The Next World

"The Next World" is the tenth episode of the sixth season of AMC's The Walking Dead. It is the seventy-seventh episode of the series overall. It premiered on February 21, 2016. It was written by Angela Kang & Corey Reed and directed by Kari Skogland.

Plot
A seemingly simple scavenging run proves to be very tricky when our group isn't the only one vying for an unexpected supply goldmine.

Synopsis
As Rick gets dressed to go on a supply run, Michonne asks him to bring back toothpaste. They chat with Carl, who now wears a bandage over his eye, but seems otherwise recovered from the gunshot.

Over the two months since the herd of walkers broke into Alexandria, the town has expanded. A new wall has been built, and residents can be seen dismantling the old wall. Daryl tracks down Denise to review her list of requested supplies, and asks why she wants orange soda. Denise explains her plan to surprise Tara, who's leaving with Heath on a two-week supply run.

Eugene opens the gate for Rick and Daryl as they leave for the supply run. He gives them a map of agricultural supply stores in the area, and suggests that they track down sorghum, a "criminally underrated grain" that could help replenish their low food supply.

In the car, Rick predicts they will finally find food and new people that day. Daryl notes that they haven't encountered anyone in weeks.

Back in Alexandria, Michonne stands guard at the top of the wall, and sees Spencer walk into the woods with a shovel. She follows him.

Maggie finds Enid alone, and encourages her to pitch in and help get Alexandria back on track. She tells Enid that she's around if she wants to talk.

Rick and Daryl spot a sorghum barn, and find a truck inside. They open the truck and discover a large store of supplies. Rick proposes they drive the truck and come back for their car later.

En route to Alexandria, Rick and Daryl stop at a gas station to scavenge. Daryl finds a tipped-over vending machine, which they chain to the truck to flip it over. Just then, a masked man races over and crashes into Rick, prompting Rick and Daryl to pull their guns on him.

The assailant introduces himself as Paul Rovia -- though his friends call him Jesus -- and tells Rick and Daryl that he was just running from walkers. Rick asks him how many walkers he's killed -- the test for new members of the group -- but Daryl cuts him off. Eventually, they decide to let Jesus go on his way.

Rick notes that despite claiming that he didn't have a camp, the man was unusually neat and clean-looking. He talks to Daryl about whether they should follow him, but is interrupted by the sound of gunfire behind the gas station. They investigate, and discover firecrackers in a trash can. Realizing it was a trick, they run back just in time to see Jesus driving off with the truck, dragging the vending machine behind it.

Meanwhile, in the woods, Spencer tries to draw a walker out of a nearby bush. As the walker emerges, Michonne appears and kills it, then asks why Spencer is in the woods. Spencer explains that he takes walks after his shifts and starts to head off alone again. Michonne insists on going with him, explaining that his mother, Deanna, told her to figure out what she wants in life, but for now, she just wants to figure out why he's wandering around in the woods with a shovel.

Elsewhere in the woods, Carl and Enid are walking together. Enid wonders aloud why they keep coming out there. "Because we're kids, that's what they do," says Carl. "We're not kids," Enid mutters in response.

Back on the road, Rick and Daryl sprint after the truck and find the vending machine discarded in the middle of the road. Daryl shatters the display case and stuffs orange sodas for Denise and some snacks into his bag. Using Denise as an example, Rick suggests that bringing more people to Alexandria might be good for the community. Daryl asks Rick if he means people like 'Jesus'. "No, not this guy," an angered Rick states. They continue running.

As Carl and Enid read in the woods, they hear a noise. Enid hides, and Carl draws his gun. However, they relax once Carl realizes it's Spencer and Michonne. After a beat, Enid announces that she doesn't want to come out to the woods anymore. "Okay," Carl says flatly, and gathers his belongings.

As they head back through the woods, Carl and Enid see a walker in the distance. Over Enid's protests, Carl tries to draw it toward him, and stops her from killing it. "You wouldn't understand," he says, telling her to go home.

Meanwhile, Rick and Daryl catch up with Jesus and hold him at gunpoint. Rick ties Jesus up, assuring him the knots are loose enough to eventually wriggle free. Then Rick and Daryl drive off in the truck.

As they drive across a field, Rick and Daryl hear a sudden noise and realize that Jesus is on the roof of the truck. Rick screeches to a halt, sending Jesus tumbling to the ground. On foot, Daryl chases after Jesus while Rick kills nearby walkers. Jesus and Daryl wind up struggling inside the truck and Jesus accidentally knocks it into neutral, causing the truck to roll into a pond and sink. Daryl begrudgingly agrees not to abandon Jesus, who was knocked unconscious, after Rick points out that Jesus saved Daryl from a walker.

Michonne and Spencer catch a glimpse of Carl as he races away, leaving a walker behind. Spencer unsheathes his knife as Michonne recognizes the walker: It's Deanna. Michonne restrains Deanna as Spencer tearfully stabs her through the head. He explains this is the reason he's been walking in the woods.

Afterward, Spencer digs a grave and mourns the loss of his entire family. Michonne assures him that he still has a family with his friends in Alexandria.

Later, Daryl guards an unconscious Jesus in the back seat as Rick drives them back to Alexandria.

At home, Michonne chastises Carl for risking his life by leading Deanna around. Carl explains that he had to: Spencer needed to be the one to kill her. "It should be someone who loved her," he says. "I'd do it for you." Michonne hugs him and replies, "Me too."

A pick up truck soon appears outside Alexandria and lingers for a few seconds.

As they arrive in Alexandria, Daryl tells Rick that he was right when he once suggested they stop bringing new people into the community. Rick disagrees: he thinks Daryl was right in the first place.

Rick and Daryl bring Jesus to the infirmary so Denise can check him out. Later, in the townhouse basement, Daryl and Rick leave water and a note next to Jesus' still unconscious body.

Back at home, Rick wearily flops onto his couch, where Michonne joins him. He tells her Daryl is guarding a man that they brought in. He hands her mints from the vending machine in lieu of the toothpaste she wanted. As they laugh together, their fingers interlock and they kiss.

Rick and Michonne lie naked in bed after making love. Jesus walks into the room and tells Rick to wake up. As Rick and Michonne leap up and grab their weapons, Jesus says, "We should talk."

Co-Stars

 * Mandi Christine Kerr as Barbara

Uncredited

 * Chloe & Sophia Garcia-Frizzi as Judith Grimes
 * Sebastian Lobo as Alexandria Resident

Deaths

 * Deanna Monroe (Zombified)

Trivia

 * First appearance of Paul Rovia.
 * Last appearance of Deanna Monroe. (Zombified)
 * The title of the episode, "The Next World", comes from Paul Rovia telling to Rick and Daryl, telling them that this is the "next world".
 * It may also reference to how Alexandria has changed after the walker invasion.
 * As of this episode, Alexandra Breckenridge (Jessie Anderson) is no longer listed under "Also Starring".
 * Tovah Feldshuh (Deanna Monroe) is listed under "Also Starring" to not give away her appearance.
 * The cups that Judith was playing with in the first scene are the same cups from Season 4's episode "The Grove".
 * Both Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira were in favor of changing the script to add nudity to their sex scene.
 * The comic book Carl reads in the woods is Invincible, a comic book by Robert Kirkman.
 * There is a time jump between "No Way Out" and "The Next World" of 2 months.
 * However, this is later contradicted by Abraham, when he mentions than only 1 month has passed since last episode.
 * This is the second episode of Season 6 not to feature a living character's death, after "Heads Up".
 * Unlike his comic book counterpart, Paul does not possess the surname "Monroe".
 * According to Tom Payne, it was to clear confusion between him and the Monroe family.
 * After the events of "No Way Out", Deanna, Jessie, Sam, Ron, and 4 unseen Alexandrians names were added to the memorial wall. However, Betsy's name was not added, despite the fact that she had committed suicide a day prior.
 * A Wilhelm Scream can be heard when Paul Rovia falls off the car roof. This has been done a lot in filming history.
 * This episode featured the following songs:
 * “More Than A Feeling” - Boston
 * “Action Packed” - Ronnie Dawson
 * “If My Heart Was A Car” - Old 97’s

Comic Parallels

 * Carl's recovery and him starting to use a bandage over his eye injury is adapted from a similar scene in Issue 84, where Carl spends more time recovering instead.
 * Jesus introducing himself to Rick and Daryl is adapted from a similar scene in Issue 92, where he introduces himself to Michonne and Abraham instead.
 * Jesus being knocked out by a car and taken prisoner by Rick and Daryl is adapted from a similar scene in Issue 93, where he is knocked out by Rick instead.
 * Spencer putting down a zombified Deanna months later after the herd invasion is adapted from a similar scene in Issue 97, where Abraham puts down a zombified Jessie the next day from the invasion instead.
 * Rick and Michonne kissing and making love is adapted from a similar scene in Issue 90, where he kiss Andrea and makes love with her days later instead.

Goofs/Errors

 * Deanna's body should have been more damaged if the walkers were able to get to her. It is also unclear how she was able to reanimate, leave Alexandria, and wander around the town considering the massacre of the dead in the last episode and the usual timescale of reanimation. Furthermore, despite the fact that two months have past, her body did not seem that much decayed. It is also unlikely her zombified corpse would have stayed within the area for two months.
 * When Rick and Daryl point their guns at Jesus when he is on the ground, he asks them if they "even have any ammo?"  Both of their guns are revolvers, so he should have been able to clearly and easily see if there were any rounds in the cylinders, especially since they were pointed right at him at near point blank range.