‘Tales of the Walking Dead’ (2022)

 


A couple of years ago, I showed my eldest daughter the first episode of the ‘Walking Dead’ (Season 1), just to see what she thought of it Two years on and we’re deep into Season 8 so it’s fair to say that the experiment has been a success ;o) We have hit a bit of a roadblock though as a certain character is about to die, and she’s not ready to see him go, so I’ve been looked at a couple of the ‘spin-offs’, just to keep things ticking over until we’re ready to go again. ‘Fear the Walking Dead’ is looking like a safe bet for future viewing, it will be a while before I give ‘World Beyond’ another go though…

‘Tales of the Walking Dead’ is an anthology series of stand-alone tales set in the ‘Walking Dead’ universe; it was also on sale, on Prime Video, so it seemed like a good ‘next stop’ in my journey to find more ‘Friday night zombie telly’. And…

It’s not a bad series, not brilliant but not bad either. I spent most of yesterday working through all the episodes, which should tell you something (other than that I’m a big ‘Walking Dead Nerd’, I am though…) but there were a couple of episodes where my attention wandered a little bit. What I did like was the series’ willingness to step outside the setting a little and look at things like time-loops and the supernatural. Maybe these moments didn’t quite gel with what has been established in the main series, maybe they weren’t meant to? I don’t know but I appreciated the stories for taking a little risk here and there, and they were entertaining for it.

I’m back at work today (the holiday had to end some time…) so while I’m bending my workload back to my will, why don’t you have some quick thoughts on each of the episodes…

Episode 1: ‘Evie/Joe’

In which Terry Crews and Olivia Munn go on a ‘zombie apocalypse road-trip’ and discover a lot more about themselves and their future in this new world…

You guessed it… ‘Evie/Joe’ was OK but although it did what was needed, it all felt a little too ‘by the numbers’ to really work for me. And it didn’t help that Terry Crews is so ‘Terry Crews’ now that the character of Joe buckled under the strain. Honestly, I was waiting for him to yell ‘Nine Nine!’. Not bad then but a slightly underwhelming start to the series.

Episode 2: ‘Blair/Gina’

In which a business owner and her receptionist must combine to stop making the same mistakes and break a time-loop that will not let them leave Atlanta (as the zombie outbreak unfolds).

Now this was more like it, a ‘zombie apocalypse Ground-hog Day’ that wasn’t afraid to go against the grain and do something a little different. And from where I was sat, it hit the target with an engaging concept and two characters both going through decent arcs. Blair and Gina will never have their own spin-off mini-series but if they ever did… I’d watch it ;o)

Episode 3: ‘Dee’

When I first watched ‘The Walking Dead’, I bailed out just before the Whisperers made an appearance but I know who Alpha is (from the comics) so it was interesting to see her origin story (or at least a part of it). ‘Dee’ is ‘The Walking Dead’ that you’re used to, full of idealistic survivors falling foul of the ‘villains’, who actually get it, and being eaten by passing Walkers. I don’t know if I feel any more sympathetic towards Alpha now but you can definitely see why she turned out the way she did.

Episode 4: ‘Amy/Dr. Everett’

In which Dr. Everett is conducting research into the migratory patterns of the Walkers (and making a documentary, I think…) but has to make a quick decision when he spots a live woman in the middle of the herd…

This episode is set seven years down the line and it’s interesting to see not only how people deal with the remaining walkers (corralling them behind a really long, deep trench) but also that things are calm enough now that scientists are happy to carry out field research into the Walkers. The story itself was so-so though. The debate was an interesting one but didn’t quite fill out the whole episode, which felt too long as a result.

Episode 5: ‘Davon’

In which Davon wakes up with no memory and a Walker handcuffed to his wrist. Oh yes, he has also just been accused of murder…

An intriguing mystery but again, the episode felt just a little bit too long for it. What was more interesting for me though was the story exploring how communities can become isolated by the zombie apocalypse and the path this community goes down as a result.

Episode 6: ‘La Dona’

In which Eric and Idalia’s reluctant host suddenly dies, leaving them to take over a well stocked and protected house in the wilderness. Their host isn’t quite ready to give up her house though…

‘La Dona’ was a great finale, creepy as anything and a chilling reminder that there is potentially more to this world than just the Walkers. While I’m sure the franchise will remain zombie-focused, it’s refreshing to see a story like ‘La Dona’ pop up (with serious ‘Evil Dead’ vibes). I think there’s another season of ‘Tales’ in development and I really hope they continue to explore stories in this vein.

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