History ComicBook / TheWalkingDead

* AdultFear: The series. No, really. You've got {{war|IsHell}}, {{rape|IsASpecialKindOfEvil}}, murder, [[DeathOfAChild children dying, children being murdered]], [[ChildrenForcedToKill children killing each other]], [[ColdBloodedTorture torture]], [[AnArmAndALeg gruesome]] [[GroinAttack injuries]], people dying in front of their loved ones, people being ForcedToWatch as their loved ones are hurt and killed in front of them, mutilation, all kinds of nasty revenge... this is NOT a series for the faint of heart.

* [[spoiler: EarnYourHappyEnding]]: The whole comic series ends [[spoiler: With the reveal that the whole series was a story an older Carl Grimes was telling his daughter (also named Andrea). It turns out that the walkers are now dying out, the remnant under control and human civilization rebuilding. A surprisingly upbeat, hopeful ending.]]

** Negan is very straightforward, fair, and totally freakin' nuts in all the ways that're likeable. [[spoiler:If only he didn't kill Rick's friends without any hint of hesitation.]]

* SpeciesTitle: A DefiniteArticleTitle. And it's named after the In-Universe term for zombies.

* {{Reconstruction}}: Of ZombieApocalypse stories. While TWD looks like a pretty traditional example at first, it diverges from many zombie apocalypse in a number of important ways. First, the undead outbreak is not treated as a be-all-end-all, instead being more of a in-universe global natural disaster. Similarly, the zombies are rarely if ever treated as true villains, being more of a [[TheUsualAdversaries environmental hazard or a generalized threat]]. Second, the series has no HighConcept, instead being a more subdued and gradual story about regular people trying to survive and make the most out of their situation. [[TropesAreTools This makes for a more believable and authentic story in spite of the genre]].

* {{Reconstruction}}: Of ZombieApocalypse stories. While TWD looks like a pretty traditional example at first, it diverges from many zombie apocalypse in a number of important ways. First, the undead outbreak is not treated as a be-all-end-all, instead being more of in-universe global natural disaster. Similarly, the zombies are rarely if ever treated as true villains, being more of of a general, recurring threat and {{Mooks}}. Second, the series has no HighConcept, instead being a more subdued and gradual story about regular people trying to survive and make the most out of their situation. [[TropesAreTools This makes for a more believable and authentic story in spite of the genre]].

** In both cases though, NotSoDifferent is worryingly in effect.

* MayDecemberRomance: Dale and Andrea. Surprisingly non-squicky.

* {{ZombieInfectee}}/{{SecretlyDying}}: Many characters across the series, notably [[spoiler:Jim]] in Volume 1. The trope is a partial split between ZombieInfectee and SecretlyDying because the zombie bites don't communicate the pathogen that causes the dead to animate but are simply fatal. The pathogen is already everywhere and in everyone as it doesn't matter how you die, if your brain is intact, you will rise. Technically, everyone is already a zombie infectee.

* ArtEvolution: The first story arc was noticeably more cartoony with exaggerated facial expressions. After this the comic becomes much more realistic.

* AWorldHalfFull: [[spoiler:Issue 193 reveals that ''decades'' had passed since Rick's death. By that time, the number of walkers had dropped significantly to the point that the only ones who ''are'' left are probably those who are caged for people's amusement. Humans, on the other hand, managed to rebuild the civilization and managed to overcome the undead. Of course, people still turn when they die, so this is still a problem.]]

** Issue 144. You think [[spoiler:the Governor wiping out half of the main cast]] at the prison]] was bad? How about Alpha [[spoiler:killing off about a dozen members of the three main communities (both major and minor) right under everyone's nose and leaving their heads impaled on posts]] as a warning to the survivors? The fact that everything happened off panel in the last issue only makes it worse. Shit just got real.

* VillainDecay: Happens very sudden between episode 80 and 90. TheUndead themselves make a sudden turn to "manageable threat", in Rick's words. Turns out all you really need to beat a herd of them is about twenty people with melee weapons and some self-confidence. Large groups of them are still a threat, and actions involving them have to be carefully planned out.

* VillainDecay: Happens very sudden between episode 80 and 90. TheUndead themselves make a sudden turn to "manageable threat", in Rick's words. Turns out all you really need to beat a herd of them is about twenty people with melee weapons and some self-confidence.

* TimeSkip: [[spoiler:Between Issue 126 and Issue 127, there is a two year time skip. The next time skip occurs between issues 192 and 193, and although we don't know how long it is, it's clearly ''at least'' 10-15 years, given that all of the child characters in the series are aged up into adults. WordOfGod confirms that the final issue takes place ''two decades'' after the apocalypse''.]]

** [[spoilers: [[BittersweetEnding Subverted]] with [[EarnYourHappyEnding the ending]] of the series.]]

While most zombie apocalypse comic books focus on MoreDakka and improbable fighting skills in order to showcase BigDamnHeroes, ''The Walking Dead'' focuses more of its action on {{survival horror}} and the [[DramaTropes psychological and personal relationships]] which result from [[ItNeverGetsAnyEasier the stress of being constantly on guard]]. As one critic put it, the title is specifically ''not'' referring to the zombies, but the survivors.

* RealityEnsues:
** As it turns out, dragging a violent and mentally unstable person around with you and allowing him to walk about freely is '''not''' a good idea. [[spoiler:Patricia learns this the hard way when she takes a little ''too much'' pity on the extremely dangerous Thomas.]]
** The Governor had his men learn how to drive a tank, which took months, but they never quite figured how to shoot with it since no one has military experience.
** Speaking of the Governor, during the prison assault Rick's crew has a major advantage mostly because the Woodbury soldiers are not well-trained people, and a lot of them die before they can even get to the fences. But [[spoiler:the Governor manages to turn the battle into his favor by ramming a tank into the prison walls, bringing them down and compromising the place before going on a hero-killing spree, with only Rick and Carl managing to escape alive]].
** Just because you are commanding an entire army of citizens (most of whom never had any combat training before) does not mean that they will mindlessly follow your orders. [[spoiler:After Lilly reluctantly kills Lori and, by accident, her infant daughter, she ''breaks down in tears'', turns against the Governor and shoots him in the head]].
** A vast majority of attempts to stop a zombie bite from killing a person via amputating the bitten limb has ended with the person dying anyway due to the resulting blood loss or bacterial infection. One of the only times where it did succeed ([[spoiler:with Dale and Connie]]) was only because the infectee was immediately taken to a sterilized environment and had the limb amputated by someone with extensive medical experience.
** Rick beats [[spoiler: Thomas]] to a pulp in a blind rage when he finds out he's the one who murdered Maggie's sisters. So severely, in fact, that he damages his own hands and knuckles to the point where he is flat-out told he'll never be able to clench his left hand in to a fist again.
** Gregory's attempt to kill [[spoiler: Maggie]] fail in part due to him simply not giving her a high enough dose of poison to actually kill her.
** Even if you are a hailed hero with many good deeds to be remembered, you can still meet an untimely and outright ''disgraceful'' death. Just ask [[spoiler:Rick Grimes himself, who, having survived the prison onslaught, the All Out War and the Whisperer War and also done many useful things to many communities, ends up gunned down by Pamela's angsty son Sebastian in his own bed]].
** Zombies rot over time rather than just walking around forever. It would seem that shambling corpses that are barely sentient and just mindlessly wonder through the wilderness trying to eat people don't stay in good condition for long. [[spoiler:By the time Issue 193 rolls around, ''two decades'' have passed after the start of the apocalypse and humans are now greatly outnumbering zombies, with the only walkers who ''are'' left kept caged like circus freaks to show people how the world used to be.]]
** [[spoiler:And even then, one of these walkers manages to break away and shamble on adult Carl's territory, showing that while not as feared as before, zombies are still dangerous if left unchecked.]]

* AdultFear: The series. No, really. You've got {{war|IsHell}}, {{rape|IsASpecialKindOfEvil}}, murder, [[InfantImmortality children dying, children being murdered]], [[ChildrenForcedToKill children killing each other]], [[ColdBloodedTorture torture]], [[AnArmAndALeg gruesome]] [[GroinAttack injuries]], people dying in front of their loved ones, people being ForcedToWatch as their loved ones are hurt and killed in front of them, mutilation, all kinds of nasty revenge... this is NOT a series for the faint of heart.

* InfantImmortality: Averted. All the child characters besides [[spoiler:Carl and Sophia]] have died so far. However, only one child death is seen [[spoiler:in Issue 83]].

* BittersweetEnding: By the end of Volume 32, [[spoiler:Rick Grimes gets killed by Sebastian, who in turn gets to spend the rest of his life in prison. In Issue 193, which takes place at least a decade after Rick's death, it turns out that human civilization managed to recover and rebuild itself -- thanks to Rick, who, sadly, never got to see the result of his altruistic actions.]]

** Zombies rot over time rather than just walking around forever. It would seem that shambling corpses that are barely sentient and just mindlessly wonder through the wilderness trying to eat people don't stay in good condition for long. [[spoiler:By the time Issue 193 rolls around, ''three decades'' have passed after the start of the apocalypse and humans are now greatly outnumbering zombies, with the only walkers who ''are'' left kept caged like circus freaks to show people how the world used to be.]]

* TimeSkip: [[spoiler:Between Issue 126 and Issue 127, there is a two year time skip. The next time skip occurs between issues 192 and 193, and although we don't know how long it is, it's clearly ''at least'' 10-15 years, given that all of the child characters in the series are aged up into adults. WordOfGod confirms that the final issue takes place ''three decades'' after the apocalypse''.]]

** Issue 193. [[spoiler:Rather than show the immediate fallout of Rick's death, as was expected, it instead starts with a TimeSkip to ''over a decade'' later, introducing an adult Carl and Sophia, who are parents to a six-year-old girl. Then...[[TheEnd "THE END"]]]].

* TookALevelInBadass: Pretty much required by the circumstances - either you become a badass or you're a liability. ** Eugene is a notable case, going from a portly wimp [[spoiler:lying about being a scientist for protection]] to being spurred to action against the Saviors [[spoiler:after Abraham gets killed]]. He later becomes [[spoiler:one of the most productive members of the community, not least because of his ingenuity in dealing with the various problems they face. By the end of the series, he is completely calm when trapped in a metal box surrounded by a huge herd of zombies, as he's learned to trust his own intelligence to see him through situations.]]

** Issue 193. [[spoiler:Rather than show the immediate fallout of Rick's death, as was expected, it instead starts with a TimeSkip to ''over a decade'' later, introducing an adult Carl and Sophia, who are parents to a six-year-old girl.]]