5 Reasons It's Time To Let The Walking Dead Die

1. That's All, Folks

Perhaps the worst part of the popularity of The Walking Dead is that it guarantees that there will never be anything like it ever again. That means that it's not out of the realm of sanity for fans of the show to still be talking about it for years after its ending, but that also means that those of us who find the show to be a massive disappointment means that we have to learn to live with it because, like a child fed asparagus for dinner, that's all we're gonna get. In any medium, success will inspire imitators. Lost had its fair share of failed copycats after it went off the air (remember Persons Unknown? The Event? Neither do I) and while there's probably validity in the argument that Revolution wouldn't exist without The Walking Dead, the latter is so specific in its scope and subgenre that the folks at AMC probably knew they'd have one shot to get it right and they'd never get that shot again if botched. The Walking Dead has been praised for its groundbreaking special effects and its somber, morally complex approach to the inter-human conflicts that will still exist even in a zombie apocalypse (hey, PEOPLE ARE THE WALKING DEAD!), but just imagine what could've been if it had landed at a network that wasn't playing it safe. What if The Walking Dead had landed at an HBO or a Showtime, where more relaxed censorship would've still allowed Greg Nicotero's makeup effects to shine through, but also allowed for more bleakness and malice to seep in? What if The Walking Dead had landed at FX, where John Landgraf takes a very hands off approach and allows his creative types to do what they were hired to do? Any of those networks wouldn't have been scared to pause and meditate existentially on the possibility of human extinction instead of speeding through to the next zombie kill or overly expository vomit of dialogue. Unfortunately, AMC can print its own money with The Walking Dead at this point and the success of the show is so mountainous that no other network would be foolish enough to attempt it again due inherent and immediate comparisons that would undoubtedly be made. Yes, Zombieland is coming to streaming services, but to compare Zombieland to The Walking Dead is like comparing Hogan's Heroes to Stalag 17. TV shows are planned to run long, they cost more and they involve more complications and moving parts than films. Had The Walking Dead failed right out of the gate, perhaps somewhere down the line someone would've picked up the pieces and said, "Well, I think I can do it better." Success has unfortunately set the bar too high and, like Rick emerging from the hospital into a world overrun, this is the world we have to live in. What are the reasons you have for giving up on The Walking Dead?