AMC’s other hit, The Walking Dead has done something even harder, and more improbable: taken a commercial success and find its artistic voice. From its very first episode, The Walking Dead, which begins its fifth season on October 12, has been a runaway ratings hit.

Why 'Breaking Bad' Is The Best Show Ever And Why That Matters Allen St. JohnAllen St. John Contributor Working Bad: Exclusive Interviews With the Brains Behind 'Breaking Bad' Allen St. JohnAllen St. John Contributor ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT 10/09/2014 @ 12:04PM 16,381 views What The New Season Of AMC's 'The Walking Dead' Learned From 'Breaking Bad' There are two ways that a television show can achieve both artistic and commercial success, and AMC’s The Walking Dead, which premieres this Sunday, seems to be taking the hard way. The first route is the one taken by another AMC hit, Breaking Bad. From the very first shot of the pilot, where Walter White’s pants go wafting through the New Mexico desert sky, anyone who bothered to look was hooked. From actors like Bryan Cranston to Anna Gunn who read a description of the shot in Vince Gilligan’s pilot script, to Michael Slovis, the cinematographer who was so blown away by watching a screener of pilot that he joined the crew for season two, that image and the story behind it made it very clear that Breaking Bad was something special. The problem was getting fans to tune in on Sunday night to see this remarkable show. Indeed, it was only during those last eight episodes–and the Netflix-powered binge watching that preceded it–that the show that might be called the Best Show Ever finally got the audience it deserved. AMC’s other hit, The Walking Dead has done something even harder, and more improbable: taken a commercial success and find its artistic voice. From its very first episode, The Walking Dead, which begins its fifth season on October 12, has been a runaway ratings hit. The premiere episode drew 5.3 million viewers, the season three opener drew more than 10 million viewers, and last year’s premiere was the highest rated hour of scripted television in cable history with 16.1 million viewers. Even more impressive has been the show’s demographics; it consistently beats network shows like NCIS in the coveted 18-49 year old demographic.

Something about a weekly visit to the post-Apocalypse seemed to strike a chord with viewers struggling with a a post-Apocalyptic economy. Or maybe they just liked watching crossbows and exploding zombie heads.

But despite its record breaking ratings, The Walking Dead took a while to find itself artistically. The shortened first season started out promisingly enough as we got to know the characters and understand the depth of their predicament.

But things went downhill in season two, which was shot, largely for budget reasons, almost entirely in a single location, Hershel’s farm. The third season was a little better. The bucolic farmhouse was at least replaced by a gritty prison, but still the show still remained stuck in one place.

Last season, Scott Gimple came on board as showrunner, and took the show in a different direction. The season 4 premiere began with shots of small town sheriff Rick Grimes planting a garden, trying to literally and figuratively put down roots.

That didn’t work out the way anyone planned and by the mid-season finale, the prison was overrun and the members of Rick’s merry band were separated and scattered. Bad for them. Great for us.

It was only in the season finale of The Walking Dead that (almost) everyone was re-united. Unfortunately, that reunion was less than completely happy, as our heroes soon found out that Terminus offered them something more sinister than a warm smile from Denise Crosby and all-you-can-eat ribs

On that journey to Terminus, The Walking Dead hit its stride, artistically speaking. In its first couple of seasons, The Walking Dead was all about survival.

t’s taken them more time, but the characters in The Walking Dead have come to the same realization