The Walking Dead

My favorite TV show, hands down. AMC has another hit on their hands, following on the heels of Mad Men and Breaking Bad. Who would have thought that a TV series about a zombie apocalypse could be so engrossing (with a sometimes emphasis on gross)? We are up to episode ten of Season Two and it continues to captivate.

Mind you, there was a bit of a lull around episodes eight and nine - the first half of Season Two ended with the unforgettable barn scene and the discovery of Sophia. The following two episodes "Nebraska" and "Triggerfinger" were light on zombies and heavy on developing the rift between Rick and Shane (driven by Lori of course). Last night, things got back on track with zombies crawling our of buildings, clamoring over each other lusting for flesh or just wandering solo through the fields. What an image. Glenn may have competition for Maggie and there was an attempted suicide...

We still do not know what prompted the virus that attacks the human brain and brings on the state of zombieness, what happened to Morgan and Duane (father / son from the Pilot), and we expect the maniacal Merle (minus a hand) to make another appearance and perhaps exact revenge on T-Dog. Wild stuff!!!

So I have a theory that The Walking Dead is somewhat plagiarizing my other favorite TV mini-series, Lonesome Dove. There are the two strong willed lawmen: Shane / Rick and Call / Gus. They both love a woman called Lori (Call not overtly). They clash frequently but at the bottom of it all, respect each other. There is a faithful young sidekick (Newt / Glenn). There is a faithful black sidekick (Deets / T-Dog). They are trying to move a group across hostile territory. There are ferocious enemies (zombies / Comanches).

As an aside, the name Lonesome Dove comes from a church in Southlake, TX. Larry McMurty saw one of their vans drive by one day and decided to use the name. Not sure where The Walking Dead came from, but you know where to find me 8PM Central on Sunday nights...