Rick’s smile at the end of “Rock in the Road” (S7E9) confused viewers at the time. The reason for his unknown joy in what looked like a dire situation was revealed in “New Best Friends” (S7E10). With both The Hilltop and The Kingdom not wanting to aid Alexandria in a fight against Negan, the newcomers The Scavengers seemed to be unlikely allies. And despite Rick looking at this as a good opportunity, here’s why teaming up with the Scavengers is a bad idea.
The Scavengers
First, we need to examine our new faces. And yes, get out all the jokes you have about their leader’s haircut. Introducing a new group was unexpected. We’re still getting accustomed with King Ezekiel and The Kingdom and almost immediately after being rejected by the peaceful community, Alexandrians run into The Scavengers. Has anyone else noticed the emergence of more and more groups on The Walking Dead?
Despite the purpose of this article, I love Jadis, although she’s certainly a little odd. Her group is made up of people who watched Mad Max: Fury Road too much before the apocalypse. Rather than finding a community like the other groups we’ve seen, these people live in a junkyard. They survive by taking from others, but according to their leader, they “never bother.”
The Fight Against Negan
Rick’s number one problem with fighting against the Saviors comes down to numbers. The Alexandrians are strong, but there aren’t enough of them. With the help of The Hilltop and The Kingdom, they’d have the volume to take on Negan. But, with both communities choosing the sidelines in this fight, Rick was back to square one.
The Scavengers have the numbers. Rick looked like a kid in a candy store when he first saw them – knowing they were exactly what he needed. Jadis required guns (a lot of them) to help fight Negan. But, are they strong enough? With Jadis’s philosophy of taking and not bothering, what experience in battle do the Scavengers have? I predict a lot of casualties.
Can They Be Trusted?
The biggest reason why teaming up with The Scavengers is a bad idea, is that they’re not trustworthy. This is a group that steals from others, kidnapped Father Gabriel, and threw Rick in a pit to battle a zombie gladiator style. This is a group of people who have completely lost touch with any sense of how the old world worked. Without any social construct of right and wrong, they’ll turn on Rick for survival. Jadis has already shown very little emotion and I believe her selfishness will be Rick’s downfall.
I have a few theories of what is going to happen. The Saviors defeat The Scavengers anyway. The Scavengers end up making a deal with Negan to get more stuff. Or, after the defeat of Negan, Jadis decides to then take from Alexandria. Either way, nothing good can come from this.
