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I have started reading comics again for the first time in about 20 years and will be seeking these out at some point soon. I do think the series has a bit of a dip in momentum (and logic) around the midpoint, but before you know it the season's over so it never really loses momentum.
"I'm like a dog chasing cars, I wouldn't know what to do if I caught one. . . . I'm not a schemer. I just do things."

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Hah, you're a kind and generous man but I must admit one of the reasons I'm reconnecting with comics is the tactile nature of holding them, leafing through the pages, etc. I kind of enjoy the break from staring at a screen that they provide!
"I'm like a dog chasing cars, I wouldn't know what to do if I caught one. . . . I'm not a schemer. I just do things."

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WENN wrote:Walkind Dead Zombies Banned From Craft Service Catering Table

The zombie extras in hit new TV drama The Walking Dead have been barred from the set's catering table at lunchtime - because their graphic make-up and deformities put others off their food.

Reports suggest there are two sittings at the craft table - one for the squeamish and one for those who don't mind eating with the undead.

Actor Andrew Lincoln, who leads the cast, tells BlogTalkRadio.com, "We tend to keep the people who are extremely disfigured away from the main craft services. It's wild when you see someone smoking a cigarette and then the smoke comes out of their neck due to the latex. It's just not your normal day job."

But Lincoln's full of praise for the actors who make up the zombie army on the show: "The guys who play these zombies are the most committed people I've ever met. They have to get into make-up at something like four in the morning with four hours of make-up and then they're constantly in the sweltering heat in Atlanta, and they're being touched up during the day. It's brutal.

"The most brutal make-up I've ever had to endure was for Gangster No. 1 and my throat had been slit (as the character Maxie King), so they took quite a bit of time and I had this mad wig. Then I was electrocuted, so that was a pretty busy day for me."

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"The Walking Dead: The Complete First Season" arrives on DVD and Blu-Ray next week, collecting the first, six-episode season of the AMC television series based on the award-winning comic book.

With a second season now in production and former police officer Rick Grimes and the rest of the series' core cast of characters on the road once again, MTV News managed to get "The Walking Dead" creator and executive producer Robert Kirkman on the line to chat about the series' impressive first season and what's to come for the hit show.

Oh, and if you haven't watched the first season yet, consider this your SPOILER WARNING!
MTV NEWS: When I spoke to you a while back, before "The Walking Dead" premiered, you said that doing the television series gave you a chance to go back and improve on some of the stories you told in the early issues. Now that the first season is behind us, what were some of the story points that benefited the most from the adaptation process?

ROBERT KIRKMAN: First off, let me say that the comic is great. But there's all kinds of extra emotional stuff they added in the show. The moment between Andrea and Amy, when she's turning into a zombie and Andrea has to shoot her — that's very quick in the comic book. It's there, but it's not given the gravitas it was given in the show. Stuff like that, where they make things seem so important, and you really get a better emotional punch out of it, I could've done that in the comic if I thought about it, but I just didn't pull it off as well as they did in the show.

It's a great feeling, though. I'm happy with the comic and have no regrets, but it's nice to know the adaptation is firing on all cylinders. I love when it impresses me — when I'm watching it and think, "Oh, that was really cool." There's a lot of stuff like that.

MTV: There have been a few new characters introduced in the television series that weren't in the comic, but the one everyone's talking about is Norman Reedus' character, Daryl Dixon. There's talk that he's your favorite of the new additions... is that the case?

KIRKMAN: I wouldn't say that, but the thing is, all of the [comic book] characters kind of bore me, because I've been with them for so long. I like everything the actors are doing with the characters, and they're not giving boring performances, but Daryl Dixon is entirely new to me. That guy is cool and unexpected and throws a lot of new things into the mix of the ensemble. I think because of that, he brings so much new stuff to the show, and that excites me. ... Steven Yeun does a great job, and he's a perfect Glenn and does all kinds of awesome stuff, but I've known Glenn for 10 years. I know all about Glenn.

MTV: Any more brand new characters on the way for the series, or will it just be comic characters joining the cast in Season Two?

KIRKMAN: There will definitely be new characters in the second season. There are definitely people from the comic that haven't appeared yet that will be appearing for the first time in the second season, and as far as new characters that haven't appeared in the comic, we'll be seeing some of them, too.

MTV: The first season's final story arc in the Center for Disease Control took a lot of comic fans by surprise, as it was such a big divergence from the source material. Why was the CDC arc the right place to end the first season? Where did that arc come from?

KIRKMAN: That all came from Frank Darabont. He was talking to me about it very early on. He thought it was a very natural extension of what was going on in the story, because the CDC is based in Atlanta, and he thought it would make sense to go there. He thought it would be a cool way to end the season — to turn the show on its head and go, "Okay, you've seen people in the woods being miserable, now let's change it up."

I think it worked really well, because you get a lot of character moments out of that. You saw a different side of Rick, which I think is very important because he let his guard down and relaxed for a minute. Because of that especially, I thought it was the perfect way to end the season. It twisted things and turned things around, and by the end of the episode, they're back on the RV and back on the road. We see it getting back to where the comic book was, but I thought it was a great departure.

MTV: What about Jon Bernthal and Shane? Was there a decision made early on to spend more time with that character than you did in the comic? It feels like everyone is waiting for the plot point we know is coming...

KIRKMAN: I will say that some of that came from the fact that we had a six-episode first season. It didn't feel right to get through Shane's story in six episodes and wrap it up. Jon Bernthal is doing such an amazing job with the character that we don't really want to get rid of Shane any time soon. The guy could live forever.

I will say this: I get no small amount of delight from making jokes about killing that guy every time I'm doing a convention or panel with Jon Bernthal. That guy loves being on this show, and I go a little overboard. I'm expecting him to deck me at some point. We'll be on a panel and I'll go, "Keep on lipping off, buddy — we'll be getting rid of you soon!" He's a good sport about it, but I want to keep Shane around to keep bugging Jon Bernthal.

MTV: And is it safe to say we haven't seen the last of Merle Dixon?

KIRKMAN: We have definitely not seen the last of Merle. I can confirm that.

MTV: So where are things at with Season Two? do you have a start date for filming yet?

KIRKMAN: As we speak now, I'm in Los Angeles, pulling into the parking lot of the writers room. We've been hard at work on the season for weeks at this point. I know the start date for filming, but I don't think I can divulge it. I can say we're full-speed ahead and the second season will be underway soon and I couldn't be more excited.

MTV: What about casting? I know you can't divulge any names, but have you started looking at actors for Michonne, Tyrese, Hershel or any of the otehr characters bound to show in the second season?

KIRKMAN: It's not confirmed yet, but I'll give you an exclusive on this: I'm pulling for Ed O'Neill to play Michonne.

MTV: I'm not sure how fans would react to that... I don't think it would work out.

KIRKMAN: [Laughs] I don't know if it would work out, either. I just want to meet that guy. I'm an executive producer, and I'm drunk with power! [Laughs]
http://splashpage.mtv.com/2011/03/04/th ... t-kirkman/
"I'm like a dog chasing cars, I wouldn't know what to do if I caught one. . . . I'm not a schemer. I just do things."

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Sounds like Stephen King is in talks to write one of Season 2's episodes, possibly with his son (who I guess has a couple of horror novels out himself).
"I'm like a dog chasing cars, I wouldn't know what to do if I caught one. . . . I'm not a schemer. I just do things."

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TC wrote:
walking_dead_ver6.jpg
Haven't started on this show yet, but that's a cool poster...
This is a snakeskin jacket. And for me it's a symbol of my individuality and my belief in personal freedom.

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TC wrote:dude, it's such a great show. don't miss it. get caught up before s2.
It's in the Netflix queue, we'll get to it sooner or later. ;)
This is a snakeskin jacket. And for me it's a symbol of my individuality and my belief in personal freedom.

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Hrm...maybe not so much a good thing.
EXCLUSIVE: This is a quite a bombshell -- I have learned that Frank Darabont, the creator, executive producer and director of AMC's smash hit The Walking Dead, is stepping down as showrunner of the series, which is now in production on its upcoming second season. The news is even more surprising given the fact that Darabont was on hand for Walking Dead's Comic-Con panel just this past Friday alongside fellow executive producers Robert Kirkman, on whose graphic novel the series is based, and Gale Anne Hurd and appeared excited about Season 2. There is speculation that Darabont might be off the show completely, but I hear talks are still ongoing about him possibly staying on in some capacity. Darabont, who spent five years trying to get a TV version of the zombie saga off the ground and wrote and directed the AMC pilot, hails from the feature world, and I hear that he never quite adjusted to the daily grind of producing a TV series. Last December, he considered forgoing a writing staff for Season 2 and assigning scripts to freelancers but ultimately went for the traditional writing staff model recommended by the network and tapped Glen Mazzara as an executive producer and his No. 2. It is unclear if The Shield alum Mazzara, who has showrunning experience, would now step in to run Walking Dead. I hear that the behind-the-scenes turmoil has not affected production on the show, which continues as scheduled. Season 2 of Walking Dead is slated to premiere Oct. 16. In addition to huge ratings, the series has garnered awards recognition for its freshman season, including a best drama series Golden Globe nomination as well as DGA and WGA noms. In a Deadline Emmy Q&A last month, Darabont raved about his transition to television. "In TV, you have to get ideas across in a more economical way," he said. "But the process is fundamentally the same (as features), just accelerated. There’s no time for second guessing. The wheels are in constant motion. I love that about television. If I’d known how much fun it was, I’d have done it years ago."

http://www.deadline.com/2011/07/walking ... ore-150300
"I'm like a dog chasing cars, I wouldn't know what to do if I caught one. . . . I'm not a schemer. I just do things."

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was just going to post this here. the difference is that AMC fully owns walking dead - it can't be shopped to other networks.

i think this quote sums it all up: "Joel [Stillerman] thinks he is responsible for the success of shows on AMC, and not the creators."

sofa king sad.

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I was reading about the AMC troubles the other day. If this mess results in a 6- or 8-episode fifth season of Breaking Bad, I will be one very irritated fan. Anyone can look at Big Love and see what happens when a network starts truncating seasons — the writers/producers begin cramming in multiple plot points into each week's installment and the result is a frenzied, incoherent mess.

I dig Mad Men a lot, too, and won't cast any blame in that direction. AMC only has a few shows in its roster to begin with; I guess it's too much to ask that the network — I don't know — nurture and support them.

Re Walking Dead: Saw the first season last week. It's not bad. Oddly, upon reflection it seems better than it did while watching the episodes. It certainly held a consistent tone and style throughout. But for me, I like a little fun with my zombies. This series takes itself awfully seriously — I don't get the sense that anyone involved is enjoying themselves in the slightest. The writers seem to have swallowed their own hype about how they're starkly exposing humanity's darker, deeper core or whatever. They can't stop patting themselves on the back for being "brave."

Anyway,
it's good they killed most of the secondary and minor characters as things progressed. Many times we had these long, talky scenes where a dozen or more characters stood around listlessly while two more important people had the only lines. I mean, that's just clunky TV staging.
That being said, the finale was strong, and I'm curious as to what comes next.
This is a snakeskin jacket. And for me it's a symbol of my individuality and my belief in personal freedom.

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never watched his show, but i love this guy for speaking truth.
THR wrote:'The Walking Dead:' 'Sons of Anarchy's' Kurt Sutter Goes Off on Frank Darabont's Firing

"just hate that darabont is being demonized," he writes of "The Walking Dead's" former showrunner.

"darabont reacted strongly to slashed budgets. he made mistakes, he was fired," the outspoken Sutter wrote on Twitter Thursday. "no creative in town will trust AMC to back up their artists," Sutter wrote on Twitter. "i don't know MW, got no beef with him. just hate that darabont is being demonized. no one has the balls to tell the truth. MM gutted AMC," he then added.

The Hollywood Reporter has detailed exactly what went down before Darabont was fired. Sutter says: "why darabont got fired - weiner. he held AMC hostage, broke their bank, budgets were slashed, shit rolled down hill onto gilligan and frank…

"no one else wants to f--king say it, but the greed of mad men is killing the other two best shows on tv -- breaking bad and walking dead," added Sutter, referring to AMC's long negotiations Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner and Breaking Bad showrunner Vince Gilligan.

Sutter later defended his comments on Twitter.

"i have trouble determining the line between honesty and brutal frankness. i usually get pushed past it by bullshit and injustice," he said. "apparently speaking one's mind is outrageous, troublesome and self-indulgent. man, this is a town full of silent, terrified dicksuckers."

"It feels like they don't have the experience of being on top," one source says. "They're total ball-busters, and that p--ses people off."