The Walking Dead- CONTAINS SPOILERS!

[Totenkindly]

Well, back to this: Season 10 premiere last night.

General comment: This is the quality of show they should have been airing by Season 4-5, where instead we were getting some "good moments" whereas the quality of episodes overall was all over the freaking map and often repetitive and boring. Which is my way of saying it was a decent enough episode in terms of how it was put together, but for an episode of a show that is at Season 10 and supposedly earned its right to be there, I don't feel like I'm really getting enough drama for the buck. It's all still kinda the same old -- dealing with walker threats, and talking about how to be "human" in super-broad terms + the occasional freak-out / rein-in. And another dead deer.

Angela Kang (showrunner) wrote and did a decent enough job compared to what's happened in the past; Greg Nicotero directed, and I knew it was him before looking because there's lots of "new" crazy zombie destruction sequences starting with the boat sequence. you can tell he loves designing new ways to butcher/off zombies, and he's even taking some liberties with an almost rock-video quality to the shots. The problem is, I'm here for a story and not necessarily to just watch videos of zombie destruction.... so it's a little off-target even if pretty well-done. I don't know if the new segment title cards are gonna be part of the ongoing season. They ventured into some "modern" music too.

There are still various logic farts:

- Shield walls are great against a zombie horde. So why do two rounds using a shield effectively, then suddenly say screw it and allow people to charge ahead of the freaking shield wall? Now we're back to chaotic "hope I don't get bit" mayhem. Sigh. Like, stick with the program man...

- I love Judith to death, but she doesn't have reach due to her short arms and short katana-for-kids. It's kind of crazy to let her run out there and go for head shots. Bad parenting. Even Carl got bit and he had a lot of reach.

- I love fabricated conflicts. Big deal about not crossing the boundary, but hey, let's cross the boundary. (Just wondering too -- they had a road there as a natural boundary, it's pretty wide... not sure if it was enough of a barrier in itself, but couldn't they have used it as the firewall boundary?) You know the whisperers aren't going to let it go. Plus I was waiting for them to discover one of the zombies they cut down at the fire site to be human instead. Like "oops, thought that was a zombie".

- Not sure why Daryl and Carol had to go stand there in plain view to discuss their plans to leave, looking down where the horde used to be. Like... what? After all that crap about not violating the boundary? Resulting in the final episode shot. Game on? It was almost better when it was just hanging over everyone's head, though, without any proof.

- Ezekiel still has the hots for Carol but she's into her bro-relationship with Daryl. I think she looks old but fierce with her new hairdo. Michonne is also looking buffer for some reason -- I assume she might still have been lean-musculed out for her Avengers role.

- No knowing how closely this will adhere to the book, but I did hear stuff (unfortunately) some months back. Sometimes when you're dealing with monsters, the best thing to do is wind up a monster of your own and let it loose. The communities just don't live a severe enough life and aren't as b*tshit nutty as the Whisperers to know how to deal with them appropriately.

- Did they really leave the gates open at night regularly, until Michonne told them now to put things back on lockdown?

 

[Totenkindly]

two episodes behind but watched most of Episode 3 last night.

I wish they had booted Gimple a season or two earlier. Kang is doing her best to bring some life and movement to the show. Gimple (and predecessors) really killed it with a stagnant obsession over the Saviors storyline. We got 2.5 seasons for something that really only needed one. Finally the story seems paced better with the actual content. Samanthan Morton (Alpha) is always a joy too -- I'll watch anything with her in it, I think the first thing I saw with her was "Minority Report" when she played the eldest precog, and she was just mesmerizing. Kind of interesting to see Thora Birch show up too.

In any case, at least things happen. But the damage was already done. Last night, I was watching Aaron get all pissy at Negan and couldn't remember why -- oh yeah, his soulmate Eric got killed in the middle of the Saviors mess. But the whole thing took so goddam long in viewer time (a few seasons, it was way back in Season 8) and was so much of an endless repetitive blur that I had completely forgotten by this point.

Anyway, it definitely has improved but it's just kind of outlived itself.

 

[Totenkindly]

Episode 5 was a decent Negan episode (although the other pieces of the episode was just kinda meh), and various folks are finally butting heads.

Also, Negan groupies suck.

 

[Totenkindly]

Mid-season finale.

As far as Michonne goes:

it looks like she's probably getting a write-off like Rick. She's currently going to an island base to acquire weapons from a guy she helped and win the arms race against the Whisperers. So she will be out of a number of episodes in the second half of the season and might/might not stay when she returns and/or could simply die later in the season.

Overall, it was kind of a mixed-bag episode ending with a cliffhanger that was horribly contrived. I wonder sometimes what they are thinking when they're sitting around bouncing ideas around. Like, did it even make sense or did they decide not to care?

I think at this point i finally have figured out the romantic entanglement though. I must have missed an occasional line of dialogue that would have explained it earlier. Apparently Siddiq was the father of Rosita's baby, but they didn't actually get together as a couple and so she's actually with Gabriel... but it's why it was kind of confusing trying to figure out which man was the "father".... i.e., it was kind of overlapping. Yes, that sounded just like a soap opera.

 

[Totenkindly]

Two episodes of the second half of the season are released.

I wish Angela Kang had been in charge 4-5 seasons back, when the show was actually peaking. Now it feels like a show that has become irrelevant and stale, regardless of the fact she has upped the writing quality tremendously. If she had been helming this thing when it mattered, it might not have reached this point.

That being said, I'm still mostly just watching each episode once since (1) I've seen all the other ones and (2) want to track what happens. But I can't say I'm emotionally engrossed. Last night's episode felt disjointed in a few spots -- Gabriel's vicious turn, a few of the action sequences, people doing stupid things out of convenience to make the plot interesting, or certain characters (not necessarily good guys) having plot armor so they pretend to off them but obviously there is some reason they were not hurt. It all feels like play acting on some level.

What they have going for them is decent performances and decent makeup/effects. I don't ever blame actors for this stuff, it's more the big picture problems with the show.

 

[Doctor Cringelord]

At least it isn't Fear the Walking Morgan.

 

[Totenkindly]

At least it isn't Fear the Walking Morgan.

Can't wait until there are more walking dead shows and it'll be the Morgan version of the shell game as to where he is next.

 

[Totenkindly]

This past Sunday's episode was actually decent -- or had some decent moments.

It's still sad that much of it falls inert -- I think if it was happening much earlier in the series, it would have more emotional impact, it's all become old hat / repetitive at this stage -- but I actually found myself emotionally engaged on the sequence involving Judith and Earl, as well as the last portion of the episode involving Alpha and Negan. The whole Gamma bit was a bit predictable, but hey that's how things go.

Still, that last five minutes....

 

[Totenkindly]

The Walking Dead Called Offensive and "Downright Troubling" in FCC Complaints

Tl;dr people upset that tv show based on graphic comic with flesh eating zombies is graphic and has flesh eating zombies...


I do empathize that folks on Hallmark got bombarded by ads, though. They should not be advertising there or during kid movies.

I did rewatch the twofer episode recently and think even if many of the shots were straight from the comic, Nicotero needed to recognize they were different mediums and how it would play on film. It felt more sadistic than pathos generating.

 

[Totenkindly]

Aaand..... that's a wrap?

‘Walking Dead’ to End With Expanded Season 11, Daryl-Carol Spinoff Series Set at AMC

Looks like an expanded final Season 11 (the upcoming one), and then they are moving to a Carol-and-Daryl show. Which I guess makes sense, but also tells us they're gonna survive into the new spinoff.

Not like walking dead is leaving. There's a few films + two other series already being produced. Also, the book has ended, so there would only be new stories... and they are doing that in the spinoffs.

Mixed feelings. I love the first 2-3 seasons. Then the show kinda sucks on and off -- it ends up wandering around aimless or rehashing the same kinds of plotlines rather than breaking new ground -- and the whole saviors things goes on about a season too long. It also used to feel very daring but eventually became predictable in how things would pan out.

At least Norman Reedus revitalized his career through it. Good for him!

 

[Stigmata]

Aaand..... that's a wrap?

‘Walking Dead’ to End With Expanded Season 11, Daryl-Carol Spinoff Series Set at AMC

Looks like an expanded final Season 11 (the upcoming one), and then they are moving to a Carol-and-Daryl show. Which I guess makes sense, but also tells us they're gonna survive into the new spinoff.

Not like walking dead is leaving. There's a few films + two other series already being produced. Also, the book has ended, so there would only be new stories... and they are doing that in the spinoffs.

Mixed feelings. I love the first 2-3 seasons. Then the show kinda sucks on and off -- it ends up wandering around aimless or rehashing the same kinds of plotlines rather than breaking new ground -- and the whole saviors things goes on about a season too long. It also used to feel very daring but eventually became predictable in how things would pan out.

At least Norman Reedus revitalized his career through it.

You had about 2 pointless seasons of needless Negan filler. If you condensed the entire series to about 5 seasons worth, it would be amazing.

 

[Totenkindly]

You had about 2 pointless seasons of needless Negan filler. If you condensed the entire series to about 5 seasons worth, it would be amazing.

Totally. I was even going to type that but just didn't. If there was ever a chance to just edit the sh*t out of the full run and "hone it in," that would be worth a view.

 

[Stigmata]

Totally. I was even going to type that but just didn't. If there was ever a chance to just edit the sh*t out of the full run and "hone it in," that would be worth a view.

I haven't watched since probably the 2nd or 3rd episode of this current season because I had some issues with my DVR, and I just haven't really cared to get back into it, even though the show had definitely gotten better since the time jump forward. All the major arcs after season 2 are just drawn out entirely too long, with too much meandering around as they transition from one arc into the next. I loooooved the first 2 seasons and binge watched them over a matter of a few days. After that it just kinda....drifts....with a few great moments in between to sustain interest (I got real teary-eyed with a few character deaths, not gonna lie), but even with that said it almost requires a certain level of committment to hang on through how poorly those 3 or 4 seasons prior to the time jump were (I hated how it seemed for a few seasons that each episode was done from the POV of one or two people, with the mid/season finales always having the plots intersect. That works a few times but 3 seasons of that was way too much).

 

[Totenkindly]

I haven't watched since probably the 2nd or 3rd episode of this current season because I had some issues with my DVR, and I just haven't really cared to get back into it, even though the show had definitely gotten better since the time jump forward. All the major arcs after season 2 are just drawn out entirely too long, with too much meandering around as they transition from one arc into the next. I loooooved the first 2 seasons and binge watched them over a matter of a few days. After that it just kinda....drifts....with a few great moments in between to sustain interest (I got real teary-eyed with a few character deaths, not gonna lie), but even with that said it almost requires a certain level of committment to hang on through how poorly those 3 or 4 seasons prior to the time jump were (I hated how it seemed for a few seasons that each episode was done from the POV of one or two people, with the mid/season finales always having the plots intersect. That works a few times but 3 seasons of that was way too much).

Yeah, I wish they had booted Scott Gimple (well, they kind of promoted him up, which got him out of the show -- he allowed for SO much meandering) and Angela Kang had come in earlier because I think the show improved noticeably when she took over -- but it was kinda of too little too late at that point.

Nicotero was also a dredge of the series -- he's a make-up guy and director who really isn't a good showrunner and/or writer's room guy. Even case in point, the controversial "death of Glenn" episode that drove off a large chunk of viewers -- yes, a lot of it was captured right from book but he had no idea how to translate it to something palatable on screen and it was too much in the video enactment. Basically they needed someone in charge of story that wasn't him, to help him channel his abilities as director and make-up for good.

I could go through too and list key points that left me teary as well. Even a few that were shocking and so I both admired the move while hating it. (I still can hear Carol telling Lizzie to look at the pretty flowers and then spilling the beans to Tyresse - heck of an epsiode! Or that whole sad bit with Noah in the revolving door, after... was it Andrew? Freaked out? And Glenn chased him down and smacked him around for it? Holy...) But so much also that was stupid or pointless or wasted.

 

[Totenkindly]

I think the season finale is tonight at 9PM EST.

Just a rote announcement, I know most people don't care. I'll watch it but typically only ever watch episodes once at this stage anymore.

I think their "yet another series" premiere happens at 10pm EST.

 

[Totenkindly]

"Finale" (although there are apparently six more episodes tagged to the beginning of the 11th final season to be part of "season 10") was about as average as expected. The Whisperer war is brought to the end of its arc.

The actors and character work were good, the plotting only average. There were 1-2 big moments that didn't amount to much in the end. There was a lot of plotting that felt convenient/lazy and things that I'm surprised flew as well as they did based on past episodes.

Maggie reappears, although not in many scenes. And the Commenwealth is here.

(None of this is much of a spoiler if you've been watching and/or simply reading the general TWD news.)

I honestly am indifferent to the Commenwealth even having not read their arcs -- aren't these things just all the same? -- and would have been happy for the series to end here. At least it is ending. Kind of. Despite all the spinoffs in existence and now announced. Kind of. (I don't need a Carol and Daryl show, honestly. Is there anything about their relationship that has not already been said? A Negan series might be more interesting.)

 

[Doctor Cringelord]

Well I just finished binging season 10. It was okay, but a drop in enjoyability from season 9. I saw the show repeating some of the mistakes of past seasons. This was structurally similar to season 6.

I’m glad they brought the whisperers war to a conclusion. We didn’t need another drawn out war arc like the saviors. The governor arc felt too rushed and the saviors arc too stretched, this one was a better length as I was already getting tired of it

So were Eugene and friends captured by the mysterious helicopter organization who took Rick and we saw glimpses of in Fear?

I wanted more Judith and Negan

Negan now has the most interesting arc. The Carol and Daryl arcs felt redundant

Ezekiel got a decent arc this season

Was very concerned for Jerry during the cave escape

I wish his season matched the brisk pace of season 9. The time jump really made it all feel new and fresh, plus it actually brought events to where they should be by now, chronologically. But I worry they’re going to tread narrative water now. Especially with the pandemic affecting how series are being written and filmed. I would say season 1, 3, 4, and 9 stand out for me as the show at its best. 5 was pretty solid for the most part but had issues. 2 and 7 were the worst. 6 and 10 were middling and both “buildup seasons”, except 10 actually resolved it all and didn’t leave it drawn into a 2 season war. I hope they don’t waste precious screen time giving the story a satisfying close next season. Another time jump, maybe a year or two, might be neat

 

[Doctor Cringelord]

I would love a Negan spin-off, where he just roams from story to story, begrudgingly helping dumb fuckers he meets in peril. Maybe each season finds him at a different place helping different groups, sort of a foul mouthed Mad Max type.

Please no Carol or Daryl shows. Look, I love them both, but I feel like they’ve each had more than satisfying and epic arcs in 10 seasons already. If anything, the show was as much theirs as it ever was Rick’s or “Coral’s”. So to give them another show seems redundant and like they’d be trying to milk fan favorites. And we already basically got a spin-off with Fear the Walking Morgan and Dwayne and friends (hey remember how it used to be about Alicia but now she’s a side character in her own series?). Spinoffs only work if the character has unresolved shit hanging over them. Morgan really works in the context of Fear, and Negan could work. Hell, I’d be into a Michonne miniseries even. But something about giving carol and Daryl shows feels tired, tedious, predictable

But it’s imperative to me that Morgan make it back to Alexandria or Rick at some point. Maybe in the film?

 

[Doctor Cringelord]

One thing I wondered, how would the Governor, Rick or Negan (at his height of power over the Saviours) have dealt with the whisperers?

I could see Alpha trying to test the Governor or Rick like she did with a Negan. Governor would lack the numbers or sanity to take on her horde. I believe Rick would have resorted to similar tactics as his group did anyway, try to honor the borders at first, eventually use the whisperers own tactics against them in the final battle.

Negan I think would first try to bring the whisperers group into an alliance with the saviors. At first he’d lose a lot of numbers trying to fight the whisperers in conventional combat. Then I think ultimately he’d do something similar to what he did anyway, he’d send spies undercover in his place, then he’d offer great rewards and second hand man rank to whoever of his spies were able to bring him the head of Alpha. Beta and other leaders would meet Lucille Remaining whisperers he’d give choice of joining his army or death.

 

[Doctor Cringelord]

These bonus episodes are underwhelming and it’s super obvious they were filmed during COVID. This show needs to be done. Season 9 was awesome but that should have been the last.

And does anyone even watch Fear anymore? It’s basically become a clone at this point. I liked it better when it was a road show and they were doing their own thing. I liked the idea of keeping it relatively early on in the apocalypse, as a contrast to TWD’s time jumps. For all intents and purposes, season 4-current of Fear is a completely different series than season 1-3