Robert Kirkman Defends The Walking Dead Season 6 "Dumpster Fire" Finale
He doesn't dodge the hard questions.
Robert Kirkman's Reddit AMA opened up on some key details, including the fact that Rick Grimes will likely die and that his favourite character is Carl. Idon't believe any of it, but it's nice to hear him answering questions all the same.
What Kirkman was more honest on - quite surprisingly - was the end of season 6 and that particularly controversial ending, which left a lot of ill-will among fans. It also did its job building hype for next season, but that does come with a caveat that people will actively seek out Kirkman to call it a "dumpster fire"and an "abortion of an ending" as one Reddit questioner did.
To his eternal credit, Kirkman responded to the question, when he actually didn't need to:
"I just want to point out that a lot of what you seem to hate about the finale are your assumptions of how season 7 will start. The death will have no impact now, etc. I assure you it will. You're welcome to be unhappy with the episode that aired. Was it a misstep? Maybe. Only time will tell."
Kirkman also takes issue with the idea that it was a cynical ploy to boost ratings:
"Also, there's a lot of assumptions about why we did what we did, "ratings grab" which also isn't true."
In contrast, despite the fact that Kirkman has something of an image for consciously trying to get a reaction out of fans by provocation (like George RRMartin), the writer is efusive with praise for the fanbase.
"That said, I love you for watching 6 seasons of the show and reading the comic. I appreciate the support up to this point and I'm sorry you're unhappy. Standing by our decision doesn't mean I think you're immature in any way or wrong to feel the way you do. I just know how much the fanbase is treasured and respected behind the scenes so it bums me out when people make a lot of assumptions.
Scott Gimple is a great guy who EVERY FAN would love if they could get to know him. And he LOSES SLEEP trying to make the fan base happy. It may not seem that way, but it is. He loves the comic as much as the die hard fans of the comics do, he was a die hard fan of the comic before the show existed."
And he also has advice for anyone who doesn't like the direction the show goes in after that finale:
"Hopefully you'll like season 7 better. If not... may I recommend OUTCAST... or Game of Thrones... or The Americans... or Better Call Saul. There really is a LOT of amazing television to choose from these days. I really liked Bloodlines on Netflix. And if you like animation, RICK & MORTY is the BEST THING BEING MADE THESE DAYS."
So there you go.