"The Walking Dead" ended its sixth season on an incredibly controversial note, with Negan's long-awaited debut culminating in a frustrating cliffhanger that was heavy on mystery and light on any actual resolution. While we know that one character was brutally dispatched courtesy of Negan's barb wire wrapped bat, Lucille, we unfortunately don't know which character it was.
Naturally, fans of the show vented their frustration on social media, with critics and audiences alike blasting the decision as amateurish. To that, showrunner Scott Gimple has a half-hearted answer.
"We never intended to f--- with people," he said in a recent interview. "You all just saw the episode and I want to go on record and say we were not trying to f--- with you."
Gimple may be trying to explain away his creative choice, but that's a hard explanation for fans to swallow. Negan's introduction in the comic book is considered the most pivotal moment in the entire series. It serves as a rude awakening by killing off a fan favorite and the sparks and breathes new life into the series with Negan's introduction. But AMC's "The Walking Dead" robbed audiences of that when they decided to model the season six finale off of a cheap soap opera.
Not only that, but Gimple has also gone on the record to explain that the final scene was shot in such a way as to make it impossible for fans to figure out who Negan's victim was. If that's not f---ing with an audience, I don't know what it is.
You think the man would have learned his lesson after the Glenn fake out death debacle from the first half of season six, but apparently Gimple is dead set on pushing forward on this path. That's too bad, as Gimple deserves a lot of credit for shaving off much of "The Walking Dead's" fat after he took over in season four. Though the show has improved remarkably under his guidance, this latest decision was pretty much indefensible.
We'll have to wait until "The Walking Dead" returns to AMC in October for a seventh season to get any type of resolution.
Follow Brandon Katz at @Great_Katzby
