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The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live concluded with its sixth episode on Sunday, March 31, 2024. The series focused on Rick Grimes and Michonne's love story and came to a happy ending for the couple and the rest of the Grimes family. While in the world of The Walking Dead happy times don't last long, as the parent series and other spinoffs have shown, the recently concluded series provides respite to fans till the next instalment of the franchise comes along.
The purpose of the ending of The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live was explained by the two lead actors and creator Scott Gimple, while speaking with The Hollywood Reporter. As Danai Gurira (Michonne) puts it:
"We wanted it to feel like a dream come true. You can't say there's just never going to be happy moments in this world. There will be and this is one of them. The characters have gone through hell and high water getting to that moment."
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live gets a happy ending
Winding up its sixth and final episode the franchise spinoff, The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live, had a happy and love-filled ending after the harrowing experiences of the last five episodes.
The lead actors, Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira, spoke about planning the ending for the series in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. While Gurira said that Rick and Michonne needed to survive the difficult journey to its pleasant culmination, Andrew insisted that killing off his tough character would need more than six episodes.
Executive producer-cum-creator, Gimple, explained how the plot helped the two characters develop and shape each other. He further revealed that the ending was always part of the plan and the story meant to revolve around the gruelling journey towards the happy end.
What happened in the final episode of The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live?
After Jadis' tragic end in episode 5, The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live episode 6 finds Rick and Michonne back in the Cascadia Base of CRM. Sneaking in and destroying Jadis' dossier, Michonne learns from the Frontliners' briefing that CRM plans to abduct children from Portland. The organization wants to destroy Portland with chlorine gas thereafter.
On the other hand, Rick receives his Echelon briefing and learns the truth about Campus Colony and Omaha destructions, and the future plan of destruction of Portland, from Beale. Beale further divulges CRM's belief of humanity being left with fourteen years of survival and its strategy to destroy other communities to amass their resources.
Rick attacks and kills Beale with his sword, before collaborating with Michonne to plant a bomb in CRM's chlorine gas preserves. However, Pearl Thorne identifies the truth about Michonne, forcing the lead lady to kill her. At the same time, the bomb and chlorine eliminate the Frontliners and the Force Command of CRM.
With CRM exposed, the civilian government takes control and allows free travel to and from the city for the remaining survivors. With their goal achieved, Rick and Michonne return to Alexandria. Rick sees Judith after a very long time and meets his youngest, RJ, for the first time. The ending has a happily-ever-after feel for longtime fans of the couple.
What is in store for the couple in the future of the franchise?
While The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live was specifically about Rick Grimes and Michonne, the franchise has many plot threads as per Gimple. According to him, The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live resolved the CRM part of the story from the seventh season of the original series.
While Andrew Lincoln revealed that the team discussed the different characters currently residing in The Walking Dead universe, there is no official word as yet. Hinting at future tussles, Andrew said:
"There are a few surviving personalities still in the universe, and it would be extraordinary to have them all breathe the same air at some point. It could be an absolutely tremendous, traumatic reunion of sorts."
Michonne actor Gurira, however, expressed satisfaction at the journey her character has taken so far. She voiced gratitude for the evolution Michonne's character has gone through over the years without divulging anything about the future of the character. At the time of writing, the future of the couple in the franchise remains unknown.
Episodes of The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live can be streamed on AMC Plus.
