Issue 57

Issue 57 is part 3 of Volume 10: What We Become.

Plot Synopsis
In Issue 56, after saving Rick Grimes, Sgt. Abraham Ford walks away from the group, and Rosita Espinosa finds him shaking and crying. Abraham tells her he pointed a gun at Rick before he even saw any zombie. Abraham pleads with Rosita to not let him kill again. After this discussion Abraham and Rosita kiss.

At the opening of Issue 57, Rosita assures Abraham that the people he killed in the past left him no choice and it was not his fault that he killed those people.

The group stop at a gas station and try to decide what the best route to Washington D.C. is. Rick tells Abraham that he wants to take the interstate to his hometown, Cynthiana, to get extra supplies from the police station and to check on some "old friends." Abraham agrees, and the group decides to wait while they go. Rick, his son Carl Grimes, and Abraham get ready to leave. As he is preparing to leave, Rick is approached by Michonne. She says that she should go with them. Rick tells her that the group needs protection, and that her being there would assure Rick that they were safe so he would have nothing to worry about. Michonne reluctantly agrees and states that if they are not back in 3 days, she will set off to find them. Rick also says that having her as a backup plan would also help keep him calm.

On the first night of their trip, while Abraham is on watch, Rick, Abraham, and Carl are surprised and held at knife point by 3 bandits who want to take their supplies. Rick tries to fight them off, but he is overpowered and beaten. The bandits then say they are going to rape Carl because Rick tried to fight them. The third bandit starts to take Carl's pants off and hits him in the face for struggling. Rick bites the neck of the bandit holding him back which kills the bandit. This causes the bandit holding a knife to Abraham to get distracted and Abraham shoots the bandit in the head. The third bandit tries to run away, pleading for mercy, but Rick chases him down and stabs him over and over with the bandit's knife until he is content.

The next morning, Abraham tells Rick that no one is the same after doing something like that. He says that you don't hold a man's insides in your hands and just go back to dear old dad after that. Rick replies saying that you can fake being back to normal. He explains to Abraham that the incident the night before wasn't the first thing he did that made him wonder if he's still human. He adds that it probably won't be the last.

Abraham begins to weep. Rick says "Abraham?" Abraham then says that he thinks it's time he told Rick how he lost his family.

Credits

 * Rick Grimes
 * Carl Grimes
 * Michonne
 * Glenn
 * Maggie Greene
 * Sophia
 * Andrea
 * Dale
 * Ben
 * Billy
 * Sgt. Abraham Ford
 * Rosita Espinosa
 * Dr. Eugene Porter
 * Beth Ford (Mentioned)
 * Bandits

Deaths

 * Marauders

Trivia

 * First Mention of Beth Ford.
 * First Appearance of the Marauders.
 * Creator Robert Kirkman wrote:


 * "This [issue] was a tough one. No two ways about it...sometimes writing this comic is hard. Just the panel where Carl's pants are being pulled off that was really unsettling. I knew it was going to happen, I had it plotted out - but putting it on the screen in my script, well...I cringed a little."


 * "In the script, I felt compelled to assure Charlie that the man trying to rape Carl wouldn't succeed."


 * "Not really sure what point I'm trying to make here...other than there are definitely parts of this comic that Charlie and I do not produce with GLEE."