‘The Walking Dead’ Showrunner on What the Helicopter’s “A and B” Means

The Walking Dead showrunner Angela Kang has offered more information behind the human trafficking classification system mentioned in 903, "Warning Signs."

Anne (Pollyanna McIntosh), who formerly led the junkyard-dwelling Scavengers as Jadis, was caught by new boyfriend Father Gabriel (Seth Gilliam) when requesting a pickup from the mysterious group controlling the recurring helicopter.

Asked over radio if she had "an A or a B," Anne said she had neither and was told it would take an "A" for her to be claimed and taken away someplace better.

When Gabriel declined Anne's offer to join her for "a life like you can't imagine" and told her he'd have to alert Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), she told him "all this time, I thought you were a 'B,'" before attacking Gabriel and rendering him unconscious.

"So, here's what I'll say about an A and a B. She originally thought Gabriel was a B," Kang told EW.

"The A and B has something to do with the thing that she was involved in which was human trading, and it was a way to differentiate between classes of people. She thought that Gabriel was a B. She knew that Rick and Negan were A's but she now thinks that Gabriel is also an A. So I'll just say that, because I think anything more, I might get in trouble."

Anne, then Jadis, previously took Rick, Gabriel and Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) captive, but all were freed before she could implement her uses for them.

She once negotiated with Negan in the Season Seven finale after double-crossing the Alexandrians, telling the Savior leader their deal was for a dozen people — a trade Negan knocked back to ten, telling Jadis, "People are a resource." Jadis begrudgingly accepted the new terms, but that deal was never completed after a cavalry led by Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and King Ezekiel (Khary Payton) helped Alexandria fight back and ward off the enemy Saviors and Scavengers.

Asked if an 'A' indicates a leader and a 'B' a follower, Kang answered, "Maybe. I will say that is a very good maybe."

Interestingly, a sort-of human classification system was introduced in creator Robert Kirkman's comic book, where a massive community of survivors known as Commonwealth operated its society on a class system.

"Obviously the Commonwealth does mean things to people; we're starting to seed in some future stories," Kang previously told IGN. "The timing of those stories may not be in the immediate future, but there will be things this season that are groundwork being laid for finding out more about the world."

Speculation is now rampant Anne and her connection to the helicopter is tied to both the disappearance of Heath (Corey Hawkins) and potentially the upcoming exit of Rick Grimes, explaining how Andrew Lincoln can leave the series while keeping Rick Grimes alive.

Kang added Anne's affection for Gabriel is "genuine," despite her sudden heel turn.

"She is a complicated person, and I think the way we've really thought about her story this season is like, if you almost imagine somebody who was like a criminal that decided to go straight, but then it's like the mob calls you back," Kang said.

"And she feels like she can't integrate. She tried, but doesn't know if it worked that well. And so, she's here trying to decide what is the balance between what are you willing to do for somebody that you genuinely have affection for, but who also sort of mistrusts you in the moment, versus something that is for her own self interests?"

The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9/8c on AMC.