Her return, though, comes with even greater significance following the departure of Michonne. Still, actually getting to see Maggie back among the remaining survivors is a heartwarming payoff to her absence.
Cohan's return to the series has been known for months, and her first scene in the episode was revealed previously in the first trailer for season 10's delayed finale. Maggie's return to The Walking Dead is by no means a surprise. Though no longer a true finale for season 10, this episode of The Walking Dead still has plenty going on, wrapping up the show's best arc in years while setting the stage for what's to come before it's time for The Walking Dead's series finale. There are reunions and hints of new conflicts to come. They dispatch with Beta, his few remaining followers, and the Whisperers' horde. In The Walking Dead season 10, episode 16, "A Certain Doom", the survivors do win the Whisperer War. Related: Why The Walking Dead Is Ending With Season 11 With the return of characters like Maggie Rhee and hints towards future story arcs, The Walking Dead turns its eye towards what's left to do before it finishes its over a decade-long run. As the former, "A Certain Doom" neatly brings to a close the conflict between the Whisperers and the survivors, leaving virtually no loose ends, but it's as the latter that the episode is more interesting. This all puts The Walking Dead episode formerly known as the season 10 finale in a odd position, serving as both the conclusion to the Whisperer War and a tease of where season 10 goes next. Unable to finish post-production on episode 16, AMC chose to delay its release, and in the interim, announced season 10 would be expanded to include additional episodes and that The Walking Dead would finally end with season 11. This strange restructuring of The Walking Dead's most recent season is a result of the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on the film and television industry, as well as the world at large. The Walking Dead season 10 continues with episode 16, "A Certain Doom", an episode that was originally intended to be this season's finale, but is now bridging the gap before six more episodes air sometime next year.