Chris Hardwick Defends THE WALKING DEAD Season 6 Finale - “It’s Not Poor Writing, It’s Exceptional Storytelling”
It’s not surprising that Chris Hardwick, the host of The Talking Dead, is going to defend The Walking Dead season finale that so many other fans were frustrated with. Hardwick is freakin’ hilarious, and I enjoy what he does, but he does get a paycheck from AMC to host the show, so it’s not like he’s ever going to say anything bad about it. After the show, the comedian did a Live Q&A in which he passionately talks about how the sixth season ended and one of the main points he repeatedly makes is, “It’s not poor writing, it’s exceptional storytelling.”
"The cliffhanger was not poor writing. Here's what I would say. Just because you don't see the purpose doesn't mean it doesn't serve a purpose. I think people need to stop projecting that onto, it's not poor writing, it's exceptional storytelling because you're going to be talking about this for seven months and if you had seen who it was, how would that have changed things?"
I agree and disagree with that comment. I’ve never heard anyone say that it’s “poor writing.” The Walking Dead has always had great writing and exceptional storytelling, expect for this big brain fart that they had. It was a poor decision not to reveal who died, though. The emotional weight of that scene was wasted with no solid payoff. Everything was building up to that scene and then nothing. I’ve heard people say that it’s all about Rick losing control, but if that were the case the camera would have focused on him and his reaction as one of his friends was being beaten to death. Instead, they went with the POV shot, which was fine. They just needed to show the aftermath of it. Not only who died but also a horrified look on Rick’s face. I’m sure people would be talking that for the next seven months as well. Hardwick goes on to say:
“I would say the same thing if it, let me give you a perfect example. Love the first few seasons of American Horror Story, but I felt like they kind of started weenie-ing out at the end because they never really explained anything in the end. The Asylum season I thought was incredible. So well acted, so many great storylines, but in the end, they were just like (shrugs) 'I don't know.' If this were a series finale, then you might have a gripe, but you cannot say what has happened on this half of the season is poor writing. That is fucking asinine to say that.”
Again, it’s not poor writing. It’s poor decision making. He continues on with the “poor writing” aspect of his rant in the following comment:
"For this show to have these kinds of storylines and this kind of character development and this kind of drama this far into a series where they still give a shit is epic. It is not poor writing, it is the fucking opposite of poor writing and I will defend this show until I'm blue in the fucking face and my eyes are crying tears of blood. This is exceptional writing. You don't have to like it, of course, everyone is entitled to their opinion but you cannot make a statement that's some kind of attempt at an objective universal statement that the show is, I mean that's just crazy. It's your opinion, it's not poor writing."
I respect Hardwick’s opinion. But what the showrunners did was a gimmick that pissed a lot of fans off. What do you think about what Hardwick had to say?