Walking Corpses & Conscious Plants: Possibilist Ecologies in ...

Bingham 70
decisions which resulted in deaths. In ways, he now sees his actions as the equaling or
leveling forces of justice. The second grid which follows the previously described
illustrates this perception in four quadrants. The first shows Rick's torso, a glimpse of his
finger, and face cloaked in shadow from a low angle (Figure 41). Tyreese had asked him
what he had done in the panel before, but Rick can only answer with an account of
Thomas' actions: “He killed them.” The lettering has returned to normal size and the
speech balloons are no longer distorted, so he seems to have calmed down some. The
second panel shows an extreme close up of Rick's severely damaged, blood-soaked open
right hand. One of Thomas' teeth appears to be lodged in the second knuckle of his ring
finger and his palm is blacked out by shadow. The third panel is exemplary of the
eclipsing nature violence has upon character (Figure 42). An extended shot shows Rick
standing over Thomas' body against a virtually plain background. Rick's face is totally
blacked out though. Finally, we see a close-up of Thomas's face; it is completely
disfigured.
As opposed to the attacks perpetrated by the zombies, this double homicide has
tested the vague social contract holding the group together. It forces the group to think
long-term and construct rules for their community. A microcosmic example of society,
the members must come to a conclusion about how to serve justice. The moment is
pivotal for Rick, whose word holds most weight based upon his recognition as leader
(Figure 43). The punishment he decrees is clearly retributive: “You kill, you die” (Figure
44). He has already broken this law as the group's leader; but for a community desiring
vindication, this inconsistency does not seem to matter. Lori is the only person who
contests the imposition of capital punishment and even she backs down. Rick then