3 Things We Learned About 'The Walking Dead' From the Season 7 Finale of 'Talking Dead'

After last night's season finale of The Walking Dead, we were all happy to see the series finally getting back on a positive note. Season 7 has been riddled with Negan's menace, but he was finally put in his place during the finale. Negan did make a strong claim of waging war when Season 8 rolls around, but nothing has been said towards what else will take place in #TheWalkingDeadSeason8.

Despite there not being any available info on Season 8, a few details were revealed on the accompanying episode of Talking Dead. During said episode, Scott M. Gimple guest starred and revealed a few tidbits about Season 8, as well as what goes into the making of Shiva. Along with that, here's everything we learned from last night's season finale of Talking Dead.

3. The first four episodes of Season 8 will be intense.

According to Gimple, the first four episodes of Season 8 will "blow people's minds." Gimple's hint towards the next four episodes of #TheWalkingDead being intense probably means we'll see more of the "All Out War" event play out. Gimple briefly alluded to seeing more of "All Out War" in Season 8, so the comics give us a good idea of what to expect.

Apart from Gimple teasing the first four episodes of Season 8, he provided us with some insight on how Shiva is brought to life on television.

2. Ezekiel's Tiger, Shiva, is portrayed by a guy in a motion-capture suit.

Up until last night, the full creative process that went into making Shiva was unknown. We knew Shiva was created using special effects but we didn't know how the animal's actions were brought to life. That is, until Gimple let us in on how Shiva's made.

Apparently, the CGI-tiger known as Shiva is brought to life using an actor in motion-capture gear. Gimple revealed that to bring a tiger to life on television, a motion-capture actor is the only feasible way to depict the animal on screen.

Along with that, Gimple also mentioned that Shiva stands out when it comes to showing the pre-edited episodes of The Walking Dead to executive staff. Without the added special effects, the pre-edited version shows a motion-capture actor jumping around like a tiger — where Gimple has to ask the executives to "use their imaginations." Luckily, the final product of Shiva is a much better sight than a man suited up in a blue leotard, running around pretending to be a tiger.

1. Negan's gun during the season 7 finale was a nod to 'Escape from New York.'

Another small tidbit learned on last night's episode of #TalkingDead was that the custom machine gun used by Negan was purposely given to him as a nod to Snake Plissken in the 1981's Escape From New York.

For those who don't know, Snake Plissken (played by Kurt Russell) brandishes a signature Uzi machine gun that's usually pictured alongside him in promotional material. As you can see in the image below, Snake is carrying a gun just like Negan's. The two characters don't share anything else in the common, so why the nod to Escape From New York? Perhaps the nod was made in light of the reboot / remake currently in development. Though it's likely that the two are probably unrelated.