Walking Dead #53 Review

The Walking Dead #53
TWD is one of my favorite books to read each month. The issues are always interesting and something always seems to happen, whether it be plot or character developement. Issue #53 definitely has both.

After Rick and Carl meet up with Michonne, the three luckily are in the path of Glen (my favorite) and Maggie. The five then go back to Hershel's farm where Andrea (my other favorite) and Dale (ok, they're all my favorites) are with Sophia. The next morning a clan of three strangers roll up to the farm asking for supplies. The man with the gun in the middle is Sergeant Abraham Ford, the woman is Rosita Espinosa and the guy with the radio-lookin' thing is Dr. Eugene Porter. The group reveals their plan of heading to Washington D.C. since that's where the country is most likely to be organized as well as the fact the Dr. knows how this pandemic happened.

This issue opens up a lot of potential awesome storylines. Will our group we've been with since the beginning go to D.C.? Will we find what the cause of the zombies are? Personally, I'm ready for a road trip and hopefully some urban-setting stuff (that was the coolest part in the beginning of the series).

The other interesting aspect of the book is the depiction of how the characters are dealing with the trauma. At first, we see Rick talking to his dead wife via telephone, now Michonne is talking to her dead boyfriend and little Sophia thinks Maggie is her real mom. All our characters are starting to look more and more mentally unstable. It could be within the realm of possibilty that Kirkman is getting us ready for a shift in lead characters, which isn't necessarily a bad thing if executed (no pun intended) properly. There's a lot of evidence to suggest this. Rick is constantly saying he doesn't want to lead anymore and that "As long as Carl's safe, I'm just along for the ride." Their world has been torn apart and these new characters enter to almost save the day. Part of me hopes I'm wrong but another part really wants to be right, so we can see things under a different light than we have ever previously experienced.

TWD is consistently awesome and shows no signs of letting up.

4.5/5 stars

Walking Dead #52 Review

Walking Dead #52
Robert Kirkman's series "The Walking Dead" has consistently been awesome since its first issue hit comic stores way back in 2003 and #52 is no different.

Some may be put off by the book since the conclusion of its most intense arc in #49. The issue has the main character, Rick's, wife and new born daughter killed by a shotgun blast. It also has most of the people in their camp die by the hands of the Governor's people.

Since that issue, Kirkman has had his leading man and his son, Carl, on their own...until now.

After trying to teach Carl how to drive, Rick goes to scavenge a nearby car for goods and leaves Carl alone in the car (great idea, I know). Sure enough, Carl is attacked by a roamer and enter the awesome reemergence of Michonne, the katana-wielding badass bitch, to save Carl from becoming lunch. After the rescue, Carl jumps into Michonne's arms.

This scene is especially poignant since throughout the series Michonne is portrayed as a loner and kind of crazy. It's nice to see her have some humanity when she tells Carl she's happy to see him.

The rest of the issue goes back to the old "here's what we'll do and here's how we'll do it" style of writing that it seems to always have. It also illustrates how Rick feels he really doesn't have it in him to lead anymore, after they run out of gas in the dark. Upon hearing this, Michonne, who once again shows some humanity, tells Rick "lack of confidence doesn't suit him," and they decide to take shifts being lookout while Carl sleeps.

Without revealing too much (Buzzamus just told me I write too many spoilers), the last panel brings some characters back into the mix.

This issue is great due to the fact the for the last three issues Rick and Carl have been alone, leaving the reader to feel alone with them. Now, Michonne is back and the reader feels relief that the two are no longer alone. It's also feels great to have character interaction that isn't just father and son anymore. The story will be even better after the next issue which teases the introduction of at least three new characters and some old ones.

Here's my one and only problem with "The Walking Dead."

THE ISSUES READ TOO FAST!!!

I wait for a month or more and I read the issue in less than five minutes.

It's like when you go out to eat and wait an hour for the food, then in 15 minutes the food is gone and you're left wanting more. Yeah, it's a lot like that.

This is undoubtedly a good problem to have for Kirkman's book. It shows he knows how to write concisely without a lot of filler, which makes big events seem all the more massive.

Kirkman has had many awful titles like his recent run on "Ultimate X-Men" and "Marvel Zombies 2," but one thing is for sure; time and time again, he lets readers know that he knows how to deliver with "The Walking Dead" and the book we all care so much for is in safe hands.

4.5/5 stars