Where Are Tara & Heath On 'The Walking Dead'? They've Been Missing In Action

The world of The Walking Dead has grown vast as the years go by, with each new season bringing new characters until the small band of survivors from Season 1 became the massive number it is today. That means there's a lot of faces and names to remember, not to mention the fact that most of the characters have been divvied up over so many communities that no one would blame you if you forgot about one or two of them. It may have felt like Season 7 has checked in with everyone, but a promo for next Sunday's episode "Swear" reminded any particularly forgetful viewers that Tara and Heath are still out there. They've been missing in action since last year, but the good news is they're still alive. So where are Tara and Heath on The Walking Dead?

Tara and Heath took off on a supply run shortly after the slaughter of the Saviors, but their search for ammo and medicine has been unsuccessful. A sneak peek for the episode reveals they're running low on both gas and hope, with a post-slaughter Heath feeling remorseful and exhausted by their search, whereas Tara is determined to keep going until they turn up something useful. So far their road trip does not seem to be the stuff of buddy comedies. The clip from "Swear" also makes the show's timeline a little clearer when it reveals that Tara and Heath have only been gone for two weeks, though it feels like a lot longer than that — nine episodes long, to be exact. And Tara and Heath have skipped out on a particularly eventful two weeks.

In a way, their timing was lucky because they skipped out on all the mindless torture and supply theft that's been going on lately. But while they evaded immediate danger, they're also now totally out of the loop. They have no idea that Glenn and Abraham are gone, or that Maggie and Sasha have relocated. They've never even met Negan! And, most tragic of all, Tara has no idea that her girlfriend Denise was killed. By the time she and Heath return to Alexandria, they're going to find numbers have dwindled and morale has eroded.

The comics are not particularly helpful in determining what might come next for Tara and Heath. Tara doesn't even seem to have a comics counterpart; there is a female Savior named Tara, but she doesn't bear much resemblance to the Tara on the show. Heath is a character in the comics, but his presence appears to have been somewhat reduced on the show, making his fate slightly less secure (though he is still alive in the comics, so there's that). One interesting thing to note is that Denise was Comic Heath's girlfriend before she died of zombie bite-related complications, so Show Tara may end up experiencing Comic Heath's grief.

Here's hoping someone is willing to give them a rundown once they come back, because they are seriously behind and in for a major wakeup call. Someone may want to bring them a box of tissues.