Is Father Gabriel A Coward On The Walking Dead?

Father Gabriel might be a recent addition to the group, but there’s still a lot of questioning as to his role on The Walking Dead and what he brings to the group.

In a recent TV guide article, Andrew Lincoln and Walking Dead executive producer Scott M. Gimple gave their takes on the holy man and what his future might be with the group.

"“In the new world, you stand on your own two feet and you are who you are. If you’re a coward, we find out very quickly you’re a coward,” Andrew Lincoln said."

I don’t personally see Father Gabriel as a coward. I see him as a man that is trying to hold on to his faith while staying safe in the walker apocalypse. It’s not easy to balance your morality with surviving in a world like that, but Gabriel found a way while inside his church. His guilt hit him hard when he didn’t let some survivors in when they were being attacked by walkers, but the good Father was only protecting himself in that moment.

Some people call his survival instinct to not open the door as a moment of being evil. That he willingly let those people die outside the church when he could have helped. While I don’t see it that way, I was lucky to see that executive producer Scott M. Gimple shared my opinions on Father Gabriel.

"“Rick has seen that this guy is not necessarily a villain,” executive producer Scott M. Gimple says. “Gabriel is somebody who is just catching up to what the world is and his place within it. Rick still has a great deal of that humanity left. He isn’t simply a monster, and I think that’s good for Gabriel.”"

Personally, I think Rick might see a lot of his former self in Father Gabriel. Before Rick Grimes became the badass that he is today, he was a man that tried to solve many problems in non-violent ways and held on to every shred of humanity that he could. I think Rick relates to those values that Father Gabriel has and could even want to return to living that way again even though he knows how much humanity he has let go over the course of 5 seasons so far.

What do you think? Is Father Gabriel a coward with little to offer the group? Or does he represent what is left of humanity and faith on the show? Discuss it in the comments below!

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