AMC

(Spoilers ahead for the season 8 premiere of AMC’s “The Walking Dead”)

It’s only been a year since “The Walking Dead” hit its emotional nadir when it made us watch Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) beat two fan favorite characters to death with a baseball bat — not to mention the rest of that hour of television that consisted almost entirely of Negan trying to psychologically break Rick (Andrew Lincoln).

The season 7 premiere was, to be quite honest, just a thoroughly miserable episode, both in terms of content and as a viewing experience. It sucked.

Also Read: 'The Walking Dead' Season 8 Premiere Recap: It's Time for War

Fortunately, things seem to be different now. The season 7 finale was weirdly cathartic, with a major character death that felt actually triumphant instead of depressing and an actual victory for the good guys. It had its moment of abject misery, sure, when it seemed like Negan was about to shoot Carl in the face as punishment for Rick’s defiance. But then King Ezekial’s tiger burst into frame and ate some of the Saviors and forced Negan to retreat.

Now we arrive in Season 8, and we were treated to a half hour of Rick’s group and their allies from the Hilltop and the Kingdom enacting some kind of multi-part plan to take down the Saviors’ headquarters — all the while fans waited for this plan to go horribly wrong, like all their big plans have done over the past seven years.

But it didn’t happen, and I’m struggling to believe it. I mean, yeah, Father Gabriel is trapped in a trailer with Negan, but that was because Gabriel is just too nice of a person and couldn’t keep himself from trying to save Gregory instead of heading out like he was supposed to. Rick and Pals’ plan went off without a hitch, with a bunch of Savior lieutenants blown up and the Saviors’ base overrun with walkers. Aside from failing to kill Negan himself, they accomplished what they set out of do.

Also Read: 'Walking Dead': All 40 Main Characters in Rick's Group, Ranked (Photos)

I mean, dang, Rick gave a whole big inspirational speech about how they all have to work together to make the world a better place to kick off the episode, which is almost never a good sign. “The Walking Dead” loves to have Rick rally the troops right before they suffer an incredible defeat, but this time it actually helped steel everyone against the one moment when it seemed like the plan was in jeopardy: when Negan trotted out Gregory in an attempt to browbeat any Hilltop residents with Rick to abandon the cause. None of them left! Rick’s hype speech actually worked!

It’s just so nice to be able to see things work out for a minute. The issue I’ve had with “The Walking Dead” forever is not so much that it’s been a consistent downer, but that it was all downs without any ups. It would pretend like it was going to give you a respite before pulling the rug out from under you. Over and over and over again.

I’m sure everything is going to get horrible again for Rick and co. at some point later this season — it’s just the nature of the thing. But for now it is actually providing them a high point to fall from instead of making them fall off ledge after ledge into an ever-deepening pit. We’d been numb to the misery for so long, and this might actually get the blood flowing again.

Also Read: 'Walking Dead' Leaders Ranked, Worst to Best (Photos)

That, in turn, will make whatever future pain and suffering that Scott Gimple and co. have in store for our heroes all the more devastating. But it’ll also make the parts in between the pain and suffering far more watchable and rewarding.

In essence, they might actually turn “The Walking Dead” into a show we love, instead of just a show we love to hate.

'Walking Dead' Leaders Ranked, From Gregory to Maggie to Ezekiel

On "The Walking Dead," plenty have tried to lead, but few have been successful. Here we look back on all those who led others to safety -- or their graves.
Gene Page/AMC
14. Gregory (Alive) of the Hilltop Colony. Gregory no longer is in charge, thankfully -- he was maybe not the kind of leader anyone ever needed.
Gene Page/AMC
13. Deanna (Deceased) of Alexandria. Deanna helped keep Alexandria together early on. She was a great judge of character, but did not recognize the walker threat for what it was. She died after the walls of Alexandria fell, leaving the community to Rick.
Gene Page/AMC
12. Dawn (Deceased) of Grady Memorial Hospital. Dawn took charge of the hospital when her predecessor failed to keep people safe, but her practice of requiring forced labor in exchange for meds earned her no friends, and eventually led to her death.
Gene Page/AMC
11. Natania (Deceased) of Oceanside. Emotionally scarred by their brutal defeat at the hands of the Saviors -- after which Negan had every male above age 10 executed -- Natania sort of fell apart, like so many characters do, because of the trauma.
10. Gareth (Deceased) of Terminus. Gareth and his fellow Terminus residents promised weary travelers sanctuary, only to kill and eat them cannibal style. He became obsessed with getting revenge on Rick, eventually leading to his death at Rick's hands.
Gene Page/AMC
9. Hershel (Deceased) of The Farm. Hershel kept himself and his family safe on his farm during the early days of the outbreak, eventually offering shelter to Rick and his group. But Hershel believed that the walkers could be returned to human form, which proved a costly mistake.
Gene Page/AMC
8. Alpha Wolf (Deceased) of The Wolves. The Wolves were a savage group who killed anyone who had something they desired. The Alpha Wolf was a good killer, but his people were ultimately wild and undisciplined.
Gene Page/AMC
7. Joe (Deceased) of The Claimers. Joe and his group lived as nomads, taking what they want when they want. He lived by a simple code of justice, but did not bat an eye when he or his people needed to kill. He underestimated Rick, Daryl, and Michonne, getting every Claimer killed.
Gene Page/AMC
6. The Governor (Deceased) of Woodbury, Martinez Camp. The Governor was all charm and class on the outside, but his inner workings were that of a cold blooded killer. After the citizens of Woodbury abandoned him for Rick, he eventually took over another camp, and subsequently led them to their deaths at the prison.
Gene Page/AMC
5. Jadis (Alive) of The Scavengers. With all of her people dead now, Jadis is not actually a leader anymore. But when she was a leader, by "Walking Dead" standards Jadis was extremely reasonable for somebody who leads a group of people who live in a junkyard. And making Rick do gladiator fights with armored walkers was pretty funny.
AMC
4. Negan (Alive) of The Saviors. Also no longer a leader, but when he was Negan ruled The Saviors through a combination of charm and savagery. He's fun to watch!
Gene Page/AMC
3. Maggie (Alive) of the Hilltop Colony. Obviously, she's much better as the boss of the Hilltop than Gregory ever was, and her pragmatism is currently a pretty nice contrast to the idealism of Rick post-Carl.
2. Rick Grimes (Alive) of Alexandria. Rick is a natural leader who has guided his group through hell and back. He has led them through countless battles with the both the living and the dead is is still standing to tell the tale. But for how much longer?
Gene Page/AMC
1. King Ezekiel (Alive) of The Kingdom. His kingdom is gone thanks to the Saviors, but his legacy is still pretty solid. He kept that place going as long as he possibly could have, and he wasn't a coward when it came time to choose sides in the war with the Saviors.
Gene Page/AMC

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TheWrap looks back at the heroic and villainous leaders on the hit AMC series

On "The Walking Dead," plenty have tried to lead, but few have been successful. Here we look back on all those who led others to safety -- or their graves.

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