The undisputed winners of television’s Halloweek were as similar in subject matter as they were distinct in presentation: the zombie movie parody episode of “Community” (yup, still championing it and can feel justified now that it’ll run the full season) and the series premiere of Frank Darabont’s foray into tragic zombie apocalypse, AMC’s “The Walking Dead.” The premiere, cashing in on Comic-Con hype, wooed 5.3 million viewers Sunday night and has at least one of them hooked (…me).

When I first read the pilot for this show, I was both inspired by the audacity of adapting the series of graphic novels and confident in my imagination of the show’s aesthetic. My ideas about setting, music and action sequences all proved, in observation of the final product, unimaginative. Ironically, or maybe just in my opinion, this is one of the themes of the show’s first episode, the psychology and subsequent destruction of preconceived notions. The opening lines, cautiously spoken by protagonist and hunky sheriff Rick Grimes, question the silhouette of a short figure in pink slippers, “Little girl?,” only for her to turn around and reveal a wan zombie child. He urges himself, “Don’t be afraid,” but against all of our best judgment we are.

Initial comparisons to HBO’s “True Blood” are eradicated within the first minute of the pilot. Though I had imagined a much more Southern, visibly devastated landscape, Darabont has directed an eerily normal suburban existence. In fact, this could be any American suburb. The emphasis on humanity and meditation is executed by delicate, thoughtful cinematography that is not afraid simultaneously to turn the eye of the camera away from the obviously compelling, a zombie corpse for example, and to milk the smallest, most affecting details. At times, I was frustrated with the “300”-esque blood-splatter slow mo, but ultimately the harmony of visual composition, score and sparse dialogue was truly beautiful.

In a television universe stuffed with wordy, pithy comedies and period dramas, “The Walking Dead” is a breath of fresh air (how inappropriate is it to describe such a great show with a cliché? My apologies). Silence during the ever-valuable television minutes is a rarity that, when done well (see Buffy’s “Hush”), endears the audience to the characters and place. Here, the artistic team marries Bernard Herrmann-esque suspenseful score to current hipster ballads; by far my favorite sequence of the episode comes when, in the final pan out, zombies attack a horse corpse and an army tank side-by-side to one such ballad.

The mutt-ish genre of the show enables such unexpected combinations and suggests a compelling season. We get a bit of “28 Days Later,” a dash of Western and a general ladle of horror all in one hour. Ah yes, the horror. I’m unable to do the makeup justice in words, so I would encourage you to watch the episode (in case you weren’t sold already) to witness how chillingly the layers of the human body are peeled back on the zombies. These fixtures of the horror genre are imbued with humanity throughout, from the amputated woman dragging herself across a field to an infected wife and mother.

The details of the disease have yet to be fleshed out (ha), but we know there are factions of survivors, nomads and loners navigating the unpredictable topography of zombie mobs. The comparative narratives of these groups, all centered on families fractured by the infection, present a study in human interaction. Fundamental ethical questions of trust, justice and alliance are raised in various contexts (some even including zombies) throughout the episode, pointing to the show’s allegorical ambitions.

This is a show that could burn out after one season, but I expect that, at least for a short period of time, these 45 minutes will inspire you to think, create, write and imagine.

WHAT TO WATCH NEXT WEEK

Monday and Tuesday at 9 p.m.: “In Treatment” makes me randy for a therapist two nights a week (HBO)

Tuesday at 8 p.m.: “Glee” is finally back for an uninterrupted five-week arc before winter hiatus (FOX)

Wednesday at 9 p.m.: “Friday Night Lights” marches unnoticed into its final season (DirecTV)