The Walking Dead boss breaks down huge cliffhangers before series finale

The end of AMC’s long-running zombie series, The Walking Dead, is finally upon us. The series finale premieres this Sunday, and it has a whole lot of story to wrap up. In the penultimate episode, “Family,” we were left on two massive cliffhangers: Judith was shot by Pamela Milton, and Lydia was bitten by a walker and had to get her arm amputated.

Thankfully, the series finale — ominously titled “Rest in Peace” — is extended to fit in the numerous storylines that need to come to a close. And for those stories that can’t be wrapped up in the finale, there’s a huge slate of spinoffs on the way. But right now, Judith being shot is a huge deal. At the end of the episode, our group is cornered in by a mixture of Commonwealth soldiers and variant walkers, and Daryl is desperately trying to rush Judith to the hospital.

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, showrunner Angela Kang spoke about Daryl’s role as a father figure in Judith’s life. With Michonne and Rick Grimes out of the picture, Daryl is all Judith has got, and he treats her like a daughter. “He has kind of stepped into that role for them, and they have a very wide family that is taking care of them,” Kang said. “It is a village. But at the same time, this is her special person. He’s the one that went to get her formula when she was first born and gave her nickname and made sure at various times that she had that father figure when she needed it.”

After allowing Judith to accompany the group into battle inside the Commonwealth, Daryl feels great remorse, especially given that he promised Michonne that he would care and protect her. He knows that he’s got to do everything to keep her alive. As soon as she gets shot, he forsakes the mission entirely to get her to safety. Quoth Kang:

"Either way for Daryl, he’s looking at this child that’s in his care and he’s like, “I f—ed it up. I have to save her. I can’t let anything happen to this child that I love and that is my best friend’s daughter.” Whatever’s happened to him, Michonne made me promise he was gonna take care of these children. And so for both of them there is this kind of emotional tie moment because Daryl is the closest thing to a parent that she has right now. And that puts a lot of responsibility on Daryl."

Let’s hope he makes it in time. You never know with The Walking Dead. This show is famous for shocking viewers. Look no further than when Carl was killed off!

Lydia’s amputation

Also in the episode, Lydia is bitten by a walker. Trapped in a trailer with Aaron and Jerry, she knows that the only way to ensure her survival is to have her arm amputated. Before Aaron proceeds with the amputation, he takes a moment to tell her that she is “so loved.”

This moment is especially poignant since Lydia’s mother, Alpha, never treated her with love in her later days. For Lydia to hear those words, that people care for her, is massively important. She’s got a life and someone to fight for in Elijah. “And for Lydia, we just thought that there was something interesting to this idea that she has rejected her mother’s philosophy in life, which meant that she lived amongst walkers and she was safe, but she was not alive in any kind of way that was satisfying for her,” Kang said. “And now she’s kind of thrown that away and she wants to live, she wants to love, but that means that she’s sort rejecting mom’s philosophy of survival of the fittest, don’t care about what happens to anybody else around you.”

"We don’t know how it’s going to play out for her, but I think it’s about that choice. Sometimes when you choose to live your best life to the fullest, it means that you’re taking risks and it’s horrible. But also, maybe that’s the way she needs to live."

Check out new images from The Walking Dead series finale!

AMC has released a few images from the series finale. Just as the series begun with a Grimes, so too will it end with a Grimes at the center of things. Yes, I’m talking about Judith, who is fighting for her life after being shot by Pamela:

And Daryl is there for her every step of the way:

Meanwhile, the battle against the Commonwealth — along with the variant walkers — continues to escalate. Here’s Maggie and Eugene going into battle:

Catch the final episode of The Walking Dead on November 20. After over a decade on air, it’s all come down to this. Who will survive?

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