The Prisoners (TV Series) (2024)

This article is about the TV Series group. You may be looking for the Comic Series counterpart.

The Prisoners are a group of survivors introduced in Season 3 of AMC's The Walking Dead. They serve as both antagonists and allies to Rick Grimes' group.

Overview[]

The Prisoners are a group of 5 convicts each with their own backstory and personality. When the outbreak began, they were locked in the cafeteria when "riots" broke out. For the next 10 months, the prisoners stayed locked inside living off of the food in the cafeteria. Because of this, the prisoners were mostly unaware of what the apocalypse going on outside.

Though the group had spent 10 months together, there is a clear divide between the prisoners. Oscar and Axel are shown to be good friends, along with Big Tiny (though this isn't seen much due to his early demise). However, they are shown to not be trusting of the leader of the prisoners, Tomas, who is much more brutal and vicious, along with Andrew who is extremely loyal to him.

When the Prisoners first encounter the group, Tomas is unhappy with them staying and wants them kicked out. However, Axel proposes a compromise, saying that there are other cellblocks for them to stay in. At first, when dealing with walkers, they attempt to go at it "riot style" which proves to be ineffective. They eventually learn how to kill walkers properly and work as a unit.

Overtime, Rick's group distinguishes which Prisoners can be trusted and which cannot. After Tomas brutally kills Big Tiny and attempts to kill Rick twice, Rick kills Tomas by slashing him with his machete. Andrew also proves to be untrustworthy due to his loyalty towards Tomas. He immediately attempts to attack Rick he kills Tomas. This prompts Rick to leave Andrew to die in a yard of walkers.

However, when it comes to Axel and Oscar, the group is unsure what to do. After Tomas murder attempt, Rick believes they were in on it and almost executes them. He ultimately lets them live and gives them their own cellblock like promised, but the two later ask to be part of the group, causing much controversy within Rick's group. However, a swarm of walkers led by the presumed dead Andrew are led to the prison and Rick's group is forced to work together with Axel and Oscar to turn off the generator. At one point, Andrew attempts to kill Rick with the fight ending with Oscar grabbing Rick's gun. He is forced to choose between killing Rick or his old cellmate, with him choosing the latter, cementing his place in the group.

After this, Axel and Oscar prove to be trustworthy and gradually become accepted members of the group. By the time of their deaths, the group is shown to be saddened by their demises.

Pre-Apocalypse[]

Nothing is known about the prisoners before the outbreak, other than Oscar was arrested for breaking and entering and Axel was arrested for armed robbery, though the latter reveals that he had a water pistol and had no intentions of hurting anyone. He was also staying with his brother before being arrested. Tomas, Andrew, and Big Tiny were also arrested, but it is unknown for what.

Post-Apocalypse[]

After Hershel Greene's leg was amputated, Rick Grimes, Daryl Dixon, T-Dog, Glenn Rhee and Maggie Greene discover the prisoners hiding out in the broom closet of the cafeteria, noticeably uneducated about the apocalypse.They mention that they had been locked in the broom closet when 'riots' broke out. Rick and the group initially leave the prisoners be, taking Hershel back to Cell Block C. The leader of the Prisoners, Tomas, arrives and begins demanding that he and his fellow prisoners be let back into Cell Block C due tothem residing therebefore the apocalypse. Axel begins to propose a compromise of moving into a different cell block. Rick and Tomas eventually make a deal: In exchange for half of the Prisoners' food supplies, they'll help the prisoners clear out a different cell block. Rick warns the prisoners (Tomas especially), however, that he will kill them if they come outside and come near his people simply because he does not know or trust any of them, causing more tension between the two leaders. Initially, the prisoners ignore Rick's advice on how to kill the walkers and attack the walkers "riot style", but they soon become proficient. Initially, Rick's group and Tomas' group work together and take out numerous walkers in the tombs, but Tomas brutally kills Big Tiny after he was scratched by a walker. Tomas islater killed by Rick afterthe former triedto kill the latter twice. Andrew tried to kill Rick too, but had no chance and was forced to flee. Rick chases after him and locks him out in the courtyard, leaving him to be eaten by walkers (off-screen).

The remaining two prisoners, Axel and Oscar, are allowed to live and stay, but are not allowed to interact with the other survivors. After they asked to join Rick's group, which was denied, they should leave the prison, but Andrew, who survived being locked out by Rick, lureda swarm ofwalkers into the prison and caused the attack on Rick and his group as his revenge, resulting in the deaths of Lori and T-Dog. As Andrew and Rick struggle, Oscar obtains Rick's gun and aims it at Rick. Andrew urgesOscar to shoot Rick and to take back the prison, but Oscar shoots Andrew in the head instead and then honorably gives Rick his gun back, effectively earning Rick's trust.

After that, Oscar and Axel became part of Rick's group and both of them prove to be vital members to the group: Axel for his mechanic skills and Oscar for his strength. When Rick decides to travel to Woodburyto rescue Glenn and Maggie, Oscar volunteers to go with them and manages to kill or injure several Woodbury soldiers alongside his allies, but he is killed while fleeing back to the prison after the successful rescue attempt, and his corpse is shot in the head by Maggie to prevent reanimation. Axel was left as the sole surviving prisoner and helps the group build some of the barriers and defenses around the prison, and begins forming a friendly bond with Carol Peletier. However, he is eventually killed by The Governor during the first assault on the prison from the Woodbury Army.

Members[]

• Axel
• Oscar
• Andrew
• Tomas (Former Leader)
• Big Tiny

Crimes[]

• Tomas - Unknown (Possibly Homicide)
• Andrew - Unknown (Possibly Homicide)
• Big Tiny - Unknown
• Oscar - Breaking and Entering
• Axel - Armed Robbery

Killed Victims[]

This list shows the victims the Prisoners have killed:

• Big Tiny
• T-Dog (Caused)
• Lori Grimes (Caused)
• Andrew
• Eisenberg (Possibly)
• Bob Adams (Possibly)
• A few Woodbury Soldiers
• Numerous counts of zombiesand possibly unnamed people(Pre-Apocalypse)

Deaths[]

• Big Tiny
• Tomas
• Andrew
• Oscar
• Axel

Appearances[]

TV Series[]

Season 3[]

• "Seed"
• "Sick"
• "Killer Within"
• "Say the Word"
• "Hounded"
• "When the Dead Come Knocking"
• "Made to Suffer"