“. . . I cracked a joke. Maybe I am losing it.”
When Dexter tries to kick Rick Grimes and his community out of the prison, his buddy Andrew accidentally lets in a new swarm of zombies. A mysterious woman arrives seeking shelter, Michonne, upsetting the community with disastrous results.
TITLE:
THE WALKING DEAD: THE HEART’S DESIRE
WRITER:
by Robert Kirkman
ARTISTS:
by Charlie Adlard (penciler, inker)
Cliff Rathburn (gray tones)
SERIES:
The Walking Dead — Vol. 4
Reprints The Walking Dead comics #19-24
PUBLISHER:
Image Comics
GENRE:
Graphic Novel (collection), Horror Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Suspense
DESCRIPTORS:
Horror, Zombies, End of the World, Survival, Psychological Studies, Life and Death, Disaster, Prisons, Criminals, Trust, Love, Leadership, Suicide
CHARACTERS:
Rick Grimes, A Kentucky police officer who wakes up from a coma to find the world overrun with zombies.
Tyreese, An African-American father who swings a mean hammer.
Michonne, A mysterious African-American woman who survived alone among zombies for a long time.
Lori Grimes, Rick’s wife who loves him but doesn’t always agree with his ideas.
Carl Grimes, Rick’s son.
Glenn, A young Asian-American teenager and camp scavenger.
Dale, A older man who recently lost his wife. He owns an RV which is the camp’s primary shelter and rescued Amy and Andrea.
Andrea, Amy’s sister, rescued by Dale.
Carol, A young mother who is somewhat troubled in these troubling times.
Sophia, Carol’s daughter.
Alan, A middle-aged man, Donna’s husband and father of Ben and Billy.
Ben, Alan and Donna’s son.
Billy, Alan and Donna’s son.
Otis, A hunter who is living with Hershel for safety.
Patricia, She seems like a nice person and is Otis’ girlfriend.
Hershel Greene, Former veterinarian and now a farmer where his family lives in some safety.
Maggie Greene, Hershel’s younger daughter.
Billy Greene, Hershel’s youngest son.
Dexter, In prison for murder.
Andrew, In prison for drugs — he has since cleaned up because there are no drugs left.
Axel, In prison for armed robbery.
SUMMARY:
Now that the prison compound has been cleared out and a serial killer put to death, Rick suddenly finds himself facing an armed Dexter who tries to force the community out. Unfortunately, Dexter’s pawn, Andrew, left the door open to cell block-A in his quest to get guns for Dex which lets in a fresh flood of zombies.
After the furor died down, Rick lets Michonne in the community if she gives up her weapon and the two zombies which she keeps on a chain. She immediately dispatches the undead “companions”. Once inside, she alienates some people and bonds tightly with Tyreese — so much so that he and Carol break up.
There is something not quite right with Carol and her reaction spins out of kilter until she tries to kill herself. This leads to a bloody confrontation between former friends Rick and Tyreese.
What is a common event in pre-zombie life — infidelity and a relationship breaking up — turns into a destructive upheaval that may claim lives and will lead to a change in the structure of the community as a whole.
APPEAL:
This book starts out with a quick tense pace as Dexter threatens to kill people unless they leave and then slows down to a steady trot as the consequences of several actions finally come home to roost. This will set the stage for a shift in direction for the community in general and Rick in particular. The ending speech sends off the graphic novel with a powerful bang . . . and an important realization.
Of the titles in the series so far, this one seems to resonate throughout the story as people’s heart’s desire is either thwarted or met and the consequences range beyond one’s expectations.
While this is a story that uses a zombie trope to reveal certain truths about the human condition, The Heart’s Desire makes its most startling revelation yet.
NOTES:
This is a black and white comic with greytones.
The Walking Dead Book Two reprints The Walking Dead comics #13-24 in a 304 page hardcover edition.
The Walking Dead Compendium One reprints The Walking Dead comics #1-48 in a 1088 page trade paperback extravaganza.
READALIKES:
If you like the zombie-filled stories in The Walking Dead, you might enjoy some of the new zombie stories written by Max Brooks. He started with the concept of the oral history and took it to a post zombie war setting. His first zombie book was a humorous riff on the once popular survival guides called The Zombie Survival Guide: Complete Protection from the Living Dead
The Walking Dead: Summaries
Part 1 — The Walking Dead: Days Gone Bye — A Masterful Zombie Graphic Novel
Part 2 — The Walking Dead: Miles Behind Us — Miles of Zombies
Part 3 — The Walking Dead: Safety Behind Bars — Safety with Zombies
Part 4 — The Walking Dead: The Heart’s Desire
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