Those waiting in line outside the ‘Walking Dead’ booth at Comic-Con were treated to the positively badass 4.5-minute preview to season four of the series. With past shakiness over showrunner drama and actor issues, all anyone needs to do is watch below to see that new showrunner Scott Gimple knows exactly what he’s doing, and our favorite survivors couldn’t be in better hands.
It’s refreshing to step into the after-aftermath of a zombie apocalypse and see the people who have made it this far actually making moves to take back the world they used to rule. Skittish or shy characters like Carol and Beth have certainly come into their own, and the “elderly and asthmatic” castoffs from the decimated Woodbury camp are eager to pull their own weight.
Pointedly missing from the preview, however, is everyone’s favorite unhinged cyclops, The Governor — season three’s Big Bad who many expected would meet his demise at the end of the finale. While he’s definitely still a “principal” cast member, it’s been speculated as being pretty cheap if he’s drawn out as season 4’s primary antagonist — besides the horde of flesh-eating undead antagonists, that is.
Screen Rant has confirmed the next season will have at least two “standalone Governor installments,” which has been done well in the series before, but some fans aren’t sure his threat is intriguing enough to carry a whole season. We’ll have to put our faith in the writers to not “Sophia it” again and sacrifice an entire half-season’s plot progression in favor of an entire arc squished into the episode airing coincidentally during sweeps week. Let’s not forget, however, that Barn Burner episode “Pretty Much Dead Already” was one of the best of season 2, and it was written by future showrunner Scott Gimple. I don’t think fans will have any trouble keeping the faith.
‘The Walking Dead’ returns to AMC on October 13.
