The Walking Dead Vol. 3

By Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard and Cliff Rathburn

An epidemic of apocalyptic proportions has swept the globe, causing the dead to rise and feed on the living. In a matter of months, society has crumbled: There is no government, no grocery stores, no mail delivery, no cable TV. In a world ruled by the dead, we are forced to finally begin living. This volume follows our band of survivors as they set up a permanent camp inside a prison. Relationships change, characters die, and our team of survivors learn there's something far more deadly than zombies out there...each other. Collects issues 13-18.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Image Comics, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 18, 2007
• ISBN: 9781607065357

Robert Kirkman

Robert Kirkman is an American comic book writer. His first creation was Battle Pope, which he co-wrote with Tony Moore, and in 2003 they began the comic book series The Walking Dead, set in a George A. Romero zombie movie-inspired world.

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Reviews for The Walking Dead Vol. 3

[suzemo · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I liked this volume pretty well. Our intrepid non-heroes have found a prison and are setting up life in that prison. Dealing with more change and loss. It's still pretty interesting and action packed.

[diovival · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Ok, so maybe it was not the best idea to read so many issues back-to-back. Clearly having a world overrun by zombies is an indication to the reader that the characters will not be having a whole lot of happy fun time but damn Robert Kirkman pulls no punches. The zombies take a back seat to the real monsters of this story...us.

What I learned from Volume 3: People are f**king crazy!

[norabelle414 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Rick and the gang find a prison - the perfect place to protect them from the zombies.Still loving it! I liked this one better than Volume 2.

[bookbark · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Great series, probably not everyone's cup of tea but I'm loving it. That said, not every chapter (issue, whatever) works but I like how the story flows, at least through the end of vol. 3. I like the character interactions. It is a bit like watching a train wreck as characters get killed off, some of them a little too easily for my tastes. That's when the story doesn't work. When the killings happen in such quick succession that you don't have time to digest the impact on the survivors. Still, all complaints aside, this is a great series. Lots of great heart-stopping moments. Black-and-white really suits this series.

[tanya8dogearedcopy · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In "Days Gone Bye," Rick Grimes wakes up from a coma in a hospital. The choice of physical incapacity is interesting as it can be construed as a type of death. In a comatose state, the patient has lost his will, his motor co-ordination, his consciousness and, is not unlike a zombie (generally classified as among the dead category) who shuffles instinctively and displays no consciousness or awareness. But Rick Grimes is not dead and, not a zombie because an external power has been exerted to save him. Medical technology kept Rick Grimes from falling into a true death. There are many different kinds of death displayed through the volumes thus far, but it is the power over death that compels our attention to the panels in "Days Gone Bye," "Miles Behind Us" and, especially in "Safety Behind Bars." From the immediacy of Rick's individual and initial quest (buzzing for the nurse) to the larger communal effort to survive, man's struggle against the inevitable is defined as his attempts to control it!

The zombies are the most obvious dead forms in The Walking Dead volumes. For the shuffling forms the most direct way of rendering them absolutely inert is to smash their brains. In "Miles Behind Us," we see some zombies detained in a barn in the hopes that there might be a way to cure them. In "Safety Behind Bars," we see an attempt to reason with a newly turned zombie in the hopes that there may be a way to save the former human. Whether by hammer, blade or gunshot, once the threatening forms are rendered truly dead, they are burned. Just in case.

For the humans in the Walking Dead volumes so far, we've seen some take death into their own hands. In "Days Gone Bye" we see one character ask to be left to die and turn zombie so that he might join his zombified loved ones. In "Miles Behind Us," a character, in his grief, puts a gun to his head. In "Safety Behind Bars," we see a couple commit to a suicide pact so that they can be together forever :-/ In the suicide scenarios, each hopes to control the manner of their own demise, not realizing it's not something you can really control in a world in which death is elastic.

We also see death meted out between men in self defense, whether the threat is imminent or actualized; as a matter of vengeance and, as a matter of punishment. As tricky as killing zombies may be (what if there is a shred of humanity buried within the corpse forms?), the matter of death between the conscious ones is definitely messy. In "Days Gone Bye," the power of death is given to a seven-year old boy who is then placed into a situation of imminent, but not actualized, threat. The boy acts instinctively, and perhaps correctly; but not without repercussions. After all, shooting a man is not the same as shooting a deer or a zombie.

In "Miles Behind Us" and in "Safety Behind Bars" adults react to an actual threat of invasion by pulling guns on the newcomers. Harkening back to the "Miles Behind Us" review wherein I posit that every one wants to belong someone, somewhere, this tension seems paradoxical. And yet, the instinct to define the pack, and thin the herd of threats is a key to survival.

In "Safety Behind Bars," we see human-on-human lethal violence at fervor pitch. There is a death committed as an act of vengeance. The act is committed with bare hands in a strangle-hold upon the victim. Without premeditation, but tantamount to murder, this death is seen as justified; but nonetheless covered up - ostensibly to eliminate misunderstanding. Or perhaps to avoid creating a morally grayer area where death is concerned. As if the survivors weren't already dealing with the complexity of zombie deaths :-/

We also see death via beheading committed by the hands of a (possibly) criminally insane character. Though premeditated, can the perpetrator be considered accountable for his actions owing to his mental instability? Is he truly insane? Does the horror of his deeds outweigh such consideration? And finally, there is the mandated capital punishment, death by hanging, decreed at one point. Does one person have the right to order an execution? Does a majority vote justify the decision? And again, does the heinousness of the crime override the moral equivocation of such a decision?

Death is enabled through bites, guns, knives, hammers and rope; but death is actualized by man's will. There is not a little irony that, in order to survive, the survivors must kill.

Artwork: "Days Gone Bye," cover and content, was primarily drawn by Tony Moore ; but his contribution is limited to the covers for "Miles Behind Us" and "Safety Behind Bars." In volumes two and three we can see a consistent aesthetic applied: more detail to the characters' faces, better application of gray tones for compositional balance and; a heavier, bolder use of black ink.

Redacted from the original blog review at dog eared copy, The Walking Dead: Volume 3: Safety Behind Bars, 10/17/2011

[carebear36 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Very chaotic all-over-the-place storyline. A little difficult to follow with all the time jumps and back-and-forth scenes, but definitely a good read. This volume made me hate Lori even more than I did watching the show, but there was enough appeal in the rest of the characters to keep me engaged. Definitely want to continue the series.

[5eva5 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The group clears the yard and enters the prison, they pick up the other group from the Greene farm, and one person turns out to be more dangerous than any zombie. You can tell that the group have been scared for so long now that they're getting used to it - not only the children, but the adults are admitting to human foibles like being afraid of the dark or make jokes about looting being a bigger problem than the zombies: "Hopefully it's just full of flesh eating monsters and our baked beans are still intact in there." It's the humanity of the characters that carries this series rather than any superhuman feats they may perform on an adrenaline high. As Lori notes, living life as if every day could be your last worked before everything changed, but now that they are forced to do it, it's simply horrible and a humdrum existence would be the dream.

[clurb · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

As our heroes settle down to the task of reclaiming a living-space, Kirkman introduces themes of right and wrong, law and order, and how best to retain a sense of humanity whilst society is crumbling.

[aethercowboy · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I don’t know if this series is changing, or if it’s just me. I didn’t like this volume as much as the others. While I still miss the illustrations of Tony Moore, preferring them to those of Charlie Adlard, I don’t think that this is quite it.As the series progresses, the lights dim more and more. It gets darker, and the zombies cease to be the enemies within the pages. Further, as the characters grow more desperate for survival, the villains grow more villainous, and the heroes grow less heroic. It’s this decline, I feel, that makes me less and less intrigued to read the next volume.While I know the staple villain in any zombie epic is not the undead, but rather, the people fallen on desperate times, I suppose that following such a story is less of an emotional commitment when reading a book or watching a movie. You don’t get to know the characters as well before they’re plucked away by careless actions of people who should know better.The series is well written, as far as zombie comic books can go. But sometimes, good writing of sad content can do more harm than good.

[davros410 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Really powerful stuff, especially in the use of B&W graphics rather than colour, but then the blood and gore in full colour may have been too much for some.I've come to these stories late, after watching the television series based on them from the start, and am finding the differences in the storylines and characters the most interesting thing.I've decided I have to collect more of them.

[jantinore_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I thought the graphic novel was well written and i like zombies and stuff like that so i recommend this book for people who like that kind of stuff

[briandarvell_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This instalment was a good continuation and I found it more enjoyable than the last book. Lots of development of the characters and the pace is fast and exciting. The ending really makes you eager to continue reading.