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Though we've been watching him putting on a good show of chuckling and snarking his way through conversations with Rick and Michonne, there's a little bit of a rug-pull waiting as he's revealed to be a shell of his former self, pitiable (hands up, however, who figured that would be an act designed to lull Maggie into a false sense of security and superiority) and wretched. Or at least what's left of the man who once called himself that. It wasn't all The Rick And Dead Friends Show, though, as we also got to see Maggie finally confront Negan.
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Yet the show – or rather, the US TV channel AMC – had bigger plans for Rick, and he's last seen being taken. It all led up to his big moment, blowing the bridge to stop the walker horde. And then there was Sasha, with Sonequa Martin-Green beaming in from Star Trek: Discovery to deliver some vaguely canned wisdom about what Rick's really looking for. The presence of Scott Wilson's Hershel was a jolt in more ways than one, not least because actor Scott Wilson died himself recently.
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Still, the story was redeemed by Rick's woozy visions of long-gone characters, with his hard-truth telling session in the police car with Jon Bernthal's Shane a delight. Yes, it was long-billed as Rick Grimes' last episode, but to indulge in quite so many seemingly fatal moments just ended up feeling lazy and repetitive. Looking to convince us that characters have died is a bad habit this show badly still needs to break, even if it's a cornerstone of the tension it wants to generate. Last week's cliffhanger led to this episode's, long, painful journey for Rick, faking out his departure more than once along the way. And while What Comes After mostly pulled it off successfully, the end still feels a little bit like a cheat, suffering from a surfeit of near-death experiences for our weary Rick Grimes. The Walking Dead team chose to take a trip down memory lane, which can be tricky to get right.
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When confronting the proposition of saying goodbye to the main character, shows have a variety of options to choose from in terms of how they plot the swan song. Spoilers will lurk like groaning walkers. Be warned! This review will cover aspects of the episode.