AMC's The Walking Dead to Shamble Back for Second Season

It's official. After rumors that began weeks before the first episode of AMC's The Walking Dead debuted, the cable network has at last officially announced that the show has been picked up for a second season that will consist of 13 episodes.

This news come after last week's 90-minute, Halloween premiere of the show's first episode, "Days Gone Bye," captured 5.3 million viewers. Encore airings brought in another 2.8 million viewers, bringing the overall ratings number to 8.1 million. That impressive tally not only made this AMC's most-watched TV series debut, but also set the record for the largest audience for a series premiere on any basic cable network in 2010. The second episode, "Guts," aired in the same 10 p.m. ET time slot and had an estimated 4.7 million viewers tuning back in to follow the series.

“The ‘Dead’ has spread!” said Charlie Collier, President, AMC. “No other cable series has ever attracted as many Adults 18-49 as ‘The Walking Dead.’ This reaffirms viewers’ hunger for premium television on basic cable. We are so proud to be bringing back ‘The Walking Dead’ again, across the globe.”

Retailers that want to outfit their store to better take advantage of this show's success and additional sales for Robert Kirkman's comic series it could generate are reminded that Diamond's AMC Walking Dead "Spread the Dead" Promo Center is still avaialble on the Retailer Services' Diamond Tools page Downloadable items currently include a shelf talker, a header card, ad slicks, AMC Walking Dead logos, three in-store promotional videos, and several different sizes of web ads. Use these items to turn your store into a Walking Dead hub, grabbing the attention of window shoppers and giving the Walking Dead items the call-out they deserve.

You'll also want to check out page 174 and 175 of November's PREVIEWS, featuring the first four issues of Image Comics' The Walking Dead Weekly, a series reprinting the opening of Kirkman's masterpiece that will be offered throughout 2011. A full list of offered Walking Dead items is presented below, giving you numerous options for stocking up and building displays to coincide with the first season’s run.

"Keeping a series like this going year after year is all about creating good jumping-on-points for new readers," says Kirkman. "And what better way to jump on than with the very first issue? Making this series available in single issue form will make it easier for new fans to jump on board and for old fans to fill in any gaps in their collection."

Extras from the first and second episodes are currently available at AMC's The Walking Dead blog, and the third episode, "Tell It to the Frogs," is scheduled to air on Sunday, November 14, at 10:00 p.m. EST.

ITEM CODE

DESCRIPTION

PRICE

WALKING DEAD WEEKLY

NOV100410D

WALKING DEAD WEEKLY #1 (MR)

$2.99

NOV100411D

WALKING DEAD WEEKLY #2 (MR)

$2.99

NOV100412D

WALKING DEAD WEEKLY #3 (MR)