Dealing With More Than Zombies Now

Through the first four volumes of the Walking Dead graphic novel series, the characters have continued to adapt to their ever-changing environment.

That is, for the most part, maintaining their humanity.

No television or internet? No problem.

Kill or be killed? Not a problem either.

As a result, they barely resemble the people they originally were. For example, Carol, a beautiful woman who was once up on a time a clerk at a law firm, is now an emotionally and physically-scarred expert sniper. Tyreese, a former professional football player before the zombie apocalypse, is now a protector of innocents, who has found his niche in the group by killing undead monsters [and human beings].

Rick Grimes, the leader of the survivors, was once a straight-arrow police officer in a small town. Now, he’s trying to keep his head on straight and hold on to what’s left of his humanity in a world that has absolutely no law and even less order.

Add living in an abandoned prison to the situation and it’s easy to see Grimes is completely out of his element. However, for a small portion of volume five of the series, “The Best Defense,” it seems like he and his group are beginning to adjust to their new lives. As a matter of fact, things get so mushy after a while that if eight other volumes of the series weren’t flooding comic book stores, you might think the story was close to being wrapped up.

Think again.

With a chance to be rescued or at the least find out more about what’s going on, Rick and some of the group head out and come in contact with the people of Woodbury, a nearby village. What originally seems great for the group turns out to be a disaster and changes the very fabric of the series. While Grimes and his crew assumed that there were more people out there, they never thought they’d encounter anyone like the Governor and the people of Woodbury. Grabbing the reader by the heart and dragging a piece of cheese through every single page, writer Robert Kirkman continues to make the series, fresh, viable and gruesome.

It’s not that the people of Woodbury have lost their humanity, it’s that they’ve given it up willingly, while their leader, is easily the most evil character to ever grace the pages of the series. Up to this point in the series, zombies were the only enemy Rick and the survivors had to worry about, as they’ve taken care of the few humans that stood in their way with little hesitation or worry. After what occurs in this trade, a war begins that may end up claiming both sides involved. On top of that, emotions are running high as Carol seems to be loosing her mind after Michonne’s affair with Tyreese. That’s not all though as Lori continues to find things to complain about, while Glenn must dig down deep to make sure he doesn’t share vital information with the Governor of Woodbury that can lead them to his friends at the prison.

In the end however, while this is all important sub-plot, it all pales in comparison to what Rick is forced to deal with. Never the same again physically or emotionally, Grimes’ character shows amazing courage and survival instincts, fighting for his life and the safety of his people. If you ever thought a super hero had to have super powers, this volume will make you think again. When it’s over, Grimes ends up convincing any reader that he could hold his own with nearly anyone in comics after what he deals with here, showing the type of resiliency and heart that even Batman would be proud of.

While the story itself is the key to this volume, the art by Charlie Adlard and Cliff Rathburn portray Grimes’ fall from grace with the type of brutal realism that may be too much for some readers. However, at the same time, it captures the gritty essence of Kirkman’s writing and makes you feel more for Grimes than you ever did before.

That in itself is saying a lot.

With just black and white to work with, the duo end up putting a face to a story that is anything but monotone. Beautifully sadistic and scary, the look of this book brings out every emotion, from sinister smiles to trailing tears, in vivid detail, creating a one of a kind book that at times, feels too real to be explained.

From day one, The Walking Dead series has always been all about humanity overcoming the odds, in spite of nothing to hold on to. However, the farther you read this volume, it becomes painfully obvious that some characters are going to have a tougher time dealing with that notion than others.

Now, it’s Rick’s turn.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 14262 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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