The show that most scared me as a kid: The Walking Dead, Season 1

Beloved characters in high-stakes scenarios in an eerily-creepy world. What’s not to love?

S01E01 “Days Gone Bye”. Credit: AMC

I have friend who’s an expert in the horror genre. Whenever she recommends something to me, I ask “Is it age-appropriate for me?”. I’m 24 years-old and don’t watch horror that much. Mostly due to that time I binge-watched season 1 of The Walking Dead.

And yes, I know it’s hard to read The Walking Dead and not roll your eyes. I don’t blame you: it’s not your fault executives at AMC have been using Bo Burnham lyrics — “We’ll stop beating this dead horse when it stops spitting out money” — as their company motto. But there’s a reason I and so many others stuck around for the so-and-so seasons that came. The first season of The Walking Dead was fantastic.

The story’s always moving

Deputy Sheriff Rick Grimes wakes up from a coma and realizes the world has ended.

It would be soul-crushing to learn that:

1. The world has, in fact, ended
2. You were asleep through most of it (oh, the FOMO!)
3. You’re somehow still alive
4. You have no idea where your family and friends are, and whether…