The series reaches an emotional and intellectual climax as writer Robert Kirkman introduces a more formal social structure to the group of zombie-zone survivors and offers up a powerfully charged and pointed monologue from the main character who's been at the center of the story from the first issue. One of the greatest challenges facing this series is accessibility, given the pace at which Kirkman has opted to tell the story and the expansive and ever-changing cast of characters. However, he delivers one of the most accessible issues of the title in some time, summing up what the entire story is about. Even if you've never read an issue of The Walking Dead before, this is one that you can pick up and appreciate, not only for its accessibility, but for the convincing nature of the dialogue and interpersonal dynamics.
Rick awakens more than a day after his devastating beating at the hands of Tyreese feeling weak, sore and tired, but definitely alive and in one piece. He discovers that while he was unconscious, the group made some decisions stemming directly from how Rick has been behaving lately and how that impacts his leadership. Rick staggers outside to tell the others he not only accepts the changes that have been made, but welcomes them. But he also drives home a difficult point the new harsh world in which they live is here to stay, and that means their hopes, dreams and lives are never going to return to any semblance of normalcy.
Setting this pivotal issue outside, in the prison yard when the group is tending to new crops, is a smart move, as it allows artist Charlie Adlard to convey the size of the prison. The buildings and fence keeping out the zombie hordes give one a sense of a medieval city, of a community with walls to keep enemies at bay. In other words, the structures we see in the artwork serve as visual cues to the radically different community that Rick, Tyreese and the others must build. The tight closeup on Rick at the issue's end and the huge letters in which his ultimate message is delivered drive home the importance of the point and the anger and conviction with which Rick delivers it as well.
One of my favorite aspects of this issue is the role reversal that takes place. The issue opens with everyone having serious concerns about Rick's mental and emotional well-being. They worry that he's lost it, but what fuels him in this issue is his need to finally show the others that they're the ones who are delusional. Rick may not be the sole leader anymore, but he's ahead of the pack as far as his social evolution. The Walking Dead is a story of survival, and survival is all about adapatation.
Rick's tirade about the world as they knew it being dead and gone echoes quieter comments made earlier in the series, but what sets this moment apart isn't how loud it is but how shared an experience it is. All of the adults hear what Rick has to say, and the message is delivered with such emphasis it cannot be ignored. 10/10
