MovieChat Forums > The Walking Dead (2010) Discussion > Three serious mistakes

Three serious mistakes

posted 3 years ago by Painter (37)
12 replies | jump to latest

First of all, in general I'm barely aware of the differences between the comic and the show. I never got into the former, so I'm not invested in it at all.

I think that in the show they did three major characters mistakes:

Andrea: she had potential as a badass fighter essential to the survival of the group, but the writers chose to ruin her character and to kill her just for the sake of it. Her caharacter wasn't beyond repair and could've been a better partner for Rick (see below).

Pairing Rick and Michonne: on paper it made sense, but AL and DG couldn't sell the relationship. They were better off as friends because they had less than zero romantic chemistry. Hell, Rick had better chemistry with Jesse. It was like looking at siblings making out. Ick!

Carl: killing off Carl was a huge mistake. I get it, CR was almost a grown up and couldn't act to save his life, but come on. The story has always been about Rick doing everything he could to ensure his son's survival.

Honorable mentions:

Merle: MR was really good and Merle had still some untapped potential to become a regular. For a while longer at least.

Gabriel: he definitely overstayed his welcome. He should've been killed during the war with Negan.

[–] Trev (889) 3 years ago

I completely agree. And to fix the fact that Carl was old, not long after he died they had a 6 year time jump in the show, so it wouldn't have mattered then. Easy fix!

[–] mtxmind (3296) 3 years ago

I do have to agree with you on every point.

I didn't religiously follow the comics, but even from the little I read it was painfully obvious that the TV show writers did a hatchet job on Andrea compared to her comic portrayal. Simply unforgivable

And Rick & Michone NEVER worked. That was the start of the downfall of the show IMO. In the comics it was Rick & Andrea who were together, which made a lot more sense. They basically killed TV Andrea & gave her comic arc/story to Michone. I get that they wanted to change up things from comic to TV, but yeeesh..... !!!

Killing Carl on the show was another big mistake. As the poster above noted, the following season they had a 6 year time jump anyway ( not to mention that S09 started with a year & a half time jump from the end of S08) so WTF?

And they REALLY should've kept Merle around longer. He was my favorite character. I would've liked to have seen him last until at least the first half of Season 5 or 6.

[–] Painter (37) 3 years ago

Yeo, I agree.

I know in the comics it was Rick and Andrea. In the show it would've worked better because LH was a better actress than DG anyway and in the few scenes they shared had better chemistry with AL. I wouldn't be surprised if DG and AL didn't like each other that much.

Merle was smart, capable and badass, albeit erratic and abrasive. I think that in the right hands he could've been turned in a great asset for the show in general. He showed signs of being capable of self reflection and improvement. Some time with the group would've probably turned him into a better man. Not too much, but enough to make him sympathetic. It's a shame they killed him so early.

[–] PaladinNJ (20827) 3 years ago

At the time Laurie Holden left the show, she said that she had asked to be released from her contract. For some reason she has recently been telling the story that she was fired.

Have to agree with the Rick and Michonne pairing. I realized they transferred Andrea's storyline over to Michonne but it didn't work. They had zero chemistry.

[–] Painter (37) 3 years ago

Oh, didn't know that. I knew about Jeffrey DeMunn wanting out and then back in (which is a shame, because I always wonder how Dale would react and possibly adjust to people like the Governor, the Terminus cannibals, Negan and the Whisperers).

No it didn't. I think that AL tried a bit more than DG, but she looked definitely uncomfortable. Bad, bad choice.

[–] mtxmind (3296) 3 years ago

I knew about Jeffrey DeMunn wanting out and then back in

If I recall correctly, the whole thing with Jeffrey DeMunn had something to do with his disapproval of the firing of Frank Darabont as showrunner.

[–] jriddle73 (339) 3 years ago

A lot of the people Frank Darabont brought on to the show were his regulars, who signed up for it just so they could work with him, some taking significantly less money for it than they'd ordinarily get. DeMunn was one of them.

[–] mtxmind (3296) 3 years ago

I always wonder how Dale would react and possibly adjust to people like the Governor

In the comics he was breifly around at the begining of the Governor story, but then took off just as things heated up. He eventually ended up with TV Bob's death (gets bitten, doesn't tell anyone about it, then gets abducted & partially eaten by the comics equivelent to the Terminus people)

[–] jriddle73 (339) 3 years ago

The comic towers over the show like a god over ants. I don't think one could extract only 3 or even a top 3; after the pilot, the series just abandoned the comic and never looked back. It bears almost no resemblance to it, and every change was for the worse.

[–] joej2923 (2959) 3 years ago

I always thought Laurie Holden was attractive so I would have liked seeing more of her. I also think she is a decent actress who would have added a lot to the show. Carl was turning into a big whiner so I was glad to see him go. I always thought Michonne was a lesbian so I didn't foresee the connection with Rick. Merle was an evil a-hole who deserved to die. He's a pretty good actor so there could have been a redemption arc. I would have liked to have Gabriel and Eugene exit the show since they have betrayed their friends in the past. I hate subtitles so I could have done without the deaf and dumb people.

I've never read the comics and I'm not sure if I want to. I've read that the comics are a lot more violent and sadistic.

[–] Keelai (32860) 3 years ago

"...comics are a lot more violent and sadistic."

And some of the comic characters aren't as likeable: ex. Hershel, Carol and Carl.

[–] Keelai (32860) 3 years ago

I disagree except re: Carl.

Andrea had a thing for losers like the Governor and Sean so I cheered when she died. She was also stupid beyond belief.

Rick and Michonne's friendship turned romantic. I liked the slow build-up and her relationship with Carl. I liked the family unit. Jessie was so boring.

Killing Carl bothered me and I liked his character. But, they replaced him with the younger Judith who has done a great job.

I hated Merle. I'm glad he's dead and Daryll doesn't have to deal with his abuse. Merle's death also help Daryl come into his own instead of being in his brother's shadow.

I like the change from wimpy minister to bada** fighter for Gabriel. He's also become cynical about religion. I find him interesting.