Teaser: AMC's FEAR THE WALKING DEAD

Do we really need another Walking Dead show? The unimaginatively titled FEAR THE WALKING DEAD spin-off will take place in Los Angeles and revolve around a family, both before and after the zombie uprising its parent show glossed over. This is a shameless cash-in, with AMC hoping to fill the summer months of 'walker'-less programming with a spin-off based on U.S TV's biggest ratings-grabber.

I can't fault the business sense, but will audiences enjoy getting to know another group of characters stabbing zombies in the head around a more urban setting? Oh, who am I kidding? Of course they will. It feels like the producers of TWD regret having to set everything around the arid Georgian countryside, so want to kill some zombies in more interesting and recognisable locations.

Recent episodes of TWD haven't been too bad, and I really liked how the finale presented a confluence of events and personal ideals being examined. But the show has really steep peaks and troughs. I don't think there's ever been a season I've been completely happy with; just decent runs that are spoiled by sudden downturns.

FEAR THE WALKING DEAD debuts this summer on AMC for 6 episodes, and 16 more are planned for 2016. If it's another huge hit, expect THE WALKING DEAD ARE COMING to be fast-tracked for summer 2017?