After the finale of The Walking Dead last season, I wanted to put on a sweater and two blankets – and I live in Arizona! But now the snowstorm is over, and we get to see what comes next. Besides a working fireplace, here are some of the things I want to see for our survivors in season 10.
Unified communities
Toward the end of last season, we finally saw the communities come together and sign their agreement. Sure, the fair did not end well for them, but I hope that the work started by Rick Grimes and finally put into action will continue.
With the Whisperers still out there, they need to work together more than ever now. And I love the whole medieval lifestyle of trading between communities. The Kingdom is defunct at the moment due to the harsh winter, but hopefully, they will come back too. And Michonne seemed to be embracing this idea more toward the end of the season. I’d love to see more growth from her as well when it comes to opening her heart (although cautiously) to other people.
Daryl the leader
I love Daryl so much, as do most people who watch the show. And one of the best things about him at the end of season 9 was to see him starting to become more of a leader among the communities (even though he hates it). I’d love for him to continue to put down roots (with Carol, cough, cough) instead of being a nomad between all the communities. Plus, he’s super great at snowball fights.
Some of Daryl’s scenes last season were Rick’s in the comics, such as Alpha showing him the herd and telling him to stay out of their territories. It seems to me that we will continue to see Daryl fill the hole that Rick left (even though I still want Rick back, dangit).
Negan in the neighborhood
Negan is no Mr. Rogers, but he wants to be everyone’s neighbor – out of the jail cell and into Alexandria as part of the community. I have complicated feelings about Negan, because I will never…NEVER…forget about what happened with Glenn. But years have passed and he seems to have formed a weird sort of guardian relationship with Judith.
The show-runners have teased that he will be part of the community this year. I’m sure that in and of itself will be a challenge. And will Negan have a hand in the whole Whisperers war like he does in the comics (no, I won’t spoil it for you here)? I hope so.
Ships sailing
Look, shipping in The Walking Dead is a dangerous prospect. I was a huge Richonne shipper, and well…I’m not crying, it’s just allergies. But when you see these survivors going through a lot and having nice bits of happiness here and there through romance, that is important.
Now that Ezekial and Carol are broken up – will we finally see Daryl and Carol together? I never get my hopes up with that ship, but they are in the same place this year. So maybe? Or will Daryl be getting together with someone else? (Please, no)
And Rosita has her whole quadruple/thruple situation going on – will they be exploring this more? Polyamory isn’t something I’ve seen explored outside of fanfiction much in popular culture, so it’s interesting to see it on this show. I expect as the show continues, we will continue to see more unique relationships like this because these survivors now are more open to living each day as their last and being honest about what they want. And Rosita really started to embrace this last season.
And what new couples (or thruples or quadruples) will form in the new season? A huge number of ships were sunk last year by the Whisperers when half of those pairs were killed and their heads were put on spikes. The show-runners just keep reminding us to not get too attached.
The new season of The Walking Dead premieres Oct. 6 on AMC.
