The Walking Dead Season 9 Review: Much Improved Over Season 8

I stopped watching "The Walking Dead" back in May 2018. Why? It seemed like there was much more human drama than walkers. And zombies were the reason I tuned in. Also, the story lines were pretty stale. The fight between Negan and Team Rick went on F-O-R-E-V-ER. I'm happy to report that upon revisiting the series (thanks Covid 19) I'm back as a "TWD" fan. Maybe it's because I'm watching all the episodes together on NetFlix (instead of one a week on AMC). Either way, I'm surprised to say I'm enjoying the show once again.

Each season of "The Walking Dead" has 16 episodes with the exclusions of season 1 and 10. Ten is divided into 2 parts with episodes airing in 2020 and then starting back up again in February 2021. "The Walking Dead" has been officially canceled after 11 seasons (and will end in 2022).

When we last left the show, Carl had just succumbed to a zombie bite. Before dying he encouraged Rick to seek peace amongst all the survivors. Instead of killing Negan (big mistake in my book) they lock him up in the basement-- thus ending the war with the Saviors. This greatly upsets Maggie (since he killed Glenn).

Fast forward 18 months. Rick and crew make a trip to DC for supplies. Upon returning, they see a vital bridge has been washed away. Each community is trying to survive on their own. Maggie is in charge at Hilltop. She finally offs that snake Gregory. Good riddance. She also plans to kill Negan but after seeing the state he's in ("You're already dead"), she decides against it. We dont see much else of Maggie because the actress (Laurie Cohen) is busy on an ABC series. She will return as a series regular in season 11.

Father Gabriel and Jadis/Anne are an item for a quick second. It turns out Anne is up to something sneaky. Rosita and Eugene (while on a recon mission) are trailed by a group of strange walkers. A pregnant Rosita is injured but recovers. Daryl and crew go to find Eugene. Jesus is killed as they are trapped in a cemetery by the walkers. Great action scene!

Rick and Daryl try to steer a gigantic herd of walkers away from their settlements. A badly injured Rick sees flashbacks to the first episode of the series (never a good sign). He ends up blowing himself and the bridge up to save everyone. But just when we think he's a goner, Anne makes a deal with whoever is in that helicopter to take Rick to safety. We'll next see Rick and Anne in the three scheduled spin-off movies.

Fast forward another six year, Judith has grown and is wearing Carl's hat. It's always scary for young kids since they make typical kid mistakes which are deadly in this show. Michonne is still mourning Rick. But she has Judith and a son Rick never knew (RJ) to protect. All the communities are busy doing their own things. Ezekial and Carol are at the Kingdom, Michonne and family are in Alexandria, Maggie (as I mentioned previously) is at Hilltop. There's still a bunch of ladies at Oceanside. Lone Wolf Daryl spends a lot of time hanging out by himself.

A new group of characters arrive-- Luke, Yumiko, Connie and Kelly. They are looking for a home. Michonne agrees to take them to Hilltop.

A terrible new threat (the Whispers) arrives. They are people who put on zombie faces and mix with the walkers. They are lead by Alpha. She is quite ruthless. Samantha Morton (of "Minority Report", "The Harlots", etc) does a great job. Alpha's daughter Lydia wants out of the group. Henry (Carol and Ezekial's adopted teenage son) convinces his parents to take her in. We know this is going to cause problems.

Everyone gathers for a fair at Kingdom. The festive atmosphere takes a turn for the worse when people start disappearing. Daryl, Carol and crew go in search of the missing. They eventually find a horrific scene. It's the boundary line to Whispers territory that Alpha told them to stay on the other side of. The Whispers have piked ten heads. They include some main characters (Tara, Henry, and Enid) as well as two Highwaymen (Ozzy and Alec), two ex-Saviors (DJ and Frankie), two teenagers (Addie and Rodney), and Tammy Rose. She was played by Brett Butler. That was a truly shocking scene. Siddiq is also captured but left alive to tell the story of what happened.

Winter comes and the residents of the Kingdom must abandon their home (due to malfunctioning furnaces, no water, etc). They head out for Hilltop and Alexandria. It's a long trek in the blinding snow. At one point Judith runs off after Dog. Luckily Negan (almost) redeems himself by bringing her back to safety. Along the way they visit the Sanctuary and see a lot of cool frozen zombies. They also walk across a frozen lake where walker are laying in wait under the snow. They had taken a short cut through Whispers territory but luckily avoided them. Apparently the Whispers have relocated to Florida for the winter.

Where are we at going into season 10? I'm hoping everyone will be in one place at least for awhile. The disjointed communities weren't as interesting IMHO. Also will we ever see much of anyone from Oceanside? They're like the red headed step children of the show.

We heard a voice on Ezekiel's radio asking if anyone was there. Who could that be? It looks like Ezekiel and Carol's marriage will not survive the death of Henry. Very sad. The Whispers (who might be my favorite villains to date) will definitely be back. I was worried throughout season 9 that RJ was going to get killed. Please no more dead children (at least for a while). I think Daryl and Carol are safe (since they're scheduled for spin off shows). They are my favorites (along with Michonne).

Grade: 4 1/2 Monsters (out of 5). After giving up on "The Walking Dead" in season 8, I'm happy to report that I'm back as a fan. Season 9 is MUCH improved with more zombies (and great looking ones at that). Please keep it up. The new opening graphics are a fun addition. This season we have all the communities eventually banning together to try to survive. Michonne gets more air time in 9 (which I'm really happy about). There's also a time jump and a number of shocking deaths. Several main characters leave the show. And winter is quickly approaching. Can you say White Walker?