The Walking Dead: New AAPI character introduced and he's entirely "too" likeable

GLENN RHEE'S devastating death on The Walking Dead created a lot of consternation among AAPI fans of the show set in the zombie dystopia. Glenn, as portrayed by actor Steven Yeun, was "our" hero, "our" leading man and killing him off seemed like the similar giving him the fate of many Asian characters because -- you know -- they don't matter, they're dispensible.

The Walking Dead writers surprised us this week (Season 7, episode 2) with the introduction of Jerry, played by Samoan/American Cooper Andrews.

RELATED: 

• The Walking Dead; AAPI fans not happy
• RIP Glenn Rhee; long live Stevn Yeun

Jerry is a character that doesn't exist in the comic book storyline of TWD but he became an instant fan favorite because in the dark, gloomy, heavy-hearted world of decaying zombies depicted on the TV show and especially after last week's devastating episode, Jerry was a breath of fresh air by providing a smile, a grin, fresh fruit and a  pun.

He caught on quickly and #deuces trended on Twitter.

Do you think the producers read our complaints about killing off Glenn, who we thought was the only AAPI survivor in the apocalyptic world of TWD?

Before showing up in TWD as King Ezekial's right-hand man and apparent enforcer,

Cooper Andrews has appeared in some roles in Hawaii 5-0 as Vance Pekelo and more recently, he was in Halt and Catch Fire as Yo-yo Engberk. (See GIF below)

In case you can't tell, that's a yo-yo he throws up the air, hence, his name. How can you not smile after that intro?

Andrews was born on March 10, 1985 in Smithtown, Long Island, New York. His father is Samoan.

As for the puns, dig this scene:

• King Ezekiel: "Drink from the well replenish the well.
• "Carol: "... All about the well.
• Jerry: "WELL said."

That was as many puns as The Walking Dead has featured in its entire six seasons. Keep them coming!

A horrifying thought: As the sadistic writers are wont to do to TWD fans, as soon as a character shows an ounce of humanity, they make them meet a particularly grisly demise. Considering that the character is not in the comic books, are we fans getting set up for our hearts to be stomped on again? 

Damn, The Walking Dead! Living in dread, always.

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TGIF FEATURE: Korea still a U.S. ally despite the visit of Conan O'Brien & Steven Yeun

Conan O'Brien and Steven Yeun did a music video during their visit to Korea.

IN CASE you missed last week's special featuring comedian Conan O'Brien in South Korea here are a few clips of his hilarious visit.

His special guest was Steven Yeun, the Korean/American star of The Walking Dead. He took a break from killing zombies to display some pretty good dance moves, a flair for deadpan comedy and - lo, and behold - not bad singing pipes, either.

The American pair tried Korean food ...

My favorite bit was the K-pop music video in which they both appeared with J.Y. Park. As K-pop goes this is pretty good - catchy, nice dance moves, attractive people - even if you don't understand the Korean lyrics.

Yeun, primarily known for his action role in The Walking Dead, may be priming himself to expand his horizons beyond the zombie apocalypse. His character, Glenn Rhee, is generally thought to be the character who dies in the hit drama's finale. But that won't be revealed until the show's next season.

RELATED: Glenn Rhee's fate has 'Walking Dead' fans in a daze

Not surprisingly, Yeun, as a Korean/American was also viewed as an American. He was as much a foreigner to the Koreans as red-headed Conan. Yeun was also a bit of a stranger in a strange land. As Conan discovered, Yeun wasn't much of guide.

Have a great weekend.

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SHOCKER! Did Glenn just die on 'Walking Dead?'

Warning, warning, warning! Another spoiler! Do not proceed if you haven't seen Episode 3, "Thank you" of Season 6 of The Walking Dead.

The last time we saw Glenn ...

I'M STUNNED! I'm at a loss of words. I'm in denial.

Did Glenn - the only Asian/American survivor of the zombie apocalypse just die on the popular television show The Walking Dead?

The last image we have from last Sunday's episode 3 is Glenn screaming with zombies gorging on what appears to be our hero's intestines. It was ... well, gut wrenching. 

Glenn, as portrayed by actor Stephen Yeun, is "everyman." He was a nerd who has transformed into an action hero. He, and his wife Maggie, reminded the viewers that a trace of humanity and hope remained in the world inhabited by zombies. He believed in giving people (even those who tried to kill him) a second chance. He, of all the characters of Walking Dead, kept his humanity and never killed anyone (not counting zombies.) Never!

But ... here I am talking about Glenn in the past tense. There's some ambiguity. In the Talking Dead, which normally follows the show, they traditionally show all the characters that die on the Walking Dead. The segment is called "In Memoriam." Conspicuously absent was any mention of Glenn. To me, that is a huge oversight. Every other character who has been killed off received a lingering last "so-long" photo "In Memorium:"

Adding to the confusion, the producers felt the need to issue this statement to Talking Dead viewers:

“Dear fans of The Walking Dead, this is a hard story to tell and when we were planning to tell we knew our friends at the Talking Dead would be talking to you about it and knowing you’d all be talking, and feeling and commiserating, I knew we should say something about it lest our silence say something we didn’t mean to say or not say. So I’ll say this: In some way, we will see Glenn, some version of Glenn or parts of Glenn again, either in flashback or in the current story to help complete the story.”

Die-hard fans based in Georgia where the show is taped have sent out photos showing Yeun on the set, in costume, weeks after last week's episode was shot. Are they shooting flashback scenes? Or, did Glenn somehow survive the bloody ordeal.

So what happened? A dream, a hallucination? The character who was with Glenn in his apparent last battle killed himself and Glenn, being the good guy he is, tried to keep him from falling into the zombie abyss. Unfortunately, the momentum took Glenn down, too. How could our hero survive this? Did the other character fall on top of Glenn and that's his guts we see the zombies eating?

Or, are the writers just toying with our emotions? Is he dead? We don't know. Rumors of the character's death has been circulating for two seasons.

Tune in next week, which is a 90-minute episode, when poor Maggie hears the bad/good news. Is it too late to mount a #SaveGlenn movement?

UPDATE: The 90-minute episode didn't provide any answers. We have to wait another week to find out what happened to Glenn.

The Walking Dead: Oh, no! What if Glenn dies ...?

Maggie and Glenn, played by Lauren Cohen and Stephen Yeun in the TV series The Walking Dead.

WARNING: "Walking Dead" fans - SPOILER AHEAD! Do not read any further if you don't want to know what might happen in future episodes.

DON'T SAY you weren't warned:

As we delve deeper into season 6 of The Walking Dead, there's a feeling of dread for fans of Asian/American character Glenn Rhee.

Six months ago at a press conference after season 5 ended for the wildly popular Walking Dead television series, actor Stephen Yeun, who plays Glenn in the show, teased the possibility that his character might die, a fate that could have his fans go apoplectic.

Yeun's comments during a panel of the 2015 National Association of Broadcasters Show panel held in April, fed fuel to the rumors that his character would meet his end during the upcoming season of the popular series of the zombie apocalypse.

Comic book readers may be smug because they knew all along about Glenn's fate if the TV series followed the comic book storyline.

Asked a leading question (probably from a comic book fan): Yeun answered, "If I go — that could happen. The way that we make the show — the writers and everybody really want to focus on making things poignant and purposeful and meaningful. ... So, if it were for Glenn to go, then it’s probably going to be awesome."

What sparked the question is the rumored introduction of Negan, the villainous character who savagely - I mean, savagely - murders our hero Glenn ... in the comic book version, at least.

I only mention this because the television show has veered from the comic's storyline, most notably in keeping the popular character Norman around, who is absent in the comics and having other characters suffer the death scenes meant for other comic book characters. Also, the major character Carol commits suicide early on in the comic book version of The Walking Dead. But on the TV show, she's still around and evolved into a hardened bad-ass survivor.

Then again, the TV show has not been bashful in killing off major characters, sometimes shocking the audience into therapy - as if a real person died. Indeed, when we invest so much in watching a character grow, his ups and downs, it sometimes feel like a friend passes away when TV characters go to that backstage-in-the-sky.

If fan favorite Glenn were to die - and I said "IF" - he apparently is/was the only Asian/American to have survived the zombie apocalypse. As a die-hard fan, I have not seen another Asian/American character in the show. Glenn's probable death would pretty much decimate the "model minority myth."

The character Glenn, incidentally, has made history in a way as he has turned into a romantic lead with his interracial relationship with Maggie, played by Lauren Cohan. Their love for each other is the only sweetness and sign of hope in a show full of blood and foreboding.  The writers have also hinted that Maggie may be with child. They wouldn't kill off the baby's father, would they? Or, wouldn't that be the perfect emotional setup for Glenn's heartbreaking demise?

How fair is that? Finally, Asian/American pop-culture fans see an Asian/American male get the girl -- something that never happens, you know, -- but, only to have him killed???

I suppose if you bothered to read this far and if you are a die-hard Glenn & Maggie fan, you can start a Twitter campaign to save Glenn

Or, there's a Facebook page to Save Glenn.

Or make sure creator Robert Kirkham and producer Gale Ann Hurd know the socio-historic importance Glenn has become, way beyond the television show. 

Save Glenn!

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