I bring this over to you from Twitter as well as a long thread I made about a potential future for Caryl.Â
Iâm taking the rumors of their spinoff as *rumors* for now, but it feels like a good time to talk about what Iâd love to see if itâs true and more importantly, what I would subscribe to AMC+ plus for:Â
1. An Explicit Caryl Romance
The âwill they, wonât theyâ trope is supposed to be resolved by the series finale and we are now past that. We can take the âI love youâsâ as canon or not, but it comes across as intentionally straddling the fence and for what? Caryl is one of the biggest ships on television. They have the support of the general audience, casual viewers, the writers, cast, and crew, so thereâs no need to keep pandering to the least common denominators. Carylâs relationship also aids representation, reminding viewers that people over 50 can fall in love, that a female love interest can have gray hair, and that a male love interest can display lower levels of sexual behavior. But thatâs only effective if AMC shows theyâre willing to commit. After 12 years, itâs time to go big or go home.Â
2. Open Conversation about Carylâs RomanceÂ
Thereâs a reason the Caryl fandom thinks so highly of LaToya Morgan. She validates our perspective, sheâs openly passionate about the ship, and she gets us hyped. Imagine how many fans would come running if more people associated with the show were allowed to do the same instead of having to toe the company line in the media, which only furthers the problematic viewpoint that Caryl couldnât possibly be more than friends.Â
3. A Daryl AND Carol ShowÂ
Anything more than a cameo in the upcoming six episodes may be âlogistically untenable,â but if Carol really is going to appear in the end, it should amount to something big like a reunion that tops No Sanctuary and it should set up the alleged next season for Norman AND Melissa to co-lead.
One of S11âs worst crimes was minimizing Carolâs arc. Sheâs one of TWDâs strongest characters and she shouldnât have to live in the shadows of every other characterâs story or remain on kitchen duty. She can be a weapon of mass destruction, sure, but I want to see emotional growth for her too and not just retroactively.
They may not be each otherâs appendages, but Caryl do have insane amounts of chemistry that fans tune in for, so it should go without saying they need to share scenes together and more specifically, they need to share an arc that allows them to grow together as a couple.Â
6. Meaningful InteractionsÂ
Carylâs relationship is so deep, they often donât need words, but in no way should that limit their interactions to lingering stares. I want them to engage in conversation with each other, and I want those conversations to deepen their relationship even more.Â
7. No. More. Shipbaiting.
Itâs tiresome, it insults the characters, actors, and the audience, and itâs not worth paying money for. If Iâm going to be pulled in, itâll be by something I love, not something I donât.Â
Representation offscreen matters too and if Carylâs story is going to continue, then they need a showrunner who knows how to write character-driven narratives and specifically understands Darylâs and Carolâs characters/relationship. An upper class white man whoâs too focused on his own lore would not be the right fit .Â
Norman, Melissa, and the writers spent years developing a beautiful narrative for Caryl, and I donât want to see any of it retconned in service of the lore.Â
To be clear, I donât think this was âthe writersââ fault at all, but S11 and the spinoff debacle have left so many holes in Carylâs story that many fans have come to expect disappointment at every turn and nobody wants to pay to be let down. If AMC delivers on the promises they set up on or offscreen, I will be there, but not a second sooner.
Thank you again to everyone participating in the blitz! :)Â
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