Bar Banter: The Walking Dead

The Walking Dead is only two episodes into its freshman year (though to be fair accounts for 33% of the season), but opinions on the show have been mixed over at our home base, GameTavern.Net, and while our reviewer loved the second episode, it is only fitting we share some other views. These are taken from the thread located here.

While opinions for the first episode were generally positive across the board, the second was a bit more split in our community. Oddly enough it was yours truly who first expressed some dislike of the climax of the episode, which was tainted a bit by the slow motion key falling down the drain scene.

However, it was our resident ray of sunshine, Teuthida, who really slammed the second episode. Here are a few choice quotes:

I wasn’t blown away by the first ep but I was downright disappointed by the 2nd. And more from the perspective of it being an AMC show (which I hold to higher standards) than straying so far away from the comic.

He has a solid point there, AMC is known for some of the best TV shows on the air right now.

Racist redneck.
A guy named T-Dog. T-Dog? Really? It was one thing if he just called himself that but I cringed when Dale referred to him by that name over the radio.
The city planner who’s only purpose was to provide a couple minute sewer scene. Might as well have not even been there.
The other guy was ok I guess. Just there.

I have to agree with him here, I even consulted Wiki after the episode aired because I was really flipping out that I forgot so many characters, only to find that most of them didn’t exist. I don’t agree with the city planner, I think it was a nice scene and she served a purpose. The rest of it, really felt like too much, the only thing I could imagine is AMC needed more zombie fodder for the season finale?

They keep hitting us over the head with the affair. It’s like every AMC show I watch they make it point for you to hate the wife. Was a lot more gradual in the comic making you wonder about what the deal with Shane was before actually revealing it.

Now this is something I take issue with, I mean I guess they needed to play up the affair more, but it wasn’t really an affair in the comic books, I think it was an one off event that happened after leaving the city. Here, it seems like she has moved on with her life. Perhaps, the time lapse is greater in the TV show, but I can’t imagine it being more than a few weeks.

Vampyr chimes in with his thoughts, and they kind of echoes Teuthida’s in that the “stereotypes” are all inventions of the TV series:

Having never read the comic, I really enjoyed the second episode. XD

There are a few too many cliches though, as others have mentioned. Cliche redneck, stereotypically named African American, cliche douchebag cheating with his best friends wife.

Mr. Angrist expressed dislike of the sewer scene and the city worker:

Ah yes, the sewer lady. That scene was boring and not needed. Anti-climax. They go explore a scary sewer because 1 lady just happens to know about them (they didn’t need her to know that by the way). After some not-so-suspenseful minutes they discover 1 zombie and return to the surface. Boring! 10 minutes wasted.

I read the scene differently, not so much as a waste of time or even a cheap scare, but as them legitimately trying all possible routes that doesn’t take them in direct course with the horde of zombies. I assume they would have taken the sewers as far as possible and then emerge above ground.

Sir Germie didn’t care much for the acting, which I personally find suitable:

Completely agree about the acting being pretty poor. I think it’s actively distracted me from enjoying the show a few times. It’s pretty disappointing considering Mad Men, Breaking Bad, and Rubicon all had stellar acting. As Teuth said, I’ve come to expect better from AMC.

That’s it for now, we shall perhaps revisit the thread after the 3rd episode has aired to see if opinions and loyalties have wavered.

Earl Rufus

The owner of this little chunk of the internet. Enjoys having a good time and being rather snarky!

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