The Walking Dead: Morgan’s 2017 New Year Resolutions
It’s time to think about New Year resolutions for 2017 and Season 7B of The Walking Dead. What should make Morgan’s list of New Year resolutions?
Morgan has come a long way since we first met him in Season 1. When he arrived in Alexandria, his reunion with Rick came as Rick pulled the trigger on Jesse’s husband after he inadvertently killed Deanna’s husband. Morgan expected to see Sheriff Rick and instead saw slightly unhinged Rick.
Morgan’s prime directive to not kill people has backfired, as we saw with the injured Wolf he kept prisoner after the Wolves raided Alexandria. That experience tore apart his already tenuous coexistence with Carol, who suspected him of not being truthful about his motives. Morgan left Alexandria to find her, and that’s when the duo ended up in the Kingdom.
Now Morgan has received information from Richard about the dangers of the Saviors and the danger their friends are likely in, and Morgan has a few decisions to make. Let’s take a look at his list of resolutions for the New Year.
To Kill, Or To Maim A Lot
Morgan is a skilled fighter. He can use his staff to disable an opponent and he can also use it to kill. But Morgan is averse to killing. He will go out of his way to avoid killing, even though leaving people alive that he could have killed has backfired before.
Given what Richard is telling him about the Sanctuary, Morgan needs to decide if he wants to go to war. In war there are casualties. Morgan’s first instinct was to query Richard about the saviors and whether or not they can be saved. While admirable, Morgan’s initial reaction to try to save them is something that could be exploited down the line. It could be dangerous.
Morgan needs to decide whether or not he can join the fight and take them out. Richard reminds Morgan that he killed a man, but clearly that decision is something that has been weighing heavily upon Morgan’s conscience.
Facing A Harsh Reality
So far, Morgan has been able to get by with his moral compass telling him not to hurt people. But when he finally reunites with Rick and the rest of the group, and once he learns about what Negan did to Glenn and Abraham, will that change his mind?
The fact is that Morgan’s aversion to killing and Carol’s desire to be left alone aren’t realistic. Not yet, anyway. The world they live in hasn’t settled down. Eventually there will come a point when Morgan can hang up his staff and Carol can be a hermit. But not now. Not yet.
Morgan needs to accept that there may be at least one big fight left and he needs to decide whether or not he will have a role in it. He really appreciates the world that Ezekiel has built at the Kingdom but this is a moment when he needs to fight to protect the life he’s trying to create.
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The bottom line is that Morgan wants to follow his conscience and refrain from killing people no matter how the circumstances might call for it. He crossed the line once to save a life, can he do it again? Does the good of the many outweigh the deaths of a few people?
Morgan’s strength is as a moral compass for Rick and the decisions Rick makes. But Morgan needs to decide where he stands once he discovers the truth about the Saviors and what they’re capable of.