The arrival of another spring season can mean a lot of different things to different people. For some, it means warmer temperatures, more time outside and the first few long-awaited barbecues of the year. For sports fanatics like myself, the start of spring means baseball season, basketball and hockey playoffs, and the NFL draft.



For wrestling fans checking out this site, it might mean nothing more than the time in between WrestleMania and SummerSlam. One thing that springtime signals for me that I do NOT look forward to, is the end of some of my favorite television shows. Recently, two of the best shows on TV (in my opinion) wrapped up their current seasons:

 

 

​The Walking Dead


For the one or two of you who may not know, The Walking Dead began with sheriff's deputy Rick Grimes waking up from a coma after being shot to discover a post-apocalyptic world dominated by flesh-eating zombies. The set-up might not sound like much. But take my word for it, it’s all that and more. Debuting on AMC on Halloween night in 2010, The Walking Dead has evolved into a cult classic that can be as touching as it is horrifying, as heartbreaking as it is vicious, and as powerful and shocking as any show ever put on television. In fact, some of the best moments on the show don’t have anything to do with the “walkers” (zombies) at all. After their farm was overrun by walkers at the end of last year, season 3 began with Rick leading his group of survivors to an abandoned prison.



Throughout the 16 episodes that made up this season, the main characters were put on a roller coaster ride of action and emotion. Viewers watched from their edge of their seats as this season explored topics from loyalty to losing loved ones, to walking the line between sanity and insanity. And of course, there’s the impact made by the sadistic character known as The Governor. And that was just for the ones who were lucky enough to make it through the season alive. One of the things that I love most about the show is that no one is ever safe. You become invested in a character one second, they are getting torn apart in one way or another the next. The title might say The Walking Dead, but this show is very much alive and I am already counting down the days until the October premiere of Season 4. 



 

​Justified

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It doesn’t have the following of The Walking Dead (yet anyway), but in my opinon Justified offers the perfect balance of great writing, great performances and wonderful chemistry between all of the actors on screen. Again, in case you don’t know, Justified is an hour-long drama on the FX network that is based on the short story “Fire in the Hole” by Elmore Leonard. It stars Timothy Olyphant as Deputy U.S. Marshall Raylan Givens, an old-west style lawman who brings his own brand of justice to both the city and the hills of his modern-day Kentucky hometown. Season 4 revolved around a season-long mystery that had Raylan, resident bad guy Boyd Crowder (one of the best characters on TV if you ask me), the Detroit mafia and half of Harlen County trying to uncover the identity and location of a mysterious man named Drew Thompson.



As always, the entire season was filled with shocking moments, plot twists and more than a few memorable one on one confrontations. For my money, anytime Raylan and Boyd are on screen together it’s pure magic. If that wasn’t enough of a reason to become a fan, season 4 also offered us a few guest appearances…the sure sign that any show is worth watching. Ron Eldard is excellent as Boyd’s muscle, drug-addicted war veteran Colt. Mykelti Williamson is back as Elston Limehouse, the man who quietly runs Noble’s Holler and seems to know everything about everyone. And if Patton Oswalt isn’t brought back as Costable Bob for Season 5, it’s a pure travesty. If you’ve never seen the show or even heard of it before now, I strongly recommend checking out the first four seasons before it returns to FX for season 5. Anything else…just wouldn’t be justified.