By Brian Brannon ’11
THE ROUNDUP

Humankind has always been interested in the destruction of civilization, social structures and order.

Such fascination has brought about the formation of several hypothesis as too the destruction of modern society.

One of these hypotheses is a pandemic of a parasitical virus which turns its victims into rabid, carnivorous “zombies.”

“The Walking Dead,” a recent addition to the American Movie Channel’s winter line up, gives a realistic and well-probed fictional representation of how real people would react to the destruction of everything modern.

The series is based on the acclaimed comic book series by noted author Robert Kirkman and comic artist Tony Moore.

The series’ main character, Rick Grimes (played by Andrew Lincoln), is a Sherriff’s deputy from Cynthiana, Ky who wakes in a derelict hospital from a gunshot-induced coma.

Rick stumbles out of the hospital into his devilishly twisted hometown and meets Morgan Jones (played by Lennie James) who is lamenting the recent loss of his wife.

Grimes learns from Jones about a civilian evacuation center in Atlanta.

After searching his home, Grimes believes that his wife and son may still be alive in the evacuation center.

Grimes formulates a plan to stop at the local police department, arm up and take a police cruiser towards Atlanta.

The first episode of this series completely surprised, amazed and disturbed its viewers with cinematic techniques and appearances that rivals large budget movies.

The story line also provided a much needed break from recent takes in the zombie-related media with its deep character development and mostly realistic attitude by the characters toward their situations.

The detail and thought put into every scene will continue to impress its participants as “The Walking Dead” travels on and as Grimes continues his journey into the heart of Atlanta.

Although only six episodes, the first season uses every episode to bring its viewers the ultimate experience in post-apocalypse, zombie-infested television.

Readers should be warned: Those with a weak stomach should be wary as the series uses gore and language to reinforce it’s dramatic suspense.