Still Pretty Raw. Same Great Human Drama.

The first time we talked about Robert Kirkman's The Walking Dead was here. As we discussed then, TWD is not your typical zombie tale, but it IS a very well-written and beautifully illustrated character study. At that point I had read the first three trade collections representing the first 18 issues of the monthly comic. Since then, I've bought and read the next seven trades, making me current through 10 collections or 60 issues, and this book is STILL incredible.

Rick Grimes is clearly the main character of this book, although Kirkman does an excellent job of giving each character his or her own voice and plenty of "screen" time. Rick is a cop, and the first issue opens with Rick and his partner in pursuit of a suspect. Rick is shot and ends up in the hospital in a coma. When he wakes up, he finds the world drastically changed, now being populated mostly by zombies. First thing Rick does is make his way home only to find the house deserted. He follows his family to Atlanta, but once there, he finds things even worse in the bigger city where even more zombies have gathered.

Fortunately, he runs into a young Asian man named Glen who has ventured into the city to gather supplies for a small group of survivors living in a camp just outside of town. Rick joins Glen in rounding up supplies, then goes back to the group, finding his wife, his young son and his partner among them. Reunited with his loved ones, Rick is content to stay with the group, but everyone in the group comes to realize they cannot safely stay in the open. So eventually, this small band of survivors hits the road seeking a defensible shelter.

Rick's group -- as he clearly becomes their de facto leader -- finds a gated community and a remote farmhouse, neither of which work out long-term, but both stops provide chances for drama, contact with more survivors, some of whom join the group, and many more zombies.

Finally, Rick's ever-changing group finds a penitentiary where they hope to set up a safe, defensible home. Of course, they first have to come to terms with the current occupants, a few surviving inmates and many, many zombies. As the small band of survivors begins to make the prison into a safe, secure home, Kirkman allows the reader to share in the characters' growing sense of contentment. You, like the characters, let your guard down, which makes it all the more powerful when Kirkman slams another large band of survivors into the mix with Rick's group.

I'll stop there in an attempt to keep the spoilers to a minimum, but as I said last time, I'm not a huge fan of zombie fare. The usual undead trappings are present in this story, because it IS a zombie tale. But it is also so much more than that. This is a solid human survival drama, and Kirkman is writing some of the best characterization I have seen from him. Once again, I highly recommend The Walking Dead!