How bout them cantaloupes?

Who knew fruit (and a few deaths) would be the reason Ezekiel decided to fight the Saviors.

This back half of The Walking Dead Season 7 has all been about the various factions gearing up for battle and/or taking a side. And The Walking Dead Season 7 Episode 13 continued that trend.

There was never going to be an "if" the Kingdom joins in the fight but rather a matter of "when."

And despite Richard trying to get something started repeatedly, it always seemed obvious that Benjamin would die and be the catalyst to kick things off for Ezekiel.

Having the Saviors kill a kid, especially one that Ezekiel was rather close to, would be that crossing of a line that I’m not even sure Richard could have accomplished if he had been the one to be killed in the first place.

Granted, it was a ballsy move on Richard’s part to sacrifice himself for what he hoped would get Ezekiel to fight the Saviors.

But like we’ve seen so often, the people who try and get things done on their own wind up causing more problems rather than accomplishing their goal.

Richard ultimately wound up getting what he wanted, just not quite how he expected it all to go down.

And I believed that he was distraught over his plan falling apart and Benjamin becoming collateral damage.

But I didn’t expect it to affect Morgan the way it did.

The man who had been so against killing ramped things up to a new level after Benjamin’s death. And I thought he was upset when he lost his stick.

Though, killing Richard was a a shock. Not necessarily his death, that seemed like it was coming no matter what, but by who.

Morgan flipped a switch, but even in killing Richard, it sort of set in with Richard’s plan to try and lull the Saviors into the belief that they are all on board.

It also sparked Morgan to tell Carol the truth about what the Saviors did to Alexandria, including the deaths of Glenn, Abraham and a few others.

It’s too bad we haven’t gotten more from Carol because honestly, she’s such a great character.

To see Melissa McBride tear up while Morgan told the truth captured so much without saying so much. Even her pleas for Morgan to hold on and wait before storming off added to that moment.

But it’s clear that while Richard meant to get Ezekiel in the game, it had a domino affect on Morgan and Carol.

At the same time, I’m glad that Ezekiel is ready to fight, but it was good that he wasn’t eager to just jump into the fray. Hopefully his level-headedness will keep things in check and allow the various communities to work together to take down Negan.

Unless Sasha and Rosita mess everything up with their own plan.

This was a great Morgan episode, but so much of what went down around him, including the two deaths, weren’t surprising. And with Richard and Benjamin gone, there aren’t a lot of Kingdom characters with names I can remember that are left.

Should we be worried about Jerry?

This was a much more investing hour than The Walking Dead Season 7 Episode 12, especially because of the stakes involved and the progression for the characters involved.

I’m still itching for things to get started in what could be a long war against the Saviors, but that doesn’t look to be happening anytime soon.

Though I do wonder if Morgan’s new path of killing the Saviors might also get him killed in the process…

What did you think of the two deaths? Were you surprised by Morgan’s decision? What’s next for the Kingdom?

Sound off below, and be sure to watch The Walking Dead online at TV Fanatic!

NOTE: The Walking Dead Season 7 Episode 14 airs March 19 at 9 p.m.

Sean McKenna was a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. He retired in May of 2017. Follow him on Twitter.