'The Walking Dead' Season 8: What's Going on With The 'Honor' Ending Scene?
"The Walking Dead" just delivered its biggest character death yet, but it looks like there is another major one coming.
In Carl's (Chandler Riggs) final outing, the young man reminded his father Rick (Andrew Lincoln) that killing is not the answer and that they can have the future they want without resorting to bloodshed.
It is also revealed in the episode that the visions of an old Rick first shown in "The Walking Dead" season 8 premiere are that of Carl as he dreams of the future they have when the war is over.
Rick promises that he would make this future real. However, in the final moments of the episode, a very frail Rick sat under a tree, bloodied up. It is unclear what this shot really is about, but it is understood to be significant to the show moving forward.
The scene put some under the impression that Rick is in serious danger and will soon share the fate of his son. Lincoln admitted to The Hollywood Reporter that this scene had him "very worried."
He went on to say, "Especially when we did the makeup test and I said, 'He looks like he's lost quite a bit of blood. Do we want him to be this white?! Can we make him look like he's got a pint of blood in his body?!'"
In an interview with TV Line, "The Walking Dead" season 8 showrunner Scott Gimple played coy about the mysterious ending, but he promised that answers will be provided and that there is "a great deal of meaning on that shot."
Robert Kirkman, the creator of the source material who also executive produces the show, put the worries of fans to rest in the same THR interview, where he said that the shot was not meant to tease that "The Walking Dead" is losing Rick soon.
Kirkman has said in the past that he has thought about how things will end for Rick in the comics. The show has time and again has proven that no one is safe, even Carl, who was considered the future of the show.
"I don't think you should read too much into that," he said. While he believes that "the show could survive without a Rick Grimes," he noted that the particular scene in the latest "The Walking Dead" season 8 episode is not going for that.