"The Storm" is the sixteenth and final episode of the ninth season of the post-apocalyptic horror television series The Walking Dead, which aired on AMC on March 31, 2019.
Ezekiel makes the decision to abandon the Kingdom, assembling a large caravan of the remaining survivors to seek out better shelter at the Hilltop, though not before he broadcasts their situation via radio to anyone who might be listening; Daryl, Michonne, and Yumiko help to escort them.
They discuss the Hilltop's issues of leadership following Tara's death, noting that Maggie has opted to stay with Georgie and her group even after sending her several requests to return.
Reviewing maps, they recognize that if they cross the boundary to the Whisperers' land and traverse a frozen river, they can quickly reach a safe way station within a day.
As they cross through the windy snowfall at sub-freezing temperatures, Judith hears Dog barking in the distance and chases after him, forcing Negan to race after her, but he gets injured from flying debris.
Despite the demise of the characters of Tara Chambler (Alanna Masterson) and Enid (Katelyn Nacon), their actors names appear in the opening credits.
While showrunner Angela Kang stated that the faint radio message heard at the end of the episode was meant to be a mystery to be explored in season ten, many journalists believe it is helping to set up the show to follow into the comic's Commonwealth arc, which occurs after the war with the Whisperers.
The site's critical consensus reads, "Hell freezes over in a wintry The Walking Dead finale that takes full advantage of "The Storm" with some chilly scares and a meditative, mournful tone—although this elegiac installment arguably would have best worked as a preamble instead of a denouement.
And for all the live-or-die snowbound action of the episode, “The Storm” is very much in line with this tradition, a reflection on grief in the wake of trauma, and how it can quietly have significant unforeseen consequences, even weeks or months later.