96 replies to this topic

[jamessavik]

The long running comic The Walking Dead debuts on AMC Sunday night!



AMC's originals website >>The Walking Dead


They Hunger!

[jon-jon]

Aaauuggh! The Night Of The Living Dead, my worst movie experience, is now a TV sit-drama. Thanks be that I pulled the plug on TV years ago.

[TrevorTime]

I am sooooooooo looking forward to this show. I love me some good zombie action!

Checked last night and I do get AMC in HD. Too bad there are only 6 episodes in the show's first season.

[jamessavik]

AMC is 254 on Direct TV. 8 eastern, 9 central

[Daisy139]

Mr. Daisy insists we watch it and he knows I don't do Scary very well. I'll probably be hiding out under the blankets for an hour.

[TrevorTime]

from a TV ratings blog:
-------------------------------------------------
The premiere of the AMC original series The Walking Dead was anything but, as the one-hour telecast scared up a whopping 5.34 million viewers on Halloween night. Among those who stayed in to watch the episode were 3.57 million viewers 18-49, making The Walking Dead the most successful cable series debut of 2010. The overall delivery and demo numbers also marked an historic high for an AMC original series bow. (AMC's all-time biggest draw to date came courtesy of its two-part miniseries event, Broken Trail. All told, the Robert Duvall oater averaged 9.96 million viewers on June 25 and 26, 2006, per Nielsen live-plus-seven-day ratings data).


If The Walking Dead's numbers weren't frightening enough to AMC's Sunday night competition, consider the fact that many fans of the zombie/horror genre were likely out bobbing for apples or hurling eggs at hapless passersby while the series debuted. If past performance is anything to go by, AMC could very well see those deliveries swell by as much as 50 percent upon application of L-7 data.


In other words, after AMC is credited for DVR playback, The Walking Dead's deliveries could swell to some 8 million viewers. Any way you slice it, look to AMC president and general manager Charlie Collier to announce a renewal soon. While AMC brass didn't say it in so many words, the premiere far outstripped the network's early expectations.
--------------------------------------------------


I think it's safe to say that this show will be around for awhile.

Edited by TrevorTime, 01 November 2010 - 06:48 PM.

[jamessavik]

Heads up- episode 2 at 10 eastern, 9 central

If it were me, I'd never get out of the tank.

[Young Sage]

Watched both episodes. Loved them. And this coming from a 100% genuine scaredy cat. However, having not read the comic, I must ask this (put in spoilers just in case):

Spoiler

Why do they keep trying to make me sympathize with the Walkers? It's not working, guys.

[TrevorTime]

I've never read the comic either, but I absolutely love this show. I wonder if any of the "walkers" are gay?

[hh5]

Gosh you got that "Dead movie series" about military gas that kills people and makes them zombies to eat brains ... you got 28 days later ... night of the living dead

I can't believe this series has sustainability ... especially if the end result is 99% of the world will become a zombie

There are similar movies ... I am Legend ... a remake of Omega Man

Well ... if it means money and politics and government and miltary ... family etc etc is worthless ... its the survival of the fittest ... I guess we can be surprised who is fit to survive ... even in other kinds of disaster scenerios... that question is tested ... do we wonder if mankind survives and rebuilds? ... or does this planet become uninhabitable ... a diseased planet

[Young Sage]

I wonder if any of the "walkers" are gay?

I believe these are one of the few kinds of guys you DON'T want going down on you (nor would a condom really help you much).

[Young Sage]

What did this week's episode tell us, guys? Never doubt the main character, because he's the mothertrucking MAIN CHARACTER (and therefore is never wrong)!

[TrevorTime]

It sucks that this Sunday will be the last episode for awhile. The show is simply amazing. But never fear, there WILL be a season #2; I just don't know when it will start yet.

And for those who haven't seen it yet, I do believe that AMC will show all 6 episodes this Sunday. Fire up that DVR!

[Kavrik]

I think they should introduce a gay character and have them miraculously discover that being gay, makes you immune to the disease. So the cure would be for everyone to have anal sex with a gay guy to pass on the "cure". This plot device would totally make the show for me. Otherwise, I'm still enjoying it, despite the reliance on cliche roles of men and women i.e., the women doing the wash, etc.

I was wondering why they chose a man to be the CDC guy. Why couldn't it have just been a brilliant, strong, and talented woman doctor that was all alone in the facility?

[Young Sage]

The story takes place in/near Atlanta, right? Deep South. Not exactly known for being too progressive with gender roles and equal rights for everybody and stuff like that. I'm sure being gay wouldn't make one immune from "death via having half your neck chewed off," but if it DID...

[Kavrik]

The story takes place in/near Atlanta, right? Deep South. Not exactly known for being too progressive with gender roles and equal rights for everybody and stuff like that. I'm sure being gay wouldn't make one immune from "death via having half your neck chewed off," but if it DID...

Yeah it's in Georgia. However, that doesn't necessarily mean that it has to invoke all the southern stereotypes of rednecks in wife-beaters even if that is what they are doing. It would make logical sense to me that a zombie flick would take place in a warm climate because if I just so happened to survive a zombie apocalypse, there's no f'ing way that I'd also battle a cold winter and zombies too. That's just too much.

[Young Sage]

You might want to rethink that. In the blazing sun or frigid north, if we look at realistic zombies (oxymoron, I know), we stand a good chance. I haven't read the comic graphic novels, so I don't know how much the TV show is taking from it, but I heard that it's staying pretty true to the plot and that means keeping with the stereotypes. Plus, doesn't knowing just how much of a racist douchebag Merle (the older one) is make for a more satisfying experience when/if he gets killed?

[Kavrik]

You might want to rethink that. In the blazing sun or frigid north, if we look at realistic zombies (oxymoron, I know), we stand a good chance. I haven't read the comic graphic novels, so I don't know how much the TV show is taking from it, but I heard that it's staying pretty true to the plot and that means keeping with the stereotypes. Plus, doesn't knowing just how much of a racist douchebag Merle (the older one) is make for a more satisfying experience when/if he gets killed?

Wow, that's brilliant. I never thought of the zombies freezing solid in cold weather! How come no one films a zombie apocalypse in the cold like that? You could have one episode where everyone just goes out and shatters them with a sledgehammer and bam..done.

[jamessavik]

Wow, that's brilliant. I never thought of the zombies freezing solid in cold weather! How come no one films a zombie apocalypse in the cold like that? You could have one episode where everyone just goes out and shatters them with a sledgehammer and bam..done.

They have not as yet. Such a movie is in production: World War Z by Max Brooks.

Freezing temps as a defense against the undead has appeared in numerous books.

In several books safe zones were set up in Canada and offensive actions took place in sub-zero conditions.

[phana14]

They have not as yet. Such a movie is in production: World War Z by Max Brooks.

Freezing temps as a defense against the undead has appeared in numerous books.

In several books safe zones were set up in Canada and offensive actions took place in sub-zero conditions.

You are so bad.

[jamessavik]

'The Walking Dead' finale breaks ratings records'

Dec. 7, 2010

Source Link:CNN

The ratings for "The Walking Dead's" just-ended first season have been such that perhaps AMC is wishing that it had lasted more than just six weeks.

The anticipation for the season finale garnered six million viewers, according to the network, and it received the highest ratings of any basic cable show, ever, in the all-important 18-49 demographic.

To put those numbers into perspective, October's season finale of "Mad Men" had an audience of 2.44 million, according to TVbytheNumbers.com.

(On the other hand, that 18-49 number is very important, because the New York Post reported in 2007 that a post-"High School Musical 2" episode of "Hannah Montana," with much of its audience under 18, averaged 10.7 million viewers.)

As hot as "The Walking Dead" is, it's not quite to the level of some episodes of "The Sopranos" final season, which on two occasions had around 13 million viewers.

Still, the network says that "The Walking Dead's" average 18-49 viewership of 3.5 million for this season makes it the most watched drama series in basic cable history in the demographic.

The big question is, now that the show has grown beyond its core fanbase, will the "Dead-heads" tune in once again next Halloween (the likely start date for season two), despite the long wait? What do you think? Share your comments below.

[TrevorTime]

The big question is, now that the show has grown beyond its core fanbase, will the "Dead-heads" tune in once again next Halloween (the likely start date for season two), despite the long wait? What do you think? Share your comments below.

There's not a snowball's chance in Phoenix that I will miss any of season #2. This show was simply amazing, even though it only lasted 6 weeks. Much better than that over-hyped "The Event" on NBC.

What made the show so compelling for me was the first rate writing. The man behind the scenes was none other than Frank Darabont, the director of the excellent movie "The Shawshank Redemption".

[Hoskins]

I'll be watching it. Its been a good treatment of the subject. it will be interesting to see what happens since Walter Eglee left the writing staff. It seems the whole writing process for the second season is in flux, with rumors that the writers got fired (not true) and maybe they're going to use freelancers and maybe not. Whatever. It'll be good.

[Young Sage]

If this comes out next Halloween, I'll (hopefully) be in another state, up to my neck in graduate work, and probably unable to take an hour out of my time to watch people die left and right (on the TV). But if I can...then I'll definitely watch it. I'm unsure, though, whether others that aren't die-hard fans will have enough patience and memory to withstand 10 months of nothing (unless they finally cave in and watch, what was it called, "The Killing"?, which will tide them over).

*receives email notifying Hoskins post; reads *

Well that's not good. Hmm...wonder how that'll affect the story.

[jamessavik]

Didn't the whole thing start with...

____________________________________________

Japan's first Venus probe struggling to enter orbit

Dec. 7, 2010

Source Link:Yahoo News

TOKYO (AFP) – Japan's first space probe bound for Venus was struggling on Tuesday to enter the planet's orbit, the space agency said.

The Planet-C Venus Climate Orbiter, a box-shaped golden satellite fitted with two paddle-shaped solar panels, blasted off from a space centre in southern Japan in May.

The probe, nicknamed "Akatsuki" or "Dawn", reversed its engine to slow down and enter the planet's gravitational field but lost contact with ground control longer than had been anticipated, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said.

It was presumed to have shifted itself into a "safe hold mode", and was able to communicate only by via one of its three antennae after the blackout ended.

"It is not known which path the probe is following at the moment," JAXA official Munetaka Ueno told reporters at the ground control late Tuesday. "We are making maximum effort to readjust the probe."

Venus is similar in size and age to Earth but has a far more hostile climate, with temperatures around 460 degrees Celsius (860 degrees Fahrenheit) and large amounts of carbon dioxide, the primary greenhouse gas on Earth.

Scientists believe an investigation of the climate of Venus will help them deepen their understanding of the formation of the Earth's environment and its future.

Fitted with five cameras, the probe will peer through the planet's thick layer of sulphuric acid clouds to monitor the meteorology of Venus, search for possible lightning, and scan its crust for active volcanoes.

Akatsuki will work closely with the European Space Agency's Venus Express.