The Walking Dead (season 3)


The third season of The Walking Dead, an American post-apocalyptic horror television series on AMC, premiered on October 14, 2012, and concluded on March 31, 2013, consisting of 16 episodes. Developed for television by Frank Darabont, the series is based on the eponymous series of comic books by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard. It was executive produced by Kirkman, Glen Mazzara, David Alpert, and Gale Anne Hurd, with Mazzara as showrunner for the second consecutive season. The third season was very well received by critics. It was nominated for multiple awards and won two, including Best Syndicated/Cable Television Series, at the 39th Saturn Awards.
This season adapts material from issues #13–39 of the comic book series and introduces notable comic characters, including Michonne, Axel, The Governor and Tyreese Williams. It also marks the return of Merle Dixon, the volatile older brother of Daryl Dixon, who went missing in the first season, and also features the return of Morgan Jones, the first survivor Rick Grimes encountered and befriended, who he lost contact with in season one. As in the comics, this season is mainly set in both an abandoned prison and an active rural town of survivors.
Set eight months after the killing of Shane Walsh and onslaught of the Greene Family Farm, with the world growing increasingly more dangerous and Lori's pregnancy advancing, the season continues the story of Rick Grimes, who has assumed a dictatorial-like leadership over his group of survivors as they survive in a post-apocalyptic world infested with flesh-eating zombies, dubbed "walkers". After discovering a potential safe haven, the group takes refuge and inhabits a large fortified prison, but this security is threatened by a nearby community — Woodbury — led by a nefarious man known as The Governor, who takes an interest in Andrea as she remains, after the burning of the farm, separated and unaware of the main group's status.

Production

AMC renewed The Walking Dead for a third season on October 25, 2011 after the season two premiere broke cable ratings records in the 18-49 demographic. On January 14, 2012, AMC announced that the third season will contain 16 episodes.
Filming for the season began in May 2012 in Coweta County, Georgia, with the city of Senoia being used as the filming location for the town of Woodbury. Ernest Dickerson directed the season premiere episode. Greg Nicotero, co-executive producer and special make-up FX artist on the series, directed the fifth episode of season 3 after already having directed the season 2 episode "Judge, Jury, Executioner". He also returned as a zombie in the episode "The Suicide King", after portraying two different zombies in the first season. In November 2012, Glen Mazzara announced that Ernest Dickerson would direct the season finale.
After the conclusion of the third season, Mazzara stepped down from his position as showrunner and executive producer for the series, in a mutual agreement by both Mazzara and AMC. The press release read, "Both parties acknowledge that there is a difference of opinion about where the show should go moving forward, and conclude that it is best to part ways."

Webisodes

Following the ' series in 2011, another set of webisodes titled ' were produced and debuted on October 1, 2012, prior to the premiere of Season 3.

''Talking Dead''

A second season had been commissioned in May 2012. To coincide with a marathon of the show, a special episode was aired in July 2012 following the marathon's end, featuring a tour of the various props/sets used in the third season, as well as cast/crew interviews, and a snippet of exclusive footage featuring the newly introduced character Michonne.

Cast

Main cast

The third season features ten actors receiving opening credits billing, with eight returning from the previous season and two new cast members introduced; six are listed as main cast members in the second season, while Lauren Cohan and Scott Wilson were promoted from recurring status and Michael Rooker was promoted from guest status from the previous two seasons, while Danai Gurira and David Morrissey were added to the main cast as Michonne and The Governor, respectively. However, Wilson and McBride are credited as "Also starring".

Starring

Reception

Critical response

The third season of The Walking Dead has received positive reviews from critics. On Metacritic, the season holds a score of 82 out of 100, indicating "universal acclaim", based on 19 critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the season holds an 88% with an average rating of 7.86 out of 10 based on 33 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads: "The palpable terror and visceral thrills continue in the third season of The Walking Dead, along with a deeper sense of the people who inhabit its apocalyptic landscape."

Accolades

For the 39th Saturn Awards, the third season of The Walking Dead received four nominations and two wins. The wins were for Best Syndicated/Cable Television Series and Best Supporting Actress on Television. The nominations were for Best Actor on Television and Best Supporting Actor on Television.
The season also received a nomination for Outstanding Prosthetic Makeup for a Series, Miniseries, Movie, or Special at the 65th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards. Additionally, the season was also nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Television Series at the 19th and 20th Screen Actors Guild Awards for both halves of the season, respectively. This season was also nominated for Program of the Year at the 29th TCA Awards, while Andrew Lincoln was nominated for Best Actor in a Drama Series at the 3rd Critics' Choice Television Awards.

Ratings

Home media releases

The third season was released on DVD and Blu-ray in region 1 on August 27, 2013, in region 2 on September 30, 2013 and in region 4 on September 25, 2013. Special features include eight featurettes—"Rising Son", "Evil Eye", "Gone, But Not Forgotten", "Heart of a Warrior", "Michonne vs. The Governor", "Making the Dead", "Safety Behind Bars", and "Guts and Glory". Five audio commentaries, for episodes "Killer Within", "Say the Word", "Made to Suffer", "The Suicide King", and "This Sorrowful Life". Also included are 13 minutes of deleted scenes across six episodes.
The third season was also released in limited edition Blu-ray packaging, a replica of The Governor's walker head aquarium as seen in season three. The limited edition packaging was designed by Greg Nicotero and sculpted by McFarlane Toys.