The Walking Dead panel discusses the communities’ vulnerabilities

There’s a lot of emotional distance between the communities on The Walking Dead these days but their physical distance might make them more vulnerable to threats like the Whisperers.

The distance, both physical and emotional, between the communities on The Walking Dead now is troubling. Some yet-to-be-revealed incident or string of incidents caused the emotional disconnect between Michonne and Maggie and Alexandria and the Hilltop.

But the never repaired bridge causes a physical distance between the communities that makes it much harder for the communities to interact. Without the bridge the communities are more than a day’s ride or drive from each other as shown by Michonne, Siddiq, and DJ camping overnight when they took Magna’s group to the Hilltop and by Carol and Henry camping with Daryl for a night before completing their journey to the Hilltop.

That extra distance means that even if the communities were as close as they used to be and hadn’t had some kind of falling out they couldn’t come to each other’s rescue if necessary. Now that The Whisperers are coming, and bringing with them thousands of walkers that they can point at any of the communities and use as weapons that vulnerability leaves the communities at high risk.

In the past the communities relied on each other for additional security and reinforcements when necessary. Time has made the communities smaller and the communities may not have the numbers they need to defend themselves against the Whisperers if Alpha attacks with the full force of the Whisperers and the walkers they control. Our panel had some interesting thoughts about the vulnerability of the communities without the bridge to connect them all.

What Our Panelists Had To Say

Without the bridge the communities in The Walking Dead are more than a day’s journey apart and that makes them vulnerable. Can the communities survive without help from the others?

Sonya says:

"Under normal circumstances I’d say that maybe the bridge being gone is just an annoyance that they have to work around. It definitely would make it hard for them to stay connected but it would be something they could live with. But now that The Whisperers are here and are such a huge threat I think that not being able to get backup quickly could cause communities to fall."

Sara says:

"Not having the bridge is totally going to be a huge problem for the communities. Especially since the Whisperers travel amongst walkers, not getting to the other communities quickly is going to become very dangerous for them now."

Jeffrey says:

"I think the destruction of the bridge puts all of the communities in extreme danger. If someone finds themselves on the run from the Whisperers, it will likely be far more difficult for them to reach the safety of one of the communities. In the event of a community needing to be evacuated, the lack of a stable route to another community could also cause issues."

Sarabeth says:

"If six years have passed without the bridge I don’t think it will cause too much trouble. If anything, Gabriel’s signal boosters would be the biggest help so that instead of traveling they can send messages and warnings."

What do you think TWDFamily? Do you think that the distance between the communities on The Walking Dead is something that threatens the survival of each individual community? Tweet us @SonyaIryna, @WrittenBySara, @TWalkingDWorld, @SarabethPollock, and @UndeadWalkingFS to join the conversation.