WARNING: The following contains spoilers for The Walking Dead Season 11, Episode 5, “Out of the Ashes,” which aired Sunday on AMC.
While the children on The Walking Dead are important characters, they don’t always receive a lot of screen time. Most of the time, fans just know that the kids are at home while their parents are galivanting around fighting walkers, Whisperers and who knows what else. However, Season 11’s beginning has shown a subplot that gives the kids — and Judith especially — a bit more attention. In this week’s episode, that storyline comes to a head as Judith gets her own version of the “No more kid stuff” conversation that Rick had with Carl in Season 2.
Back in Episode 3, “Hunted,” Judith, Hershel, RJ and Gracie are playing a game of cards. They have a conversation about their parents, which acts as an important backdrop for what happens in this week’s episode. During the card game, Judith tries to put on a brave face in front of the other children, but when some older kids start to pick on her in “Out of the Ashes,” the truth comes out.
The conversation in “Hunted” starts when Hershel asks if Judith worries about her mom being gone. She responds, “I’m used to it. Grown-ups are always running off doing things. ‘Promise I’ll see you soon. Love you.’” Hershel questions the legitimacy of such promises, but Judith counters, “They don’t want us to think they’re never coming back. It’s supposed to make us feel better.” Nevertheless, Hershel is convinced that they only say it to make themselves feel better.
However, Judith’s actions in “Out of the Ashes” prove that she is, in fact, worried about Michonne. She sees some older children antagonizing a walker through a hole in the wall. Since that is obviously a bad idea, she tells them to stop and threatens to snitch on them. The older kids are not impressed, and one pushes her. While he does so, he says, “Shut up. You talk too much. No wonder your mom abandoned you.” Naturally, that strikes a nerve, and Judith has her sword at the boy’s throat in no time, which appropriately shuts him up.
Before he died, Carl painted handprints of his and Judith’s hands on a board. After Carl’s death, it became an important memento for Judith. But when she goes back inside, she finds it in pieces. She confronts the bully, and although he denies involvement, he probably did it. Regardless, Judith goes outside and is clearly upset when Rosita finds her. What happened with the bullies and the broken boards is all part of the bigger issue. She tells Rosita she’s afraid that she will start to forget about the people who loved her.
Rosita’s response is kind and blunt at the same time. She says that missing people doesn’t get easier as she offers to help fix the handprint boards. However, she makes the point that Judith shouldn’t need a piece of wood to remember people. Everything that they did to prepare her for life proves how much they loved her. The scene was also a great callback to the “No more kid stuff” conversation from The Walking Dead‘s second season as Judith is being forced to grow up without her family.
To keep up with Judith, Hershel and the other kids in Alexandria, tune into Season 11 of The Walking Dead. The series airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on AMC and is available to stream early on AMC+.
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