The Walking Dead (With Spoilers)

[saul_on_the_road_to_damascus]

Spoilers for 150...


Man, I am glad they didn't do some big character death. 100 felt a little forced in that regard, and I'm glad this was just a solid issue setting up where we go from here.

Now that we're at 150 it might be time to sit down and re read the entire run.

See I gotta disagree. I was rooting for a major death since we haven't had one since issue one hundred. I was really hoping either spoilers:

rick died or daryl showed up

end of spoilers and sadly neither of those things happened.

[Ragdoll]

spoilers:

daryl showed up

end of spoilers

I still think Daryl is going to be a modified Dwight, and Negan will be burning Daryl's face off with an iron in the season finale.

[Joker]

See I gotta disagree. I was rooting for a major death since we haven't had one since issue one hundred. I was really hoping either spoilers:

rick died or daryl showed up

end of spoilers and sadly neither of those things happened.

If Daryl shows up then I quit the comic right then and there. That's the worst fucking move they can do.

[saul_on_the_road_to_damascus]

I still think Daryl is going to be a modified Dwight, and Negan will be burning Daryl's face off with an iron in the season finale.

Dwight has already been introduced in the tv series. The guy in the mid season finale

[Jinjonator]

I have mixed feelings about this issue, despite the fact that I highly enjoyed it and thought it was a great issue. Mostly because they hyped up the whole "rick gets betrayed!!" angle, which made me think it would actually be someone who matters betraying Rick. And there aren't really any massive ramifications to the "betrayal", so it wasn't the game-changer I anticipated (Rick was already planning to put together the army, unite the people, and wreck the Whisperers' **** even before he was attacked; this definitely gave his rallying speech some extra oomph, but it didn't fundamentally change the course of things).

Overall though, very strong issue. Hopefully things will start to pick up a bit more in the next arc, though.

[Joker]

Never trust the solicitations or covers.

[Scott Taylor]

Strong issue, but nothing amazingly special happened other than Rick using his zombie-honed chewing skills. I was hoping they'd all mount up, ride into Whispererville and blow heads off and ride back. Oh well.

[Ragdoll]

Oooooooo this issue was awesome, and is actually the turning point I have been waiting for ever since the time jump. It seemed inevitable and now it is here: spoilers:

contact with another functioning post-apocalypse society. Are they going to be on the other side of America, or from Europe? Any chance we'll meet some of the Fear The Walking Dead characters living out in Cali or wherever that show is? Also Rick is about to free the Negans, you could tell when he was telling that black dude about how if he was gone, all his future good deeds would be erased.

end of spoilers
So excited to see where we go from here.

[Joker]

Good issue. The end was nice, and I always look forward to the world expanding.

[Jinjonator]

Oooooooo this issue was awesome, and is actually the turning point I have been waiting for ever since the time jump. It seemed inevitable and now it is here: spoilers:

contact with another functioning post-apocalypse society. Are they going to be on the other side of America, or from Europe? Any chance we'll meet some of the Fear The Walking Dead characters living out in Cali or wherever that show is? Also Rick is about to free the Negans, you could tell when he was telling that black dude about how if he was gone, all his future good deeds would be erased.

end of spoilers
So excited to see where we go from here.

I wouldn't expect anyone who originated from any of the TV shows to appear in the comics.

Solid issue tho. And a good ending. Excited to see how this particular plot develops.

[Scott Taylor]

Part of me is wondering if Negan might actually be reformed in some way. Probably not.

[Ragdoll]

I might think Negan was reformed if Kirkman didn't constantly cut to Negan's giant ass smirk every time Rick gets a little bit dictator-y. He knows Rick is self conscious and is playing him. He knew that militarization would lead to his eventual escape and chance to get his people back. Rick is even actuvely looking for someone to lead the Saviors LOL. Rick will give him his crew back, and say "please take them, I need the Negan to rule these ruffians". Then when whoever those people on the radio show up, Negan will be the one to greet them with open arms and begin his global domination.

[thetrellan]

I might think Negan was reformed if Kirkman didn't constantly cut to Negan's giant ass smirk every time Rick gets a little bit dictator-y. He knows Rick is self conscious and is playing him. He knew that militarization would lead to his eventual escape and chance to get his people back. Rick is even actuvely looking for someone to lead the Saviors LOL. Rick will give him his crew back, and say "please take them, I need the Negan to rule these ruffians". Then when whoever those people on the radio show up, Negan will be the one to greet them with open arms and begin his global domination.

Honestly I feel the dynamic between Rick and Negan has taken a wrong turn somehow, as if suddenly Kirkman is unsure exactly where to take it himself. Since I don't actually think this is so, I conclude that whatever Rick is considering might not be obvious. Might even be mysterious. The idea that he would even consider releasing Negan seems pretty unrealistic. So I figure he just has an idea now what to do about the guy, that it's not obvious, and might even maybe be brilliant. At least more brilliant than my redundant ass can imagine right now. Geez, it's late. Night all.

[Prisoner 6655321]

I dunno. I think Kirkman has been pretty solid with Negan since the start but I still don't know how to take the guy. Going back, we were never really shown much about the background of the Saviours or the nature of their relationship with their neighbors and while we saw some pretty brutal things it was never really answered if Negan was the sort of leader of the sort of group that he was because of some kinda innate vileness or because he felt that the steps he took were necessary for the greater good. The Survivors killed first, conversations have suggested pretty strongly that Negan didn't "force" anyone to do anything. I wouldn't be totally surprised if Negan has some kinda "shocking" background and turns out to have been a kindergarten teacher or something equally benign, being transformed into who he is by the post-zombie world.

[thetrellan]

I dunno. I think Kirkman has been pretty solid with Negan since the start but I still don't know how to take the guy. Going back, we were never really shown much about the background of the Saviours or the nature of their relationship with their neighbors and while we saw some pretty brutal things it was never really answered if Negan was the sort of leader of the sort of group that he was because of some kinda innate vileness or because he felt that the steps he took were necessary for the greater good. The Survivors killed first, conversations have suggested pretty strongly that Negan didn't "force" anyone to do anything. I wouldn't be totally surprised if Negan has some kinda "shocking" background and turns out to have been a kindergarten teacher or something equally benign, being transformed into who he is by the post-zombie world.

Yeah, I was pretty tired when I wrote that last post so I was having trouble stringing words together. I meant that because it seemed off there must be something to reveal that we don't already know. Certainly there's no reason I know of for Rick to consider releasing the guy under any circumstances, other than using him as cannon fodder. Clearly the guy expects it, but he's shown zero remorse. How does he imagine to justify it? It's not like he has Rick twisted around his pinky. It's as if he knows something we don't. That or he takes Rick for a fool.

Of course it could be he really thinks himself justified and is waiting for Rick to see things his way. But the man bribed women into a harem, permanently disfiguring potential rivals to discourage the girls from wanting to return to their exes. If he can't see how despicably evil his own actions have been, he must be pretty stupid. And I'm not seeing that. So I suspect something is being kept from us.

I expect it will all make sense in due time.