It may not seem like it yet, but there is an important scene in this week’s episode of The Walking Dead, “Do Not Send Us Astray.” During the battle at The Hilltop, Dwight is trailing Simon as Simon is about to take out Tara. In the split second before Simon can kill Tara, Dwight shoots an arrow at Tara, hitting her in the arm but also sparing her from being killed by Simon.
However, the next day, the Hilltoppers learn that the Saviors’ weapons were infected with zombie blood, so even those who were only injured by Savior weapons end up dying. This should be bad news for Tara, who was shot in the arm with Dwight’s arrow.
But does she die?
COMIC SPOILERS
Even those who have not read the comics will probably be able to work this one out on their own. Those who trust Dwight know that he would not intentionally kill Tara, and that the arrow he used to shoot Tara — and save her life — is not infected. It may take a few more hours, however, before Daryl and Tara arrive at this realization.
The scene is similar to a pivotal, and far more dramatic scene from Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead comics. In the comics, it is not Simon who is about to kill Tara, but Negan who orders Dwight to shoot and kill Rick. In the moment, Dwight is about to kill Negan himself but hesitates, and in order to maintain his cover, Dwight shoots Rick in the side. However, in that scene from the comics, he doesn’t use an infected weapon, either.
What makes the scene in the comics so dramatic, however, is that Negan believes that Rick will die from an infected arrow. Later on, when Negan demands that whoever has been chosen as the leader of The Hilltop come out and surrender, Negan is shocked and surprised to see Rick alive. He quickly realizes that Dwight sold him out, and in that moment, Rick attacks Negan, which ultimately leads to the conclusion of the All Out War.
Indeed, in the comics, Dwight’s use of an uninfected arrow is what allows The Hilltop to win the war.
Here, however, the stakes are much lower. Tara will eventually realize that Dwight saved her life by not using an uninfected arrow, and while it will not lead to an immediate end to the All Out War, it will finally allow Dwight to gain the trust of Tara (and presumably Daryl). It’s a far less dramatic conclusion to that play, but we will have to wait and see what Scott Gimple has up his sleeve to find out if the conclusion he wrote for the television series finale is more dramatic than what’s written in the comics.
