Shiva the tiger from The Walking Dead show and Lauren Cohan as Maggie in The Walking Dead: Dead City

The Walking Dead is no stranger to trying some weird and wonderful ideas, but the franchise’s upcoming project appears to be doing something even more bizarre than season 7’s tiger. Adapted straight from the comics, Shiva the Tiger was featured sporadically throughout seasons 7 and 8 before suffering a heartbreaking death, but her involvement was one of the wildest things the series has attempted. Considering The Walking Dead TV show changed various comic book ideas and storylines, AMC didn’t have to include Shiva as she risked distracting from the action, but I’m glad they did.

She wasn’t just a novelty to prove how daring the franchise was; instead, Shiva played a big role in Ezekiel’s story and helped showcase his humanity alongside his bond with animals. While The Walking Dead did change some aspects surrounding Shiva’s background with Ezekiel from the source material, their time together played out largely the same, and the CGI tiger didn’t look out of place. However, despite the exotic animal being one of the boldest inclusions so far in the TV universe, The Walking Dead looks like it will top Shiva with an even crazier idea in 2025.

Maggie’s Fight With The Bear Is One Of The Walking Dead’s Most Ambitious Scenes Yet

A Prolonged Fight Against Such A Large Animal Is Something Completely New For The Walking Dead

A bear roaring in front of Maggie in The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2

The Walking Dead: Dead City is set to return for its second season in May 2025, and the trailer teased one of the franchise’s most ambitious scenes yet. While the spinoff came up with some interesting new ideas in its first season, season 2 looks even wilder as the official trailer teased a fight between Maggie and a bear. Although we only saw a short snippet of this confrontation, it was one of the trailer’s last shots and looks as though it would be a proper fight scene, highlighting just how much Dead City will push the franchise’s boundaries.

Shiva did have a few combat moments in The Walking Dead, but they were usually brief given how difficult it can be to do a compelling fight using CGI, making Dead City‘s bear even more impressive. Assuming the scene is done well, it could be one of the zombie universe’s most memorable moments in a while, as we’ve rarely seen anyone go up against an animal in this sort of environment. As a result, Dead City season 2’s story could be elevated even more by such an inspired scene, making the show’s return all the more exciting.

If Shiva The Tiger Is Anything To Go By, Don’t Expect Dead City’s Bear To Have Many Scenes

Despite Shiva Being An Important Comic Character, She Was Reserved For Special Scenes In The TV Universe

Khary Payton as Ezekiel sitting on his throne with Shiva on a chain in The Walking Dead Khary Payton grimacing as Ezekiel in The Walking Dead Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes next to Shiva in The Walking Dead Khary Payton as Ezekiel on The Walking Dead Ezekiel (Khary Payton) next to Shiva in The Walking Dead Khary Payton as Ezekiel sitting on his throne with Shiva on a chain in The Walking Dead Khary Payton grimacing as Ezekiel in The Walking Dead Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes next to Shiva in The Walking Dead Khary Payton as Ezekiel on The Walking Dead Ezekiel (Khary Payton) next to Shiva in The Walking Dead

Shiva’s addition to The Walking Dead in season 7 was undoubtedly impactful, but she only featured in a handful of scenes, suggesting Dead City‘s bear will receive a similar fate. It’s possible the bear’s fight with Maggie is its only appearance, as the protagonist could be forced to kill the animal in order to survive. However, the spinoff may also have a scene beforehand to show why the bear was there in the first place. Likewise, Maggie may be able to escape the bear or even tame it, allowing for a more wholesome interaction between the two after their fight.

Regardless of what sort of role the bear ends up having, it’s hard to imagine it being involved in more than a handful of scenes.

Regardless of what sort of role the bear ends up having, it’s hard to imagine it being involved in more than a handful of scenes. CGI characters are not only difficult to work with but also expensive, meaning like Shiva, the bear’s presence will be restricted. Additionally, with Dead City focusing predominantly on Maggie and Negan’s feud alongside building up characters like Hershel and Ginny, it feels like the animal will be used mainly to up the stakes and continue testing Maggie’s survival skills. Still, the bear will be a fun addition, even if its screen time is limited.

Dead City Season 2’s Bear Could Make Shiva Feel Less Special

A Lackluster Involvement From Dead City’s Bear Could Make Fans Remember Shiva Less Fondly

King Ezekiel sitting on a throne with Shiva on a chain in The Walking Dead

Although The Walking Dead had some CGI bloopers in the past, Shiva was one of the show’s biggest accomplishments, but Dead City‘s bear risks hurting her legacy. From the trailer, the bear’s CGI looks like it will be on par with the franchise’s iconic tiger, but if it falls short of expectations in a prolonged scene, it could result in people remembering Shiva less fondly. Each interaction between Ezekiel and his tiger looked incredibly natural and proved the series could nail these special effects when required, culminating in Shiva becoming one of The Walking Dead‘s most special characters.

Unfortunately, this puts extra pressure on Dead City to get Maggie’s fight with the bear right. If the scene looks a little off or has some outright bad moments of CGI, it could have a knock-on effect on the audience’s perception of animals in the zombie universe, especially when remembering the infamous deer scene. Hopefully, the spinoff can get this scene right and honor Shiva’s memorable run in The Walking Dead, but season 7 set very high expectations, especially now that technology has improved so drastically, making this fight one of Dead City‘s most important scenes.