In the episode, Shane Walsh (Jon Bernthal) and Otis (Pruitt Taylor Vince) desperately attempt to flee the walker-infested high school in order to deliver supplies to a dying Carl Grimes (Chandler Riggs).

Meanwhile, Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) and Andrea (Laurie Holden) continue to search for Sophia Peletier (Madison Lintz).

With Shane Walsh and Otis missing for hours, Hershel Greene informs Rick Grimes and his wife Lori that he must perform the surgery on their son Carl without the necessary equipment.

There, Glenn begins to pray for the well-being of his fellow survivors, while T-Dog receives medical treatment for blood poisoning.

The episode flashes back to show Shane sacrificed Otis by shooting him in the leg and leaving him as bait for the walkers while he escaped with the medicine.

The episode ends in the present, with Shane shaving his head, wiping out evidence of a bald spot of torn hair caused by Otis during their brief scuffle.

[1] Michael Riley, the production manager for the episode, contacted the Newnan Police Department to collaborate with producers.

[1] Because of the large size of the filming location, Riley's production company notified surrounding neighborhoods to ease inconvenience.

It's a pretty dark moment and it informs Shane's character and sets up a lot of things that are going to be happening moving forward.

[3] The episode was the highest-rated program of the day, garnering considerably higher ratings than a stock car racing event as part of the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series on ESPN and The Next Iron Chef on Food Network.

[3] Similarly, the episode became the second highest-rated cable program of the week dated October 30, attaining significantly higher ratings that WWE Raw but scoring considerably lower than a game between the Baltimore Ravens and the Jacksonville Jaguars as part of the 2011 NFL season.

"[6] John Serba of The Grand Rapids Press was split on "Save the Last One"; while asserting that it was "imminently watchable", he felt that the episode was unbalanced as a whole and criticized the dialogue.

"[12] TV Fanatic's Sean McKenna asserted that despite not having any direction, "Save the Last One" managed to retain the "tension and action that makes this show a thrill ride every week.

Given Rick’s extremely rigid morale [sic] code and Shane’s now demonstrated willingness to do whatever it takes to survive, the showdown promises to be bigger than just a battle of two alpha males.

"[15] Mark Maurer of The Star-Ledger opined that "the multi-layered opening [...] illustrates how Shane’s impulsive nature makes him a valuable if ruthless warrior.

"His decision to sacrifice Otis is easy enough to rationalize; somebody had to get back for Carl's sake, Shane was faster, and both of them probably weren't going to make it.

"[11] Morgan Jeffrey wrote: "This week's installment delivered even more scares than usual — Shane's escape from the high school was almost unbearably tense.