'Walking Dead' Season 8 Finale Recap, Season 9 Spoilers: A New War Is Brewing
"The Walking Dead" has wrapped up season 8 with an explosive finale, and it's one that has, at first glance, neatly closed the long-running war between the survivor communities. With Negan's war ended, a new dispute seems to be bubbling up to the surface among the victors, and just in time for a possible season 9, too.
As the show's writers would have it, they're not ready to let go of Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) just yet. The show may have dwelt on Negan's war far too long, but the season finale finally gave fans what they want.
Whether it's a gruesome fate for Negan or a return to the show's earlier themes about holding on to humanity despite all odds, the season finale had it all, as the New York Times neatly summed up episode 16.
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The finale showed the controversial decision by Rick (Andrew Lincoln) to spare Negan's life, just right after sawing through his neck with a shard of glass. As the build-up to this pivotal event was shown, it was ultimately Carl's (Chandler Riggs) final wish that held his father back — Rick killing off Negan would be to turn away from Carl's hope for peace.
Under that gesture, which was vehemently opposed by Maggie (Lauren Cohan), is Rick's calculating, cynical decision to keep him around to keep the rest of the Saviors in check. It's also for the hope of a more civilized future, which some of the leaders of the survivors, Maggie among them, seemed to have started to give up on as Screen Rant noted.
It's a faithful rendition of the encounter, as shown in the comics. Maggie seems to be already contemplating the idea of lashing out at Rick and Michonne (Danai Gurira), and the Saviors are now one more unpredictable faction under Rick's group.
As the finale winds down, she swears to Jesus (Tom Payne) and Daryl (Norman Reedus) that Rick and Michonne will regret their decisions that day. With Negan's war just put down, is a civil war rising in its place?
A hint might be found in TV Line's interview with Scott Gimple, outgoing showrunner for "The Walking Dead." On the subject of Negan's stayed execution, he noted how they chose to stick to the source material this time.
"Along the way, we kick around each iteration [of an arc]. But really, from the inception of the story, I knew I wanted to emulate the comic. When I read it, I really liked what it was saying, so I wanted to try and fulfill that and even make it bigger," he said.
About Maggie, Gimple has one thing to say. "Make no mistake, no one is getting in front of Maggie to stop her. That's where there is danger and potential conflict," he noted.
"The Walking Dead" has been officially renewed for season 9 by AMC earlier this year, and new episodes are expected to return this fall.
