Finally, The Walking Dead has reached a major turning point, as Andrew Lincoln and Lauren Cohan appeared in their last episode as series regulars. Last week’s episode showed Maggie’s quest to kill Negan, as Daryl ran interference on Rick to keep him from stopping her. Rick and Daryl largely settled their differences before separating to deal with a huge walker herd. However, Rick was accidentally impaled when his spooked horse threw him from the saddle. This left Rick barely conscious as the walkers closed in.
Slipping Away
Rick wasn’t quite dead yet, but he was barely hanging on as he freed himself and climbed back on the horse. As he slipped in and out of consciousness, Rick was reunited with Shane, Hershel, and Sasha, but not Carl and Lori, the logical picks. Shane even taunted Rick about fathering Judith, while encouraging Rick to be more like the man who hacked the Terminex hunters to death in a church. Every time Rick passed out, he narrowly avoided getting bitten by the advancing herd. But he kept fighting. He kept moving forward in the hope of being reunited with his family.
Day of Reckoning
Maggie made her way into Alexandria largely unchallenged. However, Michonne realized what Maggie intended to do and intercepted her in front of Negan’s cell. Michonne acted like she would even fight Maggie off to respect Rick’s wishes. Instead, Maggie convinced Michonne to step aside and let her face Negan alone. Inside the cell, Negan was seemingly happy to see Maggie. He ruthlessly teased her about killing Glenn, as he pretended not to remember his name. Negan even reminded Maggie about the gruesome details of Glenn’s death.
To her surprise, Maggie didn’t take the bait. She insisted that Negan come into the light, where she finally saw him for the broken man that he is. Negan begged Maggie for death, but she refused. Maggie left Negan to suffer a fate worse than death behind bars, as he sank into despair.
Rickrolled
Throughout the entire episode, Rick’s pending mortality was teased as he bleed out from his serious injuries. He attempted to lead the herd across the unfinished bridge, so they could fall to their doom. Unfortunately, Rick’s followers had done their job too well. The bridge held, and Rick nearly gave into his fate. However, Michonne, Daryl, Maggie, and other survivors finally found him. But before they could stop Rick, he blew up the bridge to stop the walkers. Rick’s friends reacted in disbelief, as they believed he was dead.
Miraculously, or conveniently, Rick turned up alive a short distance away. He was found by Anne, who convinced her benefactors in the helicopter to airlift Rick away and save his life.
They Grow Up So Fast
Time passed, as we met a new group of survivors who were about to meet their premature end. Fortunately for them, they were saved by a young girl with great aim. When the survivors approached her, she introduced herself as Judith Grimes, Rick’s daughter.
What did you think about The Walking Dead season 9 episode 5? Let us know in the comment section below!
