Timeline Web Series | Red Machete

Timeline Red Machete – SPOILER ALERT

Complete summary table at the bottom of the page.

The Importance of the Red Machete in The Walking Dead Universe

The red-handled machete isn’t just a prop, but a silent character that runs through the main narrative of The Walking Dead. This six-part web series offers a close-up look at how a common object can become a symbol of survival, revenge, and ultimately, emotional closure during the apocalypse. Examining the Red Machete timeline allows fans to connect the stories of unsung survivors, like young Mandy, to iconic figures from the main series like Rick Grimes and Negan.

Key connections to the main TWD series

The web series dovetails seamlessly with the events of the main AMC show. There are three key points of contact that every fan should track in the timeline:

• The encounter with Joe and the Claimers: The machete enters the main series when Joe steals it from a walker, becoming the weapon that Rick Grimes will use to bring a brutal twist to his own story.
• Rick’s promise to Gareth: One of the most memorable moments takes place inside the church, where Rick keeps the promise he made to Gareth at Terminus, killing him with the red-handled machete.
• Negan’s Sanctuary: The weapon is later confiscated by the Saviors, showing how valuable items continue to circulate as spoils of war between different factions before, in an incredible twist of fate, returning to its original owner.

Who is the original owner of the Red Machete?

The machete was originally found by a father and his two daughters, Mandy and Alyssa, at the beginning of the outbreak in August 2010. It was the father who carved Mandy’s name on the handle of the weapon.

In which episodes of The Walking Dead does the Red Machete appear?

The weapon appears primarily in the show’s fifth season, most notably in the opening episode “No Sanctuary” and the memorable third episode “Four Walls and a Roof,” where it is used to eliminate the cannibals of Terminus.

How does the story of the weapon end in the web series?

La storia si chiude con un cerchio che si completa: dopo essere passata di mano in mano e rimasta abbandonata nel terreno, Mandy ritrova l’arma, rimuove il nastro rosso sul manico per riscoprire il suo nome e la pianta sulle tombe del padre e della sorella, lasciandosela definitivamente alle spalle.

August 2010
A man and his two daughters, Mandy and Alyssa, searching for shelter in the early days of the apocalypse, come across a red-handled machete in a department store and take it with them.
Some time later
During a supply run, Alyssa is attacked and killed by a walker. Her father buries her in the backyard.
As time passes, Mandy becomes increasingly skilled at handling the weapon, so her father carves her name into the machete’s handle.
Some time later, the man is bitten by a walker. Mandy buries him next to her sister.
When intruders break into Mandy’s home, she hides and manages to escape their attention, but one of the men takes the machete.
Later, the man wraps the machete’s handle with red electrical tape, covering Mandy’s name, but while distracted he is attacked by a walker, who ends up impaled on the machete as the man tries to defend himself.
Months later
The dead woman wanders for months with the machete stuck in her chest, slowly decomposing, until she crosses paths with Joe, leader of the Claimers (TWD 9). He finally puts her down and claims the machete.
December 27th, 2011
Rick kills Joe by biting his throat and takes possession of the machete.
December 29th, 2011
After escaping Terminus, Rick kills Gareth with the machete.
January 24th, 2012
Rick and his group arrive at Alexandria, where the machete is confiscated by Negan and placed in the Sanctuary’s armory.
Some time later
One of Negan’s men escapes the Sanctuary with the machete but is later killed. The weapon remains stuck in the ground, abandoned to fate.
Much later
Mandy eventually stumbles upon the machete again and tears off the tape that had hidden her name on the handle. She returns to her childhood home, now abandoned, and plants the machete on the grave of her father and sister before walking away forever.

P.S.: The dates in the timeline are approximate, but everything happened more or less around those days.