mcnabb

I think this era of TV has gone too much Anti-Hero with every character, as every show needs that Glen character. There is nothing wrong with having a good character, who stays good but that is not the 'in' thing at the moment.

I think the group has no mix of characters that play off of each other well. There is nobody who can go head to head with Rick as Shane and Herschel were perfect foils for him in the first few seasons. Shane was the lightning rod to the Rick, and then Herschel became the calming presence when Rick would go off the rails. It looked like Michonne was going to be Rick's foil (when she knocked him out with her sword a few season ago when he was going crazy with a gun in front of the Alexandria people). But once they made them a couple (which was a bad move) that dynamic was gone.

DthRdrX

I don't have a problem with people bailing on the show because of the violence of the S7 opener. The source material is brutal stuff, which was toned down to appeal to more people. As a longtime horror fan I want it to be more like the comic.

The problems began early during S2 filming, when AMC and Kirkman took creative control over the people they should have trusted to run the series. (Darabont, who is the only reason the series was made in the first place.) The result was the character of Dale, the moral center of the show, being killed off per the actor's request, and S2 being shot on the cheap at the farm.

These problems were made worse during S3, as Kirkman/AMC fought with new showrunner Mazzaro over the plot direction and the budget. Mazzaro being blamed for killing off two characters that fans were not happy with, Lori and Andrea. He also wanted to end the Prison arc sooner, where AMC wanted to drag it out due to the costs of building that set.

Enter Scott Gimple as showrunner, who is a good writer that usually puts out one truly good episode each season, but was hired because he is going to do what he is told. AMC adds up to 16 episodes with a break in between, splits the cast up for filming, and eventually a second show during the summer. AMC's formula is pretty well known now. they blow their budget on the opening and closing episodes because they get the highest ratings.

Tom Banjo

I’m wondering at what point the show will bleed enough viewers to get into cancellation range. 3 more seasons?

dex14

Bingo.

hdnmickey

AMC would have to have something in the pipeline, that they could all but guarantee would get similar ratings, to replace it. Other than Saul (which is essentially spin-off) what else do they have right now that gets anywhere near TWD numbers? Seems like viewers are stuck with them dragging this out along as long as those in charge want it to run.

Bill Needle

IMO part of the lack of new season anticipation can be pinned on Fear the Walking Dead for two reasons:
1. The last season ran right up to the premier of TWD S8.
2. FTWD is an embarrassingly shitty show and acts as an enthusiasm-killing drag on the Dead franchise.

uteotw

Yeah, this was really a low point among low points. It's not like it's Call of Duty with unlimited ammo. Everyone just unloads forever at...windows?

That and Neagan totally pinned down but "Rick, we have to go now." I mean, really???

badlieut

Is this some sort of long game to fuck w/ Negan? Otherwise, the premiere made zero sense.

hdnmickey

Probably more like feeling they have to continue following the path of the comics now that they started down this route with Negan and all the other characters that come with him. People that think it will go down differently will probably be very disappointed and might want to consider dropping out now.

hitmanjules

AMC is CHEAP.

The money they deign to spend on the show does not show up on screen.

I am sick and tired of them using forests as sets.

Xiroteus

They make Negan act like he is complete control when he could have been shot so many times. Even at the end. Is there is reason he does not just get shot.

I'm always thinking. Why are they ALWAYS in the middle of nowhere.

Tom Banjo

The place they film (Senoia, GA) is pretty small. I actually went there a couple of weekends ago. It wasn’t planned, just a last minute detour coming back from Atlanta. We were too late for guided tours so just walked around. Downtown is like 2 blocks long. Afterwards we typed in the studio address in gps and it took us down a road that looked like it should have ended at a meth lab instead of a film lot.
Eating at Nic & Norman’s was cool, but we otherwise saw everything there was to see downtown in about 30 minutes. That included the “museum” that only had 2 props, the “DON’T OPEN, DEAD INSIDE” doors and the dentist chair Andrea was strapped to.

mcnabb

I used to watch each TWD episode twice, because you would miss a lot subtle things with character development, plot points and stuff like that. I tried to watch the episode again last night and was utterly bored, as the show has no depth anymore.

jpcamb

same here. When I asked my wife if she wanted to rewatch this episode last night we both felt it would be a waste of time. Its too bad as this was one of the best shows out there.

I for the life of me can't understand why Rick didn't aim at Negan rather than the random shooting he did when he stopped counting or the barrage of bullets into windows. Ive yet to see the walkers form a pyramid like in World War Z.

smorbie

I hate Negan, but I have hope for this season, even though they didn't kill him, AGAIN on Mercy.

One of the things I have enjoyed on this show is watching society redevelop. And let's face there is nothing more human nature than the victim-bully dynamic. So, what we are watching is that dynamic played out over a societal level, and a milestone in societal evolution. This is the third world war.

DthRdrX

Most of the filming locations are pretty close depending on which seasons you want to revisit. I do recommend fans stopping by when in Atl.

Carl's pudding House is right in back of Alexandria's set, which is right next to 'Woodbury'.

Josh-da-man

Yeah, watching this I was wondering why they just didn't blow Negan away while he was out in the open.

I wonder if, when they're writing the episodes, the writers don't put a lot of thought into the logistics of these things, and they're more concerned with plot and dialogue.

Then, when the scripts go the director, there's no way to film this stuff in a way that makes sense on the sets they have to use. And then you get these big fights and action set pieces that don't make a lot of sense when they're filmed.

funkyryno

^ Isn't that one of the reasons why storyboards are created and used? So such problems can be anticipated and resolved after the scrips is written and before the filming actually begins.

This show has always suffered from plot holes and logic flaws, but they seem to be much worse in later seasons.

VinVega

The Walking Dead ratings - TV By The Numbers

Still watching, but I'm kind of hoping for an end game here somewhere. Once they're done with the Saviors, I don't know if the show can survive just another group of bad guys like it seems pop up in the comics.

DJariya

Well according to Talking Dead, they hope to reach 200 episodes.


So you can ask this question again in 2025.

VinVega

Did Heath die? I know he disappeared on that bridge with Tara, but I don't remember them ever mentioning him again. Or maybe they did and I forgot. It's all a blur now anyway.

General Zod

Between last year's finale with Sasha in the coffin which made absolutely no sense and this years premier of not taking out Negan when it could possibly have been any easier too.. I don't think they are much concerned about plot holes and logic flaws anymore. I think they feel they have a loyal audience and can treat them like morons and they'll continue to tune in.

DWilson

Most TV shows are shot on such tight schedules that storyboarding and that level of planning is a luxury. Most shows are grinding out scripts right up to deadline. However, I don't know if that applies to TWD. I also wondered if the big confrontation played out better on the page. As it was staged it looked ridiculous that they didn't shoot Negan, Xander Berkeley, or any one of his crew. They really needed to kill a major opposing character. The build-up was fine, but the pay-off was frustrating.

BGPu

They could cut it down to half an hour and I doubt anyone would care. It's a total fluff show.

DJariya

http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/dai...s-oct-22-2017/

It's just a promotional tool for the show and AMC.

It gets ridiculous ratings for a relatively cheap studio talk show. The premiere was the 2nd most watched cable show Sunday even airing at 10pm and lasting 2 hours. All profit for AMC.