"The Walking Dead" season in review

So "The Walking Dead" aired its final episode for its first season on Sunday. If you read my initial review, you might be surprised that I actually tuned in for the whole thing. But 6 episodes wasn't exactly a huge commitment, so I stuck it out and decided to give it the benefit of the doubt. Well, 6 episodes later, I'm still bored with this show.

It's still well shot and the acting is good enough. The dialogue is nothing spectacular, but what more could you expect when 90% of it involves someone talking someone else down from a ledge? I still think it has offered absolutely nothing new or interesting for an avid horror film watcher to enjoy. Maybe if you like seeing the same cliches played out over and over, sure, there is plenty for the horror fan. But I was ready to start a drinking game by the third episode and really should have since they hit a lot of the plot points I was waiting for. By the time one of their group members was found to be hiding a zombie bite, I really should have been drunk.

In addition to the unoriginality of the show, I'm also experiencing what I'm deeming "Battlestar Galactica syndrome." It's where you just don't want to watch an otherwise good show because it is so damn depressing. "Battlestar" was a great show, and I know it's shallow, but I don't want to watch genocide and misery every week. Now, I want to distinguish this from other dark or violent programs. I have nothing against dark or violent shows. On the contrary, I prefer them to lighter shows. But what "The Walking Dead" has and "Battlestar Galactica" had is a crushing hopelessness. What good is cheering for the protagonists when the villain is all-powerful and always crushing them back into death and suffering? Even if you love the characters (which I don't on either of these shows), it's still difficult to watch because their greatest hope is to be killed off eventually. Their respective struggles against the Cylons and the zombies are so pointless and hopeless every week that I have to force myself to watch them. (FYI: I only got a few seasons into "Battlestar," right as Baltar was in charge and they tried to populate New Caprica when the Cylons took over. So if the tables were turned in some way, I didn't get to it.)

There's the added problem that, six episodes in, I don't care much for any of the characters. I guess we were supposed to feel sad that that one woman stayed behind to die? And we were supposed to feel bad that the other two almost stayed behind to die, but cheer when they ran out? And I guess Redneck guy's brother is just wandering around somewhere, that's done with? And despite the zombie apocalypse, we're supposed to be invested in Lori and Shane's relationship drama? I guess the big mystery we're supposed to cling to is what CDC guy whispered in Rick's ear? Perhaps having something to do with the results of the blood samples?
Thankfully, they finally sort of got around to the requisite "why is this happening?" conversation. And, naturally, one person suggested it was the wrath of God. But as I've been reminded multiple times, this show isn't about why a zombie apocalypse happened, it's about humans surviving and struggling. Honestly, I rather see the time period we saw at the beginning of the last episode with Shane in the hospital. I want to see how society broke apart and civilization slowly but horrifyingly went downhill. I want to watch THAT show. Partly because I want to know how it got as bad as it did. These are slow-moving zombies, and infection takes at least a little while to set in. So how did it spread that much unless there was some other initial way of infection? I also find it hard to believe that the CDC fell that quickly. It's in the city, I know, but of all places in the country to protect in a zombie apocalypse, good god it's the CDC. Another thing I want to know is why the group ventured into the city near dark, got to the CDC, and had no idea what to do when they couldn't get in. Why would they still go in near dark? Why wouldn't they have, like, a billion contingency plans in place? They seemed more organized and careful when it was just a few of them retrieving some guns.

I did semi-enjoy their use of "Adagio in D Minor" in the penultimate episode, even if it was a bit dramatic for 'driving away' music. You've probably heard the John Murphy-composed piece of music, most prominently from Danny Boyle's "Sunshine" or repurposed for "Kick-Ass." It was random, but I enjoyed it.

I'm sorry to be so critical, but once again, this is only my humble (brutally honest) opinion. I feel like a show on AMC should be held up to a higher level of scrutiny than a show on NBC or FOX. And I feel I should point out that it's still a good show, even if I don't like a lot of aspects of it. I really think this one ultimately comes down to personal tastes, and it's just not my flavor of choice.