One of the hallmarks of The Walking Dead is its commitment to the idea that no character was truly safe from death – and at times, even author Robert Kirkman didn’t even realize the time had come to kill off a character until it was right in front of him, as he explained when discussing the comic book version of Abraham’s death.

The Walking Dead Deluxe #98 – written by Robert Kirkman, with art by Charlie Adlard – contains the author’s notes on the original issue, which featured the shocking demise of Abraham Ford on just its second page, once more driving home the idea that death could strike even the most prominent character at any moment.

As a rising figure in Rick’s group, Abraham’s sudden demise during a heart-to-heart with Eugene caught readers off guard. Indeed, it’s safe to say that Abraham’s death was a genuine shock, leaving fans stunned and underscoring the series’ unpredictable nature.

According To Robert Kirkman, His Decision To Kill Off Abraham Was As Sudden As The Death Scene Itself

The Walking Dead Deluxe #98 – Written By Robert Kirkman; Art By Charlie Adlard; Color By Dave McCaig; Lettering By Rus Wooten

If Abraham’s death seemed arbitrary and capricious to fans, their feelings couldn’t have been closer to the truth. In The Walking Dead Deluxe #98 – the re-released, colorized version of the original series featuring bonus content from the creators – Kirkman admits he hadn’t planned on killing Abraham; in fact, Abraham was one of Kirkman’s favorite characters. However, while brainstorming ideas for the issue, Kirkman decided Abraham needed to die – if for no other reason than to add some excitement to an issue he considered “boring.’

As the author states in his Deluxe annotations:

I had ZERO plans on killing Abraham prior to writing this issue. I wrote the final scene of issue #97 without any idea of what would happen on page 2 of this issue. But when I sat down to do my plot breakdown…I thought “Dang, this issue is kind of boring.”…I knew I had lots of plans for Eugene, but I started working it out and I didn’t really have any big plans for Abraham, nothing far reaching, and luckily he wasn’t on any already drawn upcoming covers, so…well…killing him seemed like the right option at the time.

Robert Kirkman confesses that his impulsive decision to kill Abraham was an exception to his usual approach. Typically, he envisions the story’s trajectory several issues ahead, but avoids rigidly adhering to this outline. Instead, Kirkman prefers to maintain flexibility, allowing him to adapt the narrative as needed to keep it engaging. His spontaneous decision to kill Abraham exemplifies this creative approach, demonstrating his willingness to take bold, unpredictable steps at a moment’s notice.

Abraham’s Death in The Walking Dead Was Ultimately The Right Choice For The Story

The Walking Dead Deluxe #98 – Available Now From Image Comics

Kirkman’s decision to kill Abraham, while shocking, ultimately served to advance the story; it confirmed that Negan’s group was unlike any other Rick and the survivors had faced before, illustrating that they were stone-cold killers who would kill first and ask questions later. In fact, as Kirkman explained, Abraham’s death opened up interesting opportunities for other characters. Though his death was conceived in the heat of the moment, its impact was broad and far-reaching. As Kirkman commented:

On top of it being possible, killing him at his point did interesting things for Holly, Rosita, Eugene, Rick, and really just led to a bunch of different story developments, always a good sign.

So, while Abraham may have deserved a better fate than Kirkman gave him, true to the character’s selfless nature, his sacrifice ultimately helped secure the fate of others.

The fact that nothing in the narrative prevented Kirkman from killing Abraham without consequences or negative impact made him the perfect “red herring” in other Walking Dead properties. Since his death wasn’t tied to any specific plot point, creators of The Walking Dead television series or video games could use it as needed to expand, enhance, or deepen whichever storyline they felt could benefit from a change. In fact, Kirkman himself suggested the television series do just that in the lead-up to Glenn’s tragic death in Season 6.

Robert Kirkman’s Decision To Cut Abraham’s Time In The Comic Short Was A True “Kill Your Darlings” Moment

Kirkman Later Suggested The Walking Dead TV Series Version

While fans of the comic book series knew about both Abraham’s and Glenn’s deaths, television-only fans would not have known for certain but likely heard rumors. Given Glenn’s popularity on the show, rumors about his potential death at Negan’s hands set the Walking Dead TV fandom ablaze with speculation. To manage the anticipation, Kirkman suggested to his colleagues on the television series that they have Negan kill Abraham first, as a ploy to convince fans that, despite the events in the comic, Glenn might escape the same fate on TV.

Abraham’s exit also highlighted one of Robert Kirkman’s key principles about writing comics, and The Walking Dead in particular: sometimes, ” you gotta break eggs to make a comic “.

Abraham’s fate was only made possible by his ‘flexible’ circumstances in the plot. By all accounts, the television bait-and-switch involving Abraham worked. For those brief moments between Negan smashing in Abraham’s head and then deciding to do the same to Glenn, fans who knew Abraham’s comic book fate thought he might actually escape it in the series. Abraham’s exit also highlighted one of Robert Kirkman’s key principles about writing comics, and The Walking Dead in particular: sometimes, “you gotta break eggs to make a comic“.

The Walking Dead Deluxe #98 is available now from Image Comics.