#caryl spec

[mcbride]

WARNING CARYL SPEC - Bonnie & Clyde style including FILMING SPOILERS...

We know Daryl and Carol have been filming together for every episode since at least ep 18. From filming tracking, it’s speculated Daryl is on the run/hiding from the CW for awhile after allegedly shooting Lance in the arm. Carol most likely went after Lance (crew pics of Mel/Carol filming with Lance kneeling by her side in some dark tunnel) to possibly prevent him from warning the CW against Daryl.

+ bloody Lance and Melissa

Later, there were night shots of CW soldiers escorting a prison bus to ASZ gates, so it’s also possible Daryl has been captured and taken prisoner to ASZ, which is now part of the CW. More night shots at ASZ including loud noises and smoke. Both Daryl and Carol stand-ins were on location.

+  sunset

Another interesting fact is Melissa/Carol getting a new stunt double for ep 21, one that specializes in motor vehicles... could it be Carol is breaking her Pookie out of jail !?!? YASSSS. 

I am so HERE FOR IT. I can already see Carol blowing up/burning down ASZ to save Daryl and then fleeing together in a stolen bike, riding off into the sunset like they should!

Seriously, I just cannot wait for 11C !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It’s gonna be so FULL of Caryl being badass and getting ready for their spinoff!!!! I hope this post makes any sense, cause I’m so excited I just rushed to put it together!  

[mcbride]

In December you asked when we'd like Caryl to go canon; in the main show or spinoff? Personally I'd like Caryl to go canon in the spinoff because there'd be less distractions from other character's storylines. Daryl and Carol already have a strong relationship in the main show and I'd love to see it blossom even further in the spinoff where writers can focus on them as the 2 main characters. If it happens in the main show I worry it'll get rushed like so often happens. Ex: Tobin, Jessie, Leah.

Appreciate you! I am still very much conflicted about when I'd want them to go canon, yet like you, I do not want it to be rushed between the 99 storylines to be resolved/end in the last 16 episodes. On the other hand, I don't think we could compare Caryl canon to the relationships you mentioned because Carol and Daryl already have soooo much history. The build-up is already there, it's just a matter of putting their thoughts and feelings into words, so that it is absolutely undeniable for the audience too.

SOOOO, taking everything into consideration, I'd probably say canon in the spinoff too. However, as I also mentioned before, I'd sure love that before the end of the main show, they made it pretty damn clear Carol and Daryl love each other, and the only reason it has not happened yet is because they were too wrapped up in solving everybody else's problems, and also about them not having enough confidence/self-worth to take the next step.

There's no way it can go wrong!! Main show or spinoff? Right? BTW, I wanted to make a new post about this, but here is the perfect opportunity to add, I am feeling like we may get something more than we hoped for sooner than we might think... based on Duane’s (TWD’s director of photography) IG comments: 

[mcbride]

all the ways Carol can figure out Daryl is gone and/or in trouble:

Maggie and Negan returning to tell her Daryl is gone

Dog running away from meridian and finding Carol 

Carol finds Daryl’s crossbow (via @freefromthecocoon)

Carol finds Daryl’s knife, the one he threw at Leah (via @peletiersdixon)

reapers capture Carol while she’s out there trying to find Connie

Leah and Daryl bump into Carol/Kelly/Magna while they are searching for Connie

Carol/Kelly/Magna find meridian by chance while looking for Connie

if tptb decide to waste all these opportunities to pique our interest, then all the ways this show/writers have disappointed me/us over the years:

infinite

[mcbride]

Do you think caryl will go canon in season 11 or in the spin-off? What's the perfect canon approach to you? I ask that because I no longer doubt it will happen, it's a matter of when, do you feel the same way?

💯caryl is coming!! 💯s11 for me!! and 💯 feeling it coming with the intensity of a thousand suns and the drag of a million snails since the start s9 (specially since i did my full twd rewatch last year!). i'll explain after the jump...

ironically, the season Carol and Zeke start a relationship is the same one I felt like Angela Kang was gonna give us exactly what we've been waiting for - for the first time in a long time, it felt like the showrunner had a plan for Carol and Daryl storylines to parallel, intersect and become intertwined towards a endgame.

it seemed like caryl was on the fast track to canon before the pandemic hit. we already know the caryl spinoff was being planned for more than a couple of years, and Angela mentioned the original plan was for Carol and Daryl to leave the group, hit the road to explore the world together. however, since it was announced s11 would be the last, and they were forced to rewrite it, it's safe to assume they are just gonna drag the original caryl storyline till the very end, and then send them off on their solo journey after a satisfying ending to their story on the main show.

what is a satisfying ending for 2 characters who are soulmates, life partners, touchstones? yeah, you know it!

according to Angela Kang,

do i think it’s possible tptb drag the will they/won’t they right down that spinoff path? yeah, of course, but i also think the characters and the show deserve a better ending. a happy ending. 😏 nevertheless, (call me a fool, if you will!) Daryl and Carol will make the decision to be together in whatever capacity, and leave everybody behind cause they are everything they will ever need. they are enough. that’s wildly romantic for just platonic associates...

a friend of mine would actually rather wait for the spin off to watch Carol and Daryl’s relationship unfold, which is something they may not have much time to do properly on a show with soooo many characters/storylines going on at the same time. she’s crazy and patient and obviously a bit sadomaso! (yes, you Mari Jae!)

anyways, i digress, season 11 it is! my bet is between the end of 11b and start of 11c, but i just recently learned i’m a hopelessly optimistic person. anyone wanna leave their best guess on when is caryl canon happening, leave a comment on this post !!!!! 👇

[mcbride]

The tweet was deleted. But can you imagine? A Carol & Daryl spin off?? Can you even? I cannot. I’m emotional. Thanks @onedayyoujustchange for this!!!

[mcbride]

Do you think Caryl will be in Rick movies? Do you wish they were? How do you imagine they would reunite with Rick. They wouldnot leave Judith behind I really wouldn't like that. Daryl would never if he had a choice

i hope not. Carol and Daryl already have their own spinoff, so i feel like the movies are a good opportunity to show Rick and Michonne’s story, and how they find their way back to each other and to their children. no need to complicate things and take away from their screentime, when we won’t have seen those characters for a long time whenever the movies get released.

i really think richonne either reunites with their children (and everybody else, including Daryl and Carol) in the final ep(s) of s11, so we can have that big series finale feeling, or they will all reunite by the end of the first movie, which should happen before Carol and Daryl leave for their road trip.

+Daryl already left those kids behind when he lived as a hermit in the woods for 6 whole years. i really don’t understand why everybody seems to forget Daryl or Carol have only been a part of their lives for just a few months. the kids will be fine either way with uncle Aaron, Gabriel, aunt Maggie and tia Rosita. Daryl himself already told Judith he couldn’t promise he would always be there but there’s a whole lot of people who love her and will do anything for her and her little brother.

if Rick/Michonne are still missing, i think the logical explanation would be Carol/Daryl leaving to find them. although, every hint on the show or in interviews suggest they choose to leave to see what’s out there cause they’re both lone wolves who won’t fit in at commonwealth. so the spinoff is more of an adventure than a mission. that’s why I think Rick and/or Michonne will return before they take off.

[mcbride]

Do you think it will be possible to get a whole Caryl bottle episode of them almost going canon (let's say the last episode of season 10c) and then on Season 11 the CANON? Normally the best Caryl episodes are season premieres and sincerely that situation would be PERFECT for me... And then they'd have the whole season 11 to explore their relationship and on the spin off? Both of them happy together and teasing each other😍😍😍😍

I WISH. however, i really don’t think so. since they had already originally planned s11, i don’t think they would give us canon out of the blue in the premiere when there’s still so much to discuss between Carol and Daryl after we see them hug at the end of the whisper war. the additional 6 eps were only written as a way to tide us over until s11 can be filmed and released. so whatever happens in those 6 eps cannot relevantly change anything until s11 premiere. 

however, AK has already hinted there would be "a lot of story related to Carol and Daryl,” so i fully expect a bottle ep of the 2 just talking, opening up to each other, and healing old wounds in the 6 extra episodes. we need this. bonus, if we get both playful and emotional scenes.

cheer up, i do think we might get our canon right after an episode full of caryl goodness between the end of the first half and start of the second half of s11. that’s what i’m hoping for. since the spinoff news i don’t care much when it happens as long as it does happen in the final season of TWD. i don’t mind waiting if we get the cute courtship/awkwardness between Daryl and Carol while they figure each other out and how to be in a romantic relationship.

[mcbride]

Do you think Carol and Daryl loved each other since the Cherokee rose, or they were not in love yet?

no. i don’t think they did. it was def not love at first sight for either of them, imo. at the time, i just think there was some kind of pull, recognizing something familiar in each other, wanting to connect with someone who would understand them on a deeper level. i think Daryl was the first to see it in Carol when she pickaxe’d Ed, then she started seeing the kindness in him when he made damn sure to be an asshole to everybody, including Carol, as a form of protecting himself. i think the love between them developed slowly, which allowed it to have such a solid foundation. my fav kind tbh.

adding a few more anon questions i got, thank you!

Q:  Do u think Carol and Daryl's frienship will change once they are a couple? I mean, do you think their relationship will change too much? Will it ruin it?

NO. the only thing that changes is the physical intimacy cause they already have everything else. they are friends first. they respect each other and their own space and agency. they have been acting like a married couple madly in love for years, except they will actually get to keep a very cosy warm bed in those long winter nights. i think they will actually thrive in a romantic relationship that will allow them to fight for that happiness they deserve while being their true selves. no more hiding or playing a part, no more fake it till you make it.

Q:  Do u think we'll ever get to see carol saying she never truly loved zeke like that? Maybe to Daryl?

NO. Carol doesn’t need to say it. i’m sure she loved Zeke, just not the way she and he deserved. i think there’s a reason we never heard Carol say those words to Zeke. however, whenever she is ready to go all 8-3-1, she will def mean it. and Daryl will be very happy to hear them 😉

Q:  What do you think about the camera pointing at a book of sign language on Daryl's pocket? Does that mean something to you?

after being isolated in the woods for so many years, i think Daryl has finally accepted his place in the community. he is a leader, he needs to be able to communicate with his people. others are using sign language to communicate too. as for symbolism, i think the fact both Connie and Zeke are at the docks when Carol and Daryl reunite again is sort of a sign they will both play a part in caryl’s story, as they have already. Carol trying to push some idea so he won’t be alone when she’s gone, and Daryl seeing Carol falling into the running away (specially from him) pattern she does when things get tough, but she’s back home now. nothing they can’t work through.