Walking Dead Season 3 (1 Viewer)

[Lou Sytsma]

And I think what people like yourself and Jeffery_H who are saying that are continually overlooking or ignoring is how people are saying they're fine with character moments, if they're well written, but they're just not on this. Talking for a while doesn't equate to character development. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy the show, but I wouldn't call it quality television.

Ditto this!

 

[Quentin]

Ditto this!

Agreed. And, Josh mentioned Mad Men and Fringe earlier. Two shows with FAR more interesting characters. The problem here is that the characters are defined by the milieu. There is no other life, no secret past or anything else that matters. All that matters now is surviving. So, only current actions in the man vs. zombie conflict or camp vs. camp conflict hold any weight. Talking in circles, paralyzed by inaction is not character development. What could have been interesting would have been a setup with some characters that had more depth and/or mystery to start with. Perhaps a character with secret knowledge on how to control or stop zombies. Or a character with secret knowledge behind the plague. Maybe a character with secret knowledge/connections to a hidden military presence. There are LOTS of things the show COULD have done in this regard...but, none of that is in the comic either. I still mostly enjoy the fact that there is a zombie apocalypse show on TV that I can watch that gives us nutjobs like the Governor and Michonne. But, quality TV? Nope. So, I mostly enjoy when things come to a head and explode...and not too much of the 'quiet' moments.

 

[SteveSs]

Be careful what you ask for. More backstory might mean using flashbacks, which could really bring the show to a grinding halt.

 

[Dennis Castro]

Be careful what you ask for. More backstory might mean using flashbacks, which could really bring the show to a grinding halt.

Agreed. Then you would have "Lost" and we'd have people complaining about that. You can't make everyone happy. It's one of the best shows on TV.

 

[Josh Dial]

Originally Posted by Dennis Castro
You can't make everyone happy. It's one of the best shows on TV.

I wouldn't even put it in the top half of the shows I watch. It might not even make my top 20 of shows of the last 20 years!

 

[Quentin]

Be careful what you ask for. More backstory might mean using flashbacks, which could really bring the show to a grinding halt.

You can't do that. That's what I'm saying...their past lives don't matter any more. It's gone. They are now simply people who react to their environment. That does not make for strong dramatic character building.

 

[JohnS]

I don't want to see who and what these people were before the incident. It's all about who these people are now during the current situation. The Walking Dead is one of the best TV shows on TV right now. I care about the show, it's story and its characters.

 

[Jeffery_H]

Couldn't disagree more with those of opposite views of myself and Richard V on the show. That's just our opinions and others have theirs, which is why you won't please everyone for what they are wanting. It reminds me of how people were both sides of the fence about Lost and said many of the same things being said here. You either loved it a lot or not and I for one LOVED Lost and think this show is good too (but nothing can touch Lost yet). Keep in mind this site has very few people posting anymore, if you want to get a better feel of a show, you need to read Twitter and Facebook as they have thousands of users talking about a specific title.

 

[Lou Sytsma]

Well we all have clearly mapped out our stances. Here's to episodes that make all of us happy - for they will be truly great ones!

 

[Quentin]

Well we all have clearly mapped out our stances. Here's to episodes that make all of us happy - for they will be truly great ones!

Yes!

 

[Richard V]

Well we all have clearly mapped out our stances. Here's to episodes that make all of us happy - for they will be truly great ones!

Agreed.

 

[Dennis Castro]

Well we all have clearly mapped out our stances. Here's to episodes that make all of us happy - for they will be truly great ones!

Spot on!

 

[Lou Sytsma]

Within the context of the season arc - which has felt mechanical due to the aforementioned issue of the show's inability to balance character development against character attrition - the microcosm of this episode was the best the series has done to date with handling most, if not all, of the characters. A much better job of character development to the point where the lack of any action pieces was not an issue. Not an exciting episode but a good character one.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Better episode tonight. Lots of great character stuff. Andrea finally got a little taste of her just deserts. It's telling that she was still ready to take Shane's side; now she knows what siding with the "strong" men gets her. Rick's finally starting to get his wits about him again. And who knew that Hershel's younger daughter had such a lovely voice?

 

[Stan]

Personally, I don't think the show has been the same since the first season.  I still enjoy it though. I would like to see an eagle's eye view of the prison.  It seems every week there's a new secret passage in that the walkers find.  Can't they lock that down?  It can't be that big.

I came into the show partway into season 2, finally was able to see all the old episodes during AMCs recent marathon. Definitely agree that something changed from season 1 to 2. Hard to put a finger on what it was, knew that Frank Darabont left, but the whole tone of the show seemed to shift a bit. It's still a great show, so whatever was happening behind the scenes didn't cause any major problems with the final product. Great show to watch and am glad it has already been renewed for season four.

 

[Richard V]

Hope to see the return of Lennie James (AKA Morgan Jones) along with his son at some point this season. Maybe the Morales family as well, Mr. Morales looked like he could be a real solid addition to the group. He kicked Mucho Ass during the walker attack on the camp in season one.

 

[Todd H]

Awesome episode tonight. Sent from my iPhone 5 using Tapatalk

 

[Lou Sytsma]

Well Richard you got part of your wish though Morgan seems a lost cause at this point. TWD works so much better when the cast is pared down to minimum numbers. For the first time in awhile the danger of the zombies felt palpable again. Also a much overdue episode for some quality screen time for Micchone. I really liked how the show used Carl to give us a glimpse into her character - though how she got the picture out of the cafe begs question. I place this one with the season premiere as my favorite episodes of this season.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Hope to see the return of Lennie James (AKA Morgan Jones) along with his son at some point this season.

Well your hopes have been answered. One of the best hours this show has ever done. While the main plot creeps forward with grim inevitability, here was an episode (the first in a long time) to genuinely surprise me. It told a human story about human characters. Lennie James is a hell of an actor. And the thing about making an episode with only four characters is that we really got to dig in deep with all of them. The reunion with the TV Morgan Jones was as heartbreaking as the comics reunion, but it served the larger purpose here of serving as a sort of Spirit of Christmases Yet to Come for Rick, showing him where he'd end up if he continued down the road he was on. You see Rick start to pull himself back into the kind of man who would have welcomed Tyrese and his gang in instead of the lunatic who chased them off. I also think that the TV Morgan Jones is left at a much better place than the comics Morgan Jones. He's utterly broken, but he's found some measure of piece with his purpose, clearing the walkers and giving them proper cremation. Carl starts the episode shooting a man and then spends the rest of the episode reminding us that he's a kid. But not in an annoying way, in an endearing way. And Michonne gets to be a real, fully fledged human being. Part of what she does is strategic, after the conversation she overheard between Rick and Carl. But part of it is that she can see a place for herself with these people in a way that she couldn't at Woodbury. And then the bookends with the backpacker. Just elegant, well-structured, well-executed television.

 

[Joe_H]

Agreed, this was definitely one of the best of the series' run tonight.