Warning! MAJOR spoilers for the current season of The Walking Dead lie ahead! 

I’m a huge fan of The Walking Dead.  I faithfully watch the show as well as Fear the Walking Dead and Talking Dead.  I read both the comic books and the Woodbury novel series, and collect the Funko POP! figures.  I’ve even managed to meet several of the cast mates at conventions over the past few years, including Lauren Cohan (Maggie), Steven Yeun (Glenn), Norman Reedus (Daryl), Michael Rooker (Merle), Scott Wilson (Hershel), Jon Bernthal (Shane), Michael Cudlitz (Abraham), Chad Coleman (Tyreese), and Christian Serratos (Rosita).  So, I consider myself to be a pretty big fan.  I look forward to watching The Walking Dead every Sunday, usually with a glass of wine, and talking about it over the next week.  As you probably know by now, the recent season premiere included the very graphic, violent deaths of two beloved characters, Abraham and Glenn.  Now, as a reader of the comics, I knew Abraham was living on borrowed time and that the introduction of Negan (the new Big Bad) meant the demise of Glenn.  However, I was still extremely shocked and saddened when both of the characters were killed, particularly Glenn.  Glenn had been there from the very beginning, and as a reader of the comics, I knew that Glenn’s death was going to lead to a fracturing of the group, which has been shown in the subsequent episodes this season.  This basically means that our group will never the same.

And that means that watching The Walking Dead will never be the same.  It is indeed a before and after.  That doesn’t mean that I won’t watch it or that I’ll be a part of the millions of viewers that have apparently checked out (based on current ratings).  I knew what was coming, and I was not turned off by the violence – we’re watching a show about the zombie apocalypse, so things tend to get a little violent.  Plus, I really think the show-runners have excelled in making the viewers feel as distraught and lost as our characters must feel, and I understand that our beloved characters aren’t all going to survive.  As a fan of anything Joss Whedon and a HUGE fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I know not to hold characters too close to the heart.  But that doesn’t stop me from doing it anyway.  I’ll still go to conventions and try to meet the cast mates.  I’ll still read the comics and the novel series (which is on its 7th book).  And I’ll still watch The Walking Dead and any spin-off series it may produce with 100% commitment.  But it definitely won’t be the same.

Kia is a cohost of the Half Assed Horror Cast. Her favorite horror novel is Scott Smith’s ‘The Ruins,’ fave slasher is Freddy Krueger, and her favorite TV show of all time is ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer.’