Talked About Scene: The Walking Dead 809 I Couldn’t Protect you
A lot happened on last night’s season 8 midseason premiere of The Walking Dead which lasted well over an hour and included the most heartbreaking moment to date.
Every theory about Carl being immune to the virus and possibly surviving his walker bite has officially been dismissed as we lost another beloved character during the season 8 midseason peremiere of The Walking Dead. Carl was one of the original characters from season one that has since dwindled to only Rick, Daryl, Carol and Morgan.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you. A father’s job is to protect his son,” were Rick’s agonizing words audiences heard while watching in tears as he and his group said goodbye to Carl. Since the beginning of The Walking Dead Rick was focused on two missions: To find his family and once found to protect them.
Check out the heartbreaking scene from episode 809 of The Walking Dead as shared on the official YouTube channel of AMC:
After the loss of his wife Lori in Season 3, Rick went on a downward spiral and battled that fine line between preventing and allowing Carl to grow. Carl did grow right before our eyes and became a leader right until the very end willing to stall Negan at the Alexandria gate while the rest hide in the tunnels below.
It was Carl’s last attempt to make peace with Negan that ultimately failed and the cruel symptoms of the virus began. He managed to hide his fate throughout that day after saving Siddiq, spending time with his sister Judith and writing letters to everyone.
When Rick and Michonne came to face with the bite mark of death everything crumbled for our leader once again. It was a fate Rick never expected, blaming himself and The Saviors.
Carl was quick to correct his father that he got bit helping Siddiq and Rick should neither blame himself or The Saviors.
As his fever grew and weakness settled in Rick and Michonne carried Carl from the protective tunnels to remains of the church, alone. The Saviors long gone as Dwight promised they would leave after having nearly burned Alexandria to the ground while the rest of The Survivors made their way towards The Hilltop.
Carl’s final moments reminded all of us how quick and deadly a walker bite can be. Regardless of how accustomed these characters became to the world around them.
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Shaking and sweated Carl made the decision to end his life before dying and turning sparing his father and Michonne from having to. This would be the last time Rick would see his son alive again and meant every word of his proclamation, “I love you, Carl. I love you so much.”
As Lori had promised before dying seasons ago, Carl was strong and had beaten that world by looking outside the realm of violence and wrath to find another solution. Carl believed there was a way that everyone could win by ending the war and living together.
A thought Rick might now be understanding as he repeated throughout the flash-forward scenes of a few episodes this season, “My mercy prevails over my wrath.”
It won’t be long until the rest of Rick’s dispersed group learns of Carl’s tragic fate including Maggie, Carol, Enid and Negan himself. How will Carl’s death change the nature of the beast in All Out War is anyone’s guess.
Next: Top 10 Carl moments from The Walking Dead
We at Undead Walking wish Chandler Riggs the best in all of his future endeavors and thank him for bringing Carl into our hearts and homes every Sunday we watched The Walking Dead.
Share your thoughts in the comment section down below and watch next week’s episode where it looks like we’ll be seeing what Negan has been up to since returning to The Sanctuary.