This past Sunday AMC premiered the first episode of its new series, The Walking Dead, based on the comic book series of the same name. As all zombie movies tend to be relatively similar is many ways, one might assume that this genre lacks the ability to transcend into television like the buddy-cop or courtroom-drama. In fact, the first episode contained many themes and plot points as other zombie movies. Whether these movies ripped off the comic book, or the comic book ripped off the movies, the similarities are worth noting.
When protagonist Rick Grimes wakes up in the hospital, feeble and bearded, it bore a striking resemblance to the first scene of Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later. Both characters wake up in hospitals, and after calling for nurses' aid, discovers that the machines he is attached to are turned off and the hospital itself has been abandoned. They then proceed to leave their room, only to come across a bloody stumbling zombie, they ask for help, zombie attacks, protagonist scared. He is then left to discover that the society has broken down in the chaos of a flesh eating zombie outbreak that our government, and military were unable to stop, leading to the apocalyptic setting.
Now the protagonist will typically be rescued by a small group of well-armed survivors who teach them the rules of survival in the zombie universe. 1) Do not get bitten by a zombie. 2) Only trauma to the head can kill a zombie. This sequence can be seen in almost every zombie movie; 28 Days Later, Resident Evil, Dawn of the Dead, etc.
Despite the numerous cliches within the premiere of The Walking Dead, it was actually pretty good. The show is set up so that its story-lines exist within this zombie overrun United States, however it balances its conformity to the formula and seemingly exhausted plot still remain entertaining through strong acting and excellent directing.
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