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Summary
An unused potential backstory for one the most notorious character from Robert Kirkman ’s writing style - delineate comical book series , The Walking Dead , would have turn the baddie into Rick Grimes ' utter , non-white opposite . Negan was at one point consider to be " Davidson , " the exiled former leader of the Alexandria Safe Zone , a move that would have radically altered the character ’s past , and the franchise ’s future .
Davidson would have represented a moody mirror for Rick , a dark possible result for his own leadership role .
In the note toWalking Dead Deluxe#76 , Robert Kirkman revealed that he at leasttoyed with the idea of making Negan the same as Davidson , an unobserved character extension only briefly in the series .
As Douglas Monroe explain to Rick Grimes in the issue , Davidson was his predecessor as the Alexandria Safe Zone ’s leader , who had been exiled following his insult of power . Kirkman ’s original plan for the character was to have him regress on a quest for vengeance against his former nursing home . This architectural plan was argufy , but the fibre remained on the author ’s mind , at least as lately as Negan ’s introduction .
The Walking Dead ’s creator Robert Kirkman break that he had a favored character reference from the comic , who was n’t an original subsister but a big baddie .
Robert Kirkman “Had The Option” To Make Negan Davidson
In the notes toWalking Dead Deluxe#71 , Robert Kirkman discussed how his original plans for Davidson changed during the writing mental process , explaining :
Part of the play of publish story like this is throw plate in the aviation and keeping them spin until you adjudicate to collar the story down with specifics . The Davidson story is one of those instances . I could have gone anywhere with that storey at this point ; the choice were astray open .
Kirkman opted not to make for Davidson back as the series ' next major villain ; as a result of this originative conclusion , the path was instead clear to start out laying the foundation forNegan ’s eventual instauration . While Negan has become synonymous withThe walk Dead , it is worth take out the franchise would ’ve been different , had he been Davidson . In the back - issue ofWalking Dead Deluxe#76 , Kirkman himself drew the connection straight , asking :
Would it have been better if Negan had been Davidson ? Would it have made more sense to bind it all together ?
" Bah ! I say no , " Kirkman wrote , supply his own take on the reply , before adding : " But I definitely had that choice . " This indicates that the author at least consider revive his design to inaugurate Davidson as a major terror to Rick Grimes and his people . The barbed - wire - bat manage Negan finally grew into a foil for Rick in the horse sense that he represented a totally different post - revelatory worldview than the former police military officer . Davidson , meanwhile , would have represented a dark mirror for Rick , a dark-skinned possible effect for his own leading character .
Making Negan A Distinct Character Allowed For More Creative Freedom
While there are still some trace equivalence that could be made between the two character construct – base on what little is known about Davidson – it is potential that their character flight would have been significantly different .
By not marry Negan to any previous story , and not making him Davidson , Robert Kirkman ultimately countenance the type to flourish . In the laughable series , as well asAMC’sWalking Deadadaptation , Negan cash in one’s chips on to become as foundational a character in the dealership ’s overall mythos as Rick , Carl , Carol , or any of its primal protagonists . While there are still some trace comparisons that could be made between the two character concepts – ground on what short is recognize about Davidson – it is potential that their character trajectories would have been significantly different .
One ofWalking Dead’smajor narrative yaw was denying its characters , and its consultation , the abreaction of Negan ’s eventual demise . Instead , he became a core character in the second half of the serial , even attempting , at least , to find some way of redemption forthe heinous crimes of his past tense . Whether this would have been the same for Davidson can only be speculated on . What is clear is that Robert Kirkman stands by his decision to tailor the Davidson plot of ground line and insert Negan , a originative determination few fans ofThe Walking Deadfranchise could reasonably argue with .
