One Last Walking Dead Midseason Return Promo Shows A Mad World
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We’re only a few hours away from the return of AMC’s hit zombie drama The Walking Dead. That may not sound like much time, but what the hell, with the onslaught of promotional material that the network has thrown at us in the few months since the show went on a mid season hiatus, why not cram in one last short preview, and one last grim picture. If nothing else, it may whet your appetite for tonight’s episode, “After.”
This video definitely emphasizes the dour way the last episode, “Too Far Gone,” wrapped up. Things are not looking particularly rosy for the survivors. One beloved character met his end in an exceedingly brutal and gruesome way, the prison stronghold they’d been calling home lays in smoldering ruins, and the group has been splintered.
That’s where this video picks up, giving you quick snippets of what life out in the open will entail. And let me tell you, it looks rough. Not only are there near crippling emotional traumas to deal with, there are the usual threats, like zombies and other hazards of the road. You see almost all of the key characters in some sort of danger, fighting off walkers, running from a swarm, barricading themselves in hopefully abandoned houses, and just generally attempting to stay alive by any means necessary.
This grim state is what we’ve been expecting, but if you still didn’t realize the dire straits the group finds themselves in, take a gander at the soundtrack. With a refrain like “the dreams in which I’m dying are the best I’ve ever had,” the original Tears For Fears song is a serious downer. But the somber tone of this acoustic cover takes that maudlin feeling and brings it down a few notches until you’re just about ready to slit your damn wrists. I can’t say with 100% certainty, but I’m pretty sure this is the same version of this song that plays at the end of Donnie Darko.
Looking at this latest picture will do nothing to improve your outlook. In the aftermath of the chaos at the prison, Rick (Andrew Lincoln) has seen better days. He’s beaten and bloody, and with that creepy messed up eye, he’s starting to resemble a zombie himself. Maybe he’s not all that far off.
As grim as it is likely to be, I’m actually excited to see what The Walking Dead has in store for us tonight. I have a rocky relationship with the show, but right now the show has more going for it than it ever has. They’re getting into some great storylines form Robert Kirkman’s comics, we have great new characters on the horizon, and in this fragile, half-wrecked state, there is ample room for the cast to really dig into the characters. Should be interesting.
The Walking Dead returns tonight, February 9, on AMC.
