Characters/The Walking Dead

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Characters from The Walking Dead.

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[edit] Main

File:RickWD.png

[edit] Rick Grimes

Played By: Andrew Lincoln
  • Badass: When you've survived all the crap he's gone through, you count.
    • Badass Boast: Gets one during this exchange with Merle in the second episode:
    Merle: You won't shoot me. You're a cop.
    Rick: All I am anymore is a man looking for his wife and son. Anyone who gets in the way of that is going to lose.
    • To Shane:
      Rick: If you want to kill me, you're gonna have to do better than a wrench.
  • Berserk Button: Threatening his family.
  • Chronic Hero Syndrome.
  • Cool Hat: Counts as his Iconic Item as well, until he gives it to Carl.
  • Cowboy Cop: He is willing to attack and kill Merle when the latter endangered his mission to find his family.
  • Designated Protagonist Syndrome: Literally. The moment Rick meets up with the group, he proclaimed their leader evidently solely on the basis of his being the Sheriff.
  • Determinator.
  • Fair Cop.
  • The Hero: Easily the most unambiguously heroic character in the cast.
  • Incorruptible Pure Pureness: Often displays this.
  • I Know That Gun: Rick's signature weapon is a Colt Python, which is also the same weapon that Barry Burton uses.
  • Idiot Ball: If the highway is packed bumper-to-bumper with abandoned cars pouring out of the rumored safe haven, it shouldn't take running into the zombie horde to make you realize you should stay away. Lampshaded by Glenn, who calls Rick a dumbass shortly thereafter.
  • Love Makes You Evil: Heading this path himself.
  • The Messiah: Turning into this.
  • Papa Wolf.
  • Shovel Strike: Gets one to the face when Duane mistakes him for a zombie. Later he lays open a zombie's face with a military entrenching tool.
  • Slept Through The Apocalypse.
  • That Came Out Wrong: When he tells Shane that he wouldn't understand his plan to go to CDC because Lori and Carl aren't his family, since it was Shane that took care of them while he was gone.
  • Underestimating Badassery:
    • In "Better Angels}, Shane takes Rick out onto a moonlit field in order to draw him away from the rest of the group and kill him, He tells Rick that he can't even protect his own family, and that Lori and Carl will be better off without him. Rick then tries to calm him down by telling him there's a way back from this, and slowly moves to give him his own gun, while at the same time drawing a hidden knife. He ends up distracting Shane long enough to bury the knife in his chest, and tells him he'll fight for his family, no matter what the cost.
File:LoriWD.png

[edit] Lori Grimes

Played By: Sarah Wayne Callies
File:ShaneWD.png

[edit] Shane Walsh

Played By: Jon Bernthal
  • Anti Hero.
  • Apologetic Attacker: He tells Otis he is sorry before shooting him in the leg so he can escape from the zombies with the medical equipment for Carl.]]
  • Bad Liar: Is getting worse and worse by the 2nd season as his grip on his sanity falls too. Even if he got away with killing Rick, Daryl being The Tracker Scarily Competent Tracker saw too many signs to believe him.
  • Badass: Best seen when he goes to the school with Otis for medical supplies.
    • Badass Boast:
      Well maybe we aught to just think that through. Say now, I'm the kind of man who could gun down his own best friend ... Whatcha think I'm gonna do to some guy I don't even like when he starts throwing accusations my way? Whatcha think?
    • Death Glare: Just to show how badass he is after the line above. He even gives indication of a Slasher Smile.
  • Batman Gambit: Everything he did counted on the group not finding out (false), catching Rick off guard (false) and Rick not fighting back (false)
  • Beneath the Mask: Finally shows his true colors in season 2 finale.
  • Crazy Jealous Guy.
  • The Cynic.
  • Dirty Business: "Save The Last One" -- Shane and Otis are injured and trying to escape a mob, each with one bullet left. Shane shoots Otis to give the mob something to eat so he can escape with the medical equipment for the injured Carl.
  • Drill Sergeant Nasty.
  • Easily Forgiven: Towards the end of season 2, he's almost literally cleaned of all his past sins/mistakes by people's forgiveness... while he continues with more atrocities than most could imagine.
  • Heel Face Revolving Door / Heel Face Door Slam: You never really know if he's the Anti Hero or Anti Villain, if he'll save the group or doom it, if he'll want to kill or save Rick, if his motives are for Rick's family (which he at least partly considers his own) or for his selfish dreams. Eventually, Rick has enough and talking with him for 5 minutes seals his fate.
  • Idiot Ball: Rick aims a gun at Daryl's head, so where does Shane stand? Right opposite of said brother, in line with where the bullet from Rick's gun would go had he actually pulled the trigger. Neither of the cops who are supposed to be trained in Gun Safety think anything wrong of it.
    • This would be a case of what camera angle looked good and dramatic to the creative team, who didn't stop to think that it'd look really stupid for two cops to stand opposite sides like that.
  • Jumping Off the Slippery Slope: More and more, possibly coupled with a Sanity Slippage if his last discussion (and face reactions) with Dale is any indication.
  • The Lancer: Shane is Rick's right-hand man, and often offers completely contrasting advice, normally of a harsher nature.
  • Kick The Dog: He shoots Otis and leaves him for the zombies to get time to run away. Although this was partly done to get medical supplies for Carl, he was saving his own skin too.
  • Kick The Son Of A Bitch: Delivers a mighty ass-kicking to Ed.
  • Love Makes You Evil: So far, this has been a major temptation for Shane.
  • Manipulative Bastard: He tries being this in episode 12 of season 2. Fails, mostly because there are specialists that find evidence against his claims. This is ironic considering he used to be a cop.
  • Murder The Hypotenuse: Seems to have considered it.
  • Mr Fanservice: The writers seem determined to have him show as much skin as possible in Season 2 for some reason.
  • Never Live It Down: Lori will never forgive him for the Near Rape Experience. Even if he was drunk. And he stopped. And he apologized. Dale seems not to ever forgive him for even thinking to Murder The Hypotenuse. And Oh God, if anyone finds out about Otis, shit WILL hit the fan...
  • Silly Rabbit, Idealism Is for Kids!
  • Spared By The Adaptation.
  • Suicide By Cop: One way of viewing his end.
  • Team Killer.
  • That Came Out Wrong: He realises he crossed the line pumping up Andrea with Amy's death.
  • Token Evil Teammate.
  • Why Don't You Just Shoot Him?: He was practically begging Rick to do something.
File:CarlWD.png

[edit] Carl Grimes

Played By: Chandler Riggs
File:GlennWD.png

[edit] Glenn

Played By: Steven Yeun

[edit] Andrea

Played By: Laurie Holden
  • Action Girl: Andrea is the most pro-active female in the group, and the one who carries a gun the most.
  • All Girls Want Bad Boys: Shane's barely been in her life and for the few minutes of onscreen interaction, has been a total ass to her, even crossing the line bringing her sister up. Daryl on the other hand has been nice to her and helped her when she needed. Who does she go for a quicky?
  • Berserk Button: Shane uses Amy as this, invoking this trope as to force Andrea's rage out in good aiming skills. He managed it (to piss her off), all right...
  • Broken Bird.
  • Dead Little Sister.
  • Death Seeker: She may be starting to recover from this though.
  • Despair Event Horizon: First her sister Amy gets killed by a zombie, then Andrea has to put her down.
  • Glad-to-Be-Alive Sex: With Shane, after the adrenaline rush and tunnel vision in shooting walkers in the head and doing it right finally.
  • Idiot Ball:
    • While searching for Sophia, Andrea blindly wanders far enough away from the group that when she is ambushed by a walker, nobody is close enough to help her. She's only saved by a Big Damn Heroes moment.
    • She has a gun and is atop Dale's RV and apparently eager to prove herself. When she spots a walker and calls it, Rick, Shane and T-Dog all go out to meet it with weapons, but she brags she can nail it from where she is. And she can; the problem is, it wasn't a walker. It was the still-living Daryl, who was walking like a zombie because he was tired, sore, and badly injured.
  • Stay In The Kitchen: Ironically, a girl tells her that. One Andrea (rightfully) accuses of becoming a Mary Sue.
  • Survivor Guilt: After her sister died. A few rounds through walkers' heads and a bunkin' with Shane seems to have at least patched this up, if not completely fixed her.
  • Took A Level In Badass: Andrea, in "Chupacabra"/"Secrets". At the end of "Chupacabra", she successfully lands a headshot on Daryl with a hunting rifle at 100 yards with barely any practice or training. The next episode, she proves to be just as much a natural with a pistol.

[edit] Dale Horvath

Played By: Jeffrey DeMunn
  • Badass.
  • Bullying a Dragon: Tells Shane he saw him point a gun at Rick, that he knows what kind of man Shane is, and implies he'll tell on him if he doesn't leave. Shane points out that Rick is his friend and wouldn't hurt him. But if he were capable of that, what would he do to Dale?
  • The Cassandra: Subverted. Dale is convinced he's the only one to know what a dangerous jerkess Shane is, and that he's the only one sure Shane killed a man. Guess what? Most people have come to the same conclusion, generally socially shun Shane (yeah, that's a great idea), but prefer to turn a blind eye on him because they like the idea of a Token Evil Teammate to clean up their messes and keep them safe, damn whoever gets killed by his personal issues. Dale is horrofied when he realizes this.
  • Cool Old Guy.
  • Failed A Spot Check:
    • In the second season premiere, he's on lookout duty atop his RV while the gang searches the massive gridlock on the freeway. He doesn't notice a massive herd of walkers until they are right on top of the group, leading ultimately to Sophia's death.
    • In "Judge, Jury, and Executioner," in a wide-open field a walker manages to sneak up right behind him and kill him, although it was at night.
  • Genre Savvy: Everything except threatening Rick.
  • Guile Hero: He's willing to trick and deceive his camp members if he thinks it will keep the group together and safe.
  • Oh Crap: Has his share in S2E6. And again in S2E11.
  • Team Dad: Dale is the member of the camp most dedicated to keeping it together, and who takes the most time to make sure its members are ok.

[edit] Daryl Dixon

Played By: Norman Reedus
  • The Archer: We rarely see him use an item other than his crossbow.
  • Badass: Uses a crossbow, has a no-nonsense attitude to the apocalypse and panicking camp members, kills zombies with deadpan one-liners, is a fantastic shot and a very competent tracker. Yeah, he's the strongest contender for most badass character.
    • Badass Biker.
    • Injured Badass: Daryl's been badly injured after a fall and been impaled on one of his own crossbow bolts. He wakes up from unconsciousness with a zombie eating his own foot, so he kills it with a stick, and then pulls the aforementioned bolt out of his own body and uses it to shoot another.
  • The Big Guy.
  • Boisterous Bruiser.
  • Canon Foreigner: Daryl and his brother are original characters created for the show, having never appeared in the comic.
  • Creepy Souvenir: Begins a collection by making a necklace of the ears of the zombies he killed while searching for Sophia, as an indication to himself how tough and strong he is. The others quickly remove it once they find him, so their hosts won't figure Daryl for the even more deranged redneck he's becoming.
  • Deadpan Snarker.
  • Determinator.
  • Ensemble Darkhorse: A belligerent racist who gradually reveals he's a walking embodiment of badass? This was bound to happen.
  • Hey Its That Guy: Hey, it's Murphy Macmanus!.
  • Iconic Item: His crossbow.
  • Ineffectual Death Threats: Throws them all around, from Rick to Andrea. (T-Dog was surprisingly spared.) Nobody really believes he'll go through with them if, for example, Rick points his gun at him again or Andrea accidentally shoots him again.
  • I Work Alone.
  • Jerk Ass>>>Jerk With A Heart Of Gold: The jerk bit is being downplayed more recently. So far he's saved T-Dog's life twice despite him being responsible for his brother getting separated from the group, and has spent the better part of Season Two searching the forests for Sophia by himself, and even once Rick reminds him he doesn't have to.
  • Morbid Running Gag: Poor Daryl gets pointed a gun on him by the same guy three times (which he Lampshades), and even shot (by mistake). That puts a Fridge Brilliance spin on why he doesn't use guns: they're his Kryptonite.
  • Politically Incorrect Hero: Mildly racist, but still willing to stick his neck out for all the members of the camp.
  • Scarily Competent Tracker.
  • Warrior Poet: In "Cherookee Rose", describing the myth about the plant.
  • Zombie Gait: Due to his injuries and the ordeal he endured to get back to the farm. It results in him being mistaken for a zombie.

[edit] Recurring

[edit] Morgan Jones

Played By: Lennie James

[edit] Duane Jones

Played By: Adrian Kali Turner

[edit] Merle Dixon

Played By: Michael Rooker
  • Badass: He may be a total dick, but you have to respect his amputation of his own hand and his escape through a zombie-infested city. It's one of the show's few CMOAs, and it wasn't even shown on screen!
  • Canon Foreigner.
  • The Determinator: He sliced through his own hand, slowed the bloodloss, climbed down the staircase of a skyscraper, killed several zombies, cauterized the stump and then escaped with the heroes' truck. He did all of this bleeding heavily and quietly to avoid attracting more zombies. If Merle has one defining characteristic, it's his absolute refusal to die.
  • Ensemble Darkhorse: Maybe it isn’t out of genuine love of the character, but Michael Rooker plays him with such charisma that many people are waiting for him to return.
  • Functional Addict: Seems to have snorted everything that existed, but except a socially-ruining level of paranoia, he can still be badass and claw his away out of a dire situation.
  • Politically Incorrect Villain: Merle is quite a bit more of a racist than Daryl.
  • Too Dumb To Live: Merle's decision tends to be this, including giving jabs to God when he's in a tough spot and cutting his own hand, not expecting rescue. It's good for him that he compensates in survival skills, but if he had just waited a while longer, all would be water under the bridge.
  • Tattooed Crook.
  • You Wouldn't Shoot Me: After what Rick's been through, that's Tempting Fate hard, son.

[edit] Amy

Played By: Emma Bell

[edit] Carol Peletier

Played By: Melissa McBride

[edit] Sophia Peletier

Played By: Madison Lintz
  • The Load: Good job getting lost in a zombie-infested forest for days, kid.

[edit] Morales

Played By: Juan Gabriel Pareja

[edit] Ed Peletier

Played By: Adam Minarovich

[edit] Jim

Played By: Andrew Rothenberg

[edit] Jacqui

Played By: Jeryl Prescott Sales
  • Canon Foreigner.
  • Driven To Suicide.
  • Genre Savvy: When Jim begs her not to tell the others that he's infected, she does so immediately.
  • The Lost Lenore: She seems to have become a posthumous symbol of suicide for the still-living characters, such as Lori saying she's almost a little jealous of her for not having to be afraid of the zombies anymore.
  • Out Of Focus.

[edit] Theodore Douglas/T-Dog

Played By: Iron E Singleton
  • Action Survivor: All of them are of course, but T-Dog is the only guy who's not a badass survivalist or ex-cop.
  • The Big Guy.
  • Black Dude Dies First: T-Dog starts getting this mentality when he becomes delirious from fever, believing that the others perceive him as the weakest in the group.
  • Canon Foreigner.
  • The Klutz: Whoops, just went and sliced up my arm when there's zombies near by. His dropping of the keys to Merle's handcuffs is also frequently referenced.
  • Only Known By Their Nickname.
  • Out Of Focus: Lately he's not doing anything worth noticing.

[edit] Dr Edwin Jenner

Played By: Noah Emmerich

[edit] Hershel Greene

Played By: Scott Wilson

[edit] Maggie Greene

Played By: Lauren Cohan

[edit] Otis

Played By: Pruitt Taylor Vince
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