The Walking Dead returned this past Sunday with a wholly enjoyable outing that took a lot of steps in the right direction towards fixing what went wrong in the first half of season 7. It wasn’t perfect, but between the new sense of optimism and hope, some fun character interactions, a tense scene on the highway and more of a reduced role for Negan, the episode showed much promise and we’re certainly looking forward to what comes next.
Speaking of which, we know that an “all-out war” is on the horizon as Rick attempts to gather up the troops in his attempt to take out Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s aforementioned villain. In fact, if the cast are to be believed, the season 7 finale will be both “ambitious” and action-packed. That’d make sense, too, given what’s being planned, and in a recent interview with ComicBook.com, Ross Marquand, who plays Aaron on the show, teased the following:
“Oh, god, it was insane. That was the most ambitious episode I’ve ever been a part of. I think Greg [Nicotero] can tell you better but I think it was the most ambitious sets we’ve ever done in size and scope and what we were attacking that way. It was insane. Pretty cool.”
The outlet also ran another interview, this one with Andrew Lincoln, where the actor revealed that the end of the season will bring with it “more action than ever.”
“Rick’s swagger is back and he’s reclaimed his mojo. He’s getting his strut back. That was exciting, but also, as you said before, there’s a palpable sense that the world is a lot bigger and he has to change as a man and as a leader as a result. It’s very much driving towards a very exciting end point in this season, and all I will say is that normally we’re shooting and it is a very painful, too, for a lot of reasons.
Leaving great friends and being apart from one another a lot. A lot of the core cast was separated, but what I will say is that there is more energy and more excitement and enthusiasm and build and build and action than we’ve ever had at the end of this season. I’ve never seen the crew and cast be more ready to continue telling the story.”
Given that this last batch of episodes is off to a promising start, we’re inclined to believe both Lincoln and Marquand. Though The Walking Dead is a very bumpy show in terms of the many ups and downs it goes through, it truly does look like things will end on a high note this year as we head towards what’s sure to be an explosive conclusion. We already know that Negan will be back for season 8, so don’t expect him to be taken out of the picture, but whatever happens in this epic showdown, you can bet that it will be something you don’t want to miss.
The Walking Dead returns to AMC this Sunday with an episode titled “New Best Friends,” and you can check out the promo for it below!
