Rick Grimes - Zombies: A Field Guide - Danial Carroll

The Premise: Rick and Glenn are out scavenging for supplies when they stumble across a large, fenced area, filled with Walkers. They enter an adjacent multistorey building and meet a scientist on the top floor…

PAGE XX (seven panels)

PANEL 1. The scientist is looking out a window with a pair of binoculars as Rick looks over his shoulder.

RICK:

What is this place?

SCIENTIST:

A field laboratory… or sorts.

PANEL 2. From the POV of the scientist, we see a group of Walkers, down on the field, swarming a deer. The deer has managed to gore several of them with its antlers, but many others are pulling it down from behind.

SCIENTIST:

I study the Walkers--see what makes them tick.

PANEL 3. The scientist has turned around to face Rick and Glenn.

RICK:

Are you… looking for a cure?

SCIENTIST:

A cure? No, no, no.

SCIENTIST:

They’re dead. There is no cure.

PANEL 4. All three are facing each other in discussion.

RICK:

Then why?

SCIENTIST:

Call it, scientific interest.

GLENN (whisper):

More like morbid curiosity.

SCIENTIST:

Perhaps.

PANEL 5. The scientist is facing out the window again.

SCIENTIST:

I currently have my assistant sourcing some fresh lab rats, if you’d care to stick around.

PANEL 6. Rick and Glenn are looking confused.

RICK:

Rats?

PANEL 7. Both Rick and Glenn have been shot in the neck with tranquiliser darts.

SFX:

THP

GLENN:

Oww.

SFX:

THP

RICK:

Oh, no…

From here, Rick and Glenn would wake up on separate platforms out in the fenced area somewhere, and somehow have to find a way to escape, much to the disappointment of the scientist.

Rick Grimes - Family Man - Matt Duarte

Rick Grimes in "Family Man" by Matt Duarte

This page is to be laid out in four panels, all of them in the same size, wide and short, across the page.

Panel 1

Description: Seen from the back seat of a police car. Rick and his friend Shane are sitting in the driver and in the passenger's seat respectively. They both have their heads turned toasted each other, and they are talking.

RICK: When I came home last night, I found the little guy crying. I had to ask Lori what was wrong with him, 'cause he wouldn't talk to me. She said he was mad at me.

SHANE: How so?

Panel 2

Description: Same as before, only this time Rick is raising his hands in frustration.

RICK: Apparently it's "Bring Your Parent to School" day or some other deal like that. Her mother tried to explain to him that I couldn't make it with my scheduled patrols, and he was having none of it!

SHANE: Alright, I see where you're going with this. That thing at the school, it’s today?

Panel 3

Description: Same as before, except now Rick has calmed down and Shane has his hand on his shoulder.

RICK: Yeah, later today...

SHANE: Well, don't you worry about a thing, Rick. Uncle Shane will cover your ass with the guys at HQ, and you can take the afternoon off to spend it with your boy.

RICK: Really? You would? Thanks, man.

RADIO SPEAKER: Attention all officers in the surrounding area...

Panel 4

Description: Both Rick and Shane have stood up on their seats, getting ready to answer the call.

RICK: Shit, sounds important.

SHANE: Don't worry, we'll take care of this quickly. Wouldn't want to disappoint little Carl, now would we?

RADIO SPEAKER: Possibly armed suspect, heading eastbound on US 62...

The Beginning

Rick Grimes - The United Front - Sime McDonald

As the author is not entirely up to speed with The Walking Dead - shamefully he is only up to Volume 9 - certain details have been left purposefully hazy. The author has named characters 'scientist' and 'priest' to avoid confusion. If he was working with a longer script, he'd have introduced them properly. As it is, this is all you get.

1. Tight on Rick yelling, spittle flying.

RICK GRIMES

You're going to let this happen?!

2. Rick is standing in the middle of a field. Carl's nowhere to be seen - but the rest of Rick's entourage (whoever remains in current continuity) have been cut down, prey of the zombies that are streaming towards Rick and the two men standing before him, a priest and a scientist dressed in a putrid laboratory coat.

PRIEST

This is the way the Lord wants it.

SCIENTIST

This is evolution.

TOGETHER

(Priest & Scientist)

Fate.

3. The pack of zombies is nearing. Rick's eyes are wide, almost popping out of their sockets.

RICK GRIMES

This isn't fate!

This is a mistake!

We can beat this!

We can outlive this!

4. Despite their impending danger and Rick's ravings, the priest and scientist remain passive and calm.

SCIENTIST

The undead have become the driving force of evolution.

PRIEST

They are disciples sent from our lord.

5. The zombies swarm over Rick. The scientist and the priest will be next. But they don't care.

TOGETHER

(Priest & Scientist)

They will not be denied.

Rick Grimes - You’ll Have To Wait For The Title – Rol Hirst

Panel One.

A Midwest Sheriff in uniform and hat talks straight to camera. His face looks tired and drawn.

Sheriff: We finally got him cornered in a gas station outside Lincoln. Called in every available officer, state and local – National Guard too. They all wanted a piece of him…

Sheriff: ...for every god-awful thing he did while wearing that badge.

Panel Two.

The state coroner stands in a morgue, talking to camera. He’s a man in his 50s who’s seen a lot of terrible things in his time… but this might just be the one that breaks him. His eyes are tearing up.

Coroner: My granddaddy worked this office when Charles Starkweather hisself blew through town. Eleven dead, an' that was a nationwide scandal. Sickened him to his core.

Coroner: I’m just glad he ain’t around to see this bullpucky…

Panel Three.

A hard-faced defence attorney stands on the courtroom steps and addresses a crowd of reporters. She is indignant in the face of an unwinnable case.

Attorney: …a grave miscarriage of justice. After what happened to his wife and son, my client was clearly unfit to stand trial. In disallowing the insanity plea, the judge buckled under public pressure…

Panel Four.

Rick Grimes sits on his bunk in a prison cell, head down, the bars casting shadows over his face.

CAP (Rick): They tell me I did terrible things.

CAP (Rick): They tell me there were no zombies.

CAP (Rick): They tell me it was all in my mind.

Panel Five.

Rick is led out of his cell by a warden, guards and the prison chaplain. They’re taking him to his execution.

CAP (Rick): I can only prey they’re telling the truth.

CAP (Rick): Because if this is all just a nightmare, I don’t wanna wake up…

Guard (Shouting The Title): “Dead Man Walking!”

Rick Grimes - Just A Small Town Police Officer - Max Barnard

The Premise: You'll get the gist of it over this page, but this is towards the end of a small story where Rick seems to just be a police officer again. I've only read like 1 volume and a bit of the Walking Dead (because, let's be honest, it just does nothing for me), so I don't know if anything like this has happened in the comic or if I'm even REALLY in character. So... Ya know... Suspend your disbelief.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Page 22 - 5 Panels

1-- Rick Grimes (in uniform) is standing in the centre of a lush, beautiful field outside of Cynthiana, Kentucky. Everything is colourful as heck, with flowers, green leaves blowing by, and the town in front of him looking bright and cheerful.

SPEECH BUBBLE/RICK GRIMES - A'yup, life sure is pretty good around here nowadays.


2-- We're now viewing Rick from the front, gripping his chest in pain.

SPEECH BUBBLE/RICK GRIMES - NNGH!


3-- Rick's now on his knees, double over in pain. Colour is starting to wash out of the panel.

SPEECH BUBBLE/RICK GRIMES - ... Heart attack?


4-- Rick is looking at the hand he'd used to grip his chest, which is now covered in blood. The colour has washed out so much now that there's only a little bit of colour left in the panel, save for the blood, which is completely dark red.

SPEECH BUBBLE/RICK GRIMES - Blood? But... I'm not...


5-- Everything's now in black and white. Rick is lying on the floor of a desolate city, with a hole ripped in his chest, blood pouring out. His face is blank as he remembers the reality of his situation.

SPEECH BUBBLE/RICK GRIMES - Ah... Life's still awful.

CAPTION - THE END

Rick Grimes - A Moment - Ben Rosenthal

The following contains a minor spoiler. It is not essential to the plot, but does spoil a transpiring nonetheless.

1. We are looking down on a table. A football sits on the table amongst some wrapping paper. It has been well worn, but is still in reasonably good shape. The wrapping spread underneath it is obviously supposed to wrap the ball. A homemade card can be seen poking out from underneath the wrapping paper.

2. The football is half in shot, an we can now see more of the table. Bits of discarded paper and sticky tape are sprawled across it. Someone has obviously had a hard time trying to wrap the ball.

3. Rick Grimes sits at the table. His head is bowed, hand on his forehead. Although we cannot see his eyes, we can tell he is looking at the stump on the end of his arm. In front of him is the ball he was trying to wrap. He looks deflated, defeated.

4. A close up of Rick’s face. Most of it is shadowed, his good hand blocking the light. Tears have welled in his eyes, with fresh trails staining each of his cheeks.

RICK

I’m sorry.

I'm not sure that I convey it clearly enough, but I wanted to show Rick at a point where he breaks down. Something as simple as wrapping present for his son is made extremely difficult due to the loss of his hand. The "I'm sorry" does not refer to his inability to wrap the gift, but rather a reflection on the limitations that have been put on him. Not only from losing his hand, but from being in the world which they now inhabit.

Rick Grimes – Everything Is Personal – Ryan K Lindsay

1.Wide, thin panel. The room is dark. There’s one little window up high, this is a basement.

Rick(op): Nothing personal.
Rick(op): Weren’t those your words?

2. Rick is standing in front of a woman tied to a chair. She has clearly been beaten, bloody strands of hair hang in her face. We do not know her name because no one ever finds it out. It isn't important. Rick looks like the God of War, seething anger.

Rick: You thinking fucking with our way of life and destroying our worlds was nothing personal?
Woman: IIII’m-…
Rick: You’re what‽

3. Close up on the woman’s face. A tooth is missing, blood crusting her nose, tears streaming down her face.

Woman: I’m sorry…just looking for food.
Woman: Didn’t mean f-

4. Rick is screaming down at her.

Rick: You wanted to take our food! You wanted to starve us to death instead of yourself! And in the process you brought death quicker to us!

5. Rick takes a moment to calm down, his back is to her.

6. Rick is walking away from her.

Rick: So, now he’s just looking for food. That’s all he’ll ever be looking for.
Rick: Nothing personal.

7. Rick is leaving through the door, on the floor we see a zombie child, it’s Carl. He’s dead but not yet up.

Rick: I’ll let my son have one last meal and then I’ll kill him.
Rick: …
Rick(wh): Fuck you, and rot in hell.

Why Rick Grimes?

This is Brandon Whaley's choice, so you'll have to ask him for the definitive answer, and I expect you to do so in the comments, and he'll answer, but I think I know exactly why.

Rick Grimes is the centre of the Walking Dead title. He might not be your favourite, and he might not always have the spotlight, and he might not even be likeable sometimes, but he is the glue that holds the other disparate pieces all together. You'd call him the rock except for the fact we've seen him crumble far too many times before. But yet he remains. He's the constant, if you will, and I get the feeling he'll be the only thing we can rely on in this book that does not shy away from constantly throwing you curveballs that cannot be hit.

It doesn't help there is also a smash hit tv show based on this story. Andrew Lincoln has completely inhabited the role, even in just 3 quick episodes. He's shown the true heart of this character, the emotion, and you feel for him. If only the character knew what was to come like we do. Poor bastard.

I don't know what the others have in store for Rick, but I'm sure it's not going to be nice. Things aren't even nice for Rick, and yet he continues. You can't keep a good man down, and Rick is the best.

As is the eternal rule of The Walking Dead, no spoilers please. I'm sure some aspects will be touched upon, that's the nature of our scripts, but please no one go out and ruin one of the best kept secrets in comics.

Rick Grimes is created by Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore, with much help from Charlie Adlard over the years, and we thank them for this chance to write such a great character.