In what has become a highly anticipated annual tradition for “Walking Dead” fans the world over, Anchor Bay Entertainment will be releasing THE WALKING DEAD: THE COMPLETE FIFTH SEASON Blu-ray™ + Digital HD Limited Edition set on December 1st.
Five years ago, a man awoke from a coma in a hospital. For sheriff’s deputy Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), what should have been a cause of celebration became the flash point for five years of unceasing horror, unrelenting personal sacrifice…and one of the most popular TV shows ever broadcast. On August 25th, Anchor Bay Entertainment gives home entertainment fans their annual Walker fix with THE WALKING DEAD: THE COMPLETE FIFTH SEASON Blu-ray™ + Digital HD and DVD releases.
I kept threatening to leave. I did. Each year this show somehow got worse. First it was Herschel’s farm. Then it was the Governor, who was essentially a blowhard cartoon character suffering from a messiah complex that *somehow* lasted two seasons. And then there was the too long trip to Terminus that ended with Rick muttering something about being “screwed with” which came across as flat as it reads. Breaking Bad didn’t shy away from dropping the occasional f-bomb and just bleeping it out which was a much more effective approach which still conveyed the gravitas that embodied that cast of characters.
As the credits rolled, the first thing I thought was: what did David Chase (if he watched) think? The guy created and had creative oversight in basically all aspects over The Sopranos. That show explored a multitude of different complex, overarching themes. And while I’m the first to admit that the last season faltered a bit, (Kevin Finnerty and the infamous fade to black over Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing”) even at its worst it was still better than 90% of its television peers. That show allowed characters to grow and breathe and you were able to see a new wrinkle in the fabric of its magnificent richness that you initially overlooked but became clearer upon repeat viewings. So I’m insulted as an audience member last night when Rick explained the concept behind the rabbit snare trap to Carl. If it were any other show without a history of this kind of sloppy storytelling, I wouldn’t have thought much of it. But I was placed on high alert as Rick delved into the idea of forcing small game down an intended path into the trap. There’s no way this won’t not come back into play, likely in a very heavy handed kind of way. And I was disappointed when I wasn’t wrong.
Did the repetitive themes and dialogue sink in yet? It’s been a couple of days for you people to process and grieve, if poorly acted melodrama leaves you emotionally distraught. This fourth season started off rather strongly, with a very promising first two episodes, before taking a bizarre turn involving an outbreak of zombie-flu strain that seems to be easily combated with standard antibiotics. Good thing nobody important to the show (like Glen) died. Glad he was well enough to board the bus
EXPERIENCE IT ON BLU-RAY™ AND DVD AUGUST 27, 2013;
LIMITED EDITION “ZOMBIE HEAD TANK” DESIGNED BY MCFARLANE TOYS
Yep, those shots you fired will attract walkers for miles, but not stir the attention of the woman barricaded in a cell 8 feet away.
Unfortunately, “Hounded” continues in the tradition of mediocrity that began last week. We still get a lot of good ol’ Merle—a stunning contrast to his good-hearted brother Daryl, but unfortunately there’s still a lot of characters doing dumb things, like Merle dispatching of Gargulio with a gunshot—sure to attract walkers to his location. Why not just use your nifty prosthetic blade?
and now for the main event… Maximus vs. Merle!
Coming off of two rather excellent episodes, “Word” struggled a bit to find its proper footing, but thankfully managed a semi-graceful landing. Here, we were left to deal with largely the aftermath of Lori and T-Dog’s death, resulting in a somewhat predictable direction, specifically Rick going off on a zombie killin’ rampage, while the ever-helpful Daryl volunteers to retrieve supplies for the newborn. Rick doing hi s rampage thing was one thing, but finding a lone zombie where Lori once lay raises some interesting questions: was she eaten by this single zombie? Do zombies eat clothes? I can sort of buy that in Rick’s rage he was able to go medieval up against a horde of undead, though it kind of flies in the face of what we’ve seen before. Is one person really capable of such a thing, when we’ve seen the kind of structure and organization it takes a whole group to dispatch a zombie horde? Hmmm.
Look I know I’m a shitty wife and I’m not winning any mother of the year awards. – Lori
Truer words have never been spoken on this show. Lori has finally evolved, shall we say as a character, becoming less hate-able by the moment. “Sick” did not quite live up to the previous episode, but nonetheless it was still a very good episode. Lori, Glenn and the rest of the women folk (along with Carl) remained in the cell block and got to care for Herschel , who remained at death’s door following his amputation. I liked that Maggie had made her peace and told her father to just let go; it was a moving moment in a show that generally doesn’t do well with that kind of stuff. The best thing about Herschel’s scenes was the CPR moment that led to an admittedly cheap jump scare, but damn if it didn’t startle me. Good work, AMC.
Seemingly done with all the behind the scenes Darabont/showrunner drama, the third season premiere provides viewers with a refreshingly engaging episode. No more kvetching back on the farm, instead the show delivers in spades providing more action, tighter pacing and genuine thrills. The writers have finally (wisely) pumped the brakes on Lori, and Carl is no longer a helpless pawn. It’s a few months later and under the new Ricktatorship, the group stumbles upon the prison, which has been completely overrun by zombies. Instead of foolishly unloading all their ammo (like the group of would have in the previous two seasons), they now fight together hand to hand as a single unit, saving precious ammo and preventing other walkers from being drawn to their location by the sound of gunfire. Also, everyone finally gets access to body armor, though makeshift armor would have sufficed until this point; but the show is considerably more satisfying when characters are no longer doing idiotic things.
