Has The Walking Dead gone too far? *Spoiler Free*
Simple answer? No. Absolutely not.
The Walking Dead‘s Season 7 premiere was shocking, no doubt. However, I’m seeing a lot of complaining from people that seem to want some lighthearted sentiment in a show that is quite literally about the end of the world. The Walking Dead. What exactly in that title makes one think that anything uplifting will ever happen? The source material, the books themselves, were created to show the evil that men do, and the show has always done a brilliant job of putting that into living color. The zombies were ALWAYS intended to be a B-story, just like the ship sinking in Titanic.
Some seem to be too fragile to participate in a show that would brutalize its main characters, and that’s fine. Some people just have weak constitutions. But it is about as accurate a representation of the depravity and hopelessness that would run rampant in a post-apocalyptic world as I can imagine. Cynical? Maybe. But just take a look around our REAL world and tell me how much worse TWD actually is.
To add to this, we knew Negan was coming. His arrival was inevitable. Anyone with the slightest knowledge of the books knew who he was and how bad he was, so why is it so shocking? Because it was too brutal for TV? Perhaps you missed Dale being disemboweled, or Hershel being decapitated, or maybe Noah getting torn apart. Or maybe you even missed the young, albeit zombified, Sophia being shot in the head by Rick. Maybe you missed the warnings of “Negan makes The Governor look like a boy scout.” If you did, I’m sorry you were misled. But The Walking Dead is unapologetic and if it has taken you 7 years to realize that, then maybe you should stop watching, like so many of you have sworn to do. Because I can guarantee you, it doesn’t get any better from here, and if this was too much for you, then you surely will not survive what’s coming.
This show was not designed to make you feel good, it was not designed to make you feel hopeful, it was not designed for you to feel empowered in any way. It was designed to convey absolute dread and despair, and those of us that still watch it with bated breath every Sunday in the Fall are well aware of that.
This rash of fake outrage has just become too much. But if you actually are offended or outraged, please know that the fans of TWD have heard your concerns, and we really don’t care. Please stop watching, and we can all go about our lives.
As the gallery shows, the gore and brutality is not uncommon for the show. It’s also not uncommon for the show to kill off likable characters. It’s always had a motto of “no one is safe.” I think most people are just upset that a season one character who they really liked is gone and their ire actually has nothing to do with the episode itself. Negan represents the loss of humanity in a hopeless world. People deal with things like the end of the world in different ways and Negan has decided his way is to look out for… Read more »
I always like to hold up “The Wrestler” as an example in instances like this. It is the most depressing movie I’ve ever seen in my life. It’s literally just a downpour of shit that never lets up. And it won 56 awards (and was nominated for 83 more!).