Walking Dead Double Dates

A little more than a year ago, Man Friend got me to start watching AMC's The Walking Dead. At first, it was rather begrudgingly. I had zero interest in watching a stupid zombie show, but he watched ABC's Once Upon a Time with me, so I figured I'd watch his show with him. It didn't take long until I was hooked on the show. Every week left just enough suspense and a cliffhanger to bring you back to the next week to find out what happened next. I was mostly interested in the story line, and would cover my eyes during any bloody scene, but had really begun to enjoy the show.

Fast forward to the beginning of season three. Man Friend and I no longer had AMC and were looking for a place to watch it. We found out one of our friends is also a huge fan and he offered to record the show so we could come over and watch it. We decided we'd make a double date of it with him and his girlfriend and spend an evening that week watching the show together. The four of us have been getting together every week since. What started off as a get-together out of convenience has turned into one of my favorite parts of every week.

It has been so much fun having our low-key double dates every week. The Friend who offered to record the show for us is dating one of my closest friends, and I always enjoy hanging out with her. And luckily, all four of us get along well and enjoy each other's company. Knowing that we have at least one night a week that we can get out of the house and hang out with another couple, but still be able to just relax and hang out in our sweats makes the date night so great. Even though we're just watching a tv show, at least Man Friend and I are doing something more than watching Netflix by ourselves or zoning out in front of the tv forgetting to talk to each other. We all get so into the show and have our own theories that we like to discuss as it goes on (hooray for being able to pause a recorded show!) and we even record the Talking Dead after for further theorizing. Somehow, we even manage to eat while watching the show and have recently made it into a real "date" by adding dinner into the mix. Last week we ordered Chinese, and this week we'll have a pizza.

I'm so glad we started doing the double dates for season three. I didn't see much of the first season at all, and only caught about the last half of season two. From what I saw, season two was mostly about character development. Season three has way more action, plot development, and intensity. It's great watching it with other people to get their perspective and ideas for what's happening next, why a character did what they did, and what the consequences of certain actions will be. There's so much depth to every single character, and as they're all pushed to their limits, they start changing. Take Rick, who has gone from a strong leader to batshit crazy, while his son Carl is no longer seen as a whiny, nusicancy little kid and is absolutely a man in a child's body.  I love trying to figure out Michonne, who is such a bad ass. As one of the most silent characters on the show, she is one of the strongest, and carefully thinks out every single action and word. Then there's the governor, who I hate more with every single episode, but unlike Rick, his craziness is methodical. And with every episode, he grows even crazier.

I also enjoy watching the show with other people because I also learn about the comic book series. I didn't even know the show was based off a comic series, so it's equally as interesting to learn about what the differences are between the show and the comics. It's particularly fascinating to me that the Dixon brothers were never part of the comic series, and have become so crucial to the show's plot. Daryl has grown into one of the strongest and most popular characters, into a leadership role and even into a partnership with  Rick. I remember saying last week that I was never really attracted to Daryl, but the more I watch the show, the sexier he becomes.

When I first started watching The Walking Dead, I could hardly even bear the zombie killing scenes. I covered my eyes for almost every single death. But now, I have grown to love the show so much that I even enjoy watching the zombie killing. I can watch almost every single one of them, though there have been a few recently that still turned my stomach. Also, the governor's eye creeps me the fuck out. When he took his bandage off last week, I thought I was going to lose it. Sick, sick sick. Anyway, not only can I stomach the zombie killings, I even find myself cheering along with my peers for the good killings. I especially like the "in memoriam" part of the Talking Dead when they show some of the good killings. I also find it amusing how they cleverly name them with something like "hatchet to the face zombie."

Hopefully I didn't spoil anything for anyone who is behind on the show. Thank you to Man Friend for introducing me to one of my unexpectedly favorite shows, and thank you to Friend and her man friend for allowing us over every week to watch.