George Romero Turns Down Chance at "The Walking Dead"

<div class="MsoNormal">I know what you’re thinking:  The Walking Dead is such a megahit everyone in Hollywood would love to be a part of it.  However, apparently you (and me) would be very much wrong.  According to The Big Issue, George A. Romero thinks the AMC series is <a href="http://www.bigissue.com/mix/news/3181/george-romero-interview-walking-dead-just-soap-opera-occasional-zombie">more like a soap opera</a> and he turned down the chance to direct an episode.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Before anyone goes crying sour grapes, Romero is given a lot of credit for bringing the zombie genre to life back in 1968 with “Dawn of the Dead.”  So he knows what he is talking about, but anyone who watches “The Walking Dead,” and more than <a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/walking-dead-just-dethroned-high-649449">20 million people</a> watched the Season 4 premiere, realizes that the series is anything but a zombie romp full of gore and blood.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Granted, there are different techniques in making a weekly television show and a two-hour film, but the TWD isn’t about the walkers.  It’s about the people trying to survive something terrible (and things regularly go from bad to worse).  Romero is entitled to his opinion, and he’s not entirely wrong, because the show has elements of a soap opera.  By the way, those soap writers should get some credit for churning out scripts and stories on a daily basis.  While not all were good, they got the job done.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Like Yahoo TV indicates, the folks behind “The Walking Dead” will probably <a href="http://tv.yahoo.com/blogs/tv-news/george-romero-disses--the-walking-dead---calls-it-a--soap-opera--235315460.html">not worry</a> about what Romero thinks, thanks to the massive success of the show, and neither will fans of the series.  You like what you like, and your opinion is your opinion.  While headlines could read:  Romero Thrashes Walking Dead or Romero Disses, etc, it really is about one person expressing beliefs, and too often today that gets taken to the next level (thank you Internet).<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal">So if you like show, like I do, fine, if you hate the show, like my wife, I’m okay with that too.  That’s is why where there are different flavors of ice cream folks.<o:p></o:p></div>

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I know what you’re thinking:  The Walking Dead is such a megahit everyone in Hollywood would love to be a part of it.  However, apparently y...

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A Walking Dead Spinoff? Count Me In

<div class="MsoNormal">I know what you’re thinking:  another zombie show would be too many.  AMC’s “The Walking Dead” is <a href="http://www.mnn.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/blogs/new-details-on-the-walking-dead-spinoff">getting ready to spinoff </a>a companion to the massively successful series.  While not unheard of in the television landscape (CSI or NCIS anyone?), for every “Angel” to every “Buffy” there seems to be a “The Michael Richards Show” for every “Seinfeld.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">However, “The Walking Dead” is clearly at the top of the television landscape.  According to Variety, it is drawing more than <a href="http://variety.com/2013/tv/news/walking-dead-tops-sundays-big-sports-action-in-young-adults-demo-1200771799/">12-million viewers</a> each week and is actually getting more folks to tune in than the World Series and Sunday Night Football.  Those are pretty serious statistics, which only means the show is really hitting its stride.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">While “The Walking Dead” spinoff will not feature the cast or characters of the current show, it will likely <a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/walking-dead-spinoff-ideas-cast-650159">expand on the currentmythology</a> of the show.  Just think:  new locations, new people, and who knows what else.  Basically, a lot of questions viewers already have can be addressed in a companion series.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">AMC gets more money, Robert Kirkman <a href="http://voices.yahoo.com/spinoff-walking-dead-will-enhance-mythology-12385651.html?cat=2">can tell more stories</a>, and with any luck fans get more entertainment.  There is always the chance of overexposure, and eventually oversaturation will probably be a problem.  Does anyone remember how popular vampires were a few years ago?<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">With any luck “The Walking Dead” spinoff will be well done, and there is no reason to think that it won’t, which means that fans across the world can be treated to even more of the world Kirkman is creating (as depressing as it is).  <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal">As with anything that has success, capitalizing on that popularity is important; however, maintaining the balance between overexposure and being popular is not an easy task.  Therefore, right now, cautious optimism seems to be the right move.  That is, at least until exactly what the new series is about is revealed.  Then it could be time for celebration or the opposite.<o:p></o:p></div>

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I know what you’re thinking:  another zombie show would be too many.  AMC’s “The Walking Dead” is getting ready to spinoff a companion to th...

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Walking Dead Season 4 Episode 3 Could Set the Tone for the Year

<div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1251611762005580190" name="OLE_LINK2"></a>I know what you’re thinking:  Who burned those people at the end of Episode 2 of  “<a href="http://www.amctv.com/shows/the-walking-dead">The Walking Dead</a>” last week?  Well, you will find no spoilers here, because I don’t know and really I don’t want to know until it happens.  According to a Yahoo TV interview with Chad Coleman, who plays the distraught Tyreese that discovers the charred remains of his girlfriend and another member of the community, viewers are in for quite the show and yet another epic twist.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1251611762005580190" name="OLE_LINK1"><br /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal">Of course, it is unclear if tonight is the night that fans really get the answer, but this sneak peek from YouTube brings the episode name “Isolation” into a whole new level. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/-j7wSFYD2PY" width="420"></iframe> <br /><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Further still is the short video from IMDB.com that shows a few characters finally hitting their breaking points.  Really, things always find a way to get worse for everyone, and that is one thing that keeps viewers on the edge of their seats.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/moWQnp81IvQ" width="420"></iframe> <div class="MsoNormal">I truly feel for Tyreese and I hope he sticks around, but the guy probably feels betrayed and angry (who can blame him), which means he is going to go looking for justice.  Personally, when all this madness breaking out comes to a highpoint I look for the Governor to pop up and really jumble things up.<o:p></o:p></div>

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I know what you’re thinking:  Who burned those people at the end of Episode 2 of  “ The Walking Dead ” last week?  Well, you will find no sp...

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'The Walking Dead' Season 4 Premiere Sets Up an Interesting Year

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.thewrap.com//images/2013/10/walking-dead-season-4-andrew-lincoln-600x399-620x400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="http://www.thewrap.com//images/2013/10/walking-dead-season-4-andrew-lincoln-600x399-620x400.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">It has been a few days since the Season 4 Premiere of the hit AMC drama “The Walking Dead,” and all I can say is that the show is picking up right where it left off.  I know what you’re thinking, the show seemed off a little bit.  While a few fans I have spoken to thought the episode was kind of boring (a thought <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/walking-dead-review-roundup-anyone-else-kind-bored/">shared by The Wrap</a> who bring you the image above), I thought it was a nice set up to the coming tasks that our favorite band of survivors are going to be facing in the coming episodes.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">First of all, “30 Days Without an Accident” had a <a href="http://tvline.com/2013/10/13/the-walking-dead-recap-season-4-water-supply-deaths/">few interesting moments</a>, but the big one is the sickness that seems to be creeping into the prison walls.  So far, the only human casualty has been a younger boy named Patrick, (played by someone <a href="http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2013/10/the-walking-dead-vincent-martella-on-season-4s-sickness-and-idolizing-daryl.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-walking-dead-vincent-martella-on-season-4s-sickness-and">parents see or at least hear</a> often enough Vincent Martella of “Phineas and Ferb” fame), by that is probably going to be changing.  After all, something is causing people to fall ill and turn.  This could get interesting fairly quickly.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Second of all is Michonne’s search for the Governor.  The guy is likely to pop up when things are at their worst, and while Michonne is pretty well equipped to deal with him it will be interesting to see if the series follows the comic on who actually ends the threat of the guy. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Next, Rick has changed quite a bit.  The whole not wanting to carry a gun issue could very much work against him, because I’m pretty sure Daryl would have not followed a strange (and crazy) woman back to her campsite.  The guy has had a pretty rough go (even among zombie outbreak survivors), but he is an integral part of life at the prison (not to mention the focal point of the show).  His transition and metamorphosis will likely be a key element this season, especially considering there is a foe inside the prison that no one can see.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal">In the end though, the Season 4 Premiere of “The Walking Dead” did exactly what it needed to do.  It set up a few interesting storylines and gave us a look at how callous everyone is becoming to the hardships facing their new lives.  The one thing the new hour really did for me though was build on anticipation of what is coming down the pipes for Rick and company, and it seems that arrows and bullets are not necessarily going to be enough.  <o:p></o:p></div>

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It has been a few days since the Season 4 Premiere of the hit AMC drama “The Walking Dead,” and all I can say is that the show is picking up...

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The Comic Offers No Spoilers for 'The Walking Dead' Season 4 Premiere

<div class="MsoNormal">I know what you’re thinking.  When it comes to “<a href="http://www.amctv.com/shows/the-walking-dead">The Walking Dead</a>,” I am something of an uncontrollable junkie.  I love the <a href="https://www.imagecomics.com/comics/series/the-walking-dead">comic from Image Comics</a> (or graphic novel if you please) and the television show on AMC is also truly top notch.  The one thing that really has me baffled is the double standard involved in the source material of the television show.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">According to the Associated Press, the man behind the story, Robert Kirkman, does not necessarily <a href="http://tv.yahoo.com/news/kirkman-offers-no-road-map-walking-dead-152750376.html">follow the comic literally</a> when it comes to the television.  Of course, I could have told you that being an avid reader of the series.  The issue I have is why there are not more (if any) fans screaming about the departure from the source material.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">The answer I have come realize involves the television show, like the comic, being extremely well done.  Are there better comics on the shelves of local comic book stores?  Maybe, but that’s a point of personal taste.  The same holds true for the television show.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">The AP article mentions the awkwardness Kirkman felt around killing Glen off in the comic but leaving actor <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3081796/">Steven Yeun</a> a bit in limbo with where his character is going.  Of course, the same rule applies to Andrea, who died in the Season 3 Finale of “The Walking Dead” on AMC but is still alive and (quite literally) kicking in the comic book.  The differences are staggering, and just because someone has been following the story from issue #1 does not mean that they have any clue what is going to happen next.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">As long as things are done well, fans of both mediums do not necessarily seem to have a problem with what happens from the comic to the screen.  The same thing applied to a little movie called “The Avengers.”  The movie did not follow the comic verbatim, but it was done well enough that nobody really raised any flags.  The same holds true for “The Walking Dead.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal">In the back of the comic, Kirkman is sometimes brought to task by readers for a ton of different reasons (I admit I wonder where a guy found a tiger, let alone a trained one), but one that really got me going was a few issues ago when a reader accused him of “jumping the shark.”  Kirkman’s reply was short and sweet and the basics of it were that he has heard it all before and the thing is still taking off.  Jumping the shark?  It’s a story about zombies that includes a sword carrying nomad and folks living in an abandoned prison.  I have agree with Mr. Kirkman, because as long as it is entertaining folks will be buying the issues and tuning into the show.  The unexpected is what keeps it interesting.<o:p></o:p></div>

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I know what you’re thinking.  When it comes to “ The Walking Dead ,” I am something of an uncontrollable junkie.  I love the comic from Imag...

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