her premiere story on the show, and with both Lincoln and Reedus to establish the dialog and actions for the scene. With Rick's departure from the show, they instead put Michonne in Rick's role from the comic series with respect to Negan, a person that Negan connects to in contentious ways. Reception Critical reception "The Obliged" received critical acclaim from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the episode has an approval rating of 90% with an average score of 7.57 out of 10 based on 20 reviews. The critical consensus reads: "'The Obliged' continues the season's streak of excellent episodes, bolstered by a bittersweet performance from Andrew Lincoln." Ratings "The Obliged" received a total viewership of 5.10 million with a 2.0 rating in adults aged 18–49. It was the highest-rated cable program of the night, and the episode marked a slight increase in viewership from the previous week. References External links "The Obliged" at AMC 2018 American television episodes The Walking Dead (season 9) episodes