One of TV’s most popular shows among KSU students
is AMC’s The Walking Dead. This series has been adapted for television based on the comic book series written by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard.
“The Walking Dead is a show about people in a zombie filled world,” said Heather Keith, junior Sociology major. “They have
to fight for survival and keep each other safe while constantly being reminded of the world falling apart around them.”
The Walking Dead follows a variety of characters as they attempt to survive the zombie apocalypse, or as they are called in the show, “walkers.” The show premiered on Halloween night 2010 and received nominations for many awards including a nomination for Best Television Series Drama at the Golden Glove Awards.
“I like the storyline and the character development,” Amanda Rasmussen, senior Communication major said.
The character development of the series is the true hook of the show according to Rasmussen, Keith and Chase Nixon, senior Communication major. All three fans of the show agreed that the show has relatable characters.
“I’d probably be like Glenn,” Nixon said. “Not as much of a…[wimp], but I’d probably be most like Glenn.”
Development of the characters does not just create relatable characters but shows character growth.
“Carl is my favorite character,” Rasmussen said. “At the beginning his dad told him that he couldn’t be a kid anymore and he’s taken that to heart to protect everyone.”
Carl’s a young boy who has evolved from being a child to becoming a man. He is even referred to as a man by other characters during the most recent episode of Season 3.
“The younger people in the show have to grow up quickly,” Keith said. “Like Carl has morphed into more of a man, quickly, because he’s only like 12 or 13.”
The show’s success relies on the character development and storyline. The storyline is a direct parallel to life itself according to Keith.
“People need to be able to bounce back,” Keith said. “Like we have had hurricanes and tornadoes in the U.S. and we have to be able to pull together and keep going.”
Violence is a large part of the storyline of The Walking Dead. This aspect is what Keith, Nixon and Rasmussen believes are the main reason that some people decide against watching the show.
“Some of the gore and the way that the zombies get killed is kind of funny,” Keith said. “But I feel that the violence is kind of necessary to show people that if this would happen, would you want your group to be killed or would you want to kill the thing that’s bad.”
Keith also said that the violence does not compromise the real point of the show which is the coming together of the characters.
“It is not all about the killing and the zombies,” Rasmussen said. “It has a real storyline that has a lot of meaning and it is written very well.”
There is something for everyone in The Walking Dead. Keith described the violence as necessary to the story, but said that there is also romance and life lessons to be learned from the series.
“It shows comradely and it shows people helping other people in a difficult situation,” Keith said. “It shows how people’s true colors come out in a difficult situation where their under real stress.”
Overall the show does not revolve around killing zombies. The killing in the show is about survival and necessity. Some people like Keith believe that this show is a good preparation for a legitimate threat of a zombie apocalypse, but others disagree with this idea.
“I like that it’s just a scenario for the characters to go through their moral problems and stuff that they have,” Nixon said.
Whether fans believe that the zombie apocalypse could happen or not, The Walking Dead gives its audience an hour of entertainment to escape the regular world each Sunday night.
The Walking Dead returns to AMC continuing Season 3 Sunday, Feb. 10 at 9/8c.
