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‘The Walking Dead’ – Season 8, Part 1 – Sundays on AMC

RangerX

Banned
I think there is a bit of exaggeration and misremembering going on.

I'll be as honest and objective as possible but last season wasn't as bad as some of you are making it sound. It certainly wasn't nearly as good as it could have been so I think that's what is sticking in people's craw. And I agree with that.

I would have given the season a B overall. B- if I want to be harsh. Y'all make it sound like a D. It definitely didn't capitalize on all the things it had but now that we're in the payoff stretch I hope they go ham.

The last season was pure dogshit and had some of the worst writing and pacing of any current tv show. You seem to apply a very uncritical eye to this show. Just because its about zombies doesn't mean it can't have good writing.
 

Surfinn

Member
I think there is a bit of exaggeration and misremembering going on.

I'll be as honest and objective as possible but last season wasn't as bad as some of you are making it sound. It certainly wasn't nearly as good as it could have been so I think that's what is sticking in people's craw. And I agree with that.

I would have given the season a B overall. B- if I want to be harsh. Y'all make it sound like a D. It definitely didn't capitalize on all the things it had but now that we're in the payoff stretch I hope they go ham.

It was definitely much closer to a D. Negan got super super repetitive and pretty much became a one trick pony, outside of a few scenes.

There was way too much spinning wheels (which has been the biggest problem in the show for the last couple seasons).. you can tell the writers are trying to figure out how to fill time until the story or characters actually progress in a meaningful way.

Way too much useless filler. The writing and side characters are often horrible. They REALLY need to work on creating content that is enjoyable between landmark episodes.

So yeah, I'd give it a D. I think that's actually pretty realistic. Not to mention the dropping viewership to reflect the drop in overall quality.

S7 is nowhere NEAR a B.
 

BiGBoSSMk23

A company being excited for their new game is a huge slap in the face to all the fans that liked their old games.
Damn this show is still going on? I tuned out of it around the end of season 6. Has it been any good?

IMHO, no.

Lots of characters were made to make a bunch of dumb choices to get the plot to the end of 6.

I felt it was cheap and a bit of a cop out.

The whole predicament Rick and Co. are in now seems very contrived.

They've fended off similar villains already, and
Negan
is as cookie cutter as they come.

I don't understand people fawning over JDM's hammy, scenery-chewing performance.

The
Saviors'
numbers were conveniently not divulged by the people also living in the surrounding area.

And they just take over. The group's common sense already out the window from previous numbskulled decisions, Rick's whole established character dismantled, their hard-forged survival scramble tactics absent. They just get cornered. Not by a dude with a tank, or a band of cannibals, but by a random biker with a baseball bat named "Lucille" and bunch of whistling assholes.

I'm sorry, but that did not ring grave to me. It was almost comical.

But I guess we're invested lol.
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
Why do you think viewership dropped? Just randomly? You don't think it has to do with the quality of the show?

Ratings drop season to season for literally almost every single show on TV - it's extremely rare for ratings to remain flat or to rise year to year.
 

Surfinn

Member
Viewership for almost everything is dropping as traditional TV subscriptions continue to tank: https://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2017/05/20/amc-has-an-explanation-for-the-walking-deads-ratings-being-down/#6c048cfd8d44

Ratings drop season to season for literally almost every single show on TV - it's extremely rare for ratings to remain flat or to rise year to year.

That's an interesting read, thank you. I did not know most shows have dropped by a big percentage.

However, the article is not completely conclusive and does suggest the quality of the show may still be a factor in TWD's dipping ratings.

EDIT:

You can also make the argument that a big mistake was made leading up from the end of S6 to the beginning of S7, with how everybody was jerked around with "WHO WAS IT" and multiple months of speculation and hype.

The biggest drop from EP1-2 for any previous season was 17%, and the drop from EP1-2 was 27% for S7. I read that as people being fed up with the way they handled Glenn.
 

Solo

Member
It's not just last season that was bad. It's been like 3 straight bad seasons. At this point they aren't bad seasons, they are status quo.
 

sfedai0

Banned
I almost forgot this show was about zombies. Theyre more like background decor now. I guess everyone gave up on finding a cure or end to the outbreak. not real confident about this new season.
 

Surfinn

Member
That has literally never been an objective for anyone on the show, ever, outside of the CDC dude in that one episode back in season 1.

Yeah and I'm glad it's not really. It's kind of a gimmicky end game, IMO, in the context of TWD.

TWD to me has always been about survivors dealing with an inescapable, doomed new reality
 

ZeroCDR

Member
The biggest drop from EP1-2 for any previous season was 17%, and the drop from EP1-2 was 27% for S7. I read that as people being fed up with the way they handled Glenn.

The episode was very well done, but it absolutely belonged at the end of Season 6. Neither death was a surprise to anyone with a casual knowledge of the comics, and completely undeserving of a 6 month "WELL WHO DIED?!" break.
 
It's not just last season that was bad. It's been like 3 straight bad seasons. At this point they aren't bad seasons, they are status quo.

Nah, S4 (end of Governor/Prison arcs) and S5 (Terminus/Alexandria arcs) were the high points of the series.
S6's first half was good but the last couple of episodes of S6 is where it began to drop again.. Season 6's cliffhanger ending pretty much was the last nail in the coffin for quite a few fans. I know some people who pretty much came back for 7's first episode just to see who died and are now done with the show.
 

Surfinn

Member
I thought the entire show pretty much up until we started meeting side characters at Alexandria was relatively well done, even considering all the flaws.

But S6/7 have been a monumental dip in overall quality
 

Van Bur3n

Member
Still have to wait till Monday but I´m ready. Let´s bring it on. Hope it gets a little better now. Season 7 (except the first episode ofc) was a letdown. I think the last great season was season 5 for me.

Agreed. The second half of season 5 was probably the height of the show since the first season. Since then, it's gone downhill to the rock bottom that is season 7. Even then though, I haven't found any of the seasons of TWD to be solid all the way through. But still, I'd at least say S3-S5 is probably the best chunk of the show.
 

Grizzlyjin

Supersonic, idiotic, disconnecting, not respecting, who would really ever wanna go and top that
Guess I'm the only one that thinks the show has improved over the years. Still has serious pacing issues, but I think they're telling the stories better than they did in the first 3 (maybe even 4) seasons.
 

Solo

Member
Nah, S4 (end of Governor/Prison arcs) and S5 (Terminus/Alexandria arcs) were the high points of the series.
S6's first half was good but the last couple of episodes of S6 is where it began to drop again.. Season 6's cliffhanger ending pretty much was the last nail in the coffin for quite a few fans. I know some people who pretty much came back for 7's first episode just to see who died and are now done with the show.

Bolded is the turning point for me. That episode where the Governor's group assaults the prison and kill Herschel and Michonne kills the Governor was the high point. I bought into everything up to and including that. But since then? Been a slow, steady descent from there. S7 was just woeful.
 
I looked at my DVR's scheduled recording list. AMC seems to be filling their schedule with all sorts of Walking Dead behind-the-scenes fluff to fill out programming hours building up to the premiere. For a better show I might care enough to watch.
 

WaffleTaco

Wants to outlaw technological innovation.
I’m questioning people who seem to not like Season 6. Granted Part A is rather annoying, but Part B is definitely the best string of episodes the show has.

Season 6 Part B:

Episode 9: Rick & Co deal with horde, Jessie and kids die, and Carl gets his eye shot out.
Episode 10: Introduced to Jesus
Episode 11: Introduced to Hilltop
Episode 12: Taking out the Savior Compound (best action sequence in the show).
Episode 13: Deconstruction of Carol
Episode 14: Doctor dies and they find out there are still more Saviors
Episode 15: Main Group gets splintered and sets up finale (weakest episode this arc)
Episode 16: The impending dread of the eventual confrontation with Negan is done masterfully . . . Especially with eventual reveal of Negan. However, the fact that they don’t at least kill someone off is very detrimental to the viewers experience.
 

dustyherb

Member
Guess I'm the only one that thinks the show has improved over the years. Still has serious pacing issues, but I think they're telling the stories better than they did in the first 3 (maybe even 4) seasons.
Don’t worry you’re not the only one. The later seasons have done a better job following the comic arcs. It’s a big reason why I dont like 3 because Mazzara fucked up the prison storyline.
 
Last season definitely had big issues, and the atrocious pacing certainly didn't help - it actually accentuated those problems in a way, bringing them to the forefront. Negan, for example, went from being a very interesting threat to being an annoying and repetitive character in the span of a single season.

However, I will still give this season a go. Let's see if they can elevate it to season 5-6 levels again.
 

Surfinn

Member
I'm questioning people who seem to not like Season 6. Granted Part A is rather annoying, but Part B is definitely the best string of episodes the show has.

Season 6 Part B:


Episode 13: Deconstruction of Carol
.

**Reconstruction of Carol

I did love the season finale though. That was easily the highest quality episode in the entire season. There were a few good episodes sprinkled throughout the season but the side characters and filler were insufferably horrid
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
After the October 22 premiering 100thTWD episode ends, the newly launched AMC VR app will feature an extra scene from the “Mercy” episode directed by EP Greg Nicotero. Focusing on Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s Negan villain, the Kevin Cornish co-directed 360-degree bonus footage is clearly a strategic magnet to pull some of the blockbuster’s million of fans to the cabler’s new tech realm.

Source
 
I’m questioning people who seem to not like Season 6. Granted Part A is rather annoying, but Part B is definitely the best string of episodes the show has.

Season 6 Part B:

Episode 9: Rick & Co deal with horde, Jessie and kids die, and Carl gets his eye shot out.
Episode 10: Introduced to Jesus
Episode 11: Introduced to Hilltop
Episode 12: Taking out the Savior Compound (best action sequence in the show).
Episode 13: Deconstruction of Carol
Episode 14: Doctor dies and they find out there are still more Saviors
Episode 15: Main Group gets splintered and sets up finale (weakest episode this arc)
Episode 16: The impending dread of the eventual confrontation with Negan is done masterfully . . . Especially with eventual reveal of Negan. However, the fact that they don’t at least kill someone off is very detrimental to the viewers experience.
The first half of the first half of Season 6 is great. The opening with the quarry horde, Glen and co in town, the Wolves attack on Alexandria and Carol going cold blooded killer, Morgan flashback, etc.
 

sloppyjoe_gamer

Gold Member
Season 7 was abysmal.....i honestly can't take an entire whole season of the Negan/Savior shitshow again. Rick and Co. need some retribution and fast.
 

WaffleTaco

Wants to outlaw technological innovation.
The first half of the first half of Season 6 is great. The opening with the quarry horde, Glen and co in town, the Wolves attack on Alexandria and Carol going cold blooded killer, Morgan flashback, etc.

I will definitely agree with you there. I also think the first of the first half of Season 5 is done super well. Terminus being wrapped up so fast was great pacing . . . and then there was that pointless five episodes of Beth that killed any momentum.
 

Leeness

Member
Watching the behind the scenes things and I love that they:

A) All love Andy
B) know about and make fun of Andy for CORAL
 
It's hard for me to think of any characters I like.

Ricks ok.

Carol was cool for that one episode.

Darryl feels like the standard protagonist in every shooting rpg ever.

The rest? Meh.

At least when you consider the amount of red shirts available now there should be a lot of blood letting.

Any new big actors added to the cast?
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
Any new big actors added to the cast?

The cast is already massive, so I think they're holding off on casting any new major roles for the time being.

However, Maria Bello is apparently joining the cast later in the season in an unspecified role - maybe it'll just be as an extra (since she's a super fan), maybe it'll be a one off guest role (like Alicia Witt), or maybe it'll be as (comic)
Magna or Alpha.
No one knows!

The show is/was also casting for two new recurring characters:

AMC is casting two new recurring good guys: Dillon, a sexy, blue-collar twentysomething whose survival skills include sarcasm, and Abbud, an innately likable Muslim American whose nerves are, let's say, jangled, because he's flown solo for too long in zombieland. Of the pair, the former is likelier to survive the looming conflict — the casting notice for the roles hints that the actor chosen might get picked up for subsequent seasons.

The prevailing idea is that Dillon is (comic)
Dante
and Abbud is (comic)
Siddiq
.
 
The last season was pure dogshit and had some of the worst writing and pacing of any current tv show. You seem to apply a very uncritical eye to this show. Just because its about zombies doesn't mean it can't have good writing.
worst writing and pacing of any current tv show and I'm the one exaggerating lol

people seem to be forgetting most of the farm arc where literally nothing was going on for episodes on end
 
I’m questioning people who seem to not like Season 6. Granted Part A is rather annoying, but Part B is definitely the best string of episodes the show has.

Season 6 Part B:

Episode 9: Rick & Co deal with horde, Jessie and kids die, and Carl gets his eye shot out.
Episode 10: Introduced to Jesus
Episode 11: Introduced to Hilltop
Episode 12: Taking out the Savior Compound (best action sequence in the show).
Episode 13: Deconstruction of Carol
Episode 14: Doctor dies and they find out there are still more Saviors
Episode 15: Main Group gets splintered and sets up finale (weakest episode this arc)
Episode 16: The impending dread of the eventual confrontation with Negan is done masterfully . . . Especially with eventual reveal of Negan. However, the fact that they don’t at least kill someone off is very detrimental to the viewers experience.
I think I rank season 6 as a whole as one of the best seasons. The build up to Negan in the second half was executed perfectly.
I would have ranked as the best season along the first one if they hadn't fucked up the last 5 minutes of the finale with the garbage cliffhanger and had the balls to show Negan bashing Abraham and Glenn's brains
 
Ratings drop season to season for literally almost every single show on TV - it's extremely rare for ratings to remain flat or to rise year to year.

The only time GoT didn’t keep rising was S5, and well..

5565f0b6ecad04824ee30456-640-480.jpg
 

RPGCrazied

Member
Can't wait. Was hoping to use the AMC app to watch it live, don't know if you can do that. If all else fails I'll just hook up the PC to TV and watch on AMC's website. I have cable, just not a box in my room.
 

WaffleTaco

Wants to outlaw technological innovation.
The only time GoT didn’t keep rising was S5, and well..

5565f0b6ecad04824ee30456-640-480.jpg
Considering Episode 8 is considered the Goat moment of that season and 9 and 10 are usually the strongest episodes . . . I don’t teally think that pic is accurate. Plus Episode 7 is considered one of the worst of the series for a variety of reasons.

Edit: Nvm, even with 8, 9 and 10 it only managed to balance out. Season 6 and 7 though grew somehow.
 

TarNaru33

Banned
IMHO, no.

Lots of characters were made to make a bunch of dumb choices to get the plot to the end of 6.

I felt it was cheap and a bit of a cop out.

The whole predicament Rick and Co. are in now seems very contrived.

They've fended off similar villains already, and
Negan
is as cookie cutter as they come.

I don't understand people fawning over JDM's hammy, scenery-chewing performance.

The
Saviors'
numbers were conveniently not divulged by the people also living in the surrounding area.

And they just take over. The group's common sense already out the window from previous numbskulled decisions, Rick's whole established character dismantled, their hard-forged survival scramble tactics absent. They just get cornered. Not by a dude with a tank, or a band of cannibals, but by a random biker with a baseball bat named "Lucille" and bunch of whistling assholes.

I'm sorry, but that did not ring grave to me. It was almost comical.

But I guess we're invested lol.

Rick's group have not came across an organization that is as organized or as numbered as the Saviors. He realized instantly that he could not take the Saviors on with the numbers they had and the experience they had (relative to his own group). All the other groups he knew about were already vassals of the Saviors, so what do you think he could of done in that scenario?

The point of this whole ordeal was to show that Rick's group was not invincible, they fought lesser groups no where on the level of Saviors (this includes The Governor's group). He is now fighting a superior force that actually use their brains.

I would agree that them getting caught by Savior's group in the woods was them making stupid decisions, but again, that is them not realizing the extent to the force they were fighting.
 
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