Warning: There are major spoilers ahead for Sunday’s “The Walking Dead,” “The Obliged.”
It’s not looking good for Rick after Sunday night’s episode of “The Walking Dead” ended on a ruthless cliffhanger.
This is your last chance to head back before spoilers.
The end of Sunday's "The Obliged" saw Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) attempting to divert a massive zombie herd alone. Of course, that didn't go well.
It wasn't long until the leader of the new world ran into a second group of the undead. Unsure of where to go, his horse panicked and knocked him off. Instead of falling to the ground, Rick landed directly on a large, dirty metal pipe sticking out of a cement block.
Unable to pull himself up, Rick starts to lose consciousness and the episode comes to an end as the scene zooms out.
With Lincoln's final two episodes of the series underway, we weren't too surprised to see Rick end up in a perilous situation. The fandom had mixed emotions over Rick's predicament.
The initial shock of the scene floored many.
https://twitter.com/diorlusts/status/1056730422841876481?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
I’m not ready for next weeks episode I gonna bawl my eyes out watching it then I’m gonna go on an angry rant on Twitter #TWD #TheWalkingDead pic.twitter.com/4w36QxlLJP
— Wynee Evans 🖤📝 (@Wynee21) October 29, 2018
I don’t deserve to go to bed with that last scene in my head. #TheWalkingDead pic.twitter.com/a5AnDpVG0t
— Sabrina ☀️ (@Snake_Brina) October 29, 2018
Oh hell no!!! #TheWalkingDead pic.twitter.com/LeoXIrrQHW
— My Angelique Criselle (@My_AngelCriss) October 29, 2018
That got me in the feels😭#TheWalkingDead
— ⭐️Amazing Amanda⭐️ (@straberryggirl) October 29, 2018
What!!!! NOOO. Rick!!!! Not this way! 🤕 #twd #TheWalkingDead #RickGrimes pic.twitter.com/lpricKlmZC
— ✭🐺Toby's Mom 🐶✭ (@irmaezy) October 29, 2018
YOU GOT TO TBE KIDDING ME #TheWalkingDead pic.twitter.com/Sx91y7qrnc
— ً (@baraology) October 29, 2018
Others thought it was a predictable, frustrating moment.
https://twitter.com/megannmatlock/status/1056729004101787648?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Rick deserves a better ending. #TWD #TheWalkingDead
— Droo (@droosion) October 29, 2018
Rick’s death was kinda predictable once he got on that horse #TheWalkingDead
— Kevin Wayne (@kaygtwo) October 29, 2018
https://twitter.com/marie2cool4u/status/1056730055689363458?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfwhttps://twitter.com/FlyersAreAwful/status/1056728875881979905?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfwhttps://twitter.com/nanakim1956fl/status/1056732104350973952?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
The cliffhanger ending was a bit frustrating. In reality, Daryl probably never would have let Rick handle a herd of that size alone. Where else did he have to be at that moment - watch Maggie attack Negan?
The thing that bothered us most is that when the final scene zooms out, you can see there was another road for Rick to travel down. Instead of panicking, why didn't he just run off with the horse down that other roadway? It seemed like a no brainer.
Is this how Grimes will leave "The Walking Dead," as unfortunate walker bait? We don't think so, given that the trailer teased a scene of Rick slowly walking with blood dripping onto his cowboy boot.
"We wanted to pay tribute to the fact that Rick Grimes is a character who he is a survivor," showrunner Angela Kang told Entertainment Weekly. "He will fight as hard as he can for the people that he loves. That's been one of his defining characteristics and that is a part of the story. We'll see his grit and his heroism. We'll see what happens. I'll say that Andrew Lincoln… just amazing, amazing stuff this season. I love the work he's done and I'm excited for people to see his last episode on the show."
Kang appeared on aftershow "Talking Dead" along with "Walking Dead" star Michael Rooker to discuss what fans can expect to see on next week's episode.
"A big priority for us this season from the writing side, the producing side was to make sure that each episode just felt like it was full of adrenaline, that the story kept driving forward, that there was tons of stuff going on," Kang said of the different feel of season nine. "The entire crew kind of said, 'Oh my God, it feels like we've done five premieres or finales just in the first half [of the season alone]."
"It's a big, epic story. It's something where there's heroism, you see a lot of stories that have been set up coming to a head," Kang continued, teasing next Sunday's episode. "We also propel forward into a lot of new stories, that will hopefully be... there's kind of like big twists that are coming up. Get some Kleenex and popcorn and friends together, and hopefully come along for the ride."
Rooker isn't convinced this is the way Rick leaves the show.
"I kind of felt it was a great cliffhanger," Rooker said. "I don't see Rick going out this way. He's gonna either yank himself off that rebar or somebody's going to come along and help him out a little bit, I think."
And it seems he's on to something. The opening minutes of next Sunday's "The Walking Dead" show Rick get out of his sticky situation. You can watch the start of it here.
If you missed the episode or want to take a closer look at Sunday's final scene, you can watch it below.
Rick's final episode of "The Walking Dead" airs next Sunday. You can follow along with our coverage here.