I remember my first time watching The Walking Dead. It was Christmas break of 2015, and I was in the eighth grade at the time. My mother and I binged-watched the show in two weeks, from the first season all the way to season 5. Sometimes we would stay up until 4 am watching because we couldn't stop. It was that good and still is. The zombie apocalypse storyline and the theme of humans trying to survive in a world with no order drew us in.
We didn't know what to expect during that first binge. Since we hadn't seen any of the comics, it was all fresh, like opening up a new book for the first time. We never expected it to have the impact it has on us now. The best part of the show to us was the found family aspect, the high stakes, and the humanity of it all. You never knew whether or not your favorite character was about to meet their end on the show. Those character deaths made the series the phenomenon it is today, and are the reason that fans continue to talk about it.
Recently, I watched the Stranger Things season 5 finale. This is what inspired me to write this piece. If you haven't watched it yet, I suggest clicking off of this article because I'm about to give some spoilers. Also, these are just my opinions as someone who majored in Creative Writing and Screenwriting.
After watching the last season of Stranger Things, I was left feeling disappointed. I had waited a couple of years for this last season to come out, and I was really expecting it to knock me off my feet. But sadly, it didn't. The first half was enjoyable, but it's the last half that was lackluster to me. One thing that I noticed a lot of fans had in common was being disappointed that more characters weren't killed off in the final season.
I remember thinking that it was kind of odd/funny that so many people were upset that characters hadn't died in a show. However, I was feeling the same way. When a show is about high stakes and monsters, it's normal to witness a lot of character deaths. The possibility of death in a story brings tension and gives it more meaning. When barely any of the important characters died during the final season of Stranger Things, it felt like all that tension and everything the characters went through had less meaning and impact.
This made me think about The Walking Dead and how its major character deaths made the show so good. Fans were always on the edge of their seat, nervous about who would be the next to go. These plot twist deaths kept audiences invested in the show. There was always something to lose, and fans loved to feel that kind of emotional drama from a show. Now, I'm not saying that every death was great, but many served a great purpose and helped drive other characters' storylines forward.
The show’s most memorable moments were often tied to major character deaths. These include Sophia’s heartbreaking reveal as a walker in the barn, Shane being killed by his best friend Rick Grimes, Lori dying after childbirth, Hershel’s execution by the Governor, and the brutal murders of Glenn and Abraham by Negan.
These deaths functioned as pivotal turning points in the narrative, not merely as moments of tragedy, but as events that shaped the meaning and direction of the series. These deaths would go on to shape the lives of other characters in the apocalypse. Characters continued to fight for their loved ones' legacies because they meant something to them.
I remember the first time I watched the season 4 episode "The Grove" with my mother. The shock and heartache of that episode brought us to tears. The shock of finding out Lizzie killed her sister Mika, and was about to kill baby Judith. Carol Peletier had to mourn losing two more girls who were like daughters to her. Seeing Carol experience that pain was heartbreaking, but those deaths continued to build Carol's character and made her strong enough to save Rick's group at Terminus.
When a writer makes a decision to kill a character off in a series, they have to consider the effect it will have on others. They have to ask themselves how those deaths will bring the story forward and how characters will change because of the loss. The way another character responds to a death in these shows carries significant weight in how the audience connects to those moments.
If a character's death serves a greater purpose, its meaning can go a long way in impacting an audience's view of a series. The themes of love, loss, and grief in The Walking Dead were able to be expressed through the writers' use of character deaths throughout the seasons. They were able to develop characters more intimately when someone they loved passed away, which gave these characters and their story more depth. I believe The Walking Dead handled most of its character deaths with a lot of meaning and purpose in order to display these deeper themes in the show.
Overall, the character deaths made the hit zombie series more realistic and meaningful. This is part of the reason why The Walking Dead has remained my favorite show. The themes this show has brought forth through its use of character deaths have had a strong impact, drawing in old and new viewers to keep watching.
All 11 seasons of The Walking Dead are streaming on Netflix.