War is practically here! After a season and a half of build up, ‘The Walking Dead’ is about to deliver the big confrontation between Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and their respective tribes. The show is, of course, based on Robert Kirkman’s comic book series and ‘All Out War’ was one of the biggest storylines from the source. So far, the show has adapted roughly a third of this storyline, with the biggest developments yet to come.
But how long will this war rage? The show is notorious for sometimes elongating events from the comics, even inserting all-new developments, characters and scenarios to further flesh things out. But after last season, with its sometimes snail-like progression, which resulted in a massive loss of viewers, it seems that the creators are speeding things along.
Showrunner Scott M. Gimple vowed, “The war will absolutely be resolved by the end of season 8. Absolutely.”
One tease to this effect came with the Season 8 promotional trailer, which ended with a glimpse at what fans are calling “Old Man Rick.” Not to spoil things, but as readers of the comics know, after the end of ‘All Out War’, the book jumped forward in time a few years. That meant that things had changed with clues arriving periodically to fill in what had occurred in the missing years.
What we don’t know yet is when this time jump will take place. At the midway point, when the show goes on winter hiatus? At the end of the season? Or, in a twist, what about at the very beginning, with the events of ‘All Out War’ told through flashbacks?
Gimple was then asked about the post-‘War’ events from the comics. After the time jump, Rick and his allies are confronted with a new threat, called The Whisperers, led by ruthless female leader Alpha. When questioned as to whether Alpha would arrive during Season 8, Gimple deflected with a simple “I’m going to give you a full no-comment on that.” (Playing armchair sleuth here, but I suspect an altered form of Alpha has already been introduced.)
What would you like to see happen this season on ‘The Walking Dead’? Is it time for Negan to go? Or do you still believe he has the potential for more storylines?
Source: Entertainment Weekly
