Sunday’s season finale of The Walking Dead was a slow-paced installment that showed viewers how our heroes braved their toughest winter yet. The episode kicked off with a stunning revelation: The Kingdom was no more, and had fallen in the aftermath of Alpha butchering over ten individuals from the communities. With a blizzard fast approaching, we learned that the settlement was wrecked as a result of failing pipes, and it was all but burnt to the ground. The goal of the episode was to weather the storm and lead the Kingdommers to the Hilltop, you know because most of the body count had been people from there. Months had passed since the pike incident, and Yumiko admitted to Michonne that there was an issue with the managing of all things Hilltop in the aftermath of Tara losing her spot as leader. There was even a Maggie mention. Lauren Cohan’s alter ego had not been answering any of the letters sent to her, leading them to believe something was amiss. Would the show really off Maggie off-screen? It’s doubtful. Then there was Lydia who was struggling to fit in with the groups in the aftermath of Henry’s demise. Alden was all about making her feel unwelcome. Daryl defended her and even told Carol that Henry saw something in her, so they should honor him by allowing her to stay with them. Carol admitted that she only saw Henry when she looked at Lydia. With the storm brewing, it emerged that they would have to stay out all night if they wanted to survive. Ezekiel managed to get Daryl alone and asked him to move on from the Hilltop because he wanted to make a fresh start with Carol in their new digs and that Daryl would just complicate matters. Daryl seemingly agreed, and everyone decided to rest up in the Sanctuary before they got to the next checkpoint. This storm was really messing with them. Carol and Daryl chatted once there, and Carol wanted to know what Ezekiel said to her BFF. Carol said that Ezekiel wanted to blame Daryl because he didn’t want to blame her. The former badass admitted that she was losing herself again. “I’m really trying to hang on, but I don’t know what I’m doing,” she said. That’s when things got gnarly. The storm was worse than anybody anticipated and they needed to make it to Hilltop that night or they would die trying to get there when the weather got worse. Carol said they could just walk through the frozen river and be there, but Ezekiel knew that was straight through Alpha’s territory and that it could cause more problems. “Those borders are hers, not ours,” Carol quipped. Ezekiel and Michonne went at it because they made a mistake by letting so many people into the Kingdom. “That woman… was able to walk among us because we didn’t know each other,” she said. “We can never let that happen again.” While that was going down, Lydia disappeared, and Carol told the others to go over the pond while she looked for her. Zombies emerged from the snow, and things got more deadly … if that was possible. Carol found Lydia and the teen tried to get Henry’s mom to kill her. “Everything’s gonna be better when I’m gone,” said the teen, but Carol killed a walker behind her and said that she had a lot of life left to live. While the residents of Alexandria stayed put, there was a whole lot of drama for them. The solar panels were not working, so the team rallied up in a small house and set a fire. Negan was with them, and he couldn’t help but poke fun at the love triangle going on between Rosita, Siddiq, Eugene, and Gabriel. Before we knew it, the fire blew up because the chimney was not cleaned, and the group went on a mission to Aaron’s house. Judith broke off because Dog escaped, and Negan made it his mission to save the child and her dog. He was injured along the way. The next morning, our heroes arrived at Hilltop, and Carol called off her engagement to Ezekiel. “I will never stop loving you,” he said. “And I’ll never regret the fairy tale,” she replied. Carol left Ezekiel behind and went to Alexandria with Michonne and Daryl. Once they arrived, a snowball fight ensued between the two kids and all the adults. We took another small time jump, and it was spring! The Whisperers were back in their own land, and Beta had some big words. “The time away has been good for the pack and for you,” Beta told Alpha. “But I’ve made mistakes I can’t make again,” she said. “I’ll need to be stronger for what comes next.” Beta then gave his master a few whacks to inflict some pain on her. As the episode drew to a close, a staticky message came through the radio, saying “Is anyone out there?” What did you think of the finale? Hit the comments. The Walking Dead Season 10 gets underway this fall! View Slideshow: The Walking Dead Season 9: What’s About to Go Down?
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The Walking Dead Recap: Winter Is Here!
