‘The Walking Dead’: 5 Shocking Moments From Season 8’s ‘Monsters’

SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers from the Season 8, Episode 3 of The Walking Dead entitled “Monsters.” Proceed with caution.

Emotions ran high in the third episode of Season 8, with a couple important characters dying. In the end, both the Saviors and Rick Grimes’ group of survivors suffered major losses as their “All Out War” continued.

Without further ado, here are the 5 most shocking moments from “Monsters.”

Eric Dies

The #buryyourgays trope continued on The Walking Dead, with Eric being its latest victim. Mortally wounded during the shootout with the Saviors, his boyfriend Aaron had to leave him under a tree and continue with the mission. They said goodbye, exchanging “I love you” messages and a kiss.

At the end of the episode, Aaron returned to the tree, but realized that Eric had died and come back as a walker. Aaron saw his undead lover walking away, but is stopped from putting him down. There’s a little hope at the end, with Aaron taking Gracie, the little baby found at the Savior compound.

Eric is the third gay character to die — the others being Alisha and Denise. All were separated from their lovers when they died.

Morales Returns

Morales, one of the original survivors from the Atlanta camp, captured Rick at gunpoint. Morales revealed his family didn’t make it to Birmingham.

“As soon as I saw you, I knew you made the same trip … from there to here,” Morales said. When Rick asked Morales if he was Negan, Morales responded yes. “I lost my family, I lost my mind … they found me. So yeah, I am Negan.”

In many ways, Morales represents a different path that Rick could’ve ended up on. His loved ones died and he needed to find a community to survive. He found the Saviors, or rather, they found him. When Rick explained that Negan killed Glenn, Morales seemed for a moment to sympathize. Unfortunately, Daryl quickly killed Morales shortly after by shooting him in the head.

Avalanche!

While Jesus and Morgan escorted Savior prisoners of war, they came under attack from walkers — a zombie avalanche! Dozens of zombies rolled down a hill and attacked the prisoners, who were unable to defend themselves.

One chain gang used the battle to run into the woods, which led to…

Morgan vs. Jesus

Morgan chased after the chain gang and shot one of the Saviors, essentially making them sitting ducks. Morgan wanted to kill the remaining Saviors, but was stopped by Jesus.

“We’re going to find another way,” Jesus pleaded with Morgan. “Maggie will find another way.”

However, Morgan didn’t relent, and the two got into a Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon-esque forest fistfight. As good a fighter Morgan is, Jesus bested him, disarming his staff. In fact, Lennie James admitted that he and Tom Payne “worked it like we were Jackie Chan.”

“Is it over?” Jesus asked his friend, before tossing the staff back to his owner. Morgan then brandished it to Jesus’ neck, before disappearing into the woods after the other Saviors, saying “I can’t be a part of this.”

Gregory Returns

The cowardly Gregory returned to Hilltop with his tail between his legs. Maggie asked him why he had Gabriel’s car (Gabriel is still trapped with Negan at Sanctuary). Gregory explained he went to the Saviors to negotiate and save lives (Andrea tried to do the same thing with the Governor back in Season 3). Maggie grudgingly allowed Gregory back into the community, against Inid’s wishes.

Ambush!

Ezekiel and Carol’s group seemed to have the greatest victory, having lost no one during their battle with the Saviors. Their win was short-lived, however, as Savior snipers opened fire upon them, killing many of the Kingdom fighters.

We know Carol lives, but what is Ezekiel’s fate. And what about his lieutenants, Jerry and Daniel?

Tune into The Walking Dead every Sunday on AMC in the U.S. and Monday in the U.K.