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The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead, Vol. 31: The Rotten Core
Rick leads the Commonwealth's Governor, Pamela Milton, on a tour of the various communities Alexandria is aligned with. Naturally... terrible things begin to happen very quickly. Collects THE WALKING DEAD #181-186.
136 pages, Comics
First published March 12, 2019
58 people are currently reading
1704 people want to read
About the author
Robert Kirkman
2,741 books6,932 followersRobert Kirkman is an American comic book writer best known for his work on The Walking Dead, Invincible for Image Comics, as well as Ultimate X-Men and Marvel Zombies for Marvel Comics. He has also collaborated with Image Comics co-founder Todd McFarlane on the series Haunt. He is one of the five partners of Image Comics, and the only one of the five who was not one of the original co-founders of that publisher.
Robert Kirkman's first comic books were self-published under his own Funk-o-Tron label. Along with childhood friend Tony Moore, Kirkman created Battle Pope which was published in late 2001. Battle Pope ran for over 2 years along with other Funk-o-Tron published books such as InkPunks and Double Take.
In July of 2002, Robert's first work for another company began, with a 4-part SuperPatriot series for Image, along with Battle Pope backup story artist Cory Walker. Robert's creator-owned projects followed shortly thereafter, including Tech Jacket, Invincible and Walking Dead.
Robert Kirkman's first comic books were self-published under his own Funk-o-Tron label. Along with childhood friend Tony Moore, Kirkman created Battle Pope which was published in late 2001. Battle Pope ran for over 2 years along with other Funk-o-Tron published books such as InkPunks and Double Take.
In July of 2002, Robert's first work for another company began, with a 4-part SuperPatriot series for Image, along with Battle Pope backup story artist Cory Walker. Robert's creator-owned projects followed shortly thereafter, including Tech Jacket, Invincible and Walking Dead.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 390 reviews
May 21, 2025
Tine for another Negan fix, Commonwealth baloney and a new hook-up target for Princess?
In this fast moving volume we see cracks appearing in Rick's team, and surely this can only lead to disaster? Although another strong volume the speed of events are a bit too quick, - still, a nice funky firm Four Star 8.5 out of 12 read and seemingly on the road to a fitting and sound finale in the next volume.
When you can't enough of Princess covers :)
2019 read
In this fast moving volume we see cracks appearing in Rick's team, and surely this can only lead to disaster? Although another strong volume the speed of events are a bit too quick, - still, a nice funky firm Four Star 8.5 out of 12 read and seemingly on the road to a fitting and sound finale in the next volume.
When you can't enough of Princess covers :)
2019 read
March 8, 2019
The shitshow that is The Walking Dead staggers on for yet another volume in the aptly named, Volume 31: The Rotten Core. Who knew that the Commonwealth, an authoritarian group obsessed with hierarchy enforced through an overbearing police presence, would turn out to be gasp kinda evil oh right everyone duurrr?!
Rick is taking Commonwealth Governor Pamela Milton on a tour of their territories (Hilltop, The Kingdom, etc.) except it’s not interesting for the audience who’s already familiar with them all - great storytelling, Robert Kirkman! Elsewhere, Sophia complains to Carl that there aren’t enough eligible boys around to date - cue a McLovin-type intro’d! Gee, wonder what gonna happen dere… Eugene decides to make trains a thing again, Princess continues to be annoying and Michonne becomes a lawyer again, fighting a stupid, dreary court case.
Kirkman throws in a couple of zombie-killin’ scenes in a futile attempt to make all this dross less dross-tastic, though even he’s aware of how formulaic the series has become, having a couple of characters remark on the peace/war ebb and flow of things. Guess Rick and co. are gonna haveta fight the Commonwealth now… or are they? Sort of. Le sigh...
So why doesn’t this get the lowest possible rating? Rick. Rick saves the day by being unintentionally hilarious and behaving like a moron! There’s one scene where he’s having coffee in the Commonwealth where I turned the page and saw this extra-large panel close-up of Rick’s face that looked like he’d been clobbered on the bonce by a football - he had this dazed expression and his eyes were streaming.
Obviously he hadn’t and it was meant to be this moving moment where he got to experience his normal pre-zombie apocalypse life for the first time in years, but that we were meant to take it seriously only made it funnier to me. Fucking hell, Charlie Adlard, that was your best effort? Wow. Made me laugh though!
Rick’s words that close out this book were also so corny - think similar lines to earlier in the series when he said “WE’RE the Walking Dead!”. And then there’s his actions in the final scene which were unpredictable and, despite being over the top, about the only interesting part of the book - hopefully that means Kirkman’s figuring out a new variation for the story?
There’ve been worse volumes in The Walking Dead but Volume 31: The Rotten Core is still down there as among the series’ worst - the title’s quality drought unfortunately continues.
Rick is taking Commonwealth Governor Pamela Milton on a tour of their territories (Hilltop, The Kingdom, etc.) except it’s not interesting for the audience who’s already familiar with them all - great storytelling, Robert Kirkman! Elsewhere, Sophia complains to Carl that there aren’t enough eligible boys around to date - cue a McLovin-type intro’d! Gee, wonder what gonna happen dere… Eugene decides to make trains a thing again, Princess continues to be annoying and Michonne becomes a lawyer again, fighting a stupid, dreary court case.
Kirkman throws in a couple of zombie-killin’ scenes in a futile attempt to make all this dross less dross-tastic, though even he’s aware of how formulaic the series has become, having a couple of characters remark on the peace/war ebb and flow of things. Guess Rick and co. are gonna haveta fight the Commonwealth now… or are they? Sort of. Le sigh...
So why doesn’t this get the lowest possible rating? Rick. Rick saves the day by being unintentionally hilarious and behaving like a moron! There’s one scene where he’s having coffee in the Commonwealth where I turned the page and saw this extra-large panel close-up of Rick’s face that looked like he’d been clobbered on the bonce by a football - he had this dazed expression and his eyes were streaming.
Obviously he hadn’t and it was meant to be this moving moment where he got to experience his normal pre-zombie apocalypse life for the first time in years, but that we were meant to take it seriously only made it funnier to me. Fucking hell, Charlie Adlard, that was your best effort? Wow. Made me laugh though!
Rick’s words that close out this book were also so corny - think similar lines to earlier in the series when he said “WE’RE the Walking Dead!”. And then there’s his actions in the final scene which were unpredictable and, despite being over the top, about the only interesting part of the book - hopefully that means Kirkman’s figuring out a new variation for the story?
There’ve been worse volumes in The Walking Dead but Volume 31: The Rotten Core is still down there as among the series’ worst - the title’s quality drought unfortunately continues.
April 12, 2019
Seems like no matter what, when Rick Grimes gets involved, things fall apart!
The post-apocalyptic adventures of The Walking Dead continue with the newest community, , that Rick and crew have come across. While seemingly an ideal new society, there is something slightly rotten festering below the surface . . .
One of my favorite parts of post-apocalyptic fiction is seeing how the people handle each other and the rebuilding process. But, is The Walking Dead starting to get a bit repetitive? I think it is . . . not distractingly so, but it doesn’t feel like we get a whole lot of movement forward, just a whole lot of movement sideways.
The artwork in this series has been steady for many, many volumes. I enjoy it, so no complaints – but nothing new to say about it.
You like zombies? Well, I think they may have almost finally killed them all because I think they only appeared an about 4 pages of this volume and there were only about 10 of them. So, if you are reading this series because you like zombie action, this current storyline had ventured far away from the actual Walking Dead!
I continue to enjoy this series, but I feel like it is at a crossroads where it needs to have a mind-blowing climax leading to the final conclusion of the series or it may start to get stale.
The post-apocalyptic adventures of The Walking Dead continue with the newest community, , that Rick and crew have come across. While seemingly an ideal new society, there is something slightly rotten festering below the surface . . .
One of my favorite parts of post-apocalyptic fiction is seeing how the people handle each other and the rebuilding process. But, is The Walking Dead starting to get a bit repetitive? I think it is . . . not distractingly so, but it doesn’t feel like we get a whole lot of movement forward, just a whole lot of movement sideways.
The artwork in this series has been steady for many, many volumes. I enjoy it, so no complaints – but nothing new to say about it.
You like zombies? Well, I think they may have almost finally killed them all because I think they only appeared an about 4 pages of this volume and there were only about 10 of them. So, if you are reading this series because you like zombie action, this current storyline had ventured far away from the actual Walking Dead!
I continue to enjoy this series, but I feel like it is at a crossroads where it needs to have a mind-blowing climax leading to the final conclusion of the series or it may start to get stale.
December 15, 2025
I love the fact that Michonne was a private lawyer before the zombie outbreak. It fits her so well and it totally makes sense now. Can't wait to see her practice law for the Commonwealth!
It's a bit weird that my favourite characters often walk around with a cane. Kinda wish Rick would still use his though!
Michonne being able to convey her words so strongly is a reason why she is such a good lawyer. If something ever happens to me I will call her to help me out!
StoryGraph review
It's a bit weird that my favourite characters often walk around with a cane. Kinda wish Rick would still use his though!
Michonne being able to convey her words so strongly is a reason why she is such a good lawyer. If something ever happens to me I will call her to help me out!
StoryGraph review
March 29, 2019
Kirkman still knows how to deliver a shock. He lulled me with this whole volume about how the Commonwealth is the absolute worst of our current consumer culture and how it's a police state, blah blah blah. Haven't we been here before? Then bam a sucker punch out of nowhere. Even when you start to think, "Eh, maybe it's time Kirkman ended this.", he can still manage to knock you to your knees.
March 28, 2019
Though there's not much zombie action in this volume, there's human drama galore. Maybe it's my current interest in income inequality, but this one really grabbed me. You see, the Commonwealth's Governor believes in a rigid class structure with everyone occupying a station . . . the same one they had before this whole walking dead thing started. As Michonne accidentally blurts out while dining in a restaurant (that's right - I said restaurant!) - "Can you imagine surviving the apocalypse and then ending up a waitress?"
As you can probably guess, this isn't sitting too well with members of Rick's egalitarian commune where everyone is equal, and one particular fellow is managing to rile up some of the Commonwealth's denizens. Look out! The Yellow Vests are taking to the street. The Governor, of course, is all "let them eat cake" while she shoots one zombie just for show, then leaves her minions to tidy up the mess.
On the softer side, there are also a lot of new romances that will undoubtedly be put to the test when the coming war finally comes - which at Kirkman Pace will probably be four or five volumes from now.
BUT . . . for the time being I'm enjoying this soap, relishing the show while waiting for the other shoe to drop.
I can't remember the last time I said this about The Walking Dead, but I'm actually looking forward to the next volume.
As you can probably guess, this isn't sitting too well with members of Rick's egalitarian commune where everyone is equal, and one particular fellow is managing to rile up some of the Commonwealth's denizens. Look out! The Yellow Vests are taking to the street. The Governor, of course, is all "let them eat cake" while she shoots one zombie just for show, then leaves her minions to tidy up the mess.
On the softer side, there are also a lot of new romances that will undoubtedly be put to the test when the coming war finally comes - which at Kirkman Pace will probably be four or five volumes from now.
BUT . . . for the time being I'm enjoying this soap, relishing the show while waiting for the other shoe to drop.
I can't remember the last time I said this about The Walking Dead, but I'm actually looking forward to the next volume.
December 9, 2018
Holy crap. Great volume. What an ending!
October 31, 2019
An excellent quiet-before-storm (but not too much quiet) set-up volume to the final one closing a 16 years old series that changed for good comic-books world and gave birth to one of most interesting characters ever: Rick Grimes.
I'm almost afraid to read how it ends.
Oh, well. Nothing lasts forever.
January 10, 2024
TWD enters the final phase of its story with the clash of the Commonwealth and the new Governor with Team Rick. I really liked how the complexities of these two groups came together despite losing a great character or two. It was nice seeing Michonne with her daughter and the possible hope of a renewed human community in the post-apocalyptic US.
February 13, 2019
Daaaaaamn, son.
April 7, 2019
A good installment in the series, but to be honest, trying to keep track of who's alive on TV and not in the comics -- and vice versa -- makes my head spin.
December 7, 2020
This collection is about our societies getting to know the newly discovered society The Commonwealth. Our collection of characters see that everything is not perfect in this society. They would like to change the ways of The Commonwealth but what is the best way to go about it?
This collection didn't do much for me. My issue with it was the social commentary. I know this whole series has been about social commentary but it was also filled with action and zombies. This collection was not subtle at all with the social commentary as it was right in your face. And what about zombies? I believe you can count on one hand the panels a zombie appeared on. My favorite part of this collection is when a couple of characters were the voice of the readers. They know they meet a new society, disagreements occur, and then war happens. Lather, rinse, repeat. They summed up how I feel about this story at the moment. I am bored with it as there is nothing new.
This is the set up collection before the s**t hits the fan. The next collection is also the last collection of this series as it has come to the end. I am crossing my fingers on that one as I am hoping it ends with a bang. This one didn't. This one didn't even provide a little spark until the final pages and I believe this one might be the worst collection in this long running series.
This collection didn't do much for me. My issue with it was the social commentary. I know this whole series has been about social commentary but it was also filled with action and zombies. This collection was not subtle at all with the social commentary as it was right in your face. And what about zombies? I believe you can count on one hand the panels a zombie appeared on. My favorite part of this collection is when a couple of characters were the voice of the readers. They know they meet a new society, disagreements occur, and then war happens. Lather, rinse, repeat. They summed up how I feel about this story at the moment. I am bored with it as there is nothing new.
This is the set up collection before the s**t hits the fan. The next collection is also the last collection of this series as it has come to the end. I am crossing my fingers on that one as I am hoping it ends with a bang. This one didn't. This one didn't even provide a little spark until the final pages and I believe this one might be the worst collection in this long running series.
June 22, 2021
This story is more like "what could possibly go wrong in paradise made in Apocalypse". The story opens with Rick coming to this place Commonwealth and trying to see for himself the class systems here and how the people live here and there are questions he has, there are things with people Rebelling against the authority and Dwight wants to take it over and we could parallel it with real life scenarios and it gets socio-political for sure and I kind of like the idea with how things progress here and finally wee things happening with Michonne and the general people and finally the thing that Rick does.
Its an epic volume with so much intrigue and you cannot stop reading it till you find the answer of what next and also I am loving the evolution of Michonne and the debates she is having and the wild choices that Rick made in the end sets up such a great and mystery last volume. Plus the art was great throughout!
Its an epic volume with so much intrigue and you cannot stop reading it till you find the answer of what next and also I am loving the evolution of Michonne and the debates she is having and the wild choices that Rick made in the end sets up such a great and mystery last volume. Plus the art was great throughout!
March 10, 2019
Touring the commonwealth. Showing the Commonwealth Alexandria and its allies. Like the Governor's town, the Commonwealth is too peaceful. There's something sinister behind the smiles. But, there's Mr.T and the A-Team so it can't be all bad. Unlike the tv series though, Heath is still alive. A transitional story moving the story arc forward.
March 9, 2021
There wasn't a real lot of stuff that really happened in this issue however still a few bits that did happen that really got the story going further.
Rick, Dwight and co make there way to the commonwealth to see how big this community really is and boy do we really get to see the 'real' side of how shady this community truly is. Michonne is back with her daughter Elodie and living life in this community as a Lawyer a job she had before the outbreak and it seems like Michonne has found her happy place after all she's been through.
Pamela plus some of her officers go on a tour along with Rick to visit the other communities that are now thriving after the whisperer war that nearly destroyed everything they had worked for. I found Pamela really suss even before i knew what was really going down and this issue just confirms that for me and i am not surprised at all.
Rick shoots Dwight killing him after he pulls a gun on Pamela pretty much saving her from dying and i was expecting something like this to happen even with how unhinged Dwight has been for the passed few issues. The one thing i felt Rick was out of line was to blame Michonne for his own actions and i just can't side with Rick on that one.
I can't believe that issue 32 is the final issue of the walking dead ever and i'm about to find out how this will all end!
Rick, Dwight and co make there way to the commonwealth to see how big this community really is and boy do we really get to see the 'real' side of how shady this community truly is. Michonne is back with her daughter Elodie and living life in this community as a Lawyer a job she had before the outbreak and it seems like Michonne has found her happy place after all she's been through.
Pamela plus some of her officers go on a tour along with Rick to visit the other communities that are now thriving after the whisperer war that nearly destroyed everything they had worked for. I found Pamela really suss even before i knew what was really going down and this issue just confirms that for me and i am not surprised at all.
Rick shoots Dwight killing him after he pulls a gun on Pamela pretty much saving her from dying and i was expecting something like this to happen even with how unhinged Dwight has been for the passed few issues. The one thing i felt Rick was out of line was to blame Michonne for his own actions and i just can't side with Rick on that one.
I can't believe that issue 32 is the final issue of the walking dead ever and i'm about to find out how this will all end!
April 24, 2019
Out of the last few issues I thought this one was much better, so it gets 5 stars. I don't know how much more steam the Walking Dead has though. It's starting to become like the Fables comic book series which ended after dragging out a few issues. There was a character death in this comic that surprised me so that is another reason for the 5 stars. Rick is the best thing in this volume and I wish he was still on the show too. I am interested in what will happen with this new town so I will read the next issue though long time readers might starting to discontinue the series since its getting repetitive.
April 28, 2019
Absolutely nothing in this volume! This series have been going nowhere for a long time. After a while off I give the two last volume a shot to see what happen... I was disappointed. Going to take another time out, there isn't any other out yet anyway, but a big deception for me!
September 10, 2020
This is a review of the entire series.
Rick Grimes is a strong-willed deputy who missed the end of the world because he was in a coma for a month after getting shot in the line of duty. Shaken, starving and confused, Rick escapes the horror of the abandoned hospital only to be met with something far more terrible. Not only has the world ended, but the dead have learned to walk and to kill without mercy. After learning that his wife and son have fled to Atlanta from a single survivor and his son, Rick goes on a journey to reunite with his family and search for more survivors.
Rick quickly has to come to terms with the fact that the world has ended and only a select few survived. The dead have risen from their graves and they prey on the living. In a world where every minute feels like hours, where there's no such thing as law and order, where finding a small meal is a tremendous task, the walking dead are quite possibly the least threatening thing for the survivors to have on their breaking minds. Humanity is pushed to the brink of destruction, forcing them to embrace their cruel and primal nature in order to survive. Sometimes you have to be more concerned about who you let into your community so they don't kill you in your sleep and steal everything you once cared about. Rick has no choice but to abandon the ways of law and order that he's upheld as an officer for so long in order to protect the few loved ones he has left. He has to become a monster to protect his crew or risk being devoured by those who became more monstrous than him and even the walking dead.
Despite zombies running the world and having the series named after them, what really sets this series apart from the average zombie apocalypse tale is the focus on realism and the daily struggles, flaws and depth of the characters. There's plenty of badass zombie killing action, but the action often takes a back seat to give the characters plenty of times to share their extremely tragic yet endearing stories, grow through mutual suffering and learn to adapt to a world that has left them to die. Even after the world has ended, many people still can't see eye to eye. They turn on each other and kill each other when they should come together. Others form alliances in spite of their differences and try to rebuild over the corpse of everything that was lost. The daily human drama and conflict is more intense than any monster apocalypse could hope to be.
We watch Rick struggle to balance his old moral code with the many necessary evils he has to commit in order to survive and make the world a better place for the ones he holds close. We watch people like Glen, Dale and Maggie attempt to find love in spite of having every reason to be filled with fear, hate and self-loathing. Characters like Michonne have to learn how to forgive themselves and convince themselves they deserve to be loved despite all the blood on their hands. We watch the weak like Carl and Andrea become strong and sometimes the strong become evil like The Governor. Even monsters like the wicked yet oddly lovable Negan are given the chance to find new ways of redeeming themselves by struggling alongside the other survivors that have all been changed by the horrors of the fallen world.
The pacing is extremely slow and I can understand why that may be a turnoff for a lot of people, but I eventually learned to enjoy watching the characters grow, overcome their trauma, find meaning in life and learn to love again. The characters are forced to do many terrible things to survive and it haunts them every waking moment. The ways they overcome these regrets is very realistic, human and hopeful. The slow pacing really gives the feeling that we're living beside these people. The way every tiny detail of their lives and who they are is explored makes them feel very real and believable.
When I first starting reading the series, I wasn't expecting it to have such an uplifting ending. It seemed so bleak and nihilistic for a long time and things would go horribly wrong even when they seemed to be going so well, but the finale channels all the pain, suffering and betrayal of the previous volumes and tops it off with a very touching and inspiring finish. This was never a story about hopelessness. It's about learning to appreciate the little things, learning to forgive yourself and learning to move on even when it's hard. When everything seems lost there's always more to be found, even when we believe otherwise because we convince ourselves that we don't deserve to be happy ever again. Instead of dwelling on what was lost, strive to try and make things better than they were before.
I've never been a huge fan of zombie apocalypse stories, but The Walking Dead had enough heart and strong social commentary to make me stick by the characters until the end and I enjoyed every moment of their long trial.
Rick Grimes is a strong-willed deputy who missed the end of the world because he was in a coma for a month after getting shot in the line of duty. Shaken, starving and confused, Rick escapes the horror of the abandoned hospital only to be met with something far more terrible. Not only has the world ended, but the dead have learned to walk and to kill without mercy. After learning that his wife and son have fled to Atlanta from a single survivor and his son, Rick goes on a journey to reunite with his family and search for more survivors.
Rick quickly has to come to terms with the fact that the world has ended and only a select few survived. The dead have risen from their graves and they prey on the living. In a world where every minute feels like hours, where there's no such thing as law and order, where finding a small meal is a tremendous task, the walking dead are quite possibly the least threatening thing for the survivors to have on their breaking minds. Humanity is pushed to the brink of destruction, forcing them to embrace their cruel and primal nature in order to survive. Sometimes you have to be more concerned about who you let into your community so they don't kill you in your sleep and steal everything you once cared about. Rick has no choice but to abandon the ways of law and order that he's upheld as an officer for so long in order to protect the few loved ones he has left. He has to become a monster to protect his crew or risk being devoured by those who became more monstrous than him and even the walking dead.
Despite zombies running the world and having the series named after them, what really sets this series apart from the average zombie apocalypse tale is the focus on realism and the daily struggles, flaws and depth of the characters. There's plenty of badass zombie killing action, but the action often takes a back seat to give the characters plenty of times to share their extremely tragic yet endearing stories, grow through mutual suffering and learn to adapt to a world that has left them to die. Even after the world has ended, many people still can't see eye to eye. They turn on each other and kill each other when they should come together. Others form alliances in spite of their differences and try to rebuild over the corpse of everything that was lost. The daily human drama and conflict is more intense than any monster apocalypse could hope to be.
We watch Rick struggle to balance his old moral code with the many necessary evils he has to commit in order to survive and make the world a better place for the ones he holds close. We watch people like Glen, Dale and Maggie attempt to find love in spite of having every reason to be filled with fear, hate and self-loathing. Characters like Michonne have to learn how to forgive themselves and convince themselves they deserve to be loved despite all the blood on their hands. We watch the weak like Carl and Andrea become strong and sometimes the strong become evil like The Governor. Even monsters like the wicked yet oddly lovable Negan are given the chance to find new ways of redeeming themselves by struggling alongside the other survivors that have all been changed by the horrors of the fallen world.
The pacing is extremely slow and I can understand why that may be a turnoff for a lot of people, but I eventually learned to enjoy watching the characters grow, overcome their trauma, find meaning in life and learn to love again. The characters are forced to do many terrible things to survive and it haunts them every waking moment. The ways they overcome these regrets is very realistic, human and hopeful. The slow pacing really gives the feeling that we're living beside these people. The way every tiny detail of their lives and who they are is explored makes them feel very real and believable.
When I first starting reading the series, I wasn't expecting it to have such an uplifting ending. It seemed so bleak and nihilistic for a long time and things would go horribly wrong even when they seemed to be going so well, but the finale channels all the pain, suffering and betrayal of the previous volumes and tops it off with a very touching and inspiring finish. This was never a story about hopelessness. It's about learning to appreciate the little things, learning to forgive yourself and learning to move on even when it's hard. When everything seems lost there's always more to be found, even when we believe otherwise because we convince ourselves that we don't deserve to be happy ever again. Instead of dwelling on what was lost, strive to try and make things better than they were before.
I've never been a huge fan of zombie apocalypse stories, but The Walking Dead had enough heart and strong social commentary to make me stick by the characters until the end and I enjoyed every moment of their long trial.
January 2, 2020
Bullet Review:
The further I read in the series, the closer I get to the final volume, the more I see how Kirkman and co have totally run out of steam. This is a regurgitated plotline from an earlier volume, without our favorite characters. This is just Kirkman and co tying the final bow on the last dangling thread - who was Eugene talking to and what is beyond their little society? I wonder if the team even really cared what was happening at this point - this seems like the work of someone bored, not someone on his passion project. TWD has been awful and ugly and cheesy, but before I always bought the team was enjoying the ride. This is the adult equivalent of "Are we there yet?"
Pamela Milton meets Rick Grimes. Rick Grimes is suspicious, as always. Cue perfunctory "Look at our village...now let's go visit you!" Mediocre plot lines - I don't care about Sophia and her sex life, and I am permanently scarred from the Princess and Mercel hookup. Is there nothing they could do to Princess to even attempt to make her interesting, besides prattle and wield a spear in a couple of panels?
We go back to the Community to cast judgment on the way they run things (as if there's nothing wrong with the "Rick makes all the judgment calls in Alexandria" government rule), and whaddya know, Dwight is still a live wire!
I think the biggest problem right now with these isn't the fact it's mundane - TWD has been that many a time before. But at least before, I felt the creators were excited to write about this world. That is all gone - these are people going through the motions.
Now to wait for my library copy of Vol 32 to come in!!
The further I read in the series, the closer I get to the final volume, the more I see how Kirkman and co have totally run out of steam. This is a regurgitated plotline from an earlier volume, without our favorite characters. This is just Kirkman and co tying the final bow on the last dangling thread - who was Eugene talking to and what is beyond their little society? I wonder if the team even really cared what was happening at this point - this seems like the work of someone bored, not someone on his passion project. TWD has been awful and ugly and cheesy, but before I always bought the team was enjoying the ride. This is the adult equivalent of "Are we there yet?"
Pamela Milton meets Rick Grimes. Rick Grimes is suspicious, as always. Cue perfunctory "Look at our village...now let's go visit you!" Mediocre plot lines - I don't care about Sophia and her sex life, and I am permanently scarred from the Princess and Mercel hookup. Is there nothing they could do to Princess to even attempt to make her interesting, besides prattle and wield a spear in a couple of panels?
We go back to the Community to cast judgment on the way they run things (as if there's nothing wrong with the "Rick makes all the judgment calls in Alexandria" government rule), and whaddya know, Dwight is still a live wire!
I think the biggest problem right now with these isn't the fact it's mundane - TWD has been that many a time before. But at least before, I felt the creators were excited to write about this world. That is all gone - these are people going through the motions.
Now to wait for my library copy of Vol 32 to come in!!
June 1, 2019
The series enters an awkward adolescence as we go from just killing zombies or other people to talking about politics, social movements, and even public transit. Hell, there is a short sequence of courtroom drama! There are also a million characters on hand as Rick takes the new Big Bad on a grand tour of all the existing city states in his domain. It's not a great volume, but I think the pivot is necessary at this point in the narrative.
October 17, 2024
I love these social experiments, power birthing more power, etc.
August 17, 2019
So this is the penultimate volume. I still feel like the ending to this series came out of nowhere, so I'm very curious to see how this wraps up.
As far as this volume goes, this is more a political statement than a horror story, although in way it's both. There's also the death of a major character that I hated to see go, especially considering the way it happened.
So the first truly major civilization established post zombies ends up being a world that brings back the worst of the way things were before everything fell apart. You'd think this would be a good chance to redo things "the right way", but nobody can ever agree on what that way is. Sadly I think there's a lot of realism in this volume.
This is a lame duck volume, but still a good read. Now to see where it all ends.
As far as this volume goes, this is more a political statement than a horror story, although in way it's both. There's also the death of a major character that I hated to see go, especially considering the way it happened.
So the first truly major civilization established post zombies ends up being a world that brings back the worst of the way things were before everything fell apart. You'd think this would be a good chance to redo things "the right way", but nobody can ever agree on what that way is. Sadly I think there's a lot of realism in this volume.
This is a lame duck volume, but still a good read. Now to see where it all ends.
July 20, 2024
Welp, this may only be my second volume out of the 31 I've read which I rated less than three stars. But truly...this one was just kind of meh. But when I look at the rating, it seems like a lot of people felt that way for this particular read. And I may have a theory why...which I'll hold until the end of the review.
Don't keep reading if you don't want spoilers.
.
.
.
Governor Milton gets a tour from Rick of all the communities. She's met with various degrees of trust.
Milton shows her disregard for the lives of others when she throws off the delicate process of leading a herd in a different direction by getting too close to sate her curiosity.
Princess and Mercer get busy immediately after the battle.
Dwight apologizes to Rick for his previous behavior.
Michonne and her daughter travel to the nearby town of Greenville. While they enjoy their time immensely, Michonne realizes there may be a shadow of evil lurking under the scenes when a small boy states he is hungry. The town leader gets testy when Michonne gives their travel food to the mom and boy. They get back to The Commonwealth in time for Michonne to see a man beat nearly to death by soldiers, including one that she knows.
Lance boxes Michonne in a corner and tells her she will defend the soldiers in court as her first case as long as she's on their payroll.
The man who was beaten nearly to death does die. Riots ensue in the streets.
Michonne argues to have the court proceedings drop to prevent further hysteria.
Eugene works up a plan to get a train engine back up and running.
Mercer and Princess get busy AND get together.
Dwight reveals to Rick a plan that he has entailing them taking out key players of the elite and taking over themselves.
Carl and Sophie also talk about how there are few boys around her age.
Eugene and Stephanie kiss.
Dwight provokes the soldiers to see how they will respond, but more importantly, he watches the crowd to see what their reaction to his oppression will be.
Eugene and Stephanie get busy.
Rick and Dwight try to talk to Michonne about their concerns. Michonne, overly fond of her return to high society, had some tricks up her sleeve. Milton and her guards are outside the door listening to them talk. Milton bursts in; Michonne protests that she was supposed to come alone so they could talk. Milton tells her guards to take Dwight prisoner. Dwight pulls a gun. Rick shoots him rather than risk another all out war.
The book concludes with an argument between Rick and Michonne in which Rick tells her he will never forgive her for what she made him do to Dwight.
My theory as to the low rating for this book: the book was forcefully preachy in regards to the author's apparent strong feelings on wealth distribution. In other words, Robert Kirkman is a socialist. And he used this book as his fire and brimstone pulpit. This was not The Walking Dead we know and love. This was a political commentary, complete with pantsuits, lawyers, and restaurants, with like...ten zombies thrown in as an afterthought. It felt disrespectful to the heart of this fictional universe.
I'd rate this book an R for swearing, sex scenes although no explicit nudity, violence and gore, and adult themes.
Original review posted March 15, 2020.
Don't keep reading if you don't want spoilers.
.
.
.
Governor Milton gets a tour from Rick of all the communities. She's met with various degrees of trust.
Milton shows her disregard for the lives of others when she throws off the delicate process of leading a herd in a different direction by getting too close to sate her curiosity.
Princess and Mercer get busy immediately after the battle.
Dwight apologizes to Rick for his previous behavior.
Michonne and her daughter travel to the nearby town of Greenville. While they enjoy their time immensely, Michonne realizes there may be a shadow of evil lurking under the scenes when a small boy states he is hungry. The town leader gets testy when Michonne gives their travel food to the mom and boy. They get back to The Commonwealth in time for Michonne to see a man beat nearly to death by soldiers, including one that she knows.
Lance boxes Michonne in a corner and tells her she will defend the soldiers in court as her first case as long as she's on their payroll.
The man who was beaten nearly to death does die. Riots ensue in the streets.
Michonne argues to have the court proceedings drop to prevent further hysteria.
Eugene works up a plan to get a train engine back up and running.
Mercer and Princess get busy AND get together.
Dwight reveals to Rick a plan that he has entailing them taking out key players of the elite and taking over themselves.
Carl and Sophie also talk about how there are few boys around her age.
Eugene and Stephanie kiss.
Dwight provokes the soldiers to see how they will respond, but more importantly, he watches the crowd to see what their reaction to his oppression will be.
Eugene and Stephanie get busy.
Rick and Dwight try to talk to Michonne about their concerns. Michonne, overly fond of her return to high society, had some tricks up her sleeve. Milton and her guards are outside the door listening to them talk. Milton bursts in; Michonne protests that she was supposed to come alone so they could talk. Milton tells her guards to take Dwight prisoner. Dwight pulls a gun. Rick shoots him rather than risk another all out war.
The book concludes with an argument between Rick and Michonne in which Rick tells her he will never forgive her for what she made him do to Dwight.
My theory as to the low rating for this book: the book was forcefully preachy in regards to the author's apparent strong feelings on wealth distribution. In other words, Robert Kirkman is a socialist. And he used this book as his fire and brimstone pulpit. This was not The Walking Dead we know and love. This was a political commentary, complete with pantsuits, lawyers, and restaurants, with like...ten zombies thrown in as an afterthought. It felt disrespectful to the heart of this fictional universe.
I'd rate this book an R for swearing, sex scenes although no explicit nudity, violence and gore, and adult themes.
Original review posted March 15, 2020.
April 18, 2019
In the last volume we are introduced to the Commonwealth, a large settlement in Ohio that has rigid class structures but has managed to thrive. I thought it established a promising arc that could turn the series in a new direction, for now years out from the outbreak, how does civilization rebuild? Last issue and this issue had less zombie attacks, for I would think that now that people know how to prevent more zombies from reanimating, there would be less and less zombies to dispatch as the years went by. That gives people more time to refashion their world, and there would be many different ways in which this could happen. With this being TWD, we are force fed that Rick's way is best (it actually usually is) and other settlements should adapt to the way Alexandria is governed. So we get a heartbreaking showdown between Rick and another certain someone who wants change fast and isn't willing to take no for an answer. We also get a lot of character development between others with new romances developing, but the shifting scenes between different settlements and characters was abrupt with no visual cues that the scene had changed- you were just supposed to know who lived in what settlement to know where you were now. BTW- Carl is an asshole and he and Sophia had better not eventually get together.
January 1, 2019
How tired are you of the never-ending formula that is The Walking Dead (read: Rick and company encounter a new community, community is not what it seems, our heroes are forced to take down said community, everything returns to normal until they meet another new community, lather, rinse, repeat). On the one hand, I find it tedious and predictable. On the other, Kirkman keeps creating new and intriguing communities to explore, so I can only be slightly annoyed. This latest trade is no exception to that formula, but does set up what is sure to be an explosive new arc.
ORIGINALLY POSTED: https://bibliomantics.com/2019/01/01/...
ORIGINALLY POSTED: https://bibliomantics.com/2019/01/01/...
March 13, 2019
I feel like the Commonwealth are the worst villains of the series so far. They're not evil or murdering people, or zombie worshipers. They're just as close to the horrible human civilization that we live in now as you can get, and it makes my blood boil just reading about them.
I cannot wait to see this entire place get burned to the ground.
I cannot wait to see this entire place get burned to the ground.
January 21, 2019
I can only really remember the last issue, which did have a good ending. I think the rest of the arc was fine?
April 3, 2019
Is Kirkman going for modern political commentary? I sure hope not. The story doesn't move much - again. And the direction if not the details is predictable - again. And the only twists or surprises that come any more on the big splash pages seem to be Human or Human violence. But I'll keep reading.
March 17, 2019
It's the comic that doesn't end...yes, it goes on and on my friend....;)
The zombies are once again just a bit of an afterthought in this one, and the focus is much more on interpersonal conflicts within the survivors. I'm wondering if pushing the walkers to the backburner isn't an intentional thing, as zombies have definitely passed their trendiness expiration date?
The zombies are once again just a bit of an afterthought in this one, and the focus is much more on interpersonal conflicts within the survivors. I'm wondering if pushing the walkers to the backburner isn't an intentional thing, as zombies have definitely passed their trendiness expiration date?
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December 31, 2022To celebrate the series finale of the TV show, one of my favourite shows of all-time, I decided to read through the graphic novel series for the first time. You can check out my thoughts in a nearly 4-hour video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/iJkZPl2ANOU
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