Jayme Deerwester

USA TODAY

Fans of The Walking Dead aren't the only ones who think the hit AMC drama went too far with the violence in Sunday's season premiere and crossed a line in terms of what is acceptable to show on basic cable.

The Parents Television Council, a conservative-leaning watchdog group, did not mince words in its criticism of the episode, which saw two beloved characters killed by a psychopath wielding a baseball bat wrapped in barbed wire. Their violent deaths were followed by lingering, close-up shots of their skulls and brains.

Tim Winter, the group's president, wrote, "Last night’s season premiere of The Walking Dead was one of the most graphically violent shows we’ve ever seen on television, comparable to the most violent of programs found on premium cable networks."

Has 'The Walking Dead' finally gone too far for fans?

Winter says he understands that the show's source material was also violent but says the show is now lazily substituting graphic violence for storytelling.

"With The Walking Dead, the creative team has resorted to the graphic violence as a crutch for what used to be better storytelling. When you can't figure out what lines to write, you put something in easier, which is a graphic depiction. To me, it's too much."

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Winter said the episode's violence "set a new threshold for basic cable," leading him to wonder if there "should be an even more severe rating than TV-MA."

He also believes it's time that cable providers offer parents an unbundling option, allowing them a line-item veto over which channels they permit in their homes.

"It's not enough to 'change the channel,' as some people like to advocate, because cable subscribers — regardless of whether they want AMC or watch its programming — are still forced to subsidize violent content," he explained. "This brutally explicit show is a powerful demonstration of why families should have greater control over the TV networks they purchase from their cable and satellite providers."