual assault, but it was not rape nor was it attempted rape. If Shane had wanted to rape Lori, her smacking/scratching him wouldn't have made the slightest difference. He was definitely big enough to overpower her and he didn't; he backed right off. A rapist wouldn't do that.

    Aside from that, I agree, just wanted to point it out.
     
  10. Shane357

    Shane357 Active Member

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    I agree @ShaneFan - if I had done what Shane did I wouldn't be able to live with myself. iI can't imagine what it would be like to keep something like that to myself.

    Exactly. And Shane did try to back off. And Lori not only acted confused about it, she asked him to stay. Then at the windmill scene she says she has feelings for him(paraphrasable) and that she isn't sure "whose baby this is".

    I'm not sure if it's ran actual comic book, though I've heard it mentioned a few times. I'm not sure how I would react to it though... Comic Shane had very little character.
     
  11. Zvivor

    Zvivor Well-Known Member

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    The windmill scene -- where Shane was repairing it, then he and Lori talked -- that is where she said "whatever we felt-- and not just you.....Shane, I'm sorry." (or words to that effect). That broke Shane's heart. The expression Bernthal portrayed was SO real. I knew then that Shane was being driven mad and was likely going to die -- because all he ever wanted to protect Lori and Carl (and his friend Rick) but he was never sure that she loved him too, and this was going to push him over the edge.

    I still find this moment one of the most heartberaking moments in all of the great literature I have read in my life, all of the great movies I have seen in my life.
     
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  12. Shane357

    Shane357 Active Member

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