SAN DIEGO -- On the heels of a second season that some fans thought moved a little too slowly, the creators and cast of AMC's The Walking Dead came to Comic-Con International to promise that the show's forthcoming season would be much more action-packed -- beginning with the prison arc beloved by readers of the graphic novels.
But that doesn't mean they spilled all the beans about Season 3 of the zombie series.
"We open on a scene of 'I can't tell you,'" said Robert Kirkman, the graphic novel's creator and executive producer of the show, during the Walking Dead panel here Friday. "And then it quickly transitions into another scene of, 'You'll just have to wait and see.'"
That doesn't mean Kirkman and the rest of the folks behind the show didn’t give the audience a tease of the upcoming season, which they revealed would begin in October. The third season begins right were the previous one left off and -- according to clips shown to the Comic-Con crowd in Hall H -- will heavily feature the prison in which Rick Grimes (played by Andrew Lincoln) and his fellow zombie apocalypse survivors take refuge. It will also feature the introduction of Michonne, the katana-wielding badass from Kirkman's books.
"I feel like the pace really started to pick up at the end of Season 2 and I feel like we have our ... we're sort of putting our foot on the accelerator now," said show executive producer Dave Alpert.
The third season will also feature the introduction of the oddly idyllic town of Woodbury and its "Governor," played by David Morrissey. There will be a lot more zombies, and according to special effects supervisor Greg Nicotero, they will be in even more advanced states of decomposition. Nicotero also revealed that he had recently directed an episode, and that there are "iconic moments from the graphic novel that happen in my episode" -- but he wouldn't identify what they were (there was a lot of that secrecy during the panel: Even "Glenn" actor Steven Yeun noted, "We can't say anything!").
Arguably the coolest reveal of the presentation, though, was the introduction of Michonne, played by actress Danai Gurira. As a fierce protector of the survivors, she takes Andrea (Laurie Holden) into her care and guards her with fierceness.
"She's the alpha female," Holden said of Michonne, adding of the actress that plays her, "I think you are going to love her."
And, based on brief scenes shown at the convention, Walking Dead viewers should fall for the new character. They should also appreciate the added action that kicks off Season 3, after Season 2 kicked off a little lackluster.
"We are now thrown into an absolutely insane world," said actress Lauren Cohan, who plays Maggie. "The farm was like a walk in the park compared to where we are now."
The Walking Dead returns to AMC on Oct. 14.
