The Walking Dead: How Rick Lost His Hand In The Comics

10/24/2016 12:48 am EDT

WARNING: Major Spoilers Ahead For The Walking Dead!

If you're a fan of The Walking Dead comics, you know there have been more than a few changes made to the TV series. One of the biggest deals with Rick himself, as he is missing a hand for most of the series.

That's right, Rick only has a left hand for the majority of the comic series. If you haven't read the books, this may be a bit of a surprise.

In the season seven premiere of The Walking Dead, readers of the books thought Rick might finally lose his hand in the episode, as Negan was toying with him in the RV.

When Negan then prompted Rick to cut off Carl's hand, fans thought this would be a story that was passed from father to son.

Instead, neither of those things happened, and the remaining members of the Grimes family retained all of their limbs.

If Negan would have taken Rick's hand in this episode, it would have been much later than the comics. Rick's first encounter with The Governor is actually when he says goodbye to his right hand.

In issue #28, Rick is captured by The Governor, much like he is with Negan in this episode. The villain wants to show Rick just how serious their situation is, so he decides to saw his hand off with a knife.

Since this incident, Rick has had to learn to shoot with his left hand, and it gave him a slight handicap for a bit. He eventually learned how to cope with the loss, and even had a metal hand fashioned for him by Earl, Hilltop's blacksmith.

Since Negan passed on the chance to cut off Rick's hand, it's likely the story won't ever make it to the show. It wouldn't make a lot of sense at this point, and the CGI costs would be enormous.

If you prefer hand-less Rick, The Walking Dead comics won't be stopping any time soon.

Disclosure: ComicBook is owned by CBS Interactive, a division of Paramount. Sign up for Paramount+ by clicking here.