The Walking Dead (TV Show)

[Badradio]

This is amazing news for any Walking Dead fans: Link.

Every fan I know has been concerned that the series would get grabbed by a movie studio and cut down into a generic zombie flick, and most agree it needs a tv series do it justice. Now it looks like it will happen - and with a hell of a creative team behind it too.

 

[Huntn]

Watched this show twice, on Sun, then caught an encore presentation. If you are a Left 4 Dead fan, this show will be right down your alley. It is incredibly good with nice slow pacing to start as a hospitalized sheriff wakes up to a nightmare (not unlike 28 Days later), but this is worthy, like the guy who can't bring himself to shoot his "walker" wife...

 

[184550]

I was worried that AMC would damage their reputation for creating stellar tv series by jumping into the whole zombie craze. (I'm bias towards Mad Men.) But the reviews seem to be extremely positive. I'm all for anything that helps AMC keep its rating and notoriety up and prolong Mad Men. I'm not a zombie fan but anything that helps AMC is great.

 

[rhett7660]

If you read the comics you are going to love the show. So far, one episode of course. They have stayed to the comics like they said they would at comic con. Not to mention the blood and guts are over the top! Loved it!

 

[Huntn]

Episode 2 last night- another home run.

As some review said, the story is not zombie horror driven, it is driven by human choices under dire circumstances. They left the red neck chained to the roof of the building. Something tells me he's going to make a reappearance and it's not going to be pretty. I have yet to figure out or they have not yet explained why the Sheriff's wife thought her husband was dead and hooked up with the deputy while the Sheriff was in the hospital.

 

[Plutonius]

The second episode was better then the first (I thought the first dragged a lot).

In some ways though it reminded me of a survivor reality show. The characters are the contestants and they have task they have to do. They are all working together but competing against each other and the losers get voted off the show (eaten).

 

[Huntn]

The second episode was better then the first (I thought the first dragged a lot).

In some ways though it reminded me of a survivor reality show. The characters are the contestants and they have task they have to do. They are all working together but competing against each other and the losers get voted off the show (eaten).

Lol. The 1st episode was establishing the environment in a manner to ease you in. Started slow, ended with a bang.

 

[dXTC]

I've read several of the comic issues well before the TV series was announced. When I heard that it was indeed coming to TV, I was a bit afraid that the concept would be ruined.

Luckily, the show's producers really are staying true to the original concept. Instead of a bunch of "BOO! I'm a Zombie" moments, it's more like Lost, but instead of a crash-landing on a mysterious island, the storytelling vehicle is a zombie apocalypse. The living characters are what drives the story, not the undead.

Oh, and thank goodness there's no "....Brrraaaaaaaaainss...." The most any zombie said in the comic was "Uggh.. or "Aaaghhhkk..."

SPOILER ALERT for those who haven't read the comics yet:
At some point, it will be revealed that vaccines are ineffective, because EVERYONE IS ALREADY INFECTED. Anyone who dies, even those who aren't bitten, will revive as a zombie, provided the brain is intact. This may be a good cliffhanger for the first or second season.
End spoiler.

 

[StruckANerve]

Last nights episode was awesome. But it made me think about how incredibly stupid it is that nudity is so frowned upon in America. We can see someone very graphically hack and dismember a corpse and then cover themselves in guts but god forbid we see a female nipple or hear the F word.

 

[chordate68]

The first episode did a great job of introducing the main character and providing the setting. The second episode did a few things that went against the zombie rhetoric.
1. The zedheads actually running instead of staggering when chasing the survivors.

2. One of the walkers using a tool (rock) to break the glass on the department store.

3. The walkers were successful in navigating the chain-link fence/gate that bordered the construction site.

All of these events would be non-existent in a traditional zombie story.
e.g. Max Brooks or Romero.

Not to take away from the story which is intriguing and will definitely keep me watching.

 

[rhett7660]

I've read several of the comic issues well before the TV series was announced. When I heard that it was indeed coming to TV, I was a bit afraid that the concept would be ruined.
Luckily, the show's producers really are staying true to the original concept. Instead of a bunch of "BOO! I'm a Zombie" moments, it's more like Lost, but instead of a crash-landing on a mysterious island, the storytelling vehicle is a zombie apocalypse. The living characters are what drives the story, not the undead.

Oh, and thank goodness there's no "....Brrraaaaaaaaainss...." The most any zombie said in the comic was "Uggh.. or "Aaaghhhkk..."

SPOILER ALERT for those who haven't read the comics yet:
At some point, it will be revealed that vaccines are ineffective, because EVERYONE IS ALREADY INFECTED. Anyone who dies, even those who aren't bitten, will revive as a zombie, provided their brain is intact. This may be a good cliffhanger for the first or second season.
End spoiler.

I was too. I am actually glad they kicked up the violence! Love it! There are few difference but I broke out some of my old comics and looked at them and it was almost a frame for frame filming of the first comic~! Love it. I am super happy to see the rest of the season!!!!!! I hope they rating are good enough and they are able to keep it going!

 

[dXTC]

The first episode did a great job of introducing the main character and providing the setting. The second episode did a few things that went against the zombie rhetoric.
1. The zedheads actually running instead of staggering when chasing the survivors.

2. One of the walkers using a tool (rock) to break the glass on the department store.

3. The walkers were successful in navigating the chain-link fence/gate that bordered the construction site.

All of these events would be non-existent in a traditional zombie story.
e.g. Max Brooks or Romero.

Not to take away from the story which is intriguing and will definitely keep me watching.

One other non-Brooks/non-Romero moment involved the "walker wife" in the first episode. If you'll recall, she somehow recognizes that she needs to turn the knob to open the door to the house.

On your point #3: I did find it a bit weird when that one zombie climbed over the chain-link construction fence with relative ease. My guess is that the writers thought that there needed to be a higher sense of urgency in the scene; otherwise, getting the van would have been a cakewalk for Rick and Glen. Of course, only after their van started moving did the fence collapse...

 

[chordate68]

One other non-Brooks/non-Romero moment involved the "walker wife" in the first episode. If you'll recall, she somehow recognizes that she needs to turn the knob to open the door to the house.

On your point #3: I did find it a bit weird when that one zombie climbed over the chain-link construction fence with relative ease. My guess is that the writers thought that there needed to be a higher sense of urgency in the scene; otherwise, getting the van would have been a cakewalk for Rick and Glen. Of course, only after their van started moving did the fence collapse...

Oh yeah! I completely forgot about the wife turning the door nob.
They should've written more (traditional)walkers in the scene to make it them seem more omnipresent and they could've knocked down the fence w/o having to jump over it to increase the tension. Just the extreme quiet and the way the zombies look is scary enough.

 

[Huntn]

Last nights episode was awesome. But it made me think about how incredibly stupid it is that nudity is so frowned upon in America. We can see someone very graphically hack and dismember a corpse and then cover themselves in guts but god forbid we see a female nipple or hear the F word.

I've said this for years. Actually I don't know exactly who is against nudity on T.V. Everyone I know is perfectly happy to see both R and even X rated sex. Fortunately The Walking Dead has the hottest PG (parental guidance) Sex I can recall, which is not really saying that much.

 

[StruckANerve]

You guys are making some incorrect assumptions about Romero's Zombies. They routinley use tools and retain some memories of their past life. In Day of the Dead a Zombie even learned how to fire a pistol. Max Brooks' Zombies on the other hand have none of these traits.

 

[chordate68]

You guys are making some incorrect assumptions about Romero's Zombies. They routinley use tools and retain some memories of their past life. In Day of the Dead a Zombie even learned how to fire a pistol. Max Brooks' Zombies on the other hand have none of these traits.

Looks like I need to watch Day of the Dead again. I figure Romero did that to add some depth to his zombies. I do remember them sprinting in the Dawn of the Dead remake, but that was Snyder not Romero. I guess Brooks' zombies are more appealing towards me.

 

[Huntn]

You guys are making some incorrect assumptions about Romero's Zombies. They routinley use tools and retain some memories of their past life. In Day of the Dead a Zombie even learned how to fire a pistol. Max Brooks' Zombies on the other hand have none of these traits.

Which guys? I must have missed that part of the discussion. In the Walking Dead I have seen one z use a rock to break through a glass door and one actually climbed over a fence, but most can't climb. Retaining past memories is definitely part of TWD as per the guys wife who comes back to the house where she died, where her husband and son are and tries the front door.

What I don't get is that in the last episode (No.2) when the group was trapped in the department store, even when they left for a substantial time, to go to the roof, when they came back down the horde of zombies was still there banging on the doors. I would think they would loose interest if their prey is out of sight, unless they can smell them?

 

[CaoCao]

Which guys? I must have missed that part of the discussion. In the Walking Dead I have seen one z use a rock to break through a glass door and one actually climbed over a fence, but most can't climb. Retaining past memories is definitely part of TWD as per the guys wife who comes back to the house where she died, where her husband and son are and tries the front door.

What I don't get is that in the last episode (No.2) when the group was trapped in the department store, even when they left for a substantial time, to go to the roof, when they came back down the horde of zombies was still there banging on the doors. I would think they would loose interest if their prey is out of sight, unless they can smell them?

They can, remember the escape?

 

[dXTC]

They can, remember the escape?

Yes, and the zombies' ability to discriminate by smell is distinctly mentioned in the dialogue.

As nmrrjw66 has related, I also remember "Bub" from Day Of The Dead, the one that was being rehabilitated to a certain level of his former humanity. "He" later managed to hit Captain Rhodes with a gunshot and, as other zombies overtook the injured Rhodes and pulled him apart (arguably the "signature" gore effect shot of the film, not counting "Dr. Tongue"), gave Rhodes a sarcastic salute.

 

[Thomas Veil]

So far I've only seen the first episode. (I'm following it on On Demand, since The Wife℠ likes Brothers and Sisters.) I thought it had several points in its favor:

• The two sheriff's deputies are well-drawn characters, not typical macho cop types.
• The presence of Lennie James (Jericho)...at least in the first ep.
• The slow, deliberate pacing. Much more suspenseful than a lot of running around.

The only thing I wonder about with this series is how long you can maintain an interesting on-the-lam-from-zombies story. This is not The Invaders or Nowhere Man, where the bad guys are often hidden and where they plot devious tricks. The zombies (like the ones in movies) don't do much more than shamble around and eat people.

I'll be happy to be proven wrong, but it does seem an awfully self-limiting premise. Good for the occasional two-hour movie, but can it last 20, 40, 60 episodes or more?

 

[StruckANerve]

So far I've only seen the first episode. (I'm following it on On Demand, since The Wife℠ likes Brothers and Sisters.) I thought it had several points in its favor:

• The two sheriff's deputies are well-drawn characters, not typical macho cop types.
• The presence of Lennie James (Jericho)...at least in the first ep.
• The slow, deliberate pacing. Much more suspenseful than a lot of running around.

The only thing I wonder about with this series is how long you can maintain an interesting on-the-lam-from-zombies story. This is not The Invaders or Nowhere Man, where the bad guys are often hidden and where they plot devious tricks. The zombies (like the ones in movies) don't do much more than shamble around and eat people.

I'll be happy to be proven wrong, but it does seem an awfully self-limiting premise. Good for the occasional two-hour movie, but can it last 20, 40, 60 episodes or more?

I'm assuming you haven't read the graphic novels? There is a ton of story to be told from them. It will be interesting to see how the prison is handled in the subsequent seasons. Robert Kirkman says he has the books planned out all the way to issue 200. They are on 78 right now.

 

[Huntn]

They can, remember the escape?

I was referring to that specific situation as to why they did not wander away. I do remember them smearing themselves with zombie guts specifically so the zs would not smell them, plus you have to do the z-walk.

The only thing I wonder about with this series is how long you can maintain an interesting on-the-lam-from-zombies story. This is not The Invaders or Nowhere Man, where the bad guys are often hidden and where they plot devious tricks. The zombies (like the ones in movies) don't do much more than shamble around and eat people.

I'll be happy to be proven wrong, but it does seem an awfully self-limiting premise. Good for the occasional two-hour movie, but can it last 20, 40, 60 episodes or more?

A valid concern. It's gonna take outstanding writing to keep this going. Fortunately it's off to a great start.

 

[skottichan]

In case no one's heard. Season 1 is only 6 episodes, but they've already green lit a 13 episode season 2.


I love The Walking Dead. I have my collections signed by Mr Kirkman, and I'm excited by the rumors that his Runaways is being looked at to become a movie or a TV series. (Thank you Disney for acquiring Marvel)

 

[Thomas Veil]

In case no one's heard. Season 1 is only 6 episodes, but they've already green lit a 13 episode season 2.

That's probably wise, and certainly helps alleviate some of my concern about repetitiveness.

As an aside, I'm old enough to remember when a TV season was 36 or 39 episodes, and a network ordering only 13 episodes was pretty much a vote of no-confidence. How things change. Don't a lot of cable shows now have short seasons like that?

I'm assuming you haven't read the graphic novels? There is a ton of story to be told from them.

Good to hear. I look forward to seeing how they branch out from simple running away stories.

 

[CaoCao]

So far I've only seen the first episode. (I'm following it on On Demand, since The Wife℠ likes Brothers and Sisters.) I thought it had several points in its favor:

• The two sheriff's deputies are well-drawn characters, not typical macho cop types.
• The presence of Lennie James (Jericho)...at least in the first ep.
• The slow, deliberate pacing. Much more suspenseful than a lot of running around.

The only thing I wonder about with this series is how long you can maintain an interesting on-the-lam-from-zombies story. This is not The Invaders or Nowhere Man, where the bad guys are often hidden and where they plot devious tricks. The zombies (like the ones in movies) don't do much more than shamble around and eat people.

I'll be happy to be proven wrong, but it does seem an awfully self-limiting premise. Good for the occasional two-hour movie, but can it last 20, 40, 60 episodes or more?

It's based off a graphic novel series that is 70+ into it

I was referring to that specific situation as to why they did not wander away. I do remember them smearing themselves with zombie guts specifically so the zs would not smell them, plus you have to do the z-walk.



A valid concern. It's gonna take outstanding writing to keep this going. Fortunately it's off to a great start.

They seem to have some basic memory

That's probably wise, and certainly helps alleviate some of my concern about repetitiveness.

As an aside, I'm old enough to remember when a TV season was 36 or 39 episodes, and a network ordering only 13 episodes was pretty much a vote of no-confidence. How things change. Don't a lot of cable shows now have short seasons like that?

Good to hear. I look forward to seeing how they branch out from simple running away stories.

wow, how many channels did you have back then?