Last season was a rough time, but AMC's The Walking Dead seems to have been reinvigorated by the promotion of Angela Kang to showrunner. I've been enjoying season 9 overall, and at this point in the season I'm really loving how Daryl (Norman Reedus) has been handling the arrival of a new threat, the Whisperers, a group of people who make their way around the countryside by putting on masks made of zombie flesh and walking among the dead.
The next episode of The Walking Dead will continue to focus on this "Daryl vs. the Whisperers" storyline. The promo released for the episode shows him seeking shelter in an abandoned building while the Whisperers track him, Connie (Lauren Ridloff), Henry (Matt Lintz), and Lydia (Cassady McClincy) after they've escaped the Whisperers' camp. That promo also gives it away: eventually the Whisperers are going to catch up with them, and Daryl is going to have a fight with Beta (Ryan Hurst), right hand man to Whisperers leader Alpha (Samantha Morton). A formidable opponent.
When told that Beta is the toughest of the Whisperers, Daryl says, "Good. We'll kill him first." It's not going to be quite that simple, though. I have a feeling Beta is going to make it out of the episode alive… but I'm still hyped to watch the battle between these two.
According to Hurst, this fight is "something to look forward to." He tells Insider that,
Being a huge fan of the show, when I first read it in the script, I was really, really excited. Without giving away too much, it's a three-page fight scene. So it just kinda goes on and on. Norman and I worked on it for a week and a half. It was a lot of fun to put together."
Knowing that it's an extended, three page fight scene makes me even more hyped to watch it play out. Even though Beta is expected to survive, I hope Daryl will be able to get some good hits in.
There are only four episodes left in season 9, and Hurst says it's all building up to a stunner of an ending.
…the very end of this season. You'll go, 'Holy s—.'"
I think I know what he's talking about and it makes me nervous, but I'm also excited.
Before we get there, Daryl and Beta are going to have their brawl in the Walking Dead episode Chokepoint this Sunday night.