Back in December, the mid-season finale of The Walking Dead left our characters trapped in a crumbling Alexandria at the mercy of an incoming zombie herd. From Carol and Morgan’s morality standoff to Sam’s dangerous cries for help, there were plenty of cliffhangers available for fans to speculate over before the mid-season premiere. The episode, titled “No Way Out,” certainly fed our appetites for drama and tragedy with its many shocking moments. Here are just a few:
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1) Ron Shoots Carl
Bitter over Rick’s (completely legitimate) murder of his abusive father at the beginning of this season, young Ron decided to take it upon himself to avenge his parent by shooting Rick in cold blood. The only problem? He misses, accidentally launching a bullet into Carl’s face instead. Ron’s bad aim had nothing to do with his shaky hand or nerves; rather, he had Michonne to thank for his poor shot, after she plunged her sword into his chest.
2) Michonne Kills Ron to Save Rick
In an attempt to stop Ron, who had a gun poised and ready to fire at Rick, Michonne did something that, on most TV shows, would be considered inhumane: she killed a living, breathing, non-walker child. This has happened on the show before, of course (how could we forget Carol’s “just look at the flowers” moment) but that fact doesn’t make it any easier to watch Michonne literally stab the misunderstood teenager in the back.
3) Sam Dies, and, in Turn, So Does Everyone Else
Start to Finish, the last episode before the break, saw Sam, Jessie, and part of the Alexandria gang sneakily attempting to avoid detection by covering themselves in walker-entrails and stumbling through the hoard of zombies. The plan, devised by Rick, would’ve worked, had the traumatized Sam not broken down in tears halfway through their walk, drawing attention to him and his mother and causing them to both get subsequently eaten.
4) Daryl Rocket-Launches Neegan’s Team to Smithereens
When a group of strangers intercepted Daryl, Abraham and Sasha on their trip back to Alexandria, audiences got a taste of the infamous Negan, the mysterious villain whose presence in the comics is widely known. Before this group of Negan’s followers could shoot Sasha and Abraham dead, Daryl beat them to the punch, killing them all with one blow from his rocket launcher.
5) Enid Takes a Stand
Just when we thought Enid, with her cynical outlook on life and her “I hate everyone” attitude, was going to go the way of the Wolves, Glenn convinces her in this episode that life is in fact still worth living. Enid takes her newfound positivity a step further, insisting that she help Glenn rescue Maggie despite his protests.
6) The Wolf Saves Denise, Risking His Own Life in the Process
After kidnapping Denise and dragging her out of the infirmary, the Wolf attempts to explain to her that, yes, he was once a normal person who cared about the safety of other humans but one day he just changed. When the two proceed to run across the walker-packed street and Denise falls behind, the Wolf hesitates, ultimately turning around to save her and unfortunately, getting bit in the process. As Denise points out, his decision to change her may indicate that he may have changed again, this time for the better.
7) Carol Shoots the Wolf
The Wolf may have changed for Denise but his morality milestone is cut short by Carol’s bullet. As Denise rushes to get the Wolf to the infirmary to save him, Carol, unaware of the situation and thinking Denise is still in the Wolf’s captivity, shoots the man from afar, killing him and all of Denise’s hopes for him in the process.
8) Rick Goes on a Killing Rampage
With Carl’s life hanging in the balance and his new love Jessie out of the picture, Rick doesn’t have much left to live for by the end of this episode, which makes his sudden outburst pretty unsurprising. With a hatchet in hand, Rick runs off into the night in a last ditch effort to save Alexandria by wiping out the remaining zombies in one go. Inspired by his heroic attempt to salvage what’s left of the community, the rest of the group join in in the hopes that they can save their community or die trying.
9) Father Gabriel Decides to Join the Fight
Father Gabriel is notorious for being a coward. Conflicted by the tenants of his faith and the realities of the new undead world, Gabriel has consistently struggled to make decisions. But no more. After successfully delivering baby Judith to safety, Father Gabriel makes a shocking announcement: that God is saving them from this disaster by giving them the courage to fight the walkers. In a way, Father Gabriel gets the best of both worlds by being able to stick with his religion and help fight for his people.
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10) Abraham, Daryl, and Sasha Save Glenn at the Last Minute
Oh Glenn, what are we going to do with you? After narrowly escaping death just a few weeks ago, our favorite pizza delivery boy found himself in the throes of death once more towards the end of the episode as zombies cornered him against a wall, right in front of a desperate, crying Maggie. The sound of gunshots cuts through the gloom and reveals the arrival of Abraham, Daryl, and Sasha, who have come to save the day.
The Walking Dead season 6 airs Sundays at 9pm on AMC.
(Image courtesy of AMC)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
