Another One Bites The Dust

The Walking Dead tpb Vol. 17 "Something To Fear"
Image Comics
Robert Kirkman, writer
Charlie Adlard and Cliff Rathburn, artists

This volume of the collected Walking Dead includes the much-hyped issue No. 100 of the series, and it is VERY aptly named.

It wasn't so much that a major character died -- something we haven't seen in a little while now, and I guess I'd grown somewhat complacent in that regard -- but more the manner in which the character died that was so shocking and had so many people at the time talking. I don't want to give too much away, but I also understand now why so many followers of the spin-off "Walking Dead" television series were so certain that a particular major character was going to die a month or so ago in the series. *shudder*

When last we left our roving band of survivors, they were dealing with some stuff. Most of the core group was still intact and several of the new faces were also still alive, but the walled community they were living in was still in need of repairs following a breach that allowed several zombies in. In the midst of the repair work, a newcomer came to the town speaking of another settlement of survivors, the largest one yet Rick Grimes and his group had seen. The newcomer spoke of the large Hilltop settlement in glowing terms and led Rick and a small scouting party back with him to check things out. Once there, things weren't as perfect as Rick and Co. had been led to believe, but Rick still saw potential in joining with this new settlement.

This volume picks up as Rick's small group heads back to their own community. They meet resistance along the way. Four armed men on motorcycles block the road and provoke a confrontation. It seems the folks of Hilltop are paying "protection" to this gang, and Rick has bartered his group's services to eliminate the threat in exchange for an alliance with Hilltop. Rick has Glenn, Andrea, and Michonne with him, and they make short work of the four bikers, thinking they have made some real inroads into removing the threat the gang poses.

Rick's group returns to their community, but the next day, the community is attacked by maybe a dozen or so members of the gang who have followed them "home." Again, Rick's crew dispatches the attackers with only a few injuries and one casualty. But Rick knows that the gang will likely be back. He opts to take a small group back to Hilltop as quickly as possible for reinforcements and supplies before the next attack comes. His group does not make it all of the way to Hilltop before they are stopped by the gang of unsavory individuals, many, many more than can be easily counted. This gang is much, much larger than Rick ever suspected, and it is made up of people who make the Governor and the town of Woodbury seem quaint by comparison. Rick's group, indeed, has something to fear besides the continuing threat the zombies pose.

Finally A Chance For Peace

The Walking Dead tpb Vol. 16: A Larger World (Collects issue Nos. 91-96)
Image Comics
Robert Kirkman, writer
Charlie Adlard and Cliff Rathburn, artists

Things are settling down somewhat in the walled community just outside of Washington, D.C., as the residents there come to accept Rick Grimes as their new leader. However, another winter has set in and supplies are running dangerously low. Larger groups are being sent farther and farther away in an attempt to find food, medicines and other necessities. In their world, it has now been two years since the zombie apocalypse began, so even canned foods are becoming scarce, and what does still remain is fast approaching or already past its intended expiration date.

While confronting these challenges, the community must face another surprise: a lone scout approaching their enclave. The newcomer, Paul "Jesus" Monroe, is armed and a very capable fighter. He claims to represent a community of more than 200 survivors on the other side of Washington who are interested in establishing trade with other communities, but Rick and company have learned not to take such scouts at face value. Eventually, Jesus manages to convince Rick to come back with him, talk to their leader, and see what is what in the Hilltop community.

Of course, once Rick gets to Hilltop, things are not exactly as Jesus said they would be, but Rick still sees potential in forming an odd sort of partnership with this new group. Now he just has to convince his people to go along with the bargain.

Another great installment in this ongoing series. One almost believes that a true, new beginning might just be possible for these people. Of course, having said that, this IS still an ongoing series and as we near issue No. 100, you just know something major has got to be waiting in the wings to mess that dream up.

Just How Much Can These People Take?

The Walking Dead tpb Vol. 15: We Find Ourselves (collecting issue Nos. 85-90)
Image Comics
Robert Kirkman, writer
Charlie Adlard and Cliff Rathburn, artists

I've talked about discovering The Walking Dead before here and here. Here we are again at Volume 15.

These trades don't read like superhero trade collections. Collecting six issues is a standard length for a trade these days. Depending on story content, some might be only four or five, other might include seven or eight or more regular issues of a series. But with a typical superhero trade collection, there is a definite issue break. Often, specific covers are reprinted before each "chapter" of the story in a trade, but even without those, I suspect most readers would have little problem pinpointing the transition point between issues. Not so with The Walking Dead trades. Sure, I could count pages if I wanted to or maybe even spot the issue breaks in other ways, if I really wanted to. But my point is that these trades truly read like one long ongoing story. The transition from issue to issue is smoother in these books as one chapter naturally flows into the next and each book flows into the next and these people's journey just plays on and on. That's not meant to be a criticism or a subtle way of complaining that the writing is boring and drudges on. For me, it helps give me that sense of how much these survivors have faced since their world turned upside down.

This trade opens after a rather horrific zombie attack seen in the last trade. After losing the prison they'd called home for several issues (and a few more cast members), Rick Grimes and company make their way to a walled community. They find a group of people living there in relative peace, but these folks have become somewhat complacent by their circumstances. That's what led to the attack in the last trade. Now the folks who are left must clean up the zombie carcasses, some of whom used to be friends the day before and repair the damage to the wall. They don't stop there, however; Rick, now in charge of this larger group, solicits ideas to fortify the community's defenses, make them stronger and more secure. And the newcomers must also deal with some of the long-timers who aren't too keen on Rick being in charge.

As this tale wears on, it is becoming more and more obvious the toll being the leader is taking on Rick. He feels responsible for all the life and death decisions he is forced to make, and fears that they are becoming easier to cope with.

This continues to be a story not about zombies so much as about the people trying to continue to survive in a world filled with zombies -- what they are forced to do to survive, what they are willing to do to survive, and how those changes and decisions affect and change them. Yep, still very much enjoying this series.

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!

Nasty. Raw. Brutal. Excellent.

We've talked here before about characterization and it's importance to story-telling. The characters have to be people the reader cares about for reading and enjoying to occur. The characters that populate Image Comics' Walking Dead series by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, Charlie Adlard and Cliff Rathburn literally come alive with their characterizations.

The series, for those unfamiliar with it, involves a cop who wakes up from a coma to find no one around but zombies. He has no idea where the zombies came from or what the heck is going on, but he sets out to track down his family and finds other survivors among the many Walking Dead. But this is more than just a typical zombie horror-fest. Kirkman describes the book as "the zombie movie that never ends," focusing not so much on the zombies themselves, but the living folk trying to stay that way. "I want to explore how people deal with extreme situations and how these events CHANGE them," he adds. "This is a very character driven endeavor."

Is it ever.

I'd heard good things about the book and was curious to try it. When I read rave reviews for something online, it is often hit or miss whether or not I will like it, and I DON'T care so much for zombie movies. So I decided to really give the series a try if I was going to try it at all. I bought the first three trades, collecting all of the first 18 issues of the series. If at the end of that, I still didn't like it, no one could say I hadn't given it a chance. I read all three trades in one weekend.
I could hardly put it down. The drama is intense. The action is exciting. The artwork and the gray tones are brilliant. And, as promised, the writing focuses on strong characters you come to care about as they try to survive in this world they barely understand. There are zombies, but they are more minor characters, almost scenery sometimes, for the main characters to play against.

Those first three trades were so good, I quickly found the fourth and fifth collections. I just read those two in two sittings recently, only pausing in between to go to work, and that only because my wife insisted I must. I have the next six trades -- Nos. 6-11 on order. When they get here, I fully expect to devour them hungrily and then die from waiting the many long months before the 12th collection is released.

This book is awesome! Check it out!!

And do so quickly, before these characters invade your television set in Ocotber. That's right! If you haven't already heard, Kirkman is involved with the production of making The Walking Dead into an hour-long drama series for AMC. The show doesn't even begin shooting until this summer, but AMC has already pledged to debut the show in October during their Halloween-season programming.