7 Things We Want To See On The Walking Dead Season 6

Like a horde of zombies chasing a school bus full of children, The Walking Dead is nigh on unstoppable. Unlike most shows that peak early on, AMC's flagship series has become more popular than ever in its fifth season, defying the downward trajectory that usually plagues programs in later life. From the explosive first episode to that tragic hospital shootout, the first half of season five kept the momentum going in defiance of previous criticisms about the show's pace. Things may have slowed down somewhat since Rick's group entered the Alexandria Safe Zone, but The Walking Dead is still better than it's ever been before. Fortunately, life in the zombie apocalypse looks set to become even more intense once season six premieres on October 11th. And with that in mind, we're counting down 7 things that we'd love to see happen on the show this year. Let's begin, shall we? 7) More Of The Wolves When a few walkers first started showing up in season five with the letter "W" burned into their foreheads, those who hadn't read the comics were left feeling somewhat confused. What could this insignia stand for? Warning? Watch out? Wankers? In the season five finale, fan favourite Morgan finally encountered the Wolves, a mysterious cult whose presence spells out trouble for the residents of Alexandria. Despite almost killing him, Morgan in his infinite wisdom decided to allow the Wolves to live, tying them up in the boot of a car. Towards the end, one of these Wolves finds Aaron's bag, which contains photos of Alexandria and Rick's group. We'll give you two guesses where the Wolves will end up next... However, in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, showrunner Scott Gimple warned fans that they might have to wait longer for the Wolves to appear than you would think, stating that: I don’t know if I’d be as completely direct as to have the first thing we do when we pick up season 6, is to jump into anything with the Wolves. In their reluctance to spoil the content of season six, the head honchos behind The Walking Dead seem keen to play the long game, drawing out the saga of the Wolves longer than initially expected. That's bad news for the Wolves, but good news for Morgan, who will probably end up being the cult's number one target in an act of revenge. Does he deserve it? Yes. Yes, he does. Do we wish that wasn't the case? Yes, but that's his fault for letting them live. Undoubtedly harsh, but we don't make up the rules! If only they'd target Carl instead... 6) Daryl Kicking Ass... And Staying Alive! One strength of The Walking Dead is its willingness to break away from the source material when necessary, mixing things up for diehard fan while still remaining faithful to Robert Kirkman's original comics. The smartest choice the showrunners ever made in this regard was creating Daryl, the crossbow wielding survival expert who quickly became a firm fan favourite early on in the program's run. The problem is that Daryl has become almost too popular, leading many to believe that he is one of the few cast members guaranteed to survive, which grinds Kirkman's gears. At the San Diego Comic-Con in 2014, Kirkman said: That fan reaction is going to get him killed. I feel like it's a dare. Like, 'Oh, really? You're gonna riot? We'll see...we'll see. No one is safe. This was reiterated once again more recently in an interview with CNN, where Kirkman stated: No, no one is safe, definitely not. Looking at you Norman Reedus. Ok Kirkman, we get it. The issue here is that Daryl has no counterpart in the comics, so it's hard to tell whether this threat is genuine or not. Killing off a character as popular as Daryl would be an extremely bold move that could divide audiences in two, so let's hope Kirkman is just bluffing. 5) More Morgan After playing a pivotal role in the show's first episode, Morgan Jones only appeared once more leading up to season five, when Rick learned that his old friend had finally snapped from the trauma of losing his family. Morgan spent most of season five following our merry band of survivors, before finally being reunited with the gang at the end of the finale. This isn't your typical high school reunion, though. Morgan arrives in Alexandria just as Rick kills a man in cold blood, something that the man Morgan knew from previous seasons would never have done. Ideologically, the two characters started out on the same path, but if the promo material released so far is anything to go by, Rick's old friend won't blindly support his actions through loyalty. Ideally, this rivalry between Morgan and Rick shouldn't be resolved early on in season six. Fans have waited forever for Morgan to finally join the group, and now that he's here, the last thing we want is for him to be relegated to the sidelines after just a few harsh words are exchanged. This also provides the writers with the perfect opportunity to reveal what exactly happened to Morgan in the past few years and how he transformed from a nut job into the cool customer he's now become. The Walking Dead rarely uses flashbacks, so Morgan's backstory could be revealed more subtly through conversations shared with those closest to him... or being the little shit he is, Carl could find Morgan's diary and start reading it out loud to impress a girl. 4) Fix Father Gabriel Let's not start out under any illusions here. When we say "fix" Father Gabriel, we mean destroy him. That's right. Destroy him. Whether his cowardly ass is eaten by zombies or whether Rick discovers Gabriel's treachery and takes matters into his own hands, this guy needs to be put out of his misery fast. His misery is our misery. Admittedly, Gabriel's character makes a dramatic change for the better in the comics, eventually getting off his lazy ass and helping the others keep Alexandria safe, but I'm not sure if audiences have the patience to wait that long for such a miracle to occur. Fortunately, the show isn't shackled to the comics, so if the producers really want what's best for The Walking Dead, they know what they need to do. It's already been confirmed that Gabriel will appear in season six of The Walking Dead, but his character is noticeably absent from the trailer. Whether this is because the role he plays will be less significant or whether the editor knew no one would want to tune in if they were reminded of Gabriel's existence remains to be seen. 3) Negan Since the villainous Negan first swung his baseball bat in the comics, diehard fans have waited patiently for his inevitable appearance on the show. Now that the survivors are settled in the Alexandria Safe Zone, we may finally meet the leader of the Saviours in season six, but what's the big deal? He's just a man. Couldn't be any worse than the Governor, right? With the aid of his group the Saviours, Negan offers "protection" to other settlements in exchange for supplies and their loyalty. The problem is that Negan actively enjoys inflicting pain on others, using a barbed baseball bat to cause a world of hurt to anyone standing in his way. Under his command, The Saviours deliberately cover their weapons in zombie guts, so that anyone shot or stabbed by the group becomes infected with the virus, because... well, just because. It's not like there aren't already enough walkers strolling around. If the producers stick close to Negan's arc in the comics, then season six could be the darkest yet. That goes double for Glenn, unfortunately. Whether Negan appears early on or is unveiled as the new big bad in the season finale, just remember that he basically makes the Governor look like a cute pirate entertaining a kid's parties. Eye patches. Gotta love them. 2) Make The Walkers Scary Again As great as The Walking Dead is, there's only so many times that audiences can be shocked by the revelation that the real monster was *GASP* the humans all along. Aside from the occasional attack, the walkers have taken a back seat to the human menace in recent episodes, but if the show follows the story of the comic books, things look set to change within the next season. Without spoiling too much, an epic battle ensues between the survivors that draws a huge herd of walkers to Alexandria. If the trailer is anything to go by, then it appears that this is definitely set to occur in season six, setting the stage for a large-scale invasion of the city's defences. Clips of Michonne and the others watching walkers shamble past the windows are chilling enough as it is in the trailer, so we can only imagine how horrifying the final attack will be when we finally get the chance to see it. Whether the walkers invade Alexandria at the beginning of the season or not, it's thrilling to finally see the real stars of the show take centre stage again, becoming the genuine threat that they once were at the beginning... and if Carl ends up becoming a walker's snack, who are we to complain? 1) Avast Me Hearties! Speaking of Carl, you may have noticed by now that we're not exactly his biggest fan. Whether he's whining or pretending he doesn't need any help, Rick's son has won few viewers over on the show. Admittedly, his character has gone through incredibly traumatic changes in his life, all while negotiating the regular worries that plague teenagers. Honestly, it's hard to know what's worse: A zombie apocalypse, or puberty. Still though, while Carl has improved in recent seasons, one particularly important development for his comic book counterpart is now looming on the horizon. During the panicked invasion of Alexandria, Carl catches a stray bullet that tears through his right eye, removing part of his face with it. Somehow, through the miracles of post-apocalyptic medicine, Carl ends up surviving, but memory loss and the trauma of his injury hardens his character, forcing him to grow up more quickly. The loss of Carl's eye is an essential part of his character, but there's a chance that the show may skip this development as Carl as already been shot once and The Governor lost an eye, too. Would this be too repetitive for fans of the show? The clear answer here is definitely no. We may sound somewhat sadistic here, wishing that kind of injury on a child, but we need this badly. Not only would this plot development make Carl a better character, but it would also justify us having to endure his whining and that ridiculous hat for the five seasons leading up to this moment. Come on Kirkman. We need this. Tell us, what are you looking forward to most in season six of The Walking Dead? Can you think of any more developments you would like to see occur? And are we being too harsh on that little brat Carl? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.