The Walking Dead: The Spoilers of Whisperers

Warning: contains The walking dead comics (and therefore potentially also TV show) spoilers.

So hikers talk now, right? Maybe we should call them broadcasters.

But seriously: at this point you are probably aware that walkers are not, in fact, learning to speak and to organize. There is something much stranger and nefarious going on and is taken directly from The walking dead comics.

The walking dead The TV show officially introduced the most terrifying group of comic book villains: the Whisperers. Whisperers resemble the dead because they dress like the dead. Members of the Whisperers wear masks made out of zombie faces and wear the disguise to walk among the herds.

The mastery of the Whispers about the environment surrounding them and this strange new world makes them a group that Alexandria, Ridge and Kingdom should absolutely fear. When The walking dead returns in 2019, we will learn much more about this strange new group and how they plan to deal with communities.

Before that, we set out a comprehensive breakdown of how conflict breaks in the Living Dead comics. We will be covering events that happen approximately between numbers 130 and 173. HUGE SPOILERS to go to The walking dead comics and the future potential of the show. It is also important to note that although the program has followed the comic books very closely in the past, it avoids or remixes events from time to time, so do not use this guide as a clear path for the rest of season nine. and beyond.

The first meetings

The characters of The walking dead comics come across the Whisperers in a suitably scary way. In fact, it's a way we've already seen on the show through the misadventure of Rosita and Eugene in the first half of Season 9. Near the end of the A new beginning arc (number of problems 127-132), two Hilltop guards named Marco and Ken are exploring unfamiliar areas around the communities (Hilltop / Alexandria / Reino / Oceanside) when their horses are frightened by a herd of hikers approaching.

Marco and Ken note that this pack is reacting quite strangely: they are whispering. Terrified, Marco and Ken return to the top of the hill and in the process hear the dead whispering once more. Only Marco returns to Hilltop after Ken was injured in a horse-related accident and was left to die. Marco tries to tell Maggie (she's still the Hilltop leader in the comics) and the rest of the community about the whispering zombies, but no one believes him … until some of the other survivors find them, too.

Dante (whose closest analogue show is Alden) is sent to rescue Ken. He comes across the Whisperers and is kidnapped by them. Then Paul "Jesus" Monroe is attacked by the Whisperers as part of a group looking for a missing patrolman. Jesus is able to fight the Whispers and takes one of them prisoner.

The captured girl, Whisperer, is a sixteen-year-old girl named Lydia who cheerfully tells the Hilltoppers all about her team. Hilltop organizes an exchange with the Whisperers: Lydia for Dante.

Very few character names to remember

So now we know a little bit about the Whisperers and how they are introduced in the series. And the characteristics of individual Whisperers? Who is your nigga or your governor? Who are some colorful characters involved in the group? Here's the thing: there are not many & # 39; characters & # 39; within the Whisperers themselves and this is by design. Whisperers abandon their names when they join the group to completely embrace their bestial nature.

The Whisperers have a leader called Alpha, a second in command called Beta, and then a bunch of generic Whisperers and so on.

Alpha is a reserved but strong and intimidating woman named Alpha. She has a bald head and will be played by Samantha Morton on the show. Alpha is very responsible and his dialogue often reveals why. She has a clear way of articulating M.O. from the Whisperer to the point where it almost sounds appealing. Of course, using the skin of the dead is a perfectly rational thing when the dead walk the earth!

Alpha's second-in-command is the physically imposing Beta, played by Ryan Hurst on the show. Beta is huge. He has more than seven feet of pure muscle. He is so big that his death mask does not completely cover his face. He is also quite practical with knives. The customs of Whisperer society dictate that the strongest among them is the leader. Beta is certainly the strongest physically, but seems comfortable in his role as bodyguard and Alpha confidant. To be a leader, he would probably have to kill Alpha, and he does not want to do that.

So there's this Lydia. Lydia is the only Whisperer who actually gets a name. That's because she's not at all this absurd Whisperer. Lydia is actually Alpha's daughter, but the family should not matter in Whisperer society. They are all beasts and only the strongest survive. If Lydia can not handle it, she should leave. And in fact, Alpha at one point asks Rick to make a solid one and bring her back to the top of the hill with him. Lydia will be played on the series by Cassady McClincy.

Increased hostilities

After Hilltop returns Lydia and the Whisperers return Dante, everything must be eliminated, right? Not much. You see, Lydia was taken back to Hilltop originally … where Carl Grimes is training to be a blacksmith. Obviously, Carl falls in love / lust teenager with Lydia almost immediately because the catches are scarce in the apocalypse … even if the girls wear masks of corpses. When Lydia returns to the Whisperers, Carl follows them back to their home, which is essentially just an open, empty field. The Whisperers are very nomadic. If the program follows this plot, it is likely that Carol's son, Henry, is the young man to fall in love with Lydia.

Rick should go and rescue the son of a bitch. A group of Whisperers intercepts Rick on the road and brings him back to meet his son. Alpha uses the opportunity to show Rick a real huge amount of hikers the Whisperers put together. Rick may have his son back (and Lydia), but Alpha makes it clear that this flock will be unleashed in Alexandria if hostilities continue.

Welp! The hostilities continue. Not Rick's people, but the Whisperers. Before meeting with Rick, Alpha infiltrated a large fair in Alexandria (which the show has been provoking quite consistently). While there, Alpha managed to kill not one, not two, but twelve members of the community and put their heads on peaks a few miles from communities that represent an invisible border between communities and Whisperers. Among the dead are Rosita and Ezekiel …

Rick spends a few weeks trying to stop his people from getting involved in another war, but it soon becomes clear that there will be another armed conflict. He accuses Dwight of building a militia.

Negan the Whisperer

Technically, there is actually a fourth Whisperer whose name is known. That's because, like two glorious days, our old friend Negan becomes a Whisperer. Same!

While all this absurdity with the Whisperers is being overthrown (exchange of Lydia's prisoners, rows of severed heads, etc.), Negan is still safely buried in jail under Alexandria. Then, with all the buzz of a coming war, someone becomes distracted and forgets to block Negan's cage. Negan escapes and makes a direct path directly to the Whisperers.

He is known for Beta, who hates him, and for Alpha, who is intrigued by his chatty ways … a little "alpha". Negan says he only met them randomly, but is forced to admit that he was looking for them specifically. He convinces them to let him join his joyous little band. This leads to a truly extravagant set-up, if that's in the comic, where Negan lives rustic life as a Whisperer.

Everything is going well with Negan and the Whispers until Negan commits the main sin: he stops an attempted rape among the Whispers. Alpha and Beta are furious, as sexual violence is allowed and the boundary is encouraged in the Whisperer culture. They're all beasts, remember? Alpha tackles Negan alone later that night to discuss his worldview even more with him.

Negan responds by cutting her throat, decapitating her and bringing her head back to Rick as a peace offer.

The Whisperer War

No fewer than thirteen people lost their heads at this time. Clearly, the only option left for the survivors of Whisperers and Rick is the war.

Honestly, the Murmurer War is not the most effective aspect of the Whisper story in comics. On the one hand, we have just had a war with Negan and the saviors. Secondly, learning about the Whisperers and their strange society is far more satisfying than when it comes time for war.

There is really only one battle in this war. The Whisperer forces, led by Beta, meet militia forces, led by Dwight, in the open. Thanks to the tactical brilliance of Negan, who screams with Lucille (who tragically breaks down), the Whisperers suffer heavy losses and are forced to retreat. Beta divides his exhausted army into two groups, one goes to Alexandria and another to Hilltop. The Hilltop group manages to burn Hilltop, but is still defeated.

As for the Alexandria group …

The Dark Consequences

The Whisperers finally lose The Whisperer War, (issues # 157-162) but not before pulling a real punk movement. Beta's forces are basically exhausted and victory is impossible. Then he picks up the ball and leaves … and also releases a biblically massive herd of hikers, who dash toward Alexandria.

The Murmurers' War may have ended quickly, but the herd is something completely different. The herd is Alexandria's greatest existential threat. The worst is that Hilltop is disabled and the Kingdom is still dealing with a complicated leadership situation.

Alexandria is able to repel the first wave of the herd thanks to the heroism of Rick and Negan (!!!). Then Eugene invents a brilliant scheme to draw the flock into the ocean.

Ultimately Alexandria survives, but at great cost. Gabriel dies early in the war. This is unlikely to happen on the show now that Gabriel has taken on a bigger role. Andrea dies while trying to divert the herd as well. The closest comparison of Andrea on the show? Michonne.

Keep your loved ones close, Whisperers and Whisperer War will put many characters at risk.

Read our complete review of mids-spoiler season finale here.