Though fans still haven’t seen The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon’s third season just yet, we already know the curtain will close on this particular upcoming TWD show with its fourth season, as that news was announced during this year’s Comic-Con. Knowing that storyline is ending is a worry to fans who are hoping beyond hope that Norman Reedus will get a long-awaited on-screen reunion with Andrew Lincoln’s Rick Grimes. I’m still optimistic it’ll happen, even though the actor’s latest comments about the complications do make a lot of sense.

Seeing Carol and Daryl back together again helped Season 2 rebound after that major death we still haven’t fully gotten over yet, but those characters were destined to share the screen as soon as the spinoff was first conceived. The fact that the characters are in Europe made it impossible for either to drop by during the solo season of The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live, even if that finale did feature a couple of reunion-specific guest stars. But could there be a point where the storyline allows the characters to cross paths anew?

Speaking with SFX on CinemaBlend’s Darren Scott, longtime TWD star Norman Reedus addressed potentially reuniting with former Walking Dead-verse co-stars, and despite being personally interested in the idea, he addressed why it’s not as easy as throwing them all together in the same setting, and why it might happen differently from the idealized version in fans' minds. As he put it:

Wouldn't that be the biggest pisser imaginable to be a Walking Dead fan who has stuck it out for all these years, and whose biggest pop culture desire is to see Daryl and Rick tag-teaming once more to take down a horde of walkers, only for them to see each other again and not get along at all?

The more chaotic side of my personality would actually enjoy the hell out of that outcome, sinc eit would potentially create a unique dynamic for these characters that wouldn't just arbitrarily have them on the same side just because of their history together. Daryl and Rick did get into it pretty heavily before the Season 9 bridge explosion that left Rick's fate a mystery, so even though Daryl spent years trying to track his friend down, it's possible that finding him won't necessarily lead to a perfect rekindling.

Reedus continued, telling SFX that he also doesn't think Daryl and Carol's exploits in Europe can easily be concluded by just jettisoning them back to the U.S. In his words:

Now, for all that I can understand the logic behind Norman Reedus’ explanation, I also think that there is indeed at least one way to get Rick and Daryl back together again in a way that not only appeases fans but also works inside the narrative parameters without their respective adventures causing any strife.

Showrunner David Zabel previously talked about having a reunion plan that was discussed with Reedus, and during the TWD: Daryl Dixon panel during San Diego Comic-Con, he explained that the spinoff’s story was intended to last four seasons, and that the ending was put into place early on in the creative process, saying:

It wouldn't take a whole lot of imagination to read into Zabel's comments as possibly teasing an ending that brings Daryl and Carol back into the lives of other familiar TWD characters. (Unless, of course, he's hinting at one or both of those characters dying, which would make the whole reunion idea slightly harder to pull off successfully.)

Before any of that can play out in full, though, we still need Season 3 to arrive on the 2025 TV schedule. Speaking of...

Watch The Season 3 Trailer For The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon is among the list of exciting upcoming horror TV shows, and Season 3 will arrive on AMC starting on Sunday, September 7, 2025.

Spoilers below for The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon’s Season 2 premiere, subtitled The Book of Carol, so be warned if you haven’t yet watched!

Of all the upcoming horror TV shows popping up in time for Halloween, The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon’s second season gave fans a lot to anticipate in the form of an eventual reunion between Norman Reedus’ Daryl and Melissa McBride’s Carol, who parted ways in TWD’s emotional series finale. I’m happy to say Carol was firing on all cylinders in “La Gentillesse des Étrangers," both as a walker-destroying badass and as an emotional lynchpin.

McBride’s return was set up in the spinoff’s Season 1 finale, and after nearly a year of waiting, I don’t think any Walking Dead fanatics out there expected her first full Daryl Dixon episode to be a snoozer. But even with the actress and showrunner’s teases about callbacks to Sophia’s Season 2 demise, I honestly didn’t expect that narrative thread to be the biggest gut-punch by the end credits. Poor Carol.

Give Melissa McBride All The Action Sequences

Carol being a badass was something fans could almost always look forward to throughout The Walking Dead’s eleven-season run, save for the sporadic arcs where she was dealing with more depressing issues. Thankfully, things got off to a perfectly exciting start for the survivor on the way to embarking on her ocean-spanning trip to find her BFF in France.

Right away, and not for the only time in the episode, Carol gets what she wants from others by slightly nefarious means. I guess leaning on threats and shooting someone in the foot with a crossbow bolt is pretty damned nefarious, and it only got worse for everyone else from there.

But it was later, after she’d fooled Manish Dayal’s Ash into welcoming her into his home, that she pulled off one of the smoothest walker-escaping moves of any Walking Dead franchise character. Surrounded by walkers inside Ash’s greenhouse, She pulled three tall shelves around her to make a triangular cocoon held together by encroaching walkers. And she managed to climb up and out of the greenhouse with satisfying ease. (Completely ridiculous in any other setting, but just right for a Carol escape.)

I don’t know if Melissa McBride is interested in a project like Bob Odenkirk’s Nobody or Dev Patel’s directorial debut Monkey Man where she stars as a character on a feature-length mission in handing every other character an ass-whupping, but it’s a deserving career path. It would be feasibly easy for her to differentiate a new action-geared hero from Carol and her years on The Walking Dead, too. Somebody get her a revenge thriller script, stat.

The Surprising Way Carol Reflected On Sophia’s Death

Even though I'm one of those people who was genuinely disappointed with The Walking Dead's second season, largely due to the search for Sophia, I can in retrospect buy into Greg Nicotero's defense that this arc was the origin story for Carol and Daryl's kinship. And so I was also open to the idea that McBride wanted to show Carol dealing with her compartmentalized grief in ways that weren't fully explored in the mothership series.

The Season 2 premiere handled Carol's first Sophia-related flashback in a semi-impressionistic fashion across multiple timelines and locations, with new footage of Sophia (not Madison Lintz) emerging from Hershel's barn and shambling amongst other walkers. It went down as she was talking to Ash — not the best way to make a good first impression — and she was drawn out of it by echoes of what could only be Rick Grimes' gunshot that put Walker Sophia down for good.

I thought that and the actual TWD footage-infused flashback with Daryl would be the full thrust of why the creative team wanted to reflect on the trauma caused by Sophia's death. But no, Carol upended my expectations by lying about her grief and weaponizing it to convince Ash to fly her halfway across the world.

Ash unburdened himself with a story about his son Avi "A.P." Patel — whose memorial Carold almost immediately destroyed — and the guilt he felt about not being able to protect the 7-year-old. Not to mention sharing the reason he even got into flying in the first place is because Avi loved planes. It was his way of expressing forgiveness and again welcoming Carol into his life. And how did she respond in kind? Emotional subterfuge.

When it was her turn to get candid about her family, she was honest about having problems with Ed, but completely distorted the way things actually went down. Despite already having pissed Ash off, she lied to him about Ed taking Sophia to France before the outbreak, and that she was clueless about her daughter's fate, taking full advantage of Ash's parental guilt.

To his credit, Ash got angry with her, believing that she'd hid her true intentions about befriending him, not realizing that she was only then investing in selling the long con. And what's more, Carol clearly feels a sense of guilt about taking advantage of this generous saint of a man, and you KNOW she's going to get caught in that lie as well before all is said and done.

I don't feel very good about his chances of surviving all the way to meeting Daryl, either, given his constant good deeds, and Carol's penchant for being around people who get mauled. But I still doubt that he'll get killed off without first feeling the pain of finding out that he crossed the ocean based on a bald-faced lie about a dead child. That pain is inevitable.

Will Sophia continue to inspire Carol's actions throughout her journey to France? Find out when The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon - The Book of Carol airs new episodes every Sunday on AMC and AMC+.

As someone whose Walking Dead fandom was in waning mode by the time its emotional final episode aired, I was as surprised as anyone by just how much I enjoyed Norman Reedus’ Daryl Dixon spinoff, thanks to a completely revamped set of locations and side characters. But things will look a bit more familiar in Season 2 when Melissa McBride returns as fan-fave Carol, and the show will apparently veer into the past to reflect on one of the O.G. series’ most controversial moments: the zombie Sophia reveal.

While the cynical instinct might be to recoil in horror at the thought of returning to Season 2’s Sophia-seeking slog of a storyline during Fall TV season, the impetus behind that creative choice stemmed from McBride’s own long-standing desires for her character upon returning for the AMC spinoff. Speaking with EW ahead of The Book of Carol’s premiere, the actress talked about being a larger part of the creative process in shaping the survivor’s arc, and how it allows for extra development space that wasn’t always there in TWD. In her words:

For all that I jokingly rage against the slow-moving build to the moment when Madison Lintz's Sophia shambles out of Hershel's barn to everyone's shock and grief, the scene in and of itself is pretty effective. And I can agree with executive producer Greg Nicotero's defense that Season 2's search cemented Carol and Daryl's bond, and with Lintz's notion that losing her daughter forged Carol into a beter character.

So with those caveats in mind, I can approach this with the mindset that it could be quite powerful for both Carol and her diehard fans to see her on a slightly less hectic path that allows for more moments to shed her survival instincts for a bit and let the emotions flow. Grief is arguably the hardest emotion to figure out and live with, and while The Walking Dead showed Carol to still have Sophia in mind years later, it's not quite the same as inner catharsis.

Showrunner Craig Zobel also addressed Melissa McBride's creative requests for how her first season of Daryl Dixon would go. As he put it:

Norman Reedus also echoed those thoughts, pointing to The Walking Dead's massive and ever-changing ensemble cast making it harder for the show to take the proper amount of time to spotlight Carol's deeper emotions that can't just be spouted off with a few lines of dialogue between walker attacks.

Just how much we'll actually return to Sophia's death and walker-rection is yet to be seen, but answers will start arriving when The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon - The Book of Carol debuts on AMC and AMC+ on Sunday, September 29. Just maybe don't expect all the answers, with Season 3 ordered and already in production.

Though AMC has been devoid of zombies (French or otherwise) throughout the 2024 TV schedule so far, that will change with the second season of the upcoming Walking Dead series TWD: Daryl Dixon - The Book of Carol. When the spinoff arrives in September, fans will witness the direct aftermath of the Season 1 finale, which first revealed the impending arrival of Melissa McBride’s fan-favorite survivor Carol. Now we know more about her voyage, thanks to the SDCC trailer, but it also sparked two further questions.

And that’s not even counting the questions that came along with the Season 3 announcement’s location change. But anyone who hasn’t should check out the trailer below so we’re all on the same page when it comes to what we know about Daryl and Carol’s future plights.

Looks like pure mayhem, and that’s exactly what I want and expect out of this show. I’m sure “Daryl learning French one introspective word at a time” is somewhere else on that list, albeit far lower. Now let’s dive into the two questions that I’ll no doubt still be wondering about by the time we see new episodes on AMC or with an AMC+ subscription, which will hopefully address both in some way.

How Are There Not More Airplanes Out There?

Any Walking Dead franchise fan who stuck it out through the CRM era knows that helicopters have pretty much been mastered in this post-apocalyptic universe. Planes, on the other hand, have always appeared to be a distant-past luxury. Yes, the minisode miniseries Fear the Walking Dead: Flight 462 actually took place on a plane, but that was at the onset of the outbreak, and didn't branch into the broader spectrum of air travel.

A few other rare instances have popped up, but not to the extremes of what's taking place in the trailer, which features Carol and her new friend Ash (portrayed by The Resident's Manish Dayal) set to cross the whole damn ocean in seemingly one go. Which right there brings up so many mini-questions, not the least of which is how Carol manages to convince this dude that her particular voyage is the one to throw his whole life at.

But if Carol managed to find "a guy" who has a working plane capable of cross-Atlantic boogeying, how many other possible secret fliers are there in the world, and why haven't we seen more evidence of planes still being used? Obviously giant commercial jets would be highly impractical, but private planes of all kinds would be feasibly useful for survivors with know-how.

Practically, I understand that this is more of a budget and safety issue than a franchise storytelling fault, as it would have been jarring to have two-seaters flying above Rick and Team Family in the early seasons of The Walking Dead proper. But still, with Daryl having made that journey by boat in the first season, it's especially bonkers to have this be the point when a new character reveals "plane" to be their secret weapon.

Also, incidentally, I think metro airports would be extremely fascinating and haunting places to explore within a Walking Dead series. Also very impractical, but theoretically very cool.

Will Daryl And Carol's Reunion Actually Make Any Plausible Sense?

Even though the trailer doesn't fully confirm in its final seconds that it's indeed Carol standing behind Norman Reedus' character, that's the most obvious assumption, and I fully get that this series needs to set these two BFFs up for a fairy tale-esque reunion. (Even more so after McBride chose not to take part in the first season as previously planned.) So I know storytelling leaps will be taken, since the odds against these characters finding each other again are fucking astronomical.

To that end, there's a part of my brain that can only accept this plotline if Carol's big trip somehow takes her directly to wherever Daryl is, because she (also somehow) has access on his exact location. I can buy into a lot of other wishy-washy details if I can lean into a plausible sliver of cause and effect somewhere. But that's not going to be the case here.

Instead, Carol and Ash appear to land in the middle of a zombie-filled nowhere, and have to then attempt to pinpoint where Daryl is. And I KNOW it will happen, and I'm fine with it. But I kind of need the show to very specifically have a character say, "Wow, it's gawdamned amazing that we are together again, because if either of us had died in the past few days, the other person would not have known, and this could have ended up being a hectic and inevitably depressing goose chase for one of us."

If not that in full, then I need there to be some French mathematician in the area to come up with whatever the literal odds would be of them finding each other. Like, I go weeks looking for one of my earbuds, or a shirt that ended up hanging in someone else's closet. If I had to go looking for an earbud or a shirt in Paris after the world ended... Well, that wouldn't be worth a TV show.

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon - The Book of Carol will debut on AMC and AMC+ on September 29, with Season 3 taking the characters to Spain in 2025. Norman Reedus seems ready to stick with the character for as long as things stay fresh, so who knows where Daryl will go in Season 4.

Warning! Spoilers ahead! 

AMC's massive hit The Walking Dead established earlier on that anything could happen at any time, including the worst. Still, a number of characters made it quite a long time. While none of the cast members on the show appeared in all 177 episodes of the show, here are the actors who appeared in the most episodes of The Walking Dead. 

Norman Reedus (175 Episodes)

Daryl Dixon, played by Norman Reedus, was a fan favorite almost from the very beginning, and by the end of the show, he was hands down the most popular character. Reedus was amazing as the gruff, tough-as-nails survivor and he appeared in more episodes than any other actor, 175 in total. He also returned in the follow-up show The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon.

Melissa McBride (174 Episodes)

The character on The Walking Dead that had the most incredible character arc has to be Carol played by Melissa McBride. Carol was a fairly meek housewife to an abusive husband. She didn't stay the way and by the end of the show's run, and McBride's 175 episodes, she was someone you definitely wanted to have on your side against the zombies. 

Lauren Cohan (144 Episodes)

It's hard to believe that viewers didn't meet Maggie Greene Rhee until the second season when the survivors reached the farm. Still, actress Lauren Cohan appeared in the third-most episodes by the end, 144 in total. Though she had one of the most tragic story arcs, she comes out on top at the very end, proving how tough she really was.  

Christian Serratos (130 Episodes)

Fans of The Walking Dead aren't introduced to Rosalita, played by Christian Serratos, until Season 4 and Serratos didn't become a main cast member until the following season. From then on though, she becomes a key survivor right up until the very end when she becomes the final victim of the zombies on the show, after 130 episodes.

Josh McDermitt (130 Episodes)

Josh McDermitt's character, Eugene, is one of the most interesting characters on the show. At first, he's weak, selfish, and spineless, but he eventually grows into one of the most capable survivors on the show, using his smarts to help out in many ways. 

Danai Gurira (126 Episodes)

From the first time viewers see Michonne, played by Danai Gurira, until the end of the show, she was among the most beloved and awesome characters. Though she wasn't introduced until the end of Season 2, Gurira appeared in 126 episodes over the final 10 seasons. And she wasn't someone you ever wanted to mess with.

Seth Gilliam (125 Episodes)

Former cast member of The Wire Seth Gilliam plays one of the more controversial characters, the priest Gabriel Stokes. Though he didn't join the show until Season 5, he played a huge role, both good and bad, with the survivors over the final seven seasons. 

Andrew Lincoln (121 Episodes)

If there is a main character of The Walking Dead, at least in the first nine seasons, it's Rick Grimes, played by Andrew Lincoln. He's the de facto leader at almost every point in the show, and the father of two kids. At the end of Season 9 Grimes disappears and at the end of Season 11 it's revealed he's still alive, but only a little is revealed about where he ends up until the follow-up show, The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live.

Ross Marquand (116 Episodes)

Audiences first meet Ross Marquand's character Aaron when he recruits the survivors to join the community he's a part of in Alexandria. From Season 5, when he is introduced, until the end of the show, Aaron is a key character who appeared in a total of 116 episodes. 

Chandler Riggs (109 Episodes)

Carl Grimes was, other than his infant sister, the youngest member of the group of main survivors. Rick's son, played by Chandler Riggs, was a key character in both the TV and in the comic books, though his run on the show ended before the character's arc is over in the comic books. Riggs left the show in dramatic fashion after 109 episodes to attend college. 

Jeffrey Dean Morgan (95 Episodes)

The Walking Dead became known for introducing a big baddie in every season, but no one was ready for Negan, played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan. As the leader of The Saviors, Negan is absolutely brutal, and within minutes of meeting him, he commits the two most horrific murders in the show's entire history. His character arc is fascinating, however, and it meant he lasted 95 episodes, right up until the end. 

Alanna Masterson (87 Episodes)

Tara Chambler, played by actress Alanna Masterson, starts out as a follower of the antagonist known as The Governor but soon realizes he's a bad person. During the attack on the prison by the survivors, Tara switches sides and ends up an important member of the survivors before she is attacked and killed in Season 9, after appearing in 87 episodes. 

Khary Payton (83 Episodes)

Khary Payton introduction as King Ezekiel in the seventh season was a big moment. Not only did was it a dramatic shot, with him sitting with his tiger, but it brought in a character that would become a key player over the next 83 episodes. 

Steven Yeun (81 Episodes)

The Walking Dead was famous for the brutal deaths of some of its most beloved characters and at the top of that list is Glenn's horrifying death at the hands of Nega in the Season 7 premiere. It was hard to stomach, and even harder to take, emotionally. Actor Steven Yeun's character was a fan favorite and after 81 episodes, suddenly he was gone. 

Cooper Andrews (81 Episodes)

Actor Cooper Andrews' character Jerry is the kind of character everyone loves. He's a bit of a goof, but dedicated and loyal to his people, and very capable. Though the character wasn't introduced until Season 8 and wasn't a main cast member until 10, Andrews still appeared in 81 episodes. 

Sonequa Martin-Green (70 Episodes)

Sasha, played by Sonequa Martin-Green, who appeared in 70 episodes was a character created for the show, rather than in the comic book from which The Walking Dead was adapted. Still, Sasha becomes an incredibly important character from Season 3 when we meet her until her heroic death at the end of Season 8.

Eleanor Matsuura (58 Episodes)

Eleanor Matsuura, who plays Yumiko, is a late joiner to the cast, not appearing until the 9th Season. Still, she proves her worth quickly and appears in almost every episode from there out, a total of 58. 

Nadia Hilker (56 Episodes)

One of the new characters introduced in Season 9 is Magna, played by actress Nadia Hilker. She's a tough customer who seemingly trusts very few people, and who can blame her after surviving the zombie apocalypse for as long as she has. She also survives the final battle in Alexandria at the of Season 11 and is seen living happily with her girlfriend, Yumiko, after 56 episodes on the show. 

Lauren Ridloff (56 Episodes)

Along with Magna and Yumiko, Lauren Ridloff's character Connie is a tough survivor who joined the show in Season 9. Like those characters Connie appears in most of the final three seasons, a total of 56 episodes. 

Callan McAuliffe (55 Episodes)

 Alden, played by Callan McAuliffe, was a member of the brutal Saviors when viewers met him, but he eventually switches sides and teams up with the Hilltop Community led by Maggie. In all, he ended up in most of the final shows in the final 4 seasons, a total of 55 episodes. 

Cassady McClincy Zhang (54 Episodes)

Lydia is a character who is quite different in the show than she is in the comics, mostly due to the changed story arc of her love interest in the books, Carl Grimes. In the show, she is introduced in Season 9 when she is taken captive by Michonne and Daryl. She ends the series alive, 54 episodes later. She was played by Cassady McClincy Zhang.

Cailey Fleming (53 Episodes)

The youngest member of the main cast was Cailey Fleming, who played the older Judith Grimes in seasons 10 and 11, a total of 53 episodes. Of course, the character appears in way more episodes going back to the very beginnings of the show, but for years, she was a baby, presumably played by different people and definitely not played by Fleming.

Lennie James (52 Episodes)

Morgan, played by Lennie James, is one of the earliest characters viewers meet in the show, though he remains an enigma and only occasionally appeared in the early days. James became a main character in Season 6, and in total appeared in 52 episodes over the first 8 seasons of the show before he leaves the group. The character became the protagonist in the first spinoff, Fear The Walking Dead. 

Emily Kinney (50 Episodes)

Emily Kinney played Beth Greene in 50 episodes of The Walking Dead. She was Herschel's daughter and Maggie's half-sister. She was introduced on the show when Rick and the rest of the survivors got to the Greene farm. Initially, Kinney had a much smaller role than those of her family members, but by Season 4 she had become a full-time cast member. It wasn't for long though, as Beth was killed by Dawn in one heck of a disastrous moment that also saw Daryl kill Dawn. 

Katelyn Nacon (50 Episodes)

The second-to-last episode of Season 10 of The Walking Dead is a brutal one. The mysterious character called Alpha proves to be a brutal baddie when it's revealed that her people, The Whispers, have killed a number of people, including Enid, played by Katelyn Nacon. Nacon portrayed Enid in 50 episodes, starting in Season 5. 

Tom Payne (45 Episodes)

The Hilltop Community becomes one of the most important settlements in the post-apocalyptic world and viewers of the show, and the core survivors, are introduced to it by Paul "Jesus" Rovia, who was played by Tom Payne for 45 episodes, starting in Season 7. Jesus is both a spy and an ambassador of sorts for the Hilltop folks, who ends up recruiting and fighting with Rick and the others against The Saviors. Sadly, he doesn't make it past Season 9 when he is killed by The Whisperers. 

Michael Cudlitz (38 Episodes)

What can we say about Abraham Ford? Played by the great Michael Cudlitz who first found major fame on TV as a member of the cast of Band of Brothers, Abraham was a fan favorite from the first time viewers met him in Season 4. That made his death in the Season 7 premiere, after starring in 38 Episodes, at the hands of Negan incredibly heartbreaking. 

Scott Wilson (38 Episodes)

Everyone loves their grandfather and in a way, that's who Scott Wilson's character Herschel Greene represented on the show. The patriarch of Maggie and Beth's family, Herschel is tough, he's fair, and he's righteous. Introduced on the farm in Season 2, Herschel is killed by The Governor in Season 4, after appearing in 38 episodes. 

Austin Amelio (36 Episodes)

Dwight, played by Austin Amelio, always seemed like a reluctant, if brutal, member of Negan's group, The Saviors. With his badly scarred face, he was a standout character for 36 episodes before Amelio left The Walking Dead to join the spinoff Fear The Walking Dead. 

Kerry Cahill (36 Episodes)

For a character that appeared in 36 Episodes of the show, Dianne, played by Kerry Cahill, is the least developed on this list. Cahill is first seen in The Kingdom, playing one of the community's best soldiers, a skill she later takes to the Hilltop Community. For the rest of the series, she is part of many battles, but we never learn too much about her. 

Sarah Wayne Callies (35 Episodes)

Sarah Wayne Callies plays Lori Grimes, Rick's wife, and mother to Carl and Judith. In the first three seasons, she's one of the most important characters on the show and gets herself stuck in a love triangle between Rick, whom she believed was dead, and Rick's best friend, Shane Walsh (Jon Bernthal). During Season 3, Lori is forced to give birth to Judith via C-section, and without proper medical facilities, the procedure kills her in one of the hardest moments of the show to watch. In total, Callies appeared in 35 episodes.

Laurie Holden (35 Episodes)

Actor Laurie Holden is one of the original cast members of the show, playing Andrea from the earliest episodes. At the end of Season 2, she gets separated from the rest of the survivors at the farm and is saved by Michonne. Both end up at Woodbury with The Governor, who Andrea grows close to. Trusting him was a mistake as she is eventually taken prisoner by him which leads to her death at the hands of a walker towards the end of Season 3 after 35 appearances. 

Spoilers below for anyone who hasn’t yet watched the Season 1 finale for The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, so be warned!

Thanks to the festivities happening at New York Comic-Con, The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon dropped some huge news that seemed to point a finger at what fans could expect to see in the Season 1 finale, with TWD vet Melissa McBride officially arriving in Season 2 for a full arc as Carol. The actress did grace the screen as the beloved survivor at the end of “Coming Home,” and it was pretty awesome, but I’m not sure it fully balanced out the oddball quasi-cliffhanger set up by Laurent interrupting Daryl’s attempt to cut and run, and the lack of any kind of conclusion for main antagonist Genet and her experiments. 

Now let’s dig into the nitty gritty of Carol’s in-person return, as well as the unexpected ways the stories closed out for the season’s hero and villain, with an eye on how this episode could inform how things play out in other upcoming Walking Dead TV shows.

Carol’s Back To Badass Basics, But To What End?

Following her voice-only return in Episode 105, which set up a “Who came back?” mini-mystery, Melissa McBride was in Carol mode on screen for the first time since she said goodbye to her scruffy BFF in The Walking Dead’s emotional series finale. Nothing too cryptic about the sequence, which basically had her arriving near Freeport, the spot where Daryl radioed her from, and teaching a lesson to the goon who was in possession of a very familiar motorcycle.

But what happens next for her? It’s assumed that she took off looking for him after he didn’t make his “back in a week” deadline, but how far is Carol set to travel to find him? If she stumbles across a similar scenario where walkers are being gathered up for experiments, will she decide to cross the whole-ass Atlantic Ocean on just the chance of stumbling across him down the line? Or will her curiosity take over and have her trying to get to the bottom of that situation stateside?

Basically, I’m wondering if fans will be waiting nearly the entire season to see Reedus and McBride together again, or if the spinoff’s creative team will figure out a way to steamroll through the middle bits to pair them up early on. I know what I’m hoping, anyway, and it absolutely involves Carol and Isabelle sizing each other up the first time they meet. 

Does Anyone Believe Daryl Won't Save Laurent?

Rarely does The Walking Dead franchise leave me completely flummoxed the way I felt when watching the final minutes of the Season 1 finale that played out before Carol’s return. Daryl shared a difficult goodbye with Isabelle, and left a farewell message for the sleeping Laurent before heading out on the first leg of his planned journey back to the U.S. With the ship in the distance and an escape in his grasp, Daryl had to fight off a rather unrealistically large swath of walkers suddenly rising up from the tall grass, but not even that struggle was enough to stop his progress. 

• RELATED: The Story Behind Why The Walking Dead's Daryl Dixon Never Appeared In Robert Kirkman's Comic Book

Then dropped the other shoe, as Laurent popped up out of nowhere hollering Daryl’s name from atop the grassy incline in the direct middle of all the still shambling undead. Why didn’t Laurent just quietly dodge the zombies and meet up with Daryl directly instead of yelling and putting himself directly in harm’s way? It’s not like the latter was stepping onto the boat or anything; there was still plenty of time. In fact, there was enough time for Daryl to mentally run through the dilemma a few times as he looked back and forth between the boat and Laurent.

Due to the lack of panic involved, I couldn’t quite figure out if this was actually meant to serve as a legitimate cliffhanger for the finale, as it wasn’t entirely clear if Daryl realized how many walkers were closing in on the messianic lad. Clearly, Reedus’ character isn’t just going to ignore the kid in order to hit the high seas, considering he spent so many episodes trying to usher Laurent to safety. So does that mean he’s considering taking the boy with him to the U.S., or is Daryl just struggling with knowing that he’ll have to tell the people on the boat that their trip was pointless? Maybe the true cliffhanger is actually for whoever’s piloting the boat.

No Closure For Genet Or Her Zombie Experiments

As much as I wholly enjoyed watching Daryl adapt to life with Isabelle and the other protagonists, Anne Charrier’s Madame Genet never really sat well with me as the overarching villain, in part because her immediate motivations as the Pouvoir Du Vivant leader were murky at best. She’s in charge of Wildfire Virus experiments that seek out walkers from across the globe for test subjects, yet those tests don’t seem to have produced any winning formulas, considering Daryl and Quinn dispatched the modified monsters without things getting too strenuous. (Quinn took a fatal blow, but whatever.) 

So her science team sucks, and her army suffered a barrage of casualties going after Laurent and Daryl, even though Genet’s enforcers really only had one job: being more violent and badass than whoever they came up against. In the end, Genet is still aiming to find her targets, without anything getting resolved for her story, but at what point will it make more sense to her to back off and taper off the body count?

While we’re at it, I have to say I’m also quite a bit disappointed by the way Romain Levi’s soldier Codron ended things. Not in the sense that I truly wished he’d followed orders and murdered Laurent and possibly others in cold blood; I’m fine with his conscience not suffering for morally heinous choices in that vein. But I don’t really understand why this dude so hellbent on avenging his brother’s death not only spared Laurent & Co., but then felt that murdering his fellow soldiers was an additionally great move, despite knowing he’d have to answer for it later. It should have taken an entire episode to genuinely steer him into redemptive behavior.

All that said, I still thought it was a fun and exciting way for The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon to wrap up its first six-episode chapter, and I can’t wait to see where things go in Season 2 once Carol presumably becomes more entrenched in the overall story. For now, the season is completed, but can still be streamed with an AMC+ subscription. And head to our 2023 TV premiere schedule to see what other new and upcoming shows are on the way.

The Walking Dead universe has been going strong on AMC this fall thanks to Norman Reedus' return as Daryl Dixon, although the zombie apocalypse in France has presented a whole new slew of challenges from what fans saw him face in the eleven seasons of the original show. The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon was originally supposed to be a spinoff centered on Melissa McBride's Carol as well as Reedus as Daryl before McBride backed out. Now, McBride is set to return in a big way for Season 2, and I'm unexpectedly flashing back to Disney+'s Star Wars shows. 

No, it's not because Daryl's unexpected trip to France will be outdone by Carol hunting zombies in outer space. AMC revealed at New York Comic Con that Season 2 of the spinoff will be called The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol, and any Star Wars fan with a Disney+ subscription can probably guess why I immediately starting thinking about the galaxy far, far away. IGN reports that Melissa McBride will be a series regular as Carol in Season 2, intended for a 2024 premiere. The actress said this in a statement: 

There are far more questions than answers about how Carol could enter the story of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon with the title character in France, although McBride had a voice cameo in the most recent episode that has already resulted in theories. It's the Season 2 title of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol that immediately had me thinking of Disney+'s The Book of Boba Fett, which was a spinoff of The Mandalorian. 

When the Boba Fett show was announced, some fans speculated that it would actually be the third season of The Mandalorian simply with a different title and different lead, but it turned out to be a (mostly) solo series with The Mandalorian's main character guest-starring. I'm not suggesting that The Book of Carol as Season 2 of TWD: Daryl Dixon will feel like a totally separate show with Norman Reedus having a hugely reduced presence, but it seems safe to say that the next batch of episodes will be very different. 

Of course, the original idea for the spinoff was to have Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride as co-leads, so one question is whether the team behind the scenes will be able to repurpose any of the early plans for Season 2. McBride pulled out of the spinoff back in 2022 because she wouldn't be able to relocate to Europe for filming; it remains to be seen if the actress was able to make the move to France for the second season or her scenes will be filmed back in the U.S.

For now, fans can at least hope that some answers will be available sooner rather than later. The Season 1 finale of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon will air on Sunday, October 15 on AMC and stream on AMC+ at 9 p.m. ET. With the penultimate episode dropping a clue about Carol, I for one am hoping that we get an on-screen appearance from Melissa McBride before the final credits roll on Season 1. 

With Season 2 not expected until 2024, you can check out our 2023 TV schedule for some upcoming viewing options, including the return of Fear the Walking Dead for its final round of episodes.

Spoilers below for the latest episode of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, so be warned if you haven’t yet watched.

When The Walking Dead’s latest spinoff series was first announced, the idea was for it to center on both Norman Reedus’ Daryl and Melissa McBride’s Carol, though plans surprisingly changed when the actress backed out of the project ahead of production. Show creator David Zabel previously teased that her beloved character would possibly be popping up TWD:Daryl Dixon at some point during the first season, and that cameo was unveiled during Episode 105, “Deux Amours,” in a way that added a new wrinkle to the mystery behind why Daryl is so intent on making his way back to the U.S. as relatively quickly as possible.

For those who may not have watched, or may have somehow immediately forgotten what just happened, let’s take a closer look at Melissa McBride’s vocal return, and what her message to Daryl may have been about. 

What Daryl Learned From Carol

With this penultimate Season 1 episode, The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon finally answered a big season premiere question by showing viewers the exact events that led Norman Reedus’ survivor to calling a lifeboat his home away from home before he washed ashore in France. Basically, he was recruited into a group of total shitbirds located in Maine who were tasked with rounding up walkers of specific ages and sizes for future experiments across the pond. (That’s a whole other list of theories.) Before things went haywire, though, Daryl managed to successfully get in contact with Carol, who came across as weirdly put off by the whole conversation.

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It sounded like good ol’ Carol when she asked about him and his current location, but her tone noticeably shifted whenever he asked the same questions. She said things were “pretty quiet,” and that it “just takes some getting used to,” though viewers were left in the dark about what she was talking about. Was she possibly referring to Daryl having left, or is there another major change we don’t know about yet?

In any case, Daryl promised to get back to her in a week, which will no doubt be a broken promise in due time. But Carol’s final words are the ones that sparked the most curiosity, as their radio connection became conveniently choppy during what was seemingly the most important point in her message, as seen below:

Though he wasn't able to secure a successful connection again, Daryl's takeaway from that convo was the return of someone. And while the moment wasn't played in the most dramatic fashion possible, the rising volume and tension of the music made it clear that information was vital in one way or another. Thus, the speculation began. 

Theory 1: Carol Wasn't Talking About Rick Or Michonne

One of the most hopeful guesses to throw out into the universe in this instance would be Rick and Michonne, since they’re the still-living Walking Dead characters who have been gone the longest from the core narrative, outside of Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira’s brief returns in TWD’s series finale. Plus, TWD: Daryl Dixon had by that point already pricked viewers’ ears by having Laurent pray not just for Carol, but for R.J., Judith, Connie and Ezekiel, jamming echoes of Richonne right into our super-delicious brains. I mean, uh, our super-deductive brains. [covers possible bite marks with sleeve]

But if that actually was the case, and Rick and Michonne showed up on Team Family’s doorstep after years of being gone, I have to think that’s how Carol would have excitedly started that radio conversation with Daryl, as opposed to saying things were just okay. In fact, I’d go so far as to say if it ends up that Carol did say “Rick and Michonne came back,” there’s no possible explanation for why it would make sense for that specific context. So rather than thinking that this smart, crafty standout of a spinoff would make an atypically goofy choice like that, I’ll assume the franchise’s most adored coupling won’t be part of the reveal. 

Theory 2: Carol Was Talking To Daryl Under Duress

I can't get away from the feeling that Carol's tone with Daryl just didn't vibe right, especially since he was so clearly overjoyed to have a loved one to talk to. The fact that he had to ask twice if she was okay has to mean something, as if it wasn't already sorta obvious by the way she said this:

To me, that line reading was far more "I'm afraid I can't do that, Dave" than the warm and loving Carol whose farewell to Daryl in "Rest in Peace" was on completely good terms. So why would she flip moods like that? Well, maybe someone antagonistic was watching over her and stopping her from saying the wrong thing, and she intentionally changed her tone up knowing that Daryl would be alarmed. Maybe that hypothetical antagonist is who she was referring to in saying they "came back," and that call ended on a bad note for her, with Reedus' character completely unaware. Which leads us to the following...

Theory 3: Carol Was Referring To A Character Viewers Don't Know Yet

Whether or not the above theory is true, it's still possible Carol could have been talking about a character whose identity wouldn't mean anything to viewers if it was revealed, because we might not know who they are yet. Not, it wouldn't be the smartest move for the show to address an unknown character with a cryptic anti-namedrop in the penultimate Season 1 installment, but maybe it's akin to The Walking Dead: Dead City introducing a wholly new teen character whose survival was vital to Negan, with that relationship not quick clicking for me during that first season. So while this isn't the likeliest option, a new threat outside of France could easily be an additional way this show will bridge the first and second seasons.

Theory 4: Carol Is Talking About Maggie And/Or Negan

I admittedly can't say with any degree of certainty where any of this is happening in the overall timeline, but I'll go ahead and throw out some bases-covered conjecture pointing to Negan and/or Maggie's return(s) being alluded to by Carol's broken transmission. I don't know what that would do for the storylines on either this show or Dead City's second season, but I wouldn't be surprised if the various upcoming Walking Dead TV shows and secondary seasons all connect together in the end.

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon airs Sunday nights on AMC at 9:00 p.m. ET, and is available to stream with an AMC+ subscription.

Though The Walking Dead flagship show ended its eleven-year run only seven months ago, the zombie-centered series is the franchise that refuses to die, with several upcoming TWD series on the horizon. Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Lauren Cohan’s reprisal of fan-fave rivals Negan and Maggie, respectively, in AMC’s newest offshoot subtitled Dead City, has already hit the 2023 TV schedule with a Dixon spinoff coming soon. However, some fans have already shared some complaints with the Norman Reedus-led production, prompting the Negan actor to respond. 

Addressing the concerns of "toxic fans" who have been critical of the upcoming spinoffs, the Negan actor recently shared an intriguing hint about the forthcoming AMC drama. In a social media post on Twitter, Morgan posted a picture of Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride in character, expressing his excitement and shutting down the negativity surrounding the new shows. 

Back in 2020, a spinoff featuring the beloved motorcycle-riding, crossbow-wielding hero was announced, and fans naturally assumed that Melissa McBride would be a part of the show considering her character's history with Daryl and their undeniable chemistry. However, in 2022, it was revealed that the actress would be exiting the Daryl/Carol spinoff, leading some fans to direct their frustration toward the Dixon actor. 

But in the recent Twitter post, Jeffrey Dean Morgan shared a picture of the fan-favorite duo while expressing his excitement about the news that McBride would appear in the spinoff. In his post, the Watchmen alum showed his enthusiasm and addressed the negativity surrounding the situation, sarcastically apologizing to Reedus for “talking oodles of shit.”

Reports suggested McBride turned down the spinoff due to her reluctance to relocate to Europe for the production. However, some fans online criticized Reedus, implying that he played a role in Carol's departure from the show. This speculation enraged Morgan, prompting him to express his frustration on Twitter. In a passionate defense of Reedus, he wrote:

More recently, Morgan responded to a user questioning whether these toxic fans would take credit for McBride's return to the project due to their constant complaints. In response to the commenter, he said:

Two things are obvious: You want to be friends with Jeffrey Dean Morgan because the dude is gonna have your back. And fans will see Daryl and Carol reuniting after all. 

Morgan currently stars in the new spinoff titled The Walking Dead: Dead City, which our own Nick Venable had some thoughts on. The series, which airs new episodes on AMC every Sunday at 8:00 p.m. ET, departs from the wilderness and takes the action to the ruins of Manhattan. Alongside him, Lauren Cohan reprises her role as Maggie, reluctantly teaming up with the once baseball-wielding baddy to rescue her kidnapped son in New York City. You can watch the action-packed trailer below: 

As we anticipate the reunion of the popular zombie-killing team in The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon on AMC, you can revisit the entire flagship series with a Netflix subscription. 

The Walking Dead franchise has been going strong for over a decade, with the AMC pilot airing back in 2010. While the flagship series is nearing its end, there are a number of spinoffs either in the works or already in existence. And the franchise’s official social media has issued a response over Melissa McBride’s exit from the Daryl/Carol spinoff, and the fan hate coming at Daryl actor Norman Reedus.

This week it was revealed that Carol actress Melissa McBride would no longer be leading a Walking Dead spinoff alongside Norman Reedus. The fan reaction has been wild, with some folks directing hate and blame at Reedus. Now the franchise has issued a statement on Twitter about the online discourse, which reads:

There you have it. While there was originally a ton of discourse about Melissa McBride leaving the planned Walking Dead spinoff, this sets the record straight. She simply didn’t want to spend so much time filming in Europe, which is an understandable reason for not moving forward with the project. And the powers that be at the franchise want to make sure that Norman Reedus stops being the subject of so much negativity.

The above post from The Walking Dead’s Twitter comes as a ton of hate has been thrown Norman Reedus’ way over the Daryl/Carol spinoff series. Negan actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan previously put his support behind both of his co-stars, while slamming the “toxic” fans out there who are making the situation so negative. He’s also expected to have his own spinoff once the apocalyptic drama comes to a close.

Later in that same statement, The Walking Dead franchise gave love and respect to Melissa McBride, and the work she’s done as Carol over the years. And it sounds like the fan favorite survivor still might show up here and then in the future, as it reads:

Well, color me intrigued. While Melissa McBride won’t be leading a Walking Dead spinoff alongside Norman Reedus, perhaps we’ll see her as Carol in a guest capacity. Any fan of the flagship series would love to see those two characters appear on the small screen, as they represent the final OG’s who are left in the series.

The Walking Dead is in the midst of its extended final season, which airs on AMC. Be sure to check out the midseason premiere list to plan your next binge watch. 

The future is already set in gore-splattered stone for The Walking Dead on AMC, with the final eight episodes dropping later this year, and thus the franchise’s future is now taking up more of the spotlight. Of the various spinoffs in development, the biggest no-brainer was the Daryl and Carol offshoot that was announced back in 2020, but things took an unexpected turn when star Melissa McBride dropped out of the project. Fans have shared all manner of reactions to that news, with some outright blaming Norman Reedus for how things played out, but Jeffrey Dean Morgan had some strong words for anyone taking part in such “toxic” behavior. 

No stranger to being candid on social media, Jeffrey Dean Morgan took to Twitter in the early morning hours with a pointed condemnation of Walking Dead fans who were quick to rail on Norman Reedus over the Daryl and Carol spinoff’s setback, despite him not being actively involved. Here’s how Morgan put it, presumably while adjusting his leather jacket and cracking his knuckles.  

Fans are definitely known for taking things too far on social media, regardless of what the context is, so it’s perhaps not entirely surprising that a swath of viewers would instinctively choose to rain blame down on Norman Reedus for Melissa McBride bowing out of their Walking Dead offshoot. For anyone who doesn’t actually look into the matter with fact-checking in mind, it may have seemed wonky that Reedus’ Daryl Dixon was given solo star status in the spinoff as soon as McBride’s exit was announced. But correlation is not causation, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan is not here for shitty people sharing shitty opinions. 

While it’s absolutely possible that there is more happening with this situation than meets the eye, AMC followed up on the initial news with a statement saying the spinoff’s European filming schedule “became logistically untenable” for Melissa McBride to currently handle. It’s unclear why the overseas production is untenable, whether it’s due to personal or professional reasons, but that’s not even the point. 

Regardless of what the deal is, it was presumably McBride’s call, and as Jeffrey Dean Morgan noted, that should be respected by any and all fans. Even if someone doesn’t fully believe that to be the case, that doesn’t at all justify aiming one’s negative and hateful views onto Norman Reedus just for being the only other star involved. Ironically, those people will probably end up being the ones who stump for the spinoff the hardest whenever it actually gets here. Fandom is a complicated mess.

While Jeffrey Dean Morgan is clearly unhappy with the aftermath of McBride’s exit from that particular spinoff, his own upcoming follow-up Isle of the Dead unveiled its first new-to-the-franchise cast addition. Morgan and co-star Lauren Cohan will be joined by Grey’s Anatomy and Friday Night Lights vet Gaius Charles will be joining the NYC-set fun as a menacing family man named Izaak. Could Melissa McBride somehow factor into that spinoff now, presumably its production details are more agreeable for the actress? Or is she just completely done with the franchise altogether? 

Only the future can reveal such things, and speaking of the future, The Walking Dead will return to AMC with its final eight episodes later in 2022. In the meantime, the flagship’s first spinoff Fear the Walking Dead is playing out the back half of Season 7, with episodes airing every Sunday night at 9:00 p.m. While waiting for the next one, relive all of Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s biggest and best moments as Negan.

With just eight episodes left to air in The Walking Dead's flagship run, this final hiatus has a lot of fans looking ahead to where the franchise will go next with these familiar characters. After the still-airing Fear the Walking Dead and the limited World Beyond spinoff, the next big TWD spinoff was long ago revealed to be an on-the-road buddy drama focusing on two of the show's fan-favorite characters, Norman Reedus' Daryl and Melissa McBride's Carol. Those plans have now changed, however, as it appears McBride is no longer involved with the project. Feels like a perfect time for Daryl to drop another F-bomb.

To be co-created by current Walking Dead showrunner Angela Kang and the franchise's CCO Scott Gimple, the Daryl and Carol spinoff was an easy-to-understand option for a spinoff starring legacy characters, considering they're the only two survivors that have been there since the earliest days. But it looks like plans have changed, as TVLine reports that Carol was excised from the spinoff as a creative decision through and through. 

That element implies there wasn't any bad blood between Melissa McBride and the network or show producers. But without the star or others commenting publicly on the matter, it's hard to know exactly what happened behind the scenes that set up this shocking turn of events. 

For those worried that the project might be canned altogether, quell the fears, because the spinoff is reportedly still going forward, but with Norman Reedus' consistently filthy survivor set to lead the new project all by his lonesome. Considering how everything went down in Season 11's finale, we can't very well expect him to take his one-time lover Leah out on the road with him, either.

As far as behind-the-scenes shocks go for The Walking Dead franchise, the Daryl and Carol spinoff losing its Carol aspect is as major as it gets. Nothing will beat Andrew Lincoln's mystery-bound exit as Rick Grimes on that front, but it's legitimately hard to envision this franchise's future without Melissa McBride involved. By all means, TWD's Carol-based narratives are fairly cyclical after so many seasons, but the actress' skills are the biggest reasons why the character has remained so beloved over the years. 

Of course, that beloved nature had a LOT to do with Carol's romance-adjacent friendship with Daryl, with their outsider personalities meshing perfectly in a variety of ways, even when they're butting heads. As such, it was celebrated (both by fans and the actors themselves) once AMC revealed the spinoff's imminent existence in the same breath used to announce The Walking Dead ending with Season 11.

Assuming the Daryl spinoff goes forward as it, the project will be one of three currently announced spinoffs that will expand the Walking Dead franchise into 2023 and beyond. Fans can also look forward to Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Lauren Cohan teaming up for the NYC-bound Isle of the Dead, while the anthology project Tales of the Walking Dead will focus on a variety of different stories within the post-apocalyptic universe. Maybe we'll see Carol's return in one of those stories.

There are currently no publicly known plans for when the Daryl-centered spinoff will go into production, but The Walking Dead proper is set to return to AMC for the final eight episodes later in 2022, with an exact premiere date yet to be revealed. Head to our 2022 TV premiere schedule to see what else is confirmed to be premiering in the coming months.

Spoilers below for anyone who hasn't yet watched Fear the Walking Dead's third episode of Season 7, so be warned!

It's easy to believe that AMC will keep the Walking Dead franchise going for as long as humanly possible, with future plans already including one spinoff devoted to Norman Reedus’ Daryl and Melissa McBride’s Carol, and one anthologized spinoff with one-off episodes tapping into previously unexplored areas of the zombie apocalypse. It’s somewhat easy to understand why network execs are eager to keep those wheels spinning, since the three current horror dramas make up the core of AMC’s identity at this point outside of Breaking Bad’s perfecto spinoff Better Call Saul. So since there’s no end in sight, I’m making a plea for a Dead-adjacent spinoff that would excite me more than the two projects mentioned above: The John Sr. and June Show. 

Okay, yeah, that’s a terrible working title, but my basic point is that Fear the Walking Dead’s episode “Cindy Hawkins” proved with ease that Jenna Elfman’s June Dorie and Keith Carradine’s John Dorie Sr. deserve to be at the center of their own show. (With the massive assumption that John doesn’t do something impulsive that leads to his immediate death in any future Season 7 episodes.) Showrunners Andrew Chambliss and Ian Goldberg and their creative team have largely done a great job at expanding certain stories within character-specific episodes in recent seasons, and I feel like that’s best exemplified through installments focusing on the various Dorie family members, though Garret Dillahunt’s John Jr. was tragically killed off in Season 6.

Still, though, last season’s “The Key” put Dillahunt’s John Dorie Jr. in the middle of a methodical murder-mystery, and the episode was a standout across the entire series’ run. (And also sparked a “Give me a spinoff!” argument from yours truly.) While it wasn’t quite as gripping, “Cindy Hawkins” played out as a paranoid thriller that followed a frazzled and obsession-driven John Sr. attempting to bring justice to the one victim of John Glover’s Teddy that remained undiscovered by authorities. Only, it’s never exactly clear if John’s instincts are actually trustworthy or not, as he was forced into cold-turkey sobriety and was very obviously seeing hallucinations along the way. (A notion somewhat foreshadowed by the psychedelic grooves of The Mamas & the Papas in the earliest minutes.)

Even though the episode entirely wrapped up the whole Cindy Hawkins story, as her corpse was found hidden behind a wall of the bunker John and June were living in, it’s not as if that discovery closed the door on interesting narrative paths for the two characters to travel down in the future. The episode ended with the pair being “saved,” as it were, by Colman Domingo’s Victor Strand, who is destined for a potentially deadly faceoff with Lennie James’ Morgan by this season’s end. (Also, fuck Victor for his supercilious “Maybe later” response to John saying he’s “off the sauce.”) So after all that stuff happens, I’m sorta hoping John and June will get forced into a situation where they will need to splinter off from the rest of the protagonists in order to go on their own spinoff adventures.

Because while The Walking Dead’s Carol and Daryl have been fan-favorite characters for many years, that’s largely due to fans having followed them for eleven seasons now. We’ve seen Carol go through just about every kind of tragedy known to man, from the early-on deaths of Ed and Sophia to murdering Lizzie to Henry’s death to losing Connie, with a plethora of other moments sprinkled between. Meanwhile, fans have watched Daryl pull off countless badass moments (often with his illogical post-apocalyptic weapon-of-choice, the crossbow), as well as him getting captured numerous times by various lage villain groups, only to come out alive every time. Anyone who can go through an ugly cry like Daryl did over Merle and still come out ahead with audiences has definitely earned his or her place.  

But my point there is that Daryl and Carol have gone through the physical and emotional wringers on The Walking Dead, which makes it hard to think of what kinds of story beats their spinoff can introduce that won’t just be retreading past moments. On the flip side, however, Jenna Elfman’s seasons on Fear the Walking Dead haven’t explored June as a character nearly as much, in part due to the series’ transition into character-specific episodes. And the same goes for Keith Carradine’s John Sr. on a much larger scale, considering “Cindy Hawkins” was only his fourth episode. 

Sure, John Jr. is the link that ties June and John Sr. together, with the serial killer Teddy as the biggest lynchpin behind the elder John Dorie’s obsessions. But we still don’t know THAT many details about June’s past, since one of her character traits has long been “lie-based secrecy,” which was demonstrated in Episode 703 when she confessed to having made up stats about how long they should stay underground. So there’s lots to explore there. And the same goes for John, whose long life cannot be represented entirely by “the killer that got away.” Even though Fear the Walking Dead very rarely utilizes flashbacks to inform its narratives, dipping back into John and June’s pasts would be a great way to strike narrative balances between what they’d go through in the spinoff, and what they’d already been through before. 

It’ll definitely take more than just me hollering about a John and June spinoff to make it happen, and I admitteldy have 1% confidence that it could ever happen, considering The Walking Dead universe also still has to bring Andrew Lincoln's Rick Grimes back with his spinoff features, with even more unconfirmed spinoff ideas being tossed around behind the scenes with franchise overseer Scott Gimple. But how awesome would it be to see Rick and John Dorie Sr. bullshitting together about the good ol' days of pre-outbreak law enforcement? Oh, I guess that's a different idea altogether. 

Fans can keep up with Fear the Walking Dead Season 7 when it airs Sunday nights on AMC at 9:00 p.m., followed by new episodes of The Walking Dead: World Beyond. And check out our 2021 Fall TV schedule to see all the other new and returning shows yet to debut in the next two months.

I have been a fan of The Walking Dead since the very beginning, from the premiere all the way back in 2010, and never in my life have I seen a friendship better than Daryl Dixon and Carol Peletier in this show.

While I know that plenty of fans have rooted for the two of them to get together, I’ve always been the biggest supporter of their companionship, almost like kindred spirits. There’s just something about the chemistry between Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride that makes me smile, which is why today, I’m going to honor the characters with their best moments in the series.

When Daryl And Carol Search For Sophia (Season 2, Episode 4)

Arguably what began their friendship way back when in Season 2 of The Walking Dead. I feel like Season 2 was the first time we ever really saw Daryl show a hint of emotion, and that was all because of the connection he felt with Sophia and her mother, Carol.

Daryl continuously tries to aid Carol in finding her daughter, even giving her a Cherokee rose (like the title of the episode), to give her hope – even if the overall search ends in heartbreak a couple of episodes later.

When Daryl Saves Carol In The Prison (Season 3, Episode 6)

Carol has become one of those characters that I just know will survive until the end, but this scene still scared me back then. I remember when it happened I freaked the heck out, but it wasn’t long before Daryl found her, hiding from the walkers that had been in the prison. She was weak, malnourished, but saved just in the knick of time.

And of course, who can forget that moment when he carries her out? My heart. I love them so much.

When Carol Calls Daryl “Pookie” For The First Time (Season 4, Episode 1)

Honestly, if I was ranking these, this would be one of my favorite moments between the two in The Walking Dead. Daryl Dixon is this hard-as-nails redneck who’s a survivor, someone who doesn’t take crap from no one – but of course when his best friend calls him “Pookie,” and his half-hearted attempt to get her to stop, it’s the funniest comment ever.

I just can’t imagine a world where someone like Daryl Dixon is called “Pookie,” but of course, only Carol of all people could get away with that.

When Daryl And Carol Reunite After The Prison Fell (Season 5, Episode 1)

This hands down has to be one of the most heartwarming moments of The Walking Dead. The group has just somehow survived Terminus, this supposed “sanctuary” that is actually filled to the brim with cannibals, thanks to the help of Carol from the outside. There, when Daryl sees Carol for the first time after the prison fell, he runs up to her and hugs her so tightly, crying.

It’s one of the few moments during the show that we really get to see Daryl express legit emotion about how he feels about his family. Again, he’s so tough and tries to hide his feelings, avoid attachments, but at that point, he had lost so much – he didn’t want to lose his best friend too.

When Carol And Daryl Have A Heart-to-Heart In Atlanta (Season 5, Episode 6)

Okay, I’m going to admit it here for the world to know – I was a Beth and Daryl fan in The Walking Dead. I loved those two together. Don’t know why, just did, which is why this moment has to be on this list. Daryl had lost Beth after surviving with her when the prison fell, watching helplessly as she was taken away in a mysterious car.

Daryl tracks down the same car she was taken into Atlanta, where Carol follows him after. It’s there, while they’re looking for her in Atlanta, that the two have a heart-to-heart about everything that’s happened, like how Carol has been holding up, and why Daryl is the way that he is. We even get hints of Daryl’s past in this, something that has been long-guarded in The Walking Dead. It’s a nice moment, one that I wish lasted longer before one of the most heartbreaking moments of the show.

When Carol And Daryl Meet Up Again Outside The Kingdom (Season 7, Episode 10)

You know, for a bit, I was mad at Carol for leaving Alexandria behind in The Walking Dead and all her family, but after some reflecting, I realized I would have done the same. Carol was tired of all the killing and people getting hurt that happened in Alexandria, so she moved out and decided to reside in a little cottage on the outskirts of the Kingdom.

However, after Glenn and Abraham are killed by the ultimate villain, Negan, Daryl sets out on his own to find Carol. But when he sees her life and how peaceful she was living out there compared to what was happening in Alexandria, he decides to not tell her about what’s happened to them. He doesn’t want to ruin the peace she had found. After so much pain, he wants her to be happy.

When Daryl Gives Carol His Blessing To Be With Ezekiel (Season 9, Episode 1)

Look, I loved Carol and Ezekiel on The Walking Dead. I thought they were one of the best couples on the show. And way back in the beginning of Season 9, Daryl even gave his approval for her to marry him – not of his own accord, though. Carol asked him what he thought since Ezekiel proposed, and Daryl just said that he was a nice guy and wanted Carol to be happy.

It’s a sweet moment that shows how far their friendship has come, and even has a callback to when Carol called him “Pookie” back in Season 4.

When Daryl Attempts To Shield Carol From Henry’s Death (Season 9, Episode 15)

The Whisperer War was an intense battle that started out with some horrible deaths, ones that will always haunt me from The Walking Dead. One of those unfortunate ones was Carol’s adopted son, Henry, who was decapitated, his head placed on a stick to reanimate.

Daryl, who sees this first, steps in front of Carol before she could see, knowing what happened with Sophia. He instead says, “Look at me,” over and over, trying to make sure she doesn’t look. As someone who’s watched the show for so long, it always tugs my heartstrings whenever I see this scene, knowing how much these two have been through.

When Daryl And Carol Discuss Their Difficult Days (Season 10, Episode 21)

At this point in Season 10 of The Walking Dead, it was revealed that Carol was the one to let Negan go out and kill Alpha. Daryl, understandably, isn’t super okay with this, and due to their conflicting interests, this drives a wedge between both him and Carol. In one of the six additional episodes that came out for Season 10, we focus on both Daryl and Carol, who both had pretty rough days.

When they meet up in Alexandria again, they both discuss everything they went through, but there’s a clear awkwardness in the air. It’s not a heartwarming welcome or funny – which is honestly why this is one of their best moments. It’s the first real test of their friendship, showing that it is strained and it’s not going to be an easy fix, showing how dynamic the two of them truly are.

The Walking Dead Season 11, which will be the final season, is going to be premiering soon on the 2021 Summer TV schedule, so keep an eye out for this show and its (hopefully) amazing conclusion, where we’ll see Daryl and Carol fight together for the last time - until their Daryl/Carol spinoff premieres, that is. You should catch up on The Walking Dead while you can.

Spoilers below for anyone who hasn't yet watched The Walking Dead's "A Certain Doom."

Though it was delayed by around six months due to pandemic shutdowns, the 16th episode of The Walking Dead Season 10 finally dropped on AMC, and with it came all kinds of big reveals and noteworthy moments. While the installment is no longer the season finale as it was originally intended, "A Certain Doom" definitely still felt like one, and it served as an interesting lead-in to the latter six episodes that will be the bridge to the final season.

Below, we're going over the biggest takeaways from "A Certain Doom," from returning characters to exiting characters to ones we've never seen before in The Walking Dead's live-action universe. Let's kick things off with arguably the episode's most anticipated reveal, which involves Lauren Cohan rocking a new hat.

Maggie's Back!

Though she made her well-documented exit from The Walking Dead in the midst of Season 9 at the same time Andrew Lincoln bowed out, Lauren Cohan made her most triumphant comeback in "A Certain Doom," and she'll presumably be sticking around until the end of Season 11. Though Maggie's big return wasn't necessarily complicated, she did help save Father Gabriel from being killed off by Whisperers, she showed off her bow-and-arrow talents, and she also shared a very sweet reunion with Cailey Fleming's Judith. Now if only we knew what she was up to in all her years away from Hilltop and Alexandria...

Mr. Metal Mask Man Is Pretty Badass

Lauren Cohan's return didn't just bring Maggie back into the narrative fold, but it also introduced a mysterious new character that hides his identity behind an intimidating metal mask. Cohan told CinemaBlend that this new character is extremely loyal to Maggie, and vice versa, and that they've been through some hectic situations together. It's quite obvious that anyone who tries to mess with this masked badass will get their guts sliced right out of their bodies, but what isn't obvious is whether or not the face beneath that mask is a familiar one to longtime fans. Facial coverings aren't usually employed on TV for complete strangers, so there's a good chance that viewers have already met this character in the past.

Beta Is Dead, And The Whisperers Are No More (Probably)

It's almost hard to believe that when Season 10 started, it wasn't too long after Samantha Morton's Alpha and her Whisperers clan had beheaded that large group of protagonists. So much changed during the year, with Negan killing off Alpha, leaving Ryan Hurst's Beta to slowly lose his mind as the villainous group's de facto leader. In the end, his giant horde plot was mostly thwarted without causing too many fatalities, and Beta eventually met his own fate at the pointy ends of Daryl's knives. While most Walking Dead characters scream bloody murder when getting killed off, the blinded Beta chose to quietly embrace his death in a Buddhist-like manner while calmly allowing himself to be consumed by his rotted flock. It's likely Beta's death means the absolute end of the Whisperers, but I won't be surprised if there's at least one loyal follower still out there somewhere.

Carol Found Catharsis With Lydia, Carol And Tons Of Dead Walkers

This could obviously be said for several other seasons, but Carol has had a rough go in Season 10 so far, from mourning Henry and her relationship with Ezekiel to building her rivalry with Alpha to fighting her more suicidal urges. (Not to mention being largely responsible for setting up Connie's disappearance, which caused weird friction between her and Daryl.) By the end of Episode 1016, though, Carol seemed to cross an emotional chasm as she and Lydia cried together while all those walkers moronically kept walking off the edge of that cliff. Plus, she and Daryl seemed to knock the uncomfortable cobwebs off of their friendship, which will be at the heart of the Walking Dead's upcoming spinoff built around Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride. Will she continue holding her head high in future episodes, though?

Connie Is Alive!

Huzzah! After going missing within the cave system for the midseason premiere back in February, Lauren Ridloff's Connie remained completely absent – probably due to Ridloff's commitments to Marvel's Eternals – despite Magna finding her way back to the survivors at one point. Thankfully, though, "A Certain Doom" updated fans by confirming that Connie is still alive out there, even if she's looking worse for the wear. It's not clear exactly what's wrong with her, beyond a probable lack of water, food and good health, but here's hoping she can find food and a hot shower soon.

Virgil Is Back!

If anyone's going to be able to help Connie find that hot shower, it's Kevin Carroll's Virgil, who was last seen in Michonne's big farewell episode, in which he held her captive and sent her on a drugged-out trip back through her memories. Though it seemed like Virgil was going to stay holed up in the military building he'd lived in for years, it appears as if the character found a reason to leave "home," and also a reason to nab a horse and head to the other communities. It would be great if he had some kind of an update about Rick, or about that massive group of people we saw Michonne starting to follow back in Episode 1013, "What We Become."

Eugene's Group Met The Commonwealth Soldiers

Though Eugene was out in the world trying desperately to meet up with his radio buddy Stephanie, that's not who actually showed up to the meeting. Instead, he and Ezekiel, Yumiko and Princess were quickly surrounded by a large group of soldiers decked out in stylish armor that indicated a pretty advanced post-apocalyptic community was responsible for crafting them. The suits were probably instantly familiar to fans of The Walking Dead comic book series, who have no doubt been waiting to see exactly how the TV show would handle The Commonwealth, the franchise's first mega-community populated by thousands and thousands of survivors. While I would be bummed out if the live-action Stephanie set Eugene up, it'll still be awesome to see the introduction of Governor Milton and her underlings. But will that happen in the latter Season 10 episodes, or will we be waiting for Season 11?

For now, The Walking Dead is back on hiatus as the cast and crew prepare to go back into production on the final six episodes of Season 10. While waiting to hear when those episodes will debut on AMC, head to our Fall 2020 TV premiere schedule to see when other new and returning shows will be debuting in the near future.

AMC dropped a lot of jaws by announcing that its biggest longtime hit drama The Walking Dead now has an endgame in place, and will wrap up its many different storylines with an extended Season 11. But as big of a shock as that was, AMC had arguably more surprising news in announcing that its final season would be followed by a brand new spinoff centering solely on Norman Reedus' Daryl and Melissa McBride's Carol. But are the actors as pumped as fans are about the franchise's new direction?

Presumably, neither Norman Reedus nor Melissa McBride would have signed on for the spinoff if they weren't enthused about extending Daryl and Carol's storylines for at least one season of standalone episodes. (Although it would have been an interesting experiment for that to happen.) Here's what Reedus had to say about it in his statement:

To his point, Norman Reedus was probably most known for his leading role in the pair of Boondock Saints movies before he found mega-stardom as The Walking Dead's Daryl Dixon. That career shift is all the more noteworthy since Daryl is a character that was invented completely for the TV show, as opposed to originating in the comics. So it's completely understandable why the actor would want to stick with the character that turned him into a worldwide star.

It's not at all hard to believe that a lot of Daryl's appeal has lasted so long due to fans' fascination with his relationship with Carol. (Even Reedus knows that Andrew Lincoln's Rick takes a backseat in the BFF department.) So for them to eventually get their own series is a huge move forward, although Reedus isn't yet able to tease how their friendship might change or expand in the future. There are still more than two dozen episodes of the flagship series left to air, including the Season 10 finale, that could take Daryl and Carol to completely different places before the spinoff's storyline kicks off.

To that end, Melissa McBride talked about the mysterious side of Daryl and Carol's fondness for one another in her statement about the upcoming spinoff.

It would be wild if the Daryl and Carol spinoff shifted away from being an emotionally wrought zombie drama, and tapped into other genres and showcased more absurd situations that wouldn't normally be seen on The Walking Dead. The show will almost definitely have other characters involved besides just those two, but I kinda do wish that it would just feature the pair bouncing from one location to the next, kind of like the Telltale video game series did.

Is everyone else as excited to watch Daryl and Carol leading their own series as Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride are? Granted, we'll potentially be waiting for three more years before that spinoff arrives, with Season 11 getting an extended 24-episode run to close things out. So even if you aren't excited yet, there's time. There's also time for AMC to order up a Negan and Maggie spinoff, which would likely end in the first five minutes with Maggie taking a bat to his face.

The Walking Dead will finally, albeit briefly, return to AMC for its Season 10 finale on Sunday, October 4, at 9:00 p.m. ET, to be followed by the series premiere of The Walking Dead: World Beyond. Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more coverage, and be sure to bookmark our 2020 Fall TV premiere schedule to see what new and returning shows are on the way.

It's the end of an era at AMC, or at least the end of one piece of an ever-expanding era, as The Walking Dead's end date as been confirmed. Following the Season 10 extension that will follow-up on the yet-to-air finale, the show will wrap up its epic post-apocalyptic tale by giving fans a super-sized Season 11. But wait, there's more, because another huge spinoff is also going into development that will please Daryl and Carol's most hardcore fans.

The Walking Dead is currently set to deliver an eleventh season that spans across two years, and will last for 24 episodes. Assuming production schedules are allowed to go forward without any issues, The Walking Dead Season 11 will be filming during the first half of 2021 and is aiming for the traditional October release date. (The remaining six Season 10 episodes will possibly be airing during that same time window). The second half of Season 11 will presumably then be held until the Fall TV cycle in late 2022. So even though we already know the show is ending, it's technically not going away for quite a while.

After The Walking Dead's flagship run is over, the franchise will then be expanding once more, but this time with characters that fans are already fully familiar with, as opposed to Fear the Walking Dead and the upcoming World Beyond. AMC has already given the greenlight to a spinoff series that will focus entirely on Norman Reedus' Daryl Dixon and Melissa McBride's Carol Peletier. That project will be headed up by current TWD showrunner Angela Kang, with chief content officer Scott Gimple also playing a big role.

Now, does that mean that fans are finally going to see Daryl and Carol in a more romantic sense? Not necessarily, since this show's various creative teams have been pretty strict about not bringing those characters too close together for one reason or another. We know they'll likely maintain their strong emotional bonds, even if those bonds aren't the fuzzy, heart-shaped kind.

Check out the statement from showrunner Angela Kang below.

If that all wasn't enough, there is actually another spinoff series in development, as AMC also announced it will be working with Scott Gimple on a new Walking Dead episodic anthology series that would devote installments to past and current characters, delving into specific backstory moments and filling in more blanks that fans hadn't gotten to see from the seasons that have already aired. I'm hoping this is where the Here's Negan backstory can come into play for Jeffrey Dean Morgan.

It's unclear how any of this news will affect the still-happening Rick Grimes movie(s) with Andrew Lincoln, but if these timelines are meant to coincide with each other at some point, we might be waiting another two years for Rick's return to make it to theaters. Assuming, of course, that 2020 doesn't also have an actual zombie apocalypse waiting around the corner.

As of this moment, there are now 31 episodes left of The Walking Dead, so start your countdowns and stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more updates as they become available. Season 10's finale is set to air on AMC on Sunday, October 4, followed by the premiere of The Walking Dead: World Beyond. And head to our Fall TV 2020 premiere schedule to see what new and returning shows are on the way.

One of the most successful comic book adaptations of all time is The Walking Dead. The AMC show, which Frank Darabont developed from Robert Kirkman's popular comic series chronicling humanity's struggle to survive a world overrun with reanimated corpses, has earned multiple Emmys, a Golden Globe nomination, and two spin-offs (so far) during its 10 (soon to be 11) season run.

For those who are not fans of the Image comic, it may be easy to forget that the series is a comic book adaptation, considering its tone and subject matter are far different from what "casual fans" are used to: superheroes. Of course, there is no room for superhuman, costumed vigilantes in an ongoing battle between humans and zombies (excluding a famous Marvel storyline in which that is exactly what happens), but it does give me an idea.

While alums Michael Rooker (Merle Dixon) and Danai Gurira (Michonne) have already graduated into the Marvel Cinematic Universe with significant roles, as Guardians of the Galaxy's Yondu and Black Panther's Okoye respectively, the rest of the cast of The Walking Dead has yet to know what it is like to be a superhero. So, why don't we take a look at some of the show's current series regulars (and even a few old favorites) and imagine what heroes they would be perfect as.

Norman Reedus - The Punisher

Ironically, Norman Reedus' Daryl Dixon was originally not meant to survive Season 1 of The Walking Dead. Which leaves us to wonder, had things gone according to plan with the unexpectedly popular character, if Reedus might have stolen his former co-star Jon Bernthal's chance to play Frank Castle on Netflix's Daredevil and his solo spin-off, The Punisher. From how he rocks a leather jacket, owns the road on his chopper, and his mastery of the stoic loner shtick as Daryl, Reedus embodies exactly who would imagine should play the widowed, vengeful war veteran in an MCU reboot... with all due respect and appreciation for Bernthal, of course.

Andrew Lincoln - Blackhawk

He may have left the show in 2018 but, until then, Andrew Lincoln was the heart and soul of The Walking Dead as former cop Rick Grimes: a man who, when his head was in the right place, showed great leadership, made especially commendable by Lincoln's performance. Thus, I believe he would be the perfect choice to lead an adaptation of the DC comic Blackhawk, which follows a squadron of World War II-era fighter pilots which Steven Spielberg has been reportedly working on. However, I would recommend he update it to the present day, so that Andrew Lincoln can play the current leader of the Blackhawk Program, whose name is... Andrew Lincoln.

Melissa McBride - Zealot

Carol Peletier is not one bit the person she was in Season 1 of The Walking Dead, having evolved from a meek, desperate mother into a fearless, fully capable, and even ruthless warrior, as Melissa McBride has played her. Lady Zannah, better known as Zealot, did not become the fierce warrior from the planet Khera that she is known as today, but was skilled in weaponry and expert martial arts long before she became stranded on Earth and joined the WildC.A.T.S. in a war against Daemonites (while this DC property was still exclusively an Image character). Not only does McBride look the part, but has demonstrated how she can be the part on The Walking Dead for years.

Christian Serratos - Zatanna

Going from playing Ned's crush Susie Crabgrass on Nickelodeon's Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide to playing a badass soldier on The Walking Dead Christian Serratos pulled off one of the coolest magic tricks in TV history by exhibiting a stunning range of versatility. Magic is actually a specialty of Zatanna Zatara, the DC character I think she would be a spot-on choice to play. She may not have same combative expertise as Rosita Espinosa, but as a member of Justice League Dark, Zatanna has had her fair share of monstrous enemies.

Josh McDermitt - Forbush Man

Something you may not know about Josh McDermitt, who plays Eugene Porter (a The Walking Dead survivor who lied his way to ensure his own protection) is that he got his start in stand-up comedy, even if his moments of comic relief on the series make that less surprising. While the actor has proven his dramatic chops on the show as well, I think the actor would do well by playing a superhero that reflects his roots and one of the funniest characters known to the Marvel Universe is Forbush Man, known for his failed attempts to be in superhero organizations like the Revengers, S.H.E.E.S.H., and the Echhs-Men. So, yes, this cast-iron helmet wearing, fourth wall-breaking "crimefighter" is really more of a superhero parody, but that is a pretty hot concept right now, after all.

Steven Yeun - Kamen Rider

Steven Yeun is actually going to be in a recently announced new series based on the Robert Kirkman superhero comic Invincible... but as an animated character, not live-action as I was personally hoping to see the Korean-born actor, best known as pizza deliverer turned expert Walker fighter Glenn Rhee for the first six season of The Walking Dead, portray a new comic book character. One superhero who, despite his influence, is not very well known to American audiences is Kamen Rider, a crimefighting motorcyclist dressed as an insect created by Japanese manga artist Shotaro Ishinomori. I think that if anybody can sell the idea of an English-language adaptation of this overseas cult sensation, it's Yeun.

Lauren Cohan - She-Hulk

It has been proven that a performer can smoothly transcend comic book universes (Michael Keaton, Ben Affleck Laurence Fishburne) and British actress Lauren Cohan has already been in two, from playing Maggie Greene (whom Glenn would eventually, unofficially, marry) in The Walking Dead and Martha Wayne (Batman's mom) in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. So, why not go for the trifecta and join the MCU as a character whom plenty of Marvel fans have recommended her for already: Jennifer Walters (better known as She-Hulk). The green superhero goddess' solo Disney+ series has yet to be cast at this moment so, if the producers of TWD can write in a few reasons for Maggie to be absent a little more often after Cohan returns to the role, I think she has this in the bag.

Chandler Riggs - Red Robin

The first person you usually think of when you think of Batman's sidekick is Dick Grayson (the first Robin, after all), but then there are also those who have enjoyed Jason Todd or Damian Wayne in the costume, but Tim Drake may be the least appreciated, as far as I can tell. A The Walking Dead character whom I believe was under-appreciated for much of his time on the series was Rick Grimes' son, Carl, the role that actor Chandler Riggs grew up playing. Therefore, putting the actor, now 20, in the role of Tim Drake's current alias, Red Robin, seems like a match made in Heaven to me.

Sonequa Martin-Green - The Crimson Avenger

I do quite miss Sonequa Martin-Green as Sasha on The Walking Dead, for her resilience, complexity, and stunning skills behind a firearm. With how well she brought that character to life, I think the actress (who currently plays Commander Michael Burnham on Star Trek: Discovery) qualifies profoundly to play Jill Carlyle, a lawyer who, when coming across a pair of cursed pistols, becomes the latest to bear the title of deadly vigilante The Crimson Avenger.

Ross Marquand - Booster Gold

Yet another The Walking Dead alum who has joined the MCU is Ross Marquand... just not to be superhero, but to use his extraordinary talent of impersonation to fill the role of Red Skull (originated by Hugo Weaving) in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. So, instead of convincing Marvel to give him double duty, I recommend he try out for the other team as a relatively overlooked DC superhero named Booster Gold. While playing the attention-seeking, time traveling Justice League member, who debuted in the 1980s, would be a far cry from his TWD character Aaron, if you look at everything else the actor has done (including voice roles on Seth MacFarlane series), that's just what he may be looking for.

Alanna Masterson - Sage

You think you can call yourself an expert of all X-Men characters just by having seen every movie? Well, think again because one very cool and complex mutant named Sage, who is just as skilled in telepathy as she is in computer hacking, piloting, and martial arts, has only been depicted onscreen in Fox's short-lived spin-off series The Gifted. I believe that the MCU should some day give Sage a new home on the silver screen and I recommend Alanna Masterson because, like Sage, her The Walking Dead character, Tara Chambler, was a headstrong individual who could invoke a hostile personality as a defense mechanism if need be.

Seth Gilliam - Green Lantern

If you are like me, you grew up with the John Stewart incarnation of Green Lantern, who was brought to life on the acclaimed animated series Justice League in 2003. Also, if you are like me, you are probably hoping that Stewart gets to be the star of future films about the organization of intergalactic cops equipped with rings that allow them to fight evil with whatever their imagination conjures. If you saw the side by side photo above with Seth Gilliam (preacher Gabriel Stokes from The Walking Dead) next to an animated shot of John Stewart, I think it speaks for itself why he has a good shot at the role.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan - Batman

I know, you know, and even Jeffrey Dean Morgan himself knows that this is the correct answer for which superhero the actor, whose most memorably comic book role to date is the despicable Negan, should play. Ever since he appeared alongside The Walking Dead co-star Lauren Cohan as the parents to young Bruce Wayne in Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, fans have theorized for years that Morgan would reprise the role of Thomas Wayne in a film based on the Flashpoint storyline, which imagines an alternate world in which Bruce died that fateful day, leaving Martha to go crazy and become the Joker and Thomas taking on the identity of The Batman. The actor has said he is down for the role, if it ever happens, that is.

What do you think? Are these superheroes perfect for The Walking Dead clan, or do you think I'm dead in the brain to imagine such character choices? Let us know in the comments and be sure to check back for more updates on the popular horror show as well as more hypothetical casting sessions here on CinemaBlend.

Warning! Major spoilers below for the latest episode of The Walking Dead, titled "Walk With Us."

As enjoyable as Season 10 has been on the whole – minus the usual absurdities – The Walking Dead ramped things up to hyper-speed in Episode 12, which was chock full of deadly surprises and intriguing twists, as well as some unanswered questions. The first battle of the Whisperers War may have ended in the destruction of Hilltop, but after everything that happened in "Walk With Us," the worst is likely still yet to come for Daryl, Carol and the rest of the protagonists.

Join us below to dig into all the biggest moments that The Walking Dead bludgeoned viewers with, but not before we give a round of applause to the hardest working baseball bat in the industry, Lucille. [Applause.]

Alpha Is Dead

The Walking Dead came full circle with its comic book source material by way of Alpha and Negan's final moments together. Much of what preceded tonight's episode was a deep extension of the two villains' story on the page – particularly the sexy bits – but showrunner Angela Kang and her creative team ultimately honored Robert Kirkman's storytelling by having Negan slit Alpha's throat in a moment of complete vulnerability.

After hearing Negan's emotionally on-point memories of his late wife Lucille, Alpha was ready to kill her daughter Lydia, but instead became the victim of a brutal decapitation. (For better or worse, that part happened off-screen.) Perhaps if Alpha had showed the tiniest bit of mercy for Lydia, Negan might have kept his charade going for even longer, since he did seem to have some twisted empathy for just how far over the edge Alpha had gone with the Whisperers. Alas, Alpha is dead, and Beta is going to go absolutely apeshit when he finds out.

Negan And Carol Were Working Together The Whole Time

I imagine quite a few Walking Dead fans were screaming "I knew it!" at their TV screens during the episode's final seconds, as Negan rolled Alpha's zombified head over to Carol, who asks him what took so long. That moment was the smoking-gun proof that it was Carol who let Negan escape from his cell in Alexandria, such was her depthless motivation to take Alpha down for beheading Henry and all the other survivors.

Having Carol engage with Negan was a nice twist on the comic story, in which Negan killed Alpha as a way to violently prove he was redeemed and now loyal to Rick & Co. That said, this narrative change keeps Negan's loyalty in question, since he did little to physically stop the Whisperers from completely destroying Hilltop, and also used Lucille to brain-bash a resident who hadn't escaped. One can also hope that Carol quickly started grilling Negan about why he didn't do more to provoke such a large-scale attack.

Things Are Getting Crappy For Carol Again

Though the episode ended with Carol's so-called victory over Alpha, it came with great costs for the character. The obsession with avenging Henry's death completely took her over, to the point where she repeatedly put others in harm's way on the off-chance that it might help bring Alpha down. Following Magna's return (discussed below), Yumiko gave Carol a piece of both her mind and her fist for not being apologetic over the cave debacle. Carol's one port in the storm used to be Daryl, but even he's stonewalling her now.

Now imagine what will happen when everyone else in the fractured communities gets wind that Carol is the one who set Negan free. Sure, some of them will appreciate the anything-goes approach to taking Alpha out of the equation, but what happens when Carol soon realizes that Beta's vengeful attitude is every bit as strong and all-encompassing as hers was? Her apologies alone won't be able to erase blood or bury bodies. Might she one day go the route of her comic book counterpart by committing suicide?

Magna's Back, But Where's Connie?

It almost seemed like a hallucination when Yumiko saw Magna among the walkers ascending on the burning Hilltop, but sure enough, she found her way back to the group. Unfortunately, she was alone. She told Yumiko that she and Connie were walking together while moving among the horde of walkers, but they inevitably got separated, and Magna lost track of her friend, whose deafness is obviously a disadvantage in a dark cave full of zombies.

There's always the chance that Connie might come walking out of the woods similarly as unscathed as Magna, but I can't help but feel like this is going to be another Beth situation where a fan-friendly character gets killed in an avoidable situation, and then Daryl cries about it a lot. After all, actress Lauren Ridloff is portraying the superhero Makkari in Marvel's upcoming The Eternals, which will possibly springboard her career to a point where she wouldn't have time for The Walking Dead. (See: Danai Gurira, Corey Hawkins.)

R.I.P. Gamma

Thora Birch, we hardly knew ye. The character Gamma didn't seem long for this world, considering her fractured feelings about being a Whisperer after murdering her sister. Her semi-transition into her former identity, Mary, only slightly raised the odds of her survival, but it wasn't meant to be.

With her last act of benevolence allowing Alden, Kelly and baby Adam to hide from walkers in an abandoned van, Gamma took out a few walkers and then got stabbed by Beta. When she again refused to "walk with" the Whisperers, he sliced her all the way up her torso. It seemed like Beta was setting Gamma up to take her back to Alpha, and possibly harvest the skin from her face, but Alden ruined that plan by putting an arrow through her skull. Not that Alpha would have been around to hear the news.

Beta Got Recognized

One of the strangest in-show mysteries has been Beta's true identity, which ties back to the comic book, where the homicidal villain was posthumously revealed to be a famous basketball player within the fictional universe. The producers found a clever way to hat-tip the comics in Fear the Walking Dead, where an album cover hinted that Ryan Hurst's heavily bearded character was a country musician in the pre-apocalypse.

In "Walk With Us," it all came full circle. In their tussle, Gamma ripped off half of Beta's skin mask (which was already very personal to him), and exposed part of his face. It definitely wasn't enough to spark any eyewitness accounts, and yet somehow, another Whisperer randomly came out of the woodwork and recognized him. Not that he lived long enough to tell anyone else, since his fanboy instincts overrode Beta's warnings for him to shut the hell up. Will this be the last time Beta's former identity comes up?

R.I.P. Earl

Even though The Walking Dead TV show's Earl was vastly different from the blacksmith in the comic book that bonded with Carl Grimes, John Finn's Hilltop resident became his own character by the time the latest episode hit. Hardened and torn by losing his family, Earl became the vocal backbone of Hilltop, always keeping one eye on avenging his wife's death. During Hilltop's burning, he bravely took charge with the kids when Ezekiel wasn't around to do it. Unfortunately, at some point during the walker-infused hubbub, Earl was bitten on the arm, and knew he didn't have a whole lot of time left.

And so, instead of cowardly fleeing, Earl made sure the kids were all in a safe place together...and then committed suicide by slamming his head down on a wooden stake he'd driven through a table. His intentions were sound (I guess?), but the stake didn't quite do the trick. So not only did a horrified Judith walk in on his bloodied corpse, but she also had to put him down when he rose again as a walker. And all after she'd killed her first Whisperer earlier in the episode. Not your finest hour, Earl, but a fine one nonetheless.

Is everybody ready for Michonne's grand return, even though it just means she'll be leaving again right afterward? Check out the awesome prank the Walking Dead crew played on Danai Gurira for her final days of filming, and don't forget to tune into AMC on Sunday nights at 9:00 p.m. ET to see where things are going next in Season 10.

Spoilers for the most recent episodes of The Walking Dead are below, so be sure you're all caught up before reading on.

After its first two episodes, The Walking Dead seems to be building to a core matchup between a fan-favorite survivor and the most current big bad, with both installments ending on a distant stare-down between Carol and Alpha. Carol had only recently returned from working on a fishing boat, while Alpha and the Whisperers were moseying back from their latest settlement, but it didn't look like even a speck of rage had dissipated in the meantime.

Considering things are quite different from the comics at this point in The Walking Dead's TV narrative, it's hard to know what's coming, but the exclusive clip below for the upcoming episode "Ghosts" hints that either Carol is starting to lose her emotional grip on things, or that other characters are erroneously losing their trust in her. Either way, it doesn't inspire warm feelings. Check out the clip below!

Admittedly, Carol just looks like she's in Beast Mode at the beginning of the clip, where we get slightly more context behind that "The bitch has to die," line that first popped up in the Season 10 trailer. Just as Michonne sounds like she's going to borrow a speech from Rick Grimes' playbook, Carol cut her short with that vengeful proclamation that I'm sure we can all agree with.

In another context, Carol's comment might have been followed up by killer guitar riffs on the soundtrack, with some kind of a fight-training montage playing out on the screen. Instead, though, Carol just looks ticked off and exhausted, and that clearly bothers Daryl.

To the point where Daryl does something relatively unthinkable: he suggests that maybe Carol is better off back on the boat where she can find peace without the constant reminders about the deaths of Henry and everyone else that Alpha's Whisperers beheaded. Granted, I get his point, but even if he's thinking those things, Walking Dead fans don't wanna hear it!

Walking Dead Fans Can Expect 'Extraordinary' Things From Alpha's Story With Gamma And Carol

That said, Daryl reveals that Carol isn't sleeping at night, and that she's spending a lot of her time trying to track down Whisperers, so perhaps the determined heroine actually is biting off more than she can chew. But wait! Just after Daryl said that, Carol happened to catch a trio of Whisperers nearby, which sets everyone on high alert as they spread out and investigate.

But do viewers have a reason to be suspicious about those Whisperers? This clip is being presented outside of a full episode context, of course, so it's hard to know what came before, or what will come after. The timing within the clip does seem fairly suspicious, though.

Rarely does a character's sleep patterns get mentioned on The Walking Dead – which is wild, since everyone should be complaining of insomnia and back pains – so the fact that Carol's mental weariness and paranoia get brought up so soon after is curious, if nothing else. Could those have just been other protagonists that Carol saw and mistook for Whisperers? Or perhaps some kind of animals? (If they find a deer that's wearing another deer's skin over its own, though, I'm out.)

Of course, maybe the point here is to show that Carol is right on the money in being ever-aware of her surroundings, and that Daryl's concerns are all for naught. If those were Whisperers, maybe they were meant to draw Carol away from the rest, but failed to do so. There are technically lots of different scenarios to choose from, so we're on board with whichever one doesn't involve Carol losing her mind.

In the end, I would feel more confident about this situation had Carol's assertion been that she was going to kill "that bitch." And also that she was going to kill Beta and the rest of the Whisperers. What's good for the monstrous goose is good for the skin-wearing gander, right? I guess that wouldn't be so much of a "war" exactly, but still.

Having offered up more about Alpha and Beta's backstories, particularly a part of Beta's backstory that ties to Fear the Walking Dead's fifth season, The Walking Dead airs Sunday nights on AMC at 9:00 p.m. ET. And to really get into the Halloween spirit, AMC is airing a Friday the 13th marathon on top of a whole bunch of other horror gloriousness this weekend and beyond.

Spoiler warning for the most recent episode of The Walking Dead. Be sure to catch up before reading on.

Immediately after introducing the protagonists' current set-up in the Season 10 premiere, The Walking Dead pulled focus to the evolution of the Whisperers. Viewers watched Alpha and Beta meeting for the first time – with some Fear the Walking Dead-connecting results – and also witnessed Thora Birch's new villain Gamma gaining Alpha's respect. And the goosebumps were popping off whenever Episode 2's ending matched up with the Alpha and Carol stare-down that capped off the premiere.

CinemaBlend spoke with Walking Dead star Samantha Morton ahead of "We Are the End of the World," and obviously both Gamma and Carol's names came up during the interview. Understandably, Morton wasn't able to share spoiler-filled script pages about what's coming, but as it often goes with Walking Dead cast members, it was what she couldn't say that spoke the loudest. Let's tackle these one at a time.

Alpha + Gamma

Without a lot known about her character going into Season 10, Thora Birch made her grand (and mostly silent) introduction as Gamma. Interestingly, Gamma was revealed to be the sister of Frances, the woman who had to sacrifice her crying baby according to Alpha's demands in Season 9. (The infant was rescued by Connie, thankfully.) Unfortunately, Frances never got past that personal trauma. She quickly became a liability, despite Alpha initially granting her clemency, and Gamma sealed her own sister's fate after Frances moronically tried to attack Alpha.

It was quite the hectic scene for all the applicable reasons, and spoke to Gamma's loyalty and trustworthiness as a Whisperer. Considering Alpha was dealing with some emotional hurdles concerning her unwavering affection for her daughter Lydia (despite Beta's naysaying), it seems possible that Alpha will look to Gamma as a kind of surrogate daughter in future episodes. Indeed, when I mentioned this potential outcome to Samantha Morton, the actress had to sidestep the idea for secrecy reasons. In her words:

Just in case any viewers out there were worried that Thora Birch's Gamma would only be around for a short and unimportant burst of episodes, Samantha Morton's veiled excitement about the future is seemingly proof enough that the newest Whisperer will be highly integral to the upcoming Whisperers War that will likely get heated up in the next episode.

As a character created fresh for the TV show, Gamma doesn't have any comic book history to turn to for ideas about what's coming next. In fact, the comic's Whisperers didn't really have any other important standout characters beyond Alpha and Beta, so it's probably smart that The Walking Dead is expanding that villain base, even if it's only one new character for now.

Samantha Morton doesn't necessarily think that Gamma is one of a kind for the way she stepped in and saved Alpha from being attacked, even though it was Gamma's own sister being sacrificed. However, Gamma obviously is the only one who did it, and Alpha completely understands the importance of that choice. Here's how Morton explained it:

Though Gamma may take Lydia's place in some ways in Alpha's mind, it won't be a full transfer, and Alpha is going to have to distract herself by putting her mind on other things. Will one of those other things be "sicking walkers onto Carol, Michonne & Co." in future episodes? Seems likely enough.

Alpha Vs. Carol

Speaking of Melissa McBride's take-no-shit survivor, Carol stepped up as the perfect foil for Alpha's vindictiveness, what with Andrew Lincoln's Rick and Lauren Cohan's Maggie not being around (at least until Season 11) to dilute any of that violent possessiveness. Both the premiere and the second episode ended with distant daggers being traded between Carol and the Whisperers leader, and fans are expecting fireworks to go off between the two females.

When I asked Samantha Morton about Alpha and Carol's future on The Walking Dead, the actress got as quiet as one of her Whisperer followers. And because her response is so minimal, perhaps we can assume that the character's feud will be anything but minimal. Here's what she said:

This is The Walking Dead, of course, so fans are quite used to having details hidden behind curtains (that may or may not be crafted from walker skins). But judging from the way Samantha Morton said there's "still a lot" on the way, I think everyone can expect to see some intense moments between Alpha and Carol, and that's probably putting it lightly.

Of course, I fully expect Alpha to have intense and chilling confrontations with more than just Carol. Michonne is going to want a piece of her before exiting the show, as will Daryl, even though Beta will be standing in the way. And then there's always Negan. (The PTSD-stricken Siddqiq, however, will likely avoid any kind of close contact.) The question now is, mainly, "When are those sparks gonna fly?"

The Walking Dead airs Sunday nights on AMC at 9:00 p.m. ET. Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more about those flying sparks and other news covering the fall TV season.

A lot has changed for The Walking Dead characters since the 2010 premiere. With Rick and Maggie gone, Season 10 will be focusing more on Carol and Daryl. The pair has flirted with each other quite a few times, but further fraternizing was prevented by Carol's marriage to Ezekiel. Carol was committed, but they hit a rough patch following the death of their son, Henry, and Carol and Ezekiel’s relationship shockingly ended in the Season 9 finale, with Carol heading off to Alexandria without Ezekiel. Could this have opened the door for a potential romance between Carol and Daryl?

Walking Dead showrunner Angela Kang suggests that they’ll be at the heart of Season 10. She'd already confirmed that Carol and Daryl will share plenty of scenes together in Season 10, and speaking to TVLine, she teased more of what fans can expect from this potential couple when The Walking Dead returns in October.

Melissa McBride's Carol has faced tremendous tragedies over the course of The Walking Dead. From the loss of Sophia in Season 2 to the death of her and Ezekiel’s son in Season 9, Carol has been put through the emotional ringer. She’s usually come out stronger on the other side, but Henry’s death seemed to hit her the hardest, shaking up the relationship she and Ezekiel shared. After all, the death of a child can have major repercussions on any marriage. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that Carol won’t ever speak to Ezekiel again, but it won’t necessarily put a wrench in starting up a new romance with Norman Reedus' Daryl, either.

Angela Kang's words could mean anything and everything for the characters. With the core protagonists battling the Whisperers throughout the season, could the impending conflicts somehow bring Carol and Daryl closer together? It’s possible. The “human toll” implies that there might be a lot of casualties, which is something The Walking Dead has never shied away from.

Daryl was Rick’s closest non-romantic friend, and his disappearance greatly affected Daryl throughout the latter chunk of Season 9. It wouldn’t be out of left field to assume that Carol and Daryl could bond over the loss of their loved ones to be there for each other in a way others can’t. (Not even dogs.) Either way, the pair will be connected emotionally and that could pave the way for an eventual relationship.

In addition to Rick and Maggie’s exits from the series, The Walking Dead will say goodbye to Danai Gurira’s Michonne, who has been on the show since Season 3. The actress confirmed that Season 10 will be her last while appearing during the show's panel at San Diego Comic-Con, though she will likely return for the Rick Grimes features.

The Walking Dead Season 10 will premiere on Sunday, October 6 at 9/8c on AMC. For all other new and returning shows coming to TV this fall, be sure to check out our full schedule of premiere dates.

Spoilers are below for those who haven't yet watched The Walking Dead's Season 9 finale, so be warned.

The Walking Dead's fanbase hopefully didn't expect to see any major casualties going down in the icy Season 9 finale, what with all the heads that rolled the week before. Still, "The Storm" did manage to give various characters other forms of loss to deal with, such as Carol and Ezekiel solidifying their break-up/divorce. As emotional as that split might have been, it no doubt inspired many viewers to start beating the drum anew for sparks to fly between Carol and Daryl.

When CinemaBlend spoke with The Walking Dead showrunner Angela Kang ahead of the Season 9 finale, we had a good-hearted laugh over the fans' undying desire to see Carol and Daryl getting romantic on the show. While she wasn't making any promises about casual hookups, she did confirm that Melissa McBride and Norman Reedus will be working together quite a lot when Season 10 comes around. In her words:

Now that's some news that Walking Dead fans can stand behind, especially the fans that consistently clamor for the show to get Carol and Daryl together in more scenes. Such viewer-based hopes, it's worth pointing out, have been going for ages, since Melissa McBride and Norman Reedus are the only two remaining cast members who have been around since Season 1.

And just look at how cute they were together for McBride's episode of the AMC series Ride with Norman Reedus.

With that being the case, one might think that the writers could and would find ways to regularly keep them together on screen. Of course, it always helps to spread the more established characters around to assist in bringing newer characters into the narrative fold. For instance, Daryl and Carol had some truly meaningful scenes together in the early days of Season 9, but it was all to set Daryl up as a quasi-mentor to Henry, who won't be around anymore in Season 10.

To that end, fans might not want to invest too many fantastical hopes into Carol and Daryl's shared narrative in Season 10, considering Henry's murder is going to be fueling some or all of their conversations. Neither Daryl nor Carol are around in the Walking Dead comics at this point, so it's difficult to gauge how they're going to deal with their vengeful feelings and motivations in Season 10.

Perhaps Carol can continue subtly molding Daryl into becoming a more well-rounded person, and can draw him away from making dangerous and impulsive decisions in the name of getting revenge. He definitely has a bad habit of doing the worst things at the worst times. (Just ask Glenn.) But then maybe Daryl will be the one to influence Carol in certain ways, maybe by inspiring her to emotionally move on from things without having top-to-bottom breakdowns.

Although the comic books set up a specific character to venture out to find and threaten Alpha after the big fair murders, it's possible that The Walking Dead TV show is setting up Carol and Daryl as the ones who infiltrate the Whisperers camp. Granted, just about every single protagonist on this show has brutal ideas for how Alpha and Beta deserve to be punished, so place your best on who might get to actually take their first shot at Alpha.

Here, Angela Kang talks about the overwhelming fan appreciation for Carol and Daryl as a potential couple.

Angela Kang is right as rain about that, and Season 9 has been no exception in that respect, either. Following Rick's disappearance and the time jump, Daryl chose to live alone in the woods. Well, alone except for his new pet, a dog named Dog. To be expected, the fanbase went berserk over Daryl being a dog owner, and I wouldn't have been surprised if someone put an amber alert out for Dog whenever he went missing in "The Storm." (Seriously, social media went haywire.)

Beyond his new four-legged friend, Daryl also made a connection with the new-to-the-season character Connie, as played by Lauren Ridloff. After sharing a few early moments together, Daryl and Connie teamed up to track Henry to the Whisperers' camp, and also worked together in fending off the Whisperers during that office building brawl.

Predictably, when fans saw the genuine chemistry that Norman Reedus and Lauren Ridloff shared together, there were instant hopes for Daryl and Connie's emotions and libidos to get the better of them at some point. That outcome didn't go down in the Season 9 finale, with Daryl spending more time at Carol's side, possibly stoking Ezekiel's jealousy. But who's to say Connie won't be tagging along with Daryl and Carol on their adventures in Season 10? Is that a love triangle people are hoping for yet?

The Walking Dead won't be returning to AMC with new episodes for another half-year or so, but you can keep current on all the Season 10 news right now, along with staying up to date on all the biggest shows debuting soon.

Season 8 of The Walking Dead has been a wild one. With All Out War against Negan at full tilt, the first handful of episodes have been chock full of heart pounding action sequences and gun fights. And while this has been an interesting change of pace for TWD, it's also prevented more intimate and calming character driven scenes to show up in the new season. Fan favorite character Carol has spent the majority of her scenes with King Ezekiel and his militia, but we haven't gotten much of a glimpse into how their personal relationship has progressed in Season 7. Luckily, actress Melissa McBride recently spoke to Carol's opinion about Ezekiel. Turns out, she's totally into his bonkers performance based personality.

Melissa McBride's comments to Comic Book no doubt help illuminate where Carol's head is at in the new season. After spending the past year or so attempting to hide from people, Carol is back in the game for the battle against Negan. And this includes hanging around King Ezekiel as he puts on his over the top voice.

That being said, Carol knows what its like to wear a mask, which Melissa McBride also points out. Part of what makes Carol such a deadly survivor of the apocalypse is her ability to slip into a weak and helpless character when it suits her. Even the biggest villains will often give Carol pause, which allows her the moment to get the upper hand and take them out. We saw this when the group first got to Alexandria, as well as her interactions with the Saviors. And since Ezekiel actually lowered his facade to speak with the Cookie Lady, she respect the truth in his lie.

It should be interesting to see how The Walking Dead continues developing Ezekiel and Carol's relationship. She's also shared flirtations with Morgan and Daryl, so fans are eager to see Carl have some love in her life.

The Walking Dead is currently airing its eight season on AMC. Check out our fall premiere list to plan your next binge watch.

Warning: spoilers for The Mist are in play. If you haven't experienced the terror for yourself, bookmark this piece and come back.

With all of this talk about Stephen King movies in 2017, there's one movie that's been a recurring thought in our minds as of late: Frank Darabont's 2007 adaptation of The Mist. Blame it on how it's been the year for Stephen King adaptations or the fact that the Spike TV adaptation was cancelled. Hell, seeing Thomas Jane in this weekend's 1922 kind of drove the point home, as he's once again proven he's one of those actors that just gets King's work.

Most importantly, it's Halloween, and that's the time of year to indulge in what truly scares you. And if being stuck in a grocery store with an angry mob led by a religious zealot inside isn't something to be afraid of, having massive and unfriendly creatures waiting on the outside certainly is. Though the thing that scares us the most about The Mist is its ending, an occurrence so shocking that it's still one of the most harsh finales we've ever seen. It's an ending we need to discuss, and that's exactly what we're about to do. Prepare yourselves, as we're about to go back into The Mist.

How The Movie Ends

After spending almost the whole movie cooped up in the supermarket, hiding from the creatures that make their home in The Mist, Thomas Jane's David Drayton leaves the safety of the building with a select group of people, in order to drive into the mist. The surviving party members find themselves stranded on the road, as the car they took runs out of gas mid-journey. Faced with the choice of either being ended by the monsters or by their own devices, the group allows David to shoot them all as an act of mercy. This includes David's young son, who's only eight years old at the time.

Unfortunately for David, there were five people and four bullets, leaving himself unable to finish his task by killing himself. So he walks outside, egging on fate to engage in what we've come to know is the standard operating procedure of The Mist: the prospect of a horrific monster eating him. Only, that doesn't happen. Apparently, the Army base that started this mess got the situation under control, and David sees this all too clearly when soldiers start to clean up the area around him. But the real kicker is when he sees truckloads of survivors from the supermarket they had fled, including a woman who previously wandered into the mist, played by The Walking Dead's Melissa McBride.

With his wife dead, and having just mercy killed everyone in his party including his young son, David realizes that if they'd stayed put just stopped for a single moment and thought things through, everyone would have been ok. He screams in pure madness, and the film ends. You can watch these last few moments for yourself, in the clip below.

That's not the end of the madness though, as if the movie's David knew the ending of the original Mist novella, he'd have gone even crazier.

How The Book Ended

The novella The Mist ends pretty similar to the movie, with a daring escape being made by David, his son, and two others. What follows is a longer driving sequence that hits upon the heavily implied death of David's wife, and sees the crew making their way to a Howard Johnson's hotel near the state border. As he finishes writing the pages explaining the entirety of The Mist, he sets up the ending with the following caveat:

Rather than definitively ending, The Mist's literary form leaves its conclusion ambiguous, with the prospect of salvation being found in Hartford, Connecticut - based on David's apparently hearing that town's name in a brief radio transmission. He mulls over the thought that they can only make it so far on the amount of gas they have, even has a prospect to refuel the car. In the end, he kisses his son good night, and whispers "Hartford" and "Hope" to him.

So while The Mist has a bleak, unforgiving, and finite conclusion in Frank Darabont's adaptation, the novella has a more open ended conclusion that gives hope to David Drayton, his son, and the two women that followed them into the wild. Right about now, you're probably thinking to yourself, "why the hell did they change the ending?" Well, we've got some ideas on that, and they're supported by the King of horror himself.

Why They Changed It

There was one big force behind changing the ending to The Mist for the theatrical adaptation, and it was Frank Darabont himself. When talking about the new conclusion in an interview, Stephen King explained how this came to be.

When making The Mist in an era that saw the worldwide public dealing with the brutal realities of ongoing war and terrorism, it kind of made sense to beef up the ending into something that embraced a darker sense of realism. It would only be a year or so until The Dark Knight got in on the action, but Darabont and King saw the opportunity for a definitive and memorable ending, and took it.

Reading Stephen King's remarks on the ending, there's one key thing you have to keep in mind: the original story was written in 1980, which not only makes it one of King's earliest works, but also happens to be in the same year that Stanley Kubrick's The Shining made its way into theaters. Considering how much Stephen King hated the way The Shining was adapted, he's always had a bit of an anti-Hollywood bent on his mind, and who could blame him? It only makes sense that he would trust Frank Darabont, the man who made The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile into the successful adaptations they were. But the fact that this ending allowed King to get one up on Hollywood convention feels like it was the icing on his cake. Something he's never been shy of expressing since day one.

What King Thought Of The Ending

Needless to say, Stephen King is one of the biggest fans of the ending to The Mist's film adaptation, and that's not information that's new. While the previous quote about his approval of the ending came as early as a couple months ago, King was still cheerleading for the film's nihilist conclusion when the film was first released into the world. He'd said as much in an interview with USA Today around the time of the film's release, stating that:

He only further poured the affection on Frank Darabont's thrilling end to David Drayton's adventures, as he doubled down in a press conference for The Mist's release and said this:

It's hard not to see Stephen King's glee for the fact that The Mist was not only going to bum out a bunch of new fans that had never experienced the material before, but also that loyal fans who read the book were about to be in for a bit of a shock themselves. After all, the man loves a good shock and/or scare at the expense of his audience, so why wouldn't he enjoy it if it fits into the parameters of the story that came before it? But is it truly the better ending?

Which Ending Was Better?

For hardcore Stephen King fans, picking a favorite ending to The Mist must is like Sophie's choice. But, taking both into consideration for their individual merits, there's some good points to be made. The ending to The Mist in novella form speaks to the dogged determination of our species. It's a hopeful ending that says we can make it, if only we push ourselves far enough, with enough smart thought behind our decisions. It's an inconclusive ending, but it allows for hope to flourish with the right thinking.

The ending to Frank Darabont's The Mist though is a dark, gut-punch of an ending, that shows a man on the wrong side of fate, with one less bullet than he needed. It is a bleak ending that does not rely on fate or indecision to lead the audience towards their own preferences, and it forces you to see its definitive conclusion in all of its dark glory, letting you decide to either accept or reject it on those standards alone.

In all honestly, I favor that second ending, purely because it feels more like the Stephen King I've come to know in a more modern context. Also, it's an ending so audacious in what it does, that you kind of have to respect it. But most importantly, it's an ending that brought The Mist into the modern age without having to change all that much about the story to begin with. The possibility for soul crushing defeat was always there in the world of David Drayton and his compatriots. All Frank Darabont did was give the story the push it needed, ultimately sealing everyone's fates.

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Fans of The Walking Dead have been waiting what feels like forever for the series to return for Season 8, which will bring its milestone 100th episode. Season 7 ended on an exhilarating note as what could have been a slaughter of the good guys turned into an epic battle involving no fewer than five groups, a whole bunch of guns, and one tiger. Now, one star has revealed that the action won't be slowing down in the next batch of episodes. Seth Gilliam, who plays Father Gabriel on The Walking Dead, had this to tease about the action of Season 8:

Apparently we don't have to worry that The Walking Dead showed off all of its good explosions and battles in the epic first trailer! Going by Seth Gilliam's comments to EW, we're in for some cinematic action so big and explosive that it doesn't exist elsewhere on the small screen. Fans of The A-Team will know that Gilliam's comparison means that plenty of violence is on the way, and the comparison of (presumably) Rick's and Negan's forces to Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone points toward some pretty incredible showdowns.

So much action will mark a big departure from the status quo of the series last season. In Season 7, the people of Alexandria, Hilltop, and The Kingdom were all under Negan's thumb, and it was clear that no single one of those groups had the will or firepower to go against the Saviors. Rick's attempt to work with the Scavengers backfired spectacularly. Luckily, all three groups found solid allies in each other in the finale, as the combined forces of Alexandria, Hilltop, and The Kingdom were enough to drive off the Saviors and the Scavengers.

Of course, it's worth noting that the Saviors were taken by surprise with the sudden alliance, the appearance of Shiva, and zombie Sasha popping out of her casket. Given the time to regroup and plan, we can bet that they'll pose a major threat to the other groups. Who knows? Maybe the act of defiance will drive Negan to try to enforce his will with more brutality than ever. Melissa McBride, who has played Carol since way back in the first season, weighed in on how Season 8 will stand out:

Several members of the Walking Dead cast have spoken about how difficult it was to film Season 7, especially when compared to the group fun of earlier seasons. Back in the old days, we got Rick and Co. kicking ass and taking names on a regular basis. Under Negan's thumb, there wasn't much Rick and Co. could do. For those of who have been missing the action of the old days, Melissa McBride's comments point to a grand old time in Season 8.

We'll have to wait and see. The Walking Dead will return for Season 8 on Sunday, October 22 at 9 p.m. ET on AMC. For more of what you can watch in the not-too-distant future, take a look at our fall TV guide.

One of the most impactful deaths of The Walking Dead so far has to be the murder of Glenn Rhee at the hands of Negan. Glenn was one of only a handful of characters who survived all the way to Season 7 from Season 1, and many fans were hoping against hope that he would somehow escape his infamous comic fate. Sadly, Glenn did indeed get a face full of Lucille in the Season 7 premiere, and actor Stephen Yeun is gone from the show. Now, actress Melissa McBride has shared her favorite part of working with him, saying this:

Despite the fact that Carol and Glenn were two of only six characters to have survived from Season 1 to Season 7, they didn't share many scenes one-on-one. That said, Melissa McBride's comments to ComicBook.com indicate that she was still able to watch him develop as an actor over the years on the show. Given that Steven Yeun's most high profile job before The Walking Dead was a one-off guest spot on The Big Bang Theory, I'd say he learned an awful lot about the TV biz on The Walking Dead.

Steven Yeun is gone from The Walking Dead, but his legacy has lived on. Episodes throughout Season 7 have paid tributes to Glenn, and Maggie has even started using Glenn's last name. Assuming that Maggie's pregnancy proceeds without too many more complications, Glenn will even live on in the form of a child. Given all the rotten luck that Maggie has had over the past few seasons, I'd say that she deserves some good news.

Glenn's legacy also just directly impacted Carol's story. She's spent the majority of Season 7 isolating herself on the outskirts of the Kingdom, and even a reunion with her pal Daryl wasn't enough to motivate her to rejoin the fight. The news that Glenn and Abraham were murdered by Negan was enough to push her into action, which will likely in turn push Ezekiel into joining his forces with Rick and Co. If all goes well, the characters will be able to avenge Glenn's death in the not-too-distant future. Of course, this is The Walking Dead where nothing ever goes entirely well, but we can always hope.

Glenn may be gone, but Carol is still alive and kicking. You can catch new episodes of The Walking Dead on Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on AMC. Take a look at our midseason TV premiere schedule to see all your other small screen viewing options.

*Spoilers below if you haven't watched the latest episode of _The Walking Dead_. *

While it's understandable, given her recent outlook on life, Carol has been sticking to The Walking Dead sidelines within her private house outside The Kingdom, but that sheltered existence is thankfully coming to an end. Early on in the deadly "Bury Me Here," Carol seemed wary of Daryl's previous claim that Alexandria was free from Negan's wrath, and that paid off in the end, when Morgan lucidly confessed the various tragedies that had occurred. But if you're thinking Carol wants revenge, think again. Here's how actress Melissa McBride says her character feels about the lie.

Wow, that's an extremely kind and forgiving way of looking at things, although it's not entirely unforeseen. Carol and Daryl are as close to BFFs as The Walking Dead has to offer, so any situation where she is legitimately pissed at him would need to be far more damaging than him lying to spare her feelings. I think Daryl probably could have gotten away with killing Spencer himself and Carol would have swept it under a rug or two after helping him bury the body.

After all, it's hard to imagine Daryl doing anything other than lying to her face about the deaths of Glenn, Abraham and the others. Carol was pretty explicit in explaining that she wanted to live the life of a recluse so that she could avoid the deadlier elements of the post-apocalypse. I am pretty sure Carol would have been more pissed had Daryl chose that time to get down and dirty with his honesty. It worked when Ezekiel dropped his charade to her, but this is a completely different situation.

And it's a situation that will at last draw Carol out of her shell and bring her back to the forefront of Walking Dead's action sequences, though if Richard's slapdash attempts at justice hadn't gone so sorely wrong, she may never have been informed about any of it. But it happened, and as Melissa McBride told ComicBook.com, things are happening just as Carol figured they would.

Much as we'd all love to shield our loved ones from the hate and horror that the world exudes on a daily basis, it's a futile effort, and in some cases, fighting is far more effective than ignoring. Hopefully Carol finds quick success in her efforts to persuade Ezekiel to join Team Family's quest to take out Negan. Even if, you know, she has to lie to make it happen.

Hopefully no one's pants will be on fire for lying when The Walking Dead airs Sunday nights on AMC at 9:00 p.m. ET. Check out more on how last night's big death compares to the comics and then head to our midseason premiere schedule to see what's coming to your TVs soon.

In Season 6 of The Walking Dead, few characters had as much mental turmoil as Carol, who has experienced just about every shade of personality imaginable since the group planted stakes in Alexandria. She was out on her own in a highly dangerous environment, and thankfully had the dutiful Morgan tracking her down. There might be bad news for anyone hoping that the duo reconnects with the bigger group when Season 7 kicks off, because it sounds like they'll be separated for at least 3 or 4 episodes.

While we're not quite sure exactly where Morgan and Carol are, we know Morgan is in contact with some of the Kingdom's battle-ready citizens, and it's likely the duo will be heading to The Kingdom before making the trek back to Alexandria. And because The Kingdom and its tiger-keeping leader Ezekiel aren't set to make their grand debut until the third episode, we might not get to see Carol reconnecting with Daryl and the rest until Episode 4 or even later. We all know how things usually go when characters aren't with the group anymore, but luckily Morgan is an exception to that, and they've got a good group to keep them safe.

Actress Melissa McBride told ComicBook.com that it will take the first three episodes to get a grasp on where all of the characters are and how things are moving, and then shared this about what fans can expect to see from her and Morgan during their time away from Alexandria.

It is indeed possible that Carol and Morgan still won't be getting along when they get acclimated to their surroundings. He did a lot for her even outside of going against his no-killing code, but she didn't exactly ask for it, and she might not be all that appreciative. (Okay, so the first trailer that came out for Season 7 had her clearly smiling and laughing, but still.) She might just want to get back to Alexandria as soon as possible. Not that either Carol or Morgan is going to like what they see when they get back, given Negan will be running the show.

Perhaps it's actually a better idea for Carol and Morgan to stay away for as long as possible. Ezekiel will probably clue them in on how dangerous Negan really is, which will likely prompt a return to Alexandria, possibly with Ezekiel and Shiva in tow. All of these people have to meet up somehow, right?

The Walking Dead will return to AMC for the first half of Season 7 on Sunday, October 23, at 9:00 p.m. ET. Find out more about Season 7 here and to see when the rest of your favorite shows will be back, check out our fall TV schedule.

While we all may be sad that the summer is over, there is something exciting in store for TV fans: fall premiere season. And perhaps no show is quite as hotly anticipated as AMC's apocalyptic drama The Walking Dead. Season 6's finale was way back in April, so fans have been waiting quite some time to return to the world of the dead, and most importantly find out who the hell Negan beat to death with his barbed wire bat Lucille. But aside from the Negan cliffhanger, there's a bunch of main characters who aren't in danger of dying and still have important stories to tell in the series. And perhaps none of these is more important than everyone's favorite cookie lady, Carol.

Carol had been going through yet another transition last year, as regret and guilt for her various murders began to creep into her mind. Now Melissa McBride (who has been robbed of Emmy and Golden Globe nominations way too many times) has revealed where Carol is headed in Season 7.

This statement comes to us from ComicBook.com, who had the chance to speak with Melissa McBride about her character's arc in the upcoming season. Let's break down what McBride is telling us.

For one, homegirl definitely has some healing to do. Both physically and emotionally. The last we saw Carol she was being hunted down by a Savior that she didn't quite kill. He ended up cornering the cookie lady on the road and shot her in both the leg and her arm. Luckily, Morgan was there to save the day (and break his rule about not killing people), but Carol is definitely pretty messed up. Again. She already got hit by a car for goodness sake.

Of course, Melissa McBride is most likely talking about Carol's emotional journey more than her myriad injuries. Carol's guilt over killing and her inability to stop doing it was a major focus in the back half of Season 6. We saw her make a list of her victims, which surely brought up old feelings about Karen, David, Mika, And Lizzie. And while she was processing these feelings, she and Maggie were taken by The Saviors and she was forced to kill even more people. Will her guilt continue to plague her, or is the big picture with The Saviors, The Hilltop, and The Kingdom going to help her come back into her own?

Additionally, Morgan and Carol's relationship is sure to be an interesting plot in Season 7. Their conflicting ideologies were captivating in Season 6, and now that Morgan has killed for her it will once again change and excite the audience.

The Walking Dead will return to AMC October 23rd.

Things are really heating up on AMC’s apocalyptic hit The Walking Dead. We’ve been awaiting the massive threat that is Negan and the Saviors all season long, and last week saw Rick and the group going in to face the threat essentially blind. Perhaps not the best plan. With the group of crazies now in control of Maggie and Carol, and Negan and his bat slowly approaching the fray, it seems like the last few episodes of the season are going to be pure chaos. We’ve been warned that the season finale will be absolutely gruesome, and now actress Melissa McBride (aka cookie lady Carol) has opened up regarding her reaction to the script.

This statement, which comes to us from Comicbook.com, is a pretty serious reaction- especially since it was just the words on the page rather than the action of performing the scenes.

Overall, the cast and crew’s reaction to the upcoming season finale is rather surprising. They work on a show that has had some of the most gruesome imagery in television history. We’ve seen Gareth eat Bob’s leg in front of him, the Governor take a sword to Hershel’s neck, and we all remember how utterly gruesome Noah’s death was. After all of the craziness that has happened over The Walking Dead’s six seasons, you’d think the cast would be a bit numb to the show’s violent nature. 

We’re all expecting Negan to take his signature bat Lucille to one of the main characters’ heads in the season finale. Now the question is: who is going to fall victim to Negan? I’ve been pretty staunchly convinced that Abraham or Daryl were going to get it, much to fans’ chagrin. However, after reading Melissa McBride’s statement, I’m now worried that something more disturbing is going to happen. While Abraham or Daryl’s death would surely anger fans, it presumably wouldn’t put McBride in a black hole- she’s seen characters die before. Instead, I’m now worrying for the fate of the most innocent characters: Judith and Maggie’s unborn child. 

We’ve seen a bunch of kids meet their maker in The Walking Dead. In addition to the freshly dead Sam and Ron, Lizzie, Mika, and Sophia have all been killed in the past. Killing off baby Judith seems so unbelievably tragic that it might be the exact darkness that the cast has been referencing. And in regards to the comic books, Judith has been dead for quite some time- she and Lori perished together during the Governor’s attack on the prison. But would AMC show such a controversial and disturbing death on the TV show? 

Only time will tell, as the countdown to the finale continues.

The Walking Dead airs Sunday on AMC. Melissa McBride will also be appearing on the aftershow, Talking Dead tonight, March 13th. 

We’re always talking about what moments from The Walking Dead that we liked the most, but what about the moments that the stars themselves enjoyed more than others? Actress Melissa McBride, who plays the ever-badass Carol, recently shared her favorite zombie kills.

The scene McBride is talking about right there (from the episode “Isolation”) ended on a pretty important moment for Carol as a character, in that it’s when she reveals that she’s the one that killed Karen and David in the prison after they got the sickness, which kind of kicks off a series of Carol killings that get her into trouble with the group. It was also the rare moment when Rick outwardly criticized Carol for her actions, including trying to clear a hose outside the fence amid all the walkers.

But the importance of the scene isn’t what McBride is thinking about here. She’s thinking about putting a hacksaw into a walker’s head – well, into an extra or stunt guy’s head, but you know what I mean – and that was as awesome and gross as it gets.

Interestingly enough, Melissa McBride’s other favorite walker kill was another big moment for the character. Here’s what else she told EW.

Here, she’s referring to the Season 5 premiere “No Sanctuary,” in which the gut-covered Carol blows up a propane tank and sends walkers flying all around in flames, not only allowing her entrance to the cannibal compound but also saving the lives of Glenn and others who are seconds away from being murdered. This remains one of my favorite stunts on the show, as the explosion itself is just chock full of bodies. Check it out below.

A character that has been deemed unkillable by Robert Kirkman, even though she’d already nearly been killed off in Season 3, Carol will be around The Walking Dead for a long time, which will undoubtedly lead to some upcoming walker kills that could top these. And maybe even a human kill or two is on the way. We’ll see.

The Walking Dead airs Sunday nights on AMC.

Not long ago, we all breathed a collective sigh of relief when The Walking Dead executive producer and special effects maestro Greg Nicotero shared that T-Dog’s death in Season 3 was supposed to be a fate handed to Melissa McBride’s Carol. While he didn’t specifically say why the writers chose to save Carol for the long haul, it’s now come out that Carol’s on-set guardian angel was actress Sarah Wayne Callies, who played Lori Grimes.

Andrew Lincoln, whose fictional marriage to Callies was a complicated one to say the least, let that fact fly, saying:

That’s a pretty strong sign of solidarity, and one that didn’t really work out too well for T-Dog portrayer IronE Singleton. It worked out for viewers, though, as audiences have grown to love and respect Carol more and more as each season goes by. She totally left behind her former life as an abused wife and, though part of her still mourns her late daughter, Carol has become as much of a pragmatic survivalist as anyone else on the show. And it’s all (or at least partly) thanks to some convincing encouragement from Callies.

Maybe the creative team felt like they owed Callies one for putting her character through such a tumultuous ordeal for her final episode. She went into labor while on the run inside a prison, had to go through as unprofessional a C-section as one can get, and then died during delivery, only to later be shot by her son to stop her from reanimating as a walker. That’s some drama – almost enough drama to make actress Lauren Cohan exit stage left – and allowing her to change the fate of one survivor would be a good parting gift.

It turns out Melissa McBride wasn’t even aware of Sarah Wayne Callies stepping up to bat for her like that, according to EW. Probably a little late for a Thank You card, and McBride probably isn’t the best person to send anyone flowers, considering that time when she killed Lizzie. Maybe a singing telegram?

Carol has since been given God status by Robert Kirkman, so we likely won’t ever have to worry about it being necessary for one of her co-stars to plead for McBride to stay on the show. At least, that’s what Kirkman says, and he’s been known to pass around little white lies.

The Walking Dead will return for the remainder of Season 6, in which many bodies will fall, on Sunday, February 14, on AMC. To see when everything else is returning in the coming months, check out our midseason TV schedule.

Spoiler warning for Episode 2 of The Walking Dead Season 6.

Few on TV experience the kind of character arcs that Carol has gone through on The Walking Dead. Upon reaching Alexandria in Season 5, she was able to draw on her former days as a wife and mother to develop the matronly persona that almost everyone immediately attached to. (Even Sam did, as cookies always outweigh getting chastised and half-threatened with a knife.) We fully expected her to play happy homemaker for quite a while, but “JSS” changed all that, and it looks like Carol will be more like her “real” self moving forward.

When asked about how her position within the community will change after everyone saw that she was a wisely conniving hero with killer skills, actress Melissa McBride said that the jig is up.

Like last week, when Alexandria’s herd-heeders got a taste of a random walker attack and failed to do much beyond cower in the process, the people inside of the formerly safe haven got their own proof of how horrifying the world is these days. To be fair, the Wolves were intentionally far deadlier than brainless packs of walkers, so their lesson was heightened, but still. Looking outside of a window and seeing someone get shanked with a machete is at the opposite end of the societal spectrum from lauding Carol for her baking achievements.

Losing Carol as the den mother is probably going to take a mental toll on some of these survivors who desperately need something from the “normal” world to cling to. It’s entirely possible that they could all sort of look past the buckets of blood on her hands and revert back to hitting her up for recipes. Of course, that’ll have to happen after they bury all the people who died in the Wolves’ attack, and as they’re repairing the walls, and as they’re anticipating the next big attack. Nothing makes casseroles look better than when everything else is a sign of fledgling mortality.

Here’s what McBride told THR about the effect of her lost persona.

Personally, I’m most invested in seeing how Carol and Morgan get along from this point forward, since she messed with his “no kill” rule. But I’m generally interested to see if people start treating her with even more reverence now. What do you guys think?

The Walking Dead airs Sunday nights on AMC.