
“The Dead are dead. Bury them.”
Okay, okay, I know I kind butchered the iconic line from Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice, but the feeling is the same.
Popular comic book The Walking Dead, which has been publishing since 2003, has ended.
Creator Robert Kirkman has abruptly ended the 16-year-old series with no warning. According to The Wrap, who broke the story, the last issue is #193.
“This is the end of The Walking Dead. That’s it… it’s over… we’re done,” Kirkman wrote in the final pages of the comic.
If you have been living on an asteroid or just don’t give an eff, the comics are the basis for the hit 9-year-old dramatic AMC TV series The Walking Dead and its spin-off, Fear The Walking Dead, now in its 5th season.
Earlier today, Kirkman teased things to come with a tweet: “Details about this issue will more than likely start to leak today. If you’d prefer to not be spoiled, I would recommend being very careful online until the issue is released Wednesday. It’s a big issue in more ways than one.”
He added, “You’ve been warned.”
Details about this issue will more than likely start to leak today. If you’d prefer to not be spoiled, I would recommend being very careful online until the issue is released Wednesday. It’s a big issue in more ways than one. #understatementoftheyear pic.twitter.com/xSAr3EjR75
— Robert Kirkman (@RobertKirkman) July 1, 2019
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The author reportedly dropped clues that The Walking Dead comic would be coming to its own apocalypse at a 2017 Comic Con panel, “I know exactly where I’m going and what’s going to happen when I get there.”
Kirkman ends the final issue of The Walking Dead with a lengthy letter to fans, which Reel 360 has included in its near entirety. Of course, we redacted spoilers:
“I get it… I do. I mean… WHY didn’t we announce this so that fans could have some time to prepare?’
Well… personally… I hate knowing what’s coming,” he continued. “As a fan, I hate it when I realize I’m in the third act of a movie and the story is winding down. I hate that I can count commercial breaks and know I’m nearing the end of a TV show. I hate that you can FEEL when you’re getting to the end of a book, or a graphic novel. Some of the best episodes of Game of Thrones are when they’re structured in such a way and paced to perfection so your brain can’t tell if it’s been watching for 15 minutes or 50 minutes … and when the end comes … you’re stunned.”
In a way, killing this series has been a lot like killing a major character. Much, much harder… but the same feeling. I don’t WANT to do it. I’d rather keep going… But the story is telling me what it wants and what it needs. This needs to happen. Whether I want it or not.”
The end of the comic book raises questions about the future of the series, although the AMC drama has never followed the comic book precisely. Despite falling ratings the original show is still one of the highest rated series on TV and a third iteration has been ordered by the network.
Sometimes, dead is better. There I go again… wrong movie.
Contact Colin Costello at colin@reelchicago.com.