How Does This New Group Alter the Timeline of Events Going Forward on the Walking Dead?

Last night's episode of The Walking Dead introduced us to something we weren't expecting. That's not to say there weren't signs of what was to come earlier on, it's just amazing how this small variation has completely changed the timeline of events set to take place during Season 7 and Season 8.

Accounting for the four separate survivor communities currently introduced, along with the comics foretelling the future of these communities, introducing a new group in the most recent episode, "Swear," makes the rest of Season 7 unpredictable. The events of Season 7 were leading into a mirror image of the comic books, but now that this new group has been thrown in, any event from the comics can easily happen in a variety of different scenarios. However, the comics may not have so much influence on the main story after all. If their group remains secluded until Season 8, they could become exactly who we expected them to be: The Whisperers.

Who Is This Mysterious New Group?

For now, the newly introduced group is still mysterious in nature. They have somehow hidden themselves within the forest and appear to be all women, but the truth behind why there are no men is much more grim. They keep to themselves and have cleverly used the forest as a cover, whereas most groups have fortified their defenses with structures to the best of their ability. More importantly, this new group introduced in "Swear" will have a major effect on what happens next on #TheWalkingDead.

When we consider the comics as a layout for how we assume Season 7 plays out, introducing a new group is quite interesting. In the comics, no other group enters the Negan conflict. All of the players who have a part to play in the "All Out War" event have already been introduced; we're just waiting on Rick's faction to unite in order to eliminate Negan's Saviors. With this mysterious group now entering the fold, they can change anything we presume will happen. Although, it appears as if this mysterious group, who reside in the Green Place will remain outside of the conflict — made evident by Cindy's promise to Tara. Apparently, Cindy's group in the Green Place wants to remain out of the Saviors' way because of their previous encounter with them.

When Will Cindy's Group Get Involved?

Coming into contact with Tara has frightened them, but those fears stem from their fear of Negan and his Saviors more than anything else. Were it not for their previous encounter with the Saviors, Cindy's group may have honestly wanted to form an alliance with Tara. But since Cindy's group is well aware of what the Saviors are capable of, they have no intent on forming any alliances to defy the Saviors. Cindy's group understands that staying out of the conflict is the only way to survive so they choose to hide.

For now, it appears as if Cindy's group won't enter the Negan conflict but when we consider the world of The Walking Dead being a much smaller place now, it's only a matter of time before Negan becomes an imminent threat to Cindy's group and as a result, they are forced to seek Tara out and ask for her assistance. In that scenario, Cindy's group adding their arsenal of weapons to the revenge-hungry Alexandrians would be the ideal catalyst to perform a takedown of Negan's regime.

Cindy's Group Has the Guns, Rick's Group Has the Hands, Put Them Together and an End to Negan Is At Hand

Tara didn't make the best first impression on Cindy's group, but we can assume they'll have some involvement with Tara at during Season 7. The comics foretell a good portion of the events coming up on The Walking Dead, but with Cindy's group now being added to the story, they'll alter at least one event from the comics.

We also have to consider the possibility of Cindy's group becoming integral to the plan that sees Negan removed from his throne. Cindy's group has the guns necessary to put enough holes through Negan, they just need people to pull those triggers. This is where Rick's group of Alexandrians comes in. If the two communities find some common ground it's possible their alliance will be one that leads to the dissolution of Negan's regime.

For now, we can only speculate on when Cindy's group will reemerge. In last night's episode, we witnessed Tara being true to her word by not saying a word of Cindy's group when Rosita inquired of any places where guns could be found, so it seems like they'll be left out of it after all. However, it's still very likely that Negan will come across Cindy's group again and there'll be even more casualties, resulting in the remaining survivors finding no other option than to seek out Tara for her help.