The Walking Dead Season 6 Discussion

[Bob Morton]

Z Nation can be quite good at times. I like how they actually explained exactly where the virus came from. It's not scary at all, like some of the concepts and situations in The Walking Dead, but well acted, creative and reasonably well written for an Asylum production.

 

[theenglish]

There is still plenty of source material ahead. As I mentioned upthread they are only at the point the comics were when the show started. There are 75 issues of story material, and counting, left to tell.

I doubt it will last that long. Eventually, Lincoln, Reedus, McBride and others will want to leave the series, and without those anchors, TWD would have a hard time trying to maintain strong protagonists, as the 2nd tier actors/characters might be interesting (after several seasons), but some are nowhere near as developed as Rick, Carol or Daryl.

This season has moved very well so far, but I just hope that with every new plot taken from the comics, it does not just transform into more of the same meet new enemy/suffer/group member death(s)/enemy defeated / move on template they've used since season 3.

The beauty of the Walking Dead in these terms is that the series doesn't really have an endgame. We will never learn the secret of the ZA nor fix the end of the world. The television series could easily be planned to end at any time.

 

[Ryan8bit]

The beauty of the Walking Dead in these terms is that the series doesn't really have an endgame. We will never learn the secret of the ZA nor fix the end of the world. The television series could easily be planned to end at any time.

Shows like that I think ultimately lose viewers. At some point, people are going to wonder about a purpose or direction to the show. Right now the purpose is just survival and fighting off the bad guys of the season. And like Trek God said, it's basically the same pattern that they are going through, with just different features each time. Oh, these guys are cannibals. Oh, these guys are crazy. Oh, these guys are just like us, but their leader is crazy and we're going to fight them. The comics basically just run through these same types of groups again and again, upping the stakes each time. That keeps people interested for a while, but there isn't some grand character arc or story that's really being told. It's all just about how when society collapses, the true nature of humans is revealed (nothing new to fiction). There's really not much more to it than that.

Right now there is no suitable end for this show. I really like this show, but I think the best shows have more direction. This show survives on:
- Some likable characters (or actors, probably)
- Zombies / action
- Decent effects and direction for TV
- Some interesting moral dilemmas

Just not direction.

I think right now Walking Dead is most likely at a peak, and that's because ever since they reached Alexandria, the pace and style of the show has changed. There really hasn't been too much down time since they reached here, and I think that's in the show's favor. Maybe it'll slow down for tomorrow's supposed 90-minute Morgan episode though.

 

[hux]

I don't mind them regurgitating the same plot each season as long as it's done with some intelligence and is entertaining to watch. The Governor arc went on too long for me and the hospital was pretty dull but they've hit the ground running with season six.

Ultimately, I would want them to move on again at some point though. Defending their territory was done to death with the prison so churning out more of that doesn't appeal (unless they do something very different with it).

At this point, I think they've recycled stuff enough and need to come up with a new direction for season seven. Some answers regarding the virus would be nice. I think they have to look down that road eventually.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

I like Z Nation a lot. It's the psychotronic, EC Comic, drug-addled, bastard cousin of Walking Dead. Totally off the wall.

That's pretty good. Haven't seen psychotronic in a while.

 

[Bob Morton]

Here's my thoughts from the last time we discussed the endgame of the show:

I wonder if it was only the people that were alive at the 'time' that were infected with the virus (wherever it originated). Survivors wouldn't realize right away that any babies being born were uninfected; at least til one died of SIDS and then didn't come back. It leaves a bit of hope for solving this in the future.

I suppose Judith could die in some terrible non-walker-bite fashion and the characters realize after a time that she's not turning. It's the only actual hope I can think of for the future of the world rather than continuous bare survival until everybody dies.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

I like Z Nation a lot. It's the psychotronic, EC Comic, drug-addled, bastard cousin of Walking Dead. Totally off the wall.

Wouldn't those elements make it more the bastard stepchild of the Return of the Living Dead movies more than a cousin of TWD?

 

[Mr. Adventure]

I like Z Nation a lot. It's the psychotronic, EC Comic, drug-addled, bastard cousin of Walking Dead. Totally off the wall.

Wouldn't those elements make it more the bastard stepchild of the Return of the Living Dead movies more than a cousin of TWD?

Return of the Living Dead could be argued to be a similar take on Night/Dawn of the Dead. However, Z Nation isn't really any more related to Return of the Living Dead than TWD is.

 

[Mojochi]

Why do people keep saying Nicholas' guts/blood are camoflauge?

The walker virus is already in everyone. If we are to believe the moment someone dies, they are a walker (even before rising), Nicholas' blood and organs would be that of a walker, and as a result, provide camouflage.

Then why are they still eating him? If he's a walker then they should be indifferent to his flesh, or even repelled by it, but they are gorging, just as they would do until they ran out of stuff to feast on, including Glenn. The only reason walker guts makes a useful camouflage is because it cloaks them in the smell of decaying flesh

No, Nicholas isn't camouflage, but he may be a very temporary shield. Perhaps Glen could kill a walker while in the scrum & use it's guts as camouflage, but that's probably more time consuming than he can afford, & he's still in danger of being hurt or killed

 

[Trekker4747]

Tried watching Z-Nation a few times and it was just... odd. It seemed to be taking the piss a lot more than it should so it was hard to take the concept seriously and feel like the characters were ever really in any danger.

 

[theenglish]

Here's my thoughts from the last time we discussed the endgame of the show:

I wonder if it was only the people that were alive at the 'time' that were infected with the virus (wherever it originated). Survivors wouldn't realize right away that any babies being born were uninfected; at least til one died of SIDS and then didn't come back. It leaves a bit of hope for solving this in the future.

I suppose Judith could die in some terrible non-walker-bite fashion and the characters realize after a time that she's not turning. It's the only actual hope I can think of for the future of the world rather than continuous bare survival until everybody dies.

I agree, that is probably the only "hopeful" ending the show could have. It would give the survivors a reason to actually plan for the future and go back to "breeding".

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

No, Nicholas isn't camouflage, but he may be a very temporary shield. Perhaps Glen could kill a walker while in the scrum & use it's guts as camouflage, but that's probably more time consuming than he can afford, & he's still in danger of being hurt or killed

Maybe. The writers just need to create another Tyreese in Super-Killing Machine--

--that would explain that behind the scenes pic of a live and well Glenn.

 

[Locutus of Bored]

Maybe if he crawls under the dumpster, then finds a hatch that leads up inside ... oh, wait.

Ah, improbable belly hatch. Where would we be without you?

A lot of tanks have them, though less so now than in the past. The M1 Abrams doesn't, but the M60, M48, and Sherman tanks that proceeded it did, as well as many Russian and other foreign tanks. The tank they used in the Walking Dead premiere was a British Chieftain tank mocked up to look Abrams-ish (added lens flares and such), which I'm not sure if it had an escape hatch in real life or not (regardless, the interior of the one shown in the pilot was a specially built set). The Centurion tanks that preceded it had belly escape hatches, I believe.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

The tank they used in the Walking Dead premiere was a British Chieftain tank mocked up to look Abrams-ish (added lens flares and such),

ba-dum-tish

 

[Trekker4747]

Maybe if he crawls under the dumpster, then finds a hatch that leads up inside ... oh, wait.

Ah, improbable belly hatch. Where would we be without you?

A lot of tanks have them, though less so now than in the past. The M1 Abrams doesn't, but the M60, M48, and Sherman tanks that proceeded it did, as well as many Russian and other foreign tanks. The tank they used in the Walking Dead premiere was a British Chieftain tank mocked up to look Abrams-ish (added lens flares and such), which I'm not sure if it had an escape hatch in real life or not (regardless, the interior of the one shown in the pilot was a specially built set). The Centurion tanks that preceded it had belly escape hatches, I believe.

Well, thing more for me is that we see a couple of long shots from Rick's POV of the tank's belly and there's no hatch. He's laying there ready to kill himself realizing he's trapped and moments before firing he notices an, open, belly hatch right in front of him. So it seems it literally materialized out of nowhere.

 

[Thestral]

I suppose Judith could die in some terrible non-walker-bite fashion and the characters realize after a time that she's not turning. It's the only actual hope I can think of for the future of the world rather than continuous bare survival until everybody dies.

I agree, that is probably the only "hopeful" ending the show could have. It would give the survivors a reason to actually plan for the future and go back to "breeding".

Why? I mean... why not plan for the future without that "hope"? As it stands, there's really no reason society can't be rebuilt. When people die, if their brains aren't destroyed, they turn.

Ok then - standard morgue/EMT practice becomes that you knife the dead person's skull. Heck, make it part of funerary rituals. Easy peasy once you've rid the world of the hordes.

People will have to be more vigilant about bodies and keep an eye out for people dying alone, but really a single walker isn't a big deal.

 

[Trekker4747]

I suppose Judith could die in some terrible non-walker-bite fashion and the characters realize after a time that she's not turning. It's the only actual hope I can think of for the future of the world rather than continuous bare survival until everybody dies.

I agree, that is probably the only "hopeful" ending the show could have. It would give the survivors a reason to actually plan for the future and go back to "breeding".

Why? I mean... why not plan for the future without that "hope"? As it stands, there's really no reason society can't be rebuilt. When people die, if their brains aren't destroyed, they turn.

Ok then - standard morgue/EMT practice becomes that you knife the dead person's skull. Heck, make it part of funerary rituals. Easy peasy once you've rid the world of the hordes.

People will have to be more vigilant about bodies and keep an eye out for people dying alone, but really a single walker isn't a big deal.

Theoretically, this all would have began with "a single walker."

 

[sojourner]

Sleeping in a room with a locked door would become the norm. To protect yourself from zombies entering while you slept and also, should you die in your sleep, to prevent you from killing anyone else in the house.

 

[Thestral]

Indeed. Couples of course would still sleep together or parents with small children but it would be a bigger display of trust, and when there's a sickness involved the need to sleep separate would be greater.

Theoretically, this all would have began with "a single walker."

Maybe, we don't know (and I don't really care). But even if so, that was when people had no idea what was happening - pretty much anybody alive understands, and that will be passed on.

The whole "we have to cure it for society to rebuild" is a red herring.

 

[sojourner]

Oh, that was something interesting on Z Nation this week. They made it clear that all of the zombie fiction we are familiar with exists in that universe.

Makes you wonder how a society so forewarned like that fell.