The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live episode 5 featured a surprising story that looked back at three different periods in The Walking Dead timeline.
Jadis and Gabriel’s story in The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live episode 5 allowed the show to dive back into various periods in The Walking Dead timeline. Together with Rick, Jadis departed the main series for good and never returned to Alexandria. But as it turns out, her interactions with one member of the community continued regardless.
By bringing back Seth Gilliam as a surprise guest star, The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live episode 5 was able to revisit the franchise’s past in an unexpected way. In doing so, it also elaborated on the personal journey of Jadis in The Walking Dead, who grew into a hardened, high-ranking officer of the Civic Republic Military after her season 9 exit. Rick and Michonne’s spinoff expanded on the chapter of Jadis’ life seen in The Walking Dead: The World Beyond season 2 by featuring flashbacks that hinted at what she was up to during some key franchise events.
Gabriel Reunited With Jadis Before The Walking Dead Season 9’s Massive Time Jump
The first Jadis-Gabriel flashback revealed that the moment the two found each other again took place “three years ago” in the timeline. When discussing her ethical dilemma, most of her worries seem to be about the things she “will be a part of,” which provides the sense that some of her worst crimes have yet to happen. If that’s the case, it can be presumed that she found Gabriel again before getting involved in the storylines of The Walking Dead: The World Beyond’s characters and becoming fully complicit in the CRM’s murderous activities.
As for where this fits into Gabriel’s timeline, it appears that his reunion with Jadis happened during the six-year time skip between season 9’s fifth and sixth episodes. The next flashback is “two years ago,” and clearly set after season 10’s original ending, which wasn’t a full year after season 9. In other words, the people of Alexandria have yet to meet Magna’s survivor group or encounter the Whisperers.
Jadis And Gabriel’s Second Meeting Was After The Whisperer War
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live episode 5’s second Jadis-Gabriel flashback was much clearer about its placement in the timeline. Gabriel referenced two different events from The Walking Dead season 10, the first being Michonne’s departure in The Walking Dead season 10 episode 13. Gabriel also explained that “the group they were in conflict with” destroyed their walls and left children hungry. Gabriel’s comment refers to the Whisperer War and Beta’s attack on Alexandria in episode 17, which was originally the season 10 finale.
Gabriel’s desperate plea to Jadis calls back to the dismal situation The Walking Dead communities were in after the conclusion of the Whisperer War. The final six-episode arc of The Walking Dead season 10, along with much of season 11, saw Alexandria go through an extremely rough period where their sustainability was in question. Gabriel being in a much more emotionally stressed state in the second flashback than the other two makes sense when keeping in mind the struggles they were going through during this time.
Jadis Saw Gabriel For The Last Time Near The Walking Dead’s Ending
According to The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live episode 5, the last time Gabriel saw Jadis was “one year ago.” The show’s depiction of Jadis as someone who’s put aside her reservations about the CRM and is fully committed to the cause is fitting with the timeline, considering that World Beyond took place in season 10. By the end of World Beyond, Jadis was a full-fledged villain, as evidenced by her decision to kill Huck and her involvement in other atrocities perpetrated by the CRM.
