Am I the only one who thinks that AMC's proposed spin-off of their hit series The Walking Dead is a bad idea? While the television series has seen ratings success, critics have questioned the inconsistent levels of zombie action and some of the dramatic storylines. Meanwhile, the comic appears to be running out of original stories (find a safe place, get overrun by zombies, meet hostile humans, fight them, get overrun by zombies wash, rinse, repeat). The world may be just about zombied out and it will take a lot of creativity to come up with an original concept that won't simply be a retread of the existing series or worse yet, dilute or detract from the original series. Today, we'll take a look at some of the possible directions that a spin-off could take and why they probably wouldn't work.
5. Morgan Jones - "I Am Legend"
We've had a taste of the life of Morgan Jones, one of the first survivors encountered by Sheriff Rick Grimes in the first episode "Days Gone By." Morgan and his son Duane are managing pretty well despite the persistent "visits" of Morgan's undead wife. When Rick and Morgan part ways, we have no sense of the tragedy lying ahead. In season 3's "Clear," Rick returns to his hometown to scavenge weapons to fight off the impending attack by "The Governor." There he is reunited with Morgan who is a little unhinged by his experiences, to put it mildly. His son Duane has been bitten and killed by his undead wife and he now spends most of his days clearing captured or dead walkers from the countless booby-traps he has laid throughout the town. Morgan declines to join Rick's crew at the prison and when we last see him, he's back to clearing the zombies from his traps. Just Imagine.... The story of one man against an onslaught of the undead has been told time and time again but few have told it better than Richard Matheson in his trailblazing book, "I am Legend." Hollywood may have butchered it on numerous occasions, but AMC has the opportunity to gain inspiration from the source material to craft a gripping series about one man and his fight for survival in a world where he is the now the monster. Killing walkers by day, fighting for his sanity at night, never knowing whether the humans who stumble upon him are friend or foe, the potential exists for a dramatic series that could catch fire with audiences. Morgan Jones actor Lennie James gave a stellar performance in this role and has the acting ability and range to headline any Walking Dead spin-off. While this would provide a break from the ensemble cast feel of The Walking Dead, one wonders if what would essentially be a one man show with little dialogue would be able to keep audience interest. One could easily see the concept of "a man alone," swiftly abandoned and either amping up the action by teaming Jones up with other zombie killers or simply falling in line with the original series by creating another ensemble cast on the road looking for sanctuary.