Summary

• Plenty of deaths have haunted The Walking Dead, but nothing compares to a shocking one that happens in Season 8 of the flagship series.
• The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live Episode 4, "What We," looks back on the death that pushed The Walking Dead into a hole it never climbed out of.
• The Ones Who Live addresses the death and the impact it had on Rick Grimes, whose memory of this character kept him alive during his imprisonment with the CRM.

The following contains spoilers for The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live Season 1, Episode 4, "What We," which aired Sunday, March 17 on AMC.

Everyone remembers where they were when certain characters died on The Walking Dead. Andrea dying was a bit of a shocker, given her character had a more substantial presence in the comics of the same name. Glenn Rhee was also a big one, surprising viewers who were tricked into thinking Abraham Ford was Negan's only victim in the Season 7 premiere. But as much as people say Glenn's death was the nail in the coffin for The Walking Dead, other viewers more in-tuned with the comics might say Carl Grimes' death in Season 8 really pushed The Walking Dead down a pit it couldn't climb out of.

Carl Grimes was a staple in The Walking Dead universe. No one can forget how goofy he looked with those long locks, Rick Grime's oversized sheriff's deputy hat and an eye patch that gave him some street credibility. Beyond his looks, Carl was his father's entire reason for discovering a life worth living. The show began with Rick trying to find his wife and son, and while his wife passed away in Season 3, Carl still relied on Rick to make the right choices as a father and a leader. But then, Carl died in Season 8 at a young age, for reasons that are still quite perplexing to fans. His death shook the series at its core, which The Ones Who Live slightly acknowledges was a drastic call.

How Carl Saved Rick Grimes in The Ones Who Live For Some Time

Carl is long gone in The Walking Dead universe, but the pain of his death still lingers for his father. In Season 1, Episode 4, "What We," of The Ones Who Live, Michonne struggles to break through Rick's hardened CRM persona to identify the root of his issues. What is the one thing holding him back from abandoning his captors and living the life he deserves? It was losing memories of his son, and the worry that the same will happen to Michonne.

When he first found himself in the Civic Republic Military's (CRM) hands, Rick's motivation was obviously to escape and get home. But as viewers well know, he only attempted to escape a handful of times in the several years he's worked with the CRM. In between all those failed escapes was a life of misery and hopelessness. The only thing getting him through every day were dreams of Carl. They weren't anything fantastical as Carl didn't appear in the same room as Rick as an adult, guiding him to do the right thing.

These dreams were simply memories of his happiest times with his son, likely before the apocalypse. While not explicitly said, remembering the relationship he had with Carl likely motivated him to go home and have that same relationship with his daughter, Judith. But as any oppressed regime does, the CRM slowly reduced Rick to become another soldier in its army. The more escape attempts he failed, the more Rick began to forget what Carl looked like. After a while, he stopped having dreams of Carl altogether.

Then Michonne presents Rick with a gift: an iPhone with a drawing of Carl on it. If recalled, Rick previously visited the artist Benjiro to draw his family members as remnants of his past life, but Benjiro could never get Carl right. Finally, he has the memory of what his son looked like again, and it's enough to work up the courage to leave the CRM. His purpose in life was never to just simply survive, but to build a better life so that his son would never have to leave the Earth with regret and disdain. In some way, Rick did what he promised: Carl died full of hope that his father would do the right thing and spare Negan.

Carl's Death Redefined The Walking Dead, But Not for the Better

There was always an unsaid feeling that Carl would be the reason Rick wakes up to risk leaving the CRM with Michonne. Rick's entire arc in Season 9 was about honoring his son's last wishes, even if it meant losing valuable friendships and the trust of others. Now, in The Ones Who Live, he's alone in his battle, even with Michonne by his side. He's mentally struggling to not only escape the trauma the CRM caused, but to verbalize it as well. Not being able to see Carl prevents him from breaking through the mental wall he's put up. The moment Michonne shows Rick the drawing of Carl is a profound scene that captures how hard it is to grieve someone who's long gone, but it's also a troubling reminder that Carl's death didn't have to happen.

People can argue all day about why Carl had to die on The Walking Dead. Some fans speculated it was a financial issue due to Chandler Riggs turning 18 and wanting to be compensated as an adult. The showrunner at the time, Scott M. Gimple, cleared the air with The Hollywood Reporter saying it was only a story-related decision. It's not that Carl didn't have a story to tell anymore, nearly 200 issues of comics prove otherwise. The writers wanted a reason for Rick to spare Negan, plain and simple. Carl was killed as a plot device to make Rick the morally good hero of the story. Rick wished to establish a civilization where murder was considered wrong on all levels, even of a man who pillaged communities and committed dozens of murders.

The Walking Dead always prided itself on going against the grain and changing storylines from the comics. It worked quite well to keep things unpredictable for a long time, but then the series started making changes that never fit the TV adaptation's story. If Carl lived, Negan could've still had a redemption arc, and Rick could've still spared Negan like in the comics. After Carl's death, The Walking Dead became a tired series that killed characters for shock value. Season 9 was a mass improvement from the previous two seasons, but unfortunately, Carl's death pushed so many fans away already. Ratings and reputation-wise, it was a downwards slope from there.

Carl Grimes Continues to be the Heart of the Walking Dead

Carl's death tarnished The Walking Dead, but he still remains the foundation of the series and The Ones Who Live. He continues to be the voice in Rick's head telling him to live a life with Michonne and his children. After the six-year time jump on The Walking Dead, it appeared as though his younger sister Judith was taking up the mantle. She had the hat to set in stone her new role as the Grimes child to take over the series. But on a more implicit level, it's RJ Grimes who is Carl's legacy.

RJ is the son Rick never got to spend time with. He wasn't even aware of his son's existence until "What We." Knowing that he had his time cut short with Carl, Rick doesn't want to repeat history with his youngest son. Everyone can thank Carl for pushing Rick out of the CRM's door. But it would've been a thousand times better if Rick left, knowing his oldest son would be back home waiting for him.

New episodes of The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live premiere every Sunday at 9:00 PM ET on AMC and AMC+.