Is The Walking Dead, Dead?

Is it just me? I remember eight or so years ago when my oldest daughter and I began reading Walking Dead. It was before 80% of the current viewers knew what a zombie was. The story was clever, edgy, enthralling. The TV show started that way, but now? Walking Dead substitutes gory for edgy, rehashing themes for clever (does anyone REALLY give a damn about the governor?), and gruesome for enthralling. 

Conversely, and please excuse my fanboydom, Haunting Melissa never shows blood, never revisits old characters or themes, and constantly entertains. Better still, it has genuine jump-in-your-seat moments. 

I'm reluctant to go down this road, but it seems that Walking Dead is pandering to a mainstream audience where Haunting Melissa is entertaining the aficionado. But like I said, maybe it's me.