In 2010, our screens were blessed with AMC's The Walking Dead. When fans found out that there would be a whole series dedicated to the undead, well, anticipation was high. The first episode of The Walking Dead, "Days Gone Bye", first premiered in the US on October 31st, 2010. And as Collider put it in their article here, it was a strong start for the show.
Dale was always profound pic.twitter.com/4UUaQVlL8H
— The Walking Dead (@WalkingDead_AMC) April 5, 2023
The episode kicks off in fashion with the main protagonist, Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), a protégé to his best friend and colleague, Shane Walsh (Jon Bernthal), demonstrating a lifelong bond that's so strong, we almost feel like we're intruding. They both work for the police in a small county in Kentucky. They abruptly stop swapping stories during their lunch break and get to work following a distressing radio call. What happens next is a high-speed car chase and tense shoot-off that ends with Rick getting injured and put in a coma.
It sets the scene perfectly, as Rick awakens to witness, what looks like, some dystopian world he can't quite comprehend. It quickly dawns on him that he's been in a coma for some time and something disastrous has happened. This is only escalated when he comes across his first 'walker' and meets Morgan (Lennie James) who fills him in on all the details.
From there, Rick knows what he has to do: he returns home and finds it vacant with no sign of his wife, Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies), or his son, Carl (Chandler Riggs). With help from Morgan, he decides to pursue his own mission of reuniting with his family, whose whereabouts are initially unknown. It's a gripping piece of disequilibrium that leaves you nervously hoping that Rick finds what he's looking for. And eventually, in between the madness, we see snippets of Lori and Carl perfectly safe, guarded by Rick's brother-in-arms, Shane, with additional survivors at a camp.
The episode concludes as you would expect, in palm-sweating fashion. Rick journeys to the nearest city, Atlanta, and is overcome with hordes of zombies (walkers) - he takes refuge in an abandoned tank in the middle of the street where an unfamiliar voice calls him over the radio. Then it ends.
The show became such a hit, it spawned several games, including Telltale's "The Walking Dead" and The Walking Dead Casino Slots. The latter certainly offered fans an excuse to try out casino gaming, especially when the theme is based on their favorite show. Or for fans that feel encouraged to try out additional zombie-themed casino slots, from Undead Fortune to Zombie Carnival, there's plenty to choose from and you'll find them all neatly laid out (with a summary of possible bonuses) at BonusFinder should fans choose to visit their website here. The Walking Dead fans look like they'd be well-catered for in this department.
The first episode had a great pace with a sound level of intrigue, action, and gore. It allowed you to piece everything together without holding your hand and had you gasping in moments of terror. For the first episode of a highly anticipated series, it did well, as reiterated in Comics Beat's article. So well, that it has started a series legacy, with spin-offs still being released, such as The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, and Rick and Michonne coming out this year or next. The series has come a long way since that first episode all those years ago.
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