My Thoughts On The Walking Dead Season 5 And More

I don't review The Walking Dead as a whole series anymore and I chose not to review individual episodes however I thought I'd give my thoughts on season 5 by listing the good and bad points of it. SPOILERS.

Good

The Hunters: Now these where portrayed well in the TV series and their backstory was even improved upon and they lasted a whole lot longer than in the comics. The individual hunters where fleshed out a lot more, we had an awesome season premiere of Rick's group escaping their camp and we got some really gruesome cannibalism scenes from them later.

Father Gabriel: A character who like the Hunters was portrayed really well in the TV series because they barely changed his character and backstory. In my opinion when you want to change a character from source material to live action it only works with minor characters for example giving them more of a backstory. It worked with the Hunters and even the group Daryl was with for a bit in season 4 but it doesn't work with main characters; Andrea and the Governor for example. Andrea I just hated and found annoying (plus she was completely miscast) and while I really liked the Governor and David Morrissey they took away a lot of the sick and violent stuff he did in the comics.

Abraham's group/Flashback episode: Another example of characters portrayed well in live action and probably the best ones as well because they really look like their characters. One of my favourite episodes this season was when it focused on Abraham's group and his flashback. I am grateful to this episode too because it gave us a break from that so boring police arc.

The Alexandria Safe Zone: A part from a few changes that annoy me (the biggest one mentioned below) the safe zone really looks great. We also have quite a few major characters introduced from the comics who live in the safe zone like Aaron, Jessie and Pete. It seems to be sticking close to the source material and even when it hasn't it has still been entertaining such as when Glenn, Eugene and the others went to find parts for the solar grid.

Bad

The episodes with the Beth and the police: This just had to be in the bad list because it was just so damn boring! Probably the worst episodes of all in the whole series and it just wasted so much time. For starters I have never liked Beth's character; I never got why they downside Hershel's family and then replace Billy from the comics with another daughter. Next that woman who was in charge of the police (can't be bothered to remember her name) was just such a bad character, I mean they don't even make it clear if she is good or a villain. All the cops hate her, she lets them do all they want with patients, she imprisons Beth and Noah yet wastes so much time explaining her side of everything. To make matters worse they didn't even have a big shoot out between the two group; the policewoman and Beth just both did something stupid and got themselves killed.

Killing off Bob, Tyresse and Noah: What started off as a joke on the internet has become true in my opinion; the always seem to kill off the black guy. They built Bob up to be such a good character that it was such a shame that they used him to replace Dale's death in the series. I know Tyresse dies at the prison in the comics so they had to kill him sooner or later but I feel like they could have done a lot more with him and let him reach the safe zone. Then there was Noah who I felt they didn't even need to kill off despite it being a really cool and gruesome death scene. I just can't get why these great characters had to die when such an annoying bitch like Sasha is still around and I'll get to her now.

Sasha: Now this is one annoying bitch who I wish they wold just kill off already! I know she is a bit of a replacement for Andrea and is even taking over some of Micchone's comic scenes in the Alexandria Safe Zone but I think it hasn't worked. She just whines and complains about everything and I just find her rages when she attacks zombies to just be so bloody stupid. I just don't get the point of her character at this point because she just seems to hate everyone and everything and she outcasts herself too bloody much.

Replacing Paul Monroe with Deanna: Now this is something that really bothers me; in the comics the leader of the safe zone is an ex- politician named Paul Monroe. He is a really good character in my opinion and brings a great backstory about the safe zone where he was forced to exile it's founder and friend Davidson. However we don't get that in the TV series instead he is replaced for no apparent reason at all by Deanna who is just such a poor substitute. Her recording all her meetings is just pointless and I just find her to be really unlikeable, weak and incredibly stupid; she just doesn't feel like she could be a leader of a community.

No weather changes: This is actually for all seasons but I am really annoyed that it is always summer in the Walking Dead when they have to battle all seasons, like the winter, in the comics.

The Finale: The parts with Morgan, Daryl and Aaron where good as well as the ending with Pete but besides that it was such a disappointment for a feature length episode. I just hate everything Sasha does such as lying with those walkers to her confrontation with Gabriel; are they trying to make us feel sorry for her because it is not working, they have just created an incredibly annoying character. What I also hated was that they didn't kill Deanna off and now we have to suffer with her in season 6 now; why did they have to make her husband be the one killed by Pete? I just don't get why they had to replace Paul with her! It just didn't feel like a finale to me because it didn't feel like anything major happened, plus we didn't even get a major character death or even that Nicholas who so deserves it.

There you have it just a few good and bad moments that really stood out for me this season. I really do like The Walking Dead but my biggest problem is that it changes too much from the comics and when it creates it's own original material it is usually boring. Here is a few examples from each season after one (that season only had six episodes anyway):

Season Two: The entire season set in Hershel's farm, spending ages discussing whether or not to kill their captive, Andrea and that zombie in the well.

Season Three: Andrea being with the Governor because she basically does nothing and this replaces the awesome arc in the comics when Rick is captured by the Governor, introducing Tyresse now when it should have been in last season and cutting out a lot of the violent things the Governor does.

Season Four: The sickness lasts a bit too long, baby Judith surviving the Governor's attack when in the comics her death haunts Rick and Carl for ages, the group splitting up was dragged on for too long and felt like filler.

Despite these examples I still really like The Walking Dead TV series but there are a lot of characters and events I want to see from the comics, Negan and Jesus for example (no spoilers but those who have read the comics will know what I am talking about!)       

My 20 favourite protagonists from recent TV show I watch

Here is a list of my 20 favourite protagonists, who are all from TV series that have aired recently (or are still airing) and am watching. None of these characters are villains because I might do a separate list for them however there are some characters in this list who are in the grey. (I don't have screencaps for Game of Thrones so I only put two in this list)


20. Michonne

The badass, katana - wielding zombie killer who is a fan favourite in the comics and has been portrayed really well in the TV series. She always keeps her head in a crisis and I have to give her credit for picking a sword for her main weapon; smart choice because it doesn't use bullets. She is at the bottom of my list because I admit I didn't like her too much at first but that is mainly because the writers just had to pair her with that stupid Andrea and I just didn't like the storyline those two had.

19. Jim Gordon

Was not sure how good Gotham was going to be (a Batman series without Batman?) however Gordon was one of the reasons that proved the show can work. They gave the comic book version of Gordon justice by making his younger TV version exactly how I imagined he would be.

18. Harvey Bullock

I like Bullock a bit more than Gordon because he isn't just as straight forward as him. He may have started out corrupt and uncaring but he really has changed with the episodes and I especially liked his small flashback in the goat episode.

17. Dan Weaver

Tom may have become the most important person on earth since the show started but Weaver will always be the leader of the 2nd Mass who does anything and everything to protect those under his command.

16. Jamie Lannister

You may think that Jamie should be on my villains list but he has earned a space on this list because of his redemption story which started in season three. He started out as a cocky knight who would do anything for his sister to a more honourable sort of character, besides in Game of Thrones basically every character is in the grey.

15  Felicity Smoak

I just had to have Team Arrow on this list because they where the first hero team in the new DC tv series universe. Felicity is everything you want in one; beautiful, funny, reliable and really, really smart to name a few. She may not be a vigilante but she is none the less the kind of person you want on you team and she does attract a lot of heroes; Arrow, Flash and ATOM.

14. John Diggle

The first person Arrow recruited for his team and the one everyone can depend on either to talk to or to take into a fight. Diggle is Arrow's reliable backup on his missions and someone who deserves his own costume and hero name more than anyone!

13. Rick Grimes

May have started out as a cop but through the course of the show you see zombies and the need for survival take their toll on Rick has he is willing to do anything to protect his family. He is a natural leader and one of the best zombie killers in any zombie fiction.

12. Black Canary (Sara Lance)

Black Canary is a great comic book character and she was soooooo great in Arrow. She kicks lots of ass with her staff and her costume is really great. I also liked that she had a connection with the League of Assassins and it is because of her and Malcolm that they have such a presence in the show. 

11. Tom Mason

The invasions was probably good for Tom because it turned him from a college professor to literally the most important person on the planet. I like how Tom always seems to put the needs of other before his own and fights to protect everyone.

10. Charlie Matheson

She can sometimes be stubborn but I do really like Charlie as the strong female lead in Revolution along side Nora (Rachael never should have existed). I really liked Charlie's journey from being a sheltered child to quite the capable fighter as she travels across America and gains new experiences.

9. Cochise

The only non human on this list but I really like him all the same. He is such a great character and ally to the human race and to Tom especially, it is really interesting when he is on screen and that his race have their own plans.

8. Arsenal (Roy Harper)

For starters I actually like his costume a lot more than Arrow's but that is mainly because I like red better than green lol. I liked Roy ever since season one and I liked what he had to go through to become Arsenal. However now that he is Arsenal he defiantly needs a new story arc since I don't think he has had one yet in season three.

7. Sebastian Monroe

If he didn't redeem himself a bit in season two than he would be in the villains list, I know he still does some questionable things to get results but so does Miles anyway. Monroe is kind of a tragic character because he was a villain at first because of a lot of other influences e.g. Miles, losing his family etc. He is also a great leader and one of the best fighters in Revolution, would have enjoyed a season three where we watch him reform the Monroe Republic.

6. Daryl Dixon

Michonne and Rick are great zombie killers however they don't compare to Daryl because he is just a natural born survivalist. If there is anyone more equip to survive the end of the world it is Daryl because he is a tracker, hunter, gunfighter, archer, stealth fighter and the list goes on. He isn't even in the comics but he has just become so popular in the TV series that they can just never kill him off.

5. Tyrion Lannister 

The outcast but one of the most smartest manipulators there is and also the most popular character in the show. Tyrion is good natured while his family and those around him are not and is one of the most powerful players in the game of thrones.

4. The Flash (Barry Allen)

Like Felicity I count Barry as an extremely "likable nerd" type character and I also like that the chose Barry Allen for the Flash in the TV series since he is the best one in the comics. I have really enjoyed watching Barry understand his powers more and more and I he was the character who introduced super powers in to the Arrow universe.

3. Arrow (Oliver Queen)

Arrow was the first to prove that heroes work on the small screen and not just in a film and for that I will always be grateful. They did a great adaptation that has so far spawned one spin off and there are talks of several more soon. Marvel was dominating the live action film universe but DC really hit back with their TV series and is all thanks to Arrow. The character himself is just so cool showing his hardships on the island to a dark vigilante in the present.

2. Miles Matheson

Quite literally a one man army, Miles Matheson could face off against fifty Militia with only his sword and still win. Again all characters in Revolution have a great story and I liked how in the Flashbacks Miles was this cold - hearted Militia leader to the drunk we see him in the present. He does a lot of questionable things in the series (some might be viewed as evil) however I have always thought of him as one of the good guys.

1. John Pope

"Life hands ya lemons, ya blow his freaking head off." Pop is defiantly my favourite TV series character because he is just a damn badass! He fully accepted the humans had lost to the aliens and just wanted to go out fighting but eventually accepted being apart of the 2nd Mass. Still that doesn't stop him from butting heads with everyone but when the s**t goes down he is always there getting his digs in.  As much as he probably tries to deny it Pope is a real hero to the human race as much as Tom and I just like every scene he is in.

The great screenshots of the episodes where provided by the great site Screencapped. You can look for yourself from the link below;

 

 





http://screencapped.net/  

 

http://ladymanson.com/ShadowofReflection/home.php

TV Series Review: The Walking Dead Season Four

Took me longer than I thought to get round to a review of The Walking Dead Season Four but I have finally got round to it.

Taking place a few months after the events of season three the prison now seems to be a really stable and flourishing camp. With the inclusion of the Woodbury survivors in their group now, Rick and co are now trying to make a proper life for themselves again. Rick however, wanting to set a better example for Carl has resigned from the leadership position and is now basically the farmer along with Carl. However the peace they have created does not last in the form of the hordes of zombies, a deadly virus and the Governor who is gunning for revenge.

I have been really looking forward to this season because my favourite parts from the graphic novel is the attack of the Governor and the events that happen after and for the most part it does not disappoint. I will now go in to three of my favourite highlights of this season and be warned; SPOILERS AHEAD!

First is the story of a deadly virus that sweeps through the prison and infects many of the residents, this is also why they included a lot of red shirts. I did like this part a lot because it was a good original plot they made for the series, plus Hershel gets an episode all to himself on dealing with the virus which is one of my favourite episodes. I have always like the casting of Scott Wilson and he was just so good as the main character for the episode.

Next is the second attack of the Governor, which unlike the last season, was not a disappointment. It included the tank from the graphic novel and it was all guns blazing and zombie action. They also include the Governor's famous decapitation scene of a major character and that was just so cool. The only let down though the extended flashback of the Governor of what he did after season three that covers two episodes. While this was interesting in its own way it suffers from what a lot of original series content suffers from; it just dragged on!! The flashback really could have just been one episode or just a half an episode, it was just really slow in some parts. Also again I praise David Morrissey as the Governor and again I feel like it is the writers who let down is character a bit not the actor by dialling down the brutally of him.

Thirdly is the introduction of three of my favourite graphic novel characters; Abraham Ford (Michael Cudlitz), Rosita Espinosa (Christian Serratos) and Eugene Porter (Josh McDermitt). Not only was their acting just for the characters was perfect but they really, really look like who they are supposed to be. I really want to see even more of these three in the next season.

There are however a couple of let downs in this season and that has mainly to do with some of the characters during the second half after the attack from the Governor, while the group is split. While this does include the introduction of the three characters above from the graphic novel it also includes ALOT of original series content that spans across eight episodes. While some of this original content is good it is the same as with the Governor's flashback; it just drags on too much. Whole episodes are given over to pairing of characters like Daryl and Beth and Tyreese and Carol and while I like these characters I felt a lot of screen time was wasted on them.

Also I think that this season really messed up three events from the graphic novel by mixing it in with original content, the first with the two sisters Lizzie and Mika. These two obviously took the place of Ben and Billy and if I'm honest I never really liked them that much. Ben went crazy and killed his twin because he had psychopathic mental problems and never understood what he did. For Lizzie killing Mika they had her being sympathetic to the zombies and wanted to be friends with them, I never liked that and I found her scenes when she is playing with the walkers just very annoying.

Another event is the group Daryl ends up with for a short while after Beth is kidnapped by an unknown person. I admit I really liked this group when they were introduced and also liked the group's leader Joe (Jeff Kober) because he as a really dark and interesting antagonist. I even thought he could have been a new main enemy for Rick and the rest after the Governor and before the introduction of Negen but I was wrong. After such a hype Joe and his group got they merely took the place of the three rapist that attack Rick, Carl and Abraham for a few pages before being quickly dispatched and that is what happen here. That was a major disappointment for me.

Finally the thing that bothered me the most out of this whole entire season is that Judith is still ALIVE! Don't get me wrong it is not like I want a baby to die but she does in the graphic novel along with Lori and it is the biggest failure Rick has done that haunts him ever since. At first I thought it would be best if they did not kill her off but when they showed the blood stained baby chair at the end of the Governor's attack I thought; "wow the writers actually did it after all, they killed her off but in a way that is more appropriate for TV." But then she was shown with Tyreese and Carol. Sorry but I do not know were they are going to go with this and I don't want Rick to be burdened with looking after a baby for the entire rest of the show. This is also another example of the writers dialling down the brutally of the graphic novel like the stuff the Governor does, Rick losing his hand and now this! Makes me worried about what they are going to do with Negen?

Before I end this there are few other good points to mention like the episode Rick and Carl to themselves that adapted really well from the graphic and the inclusion of Bob Stookey (Lawrence Gilliard Jr.) who has become one of my favourite characters. He is a lot different from his graphic novel counterpart but I defiantly prefer this one because he has such a larger and important role. His struggles with alcoholism he touched more in this and when he had his flashback of being alone for ages I think that was acted just so well, I really felt sorry for that guy and you really feel that he has just been through hell. My hats off to Lawrence Gilliard Jr, I hope you continue to be a member of Ricks group for a good long while.

And that is it, overall it was a solid season but the first half was a lot better than the second and they messed up some iconic plots form the graphic novel that I really cannot forgive them for. However the action and casting are great as always and I really hope it gets back to the proper story of getting to Washington soon.

SCORE: 7/10

TV Series Review: The Walking Dead Season Two

Took me longer than I thought to get round to this but I am finally doing a review for The Walking Dead season two. As always these reviews contain spoilers so I advise you not to read this review unless you have watched season two first.

This season begins almost immediately after the events of the final episode of season one and Rick and his group have now left the Atlanta area and are now on the road. Without going in to too much depth of the plot this season focuses on the events of the graphic novel that takes place at a farm owned by a man named Hershel Green (Scott Wilson) and he lives there with his daughter Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and several others.

What I immediately like about this season is that the number of episodes has been increased from six to thirteen and it introduces more characters from the graphic novel. However while this is great it is also a let down because it means more room for filler that was not included from the source material. A notable example of this is that a lot of the content for episodes one through seven focuses on finding Sophia Peletier (Madison Lintz), the daughter of Carol Peletier (Melissa McBride). Even thought this story arc is interesting I just felt that it did not need seven episodes to devote to it. Also another example stretching out something that seems trivial is that half of an episode is about the group trying to pull a zombie out of a well and another is deciding whether or not to kill someone they captured who is from a dangerous group. I know deciding to kill some one is a serious thing to do but it took a whole episode and really nothing else happens in it.

However I am not saying that all original stuff in this season is bad there is a great episode where Shane goes to a school to find surgery equipment, a shootout at a bar, a fight between Rick and Shane and the final episode are all great moments. The final episode is really great because any zombie killing action moments that might be lacking in some of this season’s episodes are all made up here.

The new cast additions are great, especially Hershel who is really similar to is comic counterpart and whose acting is great. It is really seeing him and Rick’s conflicting views on the zombies for the first half of the season. The rest of Hershel’s family and friends are great as well and the old cast still does a great job but once again this is let down slightly by Andrea who I have mentioned before as being a complete miscast and annoying character. She is more annoying than ever now that she wants tries to act tough with a gun; she listens to no one and thinks she is the best zombie killer of the group. There is a scene where Lori says she dies nothing to help out anymore only stands on the RV with a gun getting a tan and she is right about that. Andrea contributes nothing to this season what so ever; her character development is uninteresting and not done well and she has no major consequence on what is happening.

Now I will be talking about the deaths of a few characters now so I am saying again to be wary of the SPOILERS a head, I am leaving nothing out now:

First let us focus on the death of Sophia; in the graphic novel she is a minor character who is mostly there as a romantic interest for Carl. She does not die but neither is she really the most interesting of characters, so since her death scene was done so well in this really took me by surprise. It was really so emotional and you can really tell how hard it was for Rick to but her down when they found her as a zombie. This was one hell of a great moment for the Walking Dead series.

Another death that I think was completely unnecessary however was the death of Dale near the end of the season. He lives a lot longer than this in the graphic novel and was such a major character as well, so killing him at this point at Hershel’s farm was something I did not like even though I did not see it coming. Another thing about it was that he was killed by just one zombie so it was a poor way to kill him, plus Jeffery DeMunn as Dale played the role perfectly so I really wished that is they had to kill a major character early it should have been Andrea.

Finally the death we graphic novel fans have been waiting for was the death of Shane at the hands of Rick and then shot in the head as a zombie by Carl. Like Sophia this was done really well because you can just tell that Rick seriously did not want to kill Shane that he was made to do it. It is a shame that it was not exactly like the death in the graphic novel, fans will notice that the roles of Rick and Carl are reversed in his death. Still it was a good way to end his character who has been around a lot longer than his graphic novel counterpart.

Overall this is a good follow up to season one with interesting new story arcs and characters but it is however let down by those same story arcs being dragged on for an unnecessary long length so it makes some of the episodes feel more or less like filler. No matter how good the rest of the season was because of this fact I have to give this season a lower score than the first one.

SCORE: 6/10

TV Series Review: The Walking Dead Season One

Now for another review of one of my favourite series currently airing; The Walking Dead. This will be a review of just season one and there may be more SPOILERS in the one then any of my previous reviews.

The series is about a cop named Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) who gets shot and ends up in a coma for a couple of months, when he wakes up he finds the world has been taken over by zombies and most of humanity has been killed or turned. This season is mainly about the search for his family while trying to survive in this extremely hostile world.

The main characters for this include Rick Grimes, his best friend and former cop partner Shane Walsh (Jon Bernthal), his wife Lori Grimes (Sarah Wayne Callies) and his son Carl Grimes (Chandler Riggs). There are a lot of supporting characters as well such as Glenn Rhee (Steven Yeun), Andrea (Laurie Holden), Dale Horvath (Jeffrey DeMunn) and two original characters for the series; Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) and Merle Dixon (Michael Rooker). This season consists of only six episodes which I admit I found to be disappointing.

 

Overall the story is a very good one, I have read the Walking Dead comic books and I know it focuses on character develop and how they are dealing with this constant survival as much as it does with zombie. However there is something about the story that I know has been criticized by some fans and I am two minds about; they deviate a lot from the comic books.

This bold move does give fans of the comic something to watch that they do not know about and that is always good but sometimes it goes so much away from the source material that it can be an annoyance. For example Rick and Glenn in the comics go back to Atlanta to raid a gun store but in the series it makes that experience an entire episode by including a run in with an annoying Hispanic gang. I just did not like that change at all and also near they end they donate another episode to a visit to the CDC which was interesting but again I found it an unnecessary deviation from the source material.

 

For the characters they are cast really well with stand outs going to Rick and Shane and the interaction between those two; the affair that Shane has with Rick’s wife is expanded in the series and that I think was a good move. The other characters do a really good job as well, a lot of people will find the character of Lori to be unpopular and an annoying bitch but she is very much like this in the comics any way so I did not mind.

However a complete miscast in this has to be Laurie Holden as Andrea, in the comics Andrea is supposed to be in her mid to late twenties yet they give the part to someone around forty which would not have mattered except in this series she definitely looks it. Not only that but Andrea in the comics is supposed to be a clerk at a law firm who over time becomes an expert survivalist with a gun but in the series they decide to stick her with a gun straight away and she pretends to be such an expert with it from the beginning even though she has no experience what so ever. Not to mention she is so damn stuck up and hostile towards anyone who thinks she might a little helpless.

A great addition to the cast is the character Daryl Dixon, the first scene I saw him in I knew he was going to be a fan favourite and time has proved me right. He is a born hunter and survivalist who, unlike Andrea, knows how to deal with the situation because he already has years of necessary experience. He is reckless but he is also very useful and someone you want on your side fighting zombies, he is a something new not from the comics that I do not mind being in the series. I hope his character is around for a very, very, very, very long time.  

The music in this goes very well with the story especially the series main/opening theme which has become one of my favourites. The settings are really nice as well but are limited to only Atlanta and its surrounding forest area. However the amount of detail that goes in to the make up of zombies and trying to make the city look has destroyed as possible is truly impressive.

Overall this is one of my favourite series airing right now and I recommend the first season to any one who wants to get in to the zombie genre. It does however suffer slightly from a few annoy characters, only six episodes and original story lines that I felt where just unnecessary when they could have stick closer to the comics.

 SCORE: 7/10

References:

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