THE TALKING DEAD: Apropos of the return of The Walking Dead, if there is one thing on a television show that sends my thumb straight to the fast-forward button, it's somebody in a church talking to God. I don't care if it's President Bartlet or Sheriff Keira Knightley's Secret Admirer, it just never rings true.
Other than that, with The Walking Dead, you know what you're getting, and you can't get anything else. Spoiler alert: there are zombies, and the tension is getting to people, and you alternate between attrition and non-elimination episodes. It's basically exactly like a season of Survivor, except with decaying bodies instead of tropical kitsch. I like zombie stuff, but the moment you play the zombie card, you've painted yourself into a pretty tight corner, creativity-wise. What are the plot moves you can make? There's (a) Another Person Just Died; (b) We're Running Low on Supplies; (c) Battlestar Pegasus (otherwise known as We Just Ran Into Another [Band of] Survivor[s]); (d) Is This a Cure? No It Is Not; (e) We're Surrounded; (f) We All Hate Each Other; (g) Survivors Get It On; (h) Birth in a Hellhole; and (i)(1) Go Gently Into that Goodnight or (i)(2) Is This a Cure? Yes It Is. Am I missing anything?
