Spoilers ahead for the mid-season-seven finale of The Walking Dead.
What a homecoming for Rick & Co. The 90-minute mid-season finale of The Walking Dead ended as you might expect: yet another showdown with Negan, a lake full of zombies, and a double homicide! After giving Carl a tour of his facilities, Negan brought him back to Alexandria and settled into Rick’s house, giving himself a shave and cooking up some tomato sauce. Meanwhile, Spencer tries to make nice with Negan, pouring him a drink and playing pool with him outside. Old Spence tries to throw Rick under the bus by telling Negan that Rick has a “history of not working well with others,” effectively asking Negan to put him in charge. But that doesn’t jibe with Negan’s code — turns out he actually respects Rick because he’s going out and getting supplies. He tells Spencer he has “got no guts” and disembowels him in the middle of the street. Negan loves his puns!
While Spencer’s slowly dying, Rosita takes a shot at Negan with her single homemade bullet (courtesy of Eugene) and … misses. Instead, it hits Lucille, and in retaliation, Negan has his people kill someone else at their choosing — they choose Olivia, shooting her in the face. More to the point, Negan realizes they have the know-how to manufacture their own bullets. Everyone tries to take responsibility for making the bullet, but ultimately Eugene fesses up, prompting Negan to take him captive.
So, what else happened in the world of The Walking Dead?
- Daryl’s free! He gets an outfit change, eats some peanut butter, kills Joey (R.I.P., buddy), takes a motorcycle, and rides off into the distance.
- Richonne, the power couple, is finally in alignment! Michonne holds one of the Saviors at gunpoint and makes her drive her to the compound, only to see that they are indeed outmatched.
- Carol is still taking her sabbatical at a little cottage near The Kingdom, with Ezekiel and Morgan making sure she’s getting her vitamins with fresh fruits and vegetables. Richard tries to convince Carol and Morgan to convince Ezekiel that they should attack Negan and the Saviors first. They rebuff him, only for Richard to go to his private RV in the woods and smash some milk bottles. Argh!
- Maggie is slowly taking control of The Hilltop, making the insecure Gregory more insecure.
At the end, most of the core group has reunited at The Hilltop, where Rick meets up with Maggie, Sasha, and Daryl. The big question is, will Rick be able to unite the other colonies — The Hilltop and The Kingdom — to fight Negan and the Saviors? Discuss!
