Robert Kirkman (L) creator of The Walking Dead, and Glen Mazzara (R), who can GTFO so far as AMC is concerned.
Robert Kirkman (L) creator of The Walking Dead, and Glen Mazzara (R), who can GTFO so far as AMC is concerned.
  • Robert Kirkman (L) creator of The Walking Dead, and Glen Mazzara (R), who can GTFO so far as AMC is concerned.

AMC is a weird little network. Once the haven of 24 hour Poltergeist III marathons and Albert Pyun restrospectives, it became the most legitimate thing on television with the help of shows like Mad Men, Breaking Bad, and currently the most popular thing on cable, The Walking Dead. The whiplash between total irrelevance and cable supremacy seems to have left a fractured, confused power base installed at the top. The same people who greenlit The Adventures of Don Draper: ’60s Sociopath also greenlit Comic Book Men also greenlit The Walt & Jesse Crystal Blue Funtime Hour also renewed (and are in the act of re-renewing) the egregiously disappointing The Killing.

For their next trick, they’re going to renew The Walking Dead, and then they’re going to force out the showrunner, Glen Mazzara, who took the job after AMC forced out show creator Frank Darabont. Why would you essentially remove the guy who led your show to it’s most critically appreciated, audience appreciated full season? AMC’s answer:

“Both parties acknowledge that there is a difference of opinion about where the show should go moving forward, and conclude that it is best to part ways. This decision is amicable and Glen will remain on for post-production on season 3B as showrunner and executive producer,”

So now I guess we wait until Season Four to discover just what the hell that direction is. Considering how Season Three’s gone so far, I’m guessing AMC is pushing for something in that sweet spot between “plodding, annoying, aimless storytelling” and “shaky, somewhat-effective, sometimes-powerful television.” So far, there’s no real speculation as to who will replace Mazzara. Some are already suggesting Kirkman, but considering what a bang-up job he’s done with his comic, I’m not entirely sure he really should be in charge of his own story.

Then again, it appears AMC isn’t all that concerned with the overall quality of their show in the first place. In fact, The Walking Dead is a notable success in that large numbers of its fans outright despise the show, and the characters in it, and yet still continue to watch just to see what will happen. Even a negative emotional investment is still an investment. The last time there was a media phenomenon that worked on the same principles, it was in the early ’90s, and they called it Howard Stern. Fuck it, hire that grumpy gus to run the show. They’re just gonna fire whoever they get at the end of the year anyway.

Bobby Roberts is one of the Portland Mercury's calendar editors, as well as one of its film and pop-culture critics. His past career choices included joining corporate broadcast radio just in time for...

8 replies on “Glen Mazzara Takes a Hike from The Walking Dead”

  1. It can’t be said enough times exactly how bad ‘The Killing’ is. Like ‘Twin Peaks,’ but boring, and set in a Seattle that we all know, i.e. largely populated by Europeans.

  2. If by “large numbers of its fans” you mean the tiny but vocal minority of people on the Internet that have to bitch about everything on television rather than just enjoying it, yeah, I can see where you’re coming from. Each season all The Walking Dead fans get together and complain about behind-the-scenes crap that usually has little to no impact on the show itself, just so that they can hear (or read) themselves doing so. Meanwhile the show is great, save for the fact that it’s paced a little too slowly at times. Whose fault is that? Who cares. It’s a fucking television show about zombies and probably the best one around right now.

  3. Season Three was such a dramatic improvement over seasons one and two that I’m still at a loss as to what sort of problem AMC could have possibly had for Mazzara’s intentions in Season Four. I mean, maybe it was a horribly terrible idea, but again – if you have proof that even people who will nonstop complain about it will STILL watch week in and week out, why wouldn’t you trust the guy who got your show to achieve it’s fullest potential to date?

    AMC is a baffling place.

  4. I totally agree. It just seems like with each new season the fans have bitched about changes and the show has ended up better and better (a few lulls in season two notwithstanding). I loved season three but who knows, maybe they’d rather mix it up than ever get comfortable. Sometimes I think TV needs more of that, lest we all get bored and move on – see: The West Wing for a great example.

  5. As an aside: Maybe the best single Walking Dead story I’ve ever consumed is in the Telltale video game, written by Sean Vanaman and Jake Rodkin. Not only that – it’s probably the best example of storytelling I’ve ever seen in a video game.

    Not that they’d get the job, or that their storytelling would translate to television intact, but damn, if you haven’t played that yet, go do so. I love that game.

  6. The game has better acting than the show, as well. And you’re somewhat in control of the characters, instead of complaining like NO NO WHY ARE YOU DOING THAT IT’S THE WORST POSSIBLE DECISION.

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