Portland, Oregon, or simply Portland after its partial reclamation, is a city-state in AMC's The Walking Dead: World Beyond. With a population of 87,000 people, it is among one of the most secure locations in the former United States.
Following societal collapse caused by the Wildfire virus during the 2010 outbreak, Portland was secured by its citizens, despite being partially destroyed by the U.S. Military during Operation Cobalt. Shortly after, the city was contacted by the Civic Republic of Philadelphia and Omaha as the two cities also managed to become secure after the collapse and formed the Alliance of the Three.
Unknown to Portland and Omaha, the Civic Republic operated separately from its military (CRM). The CRM believed that Portland and Omaha would never become self-sufficient, but rather a drain on the Civic Republic's resources and would cause the entire Alliance to collapse. In 2020, the CRM committed genocide against Omaha and attempted to do the same against Portland, but a group of rebels prevented them from doing so by destroying their chlorine gas supply.
A portion of these rebels joined Portland in an effort to warn the city of the CRM's intentions to destroy them. In 2022, the CRM attempted to once again destroy Portland in Operation N1W following the CRM Leadership Summit, but it was finally thwarted and their chlorine gas supply destroyed. The CRM's atrocities came to light to the remaining cities. Despite the Civic Republic Council gaining oversight over the CRM, Portland disbanded the Alliance and is now an independent community.
Pre-Apocalypse
Portland was the largest and most populous city in the state of Oregon, with a population of over 585,000 at the time of the outbreak in 2010.
Post-Apocalypse
Initial Outbreak
As the outbreak began affecting major cities in the United States (like Los Angeles), it can be assumed that the military initially attempted to restore order within Portland, but the city was eventually napalmed by the military, along with various other major cities on the west coast. However, Portland either was able to survive both the napalm bombings and being overrun, or the city was able to be reclaimed at an early point in the outbreak. The survivors managed to erect a massive wall surrounding much of the city, as well as large solar panels and wind turbines.
Contact with the Civic Republic
Eventually, the city made contact with the Civic Republic of Philadelphia, and the city was inducted as part of the Alliance of the Three, along with Omaha. Dr. Samuel Abbott, a scientist living in Portland, travelled to the Civic Republic to assist in their research, but was killed for threatening to expose the clandestine project to the Civic Republic's civilian government, which is not informed of the CRM's general operations outside of the walls of the CR. Abbott was allowed to reanimate, so that the Civic Republic could study him along with other reanimated test subjects. As part of the Science Exchange between the three cities, numerous students from Portland were transported to the Civic Republic Research Facility, in order to take classes concerning genetic research. However, these students were not allowed communication with their home city. Portland also sent numerous delegates to the Campus Colony of Omaha to celebrate Monument Day, and these delegates were eventually killed by the chlorine gas deployed on the university by the CRM.
It is later discovered by the Endlings that the CRM intends to destroy Portland by using the chlorine gas and disguising it as an attack by a massive herd, the same as Omaha and the Campus Colony. This plan is thwarted by Jennifer Mallick and the Endlings who destroy the research facility and the CRM's arsenal of chlorine gas, sparing Portland from suffering the same fate as Omaha and the Campus Colony. Iris, Elton, Asha and several other former residents of the Perimeter then make their way to Portland in order to inform them of the CRM’s attempted genocide, finding the city to be still intact when they arrive after a likely months long journey across the country.
Around two years later, the CRM attempts to destroy the city once again in Operation N1W, operating out of the newly-built Cascadia Forward Operating Base. The Frontliners, under the command of Major General Beale himself, intend to abduct selected children from Portland using spies embedded in the Portland school system before hitting the city with chlorine gas to kill everyone else. Beale then intends to use the destruction of Portland -- which will be reported as another tragic, mysterious, shocking incident -- along with the rest of the Alliance to justify declaring martial law over the Civic Republic itself to further the CRM's genocidal plans.
However, the day before the plan is to be carried out, Beale reveals the CRM's plans to Rick Grimes in the Echelon Briefing. Rick kills Beale and, unwilling to allow Portland to be destroyed, Rick and his wife Michonne rig the chlorine gas to explode, killing all of the Frontliners and the entire CRM Force Command, permanently ending the threat to Portland from the CRM. The couple subsequently reveals the CRM's atrocities to the Civic Republic Council who take emergency oversight of the CRM and reform it for the better.
Presumably, with the exposure and end of the CRM's plans, the Civic Republic was able to make peace with its old Alliance partner as the CRM had not been acting with the approval of the Civic Republic itself when it targeted Portland. However, it appears to have caused Portland to bring an end to the Alliance as the symbols on the CRM helicopters change from the three rings of the Alliance to just one ring representing the Civic Republic.
Inhabitants
- Iris Bennett
- Elton Ortiz
- Asha
- Samuel Abbott's sister
- 10 unnamed Perimeter residents
- 87,000 unnamed people
Formerly
- Samuel Abbott (Scientist)
- An unnamed man
Deaths
- Numerous counts of unnamed people
Appearances
World Beyond
Season 2
Trivia
- Portland is the third largest community in the whole TV Universe, with a population of about 87,000 people, followed by Omaha being the second largest with approximately 97,407 people and the Civic Republic of Philadelphia being the largest with more than 250,000 people.
- Of these, Portland is the second-largest community which is still active, as of Omaha's confirmed destruction.
- It is possible that Portland was not completely napalmed by the military, as is shown in "The Last Light", much of the buildings within downtown Portland have remained intact.
- With the Endlings' arrival to Portland in "The Last Light", Portland's leadership will likely have been informed of the CRM's genocidal intentions, which would likely bring the Alliance of the Three to an end, and could possibly lead to military conflict between the two cities.
- It's unknown what the state of affairs between the two cities was during the approximately two years between "The Last Light" and "The Last Time", but Major General Beale called Portland "our last Alliance partner" while talking to Rick Grimes, thus implying that any possible conflict between the CRM and Portland wasn't known about in the Civic Republic itself.
- Despite the CRM's initial plan being foiled, they are shown to have continued targeting Portland in The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live, although this time it appears to have been more elaborate than the one seen in World Beyond.
- With the death of Beale in "The Last Time" of The Ones Who Live and the exposure of his plans, the two cities presumably resumed peaceful relations.
- The city is mentioned in Radio Waves and several times in The Ones Who Live.