I hate to say this, guys, but the first episode of “The Walking Dead: Dead City” (2023) doesn’t exactly leap off the screen as a a bold new narrative step for the franchise.  I need to damn it with faint praise — it was one of those forgettable outings that we kindly describe as “good but not great.”

Sure, it’s got some great things going for it.  The terrific Lauren Cohan and Jeffrey Dean Morgan are predictably charismatic and their characters remain interesting.  And the show’s biggest coup so far might be landing the priceless Željko Ivanek as its first big-bad.  (Željko Ivanek is a lot like the alien “Predator” — virtually any film or TV show is radically improved by his inclusion there.)

And its New York City setting is exciting.  I always thought that “The Walking Dead” (2010 – 2022) was more exciting when it took the action away from its ubiquitous pine forests and explored a place like Atlanta or Washington, D.C.

But “Dead City” isn’t high art.  Its inaugural episode is still weighted down with the same clunky storytelling and directing that costs its predecessor a lot of fans over the years.  (We even retread some character arcs and motivations that we thought were resolved on “The Walking Dead.”)

Oh, well — maybe it will improve!  How many tv shows have we all watched in which the first episode (or even the entire first season) paled in comparison to the show after found its footing?  I’ve still got my fingers crossed that this will turn into something to look forward to every week.