The Walking Dead #116
The first battle of the war has begun and both sides have made their stance on the fight certain. Again this is what we have been waiting for consider so much time that had been put forth setting the wheels in motion for this conflict. The one thing that Kirkman does best is handling those intense moment of action, the more subtle times can tend to be hit and miss.
This was a great start to “All Out War”, being able to jump straight into the action without too much time spent on dialogue. This issue is all about making the first move. Rick may have a plan(s), but Negan is almost always prepared. It’s like a game to the both of them and Kirkman has really created that conflict of interest that creates so much friction between the two. If there is any dialogue between the two at this point, I hope that it’s used sparingly considering all the time taken up to this point just trying to prepare. Id’ think that this will be a war that takes advantage of both of their cunning natures, and that should add some depth to this that goes beyond who has the bigger guns.
Really if you were someone who had to drop The Walking Dead because of its pacing, or worry of its direction, I’d say The Walking Dead #116 is where you should pick it back up. There’s a clear sign of getting some of that excitement back which made the book worthy of its praise. Rick is now back into a position of leadership that he’s a lot more comfortable with, Negan is far from willing to back down considering both his superiority complex and ego, you just know that something will go wrong for either and it’s a given.