It's True: Walking Dead Really Is "Extremely Tame" Compared to the World's Most R-Rated Zombie Series

While the gory post-apocalypse of The Walking Dead may be too much for some people, the franchise's creator insists that his series is "EXTREMELY tame" compared to one of its closest competitors - a series generally acknowledged as the most R-rated zombie series ever created. Sadly for those with a weak stomach, the series in question is soon to get its own big-screen adaptation.

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In Walking Dead Deluxe #105 (from artist Charlie Adlard, colorist Dave McCaig and letterer Rus Wooton), writer and franchise co-creator Robert Kirkman reflects on the introduction of Negan's harem of 'wives.' Kirkman claims that despite The Walking Dead's often horrifying violence, this was the detail that proved most controversial to fans. Kirkman insists that despite the gore of his series, he has a firm line for what he'll depict, telling anyone who doubts the claim to check out Garth Ennis' Crossed.

Created with artist Jacen Burrows, Crossed is a franchise published by Avatar Press. Ennis and Burrows' Crossed tells the original story of a world fallen to a plague that brings humanity's latent sadism to the surface, with series like Crossed +100 and Crossed: Wish Your Were Here further exploring the world via other characters and creative teams. Speaking about the difference between Walking Dead and Crossed, Kirkman says:

I certainly have a line I won't cross. No pun intended, but you can look to Garth Ennis's Crossed series to see a far more brutal and unforgiving exploration of the apocalypse. Walking Dead is EXTREMELY tame by comparison, but that was by design. The harsh elements that did make it in, I always tried to make sure they were a reflection of real life.

A feature-length adaptation of Crossed was announced in 2024, coming from Six Studios. Ennis is expected to write the screenplay, nd the project is currently under development.

Is Walking Dead's Violence Really 'Tame'?

There Aren't Many Lines Walking Dead Didn't Cross

walking dead's rick looks heartbroken as someone dressed in swat gear kills a zombie with an axe

Fans of The Walking Dead may raise an eyebrow at claims that the comic's violence is tame. The comic is known for some truly horrifying scenes, including Negan beating Glenn to death with a baseball bat, the death of Rick's wife and baby daughter, and killing between children. Indeed, part of the reason The Walking Dead was originally published in black and white was so that the creators could get away with depicting extreme injuries (of course, it also made the comic cheaper, as well as acting as a tribute to George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead.)

Walking Dead shows injuries in extreme detail - something that's even more pronounced now that Walking Dead Deluxe is reprinting the story in vivid color. Torture, rape and suicide all appear, and multiple children kill and are killed over the course of the series. There's no way to call Walking Dead tame by itself, however it's also the case that the violence in the series rarely feels gratuitous on an emotional level.

Essentially every death in The Walking Dead is treated as an extreme tragedy, with the series focusing on the mental state of its characters and how the zombie apocalypse is changing them on a fundamental level. Characters struggle with the dehumanizing effects of witnessing, carrying out and being subjected to violence, and each death takes a heavy toll on even the most moral characters. While Walking Dead has moments of intense gore and horrifying content, none of it is handled flippantly, which is a charge that some have laid at the door of Crossed.

What Makes Crossed More Extreme Than Walking Dead?

On Paper, the Two Projects Sound Identical, But They're Really Not

crossed horror comic 2

While Walking Dead uses shambling, undead zombies (despite only using the actual term 'zombies' on a few sparse occasions), Crossed's antagonists are still very much alive. In the comic, an unexplained but contagious force turns the majority of humans into sadists. Not only do the titular Crossed perform acts of horrifying violence, but they enjoy depravity and cruelty, living only in anticipation of their next victim.

The comic pulls no punches with its depictions of violence, rape and torture, and like Walking Dead includes serious violence committed against children. Crossed's villains are imaginative and hateful, and their aim is to evoke the maximum amount of suffering. It's certainly true that in terms of what's visually depicted, Crossed is far more extreme than anything in The Walking Dead, both in nature and quantity. What Walking Dead fans glimpse perhaps once every ten issues, Crossed fans see on page after page.

In The Walking Dead Deluxe #76, Kirkman was asked what he thought of Crossed via fan letter, and replied, "I love Garth, but it's a bit much for me, frankly." It might be surprising for fans that the creator of one gory zombie horror comic would consider another too extreme to enjoy, but there is a chasm between the two projects. Ultimately, Kirkman is right to say that Walking Dead is tame in comparison to what Crossed offers readers... but does that mean Crossed goes too far?

Is Crossed's Violence Justified?

Walking Dead Uses Violence Carefully, But Many Have Called Crossed Overly Graphic

crossed horror comic 5

Writer Garth Ennis (The Boys, Preacher) is known for his irreverent, button-pushing approach to violence, and yet Crossed arguably isn't the best example of his provocative style. While comics like Preacher do use violence as a punchline, Crossed is outright horror, and the constant violence communicates the claustrophobic, panicked state in which the protagonists spend the majority of the story. In the world of Walking Dead, some characters accept death-by-zombie for the greater good, but no-one would ever let the Crossed get ahold of them if they had any choice.

Because of this, Crossed allows Ennis and Burrows to explore human nature at its most extreme, asking what the average person would do if it meant surviving the unthinkable. Its fidelity to this core concept makes the original Ennis/Burrows Crossed a worthy read for those who can stomach the viscera, however many of its Crossed: Badlands spin-off titles under other teams do cross the line, reveling in voyeuristic sadism while lacking the same redeeming insight.

One place where Crossed's violence definitely is excessive is its cover art, with countless variant covers depicting violent tableaus in every conceivable location, from a fast food restaurant to an archeological dig.

It's interesting that in Kirkman's comments about Crossed, he says that Walking Dead's violence is "a reflection of real life." This is a major theme in Ennis' Crossed stories, including the original series, with multiple characters observing that the Crossed aren't doing anything humans haven't done to each other before. Indeed, Ennis' story 'The Thin Red Line' (from Crossed: Badlands #50-56, with Christian Zanier) hints that the Crossed 'virus' is actually bombarding its victims with visions of all the depravity and violence ever committed by humanity.

Crossed and Walking Dead Asks the Same Questions from Different Perspectives

Crossed Has no 'Line' for the Human Depravity It Will Depict

crossed and the walking dead

While Crossed is inarguably more graphically violent and more frequently violent than Walking Dead, the franchise also features some genuinely moving stories about humans under extreme pressure. Both Walking Dead and Crossed aren't about their monsters, but about the people trying to survive in a world where every societal rule just vanished. Crossed is arguably the more cynical franchise, but this is partly because it goes even further in acknowledging the randomness, finality, and injustice of death.

Any fan of The Walking Dead interested in Crossed will find many of the same ideas and themes explored from a different perspective, and the series proudly sprints across the "line" that Walking Dead won't cross. However, it's not the case that Ennis and Burrows' Crossed is pure shock value, and both franchises are thoughtful and even empathetic, at least in their core works. Of course, horror fans looking to try out Crossed should regard it as something of a warning that the creator of The Walking Dead considers the series to be so extreme that his own blood-spattered world is "tame" in comparison.