‘The Walking Dead’ Season 2 Deleted Scene Reveals Alternate Storyline

It's no secret that 'The Walking Dead' season 2 ended up mired in conflict, with Frank Darabont's infamous firing necessitating the promotion of Glen Mazarra to series show-runner. And far more than scrapped plans for a season 2 premiere flashback episode, 'The Walking Dead' season 2's trailer showcases plenty of footage and scenes that never made it into the actual premiere, so what happened? What do deleted scenes from 'The Walking Dead' season 2 premiere "What Lies Ahead" reveal?

Thanks to Entertainment Weekly, we've gotten a look at a deleted scene from 'The Walking Dead' season 2 premiere "What Lies Ahead," to be featured on the August 28 Blu-ray release. The clip tells a vastly different story than what viewers saw during the episode's actual airing, revealing entire subplots that were lost on the cutting room floor.

'The Walking Dead' fans remember that season 2 began with the survivors out on the road, having left the smoldering remains of the CDC behind them, but the deleted scenes (and footage from the season 2 trailer first showed at Comic-Con 2012) reveal a different direction. Evidently, season 2 originally began with Shane's vehicle breaking down shortly after the CDC, isolating him from the group and necessitating a daring rescue from the other survivors in the RV. This ordeal could be seen in the opening moments of the season 2 trailer, and even some of the promotional photos from the beginning of the season.

Following the rescue, the group then sought shelter with the season 1 "Vatos" gang running a senior's home, only to find what little remains of the crew being picked apart by the walking dead. The aftermath of that scene can be observed in EW's exclusive clip.  So, why were the plots abandoned?

Rumor has it that AMC took issue with then-showrunner Frank Darabont's use of the budget, which led to the network scrapping scenes from the first two episodes and combining them into a single 90-minute episode. Darabont was announced as fired mere days after happily promoting the series at San Diego Comic-Con 2011, necessitating Mazarra to step in to finish the season.

You can check out the deleted scene below, but what do you think? Was 'The Walking Dead' right to scrap the scenes, and open with the survivors out on the road? What would you like to have seen from 'The Walking Dead' season 2, and possibly in season 3? Pick up the season 2 Blu-ray on August 28, and give us your thoughts in the comments!