Things didn”t end well for The Walking Dead last season. On screen, The Group was at their lowest point, watching one of their own get bludgeoned to death after an extended game of cat-and-mouse. Off-screen, both fans and critics were frustrated with the direction the show has gone. Our own Alan Sepinwall even swore off covering The Walking Dead going forward.
Now that October is inching closer, AMC is hoping to smooth over fan frustrations. One easy way to do that? Make the trailers less Negan-centric, as they”ve done with the most recent footage. Instead of one more reminder that someone is going to die, the latest look at Season 7 has everyone”s favorite miracle* henchman, Dwight. But there”s a twist. Dwight is in possession of some very important things that belong to a beloved character…Daryl.
*How Dwight always manages to magically find The Group has yet to be explained. Nor his Wolverine-fast healing powers from being burned. Nor how he can move through the underbrush as silently as a ninja. Is there a henchman version of a Mary Sue? Because if not, a Dwight should be the new term.
Do I think The Walking Dead will bring down the wrath of Lucille on Daryl? I do not. As the only original character created for the AMC show, it”s not in their best interest to kill him off. More likely, Dwight merely stripped Daryl of his belongings in a post-Lucille world because Dwight hates Daryl with the fiery passion of a thousand suns.
Guess we”ll find out on October 23, 2016 when The Walking Dead returns.