Review Bite(r)s: The Walking Dead

October 13, 2013 is an auspicious day, what with the return of The Walking Dead and all. This has also been a pretty happy TWD year for me, what with getting to meet and have photos taken with some of the cast members. And so, in honour of all this, I have been doing a little TWD primer work in preparation for tonight’s premiere…

The Walking Dead, Vol. 1: Days Gone Bye by Robert Kirkman

Once a book is published, it’s out of the author’s hands, though inevitably, the author will likely see a million things they want to tweak or change or fix. It is rare that an author has the opportunity to retell their tale. Since I’m reading this long after falling in love with the TV series it’s impossible for me to review the source material for the show without comparison. But, keeping in mind that the show is Kirkman’s chance to retell his story, I really enjoyed it.

At the end of issue #1, Kirkman explains that he did not intend this to be a horror story. He intended this to be a survivalist adventure where we get to take the journey with Rick Grimes and see how he changes and grows. I also see it as a journey for Kirkman and can see how he has changed and matured in his writing.

Many of the scenes in the show are lifted almost exactly from the comic, but the show does one thing differently: it makes sure this isn’t just Rick’s journey. From the addition of Morgan’s wife in the show, to the extension and development of Shane’s character, we see humanity at its best and worst, but realize that we may be no better or worse if thrown into such a horrible situation.

Thus far, I don’t think the comics are as good as the show, but I think they are an important read for fans to see the the journey of both character and author.

The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor by Robert Kirkman

The death of his beloved wife years earlier had already ruined Philip Blake’s life, leaving him with a single purpose: to care for and protect his daughter, Penny. This does not change when the zombie apocalypse hits, but his circle of protection expands to include his two best friends, and, unfortunately, his hapless, sickly brother Brian.

The Governor has been a frightening inclusion in The Walking Dead series, but as with all truly good antagonists, he is not simply mad and/or evil. This trilogy serves to reveal what made the enigmatic leader of Woodbury who he is by first showing us what he was and reminding us just how much of a struggle leadership is, especially when all the rules have gone out of the window. Variations of the phrase “do what you have to do” comes up often and with necessity. Although I figured out the plot twist from the first few pages, the journey was still worthwhile and I’m curious to see where the rest of the trilogy goes.

Interestingly, the book is written in present tense. I’ve seen this done in another book originally intended to be a comic and I wondered if that was the original intention for this. As an audiobook, the tense works well, amplifying the tension of the characters and events.

As an added bonus, a gaming review! I’ve been voting for The Walking Dead game as Game of the Year and recommending it to TWD fans who might not even be gamers, so it was about time I actually got to playing it myself.

The game puts you in the shoes of the character, forcing you to make some increasingly difficult life and death decisions. I’ve only completed episode one, but can confirm that my pre-praise and recommendations have been justified. There are some technical annoyances with the gameplay, and there has been some yelling at the screen because it wouldn’t let me do exactly what I wanted in some places, but otherwise, I have no complaints. Rather, I’m moving into the next episode with trepidation because I know things are going to become more difficult and are going to play hard on my feels…