Earlier this month, season ten of the zombie apocalypse series, The Walking Dead, debuted on AMC. The show also recently announced that it’s being renewed for season eleven.
Since it premiered for the first time in 2010, The Walking Dead has been one of the most popular cable television shows of all time.
Season five marked the show’s peak with over 16 million viewers.
Now, the season ten premiere barely had 4 million. It’s worth noting that I’m a huge fan of all things zombie-related, specifically The Walking Dead.
I’ve read the graphic novels and I’ve played all The Walking Dead video games several times over.
I even have a Funko Pop of Rick Grimes (the nerdiest thing I will ever admit to).
Needless to say, I’m a verifiable fan.
Despite my dedication, I really want to express how much I think the show should just end already. In fact, I don’t think any show is justified in having ten seasons worth of content. The longer this show drags on, the more I lose interest — and I’m definitely not the only one.
At one point, The Walking Dead had more viewers than Game of Thrones, but the first episode of season ten marked the all-time debut low for the show, with views dropping by over 34 per cent since it first premiered.
Somehow though, the show is still technically considered the top-rated cable TV show among adults, aged 18-54, which speaks to the cult-ish following the show has amassed.
It’s my belief that the story should determine the number of seasons, not the other way around.
There’s only so much zombie fighting and Negan-induced terror I can bear to watch before it just becomes cyclical.
Although I recognize that in a story with such an expandable universe, other forms of stories and plotlines can and should be explored.
For example, The Walking Dead franchise also has one mini-series and one spin-off series, with another one set to release in Spring 2020.
But after a certain point, it just starts to feel like a money-grab.
Specifically so, since AMC started selling AMC Premiere for $5 a month, which grants subscribers early access to episodes.
Trying to squeeze extra dollars out of a show that should’ve ended two or three seasons ago seems like a fundamental issue in a lot of North American TV series.
Many shows don’t have storylines that justify over ten seasons worth of broadcasting. For example, Supernatural and Grey’s Anatomy (sorry, but it’s true).
Obviously networks need to make money from the shows they stream, but after a point, it becomes blatantly obvious that content is being written because they need to fulfill a contract.
Instead of ending on a high note, so many shows become oversaturated with plots that diverge so far from the original storyline that it just diminishes the quality of the series.
But how do you even end a show that is older than some of the newest cast members?
Series endings often fall short of viewers’ expectations because the plots are so drawn out that they’re almost not closable.
For me, I’m just going to keep sticking to shows with no more than three or four seasons.
I’m also going to finish watching The Walking Dead, but I’ll probably gripe about it the whole way.
