New 'Walking Dead' Spin-Off Brings Back Old Favorites

As The Walking Dead franchise began its decline after the departure of Andrew Lincoln's Rick Grimes character, a lot of hope was pinned on the eventual return of the character to get fans excited again. Now, that moment is almost here with the Feb. 25 debut of a new limited series (not a feature-length movie as originally planned) featuring Rick and his wife, Michonne. Will it be enough to bring back some of the TWD magic? Read on for details.

Via Variety.

The long-anticipated “The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live,” which premieres on AMC on Feb.25, marks the return of two of the series’ most beloved characters. This should be exciting news, but in a “Walking Dead” universe that still feels oversaturated with content, even a sequel series centered on the franchise’s most iconic couple has the capacity to disappoint.

Season 9 of “The Walking Dead,” which aired in November 2018, marked the final regular appearance of Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), its primary protagonist. After appearing to sacrifice himself to save his community, Rick was rescued by his mysterious sometime ally, Jadis (Pollyanna McIntosh), and whisked away by helicopter to the Civic Republic, a huge civilization ruled by a military junta known as the CRM. His wife, Michonne (Danai Gurira), departed the series the following season to search for him.

Rumors that Rick was gone from the franchise forever were greatly exaggerated, of course; not only was he still alive, his final appearance on “The Walking Dead” was immediately followed by an announcement that Rick’s story would eventually continue via a series of films. A number of factors conspired to keep these films malingering in development hell for several years, including scheduling issues, COVID delays and a decreased appetite for theatrical releases over streaming services.

Meanwhile, far from dooming “The Walking Dead,” Rick’s departure from the flagship series almost seemed to have a galvanizing effect. And while it would be a stretch to say Rick and Michonne weren’t missed at all, fans’ appetite for their story was somewhat diminished in light of the series’ continued success.

Eventually, the project evolved into a limited-run series, similar to last year’s “The Walking Dead: Dead City” and “The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon.” However, when it comes to “The Ones Who Live,” it’s evident in the pacing that this story was not intended to be told as a miniseries.

Its genesis as a film sometimes works in its favor: the opening scenes of the first episode feature a gruesome, audacious shout-out to the comic series which sets high stakes for the series and which can only be described as “cinematic.” Unfortunately, the action stalls out somewhat after that as the story back-tracks and zooms out to contextualize the tableau.

Get the rest of the story at Variety.