Cable television’s biggest series, “The Walking Dead,” on AMC returns for its sixth season after an incredible run with season five. So far, things look promising as the show has thrown us right into the middle of some intense gore and pandemonium. But if you think the TV series is great, then you’ll absolutely love the comic book series.
For those who don’t know, “The Walking Dead” actually started out as a comic book series written by the show’s executive producer, Robert Kirkman, and released by Image Comics.
Since the comic books were the starting point for the show, they have had a little bit of a head start on the story. There are some characters that have been introduced in the comic book series and have already been killed off before they’ve even joined the cast on the TV show. So for avid readers of the comics, you have some idea of what will happen next on the TV show.
Liberal Arts major Forrester Somsanith, 19, of Holland says, “I got pretty busy and just fell out of the loop on the show. I guess I stopped watching around the end of season two. I’ve been super eager to get back into it. I’ve seen some trailers on TV. There’s people I’ve never seen before and it looks like a lot has happen to the characters since I last saw them.”
What’s nice about the TV show and the comics is that one isn’t a mirror image of the other. There are some dark and brutal things that have happened in the comics that simply did not happen in the show – sometimes for the better.
Nursing major Mikayla Strunk, 20, of Warminster states, “It’s the best show ever – it’s just so terrifying to watch. You’re watching the show and you’re just imagining yourself in the situation of these characters. Rick used to be such a nice guy. He’d be trying to do the right thing, but ever since he ripped out that guy’s throat, he’s been crazy!”
There are also things about the comics that lovers of the show will hate. For instance, – Merle and Daryl Dixon are non-existent in the comic book series.
Don’t let this discourage you from reading, though. What’s great about the comic books is that because of these dark and gritty plot points, readers will find that they grow to love certain characters in the comics that they could care less about in the show; and vice-versa. Strunk states, “Glenn used to be such an innocent baby, and now he’s a tough, hard-core dude.”
Things will happen to characters like Tyrese, Glenn, Carl and even Rick that will leave you unconditionally shocked.
That doesn’t mean you have to go spend roughly $4 on each issue, though. As a way to save some money and time searching for each issue, “The Walking Dead” volumes are available to readers.
Each volume contains six issues, and currently, there have been 25 volumes released. If that still seems like too much digging around, the series also has “The Walking Dead” compendiums, which contain about eight volumes each.
The first compendium is composed of issues 1-48. The second compendium continues the series with issues 49-96, and the third compendium (just released in October), includes issues 99- 144. Amazon sells each compendium for roughly $30 to $35.
If you are short on the cash for all three books, there are some public libraries that carry the compendiums. They are quite sought after though, so it’s best to be diligent and keep an open eye to when they’re available to rent.
“The Walking Dead” TV show runs on AMC Sunday nights at 9 p.m. Whether you’re a TV binger, a comic reader, or both, “The Walking Dead” is definitely a series to check out.