Hey, Bassman. When I say the show has lost its way, I’m not talking about what I “imagined personally”. I don’t imagine what a series content might be in the sense of pre-determining what I think it should be about; I leave it up to the show to take me on a journey. I’m talking about the dramatic momentum of the show, the elements of the telling of a story, the interest generated.

For example, I would say there is much more dramatic interest to the viewer, especially to the long term fan of the show, in exploring Rick’s mental condition and how it affects his relationships within his group.

Or exploring survival issues for Rick’s group, i.e. clean water, food, a sense of purpose. Along with the matter of how they could prepare to defend the prison.

Or exploring where Carl is at, how he is coping as a young boy with all he has been through, and maybe how he perceives the world around him.

Or what about the Daryl and Carol story that has all but evaporated? There are various points of potential for dramatic exploration of what Daryl is going through now.

Or what about Beth? We were drawn into her struggles last season only to have her story fade so far into the background this season she almost might as well not be there. There is a lot of story laying dormant or discarded there too.

But while these kinds of things are simply ignored for whole episodes or whole seasons, we get instead this ongoing sub-plot about Andrea and the Governor, a sub-plot which essentially consists of covering the same ground over and over.

That’s what I mean when I say the show has lost its way.

And I don’t think I need to have read the comics to be able to recognise the problems with the latter half of series 3 of the TV show. It’s matter of taking the TV show on its own terms. Just as I would for a movie based on a book; I wouldn’t need to have read the book to be able to analyse the movie as a movie.

And someone might say to me, ‘Oh yeah the movie is a bit tedious, but it sticks pretty close to the book’; but that does not in itself make it a very good movie. And I’m not talking about ‘slow’; I’m talking about ’tedious’. Many a slow movie is gripping because it is great drama. But books and movies and very different mediums, and not every element necessarily always translates well across from one to the other. Same with the TV show and the comics. I’m not evaluating the comics; I’m evaluating the TV show; and I don’t have to have read the comics to evaluate the TV show as a TV show.

And I take your point that “some things should be overlooked for the best”, and I agree. Not everything has to be 100% all the time to be able to still enjoy a show for all its strengths. And I have that same attitude, and have done so numerous times with The Walking Dead, letting things go as just par for the course and still enjoying the show. But when the show loses its way, then that’s a more serious problem. With episode after episode the series just seems to sink further into the quagmire and watching it becomes a repeated exercise in enduring tedium. This is more difficult to overlook because the whole show becomes difficult for me to enjoy.

That’s what I’m finding anyway. I have to stick with it because I’ve come too far not to find out what happens. But it’s become hard work.


Hi melthebell. You say -
“if you carried on the main subplot itd die quicker, surely?
surely itd just be as boring watching rick and that pottering round the prison? the point with these episodes is theyre building things up in the oppositions camp before it all kicks off between the two groups big time.
its a long term story, theres various groups of survivors, ricks group is the main focus but it has to focus and build these other groups up otherwise thered be no series”

If all there is to play with as a writer is ‘rick and that pottering round the prison?’ then the writing team should go train to be plumbers or something else they might be better at other than writing. I think there’s plenty of meat in the main story to fill the season out and beyond; it just seems the characters in Rick’s group, including Rick himself, have all become secondary or even faded completely out of focus. And I feel even the tensions between the prison and Woodbury groups could be done better with more practical detail and more drama revolving around Rick’s group rather than Woodbury. That’s my big problem with the latter part of series 3; the same sub-plot ground being covered over and over instead of exploring the real dramatic potential for the main characters.

I take your point about build-up, but I would say that ground-work was laid very thoroughly in the first half of series 3. The tension built, then evaporated. And I’m not sure we need to veer into the internal workings of other groups in order to follow the story of Rick and the people with him, certainly not to the extent that the main characters become guest appearances. That kind of distortion of focus results in the story stagnating, as has happened.

And Walker Bait – you say “If they had charged headlong into a war I would have thought that was sloppy writing.” I agree that could well have been the case. But firstly, I’m not saying that’s what the writers should have done; and secondly, suppose that was in fact what happened, actually the twists and turns and fall out from that might perhaps have resulted in far more interesting a story than the one we have been served up.

 

Hey Walker Bait. Again, I haven't crafted a show between my ears. I'm bemoaning the show's failure to exploit the dramatic potential of the main story and its characters, and its repetitiveness concerning the ground-work of the tension between the groups and the sub-plots of Andrea and Milton.

If the awful writing continues I won't mind at all if the show doesn't come back.

 

Hi RicksRightHand.

"Why join a forum just to complain about the show?" Why not join a forum just to complain about the show? What's wrong with a little critical analysis? I'm fed up with how the writers are making a hash of it. I complain about it. Mystery?

And what about when nothing huge happens for 3 episodes?

 

I'm not sure its pointless to raise issues. But hey, if you don't see any point to my raising these points, then that's your view. No prob. You have your opinions, and welcome to them. But let's not decry a little airing of views. After all, isn't it boring if everyone just agrees with you about everything?

Regarding 3 episodes without anything huge happening - can you pinpoint a single thing in the last 3 episodes that has resulted in a substantial change in the story of Rick's group?

 

Hey melthebell. Well, as I've said, I'm not talking about some perfect idea of the show. I'm talking about a show that has veered off course. How many times should we re-visit the same nuances of the Guv/Andrea/Milton sub-plots to the neglect of the Rick/Carl main plots or even sub-plots with Daryl, Hershel, Michone, Maggie, Glenn, Merle or Beth? That's what I'm saying.

 

Not only is East Enders boring, but The Walking Dead has become even more boring than East Enders. Crazy world.

 

I'm sorry, melthebell, but are you suggesting these constitute something huge happening? But not only have these things not resulted in any substantial change in the story of Rick's group over the last 3 episodes, but the ideas are re-hashed from earlier in the series. We already knew as soon as Tyreese's group appeared that they might possibly help Rick's group; now we have progressed to the position of... knowing that they might possibly help Rick's group. Seeing the Governor manipulating Tyreese and Sasha etc is a basic re-hash of the whole Governor-Andrea sub-plot.