The Walking Dead episode 1021 “Diverged” divided the fandom

The Walking Dead episode 1021, “Diverged,” has divided the fandom on social media in a significant and unexpected way, with some fans loving it and others hating it.

On the one hand, some fans were happy to get a view of daily life in the apocalypse and a deeper dive into Carol’s mental state after her tough conversation with Daryl.

On the other hand, some fans found the episode’s plot boring, instead of wishing that the focus was put on another character who typically gets less screen time or attention on the show.

While The Walking Dead is no stranger to divisive episodes (looking at you, season seven premiere), it was surprising to see one of the season 10 bonus episodes cause such controversy in the fandom.

The Walking Dead episode 1021, “Diverged,” divided the fandom in a big way across social media.

Fans of the episode praised “Diverged” for how it uniquely portrayed the downtime of an average day in the apocalypse. In The Walking Dead, we typically only see the survivors in some sort of conflict, be it with walkers or other survivors. This episode gave us a better perspective on what the day-to-day is like in the apocalypse for the survivors as they rebuild Alexandria. Life in the apocalypse isn’t always action-packed or full of things to do, as it turns out.

“Diverged” also gave us a rare chance to dive deep into the psyche of a troubled character. Carol has been through an incredible amount of trauma and tough moments, and her brutal argument with Daryl in “Find Me” left her shaken to her core. It was important to see where she is mentally right now and how that will influence her character’s arc in the final season.

Fans who didn’t enjoy the episode as much mainly criticized the plot for being boring. Even if you enjoyed the deep dive into Carol’s mindset going into season 11, the plot itself did leave a little to be desired in terms of pure entertainment. Sure, this episode was definitely about symbolism and deeper meaning than just the basic plot. Still, if you are not a huge fan of Carol as a character, it’s understandable why you might not enjoy “Diverged.”

There is also something to be said about the focus being on Carol and Daryl once again. The two are the lead characters on the show and will be getting their own spinoff show once the main show concludes with season 11. Even if episode 1021 still included Daryl and Carol in some form, could we have also seen the episode primarily feature someone like Rosita, Magna, or Alden? It was great to see characters like Aaron and Gabriel get a whole episode in “One More,” so why not extend that to other characters as well?

It is worth noting that these six bonus episodes were filmed with plenty of COVID precautions in place. This means that the episodes were never going to be grand in scale with lots of walkers or characters or anything like that. You can still not be interested in the episodes or find them boring, but you have to consider the behind-the-scenes dynamics when judging their overall quality.

Whether you loved it or hated it, there’s no denying that “Diverged” was an extremely divisive episode. What’s important is that we all remember to be respectful to one another. We are all a part of the TWDFamily and love the show, having stuck by it for 10-plus seasons. Everyone is entitled to their opinions and nobody should be attacked or marginalized for feeling a certain way about the show, be it the cast, crew, or other fans of the show.

How did you feel about “Diverged”? Let us know by leaving a (respectful) comment below!