Season 8 Ratings

Terrible acting and poor production

#1
kombat

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Looks like the premiere ratings are on par with the Season 5 premiere, with a little over 11 million viewers. So it appears that the show is still strong.


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#2
theblackboxlies

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Season 5's opening episode had 17.29 million viewers, which was the highest ever. Contrasted with Season 7's opener at 17.03 million, the 11.44 million viewers for this season seems like a sharp decline in viewership. It's more on par with Season 3 levels than Season 5. Still strong viewership for sure, but nothing like it used to be evidently. 

 

https://en.wikipedia...g_Dead_episodes


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#3
kombat

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The article I was reading was clearly wrong or was trying to paint a false, rosy picture. The ratings are still great compared to everything not American Football. For example it's still better than highly rated shows like Big Bang Theory and This Is Us. But they are still down significantly. The ratings bonanza of seasons 4-6 are gone for good it looks like. Only the S1 and S2 premieries had a worse rating in the 18-49 demo than the S8 premiere.

 

This other article even makes note that even piracy numbers are way down. Meaning many people are so over TWD that they don't even want to steal the episodes anymore, which may be a biggest indictment of all.

 

But at the end of the day, we can poop on the ratings all we want but it is still being watched by more people than anything on TV that isn't football.


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#4
Deadpelican

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I fully expected the ratings to still be high. To declare the death of the Walking Dead would be very premature. However, I think it might be in decline.  It wouldn't bother me a bit if this were the last season, but I'm pretty sure that it isn't. 

 

The decline is evident in a number of places.   Walking Dead message boards (this one included) are not as active as they once were.  One youtube channel I follow that focuses on TWD has admitted that his numbers have declined. 

 

Season 9 would be a good place to stop IMO.

 

Honestly, I don't think comic is what it used to be either.  I'm not talking about sales figures because I do not know those numbers. Just a personal opinion that the comic seems to be running in circles.


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Koda

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#6
theblackboxlies

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Comic spoilers:

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That would be one way to do it, but I feel like TWD is going to turn into the next Supernatural and keep going like the energizer bunny. There is certainly enough source material to go at least 3-4 more seasons

 

Spoiler

 

That said it is possible AMC could can the show well before then if the numbers dip too low. 


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#7
Alessia2

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I hope too that they would forget the comic and do something very different to make it more unpredictable and add the interest. I am not closely familiar with the comic but as much as I know how it is going on, I´m not too keen to see the show going the same way.


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#8
Jamber

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I'd rather they not, he's the only 1 who had any energy last season, he literally saved the season b/c it go so boring except for his scenes, keep him and drop the no energy, hardly talk daryl as something different, that would def get attention JDM as an actor def brings more than norman at this point, who despite it being the apocalypse, is lil chubbier than he was when he started the series lol

 

fat/chubby people don't make sense! not when food is scarce


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#9
etphoto

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The "hardly talk daryl" is an easy character to have though.  Because he doesn't talk much not much air time is needed to continually develop his character. lol


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#10
theblackboxlies

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Episode 2 had 8.92 million viewers. Lowest for an episode since the Season 2 farmageddon finale. I'm thinking last nights episode will fair a little better because of the Morales cliffhanger. 


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#11
Alessia2

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I'd rather they not, he's the only 1 who had any energy last season, he literally saved the season b/c it go so boring except for his scenes, keep him and drop the no energy, hardly talk daryl as something different, that would def get attention JDM as an actor def brings more than norman at this point, who despite it being the apocalypse, is lil chubbier than he was when he started the series lol

 

fat/chubby people don't make sense! not when food is scarce

I have to agree you in that JDM does good job making the villain annoying in the way you still want to see him. I really, really hated the Governor for example, and also many of the other villains, but even still I never used to like JDM as actor before, after TWD I´ve started to like him. :) Negan is annoying and disgusting and plain lunatic in some ways, but still there is something oddly likeable in him. For the things he has done for Rick´s group I wish they´d just get him dead, but I think without Negan the show would be more boring. I don´t want to see him smash any more heads, but that plain goofyness he does is quite fun to watch. ;)

And about the chubby people... There are quite many in general in this series. I think it´s quite unrealistic too, but it could be said also starving people can be plump, just not for the same reasons and it doesn´t really look the same... Anyways, it looks to me that the whole group of Alexandrians, Hilltop and Kingdom people, Saviors and all seem to be well fed at the moment. Only the Garbage group looks more skinny compared to other groups in general. I don´t remember noticing anyone with fuller figure there...

I am always happy to see Daryl, being skinnier or chubbier, more or less talkative. ;) I want him to be around, as well as the other few original characters left. The whole story stops being interesting if there are left not enough people we have known long time and loved (or hated) since then. Without someone to really care about, the show loses so much. I think it´s been a mistake to kill so many of the older characters.
 


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#12
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Episode 3 had 8.52 million viewers.  It's still the top rated cable show on Sunday night.


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#13
kombat

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It's obvious at this point that the viewers that left after the S7 premiere aren't coming back. The show may get a ratings boost when it's announced they will end it after season XYZ, and people may want to tune in to see how it all ends. It's still one of the most watched shows on TV, but the trend has to have AMC's attention I would think.


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#14
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It's obvious at this point that the viewers that left after the S7 premiere aren't coming back. The show may get a ratings boost when it's announced they will end it after season XYZ, and people may want to tune in to see how it all ends. It's still one of the most watched shows on TV, but the trend has to have AMC's attention I would think.

 

 I agree.  I know a couple who were put off by almost obscene violence and the misery and never came back. I have never really got past that either.

 

But regardless, the craze for TWD and its insane ratings had to fade at some point just as the zombie fad will pass, if it isn't waning already.  In a few years both will be pop culture history for all but the biggest fans, just like the Lord of the Rings movies were the big things in the early 2000s and are now passe, except to lifelong fans like me.  It's what happens with such things.

 

It doesn't help that the series is both showing its age and has lost its way, in my opinion. 


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#15
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Live by a gimmick, die by a gimmick.

Any show will have greater staying power if they ensure that the people are 'real' no matter who they are. That requires good actors and good writing. When a show starts to hang its success on a gimmick (whether a zombie, cartoon villains, or other such) the show will only last so long.


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#16
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Live by a gimmick, die by a gimmick.

Any show will have greater staying power if they ensure that the people are 'real' no matter who they are. That requires good actors and good writing. When a show starts to hang its success on a gimmick (whether a zombie, cartoon villains, or other such) the show will only last so long.

 

It could be argued the show was never about zombies at least in the beginning. Kirkman even says the title The Walking Dead refers to the survivors, not the zombies. It started that way at least. Mazzara sort of steered the series away from character development to more zombie-focus in my opinion. Under Gimple, the writing has been so inconsistent I have no idea what his vision for the show has been or is going forward.


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#17
mosher

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It could be argued the show was never about zombies at least in the beginning. Kirkman even says the title The Walking Dead refers to the survivors, not the zombies. It started that way at least. Mazzara sort of steered the series away from character development to more zombie-focus in my opinion. Under Gimple, the writing has been so inconsistent I have no idea what his vision for the show has been or is going forward.

I have never thought this show was about zombies.

That's my point, the show is starting to try to live on its gimmicks rather than on its writing.

I think Kirkman even said once that he wanted to do a story based on breaking humanity down to its core, and he chose zombies because he loves them. But for the story he wanted to tell he could have used a disease or an asteroid.

So I agree with you, somewhere along the way someone decided to fix something that wasn't broke. The media kept telling everyone it was about zombies and kicking ass even though the people watching were always about the characters. At some point they started writing the show as an 'ass-kicking' show, 80's adventure time.

So even as I complain about the garbage people, the tiger, Ezekiel's speeches, Negan's lack of any subtlety or depth, red shirt extravaganzas- the core problem has been getting away from the character work. To the credit of the actors, they are doing their best to keep their characters consistent and growing in the face of this mess.


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#18
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Is it just me or has series 8 lost its way? Iv been a avid watcher of all episodes of all 7 series but i find myself bemused at this new series. The acting seems less believable and the production not up to previous standards. I actually couldn't finish watching the last episode. Its so disappointing that they couldn't either keep the standard up or just finish the series on a high. 


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#19
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I disagree. While I agree with you that this series is in serious decline in quality, the acting has nothing to do with it.

The writing is weaker and offers more conveniences on average per episode, and the show runners have allowed for unrealistic dimensions that it never used to (Tiger, garbage people, Ezekiel's 'kingly' style, Negan's over the top bad guy).

I believe 8 has been an improvement over 7 as well, although it remains worse than 1-6.

Either way, I think most people here agree something's wrong (but we definitely don't all agree on what).


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#20
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Since this topic has been discussed in multiple threads, I am merging it here.  

 

Welcome to R&L, Beidh.  :zombiethumbsup:


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#21
theblackboxlies

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This weeks episode faired a little better than last weeks at 8.69 million viewers. Looks like the show is likely to stay at an audience under 10 million moving forward. Maybe with the exception of mid-season and season finales and openers. 


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#22
Alessia2

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I am curious to know, about how much is the average number of the viewers for any American tv show? If I´ve got it right, TWD got ridiculously high numbers at some point, but even still they´re now lower, is it still big compared to others or in the average level? 

Plus, how accurate are the numbers anyways? I don´t know how they measure it in US, but if I´ve understood right it is nowadays more difficult to estimate the number of viewers, as some watch from internet, some save the show and watch it later, etc.

This just by curiosity. I believe any show will lose viewers by the time goes on, when it´s not new and interesting anymore, when the favourite characters are away, when life goes on and something more interesting comes in the way.

For the acting, I think now there are more really good actors and actresses in the show as ever before. I think before there were many that were ok or not even that (at least for my eye) and TWD still was high on success. It must be rather about the writing, or something else in that area. The actors are delivering very well, what they are asked to do, if I was asked. :)


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#23
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Season 8 is like watching a B grade movie or a 70's action show like the A team  the action sequences are horrific and offensive to the viewers,the writing is high school equivalent and TWD drags  stories way way way to long they barely have new locations it takes 2 seasons to end a story,it's why i like Fear TWD i never used to but last two seasons have really drawn me in.


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#24
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Season 8 is like watching a B grade movie or a 70's action show like the A team  the action sequences are horrific and offensive to the viewers,the writing is high school equivalent and TWD drags  stories way way way to long they barely have new locations it takes 2 seasons to end a story,it's why i like Fear TWD i never used to but last two seasons have really drawn me in.

Third season FTWD was leaps and bounds better than its previous two. And it's also better than current TWD.


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#25
kombat

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I am curious to know, about how much is the average number of the viewers for any American tv show? If I´ve got it right, TWD got ridiculously high numbers at some point, but even still they´re now lower, is it still big compared to others or in the average level? 

Plus, how accurate are the numbers anyways? I don´t know how they measure it in US, but if I´ve understood right it is nowadays more difficult to estimate the number of viewers, as some watch from internet, some save the show and watch it later, etc.

This just by curiosity. I believe any show will lose viewers by the time goes on, when it´s not new and interesting anymore, when the favourite characters are away, when life goes on and something more interesting comes in the way.

For the acting, I think now there are more really good actors and actresses in the show as ever before. I think before there were many that were ok or not even that (at least for my eye) and TWD still was high on success. It must be rather about the writing, or something else in that area. The actors are delivering very well, what they are asked to do, if I was asked. :)

 

 

Last week, the viewership for the 18-49 demographic for non-football on broadcast networks for Nov 6-12:

 

The OT - 4.6 million

The Big Bang Theory - 3.6

This is Us - 3.3

Young Sheldon - 2.8

The Voice/Monday - 2.5

 

Walking Dead for Nov 5 was 4.9 million

 

18-49 is the demographic that advertisers care about the most, so the show is doing just fine in that regard.

 

Now, overall viewership tells a much different story, with shows like Big Bang and NCIS raking in over 13 million, compared to TWD's 8.5 million+, which would rank it 15th in non-football telecasts.


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