The Bitching Dead

Once again I find myself astounded by the complaints on social media about one of the best television series currently on the boob tube… AMC’s ‘The Walking Dead’.

The standard complaint usually comes after a deep episode of character development that lacks the carnage that segments of the show’s fan base seem to appreciate the most. “If it bleeds it leads” appears to be the mantra for those types that appreciate knives to zombie skulls or just flat out beheadings. Or maybe they’re the “gun nuts” that own stock in companies that manufacture squibs (exploding blood packs for scenes involving over-the-top gunshots)?

I don’t really know, but it seems that there are a percentage of fans that want more gore and fewer meaningful scenes of character development. Perhaps they’re just too obtuse to understand the deeper meaning of the series. Again, I just don’t know and I’m not sure why that bothers me.

‘The Walking Dead’ just wrapped up another season where Negan finally made his appearance. Sure, the series saved him for last on the season ender and who could blame them?

But the cliffhanger where Negan takes Lucille, a barbed wire wrapped baseball bat, and beats the skull in and life out of one of the cast members caused a lot of outrage on social media.

The cries were loud and some were calling “BS”. A percentage of the viewing audience was angry about the decision of the writers and creators to turn a season ending episode into a cliffhanger. They felt that they deserved to know which cast member was biting the dust at the hands of Negan and his Lucille.

In my opinion, this is unbelievable.

The ONLY thing they owe viewers is simple and easy to understand… They should leave you for six months wanting more of ‘The Walking Dead’. That is their job.

‘The Walking Dead’ is a serial. Each episode continues the storyline created, written, acted, and directed by professionals committed to telling stories in the medium known as television. A time honored tradition of serials is that previously mentioned thing referred to as a “cliffhanger”. The purpose is to leave you hanging as to what the results will be when the series picks back up.

There’s plenty of time to discuss the cliffhanger during the time before the next season airs. You’re able to form ideas and share opinions. You’re able to digest the happenings and speculate about what will happen during the new season that will be here before we know it.

I remember a time in 1980 when the American public was obsessed with a season ending cliffhanger where J.R. Ewing was shot by an unknown assailant on a nighttime soap known as ‘Dallas’. “Who shot J.R.?” became a national catch phrase. There were even t-shirts dedicated to the storyline with the simple phrase of “I Shot J.R.”. Everyone had their theories as to who tried to kill bad ol’ J.R. Ewing.

It was great! I had my theory and I was wrong. As a matter of fact, I don’t recall knowing anyone that had a correct theory. The series was a staple in the Sims household and we discussed it all summer long around the dinner table at least once a week. It was discussed in the classrooms, lobby, and hallways of Northwest Guilford Junior High School. Some of the discussion even spilled over into the buses that shuttled us to and from NW Guilford. It would pop into discussions happening in the parking lot and game room at Putt-Putt during the summer.

It was inescapable. And it was fun to chat about.

So what has happened over the years to cause ‘The Walking Dead’ audience to cry out with disapproval when they were presented with a fantastic cliffhanger last Sunday night?

Personally, I feel that today’s viewers have become too accustomed to instant gratification that comes with streaming favorite television series. And if viewers don’t get that satisfaction, well by golly they’re going to take to social media and voice their disapproval instantly because they have a “bullhorn” to do so.

They sound like spoiled children that aren’t getting what they think they deserve. After all, they deserve to know! They don’t care for the time honored tradition of the “cliffhanger” that serial types of shows are historically known for… They want it now!

Perhaps those viewers don’t care for fun things like speculation and reflection about events leading up to the cliffhanger. Maybe they don’t like discussing it with friends and family.

Oh wait… They desire instant gratification. What was I thinking?

Listen… If you’re an avid viewer of ‘The Walking Dead’ you got exactly what you deserved. We all did. Sure, I’ll give up the fact that the mid-season finale with Glenn surrounded by a horde of zombies around a dumpster was gimmicky. It shouldn’t have involved a character of that magnitude and it shouldn’t have taken as long as it did to resolve when the series came back from the mid-season break.

And maybe that’s what is pissing off a percentage of the millions that watch ‘The Walking Dead’. They may feel as if their emotions are being toyed with.

Well, guess what? Emotions are being toyed with and that’s the whole point.

Those responsible for making the series want you craving the identity of the character that dies at the hand of Negan and his handy little friend Lucille. That is exactly what serial storytellers are supposed to do.

Live with it, accept it, and enjoy the off season discussion with friends and family. You’ll be surprised as to how you may come to some other possibilities and ideas. Open yourself to discussion about ‘The Walking Dead’ season finale on social media instead of bitching about not getting your instant gratification.

I’m not a fan of binge watching television series. I get the feeling that this instant gratification is making viewers dumber and spoiled because they don’t want to think and roll ideas around in their noodle. They need answers now!

In my opinion, that’s a damn shame.

Television as art?

Chigs finally watched last Sunday’s episode of ‘The Walking Dead’. I watched it again with her. I have been busting at the seams to talk about it with her. Since I don’t like to give spoilers, I wasn’t about to spoil the experience for her.

Even while watching she said, “Tell me what happens.”

I kept a stone’s resolve and kept looking straight at the television as if she said absolutely nothing. I didn’t want to spoil the moment that was about to arrive. I wanted to see her reaction because a character was killed off ‘The Walking Dead’ last Sunday night. A character played by an actress that Chigs has grown to love.

I was surprised, of course, when it happened. And I was delighted as to how it happened!

The series gave us, the viewers, the “ol’ one, two”. They let us see a scare coming when a character approached the car containing a cooler. SURPRISE! A zombie pops up into the window. It was something anyone that has watched more than a handful of horror movies would see coming.

I was a little surprised that it “got” Chigs, but it did and she admitted to it. Hell, it even got me a little because I was checking my Twitter. I had seen it, but damn! Once my attention was diverted that little bit, that zombie pop up got me.

But later, the character’s death came out of nowhere! It was a complete and utter surprise! And I love the fact that the character, unaware of what happened, kept talking. It was a thing of beauty.

Sure, I was disappointed like Chigs. I wanted that character to continue on the show. That character was finally coming to terms about “living” and killing her own share of zombies instead of cowering in her safe confines while others did it for her.

That particular episode of ‘The Walking Dead’ sparked a conversation between us after we finished watching it.

“Look at us,” she said. “We’re discussing a television show.”

“That’s good,” I said. “Television is an art form. Art should be discussed. Television should be subject to the same criticisms as music or paintings or movies.”

Last Sunday’s episode is titled “Twice As Far” and it’s a fairly deep episode. There was enough zombie slaughter to satisfy the masses that don’t seem to care for deeper meaning of the human condition. But that’s what makes the show great! That's the heartbeat of the series.

Sometimes I’m bothered by folks that easily dismiss the series as a zombie show. It’s not about the zombies. It’s about the humans and how inhumane they can be towards each other when all laws of society are taken off the table. The greatest enemy on the show isn’t the zombies. It’s the living.

If you’d like to see this excellent episode of ‘The Walking Dead’, just click right here. The link will take you to AMC’s website and you can watch it for free. Even if you’ve never watched an episode of the series before, try this one on for size to see why it’s one of my favorite shows of all time.

Journey 'Captured'

With only six episodes in 2015, ‘Fear The Walking Dead’ is fourth on my list of Best New Shows of 2015.

Unless you’ve been living in a bomb shelter on a Pacific Island, you already know that it’s a spin off of ‘The Walking Dead’ television series and comic. But it’s really more of a prequel as well as a companion television series (I do hope there’s crossover sometime down the line).

The main character is Madison Clark (Kim Dickens), school guidance counselor with a heroin addicted son Nick and overachieving poster-daughter Alicia. Madison has a boyfriend by the name of Travis who has a bit of baggage himself to bring to the zombie apocalypse.

Now things start off slow for many fans of ‘The Walking Dead’ series that don’t appreciate good storylines, acting, or character studies.

I only say that because the second episode of ‘Fear The Walking Dead’ shed nearly 2 million viewers after debut fetched over 10 million. I saw it all over social media about how boring it was… Where’s the carnage? Blah, blah, blah

And that’s too bad, really. But I guess some viewers just aren’t into really good storytelling or perhaps the deep nuisances of the series are too much to comprehend.

Oh well… I find it very interesting to see what happened at the start of the zombie apocalypse. Seeing how the masses dealt with such an absurd thing as the dead reanimating and coming after them to feed and kill.

Madison adapts quickly to the kill or be killed mentality while Travis wrestles with his liberal political leanings.

I find watching Travis very appealing because he doesn’t like his son being shown a few gun tips from Daniel (Reuben Blades) who obviously has a shady past as some kind of torturer from El Salvador. Slowly, but surely, Travis will come around to the new version of Darwinism that the zombie apocalypse will bring about.

With ‘The Walking Dead’, viewers were thrust into this apocalyptic world when Rick Grimes woke up in his hospital bed. Grimes was forced to move and react with very little time to process what was going on. In ‘Fear The Walking Dead’ it’s more of a slow burn. It’s everything we wanted to see, but some viewers don’t seem to have the patience for it.

The most interesting character would have to be Victor Strand (Colman Domingo).

We meet him in a holding cell as he takes Nick under this wing. Victor is obviously a man of means and he’s interesting because he’s not the blue collar type that permeates the original series. Victor has a seaside mansion and a yacht for escape. He has money, charisma, and “do as I shall” attitude.

Victor seems like the perfect cast member to become either a nasty villain or formidable good guy.

I honestly believe that Victor Strand will fall into the villain category.

Why?

I foresee a moment coming when Nick must make a choice. Will it be his mother Madison or Victor Strand?

We shall see how he develops when the series picks back up in the spring of 2016.

Funkadelic 'One Nation Under A Groove'

We continue on with my retooled and revamped list of all-time favorite shows. It has been a long time since I’ve revisited my list. And like a countdown show, some of my faves have fallen down the chart. There’s also some new blood on my list…

Like number seven!

‘The Walking Dead’ blasts up the charts with a bullet!

Isn’t it hard to believe that NBC passed on this series? Don’t you think some executive somewhere is blaming themselves for missing this juggernaut?

AMC picked it up and ‘The Walking Dead’ with the “Romero” type of zombie gets ratings that are close to what the NFL gets in primetime. The series has become the new “water cooler” show and in these days of DVR convenience along with thousands of other viewing choices, that’s a rare thing.

I’ve found out the hard way that if I don’t watch every week during the actual broadcast, shortly after, or the next morning… It’s going to get spoiled someway or somehow. I’ll see a spoiler somewhere on social media or from one of the many trade tweets. It’s just inescapable for me to go a day or two without spoilers of some kind.

As I write this, the world is still debating if the character of Glenn Rhee is still alive.

With only a few more episodes before the mid-season break, I’m sure they’re going to string along viewers until the return.

Personally, I wish his wife Maggie was the one they may have killed off. When the actress, Lauran Cohan, actually uses a southern accent it’s atrocious. I just don’t understand why actors make southern accents sound so dumb.

But anyway, the series is great on many levels.

Sure, there’s zombie carnage and that’s always fun. But the series is so much deeper. It’s about humanity and the fragility of how humane humans can and cannot be when there’s no law or order. ‘The Walking Dead’ is a character study of humanity. It’s Darwinism in action. It’s also anarchy where consequences are few and far between.

I often up end shaking my head at some of the posts that I read on social media about ‘The Walking Dead’. It’s a shame that some people only get off on the carnage when there’s so much happening and bubbling under the surface. For example, social media was buzzing about the episode where we find out what happened to Morgan and why he no longer kills another human being even when his life is threatened. The buzzing was about the lack of carnage and how boring the episode was to them.

I can’t help feeling that these people are missing out. Perhaps all the carnage is the only thing that holds their interest. The television snob in me pities them for a moment because they’re missing the deep character development that adds to the storyline.

They’re the same types of people that bitched and complained about the spinoff series ‘Fear The Walking Dead’. AMC fetched BIG numbers when the series premiered. But week after week the series saw a decline in ratings even though they were still in the bona fide hit series range.

Three things that interest me about ‘Fear The Walking Dead’…

1. It is interesting to see the outbreak from the beginning.
2. It is fascinating to see how Travis will transform from a gun disapproving man to a kill or be killed kind of guy.
3. And it’s great to see the writers breakaway from the blue collar types in the original to a man with means. Victor has money. Victor had his own set of rules from the start. He is a man of action that isn’t used to hearing the word “no”.

But the carnage just isn’t up to the sheeple standard yet. They simply cannot abide character development without it. And that’s a shame. Really. There are so many layers to both series and it kind of hurts that some folks just aren’t getting the full effect.

But oh well… I love it for everything that it is. And I love it for everything that it isn’t for a good portion of the masses.

It’s their loss.

Charlie Sexton 'Charlie Sexton'

So did you see the season premiere of ‘The Walking Dead’ last night?

Was it not the most ridiculous thing you’ve ever seen?

First of all, let’s give Sweetwater Brewing Company a round of applause for shelling out some bucks for cases upon cases of beer to be displayed during the supply run at the Big Spit store. The product placement worked! It made me want a Georgia Brown at that moment. Yet not one person in Darryl’s supply platoon snaps a case up for later around the campfire. Oh sure, the new guy wanted to snag a bottle of vino for later. But just one?!

Second… The name of the store is Big Spot, but they use an “!” in place of the “i”. So the obvious name to call the place is “Big Spit”.

Third… And this is the biggest issue with the first episode of the new season… A helicopter crashed onto the roof of the Big Spit. The crash looked horrific, but the store roof was seemingly fortified to take the weight of the impact of the crash along with the remaining wreckage. It’s only when a 90 pound zombie walks across the roof the camel’s back break. A decomposing straw of a zombie is too much trauma for the roof to handle and they all start falling through the roof and onto the unsuspecting group led by easy riding Darryl the bow hunter.

Zombies are crashing onto aisles with blood-spattering gore, falling onto cases of delicious Sweetwater beer, and providing general mayhem while the HEAVIEST thing on the roof (the helicopter) hangs on until the last minute before crashing through.

Now I’m not any kind of structural engineer, but I gotta call BS on this one.

So… They had nearly a year to write up a script for the returning season and this is what we get?

I know that it’s a show where disbelief should be suspended, but poorly thought out plot points are just that… Poorly thought out plot points. How did it ever get to the filming stage? Don’t they sit around and discuss these things before a location is staked out for filming? Doesn’t someone’s common sense kick in during the storyboard pre-production?

Or could the producers, writers, and directors think that the viewers are mindless zombies willing to bite into and swallow anything?

And for the fourth and final thought… Is that not the crappiest prison you’ve ever seen?

The shiny new fencing couldn’t hold back a gaggle of kids at a concert by The Wiggles. It’s flimsy as hell. The buildings don’t seem to resemble any kind of prison buildings that I’ve ever seen either in person or on a ‘Ghost Adventures’ outing.

So why do I keep watching?

It’s fun despite the some of the glaring flaws. I'm still in... For now.