The Walking Dead #99 Review

The Walking Dead takes a timeout to say goodbye to a friend, brace for war, and set up the landmark issue #100!

The Walking Dead #99

In the wake of Abraham’s death and the attack that Negan’s men made on Alexandria, Glenn wants to take Maggie, their unborn baby, and Sophia to the Hilltop where he believes its safer.  Rosita and Eugene grieve and perhaps get a little closer in sorrow.  After Abraham is buried, Rick and Andrea decide to move in together.  Rick also decides that it’s best for them to take an overnight trip to the Hilltop to try to get a little more muscle to defend against Negan.  Glenn tells the group his intentions to go to the Hilltop and remain there.  As Rick and his group leave, a hidden group from Negan’s camp reveal their plans to attack Alexandria at dawn.

The pacing of this issue is slow.  However, I believe there’s an intention to it.  The tone of this entire arc so far has been building to what has been said to be a fairly monumental 100th issue.  That has made that tone incredibly heavy and tense.  I found myself turning each page slowly with slight trepidation for what awaits on the following page.  The best thing I could compare reading this issue with is a horror movie when you know something is out there lurking and waiting for you to drop your guard only for the moments to pass with nothing happening.  It’s heightening your senses while still biding its time.  It’s like a sledgehammer waiting to be dropped on your head when you least expect it.  And it’s slightly funny I feel that way considering a sledgehammer is prominently featured on the cover.

Honestly, this issue doesn’t leave much for people to say in retrospect.  Instead, the issue leaves the door open for speculation and prediction.  I’ve decided to offer some of my own…

First, I honestly believe Rick and the gang will arrive at the Hilltop to find it decimated.  Everything will be destroyed and everyone will be killed.  If they aren’t dead, they will be dying or scattered into the wilderness.  Next, there’s no reason to believe that Rick will be forced to return to a similarly decimated Alexandria with a similar situation waiting for his group.  Another thing to take into consideration is who Negan actually is.  Is he a person or is it the name of the group as a whole (or a settlement)?  I’m fairly certain Negan is a person as I’ve not seen anything that will persuade me to think otherwise.  I do admit, though, that the Star Trek fan in me immediately wants to speculate that Negan is a giant super computer that people follow as if it’s a real leader or governing body.  With Kirkman, you can never really tell.

Finally, people are going to die.  I’m not going to go all in and say Rick will be killed in the next issue, but that’s not saying something horrific will happen to him by the end of the arc.  Sophia is dead in the television series, so she’s an obvious target.  I think Maggie is one of the few safe ones because of Lori’s fate and I don’t see that happening to another mother.  So that puts a target squarely on Glenn.  Obviously, Andrea’s not in a particularly comfortable spot being left to defend Alexandria against who knows how big of an army.  Then again, perhaps issue 100 will surprise us with death in another way and has Rick and/or Carl wipe out Negan and/or his entire army.

I can tell you one thing for sure…  If we aren’t listed in the front cover of Walking Dead #100, none of us will know until the day the issue comes out.  That makes this book truly exciting on a level that goes beyond the excitement nearly every other comic series can generate.

Tags: Robert Kirkman Slider The Walking Dead