The Walking Dead Killed Off Abraham For A Cheap Fake-Out
Abraham's death on The Walking Dead was one of the show's most controversial moments, and it just got a lot worse after Robert Kirkman admitted it was an intentional misdirection. During season 6's finale, the show finally revealed its main antagonist, Negan, who lined up the central survivors and promised to kill one. The show waited until season 7's premiere to reveal that Abraham would be his unfortunate victim, meaning Glenn looked set to avoid his comic book death. However, moments after Abraham was killed, Glenn also fell victim to Negan's baseball bat, which left viewers stunned at two huge character deaths.
Although the decision to kill off two characters undoubtedly provided the shock factor that Robert Kirkman was looking for, many viewers felt it was unnecessary to get rid of both survivors. A section of the fans loved the twist, but this is still undoubtedly The Walking Dead's most infamous scene. To make matters worse, Robert Kirkman admitted Abraham's death was a fake-out for Glenn fans. He wanted the audience to feel like Glenn was safe so his death would be even more shocking, but this was a huge injustice to Abraham who deserved a far better fate in the zombie franchise.
Abraham Deserved A Better Ending In The Walking Dead
Michael Cudlitz did a fantastic job at portraying Abraham in The Walking Dead, and the character deserved a better ending. From the moment he was introduced, Abraham felt like a big deal and quickly became a major character in the show. Not only was he pivotal to some big storylines, but fans gravitated towards him, which is a testament to Michael Cudlitz's performance. Although he did get a somewhat badass send-off thanks to Negan's "taking it like a champ line", Abraham ultimately deserved a better fate than being the warm-up to a more important character's death.
The fact that Robert Kirkman admitted Abraham's death was a diversion to give fans a feeling of safety is hugely disappointing given the character's potential. Glenn's death on The Walking Dead completely overshadowed Abraham's final moments, and while fans remember them both, Glenn's demise is always the more talked about incident. Abraham showed some signs of vulnerability before his death and could have told an important story that would have made his death more emotional. Therefore, he deserved to have a more emotional departure that would have been memorable for the right reasons, but unfortunately, his final moments remain surrounded by controversy.
Abraham's Death Wasn't Much Better In The Walking Dead Comics
Despite the TV show doing a disservice to Abraham during his death, his comic book fate wasn't much better. Abraham's comic death comes out of nowhere and mimics Denise's from the show. During a conversation with Eugene outside Alexandria, Abraham is shot by Dwight's signature crossbow, with the antagonist sending an arrow straight through his eye. This led to a rather unexpected death, and the show probably made the right decision by giving Denise this moment in the show, since she was more of a minor character whose demise was still shocking and impactful.
While this comic death was disappointing, Abraham wasn't as fleshed-out in the source material, making it a little easier to swallow. If the character had the same level of importance in the comics as he did in the TV show, readers may have been angrier about this moment. However, the fact that Abraham was more popular on the show and had a mediocre comic death makes his televised departure all the more frustrating. Building a better connection with the audience should have given Abraham a better Walking Dead exit, and Robert Kirkman's comment only makes his TV death hurt even more.
