Walking Dead - TV - General Discussion

Television, Movies Games and Books The Walking Dead
#41

Sort of. I’m up to book 4, but have yet to get the ones after. I’m now debating whether to get them now, or wait til the show catches up. I try not to compare the tv show to the comics, but it’s really hard not to. There are things I think the comics do a lot better, and things I think the tv show does better. For now, I do have to say, I liked the comics a little better - but both are definitely worth watching/reading at some point. The question is, which one first?

Oh, who am I kidding - given there’s only going to be 3 more episodes before we wait for a second season, and given the current pace of the tv show, I highly doubt I can be that patient. Maybe I can last til Christmas. :smiley: So I guess ultimately, it depends on your patience. :smiley:

#42

That’s a tough one. I’ve only read the 1st comic book of Walking Dead. I do fear that if I keep going it it could spoil some cool dramatic surprises on TV show.
Totally way into the show too---- last night’s was another gripping episode.
Starting to feel some BSG parallels: in other words, the idea of a group of people surviving post-end-of-the-world, and how the rules change and how structures of governing emerge. Interesting stuff.
For now, I think I’m gonna hold off on the comics, but when I gotta wait between seasons, maybe my resolve might now be so strong.

#43

I’ve decided to give in and read the comics. Is volume 2 going to leave me hungry for more? I should just take the plunge and buy Compendium 1, huh?

#44

I just picked up Volume 1 of the comics. It’ll probably spoil me for the next couple of eps, but that’s okay, altho according to some GWCers who have read the comics, the show seems just as likely to go on it’s own once in awhile, so spoilerage might be less than of an issue than we think…

#45

I don’t know if anyone else geeks out over the music like me, but I really enjoy reading Bear McCreay’s blog after each new episode. This episode in particular, I really noticed the music more.

http://www.bearmccreary.com/blog/?p=5527

#46

And there are characters and plots that are altered or new in the tv series compared with the comics even just four episodes in, so while obviously there will be a lot of similarities shared with the comics and the television show, both are interesting and engaging to watch/read in their own right - both with different strengths and weaknesses. And as much I love the comics, there are things about it that could be done better, and I look forward to seeing how the tv show could improve on/alter so it works in a tv show setting when they get to those points.

But, the drawings in the comics are redonkulously amazing. Sometimes I just flip through it to marvel at how great some of the drawings are and how the stories flows through them, so it’s definitely worth having the books. I bought books 1-4, and read them all pretty much in one night without stopping.

I think that’s the reason I’ve been holding off book 5-6, which I haven’t bought or read. I want to savor them slowly.

Thanks for the link. One thing I appreciate so much about McCreary’s score in this show is that it never ovewhelms what is happening. It’s very difficult to write an effective score to a show,without it being too overbearing, and as always, Bear McCreary is a genius at that.

#47

I have been wondering if the redneck white-trash who cut off his hand is going to turn up later on as ‘The Governor of Woodbury’.:wink:

It would certainly give him ample motivation for doing you-know-what to our hero!:eek:

#48

[spoiler] Nice symmetry with the hands, I guess! To give more of a backstory to the governor, [/spoiler]though not much of it for now, since Merle has been nothing but a giant stereotype of a character [spoiler](and so doesn’t really contribute to anything more than what we know of the governor).[/spoiler] He’s a racist! He’s a sexist! He’s a douche! He’s violent! He’s a danger to the group! I think it would have been nice if he didn’t come across as so extremely unlikeable in every way imaginable before the cuffs even happened.

On the other hand, LOVE the doctor dude at the CDC. [spoiler] I haven’t read book 5 or 6 yet, so maybe he will be a character in the comics in those later chapters, but for now, I sure don’t know who he, and it’s kind of exciting! I’m all for the show splitting off from the comics to do some original story like they did with the Vatos gang.[/spoiler] Psyched to see what happens there.

#49

:eek: this may be scarier than the show

‘The Walking Dead’ Lets Go Of Writers; Considers No Writing Staff For Season 2

http://www.deadline.com/2010/11/the-walking-dead-lets-go-of-writers-considers-no-writing-staff-for-season-2/

oh sh*t

#50

Oh hey! We have the biggest show to ever grace the halls of AMC!

Y’know what we should do?

No, what?

Fire the writers!

Brilliant!

Yeah, my stint at Fox has taught me all I need to know about this tele-vision.

#51

Keep in mind that the staff writers, who got fired, only wrote 2 episodes and both those episodes were rewritten by Darabont. It’s not like they’re throwing out the creative team. Chill.

#52

We’ll see. Hope you’re right.

#53

True…maybe they’ll be more like the comic now?

Still…when you just fire the writers…it just doesnt sound good

#54

I’m worried.

For one thing, Darabont wrote (and was credited) for 2 episodes this season. One was the pilot, which was good, and one was the second episode, which was less good (for me, it veered way too much into the horror movie genre, which is a genre Darabont is famous for but isn’t really what the show is about, and that episode gave us the character of Merle, who is a cartoon villain who feels like he comes from a cheesy horror movie). And neither of those episodes (or the series, overall, for now) have particular great dialogue.

Another is that Darabont is a seasoned director, but not a seasoned tv showrunner. I think there is a difference, which means Darabont is actually a newb in the medium of tv.

So, of course I’m worried. I don’t know what Darabont’s vision of the show is, given the quality of the two episodes he officially penned. It would be different if say we know Kirkman will also have a larger role in production/writing of the show, because we know what his vision is. It would suck too if the show suffers because Darabont’s overstretched with running the show AND writing (or re-writing the freelance writers’ scripts) 13 episodes of it, because he didn’t think a writing staff would help.

And ultimately, I just don’t understand his choice. There are a lot of shows where the voice of it is so much the single minded voice of its showrunner (like Matt Weiner for Mad Men, or Kurt Sutter for Sons of Anarchy), who both obviously writes a few of the episodes, but they still have a writing staff to pump out their vision so they can concentrate on other things like the flow of the season, or how each script is going to fit in the scheme of the season, etc - and everyone thinks of the shows as theirs. They are their babies. So I don’t see why Darabont feels the need to eliminate his staff (I mean, if he’s just firing people, I can get that, even though it’s a dick move, but he’s not even replacing those writers with a different writing staff of his choice, he’s not going to have a writing staff. THAT, is odd) to feel like he’s in control of the show. He already is. Hire a freaking staff so you can be a good show runner.

Unless you’re Steven Moffat. But I don’t think Darabont is.

#55

Maybe he thinks he is the next Michael J Straczynski!:smiley:

#56

It’s not just going to be Darabont writing all the scripts, there’s still going to be other freelance writers like this season was broken down into 2 Darabont, 2 staff rewritten by Darabont, and 2 freelancer (Including Kirkman)

#57

A quick heads-up:

AMC is planning on showing all five episodes of The Walking Dead on Sunday, Dec 5th, back to back, just prior to the airing of the season finale, so if you’ve missed it and wish you hadn’t, here’s your chance!

Gotta love a network that knows how to build a fan base. :smiley:

#58

Has anybody mentioned that Bear is doing the music for Walking Dead?

I am enjoying this show very much. I have begun deciding show and movies on their entertainment merit.

so…

so far Very good show.

#59

that big music scene about 2/3 into this last ep was awesome work by our favorite omnivore.

update of sorts on the writing staff:

http://www.avclub.com/articles/great-moments-in-nonclarification-robert-kirkman-o,48582/

#60

Season finale was quite awesome, but I guess they spent so much money on the big explosion at the end that they could not afford any music for the ending. So they recorded some random street musician singing on the sidewalk downtown.

I don’t even know what the lyrics were, they may have been appropriate for the situation but the singing was soooooooo bad that he could have been reading a news article for all I know. Here is a piece of advice for you show producers out there… If you are going to hire a singer, don’t hire one that sounds like the ‘stapler guy’ from Office Space; OK?

That was so distracting that it pulled me from the moment and soured the experience for me.