Ups and Downs from issue 188 of The Walking Dead comics

What were the best and worst parts of The Walking Dead issue 188? Here is a review of the Feb. 2019 installment of the story titled “Falling Into Place”.

Issue 188 of The Walking Dead comics was released on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019 and followed the story of trouble brewing at the Commonwealth while the other communities attempt to figure out whether or not the new survivors are trustworthy.

The installment of the series titled “Falling Into Place” had some good stuff, bad things, and interesting stuff. Let’s break it down! Plus, it is HIGHLY ADVISED THAT YOU HAVE READ THE ISSUE OR THE RECAP BEFORE CONTINUING!

***WARNING: Spoilers for TWD 188 below***

The Good Stuff

• Tara is up to something. One of the first things I said when Dwight was killed is that someone had better keep an eye on Tara. With everything happening, they lost focus of an extremely dangerous loose end they didn’t tie up at all. That should be an interesting plot to watch.
• More open dialogue. After everything going on between Michonne and Rick and how volatile their situation became, it’s good to see them sharing their thoughts and emotions. There was a possibility for them to be at each other’s throats, but their friendship won in the end.
• Pushing yourself. Being alone for so long paired with a really tough upbringing have taken a toll on Princess. So far, she has been good about opening up but ran away when she was afraid. Now, she’s willing to give it another try thanks to support received from Carl, Mercer, and others.

The Bad Things

• They didn’t stand by their man. Mercer getting no support in the locker room, especially when questioned directly, is a bad sign for not only the unity of the soldiers but it also shows there is still a lot of fear with their position.
• Refusing to leave. It’s great that Eugene is excited about the possibility of getting the train up and running, but to put himself and Stephanie in danger to stick around and work on it while the soldiers went back to the Commonwealth seems counterproductive and unwise.
• Impatience. Maggie is an emotional leader and doesn’t want to wait for her scouting group to return before sending reinforcements. She’s already got Dante, Carl, Jesus, Aaron, and other important people out there that making a move to attack the Commonwealth is too much.

Interesting Stuff

• The tease. The issue synopsis asked the question of whether or not Princess was a friend or foe. While I never really questioned her when it came to loyalty, it was fun to see a tease about her possibly not being as straight-forward and friendly as she seems.
• Walker threats. Humans are definitely a big threat in the zombie apocalypse, but the walkers can’t be forgotten about. The massive number of the undead, as well as the close call on Jesus and Carl, really spiced up the issue.
• Trying too hard. When the comics have to hammer home the reason something happened so many times, it’s not a good thing. It feels like the reasoning behind killing off Dwight was quite clear, yet there were multiple pages of this book devoted to it.

As a whole, this issue went a little further in putting the Commonwealth and those who are there in danger. Those near the community are either dealing with humans, walkers, or their own thoughts holding them back. It was interesting but did more to build tension than share a compelling story on its own.

ISSUE GRADE: 7.5/10

What were your favorite and least favorite parts of The Walking Dead issue 188? Plus, be sure to get your copy of the comics at your local comic book shop or a digital version at Comixology.