The Walking Dead series adapted its story from the comics created by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard. This series inspired the creation of a lengthy list of spinoffs set in the same world, with some featuring different locations and introducing new characters. Many viewers have opted not to watch the spinoffs after the conclusion of the main series in 2022. If you are a Walking Dead among those not watching the spinoffs, I think you are missing out.
Most fans agree that the early seasons of The Walking Dead are the best. One reason for this is that the small cast allowed creators to focus more on individual stories. As time went on the cast expanded and this made it difficult to focus on what drew the majority of viewers to the series, the stories of the survivors.
The Walking Dead took a negative hit in viewership after the deaths of Abraham Ford (Michael Cudlitz) and Glenn Rhee (Steven Yeun). Their deaths were over the top gore which didn't sit well with many fans. And the story did take a dive for a few seasons but was able to redeem itself in the final seasons.
Since 2015, AMC has released six spinoffs of The Walking Dead. Each one is unique, some as limited series, others are still ongoing, and each spinoff has some type of tie-in to the original series.
Fear the Walking Dead was the first spinoff released five years after the flagship premiered. Touted as a companion series, this story was set on the West Coast and began at the onset of the outbreak. This is always fascinating, as viewers get to see how survivors acclimated to the chaos experienced during such a catastrophic event. The first three seasons of this series are just good TV.
Fear TWD was the first spinoff to feature cross-over characters from the main series. Morgan Jones (Lennie James) was the first to be followed by Dwight (Austin Amelio) and his wife Sherry (Christine Evangelista). This was an exciting twist to TWDU and gave more story to each crossover character.
The Walking Dead: World Beyond was a two-season limited series that revealed much more information about the CRM (Civic Republic Military). This carried into The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live, a single-season series featuring the reunion between Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and Michonne (Danai Gurira). Jadis (Pollyanna McIntosh) appeared in both of these series as a high-ranking member of
The Walking Dead: Dead City features Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) in the apocalyptic wasteland of Manhattan. This setting was quite a change from the wooded setting in Georiga, Ohio, and more in the main series, allowing for a brand new story to be told.
The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon took Daryl (Norman Reedus) and, in season 2, Carol (Melissa McBride) to France. Not only did viewers get to see the picturesque setting of Paris and other areas but got a glimpse into how other areas of the world fared since the outbreak.
The new locations are incredible and exciting to see but another thing that Dead City, Daryl Dixon, and The Ones Who Live brings is the continued stories of six beloved characters introduced in the main series.
Tales of the Walking Dead is a six-part anthology series in which viewers see several different periods after the outbreak in varying parts of the United States. One episode is set 30 years after the outbreak. This series also added many amazing actors to TWDU, including Anthony Edwards, Poppy Liu, Olivia Munn, Terry Crews, Jessie T. Usher, Danny Ramirez, Parker Posey, Jillian Bell, and many more.
