Can you imagine TWD without Daryl? I know, we have learned to live without Rick. But somehow Daryl has become such an iconic character of TWD, it's just unthinkable that he could die. Leave ... maybe. But not die. He's just a huge part of the soul of the show. Negan killing him in the line-up would have been a disastrous mistake. I didn't feel we were heading that way, because they were not developing Daryl's story. Deaths on this show always come after a significant build/focus on a character.

The first sign of Gimple screwing up was Coda for me. To this day, I'm not over the stupidity of that episode, and the one after, with Tyreece's death. But then he redeemed himself somewhat with Season 6, which I thought was excellent, the ridiculous "Dumpstergate" incident aside. Then things started to disintegrate in S7.

I'd say Daryl is pretty much the safest character on the show. I don't think Gimple even dared to say it out loud if he had harboured murderous thoughts about him. Maybe he did. In which case thank goodness there were sensible people who reined him in.

 

@BlackBird,

Daryl is an original character who wasn't supposed to last beyond the first season, but Norman impressed Frank Darabont so much, he kept Daryl beyond the allotted episodes and the rest is history.

When AMC fired Darabont, they wanted to get rid of all the actors he brought in: Jeffrey DeMunn (Dale) quit out of loyalty to Darabont. Jon Bernthal (Shane) was soon let go as was Sarah Wayne Callies, Laurie Holden's character (Andrea) was ruined to the point where her dying was all they could do with her.

Melissa (Carol) was almost let go, but she and Sarah convinced the producers to let her stay on the show.

AMC didn't let Norman (Daryl) go because of his characters popularity and the money he brought in through merchandising and advertisements.

Many fans were excited when Gimple replaced Glen Mazzara as TWD's showrunner; his stewardship began with season 4, which was praised by critics and fans.

The 5th season episode "What Happened and What's Going On", which was Chad Coleman's (Tyreese) final episode, is to me, is where Gimple's ego started to percolate; he started testing out his hallmark clichés like camera tricks, flashbacks, foreshadowing, and melodramatic, preachy dialogue.

When season 6 began, TWD wasn't the same and it just kept getting worse until Gimple was "kicked upstairs" at the end of season 8.

I think Gimple plotted season 6 to end with Daryl getting Lucilled because up to that point, his stewardship was mostly praised by the fans and critics, and he thought TWD was popular enough to continue without Daryl, who was both an original character, and a character that Darabont created. But the fan backlash over the "Dumpstergate" episode was loud and unexpected, so AMC finally reined Gimple in.

A lot of fans say season 9 was the best in years, but I've also heard the argument that it's because Gimple's no longer the showrunner; what's currently happening with FTWD is a good indicator what might've happened with TWD if Gimple were still around, because the spinoff is run by two of his yes-men.

I've given up on TWD, but I still like many of the characters, and I'll always ship Caryl. If they ever become official, Gimple and the showrunners waited too long to finally approve it.

 

Does this mean you're not actually watching the show anymore?

 

Yep.

The last two episodes I watched were S8's "Dead or Alive Or", and S9's "The Storm".

It's okay if you enjoyed S9, but TWD isn't the show I once loved.

 

I'm sorry you've "lost that loving feeling" for the show. I wonder if it could be rekindled if you gave S9 a chance? A lot of people who were already drifting away found their way back. Of course the show changed dramatically since the glory years, but that's partially inevitable. Different creative leadership, new set of survivors, beloved characters gone, and different stages in the story telling of a post apocalyptic world. Telling the story of the initial panic, forming of groups, scavenging, acquiring the necessary survival and fighting skills, that was a very different show from the current stage of rebuilding society and creating links between communities.

I'd encourage you to consider giving it a shot. Daryl and Carol both had an amazing season.
You might have seen excerpts from the show with the two of them, but to fully appreciate their journeys, you'd need the context of the rest of the show and see both Carol and Daryl's interactions with other people.

 

Daryl: "No more fightin', let's get on the bike and go."

Carol: "Head out west."

Angela Kang: "I'm so happy for them. They're soul mates!"

Scott Gimple: "Okay, you two off the bike! That's enough Caryl for this season."

Daryl, Carol, and Angela: "..."

 

Caryl scene from the TWD S10 Preview Special.

 

I've lost count of all the Caryl teases over these last 10 seasons.

 

The S10 premiere had a lot of Caryl moments, but this one's my favorite.

I love how Carol's smiling at Daryl and the way she's holding up her hands; she's so happy to see him again!

 

The S10 episode "Ghosts" was good. I loved all the Caryl scenes, especially the dream sequence where Daryl and Carol are living together.

I like to think Daryl and Carol are a wealthy couple in the dream, so the money Daryl gave Carol to buy jam was a $100 bill.

 

"Bonds" was a great episode; I knew it was a Caryl tease, but I had to watch it.

Carol tried to prod Daryl into a relationship with Connie. I've heard the theory that Carol doesn't think she'll survive her feud against Alpha, so she's trying to set Daryl up in relationship with Connie so he won't be alone.

I loved the moment at 2:02 when Daryl was looking at Carol as she rummaged through her bag. It was like he wanted to say "I love you," but he's still too afraid to say it.

 

The best Caryl scene from the S10 midseason finale "The World Before".

I love the moments when Carol nuzzles against Daryl's shoulder, and when Daryl wipes that tear from Carol's eye.

God, why didn't this happen when they reached Alexandria back in S5?

 

I’d say because both of them were a huge mess back then. This time it’s just Carol, and Daryl is more capable of giving support as he’s in a better place.

This was a lovely moment between them.

 

Indeed, but these Caryl teases are one of the reasons why I'm done with TWD.

They give us enough hope to make us think "This is finally the season," and then they go do something completely different.

 

I'm sorry you feel this way. If only you could just enjoy it for what it is, a beautiful human connection? Does it matter so much whether it's romantic or not?

 

Melissa and Norman, from Norman's motorcycle series Ride.

 

I agree with Raps. I wanna know when they're going to hump. JK. Maybe.

 

same energy




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