The Walking Dead

[OrHowILearnedTo]

consistently poor acting and sloppy writing.

Yup. Just caught up with this. I'm dedicated to staying with it since I gave up on Breaking Bad after the first season and haven't seen any Mad Men yet and don't wanna miss out on another AMC gem, but I'm not really enjoying this very much at all. Pretty much every character is a cliche and the actors aren't elevating the material at all. Part of this must be the comic (which I haven't read), but alot of the blame has to be put on Darabont. It's been awhile since I've seen Green Mile or Shawshank, but I watched the Majestic and The Mist recently and the dude just doesn't have a knack for naturalistic dialogue or very realistic characters. It's not necessarily a bad thing, he's just better at dramatic/movie dialogue rather than realism, but that is what's bothering me with this show. I just don't really give a fuck about any of the characters.

what's the deal with killing off the best actor in the show. like seriously the guy digging the graves was so fucking good. I know he's not technically killed off but his role and plight is changed if they bring him back.

on a story note, what's the relevance of that character having a premonition/dream if they kill him off? who cares about the amount of holes to dig if they just do that the next episode.  it's not even the type of exposition/character development i mentioned in my previous post. it's motivated in the we-gotta-keep-it-exciting bullshit that shows do, and one way of doing that is by killing off characters. it's a reaction to the fact that characters were never killed off in television for years, but it's an overcompensation if you're building in some kind of precognitive ability in a character.

the episode, while very good, was balanced poorly. I honestly thought the episode was over then there was this tacked on scene involving a scientific/army facility. it should have ended with them driving into the distance, then introduced the facility next episode.

this show should move slower than it has been.

you know it's funny that's the major thing it has going for it, a slow epic zombie Apocalypse but then they randomly change up the scenario while keeping moments slow, it's lacking the focus the first couple episodes had. It should be focused and patient. too many red herrings.

totally agree with this. What was up with that scene where shane and t-dog (seriously?) are about to check out some gas station, then they all go to jim before he dies, then the next scene they're at cdc? so many times there have been instances where the show seems to be re-writing itself on the fly, with scenes that feel totally disconnected from the overall narrative.

[diggler]

it was probably a discussion at some point whether the characters would just walk up to the CDC and have the door open or whether we would get a little background on whats going on inside first. I'm happy they did it the way they did because it seemed much more foreboding that a man who's obviously yearning for human connection would want survivors to go away.

In a 6 episode season, I can forgive that the episodes feel unbalanced. It's easier to look at the season as a whole when it's so short, so it feels more like a 6 hour miniseries that breaks every hour.  I haven't read the comic but i'm familiar with the story (at least the early parts) so I find the diversions they're taking more annoying than interesting, mostly because a large part of them will have to resolve themselves so as to not affect the overall story. The introduction of the CDC is leading me to believe that the show is going to be taking much more significant turns away from the comic than just adding one handed hicks and fake "gangstas", which is a good thing. I'm willing to bet that since the show is such a runaway success you'll see some improvements in the writing quality next season.

[squints]

who here has read the graphic novel and if anyone has, how closely is it following the show so far?


i swear this show gets boring as fuck sometimes. the acting is terrible. the direction is ok. but i love zombies and i love the world the story takes place in (i mean atlanta? really?). It reminds me of Lost. really does. I don't care for Lost but maybe if this show can succeed in that way maybe i'll give Lost a second chance.
I don't like dealing with the lesser boondock saint every episode though.


Everything inside of me says i should just pan this shit and say fuck it. But i'm still intrigued cause its not just a 2 hour movie...there's so much they can do with it. I think my favorite storyline, what i want to see the most, is what happened to that guy and his kid who stayed in the city. Sucks there's only one ep left. How long will we have to wait for S02E01?

[polkablues]

Somebody's special effects team needs to stop over-promising.

[ᾦɐļᵲʊʂ]

Some slightly intense moments in the finale.  Overall a fairly bland first season.  But I guess it's so successful that if they would've tried more, they would've overextended themselves for no reason.  Enough people are going to love it on principle.  I just hope next season they learn pacing.

[tpfkabi]

who here has read the graphic novel and if anyone has, how closely is it following the show so far?

I'm wondering this, too. Did this season = one comic? It felt unfulfilling as a movie cut in half, but I don't know that you can payoff the zombie type situation without totally ending the series - if that makes sense. I guess we will have to wait a year or so to see more.

[modage]

The pilot was pretty close to the comics but everything else after that has been pretty much completely invented.  There is no Merle, they don't go to CDC, etc. etc.

[MacGuffin]

The pilot was pretty close to the comics but everything else after that has been pretty much completely invented.  There is no Merle, they don't go to CDC, etc. etc.

Then I'm glad the writer who thought up the "homies" has been fired.

[socketlevel]

who here has read the graphic novel and if anyone has, how closely is it following the show so far?

I'm wondering this, too. Did this season = one comic? It felt unfulfilling as a movie cut in half, but I don't know that you can payoff the zombie type situation without totally ending the series - if that makes sense. I guess we will have to wait a year or so to see more.

It's like 40% following it, i could get specific if you want. basically the first 5 episodes somewhat follows what happens in the first book of the series. the last 1/4 of the 5th and entire 6th episode is a complete deviation. keep in mind these are TPBs and much longer than a regular comic.  the show doesn't do many things that the book does, and vice versa. some characters die in the book that are still alive in the show. the book also introduces many more characters... it seems to be more of a cannon fodder thing for zombies.

but ya let me know if you want me to expand on that, however i don't wanna ruin the book for anyone who decides to pick it up.

[polkablues]

The pilot was pretty close to the comics but everything else after that has been pretty much completely invented.  There is no Merle, they don't go to CDC, etc. etc.

Then I'm glad the writer who thought up the "homies" has been fired.

Surprisingly, the writer of that episode was Robert Kirkman, the writer of the comic.

[modage]

It's weird cause there is a lot of good stuff in the book, like at least as good as whats in the show, but probably better.  All the deviations in the pilot were actually improvements or not noticeable, but the rest of them seem fairly arbitrary.  Like they're blazing some new trail without necessarily making anything better.  It's weird.  Also: too many characters, all underdeveloped.  This show needs LOST's writers to flesh out their characters. 

[RegularKarate]

I watched the finale in a theater last night and because of my desire to see it this way, I had to watch the last 4 episodes in one day.

Overall, this show is sub-par for AMC, but still enjoyable. 

Some of the writing gets bogged down in comic-bookism.  The shitty gangsters scene is such an example of comic-book style dialog where cliches are used to get across a character-type in as few panels as possible.  Because of this, when an actor sucks, it REALLY shows.

It also doesn't seem to be able to decide if it wants to cater to zombie fans or character-based-drama fans.  There are too many "bad-ass" moments that are pandering to zombie bullshit that jerks like.  I also hate the sound design... the loud, mushy, gross noises is just WAY too unrealistic and jarring.  It's also childish.

I'm still in enough to watch the next season (in ten months) especially considering the new writers will be coming on.  I just hope it's more pilot and less everything else.

[The Perineum Falcon]

Don't get your hopes up....

THE WALKING DEAD Producer Denies Mass Firing
via: Twitch

Last week Deadline reported that Frank Darabont had fired the entire writing staff of hit show The Walking Dead and planned to forgo a writing staff entirely for season two, hiring on freelancers when outside help was needed. Not so, says series producer Gale Anne Hurd in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.

According to Hurd head writer Charles Eglee is departing of his own accord to pursue his own projects. And she also says that various other writers have projects that they are pitching which will take priority should they be picked up for pilot or series. But that's all standard behavior in the television world. Who wouldn't want to have their own show on the air rather than being a hired gun on someone else's? The idea that Darabont has fired the lot she flat out denies.

Deadline is normally pretty reliable but this also wouldn't be the first time that someone had planted a story there to try and make someone look bad. So judge for yourself. Did Deadline have it right, in which case Hurd is performing a spin job now? Or was the whole thing a widely spread mistake?

[tpfkabi]

I also hate the sound design... the loud, mushy, gross noises is just WAY too unrealistic and jarring.  It's also childish.

This stood out to me, too, though I listen to it via crappy TV speakers.

Oh yeah, Merle...they really left that one hanging.

[The Perineum Falcon]

Yeah, it's awful how sloppy it's gotten, especially with loose ends not tied or even addressed at the conclusion of this season.

I remained hopeful, though with flagging enthusiasm, throughout the show simply because it was a unique concept for television, and I so wished for a return to pilot form. This particular finale was awful. The acting in scenes meant to elicit a response gave me nothing, except "man I hate that guy's acting," and only a superficial sympathy for other characters I'm told I'm supposed to care for.

And then my girlfriend made a funny comment, wondering if the show will move on to another group of survivors. I haven't read the comic (though I believe they stick with the same group), so I don't know for sure, but I immediately turned to her and said, "that would be much more interesting."
I really like this idea, and I think it's one that would work for this show. Each season follows a different group of survivors and how they've come to terms with the apocalypse, especially now that it's been revealed the virus has gone global. It would keep things fresh, and if we tire of the characters but still remain enthralled by the concept, we wouldn't have to dread the subsequent seasons.