Shane Walsh (TV Series)

Shane Walsh is Rick Grimes' partner and best friend since high school. He harbors feelings for Lori, Rick's wife.

Overview
Shane is Rick Grimes' partner in the King County Sheriff's Department and best friend since high school. When the apocalypse occurred—with Rick in a coma—Shane helped save Lori and Carl by fleeing with them toward Atlanta.

Shortly after the evacuation, Shane began having an affair with Lori. When Rick showed up among a group of survivors returning from Atlanta, Lori seethed at Shane and warned him away from her family. "You think I'm not happy Rick's alive?" Shane asks. "Why would you be?" she responds. "You are the one that told me that he died."

Indeed, Shane was the last to see Rick in the hospital, but left the building believing Rick was dead. He is tortured by his responsibility in leaving him there. But, as he tells Lori, "I had y'all to think about." Still, his feelings for Lori persist.

Among the group of survivors, Shane had become the de facto leader. When Rick returned, Shane's influence lessened, causing tension between the partners. Their friction came to a head following a walker attack on the camp. Shane blamed Rick for not being there (Rick had returned to Atlanta to retrieve a Bag of guns) and disagreed with him on the next course of action: Rick believed the group should head to the CDC in Atlanta for protection; Shane thought Fort Benning, an Army base a hundred miles away, was a safer bet.

When Shane challenged Rick on the matter, Rick responded that Shane would feel differently if he had a family to protect. "I kept them safe," Shane snapped. "Looked out for them like they were my own." Soon after, a sound drew Rick away. Shane aimed his shotgun at Rick’s back, but came to his senses before pulling the trigger.

Shane eventually backed Rick's plan to go to the CDC. Their first night at the facility, Shane drunkenly professed his love to Lori and tried to kiss her, and she scratched his face and neck. When Rick questioned Shane about the injuries the next day, Shane said he did it to himself in his sleep. "Not like me at all," he said, eyeing Lori.

Pre-Apocalypse
All that is known about Shane's past is that before the zombie outbreak, Shane worked as a deputy police officer for the King County Sheriff's Department. He was the partner, and best friend, of Rick Grimes, as well as a friend of the rest of the Grimes family. Throughout his life Shane was never married, and had instead stayed a womanizer.

Season 1
Shane was in a sexual relationship with Lori before Rick came back, as well as a surrogate father to Carl. He was initially overjoyed when Rick came to their campsite, but grew increasingly jealous when Lori ended their relationship.

Following the attack on the Atlanta camp, the group had begun to dig holes for their deceased group members. While digging the holes, Rick, Lori and Shane discuss how to deal with Andrea over the issue of Amy’s death and reanimation. Shane stated that she was infected, and needed to be treated like any other zombie. Rick attempted to approach Andrea, however, she pulled a gun on him stating that she knew how the safety works, forcing Rick to back off.

Shane and Rick had an argument over whose fault the attack on the camp truly was. During this argument, Jacqui revealed to the group that Jim had been bitten. Shane and Rick head into the nearby woods to scout out the area. After disagreeing where the group should go after leaving camp, Shane watched as Rick wandered off to search alone further off. In a state of impaired judgment, Shane raised his shotgun and took aim at Rick’s unsuspecting back. Shane holds his aim for several seconds then lowers his weapon. This indiscretion was witnessed by Dale, who had been watching out of a mistrust of Shane. Shane, played it off as nothing, stating that "they should start wearing reflective vests such as the kind used by forklift drivers". Dale however did not believe him, but kept it to himself. They all returned to camp.

Strangely enough, Shane starts to agree with Rick (despite some minor objections), which shocks both Rick and Lori. They all decide to leave camp and head for the Center for Disease Control, where they attempt to locate a cure. It was there that they stayed for a brief while, and where Shane, drunk, attempted to rape Lori. The attempt ended in Lori viciously scratching a chunk out of his face, leaving deep scaring from the injury. The next morning when asked about the scratches, he gives a bogus reason before changing the subject to why Jenner allowed them entry.

When Dr. Jenner eventually locks the survivors in the facility during the final hour of a self-destruct count down, some of them listened to the man's reasoning, while others decided to take more drastic action. Shane, in the latter category along with Daryl Dixon, attempted threatening Jenner. In a moment of blind rage, fear and frustration, Shane aims his shotgun at the doctors head before demanding him to let them go. As the doctor refuses to comply, Shane begins to lose it. Even at the protests of Rick and Lori who know that they all would definitely die if he shot Jenner. Before the delusional man can pull the trigger, Rick attempts to stop him and the two friends fight for the shotgun. Rick manipulates the shotgun into hitting Shane before taking him down with a punch.

With Jenner's life momentarily spared, Rick is able to talk him out of deciding when they should die and allow them to escape. As a result, Jenner releases the doors before warning them that the main floor had sealed shut upon their arrival and would they would be facing indestructable glass. Shane, Lori, Rick, Daryl and those who choose to leave do so while Jenner and some others remain to see their fate through to the end.

With minutes to escape, Shane remains vigilant in their escaping. He goes as far as to shoot out the glass but to no effect. Carol mentions she may have something that could help to which Shane says would probably be useless. Once again, the former leader of the Atlanta survivors is wrong as Carol presents a grenade that Rick had left in his pocket the day he arrived at camp.

Rick pulls the pin and drops the explosive by the window, destroying an entire window, thus allowing them to escape to their vehicles. After the explosion, Shane drives the jeep along with the convoy into an unknown and dangerous future.

Unlike the comic character, Shane in the TV series is still alive. In the comic, he had never even left the camp. Season 2, we will witness an entirely new take of his character and evolution.

Season 2
What Lies Ahead Still envious of Rick and Lori, Shane decides to split away from the group. He agrees to stay at least until they find Sophia, and helps with the search. Shane stays with Rick and Carl as they go seperate ways from the others. Shane also witnesses Carl get shot by Otis and is just as stunned as Rick and just as worried.

Bloodletting

Shane drags Otis along as they run to Hershel Greene's farm, to get Carl medical help. Shane comforts Rick as Rick is distraught over Carl. Later, Shane volunteers to go out in Rick's place to find Carl proper supplies for his surgery to get the fragments of the bullet out. Otis also goes, saying he shot Carl and should be responsible for saving him as well. The two are trapped in the school together as walkers storm their location.

Save the Last One

Shane and Otis eventually escape the school together, and Otis even saves Shane's life as Shane freezes up. Both of them have injured legs, though. Otis could not bear to leave Shane behind when he pleaded him to because they won't make it together. Shane returns to Hershel's farm, and tells everyone that Otis told him to go on and fended off the walkers. Everyone praises him for his deeds, including Lori, telling Shane to stay. Shane washes up, and sees a bloody cut on his scalp and shoulder. A flashback shows Shane and Otis they continue to run, still crippled from their faills, as something clicks with Shane as he takes the duty upon himself and apologizes to Otis as he cripples his leg with another bullet. They have a fight as Shane brutally beats down Otis, takes Rick's pistol and the supplies, and leaving him behind so that he can bring back the medical equipment and save Carl back at Greene's family home. He limps away as Otis screams in terror and pain.



Back in the real time, Shane shaves his head and stares at himself in the mirror.

Trivia

 * Shane's story up to Wildfire is pretty much the same throughout the TV series as it is in the comics. The only difference is:
 * He is alive at the end of the first season.
 * Shane is still a part of the group actively, though he does have some setbacks at the CDC (he becomes drunk and tries to convince Lori that she loves him, which ends in him being slashed by her nails and he gives up again)...even going as far as to almost kill a man until Rick knocks sense into him. Shane, along with the rest of the survivors (except Jacqui, as well as Jenner) escape the CDC before it explodes and leaves with the group...thus he returns in Season 2.