‘The Walking Dead’ to lose its main protagonist; it is end of the walk for Rick.

Much to the dismay of the fans of “The Walking Dead”, the news around is that Andrew Lincoln is leaving the show in season 9. After rising from a coma in the first season, Rick, played by Lincoln, has been the main pillar of the television series, as he is in the comics where he is still going strong. It is also being said that he will appear in half a dozen episodes of season 9 similar to Lauren Cohen. As already known, Lauren Cohen had contractual issues with AMC, thereby curtailing her time in the series to six episodes. The news is that Daryl Dixon played by Norman Reedus will step up the ladder to fill up the gap left by Rick. Though there is no official confirmation of the news,the fact that Reedus recently posted a picture of himself and Lincoln hugging each other in Instagram captioning it with a single heart sign, seems a passive confirmation of the same.

If indeed Rick is killed or eaten up, the question remains as to how the show will fill up the void he leaves behind. With the last season the threat of Negan ended and the new season is set to introduce new story line; so bringing the character arc of Rick to a successful conclusion will also be a major challenge within the span of six episodes. Apart from Rick, only Daryl and Carol (played by Melissa Mcbride) are the characters who still remain with the show since season1. With the show killing off Carl in the last season, any hope of Rick handing over the baton to his son is gone. Morgan has already left for “Fear the Walking Dead” with hardly any chance of getting back.

It is a fact that none of the other characters like Michonne or Ezekiel have the necessary depth and background like Rick so that the series can set them up as a lead. Danai Gurira has shown no signs of leaving the show, though she us busy with her MCU commitments. With the departure of Rick and Maggie, much will rest on the shoulders of Daryl and Carol to propel the show forward. Daryl was never much of a leader and the script has to develop his character by quite a few degrees if he has to pick up the reins left by Rick. The show has also kept alive Negan, so it has also the option of developing his character arc into that of an anti-hero and bring him up to the forefront.

The Walking Dead is already suffering from multiple issues that have brought it down from being one of the best dramas in television. It is being speculated that the show might start with a time jump in season 9 where the communities will be shown settling down in a civilized fashion, until trouble boosts up again. A lot of changes are already needed to bring up the quality of the show and the new show runner Angela Kang is expected to turn things around. One of the major problems with The Walking Dead is that it has no end in sight with the viewers staring at episode after episode of heroes and villains fighting amidst the backdrop of the zombie infestation. Perhaps the series will do better if it departs from the comics in multiple ways and focuses on deriving a permanent solution to the apocalyptic scenario.

With one after another major characters that were there since the beginning leaving the show, viewers are losing the emotional investment they have made in these characters. With the main protagonist gone, it will be even more challenging for The Walking Dead to remain on track and make the viewers stay with the show. The faithful viewers will definitely be eager to see Rick around for a last showdown as the show returns this fall.

By teleratz team