The Walking Dead: Where Carol stands after season 10

Where does Carol stand at the end of The Walking Dead season 10?

We’ve seen Carol hit her lowest point  emotionally, mentally and physically this season. After The Walking Dead season 10 finale, where does that leave this powerhouse character and what’s next for her?

It’s  been a rough season for my girl Carol. Buried under the weight of continued trauma , guilt and a driving need for revenge against Alpha, Carol has alienated those closest to her, lost her self and was willing to die to end the whisperers. For fans of this singular character, its been hard to watch at times. I know I’ve yelled at my TV more than once “Oh honey…. no…” during the season. The cliff scene with Lydia and her moment with Daryl in the finale seems to have reset the character, hopefully for something better.

Forgiveness

The first steps Carol took was apologizing to those she felt she harmed the most: Kelly for the loss of Connie and Lydia for setting the plan in motion to kill Alpha.  Main characters on the show have done things that caused harm to others indirectly or directly but very few take the time to try and make it right. As she did with Tyreese in season 4 episode 14 “The Grove”, Carol went to the ones she felt she had hurt the most. Carol has never shied away for taking responsibility for her actions and didn’t this time.

Her scene with Kelly played by the wonderful Angel Theory, showed a maturity in Kelly that is lacking in some other characters as well as a understanding of the role Carol plays. She is the one that will do things that need to be done, even if she has to do them alone.

With Lydia there is a shared connection and level of respect, as two abuse survivors and two who have suffered the mind games  at the hands of Alpha. Lydia  KNOWS exactly why Carol does the things she does because in her own way she feels just as guilty, just as isolated and just as responsible for the losses. Just as Carol couldn’t let Lydia sacrifice herself to finish Beta’s herd, Lydia couldn’t let Carol sacrifice herself.

Facing herself

I’ve written quite a bit about episode 14 “Look at the Flowers” for good reason. First off because I found the episode to be truly remarkable in a season that was outstanding. Second because it gave the clearest look into the weight Carol carries. Every fear, doubt and mental voice she hears that torments her. Carol’s go to response for the last few seasons has been to run from her problems, she may not be ready to face what it is she truly wants and she may fear she will never get it, but she made the decision to go back. Dealing with others condemnation is one thing,  dealing with the internal struggle is something harder to let go of. Carol is less concerned about the group as a whole, there was only one bond she couldn’t lose.

While facing her possible death at the cliff, Carol seemed to almost reach an acceptance to her end. She didn’t rush to it but she didn’t run from it either. Her “thank you” to Lydia for pulling her way from the edge fit with the duality that acceptance had. There have been a few scenes that have stuck with me over the course of the show and that scene is one of them.

Reconnecting

Carol has pulled away from pretty much everyone even those she was closest too. Between ignoring advice, hearing but not listening to what Daryl has been saying all season, the strain on friendships she has built and the end of her fairy tale marriage, Carol feels alone.

As I mentioned above Carol doesn’t really concern herself with how the general group feels about her but she did care what Daryl thought.  I won’t go into the shipping aspect of Carol and Daryl relationship other than to say of all the relationships on the show, this one is my favorite.  Their long standing bond has been a highlight for me and it hurt to see them drift apart.

After she made amends with Kelly and Lydia the one person she seemed to actively avoid was Daryl. We know from “Look at the flowers”  the loss of her connection to Daryl and her fear of him dying was something that weighed heavily on her mind. Their final scene in the finale showed them starting the reconnecting process which will be a work in progress per interviews with Angela Kang. It was striking compared to the scenes between Carol and Diane (you’re just gonna have to let that go), the first scene with Lydia and the scene between her and Daryl in the stairwell.

Prior to facing her own possible end, Carol seems lost and directionless when it comes to her family. Following a plan to save her family is easy compared to facing emotions that in a lot of ways terrify her. Carol is naturally loving and caring, but she fights it due to so many losses of those she loves.  For as much as Carol thinks she wants to be alone, she still has that need to be with the people she loves. After the cliff, her joy at being able to say “Yes, its done” when asked about the herd and her open affection with Lydia, Jerry and Daryl, I hope her reconnecting to her family continues.

So where does Carol stand now?

After everything this season it seems Carol has finally started to forgive herself,  to make strides to rebuild relationships and to move forward. When Daryl pointed out New Mexico is still out there, recalling  back to their talk earlier in the season about seeing what was out there, Carol responded with “one day. There’s things we need to do first.”  There is a lot to do first. The communities need to be rebuilt, Maggie is back which could lead to some interesting developments due to Negan,  and there are new challenges coming thanks to the Commonwealth.

Who is Carol now? Will she drop that masks and embrace herself for herself? What is it she truly wants and will she ever get it?

Carol is in a place of discovery. As she and Lydia both mentioned, she gets to decide who she wants to be. This should be a turning point for Carol that moves her along into being who she truly is and who she wants to be. I’ve mentioned it so many times that I sound like a broken record, but the thing I want to most is for Carol to go through the healing process and come out the other side a stronger version of herself.

As of the finale, I feel she’s ready.