After the ending of the first season of "The Walking Dead," certain concerns were brought to light, such as how the writers would advance the story without it becoming another predictable horror flick with macabre twists.
But "The Walking Dead" still manages to remain a straightforward, well-acted and suspenseful zombie apocalyptic drama that doesn't rely on special effects like TNT's "Falling Skies" or absurd excesses like FX's "American Horror Story."
The series began with policeman Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) who, after getting injured in a shoot-out, wakes up from a coma and discovers that the world has become a battleground between the living and the walking dead. His wife Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies) and son Carl (Chandler Riggs) are alive, as well as his partner on the force Shane Walsh ("The Pacific's" Jon Bernthal), who is in a relationship with Lori.
The second season begins with Rick, still in the dark about Lori's affair with Shane, leading the group of humans as they travel toward Fort Benning, hoping to find what remains of the military. While on the road, they encounter a horde of what looks like a thousand "walkers" (what the zombies are called in the series). Among the terror and chaos, one of the children goes missing, and the second season seems to revolve around finding the missing child.
But that isn't even where the most tension and shock come from within the second season. I can't say what, for fear of ruining the shock behind this event and AMC sending its walkers my way. But I will say that this moment involves a tragedy among the Grimes family and will leave your jaw dropped.
The characterization, the suspense and the gore are what make "The Walking Dead" a gripping drama series.
In terms of characterization, the second season is actually an improvement. The first season consisted of only six episodes, which simply established the horrific situation the group struggles with. This season slows down for a bit to give the audience a better sense of character depth without sacrificing suspense.
One particular character we gain more insight from is Shane, who seems to be more complicated than depicted in the first season. Because of the jealousy that stems from seeing Rick reunited with his wife, he considers leaving the group.
The redneck of the group, Daryl (Norman Reedus), becomes more character than caricature as he turns out to be an asset to the group.
Andrea (Laurie Holden) is so grief-stricken over the loss of her sister Amy in the first season that she is practically suicidal. She makes the decision to leave the group whenever Shane decides to go. There's also more interaction between her and the wise, old veteran of the group, Dale (Jeffery DeMunn), providing more insight into the father-daughter relationship developing between the two.
Like most shows on AMC, "The Walking Dead" pushes some boundaries in standardized American television, by showing plenty of on-screen gore. In the show, we see walkers devour animal entrails, humans wearing walker blood and zombies get bludgeoned with bats and shot in the head.
Though "The Walking Dead" may be a postapocalyptic zombie horror show, the real terrors within the show don't come from the massive hordes of walkers or the suspenseful situations that the group finds themselves in. The real terrors are the worst-case scenario subjects that families could possibly face, such as losing a child or a secret affair occurring between married couples.
That's not to say that the walker hordes aren't grueling, terrifying or convincing to watch. In fact, the effects behind the making of the walkers are so convincing that "The Walking Dead" won the Emmy award for Best Prosthetic Makeup. If you've watched even the first episode then you would understand why.
"The Walking Dead" continues to be one of the most watched shows on television as we see these characters hold onto their humanity. If you don't feel like going out this Halloween weekend, I would recommend sitting down and enjoying the most gut-churning, horrifying show television has to offer.