The Walking Dead: World Beyond 101 – Brave
It’s been a decade since The Walking Dead ambled across television screens and became a cultural phenomenon. With any show on the air that long it is inevitable that as it ages so will its audience. To combat this the TWD universe is reinventing itself a bit with a strong focus on main characters who fall into Gen Z. The World Beyond is The Walking Dead aimed at the Riverdale/Stranger Things crowd but still has a lot to offer for viewers across other generations.
Brave follows sisters Hope and Iris Bennett who are dealing with the loss of their mother a decade ago during the dawn of the apocalypse. An odd couple due to their shared tragedy, Hope has become a troublemaking rebel while Iris strives be the responsible one. The girls are under Felix, their community’s Head of Security and Survival Instructor’s guardianship, due to their biochemist father leaving them on their own while he is on a top-secret mission.
There is a lot that is familiar for fans of The Walking Dead universe. The Civil Republic Military is front and center, led by Elizabeth all detached and clad in black. The Civil Republic is the same outfit sporting the three-ringed logo, which has popped up from time to time in the other Walking Dead series. With some answers come more questions surrounding the CRM. While it appears to be the central body keeping the colonies of Portland and Omaha united it’s unclear just how this alliance was formed.
When a cryptic message from their dad comes through, Iris and Hope make plans to leave the colony to find out what happened to him. They are joined by Elton and Silas in their quest for the truth. Truth is going to be one of the overriding themes of World Beyond. Finding out what the Civil Republic’s true intentions are, and the yet to be uncovered connections between Elton and Hope will linger in the background until they can’t stay hidden any longer.
The Walking Dead: World Beyond offers another slice of life in Robert Kirkman’s apocalyptic universe. Unburdened by having to world build there is a refreshing focus on character in Brave. There is enough to keep it fresh, including an engaging cast and a new name for walkers but with an already predetermined shelf life of two seasons, Beyond will have to pick up the pace a little to do justice to their characters and to satisfy a Walking Dead fan base looking for the missing puzzle pieces of a world they are more than familiar with.
