A lot of fans were not happy with the way things ended in the midseason finale of The Walking Dead. Sure, fans are rarely happy when their favorite characters bite the dust in the show, but this time around, a lot of folks took it personally, and some claim they won’t be back for the midseason premiere.

At the tail end of the latest episode, it was revealed that Carl Grimes — one of the main characters of the show, was bitten by a walker. This makes his death all but inevitable, and makes a true turning point in the series to come. This was especially shocking to fans because Carl is still alive and well in the comics.

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Regardless of this discrepancy, The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman recently defended the move by the showrunner in a recent interview with EW (via ComicBook.com):

“I think [showrunner] Scott [Gimple] first brought it up to me as a possibility probably about a year ago at this point. At first, I was kind of like, ‘Well, that’s a big one, you know?’ I might have had a little bit of trepidation. But once he laid out to me exactly what his long-term plans were, and the things that come out of it, and the things that it leads to, it was something I got on board with.”

Despite some of the anger that fans have expressed, executive producer Greg Nicotero assures fans that that will change when they see what the story brings this February.

“I really do believe that a lot of people will put those feelings aside when they watch this episode, because they’re really going to get an opportunity to make some peace with it.”

In regards to angering fans, Kirkman even went on to state that the anger fans feel is perfectly normal, and indeed intentional.

“I know that some fans online have been very upset, but that’s by design. We’re not supposed to be happy when these characters die. We are supposed to be worried about what comes next, and anticipating what comes next, and stressing about what comes next. That just shows that you’re engaged and you’re interested. Our job is to now pay that off and fulfill that interest, and prove that this was a decision worth making. That’s what we’ve got to do.”

Do you agree with Kirkman and Nicotero? Were you one of the folks who got fed up with the show during the last midseason finale? Let us know your thoughts down below!

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SOURCE: EW (via ComicBook.com)