The Walking Dead #114 Review


Negan has Rick and his group where he wants them and he’s pissed! Will Negan follow through on his threats? Can anyone in Rick’s group survive? This won’t be pretty.

Official description from IMAGE:
What would Jesus do?

Issue #114 of The Walking Dead has Rick at the mercy, again, of Negan and his men. By the looks of things this is another “Glen” moment in the making. When we last saw Andrea she was in a fight for her life and Rick presumes she didn’t survive and that puts him in the weakest mind set we’ve ever seen from him. The tension Robert Kirkman creates, especially with Negan, is intense. He’s a loose cannon and he’s about to go off! This is what we’ve been waiting for and while it’s obvious this isn’t the end of the arc it is the set-up for what’s sure to be one of the bloodiest and shocking battles we’ve ever seen.

While I won’t spoil the battle at hand and how it plays out I will say that this is a very satisfying issue. The fight has some great moments and ones that will make you root, vehemently, for Negan to finally take a hard fall. There are some simply exhilarating moments to be had this time round. Any consistent reader knows where this is leading but it’s none the less a fun, exciting ride along the way.

Rick, of course, gets his second wind once he knows Andrea is alive and his resolve to end Negan and his reign of terror is as strong as we’ve ever seen as well. Finally there are two nice moments that help Rick face the fact that he now has to make his final move against Negan and that he is the unquestionable leader of not only his group but all those involved in what’s coming next. Rick gets his spine back and it’s long overdue.

Charlie Adlard continues to let the fun he’s having spill out on the page in his work. The fights have been exciting and the gruesomeness he brings to the battle here is as solid as always. There are some elements we’ve never seen him do in an all out fight here and it’s cool to see how up he is for the task. All in all Adlrad is as strong as ever here.

In the end, Negan’s final declaration, sets the stage for all out war and I don’t think the fans will be disappointed. This is the gritty, dirty, mean Walking Dead fans love and it’s a more than perfect set-up for issue #115. Get ready for something big but don’t miss this issue if you want the full effect!

4/5

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