Last Day On Earth: The Walking Dead’s Suspenseful Season Finale

Last+Day+On+Earth%3A+The+Walking+Deads+Suspenseful+Season+Finale

Alex Stone, Opinions Editor

Warning!!! Spoilers ahead!!!

The Walking Dead, arguably the most popular TV show of the decade, has left an unsettling question unanswered with the shocking conclusion to it’s sixth season. The AMC original, based on the popular comic series by Robert Kirkman, has become a pop culture phenomenon with a dedicated fan following since it’s premiere in 2010.

The episode begins slowly, following our group trying to get Maggie to the doctor at the Hilltop, and Morgan searching for, and eventually finding and saving, Carol. The gang packed up into the RV, confident that they will be able to get Maggie the help she needs. They first encounter a small roadblock set by the Saviors, then more Saviors, and at another road to Hilltop, a ‘red-rover’ chain of zombies- marked by Michonne’s hair and vest, and Daryl’s arrows. At the last road to Hilltop, they are met with a huge, burning barricade of logs, and the hanging of an innocent man. Eugene then becomes our man with a plan, volunteering to drive off with the van while the others carry Maggie to help. If only that had worked.

In the latter third of this extended 90 minute episode, we are introduced to the leader of the notorious Saviors group, Negan. Played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan, familiar from his role as John Winchester in the hit TV show Supernatural, Negan is a charismatic, dangerous, and vulgar leader to a strong and loyal group. Fans of the comics have been eagerly awaiting his arrival, due to his brutality and humor. Almost all of our integral gang, Rick, Carl, Glenn, Maggie, Michonne, Daryl, Sasha, Rosita, Abraham, Aaron, and Eugene are placed in a row, kneeling to the black-leather-clad villain. The whole group is physically shaken, Rick and Glenn especially. Negan begins to set his terms, he wants half of everything Alexandria has, and he wants revenge. Due to the number of his men Rick and the gang has killed, Negan will kill one of the 11 survivors in front of him, with his signature barbed wire wrapped baseball bat, Lucille. “Eeny, meeny, miny, moe” he began, picking his victim at random. Now, due to some impressive POV camera work, we have absolutely no way of finding out whose skull was formally introduced to Lucille. We’re left off with dull, jolting thumps, cries, and blood pouring down the screen. The end!

This shocking cliff hanger of an ending has left some fans unhappy, and some fans furious. Rated at 5.7/10 on IMDb, this episode is one of the worst revived episodes of the show ever aired. The one thing that folks can agree on is that Morgan’s portrayal of Negan is executed beautifully. The one thing that people can’t agree on is #whowasit. An amazing amount of theories have emerged, based on things like camera angles, a character’s screen time, an actor starting a new show, the original events in the comics, etc. Some feel that its going to be a fan favorite like Glenn or Daryl, and some believe that someone more minor, like Aaron or Eugene, will have taken the blow. Some people (myself included) are hoping that someone was just wounded and not killed. Cast members like Lauren Cohan (Maggie) and Josh McDermitt (Eugene) have confirmed that even the cast doesn’t know who it was, but Norman Reedus (Daryl) has implied that he knows, but definitely won’t spill the beans.

Season 7 of The Walking Dead is set to premiere on Sunday, October 9. But until then, we sit and wait. And if you don’t want to live without your weekly dose of the undead, season 2 of Fear The Walking Dead, the TWD spin-off, is airing April 10th on AMC at 10:00 PM.