‘The Walking Dead’: Who Died in the Season 7 Finale?

Warning: This story on “The First Day of the Rest of Your Life” episode of The Walking Dead contains spoilers.

That she died might not have come as a big surprise, but the exact circumstances of Sasha’s death — and how it impacted her friends in Alexandria — made for a sad, shocking end for the character who had emerged as one of the biggest heroes of The Walking Dead Season 7.

Sasha — whose portrayer, Sonequa Martin-Green, had already been announced as the star of the upcoming Star Trek: Discovery series on CBS All Access — was taken to Alexandria by Negan, where he was going to use her as a bargaining chip before doling out punishment to Rick for his plot to overthrow Negan and the Saviors.

Sasha was transported to Alexandria in a coffin. Negan planned to pop it open and reveal her to her friends, but she was the one with the surprise: When he opened the burial box, Sasha — or rather, walker Sasha — jumped on him. She had taken Eugene’s suicide pill, and reanimated just in time to turn Negan’s plan around on him temporarily.

But the baddie with the bat had more tricks up his sleeve. As fans had been theorizing, Jadis and her Heapsters, supposed allies to the Alexandrians after Rick and company secured a cache of weapons for them, turned on Rick, holding he and his people hostage with those very guns.

Just as Negan planned to make Carl’s head and Rick’s hands Lucille’s latest victims, it was another pair of women who saved the day: Carol, accompanied by Ezekiel, Morgan, and the Kingdomites, and Maggie, with her Hilltop army, arrived with their own guns blazing, to save Rick and Carl, and help the rest of the Alexandrians run Negan out of town.

Oh, make that a trio of ladies: Ezekiel’s tiger, Shiva, also did her part in shutting down some Saviors and Heapsters and driving them out of Alexandria.

Sasha, thanks to some flashbacks and a surprise guest appearance by former cast member Michael Cudlitz, at least had some fond memories of her all too brief romance with Abraham before her death.

And she gave her friends a fighting chance in their plan to take on Negan, who officially declared war on #TeamRick after returning to the Sanctuary at the end of the season finale.

So… October’s only six months away, right?

Check back soon for our full recap.

The Walking Dead Season 8 premieres in October on AMC.

Read more from Yahoo TV:
‘Scandal’ Postmortem: Darby Stanchfield Talks Abby’s Difficult Choice
37 Funko Pop! TV Figures We Need in 2017
‘Grimm’ Series Finale Recap: Blood Simple