King Ezekiel’s death in The Walking Dead is unlikely to be anything like what happened to him in the comic book version of the story. Season 10 of the AMC series is teasing the death of Ezekiel (Khary Payton), but it’s not clear when it will take place - if at all.
Ezekiel has gone through a lot since the conflict with the Whisperers began. He lost Henry, and his relationship with Carol came to an end. Recently, Ezekiel seemed to experience suicidal thoughts but was talked down by Michonne. In The Walking Dead season 10, episode 5, Ezekiel talked to Siddiq (Avi Nash), and revealed that he has thyroid cancer. According to Ezekiel, it’s hereditary, so he’s not surprised that he has it. Both his father and his grandmother survived, but Ezekiel doesn’t believe he’ll be so lucky since he doesn’t have access to the necessary treatments in the midst of the zombie apocalypse.
The Walking Dead appears to be getting ready to kill off Ezekiel, but this could be another misdirection. Regardless, it’s worth looking at how the comics handled Ezekiel’s demise. In the comics, Alpha infiltrated Alexandria during the fair, an event that was attended by all the communities. Once inside, she lured people out, had them killed, and had their heads removed and placed on pikes. The pikes served as the new border between the Whisperers and the other communities. In total, Alpha killed 12 people. One of the 12 was Ezekiel, who had left the fair to find Michonne, with whom he had shared a romantic relationship.
When he was told that Michonne still had feelings for him, Ezekiel tried to find her. This is what led to his unfortunate encounter with the Whisperers. His head was found by Rick and the other members of the group. Michonne was distraught, especially when Ezekiel’s head somehow reanimated, even though it was separated from his his body. Ezekiel was put down by Andrea. Following Ezekiel’s death, a character named William succeeded him as the new leader of the Kingdom.
The TV version of The Walking Dead has already passed this point in the comics. In the show, the fair took place in season 9. This time, 10 people were killed, and Ezekiel wasn’t among them. However, the episode was framed in a way that viewers who were aware of Ezekiel’s fate in the comics would be kept in suspense. A conversation with Alpha (Samantha Morton) made it appear that Ezekiel might become one of her victims, but this was not the case. Instead, the series killed off Ezekiel and Carol’s son, Henry, allowing Ezekiel’s story to continue. Like Morgan, Ezekiel has managed to outlive his comic book counterpart. It remains to be seen how much time he has left on The Walking Dead, or if the series will give him an opportunity to beat his cancer.
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