The Season 6 Mid-Season Premiere was one of the most shocking, emotional, and jaw-dropping episodes of the Walking Dead EVER…unless you’ve read the comics. TWD readers have been waiting a WHILE to see one of the most iconic storylines play out on screen…and they’ve finally got their wish. The majority of the episode was taken directly out of Issues 83 & 84 from the “No Way Out” storyline:
Below we’ve compiled the BIGGEST parallels AND differences between the Mid-Season Premiere and the comics. Enjoy:
1. The Saviors
Known in the comics as The Saviors, these rag-tag group of rebels serve as SOME of the henchman for upcoming villain Negan. Their group notoriously terrorizes nearby communities and claims possession over anyone and anything they see (at least half, anyway). Here are the similarities and differences between their arrival in the show vs. the comics:
Similarities: In both the show and comic, a motorcycle-riding gang (The Saviors) corner Rick’s group and tells them their stuff belongs to Negan. In both instances, this results in Rick’s gang bamboozling them and chopping their heads off.
Differences: As awesome as it was, the RPG solution that played out in the show isn’t EXACTLY how it went down in the comics. Instead of Sasha & Daryl (who aren’t in the comics), the Saviors ambush Rick, Michonne, Andrea, Abraham, Heath, and Holly. In fact, this first face-to-face encounter occurs a bit further along in the story (Issue 97, to be exact). Additionally, Rick lets one of The Survivors live just to send Negan a certain message… Here’s the action:
Despite the differences, we still ended up with severed Savior heads.
2. Death of the Andersons
Here’s a quick refresher of the jolting scene:
Similarities: In the comics, Rick and the gang DO trek through walkers in gut ponchos. Jessie has trouble calming her son down and the argument eventually attracts the walkers straight to them… leading to Sam’s bloody demise. Overcome with emotion, Jessie is ALSO consumed by the walkers, leaving Rick in complete shock.
Differences: In the comics, Jessie only has one son, Ron, who’s basically the show version of Sam (not the most courageous kid of all time). As they exit the house Michonne runs ahead to escort Denise to the infirmary. Moments later, comic Ron pauses in the middle of their gut poncho parade to tell Jessie he’s scared…leading the walkers to them and Ron getting eaten.
The Show Ron doesn’t exist in the comics…meaning he doesn’t shoot Carl and Michonne isn’t forced to kill him. But that leads us to…
3. Carl’s Eye
Ah yes, the pivotal moment that finally answered the questions, “Why is Carl wearing an eyepatch in all the Walking Dead comic merch?” and “Why do fans keep saying, ‘EYE can’t wait for the Carl moment?'” Here’s what did and didn’t go down:
Similarities: After the death of Jessie and her son, Rick’s forced to chop off Jessie’s hand to free Carl. Carl is shot immediately after and somehow manages to infamously say, “Dad?” before collapsing in shock. The subsequent events are taken RIGHT from the comics… a panicked Rick carries Carl to the infirmary while Michonne carves a path.
Differences: Since show Ron doesn’t exist in the comics, Carl is actually ACCIDENTALLY shot by Douglas (the comic’s version of Deanna) when he witnesses Jessie and her son get eaten, panics, and shoots wildly at the walkers. Not only is Carl shot in the eye but Douglas is quickly eaten by the walkers *cough Karma cough.*
4. Denise’s Heroics
Being the only doctor in a town during a zombie apocalypse is like being the only non-famous Kardashian (Rob): it’s tough. So when walkers invade you better be f***ing ready. Thankfully, there’s Denise. Here’s how her character played a role in each medium:
Similarities: In both the comics and show, Denise puts aside her fear of the walker invasion and saves Carl’s life while Rick goes full Mel Gibson from The Patriot outside.
Differences: In the comics Denise is NOT kidnapped by a Wolf because, well, Wolves aren’t a thing in the comics (although we did have the much less problematic Scavengers). INSTEAD, she opts to walk with Rick, Michonne, and the others WITHOUT a gut poncho to get to the infirmary. Knowing Denise will attract a lot of attention, Michonne carves a path for them to make it to the infirmary. Also, one of the most obvious differences is she’s an actual doctor/surgeon in the comics, not someone who’s just been winging it. So as nervous as Denise was to help Carl, comic Denise is MUCH more competent than her TV counterpart.
5. The Battle for Alexandria
Whew, thank god for Rick’s crazy paternal rage. Without it we might not have seen one of the greatest battles in Walking Dead history (shhh All Out War fans). Rick’s heroism inspired the rest of his group and the other Alexandrians to exterminate the walkers for good.
Similarities: Rick does convert his anguish into rage and leaves the infirmary to single-handedly axe his way through dozens of walkers. Inspired by this courageous feat, other Alexandrians like Aaron, Michonne, and even Father Gabriel join the fight to take the walkers out one by one. There are no walkers left by morning, and the streets of Alexandria are littered with the bodies of the undead.
Differences: First of all, Glenn and Maggie were NOT stuck in trap situations. Instead, Abraham was camped inside with Rosita until they heard Rick going HAM outside on the walkers. Then this happened:
Oh, right. There’s also a HELL of a lot more cursing during this whole battle. Finally, there (sadly) was no RPG-into-the-lake move that caused the walkers to walk into a lake of fire. As badass as it was, it’s even more awesome that Rick’s crew could take them out without it, amiright?
6. The Aftermath
Similarities: The majority of the walkers have been decimated and the survivors take a much-needed breather. Rick also comes to Carl’s bedside and admits the Alexandrians are stronger than he thought. In both the comics and show, Rick seems helpful and vows to rebuild Alexandria and expand the community. In both instances he also begs Carl to wake up so he can show him a new world.
Differences: The next morning there are STILL walkers pouring through the gates of Alexandria, though it is a manageable problem. Also, Rick takes responsibility for Jessie and Ron’s deaths…saying he shouldn’t have made them flee but in the future they’ll have ways to more easily escape.
Want to read full comic version of the attack? Then grab Volume 14 from our Walking Dead shop and get ALL the backstory (including what happens to Morgan)!
LOVED the episode! LOVE the comics! LOVE this post!
Carl’s eye… they went there!!
Other than the second use of the RPG, I thought this episode was amazing. Stuck close enough to the comic book plot to keep fans happy and added a little new to keep your interest.
Found it very tense even though I knew pretty much what would happen, which is a testament to the great writing and acting of the team.
Looking forward to seeing Mr Paul Monroe being portrayed on screen and obviously Negan, but personally think he will be the series finale cliffhanger.
What do you mean “second use of the RPG”?
This is now my new favorite episode! I love how it followed the comics so closely. Looking forward to seeing more of the show mimic the comics!
Im not the only one who REALLY liked that Gabe stepped up, and pretty much made things right between him and Rick. This was probably the best episode of the series in my opinion.
Best episode since the Escape from Terminus in my opinion.
Loved the similarities with the comics and really glad they took the eye route with Carl.
I’m really starting to think Daryl will replace Abraham as who the Saviors retaliate on. I just have a suspicion Daryl won’t be around for a full season more.
Biggest. Show. Shock. EVER!!!
Na, they ain’t gonna go there. They wouldn’t… would they? Na. …?
I agree with Sean, I don’t think Darryl will be around next season either. The writers committed themselves to at least one major character death, and I don’t think Jessie would count. The was that Abraham was killed in the comics would be an awesome way for Darryl to exit ( sigh ). Although in the show, Darryl and Eugene don’t really hang out together. I do have to admit, every time I see Abraham I think he is going to die that minute. The RPG thing on the show literally made me jump up and say ” DId you SEE that!! I LOVE this show!”
The comic similarities from this episode are a beautiful thing.
I feel like I’m the only one that is really worried that the show is going to start mirroring the comics way too much. I love both but the main reason I am able to love both is because they have kept things so different up until now. I can’t think of a major character death that happened the same way in the comics as the show until this episode. and I completely understand that they needed to do the Carl thing and had to keep that pretty much the same but I would have liked to have seen Jessie live and build more of a relationship with rick before she died maybe halfway through the season or near the end. Anyway, it’s only one episode and it was a GREAT episode so I’m not going to worry too much but I just hope they continue to do things differently in the show than they were done in the comic.
I understand what you mean but i have to disagree with the Jessie living aspect. Jessie was boring bland character and her relationship with Rick was unstable and unhealthy. They barely knew each other and Rick acted like he loved this person who he established a relationship with… who her kids did not care for at all AFTER he killed her previous husband.
It just was not a healthy relationship and I’m glad we’re past it now.
I agree completely that the relationship was unhealthy but disagree that Jessie was a boring character. When she took out that wolf and stepped up in a leadership role within the original Alexandrians it really felt like her character was evolving. I also think the emotional impact of her death would have been increased had her character been around a few more episodes. again I’m not complaining as I loved this episode but just a bit nervous that the writer’s might be starting to get a bit lazy and relying too heavily on the source material instead of just using it for landmarks.
You’re not alone. I like a good combo of both… some things I enjoy changed up, some things I think should mirror the comics as close as possible, if not exactly. If it becomes totally predictable… well, that just makes it lose a good bit of the appeal to me. As for Jessie, I’m with you there, too. I would’ve loved to see Jessie last longer & possibly even become the equivalent of comic Andrea. She made more sense with Rick than anyone else currently on the show. I’m hoping we get back to tossing things up for us comic fans & maybe the trauma we know is coming kicks it off with it happening to unexpected character(s).
Speaking of which, who is gonna be the Andrea equivalent?
Before Jessie, I was wondering if the Andrea equivalent could possibly end up being a combo… Sasha being the sniper part & Rick having a relationship with someone else. Then a stronger-than-the-comic-version Jessie came along. Now after this ep, I just don’t know! Hard to explain why, but on the show, they feel more like family & it would be harder for me to get used to Michonne or Sasha with Rick than it was for me to adapt to Andrea getting with Rick (which was still awkward) in the comic. No doubt in my mind that Sasha is The Sniper… but would she & Rick fall for each other like that… & Carl call her “Mom”? I just don’t know! I’m back to thinking about a combo, so my bet would be on an Alexandrian we haven’t seen much of or not at all.
What do you think?
I thought it was going to be Sasha but look like they ding something with her and Abraham storry and holly is dead so I’m lost. I really don’t know what Rick is going to do about love lol
I love how the change things from the comic to the show but still stick to the comic story. But with the non comic elements like Daryl Sasha Carol even Ron they make the show so much better. They can twist so much more abs give comic readerss something new to look forward to while at the same time giving non comic readers something to come back to. I love what they’re doing with TWD. just don’t kill Daryl off. Look how clutch he came through in so many instances. Not just this episode but just all around. This show just keys getting better and better and I just hope they keep doing these remixed story lines just don’t change the Negan intro. I love Glenn I love his show character and a hell of a lot more than his comic character. That’s why I think it’ll be so much more devastating if the they stick to that plot because show Glenn is so much cooler than comic Glenn. Every time he’s almost come close to dying since season 5 my heart drops and I get excited and sad all at the same time. He’s definitely one of my favorite characters. I think it should be him or Morgan who gets the Negan intro. That way you can have a 2nd in command like Daryl help lead in all out war. Think about a Jesus and Daryl working together. That would be epic. Jesus Daryl Sasha and or Carol. Remix those non comic elements. Bring some bang to the show. Not saying it’s not good enough cause it’s great. This was the best episode I’ve seen in a long time. I have my favorite’s but this one definitely cracked the top 3 list too far gone and the grove up there. Internment beside the dying fire just to name a few. But this was definitely the best mid season premiere they had by far. Bravo Kirkman and Co.
Am i the only one that thinks Rick and Michonne getting together would be a fantastic dynamic for the show? I mean why not lol Rick needs love and no other woman in the group has developed the relationship that Michonne has with Rick and Carl.
No, you’re definitely not the only one. Personally, I just see them more like brother & sister than anything else. They have an understanding, a bond… they all do… but it has that feel to it that says they’re family & for anything to go beyond that would be awkward & wouldn’t be as deep. That’s just my feels on it. But if it happens, I won’t be so disappointed. Would just take some getting used to.
I completely agree with you. Especially considering that episode in season 4 when Rick kind of insinuated that Michonne was kind of like a big sister to Carl. which kind of makes Rick more of a father figure to Michonne (I know they are very close in age but still) So yeah a completely agree that Rick an Michonne together would feel pretty weird. I also agree with you that I don’t think one person will take the comic Andrea role. I think it will be Sasha as the sniper (like I’m sure pretty much everyone else thinks) and have no idea about the love interest side. One thought that I don’t think anyone has said yet is Carol. I mean she seems a lot like Andrea and I could totally envision her saying the “WE DON’T DIE” line from the comic. I mean it’s a just a thought. Of the main cast she is the one I think most fits the bill.