“The Walking Dead” Season 9 finale ended with notes of hope for the future and promises of change for our heroic post-apocalyptic survivors. After an intense blizzard that hit the country, the people of Alexandria found themselves at the threat of death by the cold, forcing them all to move and huddle in the only warm place in their camp.
As the group moved houses, Judith Grimes — daughter of protagonist Rick Grimes and adoptive daughter of current Alexandria head Michonne Hawthorne — gets lost in the blizzard looking for Daryl Dixon’s dog.
In a spur of the moment decision, anti-hero and former main antagonist Negan breaks from the group in order to save Judith. The episode ends with Negan almost dying of the blizzard, with Michonne realizing that her daughter was saved by the enemy she once swore to destroy.
This momentous event shows the stark change in Negan’s personality, who throughout the season was shown in captivity. There have been moments of revelation for the anti-hero where the former leader of the Sanctuary realized that he was better off in the prison of Alexandria. According to “The Walking Dead” showrunner Angela Kang, this was the start of Negan’s redemption arc, which is to continue well into Season 10.
“We had a whole year with him in his cell, so I think after his heroic rescue of Judith, people might’ve noticed that when he was in that bed in the infirmary, he was not tied up or cuffed,” Kang said. “So we’re dealing with the next stage of what things are for Negan. I think for people who have been wanting us to release the Negan, there will be some satisfaction there.”
Despite this promise of a “better” and improved version of the Negan we once saw, Kang promises that Negan won’t turn into a simple goody-two-shoes character. “Negan’s story is one of my personal favorites in this season,” she explains.
“Things get complicated, because it’s Negan. Some of the stuff [Negan] is doing is so compelling, because here’s this guy who has been on a path of trying to redeem himself in some way, but he’s still Negan. He’s not the hero. He’s, at best, an antihero, but there’s definitely darkness and an edge to him.”
Kang further added that Negan will play a momentous role for the currently running Whisperers arc. “When that is in the mix with a story having to do with this new set of enemies, and when he himself still is an outsider in the community, just a lot of explosive things are at play,” she teased. More will be revealed this Friday, at TWD’s panel at the San Diego Comic-Con at 1 p.m.
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