Why TWD is Set in Georgia, according to Robert Kirkman 

Betty Noe with Cynthiana Chamber of Commerce in full zombie makeup

Marie Mitchell with cardboard cutout of Daryl Dixon

If you were careless enough to cause a zombie apocalypse, chances are any remaining survivors would probably hate you for it. But instead of being outcasts, two Cynthiana men responsible for such a catastrophe of epic proportions were treated as heroes when they returned to their hometown last Saturday.

Robert Kirkman, creator of the immensely popular comic book and TV series, “The Walking Dead,” and its spin-off, “Fear the Walking Dead,” and Tony Moore, the original graphic artist, even had a highway marker dedicated to them, along with a downtown mural of four favorite characters from the series.

Such a homecoming was both flattering and touching, said Kirkman, who is amazed by how big the series has become.

“I was just trying to make a good comic,” he said. “All this other stuff just happened, almost by accident.”

Thousands of fans turned out for the daylong event, sidestepping gruesome zombies, abandoned cars and a wrecked helicopter on the main streets that resembled the small Georgia town where the original TV show is shot. Messages and warnings were scrawled on storefronts. Vendors sold Fresh Flesh Burgers. People waited patiently in long lines for their special limited edition comic book honoring Cynthiana, where the story actually started.

The two “comic book nerds” had bonded in middle school over Tony’s remarkable sketchbook and Robert’s unique storyline of Sheriff Rick Grimes, who awakens from a coma to find death and destruction everywhere and few clues about where his family has gone. It was no mistake that Kirkman set the story in a small town.

“I didn’t want New York, LA or an urban setting,” he said. “I didn’t want a supercop, the president or CIA guy involved. I wanted ordinary people at the center, in the thick of it, just trying to survive, get by and do right by their family.”

Moore agreed that the isolation of a rural environment makes the story darker, grittier. He said it has overtones to the wild west which has been romanticized but was more like a lawless land.

“People have to survive by their wits,” he added, and rural people are more capable of that because they “grow up where they have to do things for themselves.”

A zombie apocalypse wasn’t an easy idea to sell because that theme hadn’t appealed to readers in the past. One publisher suggested adding aliens to generate a larger audience. Kirkman agreed, but didn’t follow through. Basically, “I lied,” he said, but it worked. The comic got printed anyway and the rest is pop culture history as the series gradually earned its own impressive following.

Kirkman thought at first, “that’s never going to happen.” When it did, his next thought was, “it’s never going to last.” It has. And “The Walking Dead” is now ready to begin Season 7 on October 23 on AMC.

As the show has evolved, so have the characters and overall threat. At first, zombies created the gravest danger. Now it’s humans.

“Zombies are more manageable as long as you’re not surrounded by them,” Kirkman said. “Humans are unpredictable, you have no idea what they’re capable of.”

Over the years, there have been some shaky alliances, brutal betrayals and agonizing deaths. The comic book and TV series aren’t always in sync and Robert Kirkman says it’s important not to give too much away in one medium that spoils surprises for the other fans.

Kirkman takes an active role in writing the TV scripts because, after all, who knows the characters and their motivations any better than he does? He enjoys watching his creations come to life, like the prison where Rick and his assembled “family” stayed for awhile.

It was amazing to “walk into a place that existed only in my mind,” he said. Kirkman also likes being on set during explosions like when Terminus, a supposed safe haven for survivors, was blown up.

“I felt the impact even though I was across the road,” he recalled.

It doesn’t bother Kirkman to kill a comic book character. But he feels like a “horrible person” when someone on the TV show dies because the actors have done an excellent job transforming his characters from the printed page into living, breathing, believable people. They’ve also forged family ties with other cast members.

“They’re part of a tight-knit community,” he said. “They spend weekends together. Have cookouts. Their kids know each other.”

Season 6 ended with a cliffhanger that upset many fans and even sparked some death threats. While Kirkman appreciates fan feedback about who might be the unfortunate victim of the infamous villain Negan who wields a barbed-wire covered bat named Lucille, the creator says he can’t let that guide the story.

“We work far ahead so when someone says ‘I hope you don’t kill…,’ they might already be dead,” he said.

Season 7 introduces its own set of challenges. King Ezekiel, who leads his own group, the Kingdom, seeks joy amidst chaos. He’ll help counter Negan’s cruelty. Ezekial has a pet tiger, Shiva, prompting “a monumental undertaking” to make Shiva appear real. It’s managed mostly through puppets and special effects. This way “No one has to worry about getting eaten on the set,” Kirkman said, and no tigers are harmed in the process.

One thing we’ll probably never know is exactly what caused the zombie apocalypse. Kirkman says it’s not important to the story of survival.

“If you start saying it was a meteorite, or space spores or bacteria that came from this other dimension or other world, it takes the realism away,” he said.

While Robert Kirkman now lives in LA, he still has family in Cynthiana and his wife plans to open a bed and breakfast in town. So don’t be surprised if you see him driving along the road dedicated to him and Tony Moore, preferably without his entourage of decaying zombies.

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