There’s a moment in this week’s episode of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, where a revelation hit me like a sack of bricks. It came when — spoilers past this point — Carol Peletier (Melissa McBride) hands Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) a little figurine made for him by Judith Grimes (Cailey Fleming). It’s a brief mention, but it became abundantly clear to me at that moment that we need a Walking Dead Judith Grimes spinoff series.

This is probably something that’s been clear to a lot of folks for a while. But Rick Grimes’s (Andrew Lincoln) daughter was already pivoted to being the future of civilization by the time the finale of The Walking Dead rolled around. She, along with her brother R.J. (Anthony Azor) were seen gazing down the road, in a clear visual metaphor for them looking out to whatever is next.

What was next, though, has been a trio of series focusing on duos throughout the TWD universe. The outlier for the purposes of this piece is Dead City, which focuses on Maggie Greene (Lauren Cohan) and Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) as they explore New York City and its environs. There’s also some sort of time jump that happened before the events of Dead City, which potentially places it further in the future than the other spinoffs.

But what I do want to talk about here is The Ones Who Live, which was all about reuniting Michonne (Danai Gurira) and Rick. In an emotionally charged final scene, the two reunite with Judith and RJ for the first time in years… Both in the show timeline and the real-world timeline. There’s a lot that I could sift through there, including Rick getting to meet his son for the first time. But one of the main driving forces behind the action of the series was Michonne trying to stay in touch with Judith, and using Rick’s memories of Judith to bring him home. Even though Fleming’s character only shows up in the final scene, she is very much present.

Cailey Fleming as Judith, Danai Gurira as Michonne, Anthony Azor as RJ – The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live; Season 1, Episode 6 – Photo Credit: Gene Page/AMC

And now she’s a reminder to Daryl of home, as well. He’s struggling with his new connections in France, and whether he can relate to Carol in the same way. The olive branch she hands him is that figurine from Judith. It’s a connection, and a strong one, to their home in Ohio. Again, without appearing on screen, Judith is a crucial emotional presence in this series.

So why a spinoff? Because as of this writing, we’ve got Daryl Dixon Season 3 in production. We’ve got Dead City coming back for Season 2 next year. But that’s it when it comes to TWD. So what’s next? Why not make it centered around the person who is already positioned to be the crucial character in the franchise?

Add in that Fleming is a star… She proved that on The Walking Dead, of course. But she also just proved that on the big screen, more than holding her own opposite Ryan Reynolds and John Krasinski in IF. Fleming is more than capable of drawing eyeballs for a Judith Grimes-focused TV series. And given the character’s connection to everyone else, it’s an easy way of bringing back an array of guest stars, as well.

Plus, kid-focused genre fare is all the rage these days. Look no further than Star Trek: Prodigy or Star Wars: Skeleton Crew. Why not The Walking Dead: Kidz? Probably needs a better name, of course. But AMC, if you’re reading this, lock down Cailey Fleming now, and get this going. It’s the next logical step to keep The Walking Dead shambling on for another decade.

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol Season 2 Premiere Dates And Episode Guide:

New episodes of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon premiere on Sundays on AMC and AMC+. The episodes premiere at 3 am ET / 12 am PT on AMC+, and 9 pm ET on AMC.

Here’s the full list of episodes in The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon Season 2 with premiere dates:

Sunday, September 29, 2024: The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, Season 2, Episode 1 – “The Book of Carol: La gentillesse des étrangers”
Sunday, October 6, 2024: The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, Season 2, Episode 2 – “The Book of Carol: Moulin Rouge”

Sunday, October 13, 2024: The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, Season 2, Episode 3 – “The Book of Carol: L’Invisible”
Sunday, October 20, 2024: The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, Season 2, Episode 4 – “The Book of Carol: La Paradis Pour Toi”
Sunday, October 27, 2024: The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, Season 2, Episode 5 – “The Book of Carol: Vouloir, C’est Pouvoir”
Sunday, November 3, 2024: The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, Season 2, Episode 6 – “The Book of Carol: Au Revoir Les Enfants” *Season Finale*

Where To Watch The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon

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