The grieving process continues.
Issues as bloody and tragic as The Walking Dead #144 don’t come along every week, so it should come as no surprise that the series is still dealing with the emotional fallout of that massacre two months later. This issue initially gives the worrying impression that Robert Kirkman and company will spend too long dwelling on the mourning process, but eventually it finds its footing as the characters struggle to move forward.
This issue opens with a prolonged silent sequence that essentially showcases the entire community of Alexandria in mourning. This is where issue #146 struggles. In between the previous issue and this material, it feels like Kirkman and Charlie Adlard are flogging a dead horse. The message has been received – people are sad. The story only settles into a groove once the focus shifts to Rick and his crumbling reputation in the community. Here Kirkman has crafted a compelling dilemma. Obviously, Rick’s decision to avoid retaliating against the Whisperers until they can plan and strategize is the sensible choice. But for those who lost friends and loved ones, failing to act is a disgrace to their memories.
This issue picks up considerably as Kirkman digs deeper into the conflict and Rick’s growing sense of powerlessness. The key scene comes in the form of a long-gestating confrontation between Rick and Maggie. These are two of the series’ oldest surviving characters, and their argument is great at exploiting their long, complicated history.
In some ways this issue is a showcase for Adlard and inker Cliff Rathburn. The artists have no trouble bringing out the somber emotions in the early pages and conveying the story through imagery alone. The use of light, shadow, and negative page space all enhances the impact of these scenes (repetitive though they may be). Oddly, though, this issue suffers from a number of repeated facial expressions. In one case, two characters show near identical looks of shocked disgust in the same panel.
This issue of The Walking Dead gets off o a slow start as the series continues hammering home the tragedy of the recent massacre. Luckily, once it does get going the plot offers a compelling look at Rick’s latest leadership crisis and a clash between two series mainstays.
