User reviews

Everyone knows that the last few seasons of The Walking Dead weren't the same quality as the earlier ones, those early seasons were groundbreaking in so many ways that this series is considered among the best ever. Because of that this show still gets a high rating from me. Like most long running shows, it had its ups and downs but even at its worst it was still the #1 show on cable, in fact it has been #1 every season it's been on the air. The last few seasons without Andrew Lincoln (Rick Grimes) haven't been as good but it at least started to get back to being a pretty good show during this last season. Norman Reedus (Daryl) and Jeffery Dean Morgan (Negan) continued to carry the show after Andrew Lincoln's departure to the point where people looked forward to it again. Having said all that, it was still probably time for it to end.

I'm still a little young you know (lol) and I didn't know the old zombie classics of the genre as the illustrious George A. Romero did it but this modern-day classic is a must in the style. No SF, just humanity in decline fighting for its survival through hordes and hordes of ''Walker''. Even if it took me several years to watch it completely due to a lack of motivation, it's still a real thrill to find myself in my living room with all this gang with whom we really get attached. I'm currently listening to ''Fear of the Walking Dead'' and I plan to listen to the subsequent series of the genre that have come out <3.

The Walking Dead is a genre-defining series that captivates audiences with its gritty storytelling, compelling characters, and unflinching exploration of survival in a world devastated by the undead. Based on Robert Kirkman's acclaimed comic book series, this post-apocalyptic drama transcends the typical zombie narrative, delving into the complexities of human nature and the bonds forged amid chaos.

The early seasons are particularly impactful, with Andrew Lincoln delivering a commanding performance as Rick Grimes, whose leadership and moral dilemmas form the emotional core of the series. The ensemble cast, including Norman Reedus as the resourceful Daryl Dixon and Melissa McBride as the resilient Carol Peletier, adds depth and nuance to a diverse group of survivors. The evolution of these characters is handled with care, making their journeys resonate long after each episode.

One of the series' greatest strengths lies in its ability to balance intense action with raw, emotional storytelling. It masterfully explores themes of loss, hope, and the fragile line between humanity and savagery. From the terror of a walker herd to the unpredictable dangers posed by other survivors, the show maintains a constant tension that keeps viewers engaged. The blend of horror and drama is seamless, creating a world where every decision carries weight and consequences.

However, The Walking Dead is not without its flaws. Pacing issues and extended plotlines, particularly in later seasons, can hinder the narrative's momentum. Some characters experience inconsistent development, and the show's ambitious scope occasionally results in uneven storytelling. Despite these imperfections, the series remains compelling, with powerful moments, shocking twists, and deep character arcs that continue to captivate its audience.

Having rewatched the series multiple times, it's clear that its impact and storytelling have solidified its place as one of the most significant television shows of its genre. The raw depiction of survival, resilience, and the human condition keeps drawing viewers back, offering new layers of appreciation with each revisit.

In conclusion, The Walking Dead stands as a landmark in the zombie genre, redefined by its focus on character-driven drama and moral complexity. While not without its imperfections, the series earns its legacy through its gripping stories, unforgettable characters, and emotional intensity. It remains a captivating watch, offering enduring appeal for both dedicated fans and new audiences alike.

People can say what they like about The Walking Dead, yes I've watched other shows, and yes I'm aware of The Walking Dead's Falloff. Which is why I'm only focusing on the first 8 Seasons. Those 8 Seasons, well, let me tell you, they were phenomenal. Now let me get it out of the way, yes The Walking Dead is not the best TV Show, I know that, and I also don't think so. But it doesn't change the fact it's my favourite. An amazing cast of characters and Top Notch Acting.

The only thing I'm really sad, or disappointed about is why on earth this show is still going. So I will say that. The Later Seasons (S9-S11) are actually good seasons, it's just that they're completely unnecessary and the show should've long ago at S8.

The Walking Dead series captures the intensity and unpredictability of a post-apocalyptic world in a way that few shows have matched. With its unforgettable characters, relentless action, and deep psychological tension, it goes beyond the classic zombie genre. The show begins by introducing Rick Grimes, a sheriff who wakes up in a world devastated by a mysterious virus, and we follow his journey as he gathers a group of survivors, each bringing their own strengths, flaws, and stories.

One of the series' strongest points is its character development. We see how the struggle for survival in a world filled with walkers (zombies) and often-hostile human groups brings out both the best and worst in people. Characters like Daryl, Michonne, and Carol evolve tremendously, each dealing with losses, moral compromises, and moments of hope. The human conflicts often become as intense and captivating as the battle against the undead.

Another aspect that stands out is the show's commitment to atmosphere and world-building. The makeup and effects on the walkers are visually impressive, and the show builds tension through eerie, abandoned settings. The creators don't shy away from showing the physical and emotional toll of this harsh new world, making viewers feel as though they are right alongside the survivors.

However, The Walking Dead does have some slower seasons, where character arcs may drag and certain storylines feel a bit stretched. Yet even in those slower moments, the series consistently pulls viewers back with its emotional depth and the strong bonds formed among the characters. It ultimately isn't just about zombies-it's about survival, community, and the lengths people will go to protect their loved ones.

In summary, The Walking Dead is a gripping exploration of survival and humanity, set against the backdrop of a world overrun by walkers. For those who enjoy stories of resilience and complex characters, this series is a must-watch.

I've been a fan of The Walking Dead ever since the first episode of the first season. Even though the quality has gone down in recent years I still haven't missed an episode. While the last few seasons weren't quite as good they were still worth watching. It did go out on a high note though, the last season was actually pretty good. It had a few slow filler episodes but overall it was solid. Even though it was definitely time for it to end I'm still going to miss it. When something's been apart of your life for so long it's hard to say goodbye. The good news for fans is that there are a few spinoffs coming in 2023. I'm actually interested in the spinoffs considering they all star my favorite characters from the main show. There's three of them so far...one with Rick & Michonne, one with Negan & Maggie and one with Darryl going over to Europe. Again, those all happen to be my favorite characters so I'm looking forward to them and hope they're good!

I think The Walking Dead is the best show to come out in our generation. I also think if they make a comic book replica remake of the show and use most of the same actors and fit Daryl in there because of The Walking Dead survival instinct(Xbox and steam) story Because Daryl's our guy. It would be way higher rated way more lore filling better ratings for sure and I feel like people would love it 20x more bc I feel like some people feel like they Ben cheated ik Carl has and some characters we will never meet and story we will never see it's just so much possibility's and story that could be on the big screen. Thank you.

I just watched all seasons of this show. This is a pretty well crafted piece of t.v. To be honest, if your a horror fan; this is pretty much: a masterpiece dream come true. (Gem).

Pros: The show is good at changing topic season to season: good amount of likable characters, has good character conflict. The show explores several genres: Drama, melo-drama, action, romance, civil war, human connection, friendship, horror, birth, child-loss, survival, family, love that touches the heart, and much more. The characters are put into some interesting situations: very creative scene design. Good main character casting, very entertaining. Solid character growth. Soulful dialogue, and Good acting from the main cast. 👍

Cons: Some of the costume designs are basic. Basic scene music. Production is good, but could have been a little bit stronger. Some dramatic scenes drag longer than needed. Scene editing shakey at times.

Overall: To be honest this is a grate show. Good t.v reflection of human survival. Anyone who knows anything about t.v or film could not rate this no lower than an 8 out of 10. It can be scary and gory at times: but it's called the walking dead for a reason. First 3 seasons are excellent. Im guessing their the best ones to be honest. 5,6,7, and 8 are grate too. However the Negan saga had some of the better acting. Final rating: 8.2 out of 10.

This is a very long running TV-show (10+ years) with many seasons. One common view is that the first seasons are great, then it becomes garbage. I decided to binge-watch in 2021 to make an opinion for myself.

What I will say is that season 1 is definitely the fastest paced season, reminiscent of typical Zombie films such as Dawn of the Dead with a simple "escape the undead" premise. After season 1, the pacing becomes very slow (lots of episodes, each 1 hour), and the story drags on and is more about watching the cast settle down in bases/single locations. It becomes a post-apoc survival show.

Personally, I very much enjoyed binge watching this entire show. I even prefered the later seasons than the first seasons. It felt enjoyable to watch a slower paced story of survival and base/world building by the core cast of the show, mainly Rick Grimes and his son Carl. The reason is that "escaping the zombies" and being stressed & running all the time, gets old. I liked the other aspects of post-apocalypse survival themes such as the danger of other human groups (Negan and the saviors, I really liked, the Negan actor is amazing and very charismatic).

One of the common views I read online is that the entire show is amazing if binge watched, as it forms one great story. However it was HELL for the people that watched a single episode per week/month, because often very little happens in each episode, dragging the seasons on forever. But binge watching a season makes for a nice "kick back & relax" TV show to enjoy.

So in conclusion, I would very much ignore the reviews that say "Only season 1 is great" and "anything after season 5 sucks". I would advise you binge watch from season 1, and stop when you no longer want to watch. For me, I just couldn't stop and really started to enjoy the show from season 6 onwards (when the "running from zombies" premise ends).

Overall, no matter one's opinion, one undeniable fact is that this is the QUINTESSENTIAL zombie TV show, with the number of seasons to match. It is simply epic and I cannot wait to see how season 11 concludes this story. Enjoyable through the dead. Just Watch it.

The walking dead was amazing until season 6. Ones they reach that fenced village and the whole story with negan begins, it becomes very boring and reptetive. The zombies are no threat anymore and the feeling of Urgency is lost. The feeling of danger is lost. I have watched until season 9 and it got worse with every season since season 6. So sad that it had to come to this. They should never have found that fenced city...

The first 4 seasons were genuinely great! Mostly interesting characters with depth and good archs. Season 5 was okay but became a bit messy. Following seasons became a who' who of human stockpiles. Way too many characters, descisions that made no sense, blurry storylines and no character development.

Entering season 11 and I truly have no idea who most of these people are anymore, what they're doing and why.

Really loved this programming, especially Rick. It is a shame that COVID seemed to have slowed Andrew Lincoln down as he was seemingly bound for big things before hand. The first couple seasons were brilliant, for me it was the Negan effect that really hurt the show, especially making it out as if Rik would fear him which was laughable. Rick delt with the Governor, he won't fear someone like Negan who was essentially a coward. I especially did not enjoy the six year jump as it did not make sense as to why Daryl would still be looking after so long when they would have come to terms with it by now. The finale was probably the poorest episode in the entire show.

Have been true fan from beginning, still am, love the show and the characters, BUT.....

the taking on of other people, while realistic, is a bit much and they barely fight again the Walkers anymore. This is sad as the fear, desperation and horror of struggling to survive in a world now ruled by Walking Dead, is how it all started.

So this is a sincere request to the leaders, the writers and producers, get back to fighting and surviving against the Walkers/Zombies!! Please!!!

Had heard nothing but great things about 'The Walking Dead' from friends and IMDb reviewers. It took a while to get round to walking, both from being busy and also not being sure whether it would be my cup of tea.

Finally getting round to it a few years ago and slowly working my way through it, 'The Walking Dead' turned out to be very much my cup of tea and as good as the hype made it out to be. Seasons 1-5 of 'The Walking Dead' to me were absolutely brilliant, and it still shocks me at how an intelligent, well-made (so much so that it is easy to mistake it for a film) show about zombies could be made when so many films have tried and failed abysmally to do so. My only complaint about the early seasons actually is the slightly slow start to Season 2.

'The Walking Dead' is incredibly well made in the production values, with gritty and audacious production design, photography of almost cinematic quality, effects that look good, have soul and are not overused or abused and pretty frightening make-up which helps make the already freaky zombies even freakier. The music is haunting and affecting, having presence but never being too intrusive.

For five seasons, the writing was intelligent and thought-provoking, with lots of tension and emotional resonance and improving every time a story and character were expanded and given more complexity. Loved that the stories had multiple layers and felt satisfactorily resolved, while the action is both thrilling and terrifying, the blood-spattering gore uncompromising.

Seasons 3 and 4 are especially good in this regard, and it is the latter where the complexities and nuance of the storytelling and characterisation particularly shine. The pace was a little slow to begin with in Season 2 but thrilling elsewhere while not rushing through important pieces of information. Direction is smart and atmospheric while the show throughout has been strongly acted especially from the two leads playing particularly well-crafted characters.

Which is why it is so sad that Season 7 has been a dead mess on the whole, apart from the production values, some effective world-building and the actors did their best with what they had (an achievement somewhat, admiration is to be had for anybody able to do anything with such poor material). Season 6 did have some slow and pointless moments and the finale was a disappointment but had good things. Can say very little good about Season 7 though.

A season where once interesting, complex characters are no more. Negan was a fascinating villain, now a cartoonish caricature that one wants done away with, don't blame Jeffrey Dean Morgan here, he's great in the role, it's the writing. Pacing has been all over the map, often brutally slow. The season has had too many characters and subplots that are mostly under-explored or completely superfluous. There was heavy reliance on over-convenience, lots of melodrama, very talky sections that add little and feel like padding, little character growth, frustratingly illogical decision making and some convolution. And there were very few thrills or scares thanks to lack of suspense and a sense that everything feels toned down.

Overall, brilliant for about just over two-thirds but Season 7 was a serious disappointment and has left me dubious as to whether to stick with the show for the eighth season. With such a decline lately, there is a sense that a once addictive personal favourite show has run its course. 7.5/10 Bethany Cox

Series 7&8 were tough, in fact we gave up hope completely and stopped watching. Recently we gave it another go and got through it and series 9 is not disappointing us so far. TWD is back to how it used to be Humans vs zombies with some added dangers! There have been highs and lows but it keeps you hooked. I hope they continue like this.

Plot

Sheriff Deputy Rick Grimes wakes up from a coma to learn the world is in ruins and must lead a group of survivors to stay alive.

Cast

Too many to list, many truly fantastic talents, the one thing I can't complain about is the casting!

Verdict

Fun fact, I tried to watch The Walking Dead when it first came out and was stupidly excited for it. You see I'm a zombie fanatic and even as a kid saw the limitless potential of a zombie television show so my expectations were very high. Well, I got about 2/3 of the way through Season 2 before dropping out. I didn't "Get it" in the slightest.

Cut forward to 2023 and the missus chose it as her pick of show for us to binge watch. I was less than excited, I feared I'd see it no differently as I did before but now having watch a total of 11 seasons!

So what did I make of it? Especially since folks believe that what I watched was where it peaked and it gradually got worse!

Well, I breathed a sigh of relief when we finished season 11 as the whole thing was an exhausting soul draining chore and I was left silently begging that she doesn't pick any of the many spinoffs for the future.

So why? Why was it such a chore? Why am I giving this long running critically acclaimed show such a low rating?

Well as you'd expect with a show that last 11 years, there are a lot of factors so I'll touch upon the main ones.

The writing is a combination of bad and inconsistent. By bad I mean illogical character decisions and repetition, by inconsistent it's almost as if different writers had differing ideas for the characters and played a game of tug of war with their entire personalities which was frustrating to watch.

The element that our heroes in many instances were as bad as the supposed bad guys, but then again maybe that was the point?!

The tone was always going to be bleak, it's the zombie apocalypse after all but there was simply not enough in the way of levity, moments of hope, breaks from the misery which in turn makes the whole thing difficult and unpleasant to watch.

What did they do right? Some great characters and some decent moments (Though not enough for an 11 season show!)

I cannot get my head around its popularity, that was a chore to binge watch.

Rants

The Walking Dead is a soap opera with zombies, there I said it. At multiple times throughout the show the undead after an after thought and that should never have been a thing. Yes relationships should be a factor, yes the common themes of humans being the real threat should be a thing but there's a line and I think The Walking Dead defecated on that line repeatedly.

The Good

Some incredible cast/characters A few generally memorable moments A tense feeling where any character can die at anytime

The Bad

The gloom just never relents Some awful writing No consistency with character development Certain characters suddenly leaving at the same time late in the show was damaging Too much senseless animal death.

The Walking Dead in its first season could not be touched. When it came down to it, the first season had a collection of complex characters, thought provoking dialogue, captivating storylines, great cinematography, and downright scary looking zombies. Its hard to pin-point one thing that is extraordinary about Season 1 since there are so many aspects to talk about. First off, the scenes in downtown Atlanta were incredibly visual and the scenes that took place in more rural areas were very scenic. The undead in the first season had great makeup and special effects too, the zombies had defined faces that really make them feel they were once human. If I had to pick one thing that was great about the first season, its has to be the cast... Andrew Lincoln and Jon Bernthal make great, bad ass lead actors that also have the ability to project a range of emotions. Laurie Holden is also radiant in this season and the surrounding cast of Jeffrey DeMunn, Steven Yeun, Irone Singleton, and Norman Reedus all showcase a great character that can be easily become a fan-favorite to any. Frank Darabont hit a grand slam with the Walking Dead and its fairly easily to see why the shows popularity boomed right away.

Netflix recommend it in my watchlist...I thought let's give it a try with my skeptical hat on... Then, I watched episode 1 trust me it was engaging then it built on stories after story and today I have finished 10 season and awaiting for 11th eagerly.

I would put this series my top 5 off all time despite the last few series were a tad disappointing. Maybe COVID affected the script writing but it did tail off.

Enough of that and on to the good stuff. The early seasons are just phenomenal. It's less about the walkers and more about the characters and relationships they build and the challenges they faced in trying to forge a life amidst the horror around them. And in fact the other people rather than the walkers prove more of a problem to them.

There's so much to keep you on tenterhooks. Stories are told brilliantly, there's genuine terror and fear. A constant menace.

The first 6 series are incredible. There are moments that you'll never forget. Moments that will shake you to your core. Moments that are just 'what the...'

It's genuinely moving at times too and that's where the early seasons are best. It's not a gore fest like the later ones. It's just great TV.

This would have been a clear 10 but for the drawn out ending.