{"id":26203,"date":"2022-11-28T17:25:34","date_gmt":"2022-11-28T16:25:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1741978"},"modified":"2022-11-28T19:37:46","modified_gmt":"2022-11-28T18:37:46","slug":"the-walking-dead-ending-explained-season-11-finale-recap","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/the-walking-dead-ending-explained-season-11-finale-recap\/","title":{"rendered":"The Walking Dead ending explained: Season 11 finale recap"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Lidia Molina-Whyte\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Monday, 28 November 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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The Walking Dead has finally ended its epic 11-season run. Well, not quite.<\/span><\/p>\n

AMC has made no secret of its plans for an expanded Walking Dead universe, and announced three different spin-off shows long before the series\u2019s last episode aired.<\/span><\/p>\n

The new shows will bring back lead characters <\/span>Rick and Michonne<\/span><\/a> (with Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira confirmed to be returning), continue the stories of Norman Reedus\u2019s <\/span>Daryl Dixon<\/span><\/a>, and Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) in the Manhattan set <\/span>Dead City<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Naturally, fans were worried the spin-off announcements would take the wind out of the sails of the final season of The Walking Dead itself, despite the finale episode\u2019s extended runtime of 90 minutes.<\/span><\/p>\n

But fortunately, executive producers Angela Kang and Scott M Gimple managed to squeeze in a couple of surprises in the hour-and-a-half (not-so-final) final showdown, even for those familiar with how the comic\u00a0upon which the show is based\u00a0ended<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The final season of The Walking Dead<\/a> arrived via <\/span>Star on Disney Plus<\/span><\/a> throughout October and November, with the final part of the 11th season landing on Monday 20th November in the UK.<\/span><\/p>\n

Want to know what happened at the end of the aptly titled final Walking Dead episode, Rest in Peace? Read on to find out, but <\/span>beware of heavy spoilers<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>

The Walking Dead ending explained: Season 11 finale recap<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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Danai Gurira as Michonne\u00a0in The Walking Dead season 11.<\/span><\/figcaption> Curtis Bonds Baker\/AMC<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

The penultimate episode begins with Jules getting swallowed by the horde of walkers closing in on the group in a Commonwealth alley, while a distraught Luke fails to pull her out.<\/p>\n

He himself gets bitten and is tragically yet swiftly mercy-killed at the hospital following an amputation gone awry. Despite how quickly he\u2019s dispatched, it\u2019s an emotional scene that culminates with the bard handing his harmonica over to Magna, Yumiko, Connie and Kelly and sets the tone for the rest of the episode.<\/p>\n

Things quickly shift to Daryl and Judith, who both survived the horde of walkers trying to break into the hospital from the last episode. Daryl is immediately back on his feet and gives a distraught Judith a blood transfusion as she reveals that Michonne is in fact alive, and looking for Rick.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Rosita, Gabriel and Eugene finally find baby Coco in an overturned cot, with a walker moments away from grabbing her. Rosita goes full \u201cNot my daughter, you b***h!\u201d on them, and continues her heroic streak as they rescue the children, surviving a swarm of walkers and pulling off an impossible jump before climbing to safety \u2013 with Coco strapped to her chest, no less.<\/p>\n

Sadly, she later reveals to Eugene that she has in fact been bitten, but asks him to keep it to himself for now.<\/p>\n

Maggie and Negan continue their tense journey towards their\u00a0sequel<\/del> forgiveness, with Negan revealing he wants to take out Pamela for Maggie. He tells her he finally understood what she must have felt when she lost Glenn after Annie was almost executed in front of him.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou take Pammy out with this thing, hell is going to rain down on you, and you ain\u2019t going to come back, and you have to come back, so I\u2019m going to do it,\u201d he tells her, before apologising for what he took from her and her son.<\/p>\n

\u2018Pammy\u2019 continues her descent into full villainy, with her troopers shooting any Commonwealth citizens attempting to climb over the gates in order to escape the walkers inching ever closer. Some of them, however, aren\u2019t too keen on the Governor\u2019s orders and stage a coop aided by Ezekiel, who believes the Commonwealth people are \u201cworth saving\u201d.<\/p>\n

Daryl echoes the sentiment in a speech once they confront Pamela and the troopers. \u201cWe all deserve better than this. You built this place to be like the old world, that was the f*****g problem,\u201d he tells her. \u201cWe got one enemy and it ain\u2019t the walking dead.\u201d<\/p>\n

Finally, they let people behind the gates in time to keep the walkers out, but Pamela attempts to commit death by a walker when she spots a reanimated Lance and gets close to his maul. Maggie takes him out, however, and Pam is sentenced to life in prison.<\/p>\n

The crew deal with the horde of walkers by blasting Living Colour\u2019s Cult of Personality and blowing up the whole place.<\/p>\n

What happens to Maggie and Negan?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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Lauren Cohan as Maggie and Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan in The Walking Dead series finale.<\/span><\/figcaption> AMC<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

After that, it\u2019s on to more set-up for the sequels. Maggie tells Negan she can\u2019t forgive him. \u201cGlenn was beautiful. I\u2019ll never love anyone like that again. I remember his smile. His goodness. The way he made me feel. But when I look at you, all I see is that bat coming down on his head,\u201d she tells him.<\/p>\n

She does, however, invite Negan to stay, even if there are days she won\u2019t be able to look at him.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a poignant scene, one that feels true to her character despite the pair being headed for an apocalyptic Manhattan in their own series.<\/p>\n

Then it\u2019s onto the last supper, at least for Rosita, who finally reveals she\u2019s been bitten to the rest of the group. She lies in bed with her daughter and quietly bids farewell to Maggie, Carol and Gabriel before sharing a tearful goodbye with Eugene.<\/p>\n

Fast forward a year, when he\u2019s visiting her grave alongside Max and their baby girl, which Max has rather gracefully agreed to name Rosie after the love of her father\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a wall with the names of all those lost in the Battle of the Commonwealth, Ezekiel is the new governor and Daryl and Connie are still just friends. Negan returns Judith\u2019s compass with a sweet letter, and\u00a0Maggie wants to talk to Daryl and Carol about the future.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere to find out about, and now I think it\u2019s time we did,\u201d she tells them.<\/p>\n