SPOILER ALERT: This article contains a pretty massive  SPOILER for ‘The Walking Dead’ TV show.  Do NOT read if you don’t want to know!

Going back to when ‘The Walking Dead’ was still just a graphic novel series, I had one warning for anyone who decided to start reading: “Don’t get attached to ANYONE!  NO ONE is safe!”  And that philosophy definitely carries over to the TV adaptation.  We see random cast members devoured on a regular basis and at least one or two major deaths each season, usually in the mid-season and full-season finales.  Sure, the order of deaths and methods have been switched up from the source material to keep avid readers on their toes, but despite changes, the TV deaths are typically even more gut-wrenching than the ink and paper ones.  (That said, just wait ’til Negan arrives… hoo boy…)

But even fans of the comics have wondered IS anyone safe?  Is there anyone who is guaranteed to make it to the end and be the last man or woman standing?

Comic book creator and TV series executive producer Robert Kirkman has spoken and indeed, there is one character that is safe, at least on the show.  The question is who.  And the answer?  May surprise you.

Surely Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), the leader and linchpin of the series is safe, right?  Well… he does seem to come unglued with regularity.  And his decisions sometimes have us screaming at our TVs in frustration.  Can the show actually shamble on without its figurehead?

Kirkman seems to think so, as Rick is not the one character the creator considers safe.

What about badass Michonne (Danai Gurira)?  As soon as she first waltz onto the series, flanked by her two zombie “pets,” slinging her trusty samurai sword, she’s been arguably the most engaging character in the series.  There’s no way they’d kill her off!

Or maybe there is.  She isn’t the safe character either.

Well, clearly there’s no way they’d kill off smoldering, sweaty redneck sex god Daryl (Norman Reedus)!  There’d be rioting in the streets!

And indeed there may still be, as he is also not unkillable.  Get your pitchforks and torches ready.

The one, I’d put money on being the last man standing is Carl Grime (Chandler Riggs).  I mean, depending on how you look at it, the show seems to be even more about his growth and development than Rick’s.  At times, he’s manned up where Rick couldn’t.  (Even moreso in the comics, in which Carl killed Shane and Ben a.k.a. Lizzie on the show.)  Plus, I mean, he’s a kid!  They wouldn’t kill off a ki–… oh wait, they have.  Nevermind.

If I had put money on it, I’d have lost.  Carl is also not the one character that Kirkman says is safe.  Then who on Earth could it be?

None other than cookie baking, child slaying Carol!  Quite a shocking choice, at least in part because in the comic book, Carol has been dead for years, having essentially committed suicide while the gang was shacked up in The Prison.  Both the comic book and TV versions of Carol were battered wives, but whereas the comic book Carol found herself unable to cope, the TV Carol, played by Melissa McBride, has risen as one of the hardest badasses on the show, making her almost as big a fan-favorite as Daryl.

Here is what Kirkman said himself:

“The Carol that’s in the comic was my attempt to show just how broken an individual can become from the zombie apocalypse. The Carol in the show, which is a much better character let’s be honest, actually is made stronger by all the more horrible things that happen to her in the show. Killing her would definitely not … we can’t do that.”

The question now is, how much faith can we put in this declaration?  We’ve seen other characters get amazing arcs where they really get to show how tough they are, only to be killed off at the end (Andrea, Beth).  Will incognito Suzy Homemaker Carol really walk away from all the carnage unscathed?  With she really outlive Rick, Carl, Daryl and the others?

Keep in mind, Kirkman may be an executive producer on the show, but he shares that title with several others, including Scott M. Gimple who serves as the showrunner.  At the end of the day, there are several cooks in this kitchen and it won’t be up to one person who lives or dies depending on how the story unfolds.

Even so, it’s at least encouraging for Carol fans.  This should buy her at least a season or two.

What do you think?  Do you believe that Carol is unkillable?  SHOULD she be?  Or does knowing one character is safe deflate the tension?

Source: Screen Rant