But the fact is, in terms of being an actual television show, it hasn't always delivered. There have been inconsistent characters, long stretches of episodes where nothing ever happens, not even character development. They frequently hotshot character deaths and expect them to mean something to the audience. And they often drag on certain stories too long *cough* The Governor *cough* and other stories not long enough. Although Rick Grimes is undoubtedly the lead character, the show has an ensemble cast and it doesn't handle dispersing of story lines and characters as well as, say, Game of Thrones does. They often try to find deeper meanings and interweave themes into their episodes and seasons as a whole. Sometimes it works, like with Carol and her determination to do what's write for the groups. Other times, it falls flat. For example, I never really got the whole Hershel/Rick dynamic that has been played up this season, especially in the finale.
But after tonight's huge, and different, Season 4 finale, I think it's the perfect time to dive (a shallow dive) into the past of The Walking Dead and see just what makes this show tick.
Let's go back to Atlanta for Season 1 of this show. Now before I go any further, I will admit that I haven't watched this show from the beginning. I bing watched the first two and a half seasons and didn't catch up until the back half of Season 3, so this may or may not color my perception. But I digress. Season 1 is what got us all hooked on the show. As Rick awaked from his coma and discovered that the world around him had changed, we too learned about the new world that now existed. We also got introduced to all of our characters. Because this season was so short at only six episodes, learning all of this fascinating new information was enough to get us through the season, although the side trip to the CDC didn't hurt either. Also, at this point, the Walkers were still scary and it was easy to believe that a single one of them could fell one of our heroes.
An interesting side note: The only characters from Season 1 that are still alive are Rick, Carl, Glenn, Daryl and Carol. Seriously, go back and watch the first season and you won't recognize anyone from Season 4. And who would have thought that Carol would make it this far?
Then came Season 2. Now, Season 2 catches a lot of grief from fans of the show for being boring. Seriously, people HATE the farm. While not my favorite, I didn't mind it as much as most seemed to. (Perhaps this was a result of my binge watching). I can understand why fans were frustrated though. A stark contrast from the first season, our heroes were stationary the whole time as opposed to moving around from Atlanta to the suburbs. Also, nothing really happened. The search for Sophia dragged on too long, and it can be argued that the Rick/Shane tension did as well. While Maggie and Beth are stronger characters now, as was Hershel before his death, they didn't add much to the show when they were first introduced. However, there were some bright spots. Shane and Otis's trip to the army base at the school was a great little storyline and really got across how much of a dick Shane was. I also found the dilemma over what to do with the captured teenage boy fascinating. We finally began losing some of the main characters, as Shane and Dale both died. And the last two episodes, especially the finale, were pretty kick-ass. Overall though, Season 2 felt mostly like a placeholder for....
Season 3. Personally, I think The Walking Dead was at it's best during the first half of Season 3. The gang finding the prison was great, as it was a much needed new location besides the farm. Also, the Michonne/Andrea/Governor storyline was excellent, as it devoted much needed time to character development for people who would become key players later in the season. It also gave us the reintroduction of Merle Dixon, one of the few television characters who's ever made me legitimately scared. And of course, there was that ridiculously intense episode where Lori and T-Dog met their ends.
But then you get to the back half of Season 3, which in my opinion was the WORST this show has ever been. Yes, worse than Season 2 and worse than the disease storyline (which we'll get to in a minute). But basically, the show took this interesting character in The Governor and just dragged him out. He just became completely uninteresting in the second half of the season. It was actually really disappointing, as I had really enjoyed him previously. But whatever the show was doing with him, it wasn't working. And his storyline really should have ended at that season's finale. The fact that it continued just made the rest of the season seem pointless. Now again, there were some bright spots here. Merle's "I ain't gonna beg!" line is a personal favorite of mine, and I enjoyed Andrea's callback to Season 1 with "I know how the safety works." Also, the episode "Clear" was one of my three favorite episodes in the series' history. But overall, it was real letdown. And what the heck were they doing with Tyreese??
And then there's this season, which I think has been the best the show's had yet. It hasn't been without faults, clearly, as I know there are several people who disagree with my opinion. But for the most part, Season 4 had one thing that the rest of the series lacked. Consistency. And by that, I mean consistently average to above average episodes.
Now, the disease storyline got a lot of flack from the audience. People didn't like the main enemy on the show being something corporeal. And while it definitely wasn't a great storyline, I found it acceptable and thought it produced some solid episodes to start off the season. And of course, it started of the Carol storyline, my personal favorite!! I also loved the image of Carl and Rick cutting down those Walkers with the machine guns in the middle of the night. If I had one complaint, it would be that miraculously, none of the main characters died from the sickness and the only one who even got sick was Glenn.
The Governor storyline was great though! That is what they should have done with the back half of Season 3 instead of stretching it out so long. But at least it gave us one okay episode (episode 6) and two great episodes (7 and 8)! It humanized The Governor and then showed us why he's a crazy maniac, which was just what we needed to see from that characters. Also, it finally got the characters out of the prison (Thank God).
Which brings me to the back half of Season 4 and tonight's finale. Apart from the first episode of this half, which I wasn't a fan of (mainly because I hate Carl) this half season has been stellar with three great episodes. The first was the episode with Daryl and Beth. I love when they just focus on a few characters, especially characters I love (Daryl) and characters I'd like to get to know better (Beth). Their relationship just popped on screen and made it even more devastating when Beth was taken away in the Batmobile. Then, there was the Carol and Lizzie episode. I'm not sure if I can say anything to give that episode justice as it was the best in the series' history, in my opinion. So I'll leave it at that. Other highlights of this half-season included the introduction of Abraham and the crew and the Cannibals at Terminus.
And then there's tonight's finale, which despite the lack of any deaths, was another excellent episode. Interestingly enough, the best part occurred early on in the show, with one of the most unique scenes in the series history. I can't think of anything else I've scene in any show or movie that was as tense as that scene. When Rick bit Joe's throat...that was something else. Andrew Lincoln conveyed this desperation that was so raw and real, just as any father would when seeing his son in a situation like that. I'm not the biggest fan of Rick, but tonight he showed why he's the main character of this series. Also in this episode, we got more background on Michonne and our characters were corralled like sheep into the box car where they were reunited with most of their friends, setting up what will hopefully be another excellent season next year. We'll find out where Beth is, what Carol and Tyrese are up to, and if Eugene really does know the cure to the zombie apocalypse. Oh, and we'll see if any of our characters get served for breakfast.
In the end though, there's really one clear reason that the The Walking Dead is such a success. It's not because it's excellently written and acted like Breaking Bad. It's not because it's a political/magical/pornographic epic like Game of Thrones. It's because when this show is at its best, on nights like tonight, it's just so damn fun to watch.
And of course, there's Norman Reedus.
