7) Make The Characters More Pro-Active
Let’s start with one that we’re pretty confident will be fixed – at least to some extent – when the show returns. At the end of the first part of season 7, Rick has finally had enough of bending over backwards for Negan and vows to lead a revolution against his tyranny and take him out – to a chorus of “about time!” from the folks watching at home.
These past 8 episodes have been particularly tiresome because our heroes have been so passive and deflated. We can understand the intention – to bring the characters to their lowest point before making them rise up against their oppressor. However, in practice, we don’t want to see the group that we’ve witnessed come so far and overcome so many obstacles finally beaten. It’s regressive to their character growth and just boring and annoying to watch.
This tendency has led many to complain that the show has come more about the plot leading the characters than the characters driving the plot. In a series that’s fuelled by a big ensemble cast, this is definitely back to front.