Why I Lost Interest In The Walking Dead After Season 6

Good evening ladies and gentlemen, well, it’s actually afternoon. A nice, hot sunny day in the mid of May. Today, under the microscope we are observing and analyzing The Walking Dead tv series and why after exactly six seasons, I checked out. With 11 seasons, for just over half the series, it was engaging until it became as stale as old bread crust. We shall delve into why, for me, the show ends after Season 6. Without further ado, let’s begin.

The first six seasons were about one thing- SURVIVAL. Survival against the walkers, survival against other people, each other, and a variety of groups. As the group gradually grew larger, they were forced to move from location to location due to different circumstances and what’s not some drama without interpersonal conflict a la Rick and Shane. We saw many unique scenarios involving survival including but not limited to: holing up at the CDC, at Hershel’s barn, fighting the walkers and hiding from them on the road, taking refuge at the prison, combating The Governor’s people from Woodbury, the trek to Terminus, the cannibals, and the various threats whilst at Alexandria.

Let’s start with a character that had been around since day 1- Glenn Rhee. Rick is the face of the show, Daryl can be considered its poster boy, and Glenn was undoubtedly its heart and soul. Shane was a hate-to-love character who served as a plot device for Rick becoming the more “grimey” character he developed into. While he regrettably only lasted two seasons, Jon Bernthal as Shane left an undeniable impact and served as Rick’s first true proof that the post-apocalyptic world he awoke to truly did change people or brought out the worst in them- their true, darker, more instinctual selves, if you will. Glenn had such a presence that killing him off changed the show in such a huge way. He left a void, and understandably so because the tone changes so drastically when Season 7 begins. Sure, Dale was a nice guy, but there wasn’t enough time with him. Nobody gave a flip about Andrea. Sophia, again, too short. Glenn was the nice guy of the group which is why it was so hard to watch him get beaten to death until his eye popped out. Gosh damn. Lori’s death was a little sad, and we felt for T-Dog. Then there was Bob, Tyreese, and Mika and Lizzie. Lizzie’s death is tragic and shocking because come on, do I have to say it? Just look it up if you don’t know. Hershel’s death is easily the 2nd-most shocking next to Glenn because he was such a lovable, old man, with great fatherly energy. Again, if you know you know. Glenn has everyone else beat because of how long he lasted. He was one of the original members and he was a likeable dude with a conscience played by a likeable actor who did not deserve the fate he did. It’s a combination of who he was as a character and the way he was executed. Yes, that was his fate in the graphic novel and I haven’t read up to that far yet but I can understand why fans were none the happiest after Glenn was killed for true after the red herring. Since I have read the graphic novel, I can compare Glenn from both mediums. I think it’s fair to say that people connect more with the live-action version because obviously we are experiencing a real human being in the role of a character that everyone came to love hence why it hurt so much and upset people to see him go out the way he did. And there’s been more than a dozen changes from the source material so it was easily under the writers’ control of what Glenn’s ultimate fate could have been but they probably kept his death at the hands of Negan because of how likeable he was and were really going for that shock and disgust factor- seeing someone so good being beaten so brutally. Such is the nature of the show and universe however, where anyone is fair game for death.

The first six seasons are about people and how they evolve as characters as they try to survive as well as focusing on unique relationship dynamics and character interactions. Rick became a leader, Daryl went from loner to valued group member, Glenn grew more confident, and Carol went from damsel-in-distress to badass survivor. The show was mainly focused on how Rick’s group came to trust each other over time to work together on how to survive against strangers and other groups who tried to kill them as well as using their feelings of discernment to make judgment calls about who to trust and allow into their group. It was invested in character growth. We'll talk about Governor vs Negan shortly. To me, they are the only two antagonists that matter because while I do know that Alpha and Beta, Pamela Milton, and Lance Hornsby did eventually come around, it was too late because I had lost all interest in the show. From seasons 7-11. the show was about communities warring against each other but the main problem was how long it dragged on for. Two seasons for the Saviors, another two for the Whisperers, and then one season for the Commonwealth. What made the series feel stale post season 6 was that the group stopped moving from place to place and the conflict was focused on Alexandria, Hilltop, The Kingdom, and The Sanctuary and then on the Whisperers and The Commonwealth. The show had stopped focusing on survival from the walkers, losing what made the series special in the first place.

Governor vs Negan. One is annoying, the other is not. I’ll let you figure it out. The Governor is a straight-up psycho. Negan has repetitive mannerisms and a cadence that gets old fast. Don’t get me wrong, I love Jeffrey Dean Morgan and loved him in Watchmen as Comedian and he does a superb job as Negan but it’s the character that needed to go after one season, not two. I’m sure there are Negan enthusiasts out there but he got boring pretty quickly. The pace of Season 7 dropped so much, it felt like watching paint dry. Was 32 episodes necessary for 1. the communities to be humiliated and taunted by Negan (who was so cocky and arrogant and such a prick but in such a sarcastic, annoying way) for half a season; 2. Negan surviving every attempt at his life; 3. a whole season for the communities to be ready to retaliate; and 4. a whole second season for taking Negan down just for him to survive and be spared after what he did to Glenn. The gall. The Governor, on the other hand, did not wear out his welcome. He didn’t antagonize the group from the beginning of his introduction and he didn’t make annoying wisecracks. He was tough, maybe even tougher than Negan, but we’re not here to debate who’d win a physical fight, we’re here to discuss who’s the better antagonist. Negan may have had a legion of men under his command and a lot more than Governor did but one thing Governor had going for him more than Negan was his psychotic behavior. He appeared friendly on the surface and would not think of sparing anyone outside his community. Governor has charm. Negan has a sense of humour. Both have presence and both possess intimidation in their own way. Governor appeared in 22 episodes while Negan appeared in 17. It feels the opposite, because of how much Negan talks compared to Governor. Governor gave us less is more with his presence rather than his words which for me was more appreciated because like I said, Negan became annoying.

The biggest criticism of Season 7 and onwards is how slow it became. Sure, there were slow moments before but nothing like this. The first half of Season 7 was about Negan interacting with Alexandria, how pathetic they had become, foraging for supplies for Negan, and devising (for what felt like 10 episodes straight) a plan with the other communities to take Negan down after Rick moping about how they could not do anything. I watched only the worthwhile parts of each episode for seasons 7 and 8 up to the part where Rick slashes Negan’s throat in their final fight. A disappointing end for a few reasons. All that build-up just for Negan to get slashed by Rick which wasn’t even done through skill- Rick had to feign defeat and tricked him, a dirty move, and Negan should not have been allowed to live, you know why I already think this. I’m with Maggie on this one. Just because it was a dying boy’s (Carl) last wish doesn’t mean it had to be respected. If Carl lived, would Rick have spared Negan the Vegan? Negan even admitted he liked killing. I get Negan wasn’t as far gone as Governor but come on. Governor is responsible for taking Hershel’s life as is Negan for Glenn’s life. Ain’t no way Negan in my mind Negan is allowed to live after that. The only majorly impactful death after Glenn was Carl. I felt for Rick, and now that I am a father, I feel for him even more, writing this. The poor man lost his wife and son, how could he not think of suicide? The man has resolve and knows he has to keep fighting and living on for Judith. That takes real strength. Like, real, real strength.

Before Rick was made into a pushover and made to look like a wuss-puss, the man was a downright savage in his own right. His initial treatment of Michonne, the prisoners, and Andrea after returning to the group from Woodbury, wanting to take over Alexandria, threatening to kill Gabriel and Aaron if they were puling wool in front of Rick’s eyes, and his treatment of Tyreese and Sasha by rejecting them from the prison brings to mind that a Rick that was sorely missed throughout the first half of Season 7 until he picked his cojones back up again. It’s hard to believe that anyone was able to join in Rick’s group considering he would have seemingly left them to rot or killed them soon as looked at them or done him wrong in any capacity. The character tension and dynamics between characters in Season 6 were engaging- such as Carol vs Morgan and Ron vs Carl. The dichotomy of Carol killing because she has to but enjoys nothing about it vs Morgan willing to give everyone a second chance no matter what they’ve done. Ron beginning to hate Carl for taking Edith away from him and the fact that Carl’s father took Ron’s father from him. I’d rather watch these interactions over and over rather than anything from Season 7 and watching the Saviors acting like they own the place, Negan swinging his bat over his shoulder and making a sarcastic quip for the umpteenth time, or Simon being Simon. Although the Wolves only lasted for a short bit, they were a real threat and did not overstay their welcome like the Saviors did. The initial drama between the Alexandrians and Rick’s group is better than any Season 7 slog. Seasons 7 and 8 dragged so bad and is so stale it makes hard cereal look like cream puffs.

Of all the seasons pre-s7, Season 6 may arguably have the best drama in terms of character interactions but Season 2 is a good contender too. The rocket launcher scene where Daryl uses it to kill Saviors is easily the most badass pre-s7. Episode 9 of S6 is also one of the best. The mid-season episode where everyone works together to kill the walkers after Jessie, Ron, and Sam are killed is probably the most shocking scene pre-s7. Glenn’s death is shown in the first episode of S7 otherwise that scene obviously takes the cake but the death of Sam as he was eaten, Ron shooting Carl’s eye, and Jessie getting eaten and then having her arm chopped off by axe because she was holding onto Carl is pretty damn intense. There is also a scene of Spencer burying his mother Deanna- not the most memorable but an emotionally, strong scene.

There is a strong thoughtful point near the close of S6. Morgan and Rick discuss about how to potentially deal with the Saviors. Could the conflict with them have been avoided? Perhaps it would not have been as violent as it turned out but people would surely have died still. Negan’s code was to find communities, take half their supplies (just to start with), then continue forcing them to scavenge knowing full well that there is nothing out there and the eventuality that supplies would run out, and kill one person to make a point that they are not to be trifled with as well as executing anyone who doesn’t meet their requirements. Was Rick really wrong in deciding to take action against the Saviors? I don’t think so. But I don’t think Morgan was absolutely wrong either. Rick had to take action though, because Negan and his Saviors were legitimate threats. Negan can never justify that he was protecting his own people. The freak even admitted that he likes killing in S7. He embraces the post-apocalyptic world. He’s definitely a narcissist who needs to be the top man, best in the world, which is easily apparent when he tries to paint the picture that Rick is the villain. Negan became annoying, stale and should not have been redeemed. Anyone who came to sympathize with him after what he did to Glenn lost their moral compass, I don’t care about any backstory that made him that way. The psycho enjoyed it. Rick doesn’t take pleasure in killing people. He simply does what he needs to.

In conclusion, I’d just like to talk about the transition of the tone from S6 to 7. Once you know what’s about to happen in the show, you can feel foreboding and dread. The group was unstoppable. They dealt with rapists, cannibals, cops, tyrants, disease, and walkers. Sure they lost people but they’d persevere. The group was at their prime from S4 to 6 with Rick, Carl, Michonne, Daryl, Carol, Maggie, Glenn, Tyreese, Sasha, Bob, Rosita, Abraham, Eugene, Tara, Hershel, Beth, Gabriel, and Noah. S7 isn’t just a midway point for the show, it takes a very significant shift. Six seasons are about survival in the wild, the remaining five are about warring communities. Unfortunately, this did not work out for the series. Watching the group move from place to place and waiting for what would happen next made the show exciting. We wanted more and the show hyped up the Negan reveal which was exciting at first but it just lost its momentum. The group was broken, pathetic. We did not like to see our protagonists pushed around. Episode after episode felt like the same thing and felt like it was taking too long to get to the point as the story moved from Alexandria to The Sanctuary to Hilltop to The Kingdom to Oceanside to the Scavengers. A lot of people grew bored and just stopped caring but there were many who stayed till the bitter end of which I have no knowledge of. I do not care how it ends. For me, The Walking Dead ends at the finale of Season 6. Anything after that truly feels like a different show and it literally could have been. It could have been called The Walking Dead: Battle of the Communities or something. It was too much talking, too much planning. I wish I could be excited about it still with the new spin-off shows with The Ones Who Live, Daryl Dixon, and Dead City but……my energy for this franchise is spent. It should’ve completely ended some time ago. Kudos to the loyalists who still watch but me…..nope, it’s finished. Thank you.