Over five million viewers tuned in to see the premiere of AMC’s promising and groundbreaking zombie drama The Walking Dead, making it the biggest success in AMC’s history, beating the premiere of HBO’s series, Boardwalk Empire!
Naturally, the president of AMC, Charlie Collier, where very pleased with the success and said that they’re very proud of the series and its depth of storytelling, which he thinks raises the bar within the genre.
I cannot agree more, actually, as the first episode exceeded my expectations by far!
Already in the intro, which is a classic in my book, when the little zombie girl, holding a teddy bear, fired off that ghastly grin towards Rick, I was hooked. Then the story just kept on going in the same bewitching way and I remember thinking, please don’t let it end here, after almost every cut.
The series feels very complete, from the washed out and dirty settings that capture the post-apocalyptic feeling spot on to the thoughtful storyline with magnificent character development.
Then we have the zombies, which really stands out, both in terms of special effects and the way they behave, with a touch of character that makes you almost feel sympathy with them. I really like the scenes with the bicycle girl, which was a perfect example on how great they have managed to get the drama and the gore work together in heart gripping way.
Even though the zombies feel more modern and livelier than George A. Romero’s, they still have the same beastly desires, which they prove in a scene, where both guts and blood are flying around them.
I must really strain my head to find something bad and in the end all I can think of is the triangle drama that seems to be in the horizon, which I think feels a bit cliché, haven’t we seen that setup before?
However, it’s nothing that can drag this peachy series down though and I hold my fingers crossed to that the series will continue, this Sunday, in the same captivating way it started.
Box of Horror 