The Walking Dead Vol. 1: Days Gone Bye Kindle & comiXology

I won't insult you by explaining the Walking Dead to you, you know what it is about. The end of the world, hordes of zombies and survivors fighting to survive.After watching all of the episodes on television, I thought I had better go back to where it all began and read the graphic novel series. This could be an expensive decision as I rather enjoyed volume one and I think it is on volume twenty something now.Obviously the tv show and the novel don't always follow the same plot but it was nice to see how the characters were originally imagined. I mean when I see Rick, I see Andrew Lincoln but this volume shows me the characters in a totally different light. It also shows how well the casting of the tv show did with matching some of the characters to their on screen counterparts.The characters feel wonderfully real, from their facial expressions to the dialogue, all illustrated brilliantly, plus with it being drawn in monochrome shades the world looks suitably bleak.Yes I know The Walking Dead does feature a lot of blood and gore, something that does not come in shades of gray but those zoms look suitably bloody and nasty, don't worry about that.Volume One follows Rick's awakening from his coma, his discovery that the world has gone to hell and his family are gone. Rick finds his family but he also finds new friends, fellow survivors each with their own tale to tell - Carol is not a badass at this point!I'm still new to reading graphic novels but I have a feeling it is going to expand considerably thanks to this. Gritty and gripping, it will keep me in zombies until season 7.

After being a fan of the show for years I finally got around to the graphic novel and it's everything I hoped it would be! I love how all of the art is in black and white as it adds to the post-apocalyptic feel of the story and the characters are well fleshed out.**SPOILERS FOLLOW** The show changed things up a bit by changing some characters, adding new ones or removing some completely and the most notable absence from the graphic novel is Daryl - I know the GN came first but I found myself missing him (no Meryl either). Dale seems a little older in the novel and has a weird relationship with Andrea and her sister Amy. Glenn is pretty close to his show counterpart (or vice-versa) and Shane snuffs it very early on in the GN compared to the show. Rick seems a lot friendlier and emotional early on in this GN but his conflicts with Shane harden him early on. Carol is still a bit mysterious so far as she was at the beginning of the show and Lori does quite a bit of complaining.Overall, it is a very good start and I read all six issues in one evening. Looking forward to getting the next installment on my Kindle!

Seriously people, you should be reading this series. These collections of the monthly comics are great. Don't be fooled by the  28 Days Later ... [DVD] [2002 ] style beginning (In the end, how many ways can you start a zombie story? Does it really matter?) this quickly builds into a unique "Zombie Apocalypse" saga. Also, even if you get hooked on the series, be patient and stick with the book versions - I started reading the individual monthly comics rather than the collections because I was "jonesing" for more of the story and the experience is less satisfying - I'm switching back to reading them in the big chunks that this format provide.The real innovation with "Walking Dead" is that it's much more about the people than the Zombies. The writer sums it up in his intro when he says the real story of Zombies never ends - you can't just tie up loose ends and come up with a happy ending. Within a pretty short while it becomes apparent that in this world, danger comes less from animated corpses, and more from human beings, fighting amongst each other for resources and a safe haven as society breaks down.Brilliantly written, evocatively drawn - this is a genuine masterpiece. It's going to be a TV series on the American Cable channel AMC in October and I'm pretty sure it'll be coming to the UK shortly after. The trailers look good, but they're bound to mess it up a bit, so read the source material.

As I imagine being the case for a fair few people I was first properly introduced to the walking dead via the tv show. Which I enjoyed so felt compelled to try the source material, as well let's be honest, they're usually better, bar a few exceptions. The first issue is fantastic, works well on the kindle. The black & white art work, suits the story. It is enjoyable to read also, a zombie epic, tho as the author states at the start the focus is not on horror but on character development, which suits me perfect as that's just the type of story I adore. But there is still plenty of Gore, it is a set after a zombie apocalypse after all. Some fairly noticeable difference from tv show, even this early on. Which is good as likely means they can both be enjoyed as separate things, & I doubt story of show will approach depth being attempted here. All in all impressed, jus wish had money to bulk buy them all & get up to date!