The Walking Dead: why are the Reapers hunting Maggie?

The Walking Dead episode “Hunted” was an immediate continuation from “Acheron Part 2” with the Reaper’s attack on Maggie and the rest of the group. The Reapers are very stealth-like in their attack and possibly take some captives. But why are they hunting down Maggie?

In “Home Sweet Home,” we learn that their leader Pope (Ritchie Coster) “marked” Maggie, but we never learn why. The Reapers killed most of the people who resided at Meridian, the community where the Wardens most recently lived. This is the location Maggie has promised everyone will be their salvation as it has plenty of food, water and livestock.

In “Hunted,” she is still determined to head to Meridian with only Negan and an injury Alden. How does she think they will take down this group with only three people? I can’t help but think she has an ulterior motive for getting to this location.

The Walking Dead, why are the Reapers hunting Maggie?

The Reapers attacked and killed the majority of the Wardens before Maggie returned. She brought a handful of people with her, including Cole, Elijah, the few killed in the woods and then Agatha, Frost and Duncan arrived at Alexandria. I don’t believe we have heard how many lived at Meridian before the attack. We have seen how the Reapers fight, so they could have easily taken this community, and we don’t know how many are in their numbers.

The Reapers seem like a group that doesn’t need a reason to attack other than Meridan was a good place to live, and they wanted it. But, they took it, so why hunt Maggie down?

Is Elijah a key? He wears a mask similar to what we have seen the Reapers wear, so why is he with Maggie and the Wardens? We did learn his sister was killed, and if he was part of the Reapers and they killed his sister, he could have defected, and perhaps they are trying to get him back? Groups do that sort of thing; once you are a part of them, you can’t leave unless they let you. If she is harboring someone who left them perhaps, they feel they need to honor their code?

Maggie has now lost Duncan and Agatha, we didn’t see Frost again, and Elijah might have been abducted as we saw the Reapers pull him away with those ropes they were using in the forest. The Reapers are setting things up for Maggie to come to them.

There is a much bigger story here, and I can’t wait to find out what it is. Will Maggie and Negan band together and take down the Reapers? Or will they turn out to be a bigger threat than we can imagine, and something terrible will go down?

The Walking Dead returns to AMC on September 12 with “Rendition.”  This episode is currently available to stream on AMC+.