Spoilers for The Walking Dead comic book series
When Rick Grimes killed Caesar Martinez in The Walking Dead, there was plenty of fan debate surrounding whether the murder was justified. The popular comic book’s creator Robert Kirkman weighed in on the matter, admitting that Rick killed an innocent man who was a “good man,” confirming that Martinez’s death was his darkest kill, as he brutally murdered a man who ultimately didn’t deserve to die.
While Rick Grimes fights for his group’s survival from zombies in The Walking Dead, the main protagonist in the series has killed several humans throughout the series. However, like taking out the cannibal villains, The Hunters, Grimes usually had a valid reason for killing non-walkers, as plenty of people threatened the existence of his family, friends, and fellow survivors. But, Rick Grimes’ darkest kill came against a man, Martinez, whose death had fans debating whether it was necessary – with TWD creator Robert Kirkman confirming the truth about the shocking murder.
In The Walking Dead: Deluxe #36 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, and Dave McCaig from Skybound Comics, Rick Grimes’ darkest kill happens in the reprint. After learning that Caesar Martinez, who says he’s working against the Governor from the inside after visiting their prison hideout, leaves, Rick believes he’s about to tell the villain about the survivors taking refuge at the location. As a result, Grimes catches up to Martinez and hits him with a vehicle. As he lies bleeding on the ground, Martinez tells Rick he was never bringing the Governor to them but instead wanted to bring “good people,” like children, women, and others, and free them from Woodbury and the Governor’s rule. Rick subsequently strangles Martinez, not believing his story.
Robert Kirkman Settled Fan Debate Around Martinez’s True Intentions
Kirkman admitted in The Walking Dead: Deluxe #36 that Martinez’s death represented a “gray area” while sharing he kept things ambiguous surrounding his true intentions. But, Kirkman offered his definitive take on the fan debate surrounding Martinez’s death, writing he “was a good man” who wasn’t planning on bringing the Governor back to the prison. Kirkman revealed Rick Grimes killed an innocent man, with Martinez’s murder being one of the series’ darkest kills.
Martinez’s death is one of the more shocking moments in The Walking Dead, as it’s one of the few times Rick or his group of survivors murdered a non-walker who didn’t deserve it. It’s arguably Rick’s biggest mistake in the entire series, as he let his emotions get the best of him. Ultimately, with Robert Kirkman confirming Martinez was a “good man,” the fan debate surrounding Rick Grimes’ darkest kill in The Walking Dead is finally settled.
