The Walking Dead Mid-Season 9 Finale remixed a LOT of major comic moments from the comics and we’re here to break down all the comparisons.
Blacksmithing/Hilltop Dinner
SHOW: Henry wasted no time at his new home in Hilltop learning how to blacksmith from Earl. Later, the rebuilt Hilltop holds a community dinner where Henry makes new friends.
COMICS: The Henry/Carl comparisons continue. In the comics, Carl also learns how to blacksmith from Earl, but Alden and Enid are exclusive to the show so there’s no weird romantic tension in the source material. Carol also attends a big Hilltop dinner alone, but instead of making friends, he gets a job offer as Earl’s blacksmith apprentice. The teenage friends Henry makes are exclusive to the show.
Rosita’s PTSD
SHOW: After escaping the whispering walkers and getting saved by Jesus and Aaron – Rosita wakes up at Hilltop and desperately tries to warn the others to find Eugene in the barn she left him in. They tell her everything’s fine and that Daryl, Aaron, and Jesus are out there finding him but Rosita warns them they don’t know what they’re getting into.
COMICS: A similar scene plays out in the comics, but it was with Marco, not Rosita. That’s because Marco and Ken have to hide in the ditch from the Whisperers while the show gave that scene to Rosita and Eugene. But like the show, the person who made it back (Rosita/Marco) warns their friend (Eugene/Ken) is still out there. One last thing, in the comics it was Rick, Andrea, and Carson at the infirmary, while in the show it was Michonne and Siddiq (Siddiq isn’t a doctor in the comics).
The Search Party
SHOW: Daryl, Jesus, and Aaron set out to find Eugene in the barn Rosita told them about. They miraculously find him, and Eugene warns the walkers are evolving and might be talking. They brush it off, but after their walker distraction plans fail they begin to believe Eugene.
COMICS: As we mentioned above, a search party was also sent out in the comics (In Issue 131), but it was to save Ken, not Eugene. And since Daryl is exclusive to the show, the comic search party consisted of Dante, Doug, and another guard. Like the show, they found the barn, but they only discovered Ken’s clothes, not Ken himself. In the show they actually find Eugene and take him to a cemetery with them.
Negan’s Escape
SHOW: While the Alexandrian leadership was preoccupied Negan discovered that his cell was unlocked. So, he left. More on that in the second half of the season…
COMICS: In Issue 140 Negan also found his cell unlocked, but unlike his show counterpart he decided to stay put to prove to Rick he could be trusted. Rick eventually discovers this, but keeps him in his cell even though he didn’t escape.
Carl/Henry In Jail
SHOW: Henry’s thrown in jail after he leaves Hilltop past curfew, drinks with his new friends, and chills out in a ditch.
COMICS: The Carl/Henry comparisons continue…again! Henry’s imprisonment is a definite nod to Carl’s punishment in the comics. But instead of getting locked up for partying with friends and being out beyond curfew, Carl gets thrown in the slammer for beating up some of the boys at Hilltop for attacking Sophia.
The Whisperer Battle/Reveal
SHOW: After failing to distract the walkers, Aaron, Eugene, and Daryl end up at a cemetery full of walkers. They handily kill a bunch of them as Michonne and Magna’s group arrive. Jesus tells his friends he’ll finish them until one of the “walkers” jukes him out and stabs him in the back, telling him, “You…are where you do not belong.” Jesus unfortunately dies as Aaron, Michonne, Daryl, and the others rush in and kill him and the other “walkers,” eventually discovering they’re actually people wearing walker skin masks.
COMICS: In Issue 132 Dante, Doug, and a guard are confronted by walkers wielding knives. They do their best to fend them off but only Dante survives. After holding his own, he also discovers these “walkers” are merely people wearing the undead’s skin over their own. He’s horrified, but has almost no time to react before Alpha (the Whisperer) leader holds him to shotgun point and tells him not to move. Alpha doesn’t appear at this time in the show, but fans can expect to see her soon enough…
What Didn’t Happen In The Comics
Although the show remixed a ton of comic storylines, there were still a lot of moments unique to the show. Michonne and Siddiq escorting Magna’s group to Hilltop, Enid’s relationship with Alden, Henry’s drunken night out, and Jesus’ death were all unique to the Mid-Season Finale. Also, Daryl, Enid, Alden, Tara, and the Hilltop kids are all show-exclusive characters, so their stories were either remixed from the comics or are completely new to The Walking Dead all together.
That wraps up our comic/show comparisons for the first half of The Walking Dead Season 9! We have SO many more comparisons ahead of us in the second half, so make sure to keep it here at Skybound for more!
