The Walking Dead: Connie's Investigation Of The Commonwealth Prompts Fears For The Life Of The Fan-Favourite Character

After a nearly season-long absence (while actress Lauren Ridloff was away filming her role as Makkari in Marvel's Eternals), Connie has wasted no time getting right into the centre of the action since her return on The Walking Dead. In recent episodes of the show's final season, Connie has moved into the seemingly idyllic Commonwealth community.

With her sister Kelly to act as an interpreter, Connie has quickly slipped into her pre-apocalypse profession as an investigative reporter, looking into the activities of Pamela Milton, the rumours of discontent with the Commonwealth's rigid class based social structure, and possibly a rebellion brewing. Some fans fear Connie's digging could put her in the position of inheriting one of the biggest deaths from the comics.

A Rebellion Brews

In the comics, there is some tension between Rick Grimes and Commonwealth Governor Pamela Milton right from the start, due to Rick's 'everyone is equal' philosophy being in stark contrast to the class system Pamela maintains in the Commonwealth. Despite this, the pair each develop some level of respect for what the other one has accomplished, and Rick, accompanied by a small delegation of representatives from Alexandria and the other Trade Network communities, travels with Pamela to the Commonwealth in the hope of negotiating an official alliance.

While in the Commonwealth, Rick witnesses the clear problems with the class system, and corrupt government which has led to a growing rebellion against Pamela, with Pamela becoming increasingly suspicious of Rick as the drama unfolds. While Rick clearly sympathises with the rebels, who look to him as a potential leader, Rick eventually decides that he has grown tired of humans fighting each other, and comes to agree with Michonne's hope that the conflict can be resolved with minimal bloodshed. At one point, he even shoots Dwight, a member of his own delegation, to save Pamela's life, and sends her away to safety.

Pamela, however, still mistrusting Rick, returns a short while later with a squad of loyal Commonwealth soldiers to take down 'Rick's rebellion'. Rick, with the speech beginning in the panels above, manages to talk both sides into laying down their weapons and working towards a better future together.

Rick Grimes, Martyr

Following this confrontation, things begin to change in the Commonwealth rather quickly, with reforms on the social system, and a planned election to decide on a new leader for the Commonwealth. Despite learning that he would be the favourite, Rick chooses not to run, opting instead to return to Alexandria. Sadly, the night before he is due to make the trip home, Rick is shot dead by Pamela's son, Sebastian. The morning after, Rick's own son, Carl, is horrified to discover his zombified body, recovering from his shock just in time to put him down.

Sebastian, upset at the fact that the Commonwealth's reforms mean an end to his privileged lifestyle, believed killing Rick would allow things to go back to the way they'd been before. Instead, his dark act accomplishes the exact opposite. Rick becomes a martyr, and his philosophy of equality is even more widely adopted in his memory. Nearly two decades after his death, Rick is remembered for his efforts to bring civilisation back to humanity, and a statue of him has been erected in the Commonwealth, at the site of his final speech.

So, what does this have to with Connie?

In the comics, Connie is a relatively minor character in the scheme of things, with one of her most notable storylines involving surviving the amputation of her arm after a Walker bite. The TV show's Connie, however, became a fan favourite soon after her first appearance, both through her kind personality, and sweet friendship with Daryl. Now, Connie seems poised to play a pivotal role in the show's adaptation of the Commonwealth story arc.

In episode 11x10, Connie, as part of her pre-apocalypse Profession as an Investigative Reporter, is allowed access to the Halloween Ball held for the Commonwealth's upper class, with her sister Kelly attending as her interpreter. After a brief interview with Pamela in which she questions the extravagance of the Ball, Connie witnesses the incident in which former soldier Tyler Davis (demoted after Princess escaped his custody in the season ten bonus eps) takes Pamela's assistant hostage to get her attention, while claiming that thousands more lower-class Commonwealth residents are getting ready to fight back against the system.

In 11x11, despite Kelly's fears that it will get them into trouble, Connie begins to investigate Davis and his claims of discontent in the community. At the end of the episode, an anonymous supporter delivers Connie a list of names, believed to be members of the rebellion. This storyline makes Connie a much more important figure than in the comics, leading to the current fears for her life.

Some fans fear Connie is set to inherit Rick's comic book fate

So far, the Commonwealth episodes have revealed that Pamela was already aware of who Connie was, as sometime before the apocalypse, Connie's investigations exposed information that lead to Pamela's Uncle being kicked out of Congress. Despite Pamela's attempts to be civil towards Connie thus far, this chequered past could lead to some distrust between the two, particularly if Connie continues digging deeper into the rumours of corruption and displeasure with the Commonwealth government. Pamela could easily grow to view Connie as a threat to her power over the Commonwealth, the same way she viewed Rick in the comics.

Connie's investigation of the potential rebellion is sure to bring her into contact with the members of said rebellion at some point, and as a journalist known for exposing corruption, it makes sense that they may begin looking to her as a potential leader or symbol of their cause, again very much similar to Rick in the comics. As a final point, Connie is immensely likeable, and therefore may be able to make friends on both sides of a potential conflict.

While previous theories have have speculated that characters such as Aaron or Maggie could take Rick's role in the Comonwealth arc, some fans now think Connie could be the perfect character to inherit Rick's place as a unifying force, either giving the conflict-defusing speech through Kelly, or inspiring another character, perhaps Daryl, to give a similar speech. Connie may then be targeted or even killed by someone like Sebastian, as thanks to the aforementioned scenario with Pamela's Uncle, this would not be the first time Connie had threatened his family's social status. Fans have also noted that if Connie were to die a martyr, she has a younger relative, her sister Kelly, to carry on her legacy, as Rick had with Carl.

Things are definitely looking a little scary for Connie, but with the show remixing and tweaking the Commonwealth story so much already, the only way to find out how The Walking Dead will end is to keep watching.