Comics are an amazing form of storytelling, however if you’re anything like me and didn’t have the resources to get into comics when you were growing up then the sheer volume of what’s available is pretty daunting. It’s a hard community to get into, and there’s really no way to find a set starting point for a lot of series. However, there are a few graphic novels out there that are worth checking out whether you’re into comics or not. There’s a lot I could recommend, including Bone and Blankets or even Maus, but there’s a particular series that’s really piqued my interest recently.

The Walking Dead is an amazing and intriguing tale into the ever-cliche world of the Zombie apocalypse. However, The Walking Dead has something going for it that makes it something special. Author Robert Kirkman and artist Charlie Adlard (fomerly Tony Moore) weave a tale of a group of survivors trying to survive as the travel from one point to the next in an attempt to find a new home; a place where they can start over and rebuild their shattered lives.

The thing that sets this graphic novel apart is Kirkman’s attitude towards the topic. Not only does he focus on the intense change that happens to people when put through such extreme situations, but he feels that any other media surrounding Zombies isn’t enough. It’s just a slice of the entire situation. Kirkman himself says;

“The idea being The Walking Dead is to stay with the character, in this case, Rick Grimes for as long as is humanly possible. I want The Walking Dead to be a chronicle of years of Rick’s life. We will NEVER wonder what happens to Rick next, we we’ll see it. The Walking Dead will be the zombie movie that never ends.”

That aspect alone draws me to this comic. The idea that it will continue on, that it can show the many trials and challenges survivors face that the movies often forget, or don’t have time to show. Hell, maybe the comic will continue on once the zombies are all gone, maybe it’ll show how everyone makes life right again. However, right now there are zombies and there are a lot of them.

The Walking Dead is a dramatic and wonderfully told tale of a living hell and a group of people falling apart within it. Kirkman really does show you how people devolve (or perhaps evolve) and lose who they once were under such horrific circumstance. It’s a beautiful read (ironically) and definitely worth picking up, even if you’re not a big fan of comics.