The Walking Dead Season 10 has already introduced several new characters, one of which is the mysterious newcomer Gamma (Thora Birch). She’s the third in command in the Whisperers and is said to be "a sentry fiercely protective of Alpha," but given how little we’ve seen of her on screen so far, it would be helpful if we could find out more about her by referencing who Gamma is in the Walking Dead comics. Unfortunately, that’s not possible since she was created specifically for the show.
While the Whisperers do indeed exist in the comics, Gamma isn’t one of them. Instead, the character was created in order to allow the writers to dive into what really makes this army tick.
"We’re going to explore a story of somebody who’s just part of that group who rises into leadership. It’s complex," showrunner Angela Kang revealed in an interview with EW. She adds, "I think the thing that we wanted to show with the Whisperers is that we know quite a bit about Alpha and Beta at this point. We’ll learn more as the season goes on. But who are these people that are just part of the followers and what are their stories? I think that there’s a really powerful story to tell about the soldiers on the ground. And so that’s what the story of Gamma is, and I think Thora brings such humanity and also badassery to the role. I’m just enamored with her work and hopefully other people are too."
Kang makes a good point about expanding the story of the Whisperers, especially since they are so bizarre and horrifying all at the same time. Viewers might be sensitized to zombie guts by now, but let’s never forget that the Whisperers are wearing zombie skin and hair that they shear off the corpses themselves. The people behind those masks have to be all sorts of messed up.
It’s possible that given her protectiveness over Alpha (Samantha Morton), we’ll see Gamma form a mother/daughter type bond with the leader of the Whisperers. This is certainly possible given Lydia’s defection from the group, and that close relationship could come in handy if the clash between Alpha and Beta escalates, leaving Alpha in desperate need of an ally.
There’s also a possibility that Alpha and Gamma could end up as adversaries down the line if Gamma begins to forget her rightful place within the group, so to speak. After all, powerful leaders enjoy having followers so long as those followers don’t step out of line. What happens if Gamma makes a decision or attempts to override Alpha at some point? It’s not likely to go well.
Of course, we also know that Gamma rises to a leadership position, but how she gets to the top hasn’t actually been revealed. Does she inherit the position following Alpha’s death? (Does Alpha die?) Does she stage a hostile takeover?
There’s a lot still to be discovered about Gamma, but it’s refreshing to see a new face in the group, especially one that seems to be posed to shake things up even more. How she does it—and how long she’s able to survive—will be fun to see.
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