Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

[AWS260]

If anyone's curious about the comic book, the full first issue can be read online here. It covers about the same ground as the first hour of the pilot, so there aren't any spoilers if you watched last night's show.

[gameoverman]

I loved it, though some stuff did bug me a little.

The father in the nearby house tells him how much he regrets firing the gun because of the noise, then later the car alarm goes off. The father then tells the deputy about how it has gone off before! Permanently turn the damn thing off maybe?

Neither the father nor the deputy say anything to each other that may take the tension out of their confrontation. I HATE when shows or movies do this. All the deputy has to do is say "I just came from the hospital, what's going on?" or the father "What's your story, why are you just sitting out on the curb like that where they can get you?". Instead they play that "I'm not telling you anything" "Well, I'm not telling YOU anything" game.

The deputy later mocks the dead deputy, saying he was dumb and reckless or something. Yeah well who was the idiot cop who got shot because he turned his back to the perps' car, before it was cleared and AFTER two different guys climbed out of it shooting? It's realistic that someone is that full of shiat, it's just that I hate people like that.

[Smoove_B]

The deputy later mocks the dead deputy, saying he was dumb and reckless or something. Yeah well who was the idiot cop who got shot because he turned his back to the perps' car, before it was cleared and AFTER two different guys climbed out of it shooting? It's realistic that someone is that full of shiat, it's just that I hate people like that.

I'd have to watch it again, but I thought the call that came over the radio indicated there were two armed males in the vehicle. While it was still a mistake to not go over and clear the car, I have to give some wiggle room to a guy that just took a bullet and stood up to talk about it.

[WarPig]

So at what point does he go from "I can't let them go on like this" and mercy killing to just killing for convenience? I have not read the graphic novel(s), but I'm expecting the sheriff to grow some balls.

He does...

Spoiler:

...but then hovers over the line between going far enough and going too far for quite a while. It's part of what makes the comic so damn good. It blurs the line between who really is the monster in their new world and who's just a victim.

That's a good point. I wonder how much the show will delve into that and how much it will skip. For example, I read elsewhere that the "God forgive us" people had actually, in the comics,

Spoiler:

drugged their children and then scrambled their brains with drills in an effort to "save" them. That speaks powerfully to the point you make, but it was glossed over and minimized in the show. If you're going after the "who are the real monsters" angle, you really do need to show some monstrous behaviour.

I'm glad to hear all of this. Said before, The Walking Dead is ultimately about the living.

What about the guy and his kid (Darrell? Darryl? Da'Rel?)? Are there more of them in the comics, or are were they just there to set the scene for our deputy protagonist?

[Octavious]

So at what point does he go from "I can't let them go on like this" and mercy killing to just killing for convenience? I have not read the graphic novel(s), but I'm expecting the sheriff to grow some balls.

He does...

Spoiler:

...but then hovers over the line between going far enough and going too far for quite a while. It's part of what makes the comic so damn good. It blurs the line between who really is the monster in their new world and who's just a victim.

That's a good point. I wonder how much the show will delve into that and how much it will skip. For example, I read elsewhere that the "God forgive us" people had actually, in the comics,

Spoiler:

drugged their children and then scrambled their brains with drills in an effort to "save" them. That speaks powerfully to the point you make, but it was glossed over and minimized in the show. If you're going after the "who are the real monsters" angle, you really do need to show some monstrous behaviour.

I'm glad to hear all of this. Said before, The Walking Dead is ultimately about the living.

What about the guy and his kid (Darrell? Darryl? Da'Rel?)? Are there more of them in the comics, or are were they just there to set the scene for our deputy protagonist?

Spoiler:

I don't recall them being in the comic past the beginning but there's so many characters that I could easily be wrong. I have a feeling they are going to have a bigger role in the show as they were way too interesting to just be a quick side story.

[Chaosraven]

I will seriously dig this show if it maintains a NonExplanatory stance.

[AWS260]

I will seriously dig this show if it maintains a NonExplanatory stance.

In the second season, we'll learn that the zombie virus was created by Cylons.

Looks like they had a plan after all.

[Grifman]

So at what point does he go from "I can't let them go on like this" and mercy killing to just killing for convenience? I have not read the graphic novel(s), but I'm expecting the sheriff to grow some balls.

He does...

Spoiler:

...but then hovers over the line between going far enough and going too far for quite a while. It's part of what makes the comic so damn good. It blurs the line between who really is the monster in their new world and who's just a victim.

Spoiler:

I don't buy that. These are mindless monsters who show no mercy because they are incapable of doing so. I'd have no problem putting down as many zombies as I could possibly do so safely. I don't have any idea how you could go "too far". I'm not sure how that would make me a monster in any way unless I just did it for some sort of sadistic pleasure

[The Meal]

I will seriously dig this show if it maintains a NonExplanatory stance.

Definitely. The back story seems much less important than the character development.

[silverjon]

What about the guy and his kid (Darrell? Darryl? Da'Rel?)? Are there more of them in the comics, or are were they just there to set the scene for our deputy protagonist?

Eventually, Rick goes back for them. That would have been the trade paperback collection 10. There was also a short story about them in a Christmas special, which was collected in one of the books prior to that one.

[Octavious]

Ah I never got that far in.

[Peacedog]

Definitely. The back story seems much less important than the character development.

I really doubt it gets changed. Night of the Living Dead threw several possible causes out on the table. Not because they needed to exist. But because "possible causes" is much better than "none or one". Leaving it vague really pulls on our imagination strings (or whatever it is that connects to our imaginations; robotic chords? Rainbows? Bridges made of skittles? that stuff). It addeded so elegantly to the layer of confusion and chaos that would be present in the outset of something as insane as a massive zombie outbreak. It's hall of fame type accoutrement. Left 4 Dead actually had some of this in the Safe House graffiti (2 did not have that same level of awesomeness, and actually more heavily scripted a linear narrative. Which was a poorer choice, IMO. Left 4 Dead did not concretly make it seem like the 5 campaigns flowed one after the other. It just made it feel more zombie apocolypseish).

The comic is very much faithful to Romero (too bad his vision for Day never panned out. And he never made any other zombie movies. None). It simply has a much, much larger format to tell character driven stories because it isn't limited to hours of run time. Of course, this is why it's better as a TV series than a movie; TV adds back the cinematography and music and such, but still allows us much more room to tell stories, developer characters and relationships, etc. I think the vagueness is a definitive nod to Romero.

And speaking of those "movie" type things, the scene where the sheriff returns to the Park was absolutely gorgeous, including that incredibly haunting music. I loved that scene in 28DL where they drive through the countryside (that looks like a painting), playing that whatever haunty music a bunch of movies have used (I felt like it popped up a bunch after that movie). This was much better though, since you pretty much got to experience it all through his eyes.

There was so much about the episode that was incredibly sharp - the stairwell scene, the "sneaking up" scene that turned out to be the kid, e.g. - but I think this stands out (equal with the sniping scene). Just amazing.

[silverjon]

Also a recent development in the comics, a character who claims to know what happened has been introduced. I've got two collections to catch up on, so I don't know if there'll be a big reveal, if this guy will turn out to be a liar, or if he'll get killed and leave everyone hanging. Anything could happen. I have no idea how resolutely Kirkman means to stick to not filling in that aspect of backstory.

[tgb]

Definitely. The back story seems much less important than the character development.

I really doubt it gets changed. Night of the Living Dead threw several possible causes out on the table. Not because they needed to exist. But because "possible causes" is much better than "none or one". Leaving it vague really pulls on our imagination strings (or whatever it is that connects to our imaginations; robotic chords? Rainbows? Bridges made of skittles? that stuff). It addeded so elegantly to the layer of confusion and chaos that would be present in the outset of something as insane as a massive zombie outbreak. It's hall of fame type accoutrement. Left 4 Dead actually had some of this in the Safe House graffiti (2 did not have that same level of awesomeness, and actually more heavily scripted a linear narrative. Which was a poorer choice, IMO. Left 4 Dead did not concretly make it seem like the 5 campaigns flowed one after the other. It just made it feel more zombie apocolypseish).

The comic is very much faithful to Romero (too bad his vision for Day never panned out. And he never made any other zombie movies. None). It simply has a much, much larger format to tell character driven stories because it isn't limited to hours of run time. Of course, this is why it's better as a TV series than a movie; TV adds back the cinematography and music and such, but still allows us much more room to tell stories, developer characters and relationships, etc. I think the vagueness is a definitive nod to Romero.

And speaking of those "movie" type things, the scene where the sheriff returns to the Park was absolutely gorgeous, including that incredibly haunting music. I loved that scene in 28DL where they drive through the countryside (that looks like a painting), playing that whatever haunty music a bunch of movies have used (I felt like it popped up a bunch after that movie). This was much better though, since you pretty much got to experience it all through his eyes.

There was so much about the episode that was incredibly sharp - the stairwell scene, the "sneaking up" scene that turned out to be the kid, e.g. - but I think this stands out (equal with the sniping scene). Just amazing.

I haven't watched it yet, but feel free to spoil me on this one issue: One of the things I liked about the Romero mythos is that if you die, you get up again (assuming no brain damage in the process) - even if you jumped off the roof, you would re-animate. None of this "it's a virus spread by biting" nonsense. Is that the road they take here?

(Also Romero's zombies are no more interested in eating brains than any other organ. Spleens are just as yummy But that's a discussion for another day).

[cheeba]

5.3 million total viewers, setting an all-time record for any AMC premiere and representing the most-watched season opener of any cable series so far this year.

[Smoove_B]

I haven't watched it yet, but feel free to spoil me on this one issue: One of the things I liked about the Romero mythos is that if you die, you get up again (assuming no brain damage in the process) - even if you jumped off the roof, you would re-animate. None of this "it's a virus spread by biting" nonsense. Is that the road they take here?

That's because in Romero's mythos there's no more room in Hell. Everyone forgets that.

The show did not address what happens to people that die of natural causes last night; I don't know what the comic book spouts. However, they were pretty clear that a bite from a zombie (or even a scratch) leads to a debilitating fever, then death, then...Zombie.

RE: The viewership -- that's fantastic news. I had a feeling they were going to hit it out of the park, but I didn't expect those kinds of numbers. F- you Dancing with a Home Makeover.

[silverjon]

I haven't watched it yet, but feel free to spoil me on this one issue: One of the things I liked about the Romero mythos is that if you die, you get up again (assuming no brain damage in the process) - even if you jumped off the roof, you would re-animate. None of this "it's a virus spread by biting" nonsense. Is that the road they take here?

(Also Romero's zombies are no more interested in eating brains than any other organ. Spleens are just as yummy But that's a discussion for another day).

Bites are deadly, though killing speed depends on location and severity of the infection. But it's more like getting snakebit than like rabies, just another possible way to die horribly in a world fraught with them. Everyone reanimates (barring brain destruction).

Brains are not unusually delectable, and I don't recall anyone in the comic series actually uttering the word "zombie".

[Doomboy]

Definitely. The back story seems much less important than the character development.

I really doubt it gets changed. Night of the Living Dead threw several possible causes out on the table. Not because they needed to exist. But because "possible causes" is much better than "none or one". Leaving it vague really pulls on our imagination strings (or whatever it is that connects to our imaginations; robotic chords? Rainbows? Bridges made of skittles? that stuff). It addeded so elegantly to the layer of confusion and chaos that would be present in the outset of something as insane as a massive zombie outbreak. It's hall of fame type accoutrement. Left 4 Dead actually had some of this in the Safe House graffiti (2 did not have that same level of awesomeness, and actually more heavily scripted a linear narrative. Which was a poorer choice, IMO. Left 4 Dead did not concretly make it seem like the 5 campaigns flowed one after the other. It just made it feel more zombie apocolypseish).

The comic is very much faithful to Romero (too bad his vision for Day never panned out. And he never made any other zombie movies. None). It simply has a much, much larger format to tell character driven stories because it isn't limited to hours of run time. Of course, this is why it's better as a TV series than a movie; TV adds back the cinematography and music and such, but still allows us much more room to tell stories, developer characters and relationships, etc. I think the vagueness is a definitive nod to Romero.

And speaking of those "movie" type things, the scene where the sheriff returns to the Park was absolutely gorgeous, including that incredibly haunting music. I loved that scene in 28DL where they drive through the countryside (that looks like a painting), playing that whatever haunty music a bunch of movies have used (I felt like it popped up a bunch after that movie). This was much better though, since you pretty much got to experience it all through his eyes.

There was so much about the episode that was incredibly sharp - the stairwell scene, the "sneaking up" scene that turned out to be the kid, e.g. - but I think this stands out (equal with the sniping scene). Just amazing.

I haven't watched it yet, but feel free to spoil me on this one issue: One of the things I liked about the Romero mythos is that if you die, you get up again (assuming no brain damage in the process) - even if you jumped off the roof, you would re-animate. None of this "it's a virus spread by biting" nonsense. Is that the road they take here?

(Also Romero's zombies are no more interested in eating brains than any other organ. Spleens are just as yummy But that's a discussion for another day).

Spoiler:

I don't know if they will stick with it on the show, but in the comics, that is how it works. Everyone that dies, save for having their head chopped off, or shot in the head or something, gets back up. And they eat as much as they can, no biting a hole in the skull and having some brains. There was one particularly gruesome corpse in the hospital. Ick.

They discover this later on, and Rick has to go back and make sure someone he killed with a gun is not rolling around in the hastily dug grave he put him in. In the comic, that is.

[Odin]

If anyone's curious about the comic book, the full first issue can be read online here. It covers about the same ground as the first hour of the pilot, so there aren't any spoilers if you watched last night's show.

That was cool to read. Thank you!

[coopasonic]

If anyone's curious about the comic book, the full first issue can be read online here. It covers about the same ground as the first hour of the pilot, so there aren't any spoilers if you watched last night's show.

That was cool to read. Thank you!

That's awesome. I've had the compendium on my wish list for a while but now I'm going to prioritize it and check out the serious. I'm guessing the pilot will be rebroadcast a time or two or I can find it online or on demand.

[Smoove_B]

Oh yeah -- I totally forgot to mention -- I'm a bit perterbed they wrecked a perfectly good SuperJudge. It wasn't a GTO from the stars, but still a pretty rare car.

[WarPig]

Spoiler:

I don't know if they will stick with it on the show, but in the comics, that is how it works. Everyone that dies, save for having their head chopped off, or shot in the head or something, gets back up. And they eat as much as they can, no biting a hole in the skull and having some brains. There was one particularly gruesome corpse in the hospital. Ick.

They discover this later on, and Rick has to go back and make sure someone he killed with a gun is not rolling around in the hastily dug grave he put him in. In the comic, that is.

My favorite (read: realistic) zombie explanation is Max Brooks' from The Zombie Survival Guide and World War Z. The situational edge that it's possibly a real disease increases the immersion and hence the fright, for me at least. Vague notions of supernatural forces at work are kind of...well, vague. The buildup is also scarier; everyone thinks (and is told by various governments) that it's a rabies outbreak until it's too late. You wonder how far the governments of the world would go to protect the truth if they thought it would cause economic instability.

[tgb]

Having just watched it, put me in with the OMG THAT WAS TEH AWESOME!!! camp. That said, if I may be permitted to pick a couple of nits...............

Spoiler:

Clearly the hospital had been attacked and/or overrun by Walkers. And therefore abandoned. Why was he left behind? Better yet, why wasn't he ZombieChow?

And along the same lines...........

Spoiler:

The first body he sees in the hospital corridor, while well chewed up, seemed to have an intact head. Why wasn't it active? In the Romeroverse, the only intact organ you need to get around is a brain.

I thought his reaction when reaching home was a bit over the top, considering

Spoiler:

there was no evidence his wife and son had been hurt, let alone killed.

Minor points, all. This was the most enjoyable 90 minutes of TV I've seen in a long long time.

[Doomboy]

Spoiler:

I don't know if they will stick with it on the show, but in the comics, that is how it works. Everyone that dies, save for having their head chopped off, or shot in the head or something, gets back up. And they eat as much as they can, no biting a hole in the skull and having some brains. There was one particularly gruesome corpse in the hospital. Ick.

They discover this later on, and Rick has to go back and make sure someone he killed with a gun is not rolling around in the hastily dug grave he put him in. In the comic, that is.

My favorite (read: realistic) zombie explanation is Max Brooks' from The Zombie Survival Guide and World War Z. The situational edge that it's possibly a real disease increases the immersion and hence the fright, for me at least. Vague notions of supernatural forces at work are kind of...well, vague. The buildup is also scarier; everyone thinks (and is told by various governments) that it's a rabies outbreak until it's too late. You wonder how far the governments of the world would go to protect the truth if they thought it would cause economic instability.

The way I see it is this: If they don't try to explain what it is, they are much better off. Whatever I come up with in my head (or you, or whoever is watching) is a much better explanation than that which any story teller can come up with. It makes it interesting. All you have to do is look at the beginning of 28 Days Later. I maintain that if you watch the movie from when Jim wakes up in the hospital, and skip that stupid rage infected monkeys crap, it is a better movie.

If you want to think of it as a disease, go ahead. It is a disease which everyone has. That is the thing that wakes you up after you die. The bite infection could just be as bad an infection as you can get from being gnawed on by a walking corpse, without any added oomph from alien germs or God Beams (tm).

[JonathanStrange]

I'm fairly indifferent to whether or not the source/cause of zombiefication is identified. It's just not a big deal to me; mostly. If one writer likens it to a infectious disease while another chooses to not to address origin of the zombie outbreak at all, I don't pay too much attention. A perfunctory introduction, say like that in 28 Days Later, was enough for me. It would be odd, imo, if none of the characters or any scenes speculated on the zombies' initial appearance but it would depend on the situation: doctors discussing the new disease, news announcements advising the public via health experts assessments, etc. It doesn't spoil my enjoyment one bit if the explanation's detailed or missing altogether - I regard it as a minor part of the "fun."

In some cases, the origins of zombie or zombie-related outbreaks does affect my enjoyment negatively. Brian Keene, for example, has his zombies originating "out in the Void" or something like that and their appearance as intelligent, malevolent zombies possessing not only humans but animals - who knew zombie rabbits could be so fierce - lessened my belief in the setting. I prefer zombies with no real "goals" other than to eat brains and shuffle around. I still read the books though.

But mostly, I'm fairly easygoing about zombie origins, speed or lack thereof, or zombie destruction techniques. I just draw the line at demonic, intelligent zombie rabbits and crows. Sheesh.

[Anonymous Bosch]

I'm re-watching the show, and here's something that just caught my attention:

When they're at the sheriff's office trying the showers, Morgan (the dad) says, "The gas lines have been down for... maybe a month?"

Which I didn't notice the first time through, but today I did. And holy crap - a month? How long was Rick unconscious? I mean, if the gas was out for a month, then the zombie apocalypse must have started some days or weeks prior to that. It just messes with the assumed timeline I had in my head, which went:

a. Rick gets shot.
b. a few days pass.
c. Shane visits
d. zombie apocalypse
e. a few days pass
f. hospital is abandoned
g. a few days pass.
h. Rick wakes up.

But if the gas has been out for a MONTH, then the timeframe between D and H is measured in weeks rather than days. Was anybody else surprised by this? I'm probably just overthinking it.

I haven't read the comics and I could be mistaken, but I got the distinct impression that the criminals who shot the deputy were showing signs of zombification (i.e. they survived the car crash and none of them went down until they were shot in the head).

[silverjon]

I haven't read the comics and I could be mistaken, but I got the distinct impression that the criminals who shot the deputy were showing signs of zombification (i.e. they survived the car crash and none of them went down until they were shot in the head).

Zombies don't use guns, and there is no such thing as being half-zombie. Not in this universe anyway.

[JonathanStrange]

I liked that slight ambiguity though 'cause I too (for a moment) had the feeling that maybe we were witnessing the initial stages or at least a foreshadowing of the chaos to come. We've seen moments like this before in many zombie movies. I can recall Shaun of the Dead, where our hero glimpses while riding a bus, a crazed homeless man (zombie?) in the park or Dawn of the Dead (2004) where we see the interior of a darkened ambulance where a man is lying and suddenly stirs...he's not an undead but merely a resting EMT.

[Anonymous Bosch]

I haven't read the comics and I could be mistaken, but I got the distinct impression that the criminals who shot the deputy were showing signs of zombification (i.e. they survived the car crash and none of them went down until they were shot in the head).

Zombies don't use guns, and there is no such thing as being half-zombie. Not in this universe anyway.

Gotcha. I was assuming some sorta hybrid protozombies in the earliest stage of the outbreak. It certainly seemed as if something was not quite right about those bad guys, but I suppose they were just drug-fuelled zombies rather than the flesh-fuelled variety.

[Toe]

I haven't read the comics and I could be mistaken, but I got the distinct impression that the criminals who shot the deputy were showing signs of zombification (i.e. they survived the car crash and none of them went down until they were shot in the head).

Zombies don't use guns, and there is no such thing as being half-zombie. Not in this universe anyway.

Gotcha. I was assuming some sorta hybrid protozombies in the earliest stage of the outbreak. It certainly seemed as if something was not quite right about those bad guys, but I suppose they were just drug-fuelled zombies rather than the flesh-fuelled variety.

That or they had the sickness and had not "died" yet. We know it causes massive fever, but don't know if it had other affect (like those guys were experiencing).

[silverjon]

For all that you guys have been wetting yourselves with delight over the prospect of the TV series, I'm really surprised more of you haven't read the comics.

Then you'd, like, already know this stuff. Maybe that would ruin it for you. Hell if I know.

[coopasonic]

comics are expensive... a show on AMC is free (ya know since I have to have cable to parent my children)

[WarPig]

For all that you guys have been wetting yourselves with delight over the prospect of the TV series, I'm really surprised more of you haven't read the comics.

Then you'd, like, already know this stuff. Maybe that would ruin it for you. Hell if I know.

So, is one not a "true fan" if you haven't read the comics? I'm feeling like I'm supposed to getting my knuckles rapped with a ruler. "Bad geek! Read the book before watching the movie! Otherwise, you're just a poseur!"

I fully intend on reading the comics, and have for some time...but like Harry Potter, I'm glad I'm watching the show before reading the original written story, so I'm not disappointed. I'm looking at you, Jurassic Park. Granted, lately TV folks have been doing a fairly good job of keeping it in the "spirit" of the book(s) without ruining it. True Blood comes to mind.

[Smoove_B]

comics are expensive... a show on AMC is free (ya know since I have to have cable to parent my children)

RM9 pointed me to a sale on Amazon that has the first 48 comics bound in softback for $35. I ordered it yesterday morning and it's in my hands now. You could use the 5lb tome to defend yourself in a pinch.

[coopasonic]

comics are expensive... a show on AMC is free (ya know since I have to have cable to parent my children)

RM9 pointed me to a sale on Amazon that has the first 48 comics bound in softback for $35. I ordered it yesterday morning and it's in my hands now. You could use the 5lb tome to defend yourself in a pinch.

That's awesome. I've had the compendium on my wish list for a while but now I'm going to prioritize it and check out the serious. I'm guessing the pilot will be rebroadcast a time or two or I can find it online or on demand.

I moved the compendium to the top of my wish list and my DVR is set to record the rebroadcast of the pilot on Friday. I dipped my toes back in the comic book water a few years back and quickly learned it's way too expensive to get them as individual new comics and the amount of story you get in one issue is next to nothing these days. I'm 100% a trade paperback guy now. The Walking Dead monstrosity is expensive enough to hold off on for a birthday or holiday though. (forget about the "will she notice" thread in general gaming, I contradict myself all the time)

[Smoove_B]

Well, if there's one thing we're good at here on OO it's enabling one another to spend $$$.

I am a reformed comic book collector / subscriber and I'll never go down that road again. I'm all about bound compendiums / graphic novels now. And paying $35 for a $60 collection is enough to get me to bite.

[silverjon]

I get the comics from the library. They cost me squat.

I don't think you have to have read them to be a fan. I'm not even really a fan of the series. The plot is compelling, but the artwork is total shite.

It's just sort of weird to be seeing all the speculation about this'n'that that's fairly established if you're familiar with the existing body of work, is all. Like someone who's just seen the first Star Wars movie or something.

[coopasonic]

It's just sort of weird to be seeing all the speculation about this'n'that that's fairly established if you're familiar with the existing body of work, is all. Like someone who's just seen the first Star Wars movie or something.

Wouldn't it be cool if it turned out Luke and Leia were siblings? I read online that Yoda said there was another.

[Bob]

Also a recent development in the comics, a character who claims to know what happened has been introduced. I've got two collections to catch up on, so I don't know if there'll be a big reveal, if this guy will turn out to be a liar, or if he'll get killed and leave everyone hanging. Anything could happen. I have no idea how resolutely Kirkman means to stick to not filling in that aspect of backstory.

Spoiler for this part of the comic:

Spoiler:

That dude is totally lying. He's nothing. He worked at Best Buy or something.

Related to the movie.. I think the idea is that several months passed while Rick was in a coma. I don't recall the comic being exact either.

[fancydirt]

It's just sort of weird to be seeing all the speculation about this'n'that that's fairly established if you're familiar with the existing body of work, is all. Like someone who's just seen the first Star Wars movie or something.

That does bring up an interesting point for discussion in this thread... it seems the majority of us are not familiar with the graphic novels so even though all the questions being asked here were already answered years ago are we going to continue discussions of the show as though the source material isn't available? I only just recently got the compendium book (the omnibus' are tempting, but the first one is no longer available for a reasonable price, alas) and it will be fun to discuss the differences between the two or how they're going to handle upcoming events in the series.

I guess at the very least anything tagged as spoilers should specify if it's a spoiler of what has aired on the show or a spoiler of what has happened in the comics.