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Criticizm on the final scene

posted by JulianAR on - last edited - Viewed by 233 users


I know, I know. I'm going to be BOMBARDED with hate for this. I honestly don't want to start a flame war over it or anything because I know practically everyone will disagree and think I'm crazy. But I just can't help but play devils advocate here. (All things considered, the bigger the disagreement, the more tempted I am to play the minorities opinion for the fun of it; lol. I'm kind of a trouble maker. :p)

Anyways, I have to say, that the final scene, for starters, just missed the mark. Don't get me wrong, the scene was heart-breaking in so many ways, I don't disagree with that at all. But as far as the potential it had for the most dramatic scene in video game history, I feel like it just barely missed the mark-as in it was just short of perfect. What bugs me was how close it was; all it needed was a few little tweaks and it would have left every copy-owned player shell shocked after the first play-through. I'm emotionally scarred, that's true. But I didn't exactly cry at the end.

What it needed had to come from Clementine, specifically. We got what we expected to see from her when she was told by Lee that he was bitten. A dramatic, "No, no, no, no!" And there was some crying, and in the end we had to watch her break. Again, a heartbreaking combo. But there was a particular lack of child psychology awareness missing from this scenario that made it slightly less realistic that we expected.
In particular, children are more likely to go through denial upon hearing bad news than any adult. Has anyone ever seen the Sesame Street episode where Big Bird learns about death? He acts very childlike when he hears the news of the death of his friend and acts as if he will see him again, as if death doesn't have a permanent meaning. Here's the link if you're curious:

Now, I know at the end of episode 5, Clem should know very well what death is, even at nine years of age. That, however, cannot rectify her natural childish tendency to deny the harsh truth no matter what. I personally believe that she accepted it as the truth a bit quickly for a child her age. Especially considering the connection she had with Lee, as we all did, I could say I was well in denial for much longer than she was. Some of you posters here still are, by the looks of it (no offence!).
For example, the moment Lee tells her about his bite, instead of the "no, no, no!" right away, we get something like, "B-But you'll be alright if we take you to a doctor..." or if you chopped off Lee's arm, "B-but you took off the arm that was bitten, so you'll be okay, r-right?" A good example is the denial Kenny went through when he finally had to confront his dying son. Remember? "Maybe there's a pill that will just... send him to sleep?"

One other thing that would have made the scene perfectly heartbreaking would be for Clementine to have broken down sooner, rather than right before she shot/left Lee. Just imagine all the dialogue she had during that scene, but with sniffles and deep sobs between. You know how it sounds when someone tries to talk while they're crying? That's how it should have been for Clementine.

And that's about it. Just short of that, the scene was still the most heart-wrenching scene in video game history. And you would all probably go into a suicidal depression if it was any sadder. BUT, I just had to get that off my chest.


27 Comments - Linear Discussion: Classic Style
  • I think Clem is a lot stronger and smarter than every person in the game. So she has accepted what happened to Lee. It was myself who could not let him go, it was myself who could not let her go. "My Lee" is probably now a one-armed walker, chained to some radiator because he was not strong enough to see his little girl pointing a gun at him.

    In the scene in the RV, where Lee dreams Clem is a Walker, I did not even try to escape from her. She was the reason, why "my Lee" did all this. He was not strong enough to live without her, what made him weaker than Kenny, Lily and Clem, too.

    But Clem is a strong child and will (hopefully) become a even stronger young woman. She can handle herself, she can do whats necessary, what my Lee never could.

    I think, now I do not want to play a season 2 when Clem is a part of it...

  • I agree that it's not clear why Clem is so much more mature than the adults who aren't able to cope with the environment like she does. However, she helps kill zombies and even the stranger, so it's clear she's not operating like a child. So it seems ok how she responded to Lee.

    Clem rarely acts like a child. She doesn't get too frustrated and can see the bigger picture. She's usually reasonable, cooperative, and brave. She does get a bit excited and try to help Lee even though it puts her in danger, and she runs away because she doesn't want to give up on her parents. Apart from not having the judgment of an adult, she acts more mature than her age.

    Clem is an unusual girl who can adapt to the TWD. Some kids are never really kids, and that's how Clem is.

  • I see where you come from, though I don't agree with your point that her bond with Lee should be stronger than with her parents just because she hasn't seen them for a bit over 3 months. Her parents were her reason to go on, they were her character motivation. Her seeing them was for her the hardest thing to encounter the entire season for her personally (though not for us as players because we didn't know the people of course). If there was a moment to break down completely in denial, it was then.
    Heck, I imagined her doing that really "No Lee, they are just acting like Walkers just like us!" and get them both killed..

    But she didn't, she conquered that moment and saved Lee after he fainted. She was long passed the denial response already as it was shown in that decision of hers. For her to then fall into denial a few minutes later when Lee shows he was bitten would have her break already defined character.

    I understand your point entirely, though I appreciate it wasn't done by Telltale for those reasons.


    Don't be stupid. Clem is a child, not retarded.

  • @Robbingrobin said: Don't be stupid. Clem is a child, not retarded.

    It is probably the most traumatic experience she can have: seeing her parents as Walkers. Don't you think she will have lost all reason over that?

    Don't forget: In all of TWD video game, not once is Clem confronted with a zombiefied version of someone she knows besides the babysitter. And she looked a lot worse than her parents did. Her parents looked pretty well preserved besides the eyes.

    But yeah, she stayed strong and avoided being lost in emotion and denial. Hence, her being able to do the same with Lee's fate.

  • Alot of her ability to cope with her parents death has to stem from the fact that Lee needed her in that moment. He was not going to ever wake up again if she didn't save him and so she did. She choose life. The thing that scared me though is what if she knew Lee was already bit before you left the marsh house. When you passed out would she think you turned and give up....She needed something to fight for, something to get her past that moment.
    I have an 8yr old and his mother and grandmother have passed away and for his mom denial was definitely there but with his grandmother there was no denial, no asking to go visit her, just sad acceptance. This game broke me more than it would most people because I could almost see what would happen were I to get bit during the ZA. Makes me check for walkers constantly...cuz fuck that:p

  • Ed and Diana had both missing chunks of flesh. And I do not think Clem would let Lee just get eaten by a bunch of zombies, even if she would have known he is infected. She even wants to put him out of his misery, after he said that she could leave her.

  • I don't think normal children psychology applies to a child who's going through a zombie apocalypse. Especially one as strong and mature as Clementine.

  • @CarScar said: I don't think normal children psychology applies to a child who's going through a zombie apocalypse. Especially one as strong and mature as Clementine.

    Unless she's super-child, I think it does.

    ... but on that note, it certainly is debatable. :P

  • I see where you're coming from.

    She accepting her parent's deaths and Lee's death was a bit too fast. They way she cries whenever you suggest that they're probably dead or when you say you can't look look for them contradicts her behavior in Episode 5.

    "I saw my parents. It was horrible." - Clem

    That's basically all she says about them after seeing them as zombies. A bit melodramatic down you think?

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