My rambling thoughts on The Walking Dead: Seed

  Walking Dead is back and better than ever. Months have passed since we last saw our zombie survivalists and they have improved with age. Sadly, Lori is still alive and sporting the fakest baby bump in the television history.

   Seriously, Walking Dead! You can afford zombie makeup and fake blood but not a realistic pregnancy pad. If money was an issue, you could have shoplifted one from a maternity store. Lindsay Lohan's fake pregnant belly was more realistic than Lori's supposed real one.

 
    It was a good idea to skip the show ahead a few months. It gives the show more story line opportunities and speeds up Lori's pregnancy. Having a baby on the show is just a bad idea all around and the sooner that storyline is resolved the better. It also helps to explain the actor who plays Carl's obvious growth spurt.

 Carl has turned into an effing bad ass and I suspect the words "Where's Carl?" will be a distant memory. I'm sure Carl's little crush on Beth is supposed to be cute but to me it's creepy. Beth is a very expendable character and I doubt she'll see the end of the season. Her musical number while pretty didn't really fit the flow of the series.

  Speaking of expendable. Is T Dog ever not going to be the token black guy? This character has survived while more major characters have died. Yet he still has no established personality or dialogue that lasts longer than two sentences.

  When did Maggie go from meek farm girl to Sarah Connor? In less than ten minutes she became my all time favorite character of the series. She and Glen are adorable and I hope there is a happy ending for this couple. Daryl and Carol, not so much. I was routing for a union between them but it doesn't seem to work. Partially the actors lack chemistry and partially it threatens Daryl's lone wolf persona that I love.

  I like this new and improved cast of characters. Without Shane gumming up the works, Rick has grown into an effective leader. The scenes where they infiltrate the prison were well done because the characters actually worked together and protected one another.

  I was disappointed in what little I saw of Andrea, she's finally evolved into a likable character and gets barely ten minutes of screen time.

   Dear Writers and Producers of Walking Dead,
   
    This is the show we all fell in love with. Do not stray from this formula. No sturm, no drang, no Lori. If you can knock this season out of the ballpark, I can finally forgive you for Season 2.

 

10 Reasons Why The Walking Dead Should Just Kill Lori

  This inspired by the College Humor article "10 Reasons Why The Walking Dead Should Just Kill Carl." Granted, Carl is annoying but he's a kid he can still mature. Lori on the other hand...

1) She is fated to: In the comics Shane and Dale died and Lori is not too far behind story line wise.

2) She's a shitty mother: She's so obsessed with her daily drama that she virtually ignores her son's existence. It's amazing that he hasn't already joined the ranks of the undead. Let her die and let Carol raise Carl.

3) She treats Rick like shit: Her husband comes back from the dead and since then has been risking his life to protect her. She repays him by turning her back on him and almost getting him killed by his best friend.

4) She treated Shane like shit: This guy is the reason she still walks the Earth. He got her out of Atlanta, he protected her and her son. She certainly had no problem with him when she was lying face down in the woods getting impregnated by him. Since Rick's return she alternated between leading him on and putting him down.

5) She's the shows "moral center" despite not having any: She's quick to judge everyone but God forbid you mentions her screw ups. She stood on the porch smugly glaring at Andrea while Maggie kicked her out. Only when Andrea is out of earshot does she attempt to defend her.

6) She's June Cleaver on steroids: Her biggest concern this season was the laundry. She even goes so far to chastise Andrea for doing "men's work" while all the women were doing chores.

7) She's a liability: She leaves the safety of the farm on a fool's mission, crashes her car on a deserted road, and almost gets eaten by a zombie. All in the span of a few hours.

8) She's expendable: Unless the shows goal is to piss off the audience then she has no place there. She's whiny, doesn't fight or even protect herself, a perpetual damsel in distress. She contributes nothing to the show except headaches.

9) She's a waste of a good actress: Check out some of Sarah Wayne Callies' other works sometimes. She is talented but is completely wasted in such a one dimensional role.

10) She's better off undead: Let's see she loves doing monotonousness chores, hates thinking for herself, and is quick to attack her loved ones. Perfect zombie material.

The Walking Dead: A Season In Review

  After a slow start, Walking Dead really stepped up to the plate and made us fall in love again. Here are just some random thoughts on this season.

   -Its about time Rick started showing some spine. This is a Rick that I want to see, not the angst ridden mess he was before

   -See this Andrea? This is the girl I want to see next season, not the suicidal butt monkey she was this season. They are wasting a great character and a talented actress. And if she bitch smacks Lori just once, she will be my hero.

  - Speaking of Lori, what a passive aggressive waste of space she has been. Half the time she was cock teasing Shane and the urging Rick to put him in his place. How can you like a character whose biggest concern is ring around the collar?
 
  - I was impressed by the deaths of some of the main characters. I was worried the show was going to wuss out and just kill secondary characters.

  - I must say I was shocked when one of the farmer's daughters and that other dude died. It was mostly because I forgot they even existed. No more random background characters please.

  - And speaking of random characters, can we get T-Dog a plot already? Something that doesn't involve him vanishing for episodes at a time.

  - How is it one lone gunshot can attract a forest full of zombies when a out and out gunfight didn't?

  - We finally learn what Jenner told Rick, and it was completely anti-climatic. To quote Buffy "Does the word Duh mean anything to you?"

  - Can we wrap up some old story lines next season? Like whatever happened to Morgan and his son or Darryl's brother for example.

  - We have the prison. We have Michonn. We better have the governor sooner rather than later.

   

  - Despite all the deaths, this particular scene was strangely heartbreaking. A subtle nod to when things were a little better for our band of survivors.

   All in all great season. I will definitely be tuning in next season.

The Walking Dead:Rise Of The Governor

 
 The best part of The Walking Dead: Rise Of The Governor is the twist ending. A twist ending that would have definitely rocked the comic readers mind's. It would have rocked my mind too, had I not read the book before starting on the comics.

  Still Rise is a gritty post apocalyptic novel that those who have not read the comic can still enjoy. It follows Phillip Blake, his daughter Penny, brother Nick and friends as they try to find a refuge from an ever growing zombie population.

  What I appreciate is the non gross out writing. I am in the minority of horror fans who don't like too much gore. Hey, I can throw up for free, I don't need to spend money on a book or movie to make me do so. The characters they encounter throughout the novel are richly described even if they only show up for a few pages.

 Rise is what a zombie novel should be, intriguing, scary and at times heartbreaking. It's also a great introduction for people who haven't read the comics. It's more of a standalone novel with nods to certain characters that appear in the comics. I have been a long time fan of the show but never had any interest in the comics until I read this book.

  Even if you don't particularly care for the Walking Dead series, but are a fan of zombie literature read this book. It's a must read for horror fans.