With eight seasons, several award nominations, wins, and a spin-off series, there’s no shortage of The Walking Dead on AMC; but is it worth watching? In January 2010, much to the excitement of most fans of The Walking Dead comic book series, AMC announced they would be developing a TV adaptation. Nowadays, with so many comic book adaptations making their way to the big and small screen (with mixed results), it is understandable for fans of the comics to be cautiously optimistic about an announcement like this.

Before 2010, AMC was known for series like Breaking Bad and Mad Men: two very different shows that were strong in their own right. The writing, acting, cinematography and more were top-notch. All that being said, it was an easy assumption to make that TWD had the potential to be a quality TV show. Plus, who doesn’t like a good zombie flick? A zombie flick that keeps going? F*** yeah!

Fans of the zombie-infested series have probably heard others saying “I stopped watching that pile of garbage in like the fourth season,” or “Why do you still watch that?!” While the show certainly has its share of detractors, there are also those who praise what it has accomplished. In particular, if one separates the TV series from the source material, its merits become more obvious.

For example, the acting has remained quite good with cast members like Andrew Lincoln (Love Actually), Lennie James (Snatch, Destiny 1 & 2), Danai Gurira (Black Panther, The Visitor), Norman Reedus (Boondock Saints) and many more – capturing the high stakes of what has become normal life in the zombie apocalypse. After all, The Walking Dead is not about the zombies, but the people living in this new world. The scenery is quite stunning at times, successfully capturing the beauty of the American South. The music, by Bear McCreary (Battlestar Gallactica, God of War), continues to be dynamic and fit nicely with the overall feel of the series.

However, bearing only the TV series in mind, one can argue that although the show has its strengths, it still has its weaknesses – mainly in the writing department, which fluctuates between the heights of greatness and the depths of bland boredom. In some seasons it can take several episodes for anything to actually happen. It’s great to get some character development and subplots, but can we please cut to the good stuff? The first season was six episodes, the second was thirteen and starting in the third season we got sixteen episodes. Some would say the increase in episodes isn’t doing the show any favors. Perhaps with fewer episodes, the writers would be forced to only feed us what’s important. As they say in the 1999 British sitcom Spaced, starring Simon Pegg, “Skip to the end.”

A number of fans of the comic book series rightfully ask, “How far off the zombie-ridden beaten path will they go?” and understandably debate whether The Walking Dead as an adaptation has missed the mark. As fans of the comics, they are often bombarded with the liberties the writers have taken when adapting the original material; although some of those changes are understandable. At the time of writing this article, the comic book series has 179 issues. 179! No-one can truly expect every detail to find its way into the show. With television, there is a lot to consider: character story arcs, season story arcs – television is a different beast. Pardon the cheap comparison, but nowadays, people have the attention span of a zombie – easily swayed by loud noises and shiny things. And as is stated in this article by Screen Rant, the writers don’t want the comic book readers to know EVERYTHING that is going to happen.

One thing to note about The Walking Dead is that it’s a comic book series in which the reader has to persevere. You can’t get too attached to the characters because no one is safe. NO ONE! Not even babies. You have to keep reading even after issue #100 (you know the one) when a major character everyone knows and loves is brutally destroyed.

Obviously, the TV series deviates greatly from the source material. This article is not about all those changes, but to list a few:

• Daryl doesn’t exist in the comics (but is a great addition)
• The Governor storyline from season 3 is far, FAR darker
• Andrea doesn’t die so early on (in fact she and Rick build a romantic relationship),
• The most notable change to date is the death of Rick Grimes son, Carl. There are explanations for why this had to happen for the TV series but as a comic book fan, this is disappointing.

In the comics, there is a fantastic relationship that builds between the big baddy, Negan, and Carl. This would have been an amazing storyline to see come to fruition. Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan and Chandler Riggs as Carl had the potential to be so good. But now…nope…that’s done…we don’t get to see that. This would have made for great TV, also, because a major protagonist building a friendly(ish), one could almost say touching, relationship with the biggest antagonist of the entire series would have been incredible…well, it’s a moot point. Carl’s dead. It’s safe to say viewers would have eaten that shiz up though.

So, should you still be watching The Walking Dead on AMC? An argument can be made for both sides. It is my opinion that the TV series is a study in curiosity for source material fans and should continue, but with cautious optimism. Though the ratings dropped in the recent season, AMC is still confident in the longevity of the series. As we say here at Nerd On, it’s just a run of the source material.

We, as comic book fans, cannot expect them to include everything. It is not meant to be taken as a direct translation of what the comic books were. There are a few decisions that have been made in The Walking Dead TV series that can easily rile up a source material fan, but again, this is AMC’s take on the show. If you’re still watching The Walking Dead TV series, tell us why in the comments below. If you aren’t, still, tell us in the comment below. We’re curious to get other points of view.