For those who know me, and for those who don’t, I’m a huge The Walking Dead fan. Like, seriously. I have been watching this series since it first came out in 2010, when I was back in seventh grade. It doesn’t feel real to even write those words.
But, since I’ve been watching this show for so long, Season 11 feels very bittersweet for me. While a part of me is excited to see how this show concludes in comparison to the comics, I’m going to miss the characters that I’ve essentially grown up with, like Daryl (Norman Reedus), Carol (Melissa McBride), and so many others.
It’s because of this show that I really learned to appreciate the zombie genre, as well as horror more. I can assure you I never would have checked out zombie shows, such as All Of Us Are Dead, if I had never seen The Walking Dead.
While we’re possibly going to be getting a plethora of new Walking Dead shows and spinoffs after the original show finally ends, I’m eager to see this show that I’ve stuck with for such a long period of my life finally come to a close. With that in mind, there are still several things that I am excited for about the upcoming final episodes - and if you’re a fan of this series, I bet you’re excited for these, too.
For This Show To End Finally
Like I said - bittersweet.
These characters and I have been through a ride. I have seen some heartbreaking deaths. I have witnessed the rise and fall of Walking Dead fan favorites. I have witnessed every damn possible thing that this show could do, from Daryl’s most badass moments, to Negan’s (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) surprising character arc to everything in-between.
But man, it is time for this show to end.
There’s been this running joke online that the show should have ended years ago or whatever, but I always respectfully disagreed, as there was still plenty of story to tell. However, now I can fully say with my whole heart that this show needs to end, even if only to make way for new stories to come from either The Walking Dead universe, or from AMC itself.
For Hornsby To Finally Show His True Colors
The Walking Dead has had some great villains - and some pretty bad ones, too. While no one is ever going to match the strengths of Negan, in my personal opinion, another one that I often think about is The Governor (David Morrissey), from both Seasons 3 and 4 of The Walking Dead. And, how the latest villain in the show, Lance Hornsby (Josh Hamilton), seems to be heading in that direction.
At first, he felt like an off-brand version of The Governor. He literally is a government official in a town that has crooked ways. The only difference is that, as of now, he isn’t as brutal and doesn’t have his dead daughter on a chain. But, at the end of the latest episode, you could see the cracks breaking in his perfect demeanor, especially with how he leaves the fate of Oceanside up in the air by flipping a coin.
That’s some unhinged behavior, just leaving someone’s life up to fate, and that’s something that I really want to see. I come to The Walking Dead for zombie killing and crazy villains with interesting morals and now, Hornsby is beginning to step more into that direction, and I can’t wait for him to finally show his true colors.
For The Commonwealth War
There have been several wars on The Walking Dead at this point. The war with Woodbury feels almost small in comparison to the Savior War and the Whisperer War, but at the same time, a war is a war, and every time, I’ve always found myself entertained.
Some Walking Dead wars have kept my interest more than others, but they always deliver some complex fight scenes, really cool effects, and usually, many hordes of walkers that end up taking out several lives, and some main characters dying. That’s what I’m expecting with the war with the Commonwealth.
If anything, I’m almost expecting more death than ever since this is the last season, and now, we have basically knock-off Stormtroopers with guns who are taking over several communities and will do anything on a command. I have a feeling that this could be one of the best wars on the show - and I can’t wait to see what they do next.
For More Intense Negan And Maggie Interactions
When it was announced that there would be yet another The Walking Dead spinoff, this time featuring Negan and Maggie (Lauren Cohan), of all pairs, called Isle of the Dead, I was a little nervous to see how these two would interact in the show. Now, I honestly can’t wait to see more of them together before their spinoff.
They have such an interesting dynamic already. Negan has gone through a full change as a person - and while he’s not necessarily a good guy, he’s not a horrible man anymore either, and has truly grown. You can even see that after all this time, Maggie is beginning to trust him, leaving her son, Hershel Jr., with him for a little bit during Season 11, Episode 16.
Seeing them interact is always great because not only do the two actors have great chemistry, but their characters are so complex it makes me wonder where they’re going to take this pairing. The fact that this new spinoff takes them to New York City, of all places, makes me even more excited to see these two.
For Every Community To Come Together Again
Did anyone else lowkey forget about Oceanside or was it just me?
At the end of Episode 16 of Season 11 of The Walking Dead, we see Hornsby, alongside his soldiers, capture both Hilltop and Alexandria, and put them under the rule of the Commonwealth as our favorite main characters stay hidden and prepare for war. But one place that they do end up going to is Oceanside - a community that has really stayed in the background for some time now.
A big thing I really want to see happen again is these communities coming together. The last time we really saw Oceanside fight alongside the residents of Hilltop and Alexandria was against the Saviors, and that’s when we had some really good character interactions from them. Since then? We’ve rarely seen this group.
With another war happening, and with all of the communities that we know and love now captured, it would make sense for them to all fight together again, and I really hope that is the case. While I do love Alexandria and Hilltop, we need to remember that these other places exist and are in just as much danger, and they have to join the fight now.
For Former Cast Members To (Possibly) Return
This isn’t even just about Rick (Andrew Lincoln). This is about everyone that could potentially make a cameo or return for the last couple of episodes. Maybe we could have cameos from former cast members as hallucinations or something like that. Or maybe Michonne (Danai Gurira) could return from her trip to, I don’t know, see her kids again?
Or maybe we could have the legend himself, Rick, return for one last cameo at the end of the series.
I know, I know, Rick’s getting his movies and that’s great, but to be honest, I don’t know when the heck those are going to come out and I miss Rick. I’ve always been a lover of many of the characters on this show, but I miss the heck out of him. I miss his relationship with Michonne as one of the best pairings on The Walking Dead. I miss his attitude and everything. I miss Rick and I want him back - I sound like a whiny ex-girlfriend, but dang it, I don’t care.
I’m only saying that with the show coming to a close, it might be a good idea to potentially bring in older characters to tie up loose ends. And there have been rumors of Andrew Lincoln being down in Atlanta, so who knows? Just something else for me to possibly look forward to!
The Walking Dead has been a staple of AMC (and television) for some time now, but I believe it’s ready to be let go, and for us to move onto some other TV show - maybe even another great zombie series. For now, I can at least take a look back at this show with a smile and say I enjoyed the ride. Let’s finish this out strong!
