In 2010, I was starting a TV show that would change my life, and that of millions of people around the world. It was The Walking Dead. A series that premiered on Halloween of that year and that with its pilot episode amazed a whole generation of apocalyptic and zombie genre lovers. It was fresh, had no excesses in special effects and developed the human and heartbreaking story of Rick Grimes, his family and the few survivors of a global hecatomb... Oh, how long it's been since that magnificent first season.... [Sighs deeply...]
How did such an acclaimed series; that at its highest ratings point, reached millions of people in all continents; that knew how to be a mass phenomenon and an important trending topic in pop culture, have such a disastrous outcome? This did not happen to other gems such as: The Sopranos, Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones; nor to Lost, but instead with TWD, ended in such a colossal debacle that not only inspires this post but also has done so in countless podcasts, debates, discussions and even the rumor of a series that will develop the implosion that involved the 11 seasons of broadcasting that lasted this show.
Recall that the story had a simple plot. A policeman from a medium-sized town, one day is shot while doing his job, and wakes up months later, in a totally abandoned hospital (months ago) and when he comes to, he realizes that the world has completely collapsed. Quite simply, and with remarkable poetry, in the blink of an eye what was once "normal" would be no more. This is the scenario where TWD begins. It is not only a production dedicated to gore horror nor to the fetish of employing weapons, means of survival and no law in order to break through and naturalize killing and death, but it is, in essence, a story of development.
Frank Darabont - this is the key man in part of the disaster that TWD became. This guy was the one who made the series so wonderful. The one responsible for giving it that human touch, but one that wasn't overly existentialist. With him, no character was perceived as implausible or too cartoonish; quite the opposite. The goal was the transformation of the characters through the interaction among themselves, while they adapted to the risks and challenges of a world dominated by a zombie virus that changed everything we humans knew. A showrunner who was responsible for the best things about the series.
Unfortunately, nothing lasts forever. And who knows why, how, or for what reason AMC, producer and parent company of the series, decided that it would be an "excellent idea" to fire the showrunner of the show. Honestly, to this day it is still unknown why this happened. What is certain is that it did happen. And because of it, the quality of the script, the character development and the structure of the series itself took a nosedive.... And you may think: "So, TWD only reached excellence in the first season?" And the answer is both "Yes" and "No". Confusing but you'll get the point....
If you watch the first season of the series you will notice the balanced, intelligent, poised and skillful treatment throughout the plot. The shots are beautiful, the photography is perfect and the power of the script is undeniable. The tension, the feeling that danger is lurking is latent and as a viewer it is impossible not to feel it. Very similar to what happened also with GOT in its first 6 seasons.... After that, the narrative became circular.... Which means that for multiple episodes, characters that were not destined to anything transcendent in the series enjoyed footage, with the explicit goal of just lengthening the series. A total waste of time, in my opinion.
In fact, this phenomenon is called "Circular Narrative". And it is excellently used in the thriller genre or in miniseries, but what they did in TWD was not only a use and abuse of this resource, but it ended up dynamiting the very potential that the series had. Driving away the true fans of the genre and boring them to death. This resulted in the abandonment of the ratings and ending in 12 long years of broadcasting, in 11 seasons that the only thing they bequeathed to this day is a feeling of frustration, disappointment and some anger.
A lot of people grew up with this series and when they saw what they turned it into, they became outright haters of it. And I don't blame them. It's simply unsustainable to see how such an important production house for the industry, as AMC is, has made so many negative decisions with The Walking Dead. It could have been so different. With more seriousness, with a more legitimate and authentic development, and not have been this kind of novel sub-divided into a thousand parts, with gaps and inconsequential stories that it became. I have the feeling, that just as it happened to me, it happened to many people too: when we watch TWD, we sigh.... But not because we miss it, but because of the possibilities of what never became...
