First Two Seasons Of 'The Walking Dead' To Be Rebroadcast In Black And White

If there's one shade I associate with AMC's The Walking Dead, it's red — as in the color of all that stomach-turning blood and gore. But perhaps that's only because I haven't read Robert Kirkman's comic, which is illustrated in stark black and white. And starting in February, older episodes of the series will be presented the same way. Get ready to revisit the early days of the zombie apocalypse, only this time without color. More info after the jump.

Showrunner Glen Mazzara announced the new black and white episodes by retweeting a clip from The Walking Dead Magazine, and THR followed up shortly after with more details. According to the trade, AMC will air the first two episodes of the series in black and white on Thursday, February 14 starting at 6:30 PM, leading in to the Season 2 premiere of Kevin Smith's Comic Book Men at 9 PM. Here are the dates and times for the first 12 episodes.

Feb. 14, 6:30 p.m. 101

Feb. 14, 8 p.m. 102

Feb. 21, 8 p.m. 103

Feb. 28, 8 p.m. 104

March 7, 8 p.m. 105

March 14, 8 p.m. 106

March 21, 7:30 p.m. 201

April 4, 8 p.m. 202

April 11, 8 p.m. 203

April 18, 8 p.m. 204

April 25, 8 p.m. 205

May 2, 8 p.m. 206

Though details have not been announced for the rest of the Season 2 episodes, AMC is expected to eventually air all episodes from the first two seasons in black and white.

The actual content of the episodes won't change, so there won't be any surprises in terms of plot. But for fans of the show, it'll be an opportunity to review the familiar tale from a fresh perspective. Going from color to black and white might seem like a superficial shift, but viewers who caught the special version of "Days Gone Bye" praised the change for heightening the tension. (From Russ: there's a layer of strange irony here, as ousted showrunner Frank Darabont previously did the color to black and white shift with the DVD release of his film The Mist.) Will you see The Walking Dead in black and white?