COMICS WARLOCKS

I just finished The Walking Dead: Compendium One, and wow, what a ride! I had already seen the TV show and loved it, but reading the comics was a completely different experience. This massive collection covers the first 48 issues of Robert Kirkman’s zombie epic, and I couldn’t put it down. It’s raw, intense, and packed with moments that hit even harder than the show.

The Walking Dead Compendium One
Publisher: Image Comics
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Cover & Interior Artist: Charlie Adlard
Colorist: Cliff Rathburn
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Release date: May 6, 2009

As someone who watched the show first, I was fascinated by the differences in the comic. Some of my favorite characters from TV aren’t even here (no Daryl!), and others are almost unrecognizable. Carol, for example, is completely different. And honestly, I didn’t like her at all in the comic. I see what they tried to do with her character, and it’s important, but she’s really unlikable. Seeing these changes made the experience exciting, even though I already knew the general storyline.

One thing I loved (and hated) about the comic is how unpredictable it is. Just when I got attached to a character, Kirkman would rip them away in the most brutal way possible. This was something that was already shocking in the TV series, but reading it felt very different, as some deaths are different, and some were quite unexpected. The pacing is relentless. Hershel’s farm feels brief compared to the show, but it still hits hard. And then the prison storyline takes everything up a notch. The tension, the sense of doom, and the stakes are all masterfully done.

If I thought the Governor was bad in the show, the comic version takes it to another level. He is absolutely ruthless. His interactions with Michonne are some of the hardest scenes I’ve ever read in a comic. The way he’s written makes you hate him on such a deep level, and it’s a reminder that in The Walking Dead, the biggest threats are often other people, not the zombies.

Even after all the horrors Rick and his group endure, the ending of this Compendium still managed to shock me. I thought I knew what was coming, but I was still wrong. Just when I thought things couldn’t get worse, they did. I was left staring at some of the last pages, trying to process it all. It’s the kind of ending that sticks with you, making you desperate to grab the next volume (which I already did!).

If you’re a fan of The Walking Dead and haven’t read the comics yet, do yourself a favor and pick this up. It’s darker, more brutal, and somehow even more gripping than the show. The differences in characters and storylines kept me on my toes the entire time. I loved every second of it, even when it hurt!