Most memorable scene from The Walking Dead 908: Loss of a friend

This week the midseason finale introduced new villains at the cost of a tragic death. While the group tries to understand how it all went down, the danger closes in.

The Walking Dead continues to get creepier and scarier with the midseason finale taking place in what feels like a horror movie for the ages. What should have been Eugene’s rescue mission becomes the final mission for the Hilltop leader Jesus. It is his shocking death by a new enemy that earns this week’s title of the most memorable moment.

Jesus, Aaron, and Daryl are on the move to find Eugene noticing how the walkers are acting peculiar. Daryl’s attempts to distract them have not been working. Upon finding a very wounded Eugene hiding out, he quickly explains how he heard the walkers talking. This immediately confuses and distresses the trio as they try to get Eugene back home safely.

As night falls and fog swarms Aaron and Jesus take Eugene while Daryl tries again to distract the walkers with his dog seeing for himself how they ignored the blatant noises and willingly went in a different direction. Those same walkers are moving in on Eugene, leading them to wander into a cemetery. Trapped there Aaron and Jesus resort to fighting them off. As Michonne, Magna and a few others arrive to help, they witness a walker purposefully dodge Jesus’ attack and kill him.

The shock on everyone’s faces could not be matched by Aaron’s heartbreaking reaction of pure agony. They don’t have long to mourn when more walkers begin running! All of them are killed leaving the group with the horrific realization that they were not walkers but people wearing handmade walker skin sewn together. Let that sink in! Unsure what to think, the group can hear more whispers in the darkness as the episode comes to a close.

The episode titled “Evolution” not only applied to the walkers but the people who witnessed something they never thought was possible. To start, with Jesus dead the Hilltop no longer has a leader. This may not be an issue since Tara had expressed deep interest in leading the community. She is already capable of keeping track of the comings and goings and had a lot of ideas. With that said his loss will be a deep wound in that community. Most of those citizens who lived there knew Jesus since it was first developed under Gregory. Jesus was very respected and loved. However, where there is mourning there is a deep anger and need for retribution.

His death could be the spark that lights the fire of people wanting to stand up and fight back. This includes Aaron, who has become close with Jesus, even to the point of sparring with one another. Though the two were not in a relationship, the possibility was there. The connection Jesus made with Aaron and several others is deep. He was often the voice of reason and compassion, fighting when necessary but always looking at the bigger picture. Who will the heroes turn to for such advice now?

Jesus was a one of kind character. If the Hilltop chooses to fight the cannot alone and this may be the reason they are willing to join anyone else who wants to fight back. This will mean Alexandria and the Kingdom’s involvement is bound to happen too. Even if the communities are hardly speaking to each other, they still respect each other. Michonne and Carol’s conversation earlier that same episode was proof of that.

Jesus’s death may be seen now as a sacrifice, setting up the possibility of the three communities to finally come together and fight for a cause greater than themselves. Just what cause are they fighting for or rather what enemy are they fighting against. No one truly knows. Until now the enemies were either walkers or people. Now walkers can be people hiding in plain sight. Walkers can now speak because of the person underneath.

How will they fight back? Who are they fighting? How will they plan anything if they cannot get along themselves? They literally just witnessed their dear friend get murdered by a walker. With no way of predicting this would happen and no way to save him, what does this mean for their future? Now is the time for true leaders to step up, bury the hatchet with each other and come together. If they want to survive they will have to make moves quickly before they themselves become the next victim.