The Walking Dead: A look back and a look at what’s next for the survivors

Morgan

Morgan has gone through one of the most radical transformational journeys of any character on the show. He was the first person that Rick encountered when he stumbled out of the hospital and was trying to make sense of the post -apocalypse world. Back then Morgan was still struggling to adjust too. He couldn’t put down his wife who had become a walker, even when it was necessary to save his son.

When Morgan reappeared in season 3’s “Clear” episode he was in a bad state, but he had become more effective at killing. His altered mental state was a radical departure from the last time that Rick had seen him. As a result their reunion wasn’t exactly warm and fuzzy. Rick did invite Morgan to join them at the prison but Morgan was still struggling with his demons.

Morgan was MIA again until season 5 when he is shown following Rick’s trail from Terminus. He appears to have conquered his demons and be in his right mind again. But we don’t really find out how that happened until season 6’s “Here’s Not Here” bottle episode.

“Here’s Not Here” showed how Morgan was able to come to terms with the world thanks to Eastman. It was a beautiful episode that revealed a lot about Morgan and the roots of his “All life is precious” philosophy. His time with Eastman gave Morgan back a sense of confidence and a sense of purpose.

Heading into All Out War Morgan is facing his biggest crisis of faith yet as he realizes that the philosophy that saved him now is just not viable. Through loss and strife Morgan has once again found the ability to love. And he’s realized that he will have to kill to protect Rick, Carol, and the other people he’s come to live. But now he’s also found community and purpose as a member of The Kingdom and a trusted advisor to King Ezekiel.

What’s Next For Morgan

Lennie James commented on what he’d like to see happen for Morgan moving beyond season 8:

"“I would quite like to see what would happen to Morgan if he allowed himself to fall in love again. I’d quite like to see what that would do to him. I’d quite like to see how that would even be possible to happen considering where his head and heart is at this particular moment in time. If you follow Morgan’s ideology, at some point, he’s going to put down the gun. He’s going to put down the stick. If his ultimate argument is no longer about how we survive, this is about how we live, then at some point, Morgan’s going to have to put his money where his mouth is and decide to live.”"

That would make a lot of sense in Morgan’s overall story arc. The most courageous thing that people can do in that world is allow themselves to love, knowing that they will suffer terrible pain when the people they love inevitably die. Morgan’s journey really won’t be complete until he reaches that point where he can accept love and allow himself to love again.