Because fans of this show need something to feel good about.
First off, if you’re not up to date on The Walking Dead and want to avoid spoilers, stop reading right now. We’ll give you a second to close your browser and run like hell.
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Okay. Spoilers ahoy.
Season 7 premiere saw the end not only of two beloved characters—RIP, Abraham and Glenn—but also of the show’s longest-standing couple. RIP, Gleggie. It was genuinely horrifying, to the point where some viewers have sworn off the show altogether, but let’s not dwell on the negative. Let’s instead focus on what is pretty much the single glimmer of hope left in this bleak and godless universe.
That glimmer is Rick and Michonne, aka Richonne, who finally took their relationship to the next level last season. Here are eight times The Walking Dead‘s power couple were the definition of #RelationshipGoals.
1) When she understood him.
In season three’s “Clear,” Michonne wins Carl’s trust when she helps him recover a photograph of Lori, and their bonding moment is the first glimmer of the family unit that Michonne, Rick, Carl and Judith will ultimately become. Later, it becomes clear that Michonne understands Rick on a level much deeper than he—or we—thought, when she tells him “I know you see things. People. I used to talk to my dead boyfriend—it happens.”
2) When he brought her into the fold.
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He decides against it, and when Michonne realizes that he was considering the deal… she gets it. She’s been fending for herself long enough to get it, and in this moment begins Richonne’s deep mutual respect for one another as survivors.
“You had to think about it,” she acknowledges. He’s still sorry, and she’s still grateful. “I never thanked you…for taking me in,” she says, as shipper hearts everywhere swell with joy. Rick tries to pretend he only took her in because she was carrying baby formula he needed, but ain’t nobody buying that, Rick.
3) When they wore matching uniforms.
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You can’t fake this kind of flawless.
4) When she called him out on his beard.
Because that thing was a menace to society and needed to be stopped. When Rick and Michonne reunite in Season 4’s first episode, they share an adorable “Glad to see you” exchange, and then Richonne hands Rick a razor. “Your face is losing the war,” she tells him firmly, cracking a rare smile. Unfortunately, Rick’s face continued to lose the war throughout most of that season, but at least Michonne tried.
5) When Andrew Lincoln’s mom shipped it.
Mama Lincoln, along with much of the Internet, was way ahead of the curve on shipping Richonne. During the show’s 2015 Comic-Con panel, Lincoln revealed, “My mum is desperate for Rick and Michonne to get together—she goes ‘If you had any political balls, you’d try to get those two people together.’ She gets quite fired up about it.” Barely half a year later, she got her wish.
6) When they looked at each other like this.
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7) When they quietly began co-parenting Carl.
After Lori’s death, it looked for a long while as though Rick might not find love again—between the zombie apocalypse and his two children, he had other things to worry about. But what really made Richonne begin to feel like a viable couple was the fact that Michonne was every bit as devoted to Carl as Rick was, and became a surrogate mother to him long before she became a love interest for Rick.
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8) When they finally got together in this ridiculously sexy scene.
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Mmmm-hmmmmmm.
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In conclusion: we need more Richonne in our lives, now more than ever. Here’s hoping Season 7 delivers.
