The much-hyped departure of Rick Grimes didn’t go the way anyone expected
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By Bryan Bishop và Nick Statt
a:hover>:text-gray-63 <&>a:hover>:shadow-underline-black dark:<&>a:hover>:text-gray-bd dark:<&>a:hover>:shadow-underline-gray <&>a>:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:<&>a>:text-gray-bd dark:<&>a>:shadow-underline-gray">Photo by Jackson Lee Davis / AMC
a:hover>:shadow-highlight-franklin dark:<&>a:hover>:shadow-highlight-franklin <&>a>:shadow-underline-black dark:<&>a>:shadow-underline-white">Wait, what just happened?
Bryan: I guess I should start off by tipping my hat khổng lồ the team at The Walking Dead. I gave the show the benefit of the doubt, và you totally fooled me by pulling the same kind of trickery và shenanigans that have frustrated so many viewers over recent seasons. High fives!
Joking aside, “What Comes Next” was a combination of the kind of effective tropes we’re used lớn seeing in TV-character send-offs. In this episode, Rick has numerous visions where he talks khổng lồ people who have died during the series, providing emotional closure for some key relationships. But it also throws in a heavy dose of the kind of strained-credulity shenanigans The Walking Dead is known for. In this case, the biggest one comes right at the top: after getting thrown off a horse, impaled by rebar, and cornered by two hordes of zombies, Rick manages khổng lồ escape!
A drawn-out, slow-motion chase follows, but it’s mostly satisfying because it delivers the kind of honest, emotional conclusion that the show has seemed so afraid of tackling in recent seasons. A few moments from the episode’s end, Rick has made his peace with everyone, và he appears to sacrifice himself khổng lồ take out a massive group of zombies in front of the people who love him most. Daryl appears utterly lost; Michonne is emotionally torn apart. It feels operatic. Nine seasons into the show, The Walking Dead actually sticks the landing on the death of Rick Grimes.
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But then, we find out that he’s not dead after all. Instead, he gets rescued by Jadis and flown away in a helicopter. Seriously?
Nick: I always expected Rick khổng lồ get away from his initial predicament, so I didn’t find it all that surprising when he wound up lumbering through the woods. Và I’d be lying if I said I didn’t find it all a bit touching, despite how ludicrous the dead friend hallucinations and near-death zombie escapes became after… well, the first one. As much this show has jerked its audience back & forth, subjecting them to grueling stunts và meandering, pointless storylines, it’s impossible for me not lớn be fond of Rick.
He’s been a proper stand-in for the audience và the show’s central anchor throughout its entirety, & I’ve always felt like Andrew Lincoln was giving it his all as an actor, despite the less-than-stellar circumstances the show forced him into. Rick and Hershel discussing Maggie’s future or Rick tearing up over killing Shane were powerful moments that excused the fact that they only existed as the delirious visions of a dying man who somehow keeps escaping a literal army of the undead. Watching his final moment and the faces of the characters he’s left behind, truly hit home for me.
As for the big reveal at the end, well, part of me felt lượt thích it might go down lượt thích that, given the prominence of the Jadis subplot. But I was still shocked at Kang và the writers’ raw audacity in going for it. It’s almost lớn the point where I’m not mad about the cop-out, so much as I’m impressed that they all felt confident enough lớn pull it off. At this point, any genuine surprise that has nothing to bởi with the comic books is enough khổng lồ get me excited, if only because I know the show’s tín đồ base is going to have a field day with this one.
a:hover>:text-gray-63 <&>a:hover>:shadow-underline-black dark:<&>a:hover>:text-gray-bd dark:<&>a:hover>:shadow-underline-gray <&>a>:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:<&>a>:text-gray-bd dark:<&>a>:shadow-underline-gray">Photo by Jackson Lee Davis / AMC
a:hover>:shadow-highlight-franklin dark:<&>a:hover>:shadow-highlight-franklin <&>a>:shadow-underline-black dark:<&>a>:shadow-underline-white">Let’s talk about the flash-forward
Bryan: That’s fair — though it doesn’t say much for how the fan base feels about the show at this point, does it? The whole thing ends up being a double gimmick as well: not only does The Walking Dead pull a fake-out on Rick being dead, but it sidesteps the ramifications of that story decision by jumping into the future. After Rick is flown away in the Jadiscopter, the show transitions into a scene where a group of new people is attacked by a swarm of zombies — except this group is rescued by a young girl who looks no more than 10 years old, a girl with a katana, revolver, & familiar hat. She introduces herself as Judith Grimes, Rick’s daughter.
There are a few things khổng lồ break down here. I don’t believe the entire show is going lớn jump forward 10 years into the future. Knowing that AMC wants khổng lồ keep this franchise going, however, I could see this scene as a testing ground for yet another spinoff that focused on Judith — one that jumps forward, rather than backward lượt thích Fear the Walking Dead. But outside of those aspirations, one can argue that this brief flash-forward also does real harm lớn the future of The Walking Dead.
What can we surmise, given this quick glimpse of Future Judith? We know that seven or more years out, there is still no resolution to lớn the zombie crisis, and the group Rick once led is still traipsing around the same parts of the same forest. There is no elaborate society built, no infrastructure restored. This snapshot efficiently conveys that, years và years from now, almost nothing will have changed in the universe of The Walking Dead, other than Michonne’s implied death. (Why would Judith have Michonne’s sword if she was still alive?) It feels to lớn me lượt thích the show deflates an enormous amount of potential future tension in this scene, which may ultimately just be a throwaway. On đứng đầu of that, it seems lượt thích it will be extremely difficult khổng lồ take any of the mourning or regret people feel about the loss of Rick seriously when the audience knows he’s alive & under Jadis’ care.
It’s almost lượt thích the show went out of its way khổng lồ surgically remove any stakes or consequences from what should have been its most impactful moment — and all in the name of a stunt nobody will remember a week from now. What am I missing?
Nick: I have to agree with you. As heartwarming as it was to see an older Judith carrying on the legacy her father & Michonne left behind, it only worked as a possible series epilogue & a kind of tribute lớn the character’s departure. As an actual piece of storytelling, given that the show is going khổng lồ continue without Rick, it makes no sense, & it really does feel like a confusing, misplaced bonus scene crammed into what should have been a powerful, emotional ending.
And, like you say, it either inadvertently or on purpose conveys a lot of information that doesn’t really click with everything the narrative is trying to lớn express this season. I refuse lớn believe the show will jump in time again, and there’s no way the audience will either, unless the makeup artists on The Walking Dead are both experts at zombie flesh và artificially aging a 30-person cast by about eight years. Also, the notion that people are still running from zombies that many years later makes the point that Rick và his friends and family failed, that the peace they strove for is a myth. And yet, if it’s just a tribute to lớn Rick, not a serious narrative tool, why put it in the episode at all? Why not release it as a đoạn clip online at some point later in the season?
My only hope is that older Judith is a single-use snapshot of a future we’re not supposed lớn take seriously, a tribute to the way Rick’s spirit lives on in his daughter. I can’t see how The Walking Dead could continue to incorporate that storyline any further, and jumping between two timelines would make the already-shoddy pacing of the show — which has improved this season, but not by much — almost unbearable.
a:hover>:text-gray-63 <&>a:hover>:shadow-underline-black dark:<&>a:hover>:text-gray-bd dark:<&>a:hover>:shadow-underline-gray <&>a>:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:<&>a>:text-gray-bd dark:<&>a>:shadow-underline-gray">Photo by Jackson Lee Davis / AMC
a:hover>:shadow-highlight-franklin dark:<&>a:hover>:shadow-highlight-franklin <&>a>:shadow-underline-black dark:<&>a>:shadow-underline-white">Was it amazing or terrible?
Nick: Perhaps I’m taking a contrarian position here, but I think this surprise twist worked: it mostly gives fans what they wanted. I’m long past expecting gritty realism or well-earned twists in the cartoony world of The Walking Dead, not after everything the show has pulled in the past. While I totally understand how this gimmick could backfire & the ways it undermines viewers who care about these characters, I increasingly look at the show as the silly piece of fiction AMC và the writers seem lớn consider it as: a comic book come to lớn life, if you will. And part of that fiction is believing Rick will never die.
I understand that wasn’t always the case and that the show built its early reputation alongside big names lượt thích Breaking Bad and Game of Thrones, with a dark tone & anyone-can-die approach to lớn storytelling that made it a behemoth entertainment property, with ratings no one could ignore. But over the years, I’ve come khổng lồ terms with the fact that The Walking Dead will never again be better than a cartoon. It has too much baggage và there’s too much money on the line for AMC to lớn take the risks that would result in longtime characters leaving without warning or plotlines from the comics completely subverted instead of just subtly altered. (Of course, now that ratings have cratered, I wonder if AMC’s strategy could change.)
So, I say this with a pang of guilt because I know I’m part of the problem: I was one of the people who would rather not have seen Rick leave for good. I like his character, despite all the faults and bad leadership principles the writers have forced upon him. As much as I now acknowledge that The Walking Dead is trapped by its B-movie tendencies, Rick still felt lượt thích the one believable, inspiring part of the whole ensemble. He was a good guy, even when he seemed lượt thích a bad guy, và it was impossible not to lớn root for him every step of the way. Knowing he’ll be out there in the world and that the writers could pull some reunion or drop some clever Easter egg hinting at his survival (even when they probably won’t), has me feeling at least a little upbeat about the future, even if that future looks a lot bleaker without Rick at the center.
Bryan: We agree on more points than we disagree on here, but as with most things on The Walking Dead, I think this whole affair ends up being a double-edged sword. “What Comes Next,” lượt thích the episode before it, provides a moment of instant, potent surprise. Watching it for the first time, I marveled at the way the show’s sale team showed audiences one path, then led them down another. It’s stunty but effective.
The problem is that stunts don’t last. They don’t resonate. Years from now when people look back at this show or come khổng lồ it for the first time via Netflix or DVDs, they won’t have the context of the sale misdirects, which won’t be remembered. What truly matters is the show itself. And looking at it from that perspective, the whole thing is incredibly frustrating. When The Walking Dead debuted on TV, it felt earnest. It took this world & its dramatic stakes seriously. That’s a big reason why audiences cared so much about Rick, Daryl, Carol, Carl, and all the other characters the show introduced in its earlier days. (The most effective visions Rick has in “What Comes Next” are with characters like Shane và Hershel, who originated in the show’s less cartoonish era.) But moments like Rick’s death switcheroo are pure p. T. Barnum — manufactured almost entirely out of hype.
What is an audience supposed to lớn think when they’re put through the emotional wringer of expecting a beloved character to lớn die và experiencing their supposed death scene, only to have the whole thing effectively turn into a giant troll? The Walking Dead seems to lớn find it hilarious that its fans care about these characters. And much like it did with the Glenn death fake-outs, the show ends up pointing its finger and laughing at viewers like Nelson from The Simpsons.
The only logical takeaway is that nobody should emotionally invest in The Walking Dead because the show itself doesn’t. There’s something mischievous about all this runaround, and it’s absolutely given the show its own unique identity. But for me personally, these fake-out shenanigans aren’t compatible with a serialized drama that asks viewers khổng lồ care what happens. You’re right: this series doesn’t need to lớn be an earnest, serialized drama just because it started out as one. But it will eventually need lớn reckon with the tonal confusion these gambits cause because the rapidly shrinking viewership over the past few seasons doesn’t seem on board with them either.
a:hover>:text-gray-63 <&>a:hover>:shadow-underline-black dark:<&>a:hover>:text-gray-bd dark:<&>a:hover>:shadow-underline-gray <&>a>:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:<&>a>:text-gray-bd dark:<&>a>:shadow-underline-gray">Photo by Jackson Lee Davis / AMC
a:hover>:shadow-highlight-franklin dark:<&>a:hover>:shadow-highlight-franklin <&>a>:shadow-underline-black dark:<&>a>:shadow-underline-white">Where vì things go from here?
Nick: I’ll admit, as much I think the Rick twist was a bold move that was executed well, I don’t really see a straightforward, clean path out of the mess “What Comes Next” creates. Putting aside the unlikely situation in which the Judith Grimes subplot sticks around, the show is going to lớn have to vì a lot of narrative somersaulting lớn get around Jadis’ disappearance and Rick’s missing body. Và I’m not looking forward lớn arguments about whether Rick really died, or when Daryl & Michonne inevitably go out looking for him in a bottle episode or two khổng lồ kill time until the midseason finale.
Thankfully, the show does have a lot to work with here, so long as it doesn’t bog itself down with too many subplots and it gets back to business with the straightforward storytelling we saw in episodes 1 and 2. While Maggie will also be departing soon, she has khổng lồ grapple with the fact that her Negan shenanigans inadvertently got Rick killed as far as Michonne và the rest of the characters are concerned. Daryl will similarly have lớn reckon with the fact that his diversion tactic, which dumped the two in a giant hole, resulted in Rick blowing up the bridge. How they deal with that revelation, how the group handles it at large, and how it plays into Maggie’s departure will be interesting to watch, regardless of Rick’s true fate.
Like you’ve mentioned, there’s a real concern that the Rick twist could torch all of the goodwill this season has earned và cause even more of an unprecedented ratings drop-off. Regardless of how Rick’s death was handled, it was always impossible to lớn stop at least some viewers from treating this episode as a series finale and walking away. But AMC has made it clear that the Whisperer plotline from the comics is up next, & Daryl Dixon is likely to lớn be the show’s Rick replacement going forward. So not all hope is lost. But after the events of “What Comes Next,” I don’t trust the show to give any of these characters a proper character arc or a proper send-off that isn’t based in gimmicks.
Bryan: It’s going khổng lồ be muddy for sure. Will Judith prompt a dueling storyline? Could be, though I imagine we’ll simply dive back to everyone dealing with the consequences of Rick’s absence, as you suggested. (Perhaps with the periodic Judith flash-forward — the show’s certainly done that before.) But will that be satisfying? I honestly don’t know because the show is facing issues on multiple fronts at this point. With no Maggie in the mix, it’s unclear which characters or conflicts are still worth actively engaging in. The emotional bộ vi xử lý core of the series has always come from characters who were set up in the show’s early days, & while Daryl và Carol will still be around, it’s unclear whether they can fuel an entire series.
Daryl is fun to lớn watch, but he’s still an emotional cipher, and the internal conflict that fueled Carol over the years has been watered down significantly at this point. I have zero interest in watching more Negan — his turn from Hannibal Lecter to lớn whimpering man-child in “What Comes Next” was so quick và unmotivated that I nearly got whiplash — so I guess that leaves it to lớn new characters and new complications.
Everybody involved with the show seems incredibly excited about Kang’s larger vision, và I am fascinated by the idea of a show like this trying khổng lồ remake itself mid-run. It’s seemed at several times that it has been on the path to lớn doing just that. But “What Comes Next” demonstrates that some of the weaknesses are systemic. The show has also never faced the kind of urgency it will in the coming months, however. Ratings have been steadily declining for years, & while the Rick departure has temporarily stopped the bleeding, another huge ratings drop is no doubt waiting in the wings now that he’s gone. For The Walking Dead, reinvention is a matter of survival.
Note: Last night, after the above conversation had already been written, The thành phố new york Times revealed that Andrew Lincoln will actually star in three The Walking Dead movies for AMC. A Twitter post from the network also seemed khổng lồ confirm that the show would, in fact, be moving forward with a time jump six years into the future. Our reaction is as follows.
a:hover>:shadow-highlight-franklin dark:<&>a:hover>:shadow-highlight-franklin <&>a>:shadow-underline-black dark:<&>a>:shadow-underline-white">Seriously?
Bryan: So, let me get this straight: after all of this, it appears that AMC and The Walking Dead are actually doing the most gimmicky, nonsensical, misdirected move in the history of the entire franchise. Am I getting that right?
Nick: I must say that a lot of the goodwill I had toward Kang and the writers for pulling out the unexpected twist with Rick’s fate pretty much evaporated when I learned it was yet another elaborate stunt to lớn set up a spinoff. I understand that AMC felt like it had lớn keep its cards close to lớn the vest, & these movies might legitimately excite some viewers, but this all now feels like one step too far. If we can’t trust the show lớn not exploit its main character’s final farewell to this extent, I don’t think it’s possible to lớn trust it at all — ever again.
Bryan: Honestly, I have serious doubts about the ability of any TWD movie to lớn excite any sort of meaningful tín đồ base at this point. Three movies starring Andrew Lincoln & likely none of the other regulars? What are the stakes when you know he won’t die? Where is the conflict when you know none of it matters because the only thing this show does is troll?
The entire idea makes no sense to lớn me. Và what’s absurd is that it’s the show’s own trò chơi playing that has framed things this way. If The Walking Dead had played any part of the last few seasons sincerely — if it hadn’t resorted lớn gimmicks và stunts time & time và time again — then I would be interested. But this show just continues to sneer at its fans. & now I’m also supposed to care about a time-jumped TV show where the state of the world hasn’t changed at all & we know everyone has aged because they suddenly have different hair and beard styles? I don’t even understand what the show is trying to vày at this point. The Walking Dead has become a never-ending purgatory — both for its characters và its fans.
Nick: I agree that it’s hard khổng lồ care about where Rick goes from here or lớn really care at all about the existing cast, especially an older Judith who’s now carrying the torch for her not-really-dead father. The writers have skipped over time twice in the same season, và the show is now conveniently glossing over any kind of meaningful character development that might have occurred on-screen after Rick’s “death.” và now we’re supposed lớn believe that everything has remained largely static over the course of six years? Why we’re still following these characters và what story AMC is trying to lớn tell — beyond that of the never-ending variety — is not really clear anymore. That’s doubly true now that Rick has left the picture.
Bryan: I hate to say this, but The Walking Dead has been skating by for years. Perhaps Kang will use this time jump as a reset, & I will keep watching these next few weeks to see what the “new” series truly looks like. But enough is enough. At this point, this show needs to lớn justify its continued existence — and it needs to vày it fast.
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Rick Grimes takes a (final?) bow and exits the world of The Walking Dead in an episode calculated khổng lồ bring tears.
ThisThe Walking Deadreview contains spoilers.
The Walking Dead Season 9 Episode 5
In previous seasons of The Walking Dead, there was something of a running joke. Whenever a secondary character got lớn deliver a speech of some sort or start giving out their backstory, it never went well for that person. If Billy Background suddenly has a dead wife and children that he has to lớn tell a lead character about, then Billy Background is going lớn die in a hurry. Typically, talkativeness would lead to immediate, tragic death, while everyone around them gawked in horror. (See also the kid in the first episode of season nine who is introduced và gets killed within the same episode.)
Not so with Rick Grimes. The ending of that character’s time on the show didn’t come swiftly, or as a sudden surprising end, but as a truyền thông media circus. The focus of the ninth season hasn’t been the change in showrunner, or anything behind the scenes, but the final episodes of Rick Grimes. The show’s marketing chiến dịch has been based around Andrew Lincoln’s departure, & rather than try khổng lồ give viewers a surprise, they’ve been clear. This is the last episode for Rick Grimes (as of right now). Other things happen in the episode, but essentially, it’s a 45-minute farewell lớn the lead character và the promise of repercussions to lớn come.
With “What Comes After,” Rick Grimes comes full circle. The show started with Rick waking from a coma, and ended with Glenn calling him an asshole. Get used khổng lồ Rick being called an asshole, and get used to lớn Rick being told khổng lồ wake up. Waking up becomes Rick’s mantra, và he keeps repeating it lớn himself—either as himself or via the memories of all his old friends—time & time again as he struggles to keep himself moving. Rick’s being followed by thousands of zombies, too many for their struggling city-states to handle, & if Rick fails, then this herd will find its way to lớn Alexandria, or Hilltop, or any one of a number of outposts full of Rick’s closest friends & family. Rick’s a fighter, & he’ll need to lớn be to lớn keep everyone he loves from being wiped off the face of the earth.
That loop, the closing of Rick Grimes’ journey, is accomplished via a lot of fever dreams & a lot of Rick passing out. He’ll go gray and wake up staring at himself in the hospital, trying lớn goad himself into waking up from a coma khổng lồ save his family. He’ll gray out & wake up looking at himself on the back of his horse, leading a very similar walker horde into Atlanta, or wake up in his squad car eating burgers with Shane (Jon Bernthal), looking at the very accident scene that led to lớn him being shot & put into a coma in the first place. Shane exhorts him khổng lồ find his inner Shane, to be the asshole, to vì the dirty deeds that he knows have to be done lớn keep everyone safe.
He’ll gray out và wake up in the barn with Hershel (the late Scott Wilson), looking out over the beautiful farm while Hershel tells him not to lớn grieve for all he’s lost, because they’re not lost. As long as humanity survives, Rick’s family & friends—Rick’s legacy—will survive. Rick grays out & walks through a field of bodies, the thousands of people he’s lost over the years. Sasha (Sonequa Martin-Green) stands up behind him, with a message. She tells Rick not to lớn regret the dead. They played their part, like she played hers. Lượt thích he plays his. Little things end, she reminds Rick, but it’s not about one of us, or a few of us, it’s about all of us, and the world we’ve been building.
Certainly, the producers of The Walking Dead hope that the message of “What Comes After” resonates with fans in more than one way. Rick Grimes, the linchpin of the show since it began, is leaving, but the world will continue on without him (unless he decides to return) và lean more heavily on those friends and family he’s so desperate to lớn get back to. That’s leaned on heavily in the final moments of the episode, in which Rick stands on the opposite side of the bridge they’d built together while Michonne, Maggie, Daryl, Carol, và the rest watch on from the distance.
Greg Nicotero has proven khổng lồ be a steady hand, both with the action sequences and with the actors. I’d imagine the time they all spend in the make-up chair helps Nicotero và company get to know the actors, & know their strengths, weaknesses, & character motivation. He does a wonderful job with this episode, và all of the flashbacks with faces from Rick’s past are beautifully crafted.
Granted, Sasha doesn’t have the kind of relationship with Rick that Shane và Hershel do, but her interaction with Rick isn’t so much about their personal relationship, she’s a stand-in for all the other people Rick has lost along the way. The episode’s pace is maintained well, and the story moves seamlessly from fever dream to sobering reality with a clever series of match cuts: Shane’s screaming face morphs into a zombie’s snarl, Hershel a gentle reawakening on the back of a horse, và Sasha a sobering collapse onto the ground that wakes Rick with a startle.
Nicotero’s eye works lớn his advantage. The episode doesn’t contain any real crazy camera movements, but the match cuts are well constructed. The dream sequences are especially well done, & as Rick’s condition gets worse, Nicotero makes sure to lớn show it with simple, effective signifiers—the darkening of blood on his shirt, the increasing pallor of Rick’s skin, the smear of blood from Rick’s hand on the side of his horse, the drops of blood splattering at Rick’s feet with every slow step.
The climactic shots of the survivors watching Rick’s last stand (or what they feel is his last stand) hit hard, and the shots of flaming zombies falling over the side of the shattered bridge is some of the special effects crew’s best work lớn date. It looks beautiful & horrifying at once, which is the highest praiseThe Walking Deadcan receive.
The B plot—Maggie’s confrontation with Negan—also plays well. The exchanges between Maggie and Michonne are tense & brief; it’s subtle, the threats exchanged in looks and toàn thân language more than the words in Matthew Negrete’s script, but it’s pretty clear that they won’t hesitate lớn go after one another if pushed. Danai Gurira and Cohan have good chemistry as antagonists, & Jeffrey Dean Morgan has done a good job at deflating Negan’s bluster into nothing more than a pathetic attempt to have someone else kill him because he lacks the wherewithal lớn kill himself. Negan is pathetic, pathetic enough that Maggie decides khổng lồ let him live in his broken state, as death would be an improvement on his condition.
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The departure of Andrew Lincoln could potentially become a fresh start for a show that seems to lớn need one. Ratings are sinking, cast members are leaving for other things, and the constant drama behind the scenes can’t help but contribute khổng lồ the show’s difficulties. However, a new show-runner và a chance khổng lồ freshen up the cast and plots might be enough khổng lồ pull the show out of its doldrums. After all, it’s not about Rick, Carl, or any one person, it’s about the world they’ve built, và the future of that world seems to lớn be in steady hands.