"Rosie is worried about everyone."

Oh yeah, fuck you Lilly.

Man, this final episode is really gonna affect how I feel about this season as a whole. I think it's amazing so far, but this ending could honestly make it all feel pointless, if my choices matter or not is the dealbreaker.

And right now... man, my choices are making me feel helpless. Violet lost a finger, Louis lost a tongue, and poor James lost a life. But I'll be damned if I don't at least try to stop AJ from becoming a killer.

I don't realistically see Lilly being pulled back from how she is, not anymore. This isn't the TV show where there are dozens of episodes where she can see the light and reverse her regression, there's only one episode left, and I expect the worst from her. Yeah, I could have let AJ kill her, but I'm not doing that. And even though it got him killed, I feel vindicated by James supporting the decision. It doesn't change my feelings about it.

Really hope Violet understands and forgives me for not letting AJ step in. Apparently it would have stopped a finger from being amputated so maybe it was the worse decision, but I can't regret it now.

My decisions:

-Mercy killed Abel (geez, I know he was a shitter but I don't think I should ever just let someone turn)
-Respected James' beliefs, killed no walkers (definitely the hardest decision in the series... like literally, it takes a little skill)
-Named Willy's bomb "Mitch's Masterpiece" (Mitch looks like if Chucky and the kid from the Ted TV show had a baby)
-Stopped AJ from attacking Dorian, letting her cut off Violet's finger (ugh, sorry Violet)
-Refused to let AJ kill Lilly (James is right, I cannot let him become a killer. I won't.)

Relationship statuses:

Everyone is "MIA" or "Dead" so not really much to say here.

I love the part where I chose purple candles and Violet goes "really?" And Ruby said "you should like them Violet" was probably my second favorite joke in this series.

You ever wanna see a character that you want to get killed so much but also want to get redeemed? That's Lilly. I have no sympathy for people who want to make children into soldiers, and especially in such a world of strife as it is, into a pointless conflict. Someone so willing to hurt, kidnap, and kill children is nothing short of despicable. Yet you know there's something there. You know how Lilly is someone who has a heart under there, and if anybody can bring it back out, it's Clementine. But these kids are my priority, not her.

And what kids they are. They're not just one-noters like Duck or Sarah from previous seasons, they're full characters, and I love them.

And you know who else I love? James, the former Whisperer. What a cool dude so far. I really hope he doesn't turn out to be a shitter, because in just the one scene he was in, he quickly become a favorite of mine in this series.

My choices:

-Gave AJ's gun to Louis (sign of good faith, he was obviously remorseful already. Plus, it couldn't have more than, like, two bullets)
-Told Violet and Louis to run (Shocked this is so 50/50. Unless people thought Clem and AJ wouldn't get out of that situation which of course they would lol, it's only episode 2)
-Honored James' request (he's such a sweet dude, why wouldn't you?)
-Stargazed with Violet (also just had Clem go ahead and confess feelings for her)
-Chose to rescue Violet (it'd be a little weird if I didn't after choosing her so much)

Relationship statuses:

AJ - Repentant (yeah, I called his ass a murderer lol. Gently as I could, of course)
James - Appreciative (Clem not sleeping is kind of a bad idea for her, but no reason to not do that really)
Ruby - Grateful (why would you not bury the teacher's corpse lol)
Lilly - Unconvinced (she'll be vinced soon enough.... I'm gonna vince her so bad)
Tenn - Despondent (I love this kid so much please tell me he doesn't die (don't actually tell me I don't want spoilers))
Louis - Kidnapped (my favorite emotion)
Violet - Vengeful (I love Louis, but this kid has the fire, I'm glad I've chosen her)
Rosie - Prettiest Dog

I got way too in my head about that truth or dare session, I don't think it really matters though.

Wow this one made me feel shitty about my decisions. I didn't think every little thing was going to matter so much.

So many broken kids barely making it along, and now I feel I've failed them all with my choices. I feel like I can already see where things are headed with AJ, and I'm very concerned. When he asked to sleep under the bed, I should have had him sleep up top, but I didn't. Didn't think it was as big of a deal as it apparently was. I hope I can make things right going forward.

Excellent episode at making me feel shitty, but also can't help but love this cast of characters. I want them to succeed more than ever.

My choices:

-Had AJ enter the ticket booth (probably sounds stupid, but it's literally the first major-ish decision, I figured it'd be ok)
-Went hunting with Louis and Aasim (fishing felt like a less dangerous deal, figured they'd be fine)
-AJ slept under the bed (strangely the decision I felt the worst about)
-Surrendered food to Abel (this makes it sound worse than it was. I witnessed the option of pushing him out the window and it didn't feel right, and I wasn't gonna make AJ shoot him)
-Turned to Violet to help against Marlon (just had more confidence in her. I also just like her more lol)

Relationship statuses:
Violet - Guilty (this sounds worse than it is considering the alternative is "horrified")
Louis - Heartbroken (also sounds worse than it is when the other one is "lost")
Tenn - Helpless (all three - "bitter" and "resentful" - sound awful, I hope I can pull this poor kid back)
Alvin Jr - Hardened (sounds like all options leads to him shooting Marlon, so now I feel less-bad about my decisions. Maybe this isn't so bad. Although "pragmatic" might be preferred)

I was disappointed to see that this season was only four episodes instead of the usual five, but it's evidently a decent bit longer, so that's actually great.

Sorry for joining in on burping at the table, Ruby, manners like that don't really matter here lol.

I loved this. It was such a fulfilling end to the story and to my choices. Like with Kenny in season 2, I think David is a very troubled person who was just a few steps away from being a good person, and I wanted to see that to fruition, but instead he met an early demise of his making. Still, though, I nearly always sided with him because I felt he was usually right, and I tried my best to support him.

Kate really pulled through in this episode. I loved her caring for the family in the earlier episodes, but I didn't want Javi to be in a relationship with her. It felt wrong. But by the end here, I really like her. She's resolute in feeling that she needs to help fix Richmond, and make up for the damage she accidentally caused. I love a strong resolve in a character, and she had the fire. At the end, she wanted to be at arms length with Javi, although they still very much care for each other. That's pretty much the ending I wanted (uh, apparently "distant" is the worst ending you can get with her, but I'm still fine with it)

With Gabe, I tried to send him down a path of empathy and to be mostly like Javi, but I also wanted him to still love his father. I think I pretty much succeeded in that. I guess if I went after him on the motorcycle I could have gotten the best outcome with him, but I'm glad I did what I did.

Also, I didn't find out until looking things up for this review that Kenny or Jane appear in flashbacks for this season and that's their final appearance. That's kind of lame. They both die no matter what. They couldn't find some other excuse?

My choices:

-Stood with David on the ledge (you must really hate David to not do this)
-Denied relationship with David (he doesn't believe you no matter what your relationship with him or Kate lol)
-Repeatedly showed my love to David while he fought me (love wins, baby)
-Went with Kate to save Richmond (see next one)
-Clementine followed her own plan (if I'm understanding this right, that means that she would go with whatever Javi doesn't. I chose to save Richmond, so she went after Gabe and David. That's part of why I was fine with not going after Gabe, I knew Clementine could take care of it. Plus, I had promised Kate we were going to make things right in Richmond, so I did just that)

Relationships:
David - Brotherly
Kate - Distant
Gabe - Caring
Clem became spirited and assured

Clint is still out there somewhere....

Honestly good on them for not killing so many characters. I kind of hate how the first two seasons pretty much everyone is killed. I know it's an apocalypse story, but I'm glad they actually let some of the attachments you have with the characters be not-wasted. Especially when it's a family drama this time (which is kind of crazy five years into a zombie story lol).

Tripp looks like a Shrek character

Damn, the fucking Ava and Tripp decision. I was hoping I could abstain, but if you wait the time out, they just shoot you lol. I chose Ava. Tripp is obviously pissed at me, but he already was; Elanor betrayed us and he still seems to be with us, though, so maybe he'll forgive me.

Ugh, this season really pushed my whole "will not kill unless I have to" thing because I've usually killed instead of not which I feel bad about. But... Lingard seemed like he was gonna do it anyway, and was refusing important information if I didn't send him on his way. And Joan... well, shit was gonna hit the fan anyway.

This season succeeds in making your decisions feel weighty, something the first two seasons I honestly feel failed at. I still don't get the disdain for this season, and nobody really seems forthcoming with why they don't like it. I don't get it.

My choices:

-Promised David you would help Kate (why wouldn't you lol)
-Assisted Dr. Lingard (apparently letting Clem decide is an option? I wish I fucking knew that)
-Did not share Kate's feelings (how is that the more popular option lol)
-Tried to save Ava at the execution (I actually reset after the first time because of something else, but I still stuck with it despite knowing Joan wouldn't follow through)
-Shot Joan (centrist ass Clint gonna get everyone killed)

This was an excellent episode but I'm a little fucking pissed off. There's a part where you can choose to kill the guy who shot Mariana, or let him turn into a zombie. I chose to kill him. He didn't die after the first two swings, so I hit him one more time. Apparently that counts as "destroying his skull"? In this series, there have been multiple times where you have to repeatedly bash a head to make sure you kill it, and it's not some morality choice, but here it is? Sigh Well, at least the only thing it seemed to affect is Jesus leaving which I figured he wouldn't be sticking around anyway. Still, fucking annoying.

A lot of very layered decisions this time around. Every little thing made me think how this would affect my relationship with the Prescott survivors, Gabe, Kate, and especially Clem and David, and I was left wondering if I'd be able to stop a war in Richmond (I'm guessing it's unavoidable, though, Joan had quite a manipulative speech). Genuinely some of the hardest decisions I had to make in these games.

I know a lot of people will probably hate David, but I think he's kind of great. He's got some empathy to learn (one teenager stealing one thing of medicine to use on a sick baby isn't worth exile), but I also can't help but want him and Javi to succeed with each other.

I've mostly liked Kate, but I've purposefully avoided any and all romance with her as it comes up, while also making it clear that I care for her safety. I get that Kate and David didn't have a great marriage and she clearly doesn't want to be with him anymore, but all that needs to be done is some proper damn communication and everyone can be alright (although I'm sure that's not happening).

I really liked Clem and David seeing each other again and what came out of it. Idk, it just felt like I balanced the relationships really well which had a satisfying payoff.

they introduced a character with my name, and i don't hear my name used very often (clint) so i'm gonna have an out of body experience anytime he's mentioned. how do you common name people deal with this. doesn't help that he's rolling over for joan, poopyhead.

My choices:

-Kept Mariana's murder to myself (didn't see it as something that needed to be done immediately; when it was clear that it was more than just a couple of rogue gunmen is when it become pressing)
-Tried to save AJ (I know he lives either way (thanks to season 4 existing), but I'm still choosing to believe that he needed it)
-Destroyed Badger's skull (I DIDN'T MEAN TO FUCK OFF GAME)
-Brought Max back with me (he's definitely redeemable)
-Stuck with David's plan (quit trying to instigate me lady!!!)

Genuine criticism of this season that I haven't mentioned previously: the QTEs suck. They weren't notable in season 1, but then season 2 tried and make them a little more involved, but now here they're too involved and confusing. The game will have me press "Q" twice in a row, but then the third time will ask me to use "E" for not apparent reason. Sometimes you shoot by pressing Q or E, other times you have to manually aim with the mouse. Throw in the WASD keys to react to arrows, and it's a bit of a shitstorm. What was wrong with season 2's QTEs? Also, I miss season 1's brief segments of first person where you had to actually aim at walkers' heads instead of just aiming in their general direction and sometimes missing cause it's not up to you.

So far not seeing what people don't like about this season, it's been great. Seeing David made me actually let out a "What?!", I didn't see it coming at all.

I feel bad for Conrad, I was actually tempted to go with his plan cause I usually don't kill characters unless it's necessary, but I don't know if Clem would ever forgive me for that.

Jesus is here, that's interesting. This is the first time since Glenn and Hershel in S1E1 that a character from the comics is here, I'm pretty sure, and the only time it's for more than one episode. He's a good character in the show, and I like him here so far. I'm also guessing I don't have to worry about him dying considering he's a comic character.

Really wish I could play more today lol. Unrelated, but I also wanna mention that this game looks really good. The first two games didn't look bad, but this game really nails the style, and the first two seasons... idk if it was just my computer or if they just look like that, but sometimes it looked bad or like the lighting was working right. Haven't had that yet here.

My choices:

-Stayed out of David and Kate's argument (if I knew David were still alive, I might have done differently lol)
-Surrendered to the New Frontier (gee, that really paid off by Conrad being a dick to me then betraying Clem and I in the same episode)
-Trusted Jesus (having some knowledge of the wider Walking Dead universe helps with this, but I probably would've anyway)
-Shot Conrad (don't feel great about this one)
-Surrendered to Max's demands (gotta help Kate, man)

Takes the cake for the best first episode of a season so far. The characters are already likeable, and I like Javi and Clem's dynamic.

Since I know nothing about seasons 3 and 4, Mariana's death legitimately surprised me. Such a shame to kill her off so soon, but I mean... it's a zombie apocalypse story, do you really not think there'll be unexpected deaths? I do hope they don't do the same thing as the previous two seasons, though, where virtually everyone dies, it's ok to have ties that stick around.

I had a decent amount of trouble making choices this time around. Probably because I don't know what's ahead, but idk, they seemed to be less clear this time around anyway.

Excited to see what's next.

My choices:

-Chose to stay the night at the junkyard (seemed secure enough for one night, evidently not)
-Let the driver go (I don't really kill any characters if I'm not forced to)
-Was locked up (I'm guessing the only way to not get locked up is to betray Clementine, which I'm not doing)
-Went with Tripp to the junkyard (with the massive horde, going there right then would just be stupid, although I did heavily consider it)
-Stayed and fought with Clementine (oh, Gabe is gonna be pissed about that)

So-called "free-thinkers" when they get the chance to shoot the 11 year old child that was the only person being nice to them.

Ah, I see we're back to the early season 1 problem of everyone being at each others' throats with no player input being able to stop it, awesome. At least there's a nice moment of calm before the tensity kicks right back up again.

The near non-stop vitriol between all the characters is what really holds this episode back. When you had all the group from earlier this season, there were disagreements, but it was nothing like this.

Anyhow, I enjoy the rest of this finale. When it comes to the endings you can get here, I was unsure of my decisions at first, but upon seeing the other endings, I feel more resolute in my decisions. I chose to not intervene between Kenny and Jane, and went with Kenny to Wellington where I went in with just AJ. At first, I wasn't sure about going along with Kenny, but he does genuinely seem too want to become better (especially after I had Clem tell him that he's dangerous), and I hope that culminates into something in the future. Then I felt even more sure about it after thinking about it, and hearing Clementine putting it into words: Jane put an infant in danger, made both Clementine and Kenny believe he's dead, and then tried to kill Kenny in front of Clementine. All to prove a point that you could already see (fitting, considering all her "teachings" in episode 4 lol), and all because... I guess she's lonely? If you choose to kill Kenny, but then leave Jane, she's just standing there begging for Clementine to come back lol, meanwhile, Kenny in the same position is like "this is the right thing to do, you shouldn't be with me." Like, did the writers just like Kenny that much more to put this all in his favor?

The other two endings with Jane don't seem great, either. You go back to where the Howe's at, and you can choose to threaten to kill a family, or bring them in. The one where you threaten them is the worst ending of the game for sure. But even the one where you bring them in, it's just not as strong of an ending as the ones with Kenny. The goal here should be to raise AJ as best you can, and it doesn't necessarily feel like this is the best option for that.

I'll be interested in seeing how the ending here carries forward, and how they diverge. I have no idea how they balance it after this, that seems impossible. But I know the next season has the track record of being the least-liked one, and also Clementine isn't the main character, so... maybe they just don't balance it. Guess I'll find out soon enough.

Leaving the story for a second, I wanna mention one thing about season 2 that I kept forgetting to mention in my other reviews: where's all the small talk? In season 1, you were constantly able to stop and have conversations with people, even during high-stakes moments. This is the main way you got close to characters. Low-influence moments of one-on-one conversation that really allowed you to feel more connected with each character, or at least understand them more. But that's not here. If you try and talk with characters, they'll say one line to Clementine, and then you just walk off. The only time I can remember where you can just sit and have a chat with someone is in this episode, you can have a chat with Bonnie. Otherwise, it's only stuff that happens in required moments. Hell, you literally never talk to Mike in any meaningful way, or get to learn damn near anything about him. I'm not actually sure if the Bonnie conversation is optional, either, she might make you talk with her before you walk in the house. It's such a confounding omission and I hope the next season brings back to the regular talks.

My choices:

-Protected the baby (what the hell is wrong with you if you didn't choose this)
-Tried to help Luke (I was pretty sure he died either way, which he does, but yeah)
-Didn't ask to leave with Mike (I almost did by accident lol, but no, I wasn't gonna choose that)
-Didn't shoot Kenny (at least he's not gonna endanger the baby, you know that much)
-Ended with AJ at Wellington

Your choice of words here matter more than usual, there's basically multiple choice-based puzzles, which is kind of nice, but ultimately, few of them matter. You can talk Sarah into coming with you, but she dies no matter what. You can convince Jane to let Arvo keep his supplies, but he still comes back to rob all of you. You can talk Kenny into leaving the tent but I think(?) he still helps with delivering the baby. And the episode as a whole starts with a decision that doesn't really matter - or rather the ending of the last episode. Doesn't matter if you chose to kill the zombie that bit Sarita or if you chop her arm off, she still gets overrun anyway. What's with all the pointless decisions in this episode?

That being said, it was satisfying to get Sarah to come with you, and make amends with Kenny, and the part where everyone works together to protect Rebecca was great. Just can't help but feel like they could have made things matter more.

Also, I like how Jane takes Clementine to try and teach her things that she already knows. Clem has already been hitting zombies in the knees to bring them down, she knows to use sound to her advantage. Jane's whole conceit is that she's a survivalist loner who thinks capable people should be on their own to survive since groups fall apart. She's not necessarily wrong, but we saw first hand at the beginning of the season that being alone just doesn't work, and it becomes pretty clear that this woman is fucked up, bruh.

My choices:

-Saved Sarah (doesn't fucking matter unfortunately, but I'm glad I managed to do it. The only other time I played this game, I wasn't able to get her out)
-Refused to steal from Arvo (also doesn't fucking matter but I think stealing from people in the apocalypse is pretty fucked up)
-Crawled through the ticket booth (did people think Clem would die if they tried this lol)
-Held the baby (spoilers, Clem is gonna have to get pretty good with that baby soon enough anyway)
-Called for help over dead Rebecca (I would have shot if not for the tense situation. Doesn't seem to really matter anyway, though)

Why are people mad that the characters are turning to Clementine? Yeah man, I hate when my player character... does stuff to progress the story? I get that she's a kid, but she's plenty capable and it's not like she's the only one doing shit.

Anyway, this episode is awesome. I really like this cast of characters, and I like how you're actually able to be on everyones' good side. In the first season, you were forced to choose between Kenny and whoever else constantly, and if you tried to do a middle ground, Lee would say some useless centrist shit, Clem is actually smart about it.

I generally like this cast of characters better than before. It was always a power struggle between people and a pissing contest in the first game which I never enjoyed. Most characters here are great. Carver was a good villain, and I enjoyed sticking up to a fascist.

My choices:

-Helped Sarah with her chores (sorry Reggie)
-Didn't tell Bonnie about Luke (I didn't realize this was an active choice cause I'm stupid, I would've if I realized)
-Tried to come clean about the walkie talkie (damn Kenny let me be cool)
-Didn't watch Kenny kill Carver (no reason to, waste of time)
-Chopped off Sarita's arm (this episode proved that it can work, and it has to be done fast. She'll be fiiiiine)

What a sad way to use the 400 Days characters. And of all of them to not stick around and be a bootlicker, why Bonnie? I did get a laugh out of how they brought back the others, though, like "guys, you know this character! Clap and cheer!" Oh how Russell has fallen.

Oh hey, some gay charac- oh, uh, ok.

In terms of the overall story, I think there's less actual choice here than usual, the major decisions don't feel as important in this one. But the relationship networking here is great, and layered.

This is a great connective episode - connecting seasons 1 and 2, the new characters with the old (well, the one old character) and leading the new storyline into the major conflict. I've played this game once before, but I'm still excited to see where it goes.

My choices:

-Took blame for Sarah's photo (seems pretty low-stakes anyway)
-Sat with Kenny (even if I didn't wanna reminisce with Kenny, this just makes sense, trying to get everyone on the same page best I can)
-Told the truth to Walter (he's a reasonable guy, it's the right thing to do)
-Convinced Walter to forgive Nick (imagine doing the first thing but not the second lol)
-Stayed to help Carlos (I'm not letting that girl watch her father die 💀 the other option was a low chance of even working)

Also, dare I say the bridge walker fight was the best action scene so far? Lee walking down the street chopping walkers was great, but this is right there next to it.

Jesus, guys, this isn't torture porn oh my god.

But it does purposefully make things pretty miserable. Losing Omid and Christa minutes in is... a choice, one I'm not the most fond of. And then the rest of the episode is pretty much a series of bad things happening to. But personally I find this episode to be showing of Clementine's resolve. She reaches a new low here by a lot and she still pulls through and uses her own strength to help herself when others aren't so receptive. Perseverance despite all odds is a big reason why I love The Walking Dead show, so I'm glad to see it carry over here more than before.

On top of that is some wonderful new UI. Dialogue options are in four separate, clearly defined boxes, rather than just being lines of text that you could sometimes barely see, and no worry about accidentally scrolling past the option you want or me moving my mouse slightly and accidentally losing the chance to click an option in a timed event.

But they also seemed to have made it to where the game saves as soon as you make a choice? I guess this isn't Life is Strange, you're supposed to live with your choices, but this also immediately bit me in the ass. The final choice of the episode I picked the opposite option than what I wanted because I got confused, and when I reset, I was in the QTE after choosing the option. REALLY hope this doesn't fuck me over later on.

STUPID DOG! YOU MADE ME LOOK BAD

My choices:

-Stopped to help Christa (knew it didn't really matter, she apparently never shows up in the series either way, but of course I was gonna help her)
-Mercy killed the dog (literally why would you not)
-Accept Nick's apology (he was really sorry so you're just a dick if you refuse I think)
-Gave the water to the dying man (not like you really need it anymore; I would have given it anyway)
-Went to help Nick (this was an accident thanks to the new saving system, but maybe this is what I want anyway? It seemed Pete was scratched and was going to turn anyway)

Eh, it's whatever.

I liked Russell a lot, Shel and Becca were all right, but the other characters I didn't care for, and I know this DLC doesn't really affect the later seasons much.

Manage to get Shel, Becca, Russell, Bonnie, and Wyatt to come with me, but Vince stayed behind. No idea what would have con-Vinced him, but oh well, I'm just glad to have Russell.

My choices:

-Shot Justin's leg as Vince (lol)
-Didn't get out of the car as Wyatt (didn't realize this was even a choice or I probably would have)
-Drove off with the RV as Shel (fuck Roman lol)
-Left Nate as Russell (I was rude to this guy every possible chance, didn't trust him for a second)
-Told Leland the truth as Bonnie (everyone is so mean to her 💀)

Anyway, I stan Russ, hope to see him again.

Seen this ending so many times, I wasn't expecting it to still get me. No full on tears, but I was close. Beautiful ending, I love Clementine.

I was upset that I couldn't bring Ben with me at the end of last episode, but his blowout at Kenny made it worth it, I loved seeing how their stories ended here, and I know Ken's continues.

Not much to say, really. It's a great ending.

My choices:

-Removed Lee's arm (I knew this would do nothing in-universe so it's kinda funny I did it, but it's what I would have chosen if this were my first time)
-Calmly argued with Kenny
-Surrendered my weapons (makes more sense, although I don't think it really matters)
-Clementine killed the stranger
-Made sure Lee didn't turn (if you let him turn you SUCK!!!! just kidding idc it's a game)

Never got why the game ends in that wheatfield no matter what options you choose. Did Omid and Christa just not wait at the train for long? I guess it was supposed to be ambiguous, but retroactively, it makes no sense.