This episode was better because they were outside the prison. like others have pointed out. I want to see what society looks like.
But still, the story just moves sooo slow, tho. An entire episode was devoted to Carol and the alcoholic doc. 100% focus on micro issues. no macro storyline. For those who read the comics, fill me in here - is there no macro, overarching storyline? Is there no "goal?" Or is this show just about meaningless, micro disputes within their family unit.
In Cormack McCarthy's 'The Road,' they were following the road to the coast. post-apocalyptic world. no hope. and the coast assuredly didn't hold a better life, but the story flowed a bit better with a context. Everything that happened was in the course of their journey to the coast. however small, just having that macro goal in TWD would make this show so much better. As it is, it's just pretty frustrating.
Exactly. This episode was a little better because they were outside the prison (the zombies are still mowing the yards, though!) and the Carol/Rick thing was at least somewhat entertaining. The rest of the "storylines" still suck, though. I don't care that the one dude is an alcoholic, or that Tyrese is having a breakdown, or that Daryl is having some sort of spat with Michone. It's just boring.
There are a lot of reasons why just focusing on characters in a hopeless situation worked in The Road, but not Walking Dead. First, the Road was a two-hour movie. Spreading that over 50 episodes would make for an incredibly depressing, and probably boring, TV series. Second, between the starvation and cannibals, there was a real sense of danger and foreboding in The Road, unlike Walking Dead, where characters are literally wrestling hand-to-hand with zombies in just about every show without getting a scratch. Third, the father, son, their relationship, and assorted smattering of other characters in The Road were both interesting and incredibly well performed. Not so with Walking Dead. Fourth, there was an actual goal in The Road.
