The Walking Dead is a perfect example of a show over-staying its welcome. I've only read the first half of the graphic novels, so I can't say if this is an issue with the show or where the original story goes.
The graphic novels in the back half are great, much better than the first 50 some issues. The Show has done certain things better and certain things worse. Negan was much better in the show because they went into it knowing where Negan's arc goes so he's much more dynamic character. After the War with Negan though the show and comics really diverge... the same basic framework but the stories are still quite different. Almost al the key players in the final 50 issues: Rick, Michonne, Andrea, Carl, Sophia, Dwight are all gone from the show. Lydia's role is much different without Carl. And characters who are dead at this point in the comics are still on the show.
The only character doing literally the same thing in the show as the comics at this point is Eugene.
This thread getting bumped reminded me that I'm going to have to sign up for AMC+ for a month or two so I can watch the last few seasons of Fear the Walking Dead (haven't watched since Season 5) and The World Beyond, even though I heard it isn't all that great. I'm up for 10 episodes of something fairly mindless to watch while I play video games in my 5 weeks off of school.
I was planning on rewatching TWD before the final 8 episodes, but I don't think that's realistic. So I'll instead take my time and aim to have my rewatch done by the time Season 11 is on Netflix.
The first 6 episodes seem so strange. Not only do that they have that certain quality too them because of Darabont, but the zombies themselves are just so different the way they pick up objects and try to climb ladders and stuff, and they move faster when they're trying to eat and seem to retain some kind of memory. I know this is mostly due to changes in how the zombies will function, but also I supposed it can be canonically explained that these qualities exist in the short-term after someone turns, but not long after that. I can see why Darabont wanted the zombies to be able to pick up objects and turn doorknobs because it can be creepy, but I definitely prefer to the mindless walkers we see after...they're easier to take seriously.
It's nice to see some of these old faces again. Shane, Merle, Morales, Andrea, Jim, Babyface Glenn. I still haven't seen dirt-squirrel Daryl yet. And Lori too! I don't hate Lori like a lot of people do, but she provides more of a function than a character for me.
Hearts are tough, she said, most times hearts don't break, and I'm sure that's right . . . but what about then? What about who we were then? What about hearts in Atlantis?
I finally watched the last few episodes this weekend. Overall I thought it was a good finale, though the final season doesn't match the quality of Season 9 and 10 (excluding the extra 6 episodes). The time wasted on the underwhelming and pointless Reapers could have been much better spent concentrating our storytelling on The Commonwealth, and giving it a slower burn. The characters integrated into The Commonwealth far too fast, especially in terms of getting positions of power and influence. I know worth is determined based on what people did before the apocalypse, but it was all way too convenient, and it could have been handled more logically with more time and a slower burn. The Rick/Michonne stuff from the end was very distracting. I would rather that have been presented a post-credits thing, because the final shot with Judith/RJ was a nice way to end it, but it felt redundant and tacked on after all that.
The biggest issue with the series in the second half was being toothless when it came to killing off characters. Screw killing off main characters, it got to the point they were afraid to kill off supporting or recurring characters. In the final 30 episodes they only killed off FOUR recurring characters, Alden, Jules, Luke, and Rosita...and 3 of those were in the finale. The only death that really mattered probably to anyone was Rosita. Jules and Luke literally were brought back in just to be killed off. In the comics, the final 30 issues features the deaths of (MAJOR COMIC SPOILERS - it ends nothing like the show)
Spoiler:
Andrea, Sherry, Dwight, Father Gabriel, Rick Grimes
. It got to the point where you never feared for any of the characters, which really hurt the tension of the show. A big aspect of the drama of this show for the first 4 or 5 seasons was that most characters felt like they could go at any time. Even comics readers had no way to be sure considering the early deaths of Sophia, Dale, Lori, and Andrea. How can a show that is primarily about survival be compelling if survival seems guaranteed?
From a photography perspective, you can tell they switched to digtal in this final season. They use a lot of wide lenses with distortion and the aesthetic was just totally wrong. Walking Dead being shot on film helped convey the grittiness of the show, but this shift to digital made the show look cheaper, and the lenses and shallow focus being used often felt like such a departure from the deep focus the show typically employed that it really first disconnected. And it's a shame too because the actual production value of the sets and costumes and everything in these final 24 episodes was very strong. And there was some fun stuff in it too, namely Lance Hornsby who was very fun. But The Commonwealth leaders were out and out villains in the series, compared to the morally grey Commonwealth in the comics. Pamela Milton in the comics wasn't an evil person and her corruption was more a result of complacency and habit than the outright villainy in the series. Highlights in the comics are Rick and Pamela having ideological conflicts over leadership and what society should be, and in it Pamela is ultimately a good leader who lost her way with a misguided idea of how a society should be structured.
What makes the final issue of the comics so good, without getting into spoilers, is that it is all falling action. Imagine if the "one year later" section of the finale were 90 minutes long and instead of one year it was "twenty-five years later" and the impact our characters had on The Commonwealth and the wider world is truly seen, and the abbreviated version in the show works, but is far too short. Ultimately the best parts of the finale were the Negan and Maggie exchanges, the Negan letter to Judith, and the final Daryl/Carol conversation. Is there a better plutonic relationship in the history of television?
I haven't watched Fear since Season 5 because season 5 was really bad. I heard Season 6 started off really good, but I never ended up catching up. Maybe I'll sign up for AMC+ for a couple of months to see if the second half of the show is an improvement over the first 5 seasons because, really, after a decent 6 episode start, Season 3 was the only good season of the show through 5 seasons.
Originally Posted by Still Servant
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