‘Walking Dead’ episodes to focus on relationships

The mid-season finale of the zombie apocalypse TV series “The Walking Dead” left dropped jaws as fans desperately awaited the fate of Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus). Possibly the most adored character on the show, Daryl was left pitted against his brother Merle (Michael Rooker) in a zombie pit in the closing moments of the finale.

“The Walking Dead” succeeded in prodding fans to the edge of their seats, anxiously awaiting the next episode, “The Suicide King,” which premieres on Feb. 10. The show then succeeded in smothering the suspense by repeatedly showing Daryl in the mid-season premiere teaser.

Fans are also buzzing about new executive director Scott Gimple, who will take over in season four. AMC recently released a promo for the new season, confirming Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and his following — who are still camped out in an abandoned prison — will battle it out with Woodbury, a settlement led by the Jim Jones-like “Governor” (David Morissey). Viewers knew Rick’s gang would return for Daryl, but now that their paths have crossed, only one colony can survive.

Knowing Daryl’s future, one of the most anticipated questions for the upcoming season is where Andrea’s (Laurie Holden) alliance lies. Andrea’s role grows in coming episodes, as she is sure to play a pivotal role in the prison-Woodbury war. After being accidentally abandoned by the primary cast, Andrea found her way to Woodbury, where she ignored all the warning signs and took a liking to The Governor. Though exhibiting some questionable characteristics, Andrea still has viewers convinced she is one of the good guys.

Andrea begs The Governor to spare Daryl in the mid-season finale, but whether she can overpower the vengeance fueled by the death of his zombie daughter is still unknown, not to mention unlikely. If there’s anything to learn from the title “The Suicide King,” it is that a brother’s sacrifice might play a bigger role in Daryl’s survival than Andrea.

One of the other main female characters, Michonne (Danai Gurira), who has been a mystery so far in season three, should also step up her role. Michonne has expressed that she needs the prison gang as much as they need her, so she should be sticking around for a while. Judging by the titles of coming episodes, the show will follow the graphic novel a bit more closely, and we might see a love triangle emerge involving Michonne, Carol (Melissa McBride) and outsider Tyreese (Chad Coleman).

Maggie (Lauren Cohan) reminded viewers last season even though the battle is against the “walkers,” people can be just as vicious. Though the show has never struggled to garner ratings, with Gimple’s addition, viewers can look forward to more human-on-human conflict for the remainder of season three, moving the show away from a violent video game and in the direction of a narrative TV series.

It will be interesting to see how the show’s new head allows female characters to develop as more than helpless agents subject to decisions and protection of male leaders. For example, despite Maggie’s country upbringing and smaller size, she escaped captivity, thanks to a pizza delivery boy. At first glance, Andrea gives the impression of a strong female character, but numerous times Andrea’s gunmanship has been less than her equally untrained male counterparts. Perhaps in the upcoming season she will she finally find her footing as a survivor.

However, since the cast has been nearly cut in half since season one, the biggest question is this: who’s going next?