By: Robert Kirkman (writer), Charlie Adlard (art), Cliff Rathburn (gray tones), Rus Wooton (letters) & Sina Grace (editor)
The Story: Rick and his scouting party return to Arlington with news of the Bigger World.
Recap/Review (with SPOILERS): As was the case last month, The Walking Dead shows how much better it works when the reader can see a looming threat. There’s nothing surprising about Kirkman using this approach because (a) it’s classic drama and (b) he’s historically used it well with Shane, the Governor, Dexter, the Cannibals, the zombies that invaded Arlington, etc. Kirkman is really good at showing us a smoky threat in the distance, building it for 3-5 issues and then having a huge climax. It may be formulaic, but it’s also a useful storytelling technique.
Right now, this Negan character is kind like the shark in Jaws during the first hour of the film; we’ve heard about him, but haven’t quite seen him yet. When Rick and gang run into Negan’s scouting party it’s like seeing the tip of the shark’s fin; we really don’t know what Negan will be like. Will he be like the Governor? Will he be Lord Humungous from Mad Max? Will he look like the chainsaw dude on the cover of this issue? The imagination runs wild and I love it. All we know right now is that Negan is a bad character and by laying waste to the scouting party and then talking smack, Rick has thrown down the gauntlet in a BIG way.
Rick is being a little reckless here. Even if Rick thinks that Negan’s gang is nothing but bullies, Rick doesn’t have any evidence that they aren’t quality fighters, nor does he know how many are in Negan’s gang. Also, there’s a case to be made that anyone who has survived this long into a zombie apocalypse is a pretty tough person. Even if Rick’s group wins the day, you have to assume that at least a few of Rick’s key “fighters” won’t make it. And that’s before we even consider Rick’s non-combatants. It just seems brash to so enthusiastically embrace a mission against an unknown foe.
One other area this issue starts swirling is that of love and romance. Of course, we have the obvious scene with Rick and Andrea. These two are perfect for each other given their shared experiences. Maybe they’re a little too perfect? There is also a LOT of classic horror movie stuff going on here. Doesn’t it make you nervous for the characters of Rick and Andrea that they are finding true happiness just when the shit is about to hit the fan? It really seems like one of these characters won’t walk out of issue #100 and – if that happens – I honestly hope it’s Rick who dies. We’ve seen a complete character arc from Rick and it would jiggle the hell out of the series to go on without him. Plus, the thought of Andrea dying makes me realize how much I enjoy her as a character. She’s got so much more to do.
The other romance swirling is the Abraham/Eugene/Rosita situation. There is a lot of potential for the chemistry of this group, but I wonder if it’s too delicate an issue for TWD. In Rosita and Eugene, we have two characters who aren’t quite getting what they want. TWD has never really dealt much with post-apocalyptic relationships and what happens when there isn’t a love connection. In the “real world” these situations often drive people to crimes of passion, so there is a lot of potential in this stew pot of emotions. Let’s hope Kirkman fiddles with it.
A red herring with those characters is this constant egging-on of Abraham. “Aren’t you sick of taking orders from that one-armed weakling? Gawd…you are SOOOOO Rick’s bitch! Wusssy!” It all seems so contrived because there’s never been anything between Rick and Abraham that indicates they have anything but a respectful relationship. Rick has never been super-bossy with Abraham and I don’t recall Abraham chaffing at anything Rick’s said. Plus, Abraham is a career Sergeant in the military and his relationship with Rick seems very professional: senior NCO + junior officer. I don’t like where this plot line is going because I don’t think Kirkman has earned a plot twist where Abraham suddenly leads a revolt.
Finally, as we see this looming threat from Negan, the zombies have never seemed less threatening. I guess at some point, Kirkman was going to have to deal with this issue: How can the zombies wander around forever? Don’t they rot? Actually, you can tell they rot by looking at them…..so if their soft tissues are rotting, how do they move? I know it’s best not to think about this too much, but you can see the possibility of TWD transitioning into something very different. It could be that by summer 2013, TWD has completely changed: Rick dead, no zombies, more of a Mad Max vibe……
What to say about the art? It’s really good. But, it’s been really good for years. Its amazing how well Adlard makes these people look dirty and smelly.
Conclusion: Lots of plot development in this one. No big explosions of action, but any TWD reader knows not to expect that until issue #100.
Grade: B+
– Dean Stell
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