Carol met the eccentric Ezekiel in The Walking Dead season 7, episode 2, “The Well,” and it was hard not to notice the chemistry between them!
Carol was left in a dire state after her fight with the Savior that tried to kill her. Despite saying she didn’t want help from anyone, Morgan brings Carol to the Kingdom. They’re able to treat her wounds and, after resting, Carol wakes to find out she’s in a whole new world.
Without much of a warning, Carol is rolled in on a wheelchair to meet Ezekiel. She’s totally thrown off by the fact that he has a massive tiger by his side, not to mention the fact that he goes by the title of King. It’s almost like Carol can’t tell if she’s still having hallucinations or if this is actually happening.
When Carol and Morgan finally get to leave the theater where Ezekiel sits in his throne, she lets her real feelings be known. Carol clearly thinks that Ezekiel and his community are a big joke. She already didn’t want to be around other people and Ezekiel’s whole front makes her like being there even less.
It’s not long before Carol is gathering items to leave, a knife, some clothes, food. Although Carol thinks she’s being sneaky, what she doesn’t know is that Ezekiel is watching her the whole time. He’s there waiting for her when Carol tries to sneak out in the middle of the night. Despite not knowing her much at all, Ezekiel can tell that Carol has the strength needed to survive in this world. She might have come in to his community injured, but she’s the one that survived the fight against the Saviors.
Despite Ezekiel’s impression of Carol, she doesn’t seem very impressed with him at first. Knowing that he needs to gain her trust, Ezekiel reveals a secret of his own to Carol. His medieval act is just that, a show he’s putting on to help those around him. He knows that people only look up to him because of his connection to Shiva. So in order to give him hope, he puts on the guise of a powerful man in order to lead them.
This is something that Ezekiel and Carol have in common. They both have to put on a mask of another person in order to help those around them. For Carol it’s acting like the sweet and innocent homemaker, Ezekiel’s act is just on a more grandiose level. In both instances, they’re not revealing their true self to those around them.
Ezekiel also manages something that no one else is able to do, he convinces her not to leave. Carol does end up moving into a house just outside of the Kingdom so that she has her space, but she’s close enough that Ezekiel can still help her. And it doesn’t take long at all for him to stop by for a visit, with a gift of fruit.
It’s also worth mentioning that in the comics Ezekiel has a relationship with Michonne, who of course is with Rick on the tv show. They shared a similar discussion in the comics so it’s definitely possible that the writers have decided to keep the relationship and just substitute Carol in Michonne’s place. Carol and Michonne are both strong, independent women so it’s not a stretch at all.
When Entertainment Weekly asked actor Khary Payton about it he said, “I think there’s obviously a spark and a connection between the two of them, but I think that the cool thing about relationships like this one is that it rides that fine line of — have you ever known a person and you’ve been attracted to them and you’ve known them for awhile and nothing ever happens until it does? That’s kind of the way I see this. They could walk this line without ever really becoming involved, or one of them can trip on a root and fall into the other one’s arms.”
It’s totally possible that Carol and Ezekiel’s chemistry might not actually lead anywhere. After all, fans have been watching for many seasons while Daryl and Carol had a connection that never really went anywhere. The only romance that Carol’s really had on the show was with Tobin, who she didn’t really have a connection with but seemed more of a convenience. Carol might not be ready for a meaningful relationship at this point. Even if she does just form a close friendship with Ezekiel that could be the key to getting his help in fighting the Saviors.