Rick series is the missing piece of the puzzle to finally be completed after over 5 years

The zombie series The Walking Dead has long since ended, but the series universe continues with lots of spin-offs. Since the finale, Dead City and Daryl Dixon have already appeared. In February, the series The Ones Who Live will be joining us, whose ominous title hides nothing less than the return of Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln).

Even if you haven’t seen any of the previous series spin-offs or turned your back on the original long before the end, there is no way around the Rick series for The Walking Dead fans. The Ones Who Live isn’t just another spin-offit is the most important The Walking Dead series in years.

The Rick series differs from previous The Walking Dead spin-offs in one important way

The two previous spin-offs not only brought back fan favorites like Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Daryl (Norman Reedus), but each also expanded upon them own and completely new stories on. Dead City, for example, creates a post-apocalyptic microcosm in New York City, which is at the center of an impending resource war. The Daryl series also opens up a completely new narrative world with its French setting.

The advantage of both series: You don’t necessarily have to have seen the original, as their stories largely work independently. But there is also a disadvantage if you know The Walking Dead inside and out: Both spin-offs focus on characters, their stories, conflicts and emotional developments were actually pretty much told out in the original series.

Don’t get me wrong: Dead City is a successful extension of the zombie saga and for me Darly Dixon is currently the best of all 5 (!) spin-offs so far. But right after the main series ended and before its release, they weren’t the series that I was really excited about.

The Ones Who Live, on the other hand, is a completely different caliber. In contrast to the (still) independent spin-offs Dead City and Daryl Dixon, the series return of Rick Grimes and Michonne (Danai Gurira) is one elementary sequel to the main series, which I’ve been waiting impatiently for since 2018.

The Ones Who Live is the missing piece of the puzzle The Walking Dead fans are looking for

Back then, in the wake of Andrew Lincoln’s exit from the series in season 9, three movies were announced at once that were supposed to continue his story. The trilogy ultimately became an event series. This doesn’t diminish my anticipation in the slightest.

Because I – and I think most other fans too – are plagued by many unanswered questions. For years, The Walking Dead has left us hanging with the unfinished story of Rick and Michonne. Now we get The Ones Who Live the most important missing piece of the puzzle of the zombie saga.

Watch the trailer for The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live here

Rick Grimes is the beating heart of The Walking Dead. The journey into the zombie apocalypse began with him over 13 years ago. After he unexpectedly left in Season 9, The Walking Dead didn’t necessarily become a worse series, but it wasn’t the same without him. The emotional thread of the main story was suddenly broken.

Not even a short epilogue in the series finale consoled the fact that The Walking Dead was no longer Rick’s story in the end – and we were deprived of an emotional reunion with his two children. The Ones Who Live could now be the real series finale we never got. And anyone who dropped out of the original series with Rick at the beginning of Season 9 (or later) now has the opportunity to really finish The Walking Dead.

Rick Grimes is The Walking Dead. And so I don’t see The Ones Who Live as a spin-off, but as a real sequel – just without most of the well-known supporting characters. Because the new series is not only a reunion with Rick and Michonne, but also a Payoff for a mystery built up over yearswhich the original failed to resolve until the finale.

With the Rick series, a mystery that has been building up for years finally makes sense

Ever since a helicopter flew over Rick’s head more than 13 years ago in the pilot episode of The Walking Dead, it has been clear that, beyond the story of the Grimes family and their comrades, there are even bigger and intangible things going on in the post-apocalyptic world.

It wasn’t until many seasons later that this mystery became more concrete and we learned about a mysterious fleet of helicopters that flew over several series. Little by little, The Walking Dead gave us little bits of information the Civic Republic Military (CRM) became a menacing presence in the post-apocalypse.

After 11 seasons and several series, we still don’t really know what exactly the zombie franchise’s plans are for the CRM. The Walking Dead has been building this up as a dangerous superior force for so long now. It was really disappointing that the biggest threat in the world of The Walking Dead didn’t play a role at the end of the original series.

The Ones Who Live now (finally) takes us deep into the heart of the ominous mega-community of the Civic Republic and its autonomous military unit. That doesn’t just promise Answers to the questions I have accumulated over the years, but could also open up exciting new perspectives on the character Rick Grimes. Whether voluntarily or not: He is now a part of this corrupt and deadly organization.

When does The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live start?

All fans can do now is wait and hope that The Ones Who Live actually delivers the dramatic climax of the saga that we were promised. We will find out from February 26, 2024. The spin-off then starts in Germany on Magenta TV, where a total of six episodes appear weekly.