So its the Friday before Halloween, and that means that this girl is anxiously awaiting a weekend of horror movies (the good, the bad, and the WTH) on rotation on most every station. I'm kicking it off tonight with a live presentation for Rocky Horror, which I have never seen (I know, I know, I know...).
Because of the season and the impending arrival of Frankenstorm, today seems a good time to ask a question that has been on my mind since Sunday... is the Walking Dead turning cheap on me?All in all, the first two seasons of this show were among my favorite hours of television e.v.e.r. I loved the interplay of humanity and brutality that culminated in perfect, gut-wrenching zombie fashion during the infamous barn scene halfway through the second season.
When the third season started two weeks ago, I was literally on my couch trying to keep from hopping up and down. Bring on the zombies, right? Well, unfortunately, I sort of feel like that is all the first two episodes have accomplished.
Admittedly, I will not give up on the series because of two episodes... hell, three progressively worsening seasons of True Blood haven't stemmed my love at all. But, I feel like something is missing. The gore factor seems to have increased, and I don't mean overall but just in the number of times per episode I wince at something that is just plain disgusting. And yet, as that increased, the focus on the development of the characters seems to be at a stand still.
The writers of this show have an incredible knack for the one or two sentence developer. The series very much began with a group of archetypes-- Rick as the cowboy for good, Shane as the bad boy with a heart and a past, Daryl as the hot headed red neck, etc-- and my favorite aspects of the show have been watching those archetypes slowly and subtly unravel. Seriously, the scene in season 2 with Daryl and the Cherokee Rose could be a PSA for not judging books by their covers.
But did they unravel just to be rebuilt in season 3, where guts and gore will reduce Rick to the benevolent dictator, Lori to the whining wife, Carl to the teenager with attitude, etc?Since we're only 2 episodes in, I have high hopes for a return to the excellent writing that has made this show one of my favorites.
What do you all think? Am I reading too much in to two extra gory episodes? Or is The Walking Dead heading down a slippery slope leading to a Wes Craven series-like fizzle?
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