For quite some time now, I have been anticipating the death of one of my favorite The Walking Dead characters. Spoilers for The Walking Dead comics ahead. After seasons of hints and comic book theorizing, it appears that Glenn will die when Negan shows up on the AMC series. I typically prefer not to look to the comic books that have inspired The Walking Dead TV show to anticipate what will happen on the series, but it has been nearly impossible to avoid the big spoiler about Glenn's fate. In the comics, Glenn dies when Negan chooses him out of a lineup and bashes his head in with his baseball bat, lovingly name Lucille. Since Negan actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan will arrive on the scene in the Season 6 finale, a big death is expected and all signs have been pointing to Glenn — and that's exactly why I'm now thinking Negan won't kill Glenn on The Walking Dead.
There are many fan theories about who Negan will kill and of course, Glenn is leading the pack. While I was completely on the "Glenn will die" bandwagon the moment I heard about the casting of Negan, I've now started to feel differently. While some deaths on the series I saw coming a mile away, like Andrea's back in Season 3 or Hershel's in Season 4, The Walking Dead thrives on surprising fans. Yet, the show has been giving so many hints about Glenn dying that even though the death of my favorite former pizza delivery guy would be ruthless, it would be too damn predictable. And I expect more from The Walking Dead.
Even with Glenn actor Steven Yeun telling Entertainment Weekly that the arrival of Negan on the show will be "f*cking awesome" for him, I'm still inclined to believe that his comments are all part of a big ruse to throw fans off. From foreshadowing to rumors to my own hopeful thoughts about the plot, here's a roundup of all the reasons why I think (or really, hope) TV Glenn may meet a different fate than comic Glenn.
The Photos Glenn Saw
After Glenn murdered some Saviors in their sleep, he took a moment to admire the photos of people who have presumably been beaten by Lucille at the hands of Negan. While I admire the Saviors dedication to documenting their victims, this was a pretty heavy-handed hint about Glenn being the victim of Lucille. While I could say it's just some casual foreshadowing, I think it's all too obvious. Perhaps, as I previously theorized, the victim will actually be Heath, who also saw the photos.
Glenn Has Already Had Too Many Close Calls
The most recent and notable time Glenn almost died was Season 6's dumpster incident with Nicholas, but he has been the character with the biggest target on his back for awhile. I mean, back in Terminus, Glenn was even close to getting his head bashed in with a baseball bat — a not-very-subtle nod to his comic book character's fate. And in the Season 5 finale, Nicholas (again!) and him fighting in the woods also made me worried that Glenn could die. At this point, Glenn's near-death experiences on The Walking Dead are comparable to the boy who cried wolf.
Maggie's Pregnancy
The show doesn't hold back any punches when it comes to children, whether it was Lori dying in childbirth when she had Judith or Carol shooting Lizzie in the head. So I'll be the first to admit this reason may not be a solid one, but the show could take pity on the fact that Maggie is pregnant with Glenn's child and let the father live. I know, I know — it's a long shot, especially since the comics weren't so sympathetic, but the show might need to give its fans some joy to balance all of the death.
Maggie Has Suffered Too Much
Speaking of Maggie, she has had the most people she loved die on the series with her dad, Hershel, and her sister, Beth, dying in back-to-back seasons. Yes, everyone in the group was affected by these deaths, but they were Maggie's only surviving blood relatives. With this in mind, don't you think it's time that someone else should have to suffer from a loved one's death other than Maggie?
Josh McDermitt's Emoji Spoilers
When I first saw these emojis from Eugene actor Josh McDermitt that he sent to Bustle, I was devastated that it meant Glenn was going to die in Season 5. At the time, the Korean flag made me so certain that he was referencing Glenn that I was wiling to overlook the bizarre use of Santa Claus and a Christmas tree. Yet, now I know that McDermitt was just messing with us when he teased these emojis about Season 5. Seems to me like he is in on the show's need to make fans think that Glenn is going to die all the time.
The @Midnight Spoiler
By far the biggest reason I think that Glenn won't die is because of something comic creator Robert Kirkman said over a year ago. He joined McDermitt and Maggie actor Lauren Cohan on Chris Hardwick's @Midnight and Hardwick asked the panel to give examples of Walking Dead spoilers. Kirkman flat-out said, "Eventually a character named Negan is introduced, and he’s going to bash in Glenn’s brains with a baseball bat called Lucille." I believe this was a calculated move by Kirkman to get all of the TV series fans in a tizzy about Glenn. And I no longer will give Kirkman the satisfaction of having me believe Glenn will die on the show... at least not in Season 6.
Images: Gene Page/AMC; daily-walkers/Tumblr; Giphy (4); Bustle
