‘The Walking Dead’ season 8
Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and Michonne (Danai Gurira) return this October for ‘The Walking Dead’ season 8. AMC/The Walking Dead

Rick is about to get what he has longed for since the start of “The Walking Dead” season 7B: help against Negan and the Saviours. A friend’s tragic passing still lingers within him, though, and it definitely could hold him back in the long run.

Spoiler alert: This preview contains plot details about “The Walking Dead” season 7. The season premiered Oct. 20. The series is available for Australian viewers to watch on Foxtel every Monday, 1:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Rick is about to get lots of new recruits. On “Say Yes,” he and Michonne risked their lives to find guns for Jadis and her junkyard group. Now that they’ve granted her wish, it’s getting closer than ever to all of the communities coming together against Negan and the Saviours.

Rick should be ecstatic, especially since Ezekiel looks like he’s ready to crack some Saviour skulls (based on the “Walking dead” season 7 episode 13 preview; see related story below), but he isn’t. Rick admitted last episode that he’s still haunted by Glenn’s death, and the impending war isn’t really the greatest way to recover from that.

When Michonne told Rick that it’s up to them to “reorder the world once Negan is gone,” Rick was hesitant. According to Josh McDermitt, who plays Eugene on the AMC show, perhaps it’s because Rick knows what the aftermath will be when the all-out war against the Saviours is over. Anything can happen in the middle of combat, and Rick may no longer be able to bear the agony of losing another loved one.

“[Rick] says he doesn’t want to lose anyone else. And they will,” says McDermitt on his EW piece. “But even then, it’ll be worth it.”

McDermitt is right. Even Rick himself said that it’s not about them. The upcoming war is about the future, and it comes with a heavy price.

Last episode also saw Rosita make her way to the Hilltop to see Sasha. And while the two aren’t exactly buddies, they share a common interest: Negan’s head. Things only got “friendlier” between the two when Rosita handed Sasha a sniper rifle.

Rosita likewise told Sasha what she has been voicing out for a while now. The Alexandrians are taking their time with Negan, and Rosita is no longer having any of that. But she and Sasha do realise that going after Negan by themselves is a “one-way ticket” for the both of them. The odds are definitely against Rosita and Sasha, and a scenario where one or both of them don’t make it out alive is highly likely.

“Things are about to get crazy,” says McDermitt. “I can feel it.”

The fans do, as well. It’s almost the end of “The Walking Dead” season 7, and everybody knows the show isn’t going out without a bang.

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