The war between the Whisperers and the 3 communities does not show signs of stopping throughout issue 161. The issue focuses on a variety of issues surrounding different aspects of the war that affect the Hilltop and the other communities.
The Good:
The comic does an excellent job of showing us how Carl and Lydia are growing as adults in the comic rather than telling us through the event at Hilltop. During the attack Carl begins to help locate and evacuate people to safety. While doing this he tells Maggie that she should get to safety, as she is too important to lose, as she is their leader. This shows that Carl is mature enough to understand his role in the community and can take action within that role. Furthermore, Carl’s actions shows that he cares about the Hilltop and is willing to risk his life, which he does, in order to provide a level of protection for its residents. Much like Carl, Lydia’s growth as a character is shown too. In particular, when the Hilltop is attacked her response is to help defend the Hilltop from the Whisperer’s attack. This shows maturity as she recognizes all the benefits that the Hilltop provides and she has a compelling reason to protect it. With this attack she also realizes how fragile the 4 communities are, which is why everybody needs to play a role in protecting them including her. Both Carl and Lydia during show off how mature they have become in the last several issues while living away from their parents. The second component this comic does very well is expressing the danger that the herd still presents. This is done through Connie, a member of Dwight’s team, as she had her hand bitten, which leaves her 2 choices: either become part of the herd or have her hand amputated. She choose to have her hand amputated, this shows that despite the progress that humanity has made dealing with the herd they still present the same risk as they have from the very 1st issue. In many ways this is scary as the only threat that has changed throughout the comic so far is humans and their choices. Connie’s situation confirms this.
The Bad:
The comic prematurely introduced the next arc as the Saviors are not contributing troops or supplies to support Rick. Rather they are waiting for Rick to be at a weak point so that they can take over what is left. While this is a reasonable story arc, the Whisperers War is not over and as a result of that this feels out of place within the current story line. Furthermore, by introducing this element into the comic it takes away from the current story line that is occurring between the Whisperers and the 3 communities as the stakes just got higher now that we know what the Saviors are going to do in the next several issues.
The Verdict:
Issue 161 of The Walking Dead delivers a solid issue with a focus on the Hilltop and their response to being attacked. Primarily within the Hilltop the comic focuses on Carl and Lydia and how they are transitioning to adulthood and leadership roles. Outside of the Hilltop the comic reminds us of how dangerous the world of The Walking Dead is as one of Dwight’s team members lost their hands due to being bitten. As a result, we see that the real threats in The Walking Dead are not the herds but the people as they attempt to survive in this new world. The comic reaffirms this theme and continues to develop Carl and Lydia’s characters, which makes it a great issue to read.
