At long last, the All Out War is over on The Walking Dead.
Negan had his throat slit by Rick, the Saviors are incapacitated, and the good guys who had seemingly turned bad, like Eugene, were pulling a long con on the actual bad guys. Now where does the show go from here? Maggie’s heel turn on Rick and Michonne is an unexpected twist, especially with Daryl and an otherwise-forgiving Jesus at her side, but there needs to be another threat outside Alexandria and The Hilltop’s camps (besides, y’know, the walkers). We have an idea, and they may have shown up in the season eight finale.
The Whisperers have long been rumored to be the next Big Bad on The Walking Dead (but not Fear the Walking Dead), even if it means jumping into another war with a foe. But at least they’ll look cool: the Whisperers are a group of survivors who disguise themselves in walker skin. They speak in silence, blend in among larger herds, and mark their territory using poles and spikes.
Guess what two things we see in the season eight finale?
There’s our heroes on one side of the poles, and a massive herd on the other. The episode pays special attention to it, too, with Rick noting he’s never seen one that big. “Things are changing.” That could be The Walking Dead‘s way of tipping off comic book readers about the direction of the show, especially after showrunner-turned-chief content officer Scott Gimple teased that the Whisperers are “absolutely on the menu.” They’re vicious, too, if messed with.
When they encounter the Alexandrians in the comics, the Whisperers cut off a few people’s heads, planting them on pikes in order to warn Rick and his people to stay out of their territory. Eventually, there’s a huge war between Rick and his people and the Whisperers. (Via)
Then again, executive producer Greg Nicotero said next season will “be on the road a little bit,” and as our own Dustin Rowles pointed out, “The Whisperer Wars is not exactly a conflict that sees the characters traveling a lot. It’s set in an around Alexandria and The Hilltop.” There’s also the helicopter wildcard.
Either way, we’ll find out when The Walking Dead returns for season nine.