The Walking Dead somehow managed to save its biggest plot twist for last. Today marks the release of The Walking Dead #193, an issue we only just learned is also the series finale. And as creator Robert Kirkman notes in his afterword, maintaining the element of surprise wasn't easy. He and publisher Image Comics had to go to some fairly extreme lengths to throw readers off the trail. Kirkman took advantage of the fact that comic books sold through distributor Diamond Comics are solicited three months ahead of time. He and artist Charlie Adlard went so far as to create fake solicitation copy and even cover art for issues #194, #195 and #196, teasing a nonexistent storyline involving a new character named Sheriff Kapoor (who does play a minor role in issue #193).
Kirkman said, "As a gag, they kind of tell the story of Carl dying... that’s not really anything that was intended to happen, I just thought it would be a fun thing to explore on the covers in a way that wouldn’t reveal anything. It was very difficult to do covers that didn’t [Spoiler] telegraph Rick’s death, or the time jump for this final issue."
It was actually a pretty good ending... I'm also glad they finished that story. Stories always seem better when they have a conclusion. And well done with this head fake!
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