The Walking Dead’s “New Beginning:” What Does it Mean?

With “A new beginning” teased in May and the same, unfamiliar woman gracing the covers of May’s The Walking Dead #127 and June’s #128, fans are beginning to wonder just what might be in store for the veteran Image Comics series (on which the top-rated AMC TV show is based) following the currently-ongoing “All-Out War” storyline.It’s likely that the story may be a stand-alone arc: a placeholder that will set the stage for the title’s new direction and, conveniently enough, gives Kirkman time without the principal cast of the book featured on the covers so that Diamond Comics Distributor’s solicitations to retailers don’t spoil the ending, as has happened in comics so many times before.Nevertheless, the long-teased death of series star Rick Grimes seems more possible than ever in “All-Out War,” and with his loss comes questions about the future of the group of survivors he leads: will Carl join Maggie and Sophia at Hilltop while Michonne remains with Ezekiel, effectively breaking up the core of characters fans have been following for years? What other unexpected fallout might come from the loss of the group’s leader and, often as not, moral compass?And, as ever, who is this woman, and the group she’s with? The Internet, unsurprisingly, has some compelling theories and we’ve got one or two of our own. Read on…