Geekscape Reviews AMC’s ‘The Walking Dead!’

Zombies have attacked farmhouses, malls, underground bunkers, cities, planes and God only knows what else. They’ve walked, crawled, run and I’m pretty sure they’ve driven a zamboni at some point. They’ve attacked our pasts, our futures and even our precious alternate realities. So it says a lot about the whole zombie genre that “The Walking Dead,” be it the new AMC television series or the original comic book series by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard, can seem fresh and original just by being really, really long. Where most zombie movies end, “The Walking Dead” begins, and for years now comic book readers have been grateful for the clever mix of exceptional character arcs and pulse-pounding set pieces as our doomed protagonists journey from one ill-fated scenario to another in search of a mere modicum of safety. Television fans have reason to rejoice as well, since the first two episodes of Frank Darabont’s adaptation of the critically-acclaimed comic book are exceptional entertainment: powerful and ambitious television, only occasionally marred by budgetary constraints or awkward storytelling.

For the three Geekscape readers who aren’t familiar with “The Walking Dead” (Hi, Mom!), the series follows Love, Actually’s Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes, a sheriff who gets shot in the line of duty only to awaken in a hospital days later during the zombie holocaust. His hometown is abandoned, his family is missing, and he’ll be lucky to stay alive long enough to learn that searching a major metropolitan area is about the stupidest thing anyone can imagine. He’ll make allies, he’ll make enemies, and he’ll aim for the head every time in search of his family and a new, safe place to call ‘home.’ Along for the ride are such actors as “Prison Break’s” Sarah Wayne Callies, Michael Rooker and reliable Frank Darabont stock players Laurie Holden and Jeffrey DeMunn. 

The first episode, “Days Gone Bye,” is an extra-long installment airing over an hour and a half this Halloween (that’s October 31st, incidentally), but it’s hardly the television event you’d expect. Academy Award-nominated writer/director Frank Darabont makes a bold decision with “Days Gone Bye,” bypassing the outbreak of the zombie apocalypse completely and skipping instead to the pathetic melancholy of a world already in its death throes. Rick’s awakening in a desolate hospital may evoke vivid memories of 28 Days Later, because it’s pretty much the same plot point, but it’s faithful to the comic which also had a hard time coming up with a new and interesting way to have an intelligent, capable protagonist only learn about the outbreak of the undead after the fact. Once you get past the familiarities, however, “Days Gone Bye” spends the rest of its running time laying claim to the title “Thinking Man’s Zombie Story.” These zombies aren’t cool. They’re tragic figures who have lost just as much as the survivors in this extinction-level event, and “Days Gone Bye” treats them with as much sympathy as discomfort. What’s more, they’re not even zombies.

Yes, “The Walking Dead” continues in the somewhat tiresome tradition of zombie stories not calling a cigar a cigar, or rather calling zombies fucking zombies. In “Days Gone Bye” they’re referred to as “Walkers,” which sounds appropriately vague and creepy but really, who named these guys? “Well, they were dead and now they’re alive and trying to eat everyone and can only be killed with a massive head wound. But the most distinguishing characteristic is that they’re walking. Unlike the rest of us. So, should we call them Walkers?” No, zombies pal. I guess “The Walking Dead” takes place in yet another universe in which zombie movies have never been invented, but at least there aren’t any tedious scenes in which people have to learn things we already take for granted the hard way, like being bitten by is a bad thing or that aiming for the skull is vital. The second episode, appropriately titled “Guts,” introduces another adorable euphemism for the undead: ‘Geeks.’ Thanks, Frank. All of us ‘Scapists are flattered.

“Dude… That’s us!!!”

“Guts” picks up immediately where “Days Gone Bye” picks up, which is to say in the middle of an enormous cliffhanger, and follows Frank as he befriends a party of survivors attempting to loot a department store who get trapped inside by – what else? – zombies. “Guts” is in many ways the first ‘fun’ episode of the series, introducing supporting characters defined by their interpersonal conflicts, sassy attitudes and unusual problem-solving skills. Also the body count is higher, the blood really splatters, and there’s an adorable cameo by Francis from Left 4 Dead, so for many, “Guts” will deliver the goods that “Days Gone Bye” only hinted at.

More importantly, the distinctively different takes on the zombie holocaust in these two episodes alone assure naysayers that “The Walking Dead,” fittingly, has legs. The resilience of the zombie genre lies not in the promise of gruesome gore but rather the thematic versatility of the situation: humanity knocked back down from the top of the food chain, fighting for our survival in a time period otherwise defined by the fact that most of us don’t usually have to do that, and most importantly finding out who we really are in the process. That concept can lead to uplifting tales of underdog accomplishments or more often cynical indictments of man’s inhumanity to man, and of course can take the form of light comedy, pure horror and everything in between. Certainly the first few episodes of “The Walking Dead” demonstrate a series willing to provide light entertainment, affecting family drama and badass action sequences and gore, and certainly Kirkman & Company’s exceptional comic book series – which is still going strong – will provide plenty of material for Darabont & Company to mine for seasons to come.

Unlike poor Rick Grimes here, the first two episodes of “The Walking Dead” never run out of gas.

But is all well with “The Walking Dead”-iverse? Calling the first few episodes perfect entertainment is a stretch, as little quibbles like distractingly fake CG blood splatters take even the most forgiving horror fans out of key moments and the aforementioned reluctance to admit the existence of zombies in – Shock! – a series about fucking zombies is an exercise in pointlessness. Some moments, like the extremely poorly-timed loss of shall we say a “key plot device” are obviously forced for dramatic effect, while the one of the most dramatic climactic decisions – and a crucial reveal – from “Days Gone Bye” plays so poorly that one can only imagine that production was just too rushed to get the vital coverage needed. And yes, for all you desensitized monsters out there, characters make foolish decisions based on emotional trauma as opposed to sheer practicality, so get ready to grimace as heroes waste vital ammo just to make themselves feel better and ask mysterious little girls covered in blood if they’re “all right.” It’s easy to judge, folks. Fun… but easy.

But really, “The Walking Dead” is better than we could have realistically expected a basic cable adaptation to be, even on AMC (which has been producing quality entertainment since 1996’s classic sitcom “Remember Wenn”). Frank Darabont has produced an excellent first couple of episodes for “The Walking Dead,” aided by a capable cast and clearly superlative crew who bring the epic downfall of humanity to life in a medium otherwise defined by low-production values and constantly reused sets, even though it’s that very ambition that doomed this first season to a scant six episodes. Still, those six episodes are not to be missed for fans of the original series and fine television dramas alike. Nitpick and quibble if you must (and I must, after all, being a critic), but “The Walking Dead” is must see television: exhilarating even when it’s not exactly perfect.