Rick and his group will meet the Oceanside community for the first time when AMC airs The Walking Dead‘s latest episode on Sunday night.
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First introduced in Episode 7×06 (Swear), the Oceanside bunch is a heavily armed, female-only group which hides away in their trailer homes with traps and alarms set around their perimeter. Tara journeyed to their group after being rescued on the beach and discovered their impressive armory, the fact that Negan killed all of their men and boys, and learned that they have no interest in being discovered or fighting.
Before leaving, Tara promised not to tell her community about Oceanside. Inevitably, that promise was broken. Tara told Rick in an off-screen moment a couple of weeks ago.
In Sunday’s Something They Need episode, Rick and his group will set out for Oceanside in hope of acquiring their guns to satisfy Jadis and the junkyard gang as the allies prepare to take on Negan and the Saviors.
However, marching into Oceanside and taking their stuff does not separate Rick from Negan. No less, taking their guns would ruthlessly leave the community more vulnerable to the always lurking threats offered by the apocalypse. While Rick will almost certainly had back to Alexandria with a new batch of ammunition and weaponry, he might also have a new group of friends whom he can call upon for battle.
Will Oceanside join the war against Negan? Probably.
Like the Hilltop, it appears much of Oceanside is ready to fight the Saviors while their leader is reluctant to stir the pot. For Gregory, his lack of willingness to fight is leading to his downfall as Maggie emerges as their leader. Tara might just play that same role in Oceanside.
Rick would rather makes friends of Oceanside than enemies or a body count. Having lost their brothers, sons, and fathers to Negan, the group has little reason not to aid Rick’s efforts. The community might need a bit convincing beyond Sunday’s Episode 7×15 but it would only make sense to see the woman rallying with Alexandria, the Kingdom, and the Hilltop when the time comes.
In The Walking Dead comics, Oceanside was unheard of at this point. In fact, the community was not introduced until after the war with Negan concluded and a time jump of about two years took place in issue #139. Michonne called the community home for a bit after exiling herself in an effort to stop killing (a role which appears to be fulfilled by Carol on television). The group had both its men and women in tact and didn’t appear to have been effected by Negan.
While the source material doesn’t offer any reason to believe the community will join the war against Negan on AMC’s The Walking Dead, the safe bet is that Rick has a better chance in finding allies with the women of Oceanside than the bunch of oddballs at the junkyard.
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The Walking Dead TV series airs Sundays at 9 pm ET on AMC. For complete coverage and insider info all season long, follow @BrandonDavisBD on Twitter.