Frank Darabont to write/direct Walking Dead series for AMC

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Tue Feb 14, 2017 2:13 pm

so...nothing? Come on, folks. We got a demolition style, precision driving stunt that, although silly and cheesy beyond belief, was still pretty damn fun. We also got more Ezekiel (and I can never get enough of the Kingdom), a mystery wrapped in an enigma and wearing a priest's collar, and a hilarious "whoa" from King Ezekiel's right hand man during a Rick story time.

coopasonic · Post by **coopasonic** » Tue Feb 14, 2017 2:34 pm

Haven't you been paying attention? Everyone here has given up on it. Two people talk about it on GT. Maybe join them?

I enjoyed it, but I always enjoy it. I count on you guys to tell me why it was so terrible.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Tue Feb 14, 2017 2:40 pm

I enjoy it still. So don't lump me in with those other folks, dagnabit!

Seriously though, if they made a spin off of just King Ezekiel and that huge guy who acts as his page (and who always seems to be laughing about his role and whatever Ezekiel says...but in a good natured way), I would watch it.

Max Peck · Post by **Max Peck** » Tue Feb 14, 2017 2:41 pm

I'm just looking forward to finding out why Rick had that shit-eating grin on his face right at the end.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Tue Feb 14, 2017 2:43 pm

I'm guessing Gabriel (who has become another Daryl in terms of loyalty and selflessness) is behind it all.

Although that's probably obvious.

YellowKing · Post by **YellowKing** » Tue Feb 14, 2017 2:53 pm

I'm still enjoying the show, but the writing still seems....off to me somehow. Maybe the dialogue? (And I'm not referring to Ezekiel-talk, which is intentional). Everything just seems to have this extra layer of dramatic cheese on it that I'm not accustomed to, and it's a real turn-off.

I half expect at any moment for "Eye of the Tiger" to kick in while they go through a training montage.

My wife gave up counting my rolly-eyes last night.

tjg_marantz · Post by **tjg_marantz** » Tue Feb 14, 2017 3:16 pm

Max Peck wrote:I'm just looking forward to finding out why Rick had that shit-eating grin on his face right at the end.

Because he found a solution to his no gun problem. He found a solution to the kingdom not wanting to help. He now has a shit ton of seemingly well trained people that he can talk to about the saviors. He comes back to the kingdom with them, Ezekiel changes his mind.

All out assault is now much more feasible.

I'm not spoiling any of this because I have no clue what's going to happen next. Never read the comics, total speculation. It's just what I think is going to happen.

EvilHomer3k · Post by **EvilHomer3k** » Tue Feb 14, 2017 3:24 pm

I don't think it's a spoiler to say that he found some hope. I don't think it's Gabriel, though. Gabriel may be involved but when has Gabriel ever been out of Alexandria to find an ally? My guess is that someone from a previous season is there with them. Heck, it could go all the way back to season 1 with the Spanish family or the nurse/janitor who helped the people in the home. Trying to think of someone Gabriel would know, though, as he wouldn't know that group.

tgb · Post by **tgb** » Tue Feb 14, 2017 3:24 pm

I hope you are all prepared for the final showdown with the Saviors to be stretched out until next season. Expect the face-off to end in a cliffhanger.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Tue Feb 14, 2017 3:31 pm

I wouldn't be surprised, nor disappointed, in that outcome. That's quite often the way story arcs are handled on broadcast tv shows.

Now, if they showed Negan raising his rifle and firing into someone's face and then ended it without revealing the target, I'd be annoyed. But ending it before the big battle? Not so much.

EvilHomer3k wrote: Gabriel may be involved but when has Gabriel ever been out of Alexandria to find an ally?

Spencer: Does that make me a sinner?
Gabriel: No, it doesn't make you a sinner. But it does make you an asshole. Stop the car, I'm going to walk back.

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Tue Feb 14, 2017 5:11 pm

Thought it was pretty good. About 3/4 way through I remarked that we hadn't seen a single zombie. Then they made up for it.

The overall story arc seems pretty predictable, but the details are still interesting.

Z-Corn · Post by **Z-Corn** » Tue Feb 14, 2017 8:00 pm

I've never given up on the show but listening to some of you bitch about TV shows in general, and this one in particular, makes me think y'all take the format too seriously.

Loved the first half of the season, love Negan bashing heads last fall, I even love Chris Hardwick and Talking Dead.

Looking forward to the rest of the season!

Lassr · Post by **Lassr** » Wed Feb 15, 2017 10:39 am

I don't love it as much as when it first started simply because it's not fresh and new, but I still love it.

I keep wondering if someone made Gabriel do what he did. The person in the mystery boots we kept seeing?

tgb · Post by **tgb** » Mon Feb 20, 2017 11:10 am

The stupid was strong in last night's episode, yet it left so many questions.

Are these people being led by a Vulcan? She sure looked like a Vulcan Maggie. Why do they all speak like they just stepped out of a Tarzan movie (one with Johnny Weismuller)? How did they get that car on top of the 20 foot pile of trash? Was that what the helicopter Rick spotted way back in S1 was being used for? When did Bane become a Walker, and why is he in a Thunderdome? How'd they get that shit on his head, anyway? Were they planning to have Father Gabriel fight Walker Bane in the Thunderdome?

That would have been the least stupid part of the episode.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Mon Feb 20, 2017 11:41 am

It was definitely a weird episode. I didn't take her as Vulcan, though her speaking mannerisms definitely implied something was up. For her look, she reminded me more of the "Warrior Woman" in Mad Max: The Road Warrior - they both had goofy headband and serious murder-face. They're definitely an interesting group but the reveal felt just a little far-out there in terms of trying to figure out what was happening. Between the weird West Side Story walk-dance stetup and the weird combat with junk man, it was just weird overall. And yet, Rick is smiling and happy about it all, so I guess that's good?

Anonymous Bosch · Post by **Anonymous Bosch** » Mon Feb 20, 2017 5:28 pm

tgb wrote:The stupid was strong in last night's episode, yet it left so many questions.

Are these people being led by a Vulcan? She sure looked like a Vulcan Maggie. Why do they all speak like they just stepped out of a Tarzan movie (one with Johnny Weismuller)? How did they get that car on top of the 20 foot pile of trash? Was that what the helicopter Rick spotted way back in S1 was being used for? When did Bane become a Walker, and why is he in a Thunderdome? How'd they get that shit on his head, anyway? Were they planning to have Father Gabriel fight Walker Bane in the Thunderdome?

That would have been the least stupid part of the episode.

Amen.

Perhaps the notion of the Garbage Pile Kids seemed more convincing on the pages of the comic book. But on screen, it all just seemed risibly daft.

KKBlue · Post by **KKBlue** » Mon Feb 20, 2017 6:32 pm

My husband MST3K* most of the episode. I was pretty disappointed with it all too. Maybe a few people were out that week and the b team came in to finish off the script and editing and special effects and direction and...

*Edit to correct my lame geekiness oversight. Realized the mistake from reading The Daily Show (The Book): An Oral History as Told by Jon Stewart, the Correspondents, Staff and Guests.

Jolor · Post by **Jolor** » Mon Feb 20, 2017 9:01 pm

Ah. So nice of everyone to make an appearance

Just watched the episode and, must admit, that I enjoyed not only it but the hope that it re-injects. Things were getting pretty dark & dismal but now there are a few previously unknown "societies" that could lend their muscle to an overthrow of the Saviours. Of course, they could also side with the Saviours ...

Nice moment with Carol and Darryl, too. Melissa McBride remains wonderful.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Mon Feb 20, 2017 9:40 pm

It's only been a few years. Not enough time to forget how to use personal pronouns and conjunctions, for God's sake.

Jolor · Post by **Jolor** » Mon Feb 20, 2017 9:56 pm

But it is enough time to hire a Scottish supermodel who may not have yet perfected her American accent. The affectation of the remaining tribe would be an accommodation/differentiation. I can let is slide as I'm in it for entertainment and not viewing it as an historical retelling.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Mon Feb 20, 2017 10:06 pm

Nor am I. But I can chuckle over dumb things in stuff I like. The same thing annoys me in the Mad Max films. They establish that the fall of civilization occurred during Max's life, but he continually encounters people who act like it was hundreds of years ago. I love the movies, but I can still find faults in them.

P.S. Pollyanna McIntosh is a damn good actress. She's hardly just a Scottish supermodel. She was fantastic in The Woman.

Max Peck · Post by **Max Peck** » Mon Feb 20, 2017 10:32 pm

Since they went out of their way to have the Scavengers behave so oddly, hopefully they'll be providing a reason for that behavior at some point. Lord knows, if they'd tacked on a half hour of exposition to give us the group's backstory then the intertubes would be bitching about that even more than they are about the lack of it.

If there is one nit for me to pick with this episode, it would be the painfully obvious green-screen shots of Rick against the panoramic backdrop of the scrapyard.

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Mon Feb 20, 2017 11:16 pm

Max Peck wrote: If there is one nit for me to pick with this episode, it would be the painfully obvious green-screen shots of Rick against the panoramic backdrop of the scrapyard.

+1. Otherwise I liked it. The troglodyte garbage people felt really comic-bookish to me, speaking as someone who hasn't read the comics. Playing it as a comic-book story could be a welcome refresh since everyone was getting sick of the deadly-serious approach.

"Somebody with pet tiger can't be all bad."

Jolor · Post by **Jolor** » Mon Feb 20, 2017 11:56 pm

I hadn't seen any of Ms McIntosh's other work so had proposed the stilted speech as one possible explanation. I guess "mysterious persona" could be another

In any case, I like the change of direction that this offers.

Punisher · Post by **Punisher** » Tue Feb 21, 2017 12:14 am

Comic Spoiler

Spoiler:

YellowKing · Post by **YellowKing** » Tue Feb 21, 2017 1:30 am

I actually enjoyed it more than last episode, even though it still had a glistening layer of cheese. The green screen Rick is a prime example. It reminds me of that shot in The Lord of the Rings movies where they show the Fellowship one at a time while the music swells, and I'm just cringing because I feel like I'm being beat over the head with "GAZE UPON YOUR HEROES - ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?" It seems like nearly every episode this season has done that at some point, and I rolly eyes it every time.

Other than that, though, I enjoyed it. I liked seeing Daryl do Daryl-y things. I liked Carol's little house, as that is probably the same thing I'd do during a zombie apocalypse - just wall myself up and read books and chill and pretend the world wasn't a hellish landscape of death. I even liked Mad Max zombie (his name is Winslow!) Yes it was over-the-top, but come on, you have to admit he looked cool as hell! As far as Miss Vulcan & The Mullets goes, I just chalked them up to being some kind of cult so I didn't really mind the weird behavior. I figure all will be revealed at some point.

Oddly enough, the one thing that bothered me in the episode isn't even the episode's fault. It was just the idea grating on me that they're expending so much food keeping that stupid tiger alive. I was looking this up, and a grown tiger like that would need a minimum of 10-12 pounds of meat a day. Where are they getting all this meat? Unless somehow it is able to digest the rotting carcasses of walkers, in which case I withdraw my accusation.

Remus West · Post by **Remus West** » Wed Feb 22, 2017 2:47 pm

I still like the show a lot I just don't click this thread because I usually don't get to watch until Thursday or Friday after each show and don't want spoilers. I'm sort of curious as to how the group thinks they are just going to conjure up a bunch of guns to make their deal work though. Waiting for Tara to finally open her yap about Seaside so they know where to go to get the guns.

Punisher · Post by **Punisher** » Wed Feb 22, 2017 3:34 pm

yeah, I was curious about the guns thing. previous episodes made it seem like guns were hard to find, but Rick seemed pretty confident that he could get lots of guns..

tjg_marantz · Post by **tjg_marantz** » Wed Feb 22, 2017 3:58 pm

Tara will speak up and Rick will show up with guns and fighters to boot. Nicely wrap it in a bow. I'm guessing here again.

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

Jolor · Post by **Jolor** » Thu Feb 23, 2017 12:20 am

Or ... there is that convenient stash of weapons Kingdom Richard wanted to lead the Saviours to ...

edit = that Darryl knows about now.

gameoverman · Post by **gameoverman** » Thu Feb 23, 2017 5:04 pm

I have to admit I have enjoyed these last two episodes. The leaders not wanting to join in makes sense. They do have an uneasy peace, and why would they roll the dice with Rick? The junkyard people were cool. If you lived in a pile of crap and never spoke to outsiders except to rob and kill them, you'd talk funny too. I definitely got a Mad Max vibe off them. I was glad to hear some rational conversation for once too. Their leader was talking about sustainability, which is nice to hear. They aren't just surviving day to day, the future is something they think about. That's why it made sense then that they throw in with Rick.

My favorite bit was:
Rick-"You had that thing down there for someone to prove themselves?"
Jadis-"No, his name was Winslow."
Rick- "...."

Hahaha, I wish the show had more moments like that.

EvilHomer3k · Post by **EvilHomer3k** » Fri Feb 24, 2017 12:36 pm

The parts at the Kingdom were great. The parts with the scavengers were not. It felt like they were done by completely different crews. The scavengers didn't feel like Mad Max to me but more like Lord of the Flies. I think I'd have actually liked it had they all been kids.

tgb · Post by **tgb** » Mon Feb 27, 2017 10:48 am

I would so watch a remake of Three's Company featuring Eugene and Negan's wives.

Chaosraven · Post by **Chaosraven** » Mon Feb 27, 2017 6:35 pm

Three Broke Girls meets Big Bang Liar?

gameoverman · Post by **gameoverman** » Tue Feb 28, 2017 4:22 am

That was an entertaining episode all the way through. I liked the contrast between Eugene rising to the occasion while we see Dwight sink lower than ever. At the end when they stand next to each other Dwight even looks a bit Gollum-ish.

It did make me wonder, if Negan just didn't wake up one day, what would they all do? Would they actually be sad because they might be institutionalized by now and without Negan they will feel insecure and lost? Is there a chain of command where the 2nd becomes the new Negan and things continue? Or will it be Game of Thrones where infighting breaks out? This is good stuff and I hope the show shows us more about this angle.

Z-Corn · Post by **Z-Corn** » Tue Feb 28, 2017 8:58 am

If the only video game available after the Zombie Apocalypse is Yar's Revenge count me out man, I don't wanna live...

Punisher · Post by **Punisher** » Tue Feb 28, 2017 11:22 am

Z-Corn wrote:If the only video game available after the Zombie Apocalypse is Yar's Revenge count me out man, I don't wanna live...

Yeah, this actually bothered me.. An atari 2600 with Yars Revenge can't be the easiest thing to find in general. I would have thought they would have a more modern console.

stimpy · Post by **stimpy** » Tue Feb 28, 2017 12:04 pm

Punisher wrote:
Z-Corn wrote:If the only video game available after the Zombie Apocalypse is Yar's Revenge count me out man, I don't wanna live...
Yeah, this actually bothered me.. An atari 2600 with Yars Revenge can't be the easiest thing to find in general. I would have thought they would have a more modern console.

I believe Eugene mentions another game for the wives to join him in playing.

EvilHomer3k · Post by **EvilHomer3k** » Tue Feb 28, 2017 12:17 pm

I'm assuming Eugene specifically asked for the Atari and Yar's Revenge. They aren't THAT hard to find. I still have mine and I see them on Craigslist pretty regularly. I do agree that more modern ones would be easier to find. That said, Eugene is told he can have anything he wants. I think it's fitting that he asks for something that isn't easy to get. I'm sure they have hundreds of copies of Call of Duty for the Xbox 360 lying around.

The other game mentioned is Warlords.

Remus West · Post by **Remus West** » Tue Feb 28, 2017 12:37 pm

gameoverman wrote:That was an entertaining episode all the way through. I liked the contrast between Eugene rising to the occasion while we see Dwight sink lower than ever. At the end when they stand next to each other Dwight even looks a bit Gollum-ish.

It did make me wonder, if Negan just didn't wake up one day, what would they all do? Would they actually be sad because they might be institutionalized by now and without Negan they will feel insecure and lost? Is there a chain of command where the 2nd becomes the new Negan and things continue? Or will it be Game of Thrones where infighting breaks out? This is good stuff and I hope the show shows us more about this angle.

I think the contrast was them going in different directions. Eugene doesn't yet realize what it cost to be "Negan" while Dwight realizes full on what it has cost him.