Through The Walking Dead: World Beyond, the Walking Dead universe just dropped its first f-bomb in three years. Though profanity is rather common across all three shows—and should be expected given the zombie apocalypse—that particular curse word is rarely spoken by the main characters. In fact, it had never been said at all in the second spinoff series, until now.

For TV content directed at mature audiences, f-bombs are usually plentiful, especially when it comes to streaming releases and HBO shows. However, the situation is typically different for network television, specifically in regards to AMC. While the Walking Dead shows and spinoffs have proven that AMC can make liberal use of blood and gore, it has significantly less leeway with profanity. For this reason, the f-word has been used very sparingly in the Walking Dead shows, and wasn’t used at all in the first several seasons of the flagship series. It was heard a few times in Fear the Walking Dead though, and only once in The Walking Dead proper.

Related: World Beyond Breaks The Walking Dead's Zombie Headshot Rule

The latest f-bomb was included in a key scene in the beginning of The Walking Dead: World Beyond season 2 episode “Death and the Dead”. Shortly after killing the frozen zombie and contemplating some of the events that have taken place within the CRM compound in World Beyond season 2, Hope (Alexa Mansour) says, “Let’s plant the charges and get out of here. F*** this place”. Though it wasn’t an unprecedented moment for The Walking Dead franchise, it was still a surprising line for the show, considering that it had been three years since the f-word was last used. The last time it was heard was in 2018, when Daryl dropped an f-bomb when explaining why Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) deserves to die in The Walking Dead season 9.

Several years ago, there was a portion of the fanbase that felt that this sort of language was needed for a mature show. Part of what motivated that argument—and what still drives it today—was the presence of Walking Dead's arguably irredeemable character, Negan. After all, the word was used regularly in the comic book source material and was also a favorite of Negan’s comic counterpart. Some, including Jeffrey Dean Morgan, believed that it should have been incorporated into the character’s vocabulary. At the time, it was off-limits, and didn’t become an option until AMC loosened some of its restrictions.

Despite the change that enabled the f-word to be used twice per season, the Walking Dead shows have largely avoided including it rather than leaning into modern trends. The f-bomb not being dropped once in the gap between The Walking Dead season 9 and The Walking Dead: World Beyond’s penultimate episode speaks to the franchise’s position on it and the idea that it isn’t exactly necessary for dramatic and mature television. Instead of seizing on every available opportunity, The Walking Dead has apparently opted to save it for pivotal moments where its impact can be maximized.

More: Why Fear's CRM Soldiers Look Different Compared To Walking Dead: World Beyond