US TV

No, not literally zombies (although if you want…), so bear with me. This week, the BBC announced that Waterloo Road was going to get an online spin-off series. So far, so not very radical at all. But intriguingly, this series is going to feature popular characters who have already been written out of the series – the dead will walk again, hence ‘zombies’.

Now, Waterloo Road, since it’s set in a school, has a certain natural attrition rate, so it’s arguable that sometimes characters could possibly leave before their stories are over – after all, most people’s stories only start once they leave school.

But do you think this is a good idea for other shows? Doctor Who has already brought back former companion Sarah Jane Smith in her own TV series, so perhaps there’s room for other companions and characters to be revived this way. But does the likely reduced budget, run-time, writing staff et al mean such a project risks ruining these characters, cheapening them – and even potentially causing the main series to avoid giving characters more final endings so they can move to these spin-offs?

This week’s question of the week is therefore:

Are online ‘zombie’ spin-offs a good idea? And if they are, what series would you like to see having them?

As always, leave a comment with your answer or a link to your answer on your own blog