Comic Review: The Walking Dead #62-66
The Walking Dead #62-66
Image Comics
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Pencils: Charlie Adlard
Gray Tones: Cliff Rathburn
Reviewer: Bryce Holland
SPOILER ALERT!!!
If you haven’t read any of the 66 issues of this saga of the undead, turn back now. I’m probably gonna give away some key plot points.
What is there to say about The Walking Dead that hasn’t been said already?
For the uninitiated, The Walking Dead is writer Robert Kirkman’s sprawling zombie epic about a band of constantly in flux survivors, led by resilient and downtrodden Rick Grimes, and how they cope with the reality that the world they knew has fallen to legions of the, ahem, walking dead. One would wonder how a zombie story could possibly run on for six years, since most of them are relegated to about two-hours tops in film format, but Kirkman has kept this chronicle going strong, and it shows no sign of slowing down.
The great thing about this series, and what really sets it apart from other zombie tales, is that Kirkman has really created his own universe here, while still paying respect to the stories that have obviously influenced him. Too often, I feel like people making stories about the dead coming back to life are really doing nothing more than making blatant rip-offs of Romero films. I mean, seriously, how many zombie stories have you seen that take place in a mall? Kirkman does recycle many settings and character types established in past films and other kinds of fiction, but for the most part he’s done well finding ways to craft an epic that has it’s own distinct voice.
In this latest story arc, aptly and succinctly titled “Fear the Hunters,” Rick and his compatriots, on their way to supposed sanctuary in Washington, D.C., stop for a rest a church that was formerly run by Gabriel, a pastor that is the latest person to join up with the group. Unbeknown to the group, though, they have been tracked and watched for a short while by a well armed, shadowy group of hunters. Shortly before arriving at the church, Dale, an older, curmudgeonly member of the group, is abducted under cover of nightfall by the hunters. The group frantically searches for him, and after a few days they find him unconscious on the steps of the church, minus one leg. Upon regaining consciousness, Dale relates to the rest of the group the true nefarious intentions of the hunters, and they decide to take proactive measures to stop them…with extreme prejudice.
Kirkman is no stranger to bleak storytelling. Practically every arc throughout the entire run of this series has concluded with a pretty down ending, from Rick’s anguished soliloquy at the end of the first prison arc where he utters the now infamous line, “WE are the walking dead!”, to the horrifying massacre at the end of the Woodsbury arc that saw about 80% of the core group brutally murdered by the Governor’s invaders. “Fear the Hunters” continues this trend as the survivors face a desperate situation and in the end must evolve in a pretty grim way. I’ve heard a lot of people say that they don’t particularly enjoy reading The Walking Dead because of the fact that the series is perpetually bleak, but personally, that’s the main reason I find the series so enjoyable. Kirkman’s zombie universe is horribly dark and seemingly hopeless, but it feels very real. All of the characters he writes feel like people that you probably know, and his scenarios seem completely plausible. One of the great things I’ve loved about recent issues of the series, this arc especially, is that a lot of attention has been paid to how the cast of characters here has had to quickly adapt to an ever more threatening world. Of particular note is the evolution that has quickly taken place between Rick and his son Carl, who, for a little kid, has become one of the most hardened individuals in the group. It’s also been captivating to see how how the relationship between the elderly 
Dale and his much younger girlfriend, Andrea, has transformed. In many zombie stories the human characters seem to take a back seat to gore and zombie-killing-action, but Kirkman has shaped a story that really focuses on the impact that this bizarre disaster has had on the individuals involved.
One of the biggest complaints I’ve heard about this series is on the art front. Personally, I think pictures rendered by penciller/inker Charlie Adlard are perfectly suited to the tone and style of the series, and are deftly enhanced by Cliff Rathburn’s coloring work. Adlard’s line work is sharp and gritty, and his attention to detail is very keen. In a monochrome series, it’s hard for an artist to effectively differentiate characters and settings, and it’s even harder in a book like this with such large cast and constantly changing locales, but Adlard more than handles the task. Take the group of hunters for example: there is nothing especially unique about them, and it seems like it would be easy to have them look like any of the members of the core group. But through subtle variations in their clothing and overall demeanor, he makes this group of villains really stand out. I’m also really impressed by the range of emotion that he is able to show on each character’s face, giving them an amount 
of life unseen in many comic books (the exchange between Rick and his son on the last page of issue 66 is pretty affecting). Of course, none of the pencil work in this series would nearly as effective without Cliff Rathburn’s grey-tone coloring work. The stark contrast provided by Rathburn’s coloring sets the mood of the entire series, and really gives a nostalgic quality that evokes classic apocalyptic films like Night of the Living of the Dead and The Last Man on Earth.
I could go on and on all day about how great I think The Walking Dead is. This series is a nearly flawless fusion of great characters and scenarios, with pitch perfect writing and art. If you’ve never read and issue but want to start, I would suggest starting now. “Fear the Hunters” is a great arc that offers a good deal of suspense and action, and sets up several new plot threads that are sure to be explored further in future issues. This is zombie fiction at its finest.
