Thank you for the mention of Season 2 of Rome, I thought I might have been the only one. That series went from awesome to garbage in no time flat. I went from being really bummed that it was only going to be two seasons long to being relieved that it was over. I don't know what they could have possibly been thinking. The only thing I can fathom is that they got pissed HBO didn't turn it into a regular series, so just decided to completely destroy everything that made the series enjoyable in the first place.
As for Walking Dead, I won't damn the season just yet. After all, the story and the characters haven't had a drastic change...the problem is just that the narrative ground to a screeching halt. I understand why, given that AMC killed their budget and they are trying to stretch out the story so they'll still have momentum going into more seasons...but damn, I wish they'd do something other than sit on a farm. I'd take any scenery change at this point. I understand the characters want to forget there is a zombie apocalypse going on, but that's why us viewers tune in! Hoping for a strong second half.