#and I'm a so long farewell scene hater too

[lunar-years]

people saying in the tags of that poll that they actually *want* a musical episode in s4 I think you guys are very brave... at this point I wouldn't be surprised if letting Rebecca sing at least once per season is written in Hannah's contract. Phil just did Oklahoma. This show already lovessss doing team song and dance numbers. the threat of a musical episode is not merely theoretical it is possible and imminent. i am scared.

[bethgreeneishopeunseen]

Hi! Nice to meet you. I don't really think that Beth is coming back. I think she is dead. Btw, I'm not a hater. You know, I think it's good to hear opinions about this, so I just wanted you to convince me about Beth being alive. I'll be waiting for your answer. xoxo

First, Beth had a survivable gunshot wound (GSW). The bullet entered high up on the left side of her forehead, and it exited out the back of her skull. Because TPTB used Dutch angles to film the scene, they were able to make it look like the bullet entered from below Beth’s chin and exited through the back of her head, top-wise. You can see the entry here:

There was no blood on her chin, and in Coda’s BTS video, an SFX worker confirmed that the forehead was the entry wound (X). She was also not shot point blank, as some people think. Depending on the exact angle, the bullet might not have even touched her brain, as it could have skimmed along the inside of her skull. Either way, she would not die immediately, as she sustained no damage to hindbrain or brainstem, which handle primary bodily functions. What would likely kill her is infection if left untreated, and the treatment she would really need is stitches and antibiotics, as the bullet exited. Edwards could treat that. You can read more about Beth’s gunshot here: X.

Beth’s GSW is actually a parallel to comic!Andrea’s GSW. In issue 44, Andrea sustained a graze to the head, resulting in her forehead scar. Her scars are mirrors of Beth’s facial lacerations, which Emily referred to as “scars” long after she should have finished filming. Beth shares many parallels with both versions of Andrea, and many believe that her Grady arc is Gimple fixing Andrea’s Woodbury arc. You can read about the Beth-Andrea parallels here: X.

We also never saw Beth be buried onscreen, never saw a funeral, or even a grave marker. There is no contextual/canonical evidence that she had one. The opening clip of 5x09 showed what appeared to be Beth’s funeral but was actually was Tyreese’s, which TPTB had no reason to do unless it was to emphasize Beth’s lack of one. Nicotero said on 5x09 TTD that they intentionally misled the audience and you just don’t do that unless there’s something to mislead from. Why not show something? Closure and funereal rituals are very important to the show, as they have been emphasized since season one when Glenn insisted they bury their loves ones, but funerals are especially important to Beth. Instead, we have 17 days unaccounted for, Beth’s body unseen, and a continued, increased focus on closure and honoring the dead. Nicotero at a con supposedly told a fan that Beth was buried offscreen, but that cannot be trusted. He couldn’t say anything else without spoiling the show. These people lie. This is compounded by the fact that the theme song played in her “death” episode, which never happens for a main character’s farewell. For the most part, and always under Gimple’s reign, when a main character dies, they either receive silence or sad music in the ending credits. It would have been especially poignant if Beth received silence, as she represented music. Instead, the theme music played. (Incidentally it also played for Glenn in 6x03, which had the same writer as 5x08).

Regarding Beth’s body, there is a theory that she was left in a car after being brought to Maggie and then taken back to Grady, where she received treatment. Nicotero mentioned filming 800 walkers for 5x08, but they were never seen. In 5x09, twice we saw in Tyreese’s flashback the men running to cars waving their guns. There has been a focus on cars, walkers/people in cars, coupled with cars being connected to Beth. Andrew Lincoln said that going to Virginia was the only physical way to honor Beth. Emily recently said in an interview that Beth would understand not being given a funeral, because Team Family had to leave in a hurry, though that was never indicated at the end of 5x08. A herd of walkers descended on the group and forced to run, had to leave Beth behind in a car, protecting her. When they came back, she was gone. (You can read more about Beth and her lack of funeral here: X. You can read more about the Beth-left-in-a-car-theory here: X).

The 800 walkers are part of many unseen spoilers from season 5 that never made it onscreen. They were too numerous and too large to be cut. A notable example is a pair of white houses that were filmed at in late May 2014. Some of the main cast was spotted/photographed there, including Emily as Beth and Lennie James as Morgan. Security was noted as being tight, and they filmed there for at least a day, though maybe longer, and yet it never aired. Many TDers believe that Emily filmed a large number of scenes, mainly involving what happened to Beth in those 17 days after 5x08, during season 5 so she wouldn’t be spotted by spoiler sites in season 6.

Here is a breakdown of some of the big stuff:

Missing body/no funeral

Theme song played

Survivable gunshot wound

Parallels

Narratively

Characters (Rick, Andrea, Jessie, Denise, etc.)

Missing season 5 and 6 spoilers

Bethfoot 1 and 2

White houses

Bethyl promotion

Foreshadowing (I am strong; there’s a new sheriff in town; religious symbolism)

Clocks

Music Box

Emily not having done any panels

Emily using TWD in present tense, both on her social media and in interviews

Boots/Binoculars Bethfoot

If you would like to review any of the pieces of TD’s evidence/theories, you can read more summary posts here (X), and I archive it all here (X).