over a decade – so now that it's all over, what was it all really about?
The final episodes of The Walking Dead put the ensemble cast at center stage.
Characters continue to grow and develop. Eugene and Max expose Sebastian and his mother Pamela's
disdain for the people of the Commonwealth. Yumiko shuns respectability to stand by her
friend. And Daryl steps into the position of father figure for Judith. At the same time,
Father Gabriel rediscovers his faith after taking an almost sadistic turn earlier in the season,
while Connie and Kelly speak truth to power at every turn.
The Commonwealth was always going to be a deconstruction of class politics rearing their
ugly head even as the zombie apocalypse raged. But the series found a way to
deliver a message of solidarity, resistance, and power to the people in its final episode.
Another major theme of Season 11 was standing by your family no matter what and the way that
loyalty creates a feeling of home — even for a crew being attacked from all sides. For instance,
Daryl and Leah originally bond over their shared isolation, with Leah holed up in a
cabin in the woods that Daryl stumbles upon in his solo travels. Leah is a tragic figure,
a loner looking for a community while Daryl stands with his found family.
"I would've died for Carl. You know that."
He and Leah are opposite sides of a coin. Leah chooses to follow a corrupt leader,
which is a pattern Daryl also fell into during his early appearances. Now, with people who
care about him, he's able to make things right. Leah, however, lacks that support and is lost.
Similarly, Negan is one of the series' scariest villains, having killed both Abraham and Glenn
while very nearly breaking Rick in the process. After spending a lot of time – much of it in
prison – with the people of Alexandria, he's still convinced he's an eternal outsider. But
after finding love and family with Annie, Negan seems like a new man. He's even able to make
amends to some of the people he hurt, back when he was a big bad. He admits to Ezekiel,
"You're all better than me, and if you think I don't know that,
then you haven't been paying attention."
Invasion of the Commonwealth by a zombie horde inevitably means losing some long-time fan
favorites. That includes Luke, who we meet in the 9th season as part of Magna's crew. Though
the comics see Luke dying during the war with the Whisperers, he avoids that fate in the TV series.
Luke leaves for Oceanside with his girlfriend Jules in the 10th season. Along the way,
they run into Aaron, Lydia, Jerry, and Elijah, who advise them to avoid Oceanside at all costs.
"It's gone, man."
"What do you mean, gone?"
"It ain't ours anymore."
Luke is reunited with his former traveling companions, but the reunion is tragically brief.
When the walls of the Commonwealth are breached, Luke has to be torn away from Jules as she's
devoured before his eyes. He, too, sustains major injuries and perishes in the struggle,
despite his friends' attempts to save him. After realizing that there's nothing they can do,
they say goodbye. Yumiko pulls out Luke's harmonica and presses it into his hand,
telling him that he always brought music to their lives. This is a major callback
to their early appearances on the show, and makes it clear how much they've been
through and grown to depend on each other, even when far apart.
Watching Daryl evolve from a young man whose loyalties are divided between his toxic brother
Merle and Rick's crew into the gruff but tender lone wolf he becomes is one of the great delights
of The Walking Dead. Daryl may prefer to work in solitude, but he's developed a sense of community
and family over the years that was impossible to foresee early on. With Rick and Michonne out
of the picture, Season 11 sees him stepping more into a father figure role for Judith.
"There's one thing I know. There's a whole bunch of people back there, they'd do anything for you."
Even as Daryl attempts to protect Judith, she makes it clear that she has no intention of
sitting on the sidelines and insists on being included in the journey back into
the Commonwealth. Daryl reluctantly agrees to let her come along but regrets it immediately
when they are ambushed and Judith is shot by Pamela. Though Judith pulls through,
it's only through a transfusion of Daryl's blood. In what could be a throwaway line,
Daryl mentions that he knows he's a universal donor.
"Mine goes with anybody. Merle used to make me sell it when I was a kid, for money."
This makes his gentleness and care toward Judith all the more touching as we remember
the world of confusion and pain Daryl has endured to find his real family.
"Daryl?"
"Yeah."
"You deserve a happy ending, too."
Rosita's sacrifice
Rosita started as a supporting character and evolved into a woman able to hold her
own with series stalwarts like Michonne or Daryl. When we meet her in the 4th season,
she's involved in a deteriorating relationship with Abraham –
"If you're lost, please just tell me. The gas in this tank is worth more than your ego."
– which then turns to jealousy as
he moves on with Sasha. Later, she has a brief affair with Siddiq, followed by a
surprisingly healthy relationship with Father Gabriel, with whom she raises a daughter,
Coco. It's her commitment to being a good mother that defines her adventures in the last season as
she becomes a full-fledged action hero, starring in some top-notch zombie melees along the way.
Rosita's end is devastating.
"Dammit, Eugene. Go. I'm right behind you."
Her heroism and willingness to put everyone ahead of herself sees her bitten and slowly transforming
throughout the final episode. Still, this season was a boon to Rosita fans. She stepped up with
Daryl to defend the Commonwealth, never mincing words about where her true loyalties lie. When we
first met Rosita, Eugene had an unrequited crush that took seasons to resolve. But in the end,
he's the one who stays with her. He's the last face she sees, cementing their status
as one of the most endearing and genuine friendships this side of Carol and Daryl.
The final episode of Season 11 has to move fast to fit in everything set up in earlier episodes.
One of the most vital arcs is that of Mercer. A loyal soldier of the Commonwealth, he appears at
first to be humorless and unflappable until we see Princess' unique charm loosen him up a bit.
Mercer's loyalties are in question throughout the season. His duty to the people is in direct
conflict with his love for his sister, Max, who becomes a public enemy after revealing
Sebastian and Pamela's callous attitudes toward the people they're meant to serve.
Yet, Mercer turns around in the end and proves that there are positives
to standing by one's convictions. Rather than becoming a tool of a fascist state,
he shifts loyalties and takes the troops with him. When it comes time to hold Pamela accountable,
he's at the front of the group. And when she calls him a traitor, he turns the tables on her.
"You disappeared hundreds of citizens. Led the dead to our doorstep. You shot a child."
The central drive behind Season 11 is the importance of placing faith in people rather
than institutions or politicians, and nowhere is that arc better embodied than
through Mercer — a man who refuses to live life following orders he knows are unjust.
No character in "The Walking Dead" has had it particularly easy, but Aaron and Lydia
have truly gone through the wringer. Aaron lost both his husband Eric and his lover
Jesus. He saw his wish for a better future for Alexandria dashed through Lance Hornsby's lies.
Season 11 has him experiencing his own dark side only to turn things around through his
mentorship of Lydia. Likewise traumatized by her years as a pawn in Alpha's game,
surrounded by death and hate, Lydia is in desperate need of support and family when
she comes to the Commonwealth, and Aaron is one of the primary people to offer it.
Perhaps more than anyone, Aaron has always been able to put hope and the
desire to serve his friends and family at the forefront,
and that selflessness has played a major role in his relationship with Lydia.
"Loss is inevitable. It always has been."
He encourages her to take every moment of joy she can find with Elijah. And
he coaxes her through the loss of her arm while reflecting on his own loss.
"You'll feel it sometimes. Like it's still there."
Recognizing his own hope and pain in Lydia, he reassures her,
The Walking Dead examines what makes a true leader. Rick occasionally slides into rhetoric,
which is directly challenged by Michonne when he's at the end of his rope. While Negan commands
total loyalty in those he leads, his ruthlessness makes him vulnerable. People have genuine faith in
Rick's ability to show mercy, and ultimately turn to him over Negan. Again and again,
those who gain power through cruelty are knocked back down. It's an optimistic view of humanity,
despite the violence of villains like Pope, the Governor, and Alpha.
King Ezekiel loses his realm to the Saviors, but he remains a man of the people regardless
of what occurs. Always willing to step in and help wherever he is needed — be it as
a decision-maker or a helper — Ezekiel has proven himself to be a true leader time and
again by never letting his ego get the better of him. When the going gets tough, he leads a
group of prisoners to shield Negan with their bodies despite their shared animosity. That's
the kind of selfless act that makes him co-leader of the post-Milton Commonwealth alongside Mercer.
The final episode of the 10th season, "Here's Negan," presents a full-focus flashback of
Negan's life before he became the terrifying leader of the Saviors. Though this was meant to
flesh out Negan's backstory and give some context for atrocities to come, the episode occurs in the
context of Maggie's return to Alexandria, as she presents an immediate threat to his life.
"If you stay here, she will kill you. I just didn't want your death on my conscience."
One of Negan's greatest crimes is the murder of Abraham and Glenn in front of their friends,
which ultimately causes Rick to shatter when he is nearly forced to mutilate his son Carl.
As Glenn's widow and the mother of his child, Maggie has not had an easy time with Negan.
"Glenn was beautiful.
I'll never love anyone like that again."
Though Negan's actions are unforgivable, Maggie knows she's going to have to depend on him going
forward, which forces her to accept his attempts at making amends. Perhaps most importantly,
the series finale saw Negan finally apologize after years of wrongdoing. He
never fully understood what he'd taken from Maggie when he murdered Glenn,
but his relationship with Annie has profoundly changed his outlook.
"I am so sorry for what I took from you."
One of the best things about The Walking Dead has always been its expansive cast. However,
one of the most frustrating aspects of the show is the impossibility of
giving so many top-notch characters their time in the sun. The finale
struggles to wind up dozens of plot threads and character arcs in a very short time span,
and while it mostly succeeds, some of it's still just a little too brief.
For example, after a stellar character arc in the first part of the season,
Yumiko takes a backseat in the finale. While her romance with Magna is rekindled,
their story remains severely underplayed, with only a handful of moments throughout their
three seasons on the show. Connie and Kelly had stellar moments in the 11th season particularly,
but we don't see much of them here. Father Gabriel's goodbye to Rosita is heartbreaking
but far too brief for a relationship that has lasted multiple seasons and changed both
characters in fundamental ways. Elijah makes it to safety, but we don't know how. Characters
are what made The Walking Dead great, and we're left hoping this isn't the end of our favorites.
In Episode 1 of The Walking Dead, before anyone knew it would become a cultural milestone,
we meet a lonely, scared man named Rick Grimes,
who wakes from a coma and is horrified to see what's become of the world around him.
"Little girl? I'm a policeman. Little girl?"
Rick is saved by his ability to find community with others,
then nearly lose them again and again due to hardship, hostile forces,
or his own ego. At one point, with hope for the future at an all-time low, he declares that,
"We are the walking dead."
With the final "One Year Later" sequence in "Rest in Peace," one of the series' most
shocking turns is the promise of a challenging future, but also an underlying sense of hope.
"I want to talk about the future. There's a lot
out there to find out about. And I think it's time we did."
It's wild to watch a series once mired in its own bleak outlook
morph into something optimistic, but that's exactly where the series finale leaves us.