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The Hunt for Henry Takes Its Toll — in Blood — on The Walking Dead

Morgan's descent into madness crosses paths with Rick's thirst for revenge in "Still Gotta Mean Something."

by | April 1, 2018 | Comments

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The Walking Dead _ Season 8, Episode 14 (Gene Page/AMC)

The deaths of children over the years has come with a huge emotional cost for our heroes from The Walking Dead, and the unraveling continued in Sunday’s episode, “Still Gotta Mean Something.” The loss of Carl (Chandler Riggs) has sent Rick (Andrew Lincoln) on the warpath, leading to a rogue team-up with Morgan (Lennie James) — who’s in the midst of his own mental breakdown, originally caused by the death of his wife and son and exacerbated by the disappearance of Henry (Macsen Lintz). While Carol (Melissa McBride) does her best to rein in Morgan, it’s clear that our stick-wielding hero is on the verge of bailing on the Hilltop altogether.

SPOILER ALERT: THIS ARTICLE REVEALS DETAILS OF EPISODE 14 OF SEASON 8 OF THE WALKING DEAD.

Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon - The Walking Dead _ Season 8, Episode 14 (Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon - The Walking Dead _ Season 8, Episode 14 - Photo Credit: Gene Page/AMC)

With only two episodes left this season, the action on the The Walking Dead is heating up. When Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) was captured by Jadis (Pollyanna McIntosh) at the end of episode 13, fan theories swirled about the leader of the Saviors dying, but things don’t exactly go as expected. And while Daryl (Norman Reedus) and Rosita (Christian Serratos) make a plan to take out Eugene (Josh McDermitt), the Sanctuary’s bullet-maker, it’s hard not to wonder how Simon (Steven Ogg) will pay for his misdeeds once Negan makes his return.

Fans took to Twitter to share their thoughts on the biggest moments from Sunday’s episode.

1. JADIS AND NEGAN HAVE A CHAT

Pollyanna McIntosh as Jadis - The Walking Dead _ Season 8 (Frank Ockenfels 3/AMC)

There’s something cathartic about seeing Negan as Jadis’ prisoner, bound to a dolly. But instead of watching the leader of the Heaps give the leather-clad baddie some much-deserved punishment, we end up getting an unexpected sob story about Lucille, his wife, and his bat. Bonding over some material emotional ties — Negan to Lucille, Jadis to her pile of photos — it’s becoming more and more possible that these two will partner up. Heck, watching her walk around with Negan’s bat on her shoulder, it wouldn’t have been at all surprising to hear the words “I am Negan” come out of her mouth.

2. RICK AND MORGAN VS. THE WORLD

With Morgan continuing to unravel, it was only fitting that Rick would join him on his bloody quest for vengeance; after all, the men have been in this since the very beginning. They also share the same sort of grief, losing their sons to the zombie apocalypse. But while Morgan’s mental instability is driving him to murder — killing Saviors seems to be the only thing keeping him from falling apart completely — it’s hard not to wonder if Rick is on the same dark path. Is it too late for Grimes to pull himself back from the brink?

3. WHERE DID THAT HELICOPTER COME FROM?

There is a helipad in the midst of Jadis’ trash heap. And by her panicked reaction to the sight of the helicopter that appeared above her and Negan, it seems that she may have a connection to whomever is piloting the aircraft. Not that long ago, Simon inquired about the mysterious helipad in the back — before murdering everyone she held dear. Way back in “The Big Scary U,” Rick briefly glimpsed a helicopter in the sky, leading both him and viewers to wonder if it was a hallucination. With a crossover with Fear the Walking Dead on the horizon, and new character Georgie (Jayne Atkinson) now in the mix, there are several possibilities regarding the helicopter and who may be in the pilot seat.

4. CAROL RESCUES HENRY

Melissa McBride as Carol Peletier, Lennie James as Morgan Jones - The Walking Dead _ Season 8, Episode 14 (Gene Page/AMC)

It’s a big deal that Carol found Henry alive. With Rick and Morgan reeling from the loss of their children, it’s hard to not think about Carol’s journey back from losing her daughter, Sophia. Sure, that season 2 story line was a bit of a slog, but watching Carol find Henry hiding in the same spot Sophia was last seen alive was a nice way of tying up some loose-ends. The Walking Dead is great at referencing plot points from earlier seasons. And the tiny detail that Lintz, the actor who plays Henry, is actually the younger brother of Madison Lintz, the actress who played Sophia, well that’s definitely a cool bow to tie around this whole emotional plotline.

5. NEGAN GOES FREE

Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan - The Walking Dead _ Season 8 (Frank Ockenfels 3/AMC)

As much as audiences wanted to watch Jadis murder Negan with his own bat, it just wasn’t going to happen. Ultimately, the death of Negan needs to come at the hands of Rick; that said, Negan’s got some work to do. While it looks like he’s keeping his return to the Sanctuary on the down-low for now, it’s obvious Simon’s days are numbered. Plus, who did he pick up on the drive back home? Our bet’s on Laura (Lindsley Register), the missing Savior who shot Dwight in the arm after learning he had double-crossed Negan. The way we see it, if Daryl or Rosita don’t swoop in to stop it, Simon may not be the only one whose days are numbered.

What did you think about the episode? Tell us in the comments.

The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9/8C on AMC.

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