The Walking Dead follows Game of Thrones in character killing

SPOILER ALERT: This story contains major spoilers about the Oct.25 episode of TV'sThe Walking Dead.

If you haven't seen Sunday's episode of TV hitThe Walking Dead, run like you're being pursued by a horde of ravenous zombies.But if you have, you are likely one of millions of viewers who have started their work week grieving the death of a fan favourite.

The show apparently dispensed withGlennRhee, pizza delivery boy-turned-hero ofAMC'spopular zombie apocalypse show.

Killing off beloved protagonists has become a storytelling trick of choice for shows looking to shock audiences and grab ratings in the increasingly competitive TV drama market.It is of crucial importance to shows like The Walking Dead, where speculating on who will die next has becomepart of the show's intrinsic appeal to fans.

But lately, it has not been death, but ambiguity of death, that has generated the most publicity for television's top-rated shows. And Glenn's graphic death scene was no exception: many fans seem to think he survived what looked like being disembowelled by zombies.

One of the first clues the fans point to isthe timing of the death scene within the episode.Glenn's death plays out a good 15 minutes before the episode ends an atypical, seemingly disrespectful ending for a character who has been on the show since the earliest episodes.

Then, there is the placement of Glenn's body as he falls into the zombie throng from adumpsterwhere he had sought refuge. As Nicolas (a cowardly, relatively newcharacter saved by Glenn more than once) sees what seems to be certain demise, he shoots himself and pulls Glenn down with him into the waiting horde below.

What many fans have noted isthat Nicolas's body lands on top of Glenn, allowing for the possibility that the human entrails being consumed by the zombies are actually his,not Glenn's.

Post-show analysis

Fans have also seizedon the presence, or rather, absence, of certain elements on The Walking Dead's after-show, TheTalking Dead, as proof of Glenn's survival.

The wrap-up show,hosted by comedian Chris Hardwick, has without fail featured actors who portrayed major characters immediately after their characters died. It was a way of giving fans some closure and having an actor weigh in on his orher character's death. But actor Steven Yeun, who plays Glenn, was notably absent from Sunday night's round table.

Also absent wasspecific mention of Glenn's death in The Talking Dead's "In Memoriam" segment, which looks at the episode's notable deaths. Instead, the last words in the segment just repeatedly stated:"Please don't let it be true."

Finally, fans turned to thecryptic message issuedby The Walking Dead executive producer Scott Gimple andread out by Hardwick:

Of course, "some version of Glenn" on a zombie show could mean Glenn in undead form, but the majority of fans seem to be putting their money on Glenn coming back in his human form.

Jon Snowof The Walking Dead

If this discussion sounds familiar, it's likelybecause fans of the equally gruesomeHBO seriesGame of Throneshad a similar reaction when that showsaw the untimely demise of its own fan favouritethe dashing Jon Snowon last season's finale episode.

Months after we saw daggers entering the body of Castle Black's ill-fated Lord Commander, many fans still believe the character didn't actually die a speculation boosted by sightings of actor Kit Harrington at the show's set in Belfast.

• Game of Thrones finale outrages fans with main character's death

Glenn Rhee and Jon Snow share many similarities as characters: both started out as bullied and downtrodden characters, who emerged as leadingfigures whose humanity was undiminished by the sullied society around them.

Fortunately for Walking Deadfans,unlike Game of Thrones aficionados, they won't have to wait until next year to find out what happened to their hero. The hitAMCshow returns next week with an extra long, 90-minute episodeand season six is only four episodes in.