The Walking Dead - Best 10 Episodes

On Monday a marathon of The Walking Dead starting, which plans on showing all 99 released episodes of the show, leading up to the new, 100th episode of the series on Sunday at 9pm. That’s a long ways for the fanbase, so I think it’s time for some “Top #” lists. So to start this off I am going to count down my top ten favorite episodes of The Walking Dead!

[Warning: Possible Spoilers Incoming]

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#10 - Episode 611: Knots Untie

I originally wanted to put the previous episode, The Next World, in this rank because it introduced one of my favorite characters of the series, Jesus/ Paul Rovia, played by Tom Payne, as well as confirm that Rick and Michonne are now in a relationship. But beyond this there wasn't much to it. The next episode though we got a proper introduction to not just Jesus, but to the community Jesus is a part of: The Hilltop. And it wasn’t a bad community like we had before, but peaceful, secure, and resourceful. This was the first trip for the audience into the bigger world of The Walking Dead and an introduction to the first new allies for Rick and Alexandria.

Not all the allies we got were good though. The leader, or at least the person who says he is in charge, is the narcissistic and egotistical Gregory, played by Xander Berkeley. At first sight I could tell he would act all high-and-mighty and watching him attempt to and fail to get Maggie to stay at the hilltop didn’t improve my opinion of him. Of course though I did have a small moment of concern when he gets stabbed by one of his own men who was threatened by Negan. And that’s where we all start to realize that Saviors are more than what we thought.

Knots Untie is a great start to the bigger picture of The Walking Dead and how it changes the whole story of the series.

#09 - Episode 414: The Grove

For three seasons we have seen Carol, played by Melissa McBride, as a weak woman, one who was first abused by her husband, then constantly caring and worrying for her daughter. But season 4 changed her in a huge way, growing her into a badass and survivor. But this episode shows that not all of that old side is gone. After one of the two girls she takes care of after the prison, Lizzie, kills her sister, Mika because she doesn't see walkers as dangerous, Carol has to make the hard decision of killing this other girl. Carol knew she had to it after Lizzie tried to kill Rick's baby, Judith, and learning that Lizzie was the one who kept feeding the Walkers that almost took down the prison. If abandoned or allowed to live Lizzie would follow them and probably kill every one of them.

It's not just this kill though that makes this a great episode. Carol admits to her other adult companion, Tyreese, played by Chad Coleman, that it was her that killed his lover and friend at the prison during the time when there was a flu epidemic. Rick found out, but kept it secret because of how unstable the community was at that time and if Tyreese found out he would immediately kill her. But after watching how hard it was for Carol to kill Lizzie, Tyreese understands the pain Carol had through that and her killing at the prison and forgives her. All in all it was an excellent story of forgiveness.

#08 - Episode 315: This Sorrowful Life

This episode ends the life of a memorable, yet at times despised character on the show: Merle Dixon, played by Michael Rooker. While we can all agree he can be a really big asshole, with him even saying the N-word in the second episode of the show, he can also be a loyal and strong survivor. And this is the episode where he goes against his own nature of a destructive self-desire and does something not just selfless, and beneficial to the group at the cost of his life. We’ve seen Merle be a real jackass and distrusted him when he returned with his brother, Daryl, to the prison to rejoin Rick. That’s very understandable, he worked for the Governor for a while and was a nasty person at the beginning of the show. And yet we couldn’t help but feel sorry for him in his suicide mission to stop the Governor’s plans, especially with this final words. And when we see Daryl find his reanimated brother and watching Norman Reedus break down as he kills Rooker was a heart-wrenching moment.

The other big point of this episode is Rick’s new speech, telling everyone they must vote on what to do before the Governor attacks: Stay and fight or flee the prison? We don’t see the answer in this episode, leaving the finale of the third season the only way to find out what they did. For Rick though to relinquish his rule and ask for a democracy in this situation was strong development for him, as he then knew that only if they worked together could they survive. Both stories together turn This Sorrowful Life into an excellent start to the end of season 3.

#07 - Episode 604: Here's Not Here

This episodes fills in the gap between when we see Morgan, played by Lennie James, in his crazy phase and his new enlightened phase with an hour and a half special. And wow it was great. The transformation from distraught killer to pacifist staff wielder was enriching, beautiful, and fantastic. We see Morgan struggle with his urge to clear as a lone man named Eastman, played by John Carroll Lynch, helps him get past the horrors of his dead son and wife and move on.

What makes it so interesting though is that Eastman was once like him: A man named Crighton Dallas Wilton killed his wife, son, and daughter after he failed a parole interview with Eastman, to which afterwards he return to prison for the rest of his days. That is until Eastman one day stole Crighton from prison and locked him in a cell, where he starved to death. And yet it didn’t satisfy him, in fact it made Eastman feel worse, so worse that he decided to turn himself in. That’s when he learned of the Walkers and the end of the world.

It was Eastman’s knowledge of Aikido that saved his life during the interview and is what allows him to survive and be at peace. Overall it’s a very interesting form of fighting and Eastman’s teaching of it saved Morgan’s life and sanity. Eastman’s bite and death at the end of the episode makes this episode even more emotional, but also is a lesson to Morgan to teach others, which he attempts to do with a captured enemy in order to them the error of their violent ways.

#06 - Episode 409: After

After the incredible, heart-wrenching mid-season finale of season 4, we see the cast broken and the prison lost. The two groups we watch this episode are Michonne on her own and Rick and Carl. Having lost many people she's loved she returns to her old ways of living among Walker herds, even after noticing the trail that Rick and Carl take. During her time alone we see Michonne's past before the apocalypse and that terrified me. I don't know what it is, but crying children always make me uncomfortable and in times of danger it completely takes me out of my place. So seeing Michonne lose her child and her loves ones made me huddle as much as possible in a blanket to feel safe.

Things are not much better for Rick and Carl, as Rick is still damaged from his beatdown by the Governor and Carl is furious with his father not going after the Governor when he was first defeated. He blames the loss of the prison and the lives of many of their close friends on him, leading Carl to abandon his father. Carl barely survives the Walker attacks he is gets into (though with three dead walkers on him that's a hard situation for anyone) and returns back to Rick. And just when it seems Carl can handle himself we hear Rick moaning and just for a moment Carl and some viewers though Rick had died and turned. What left us more terrified was that Carl couldn't shoot his father and told him just to get it over with. Thankfully Rick was just weak and not a walker, so both got to live.

Then the last part of the episodes brings us hope and Michonne eventually realizes her old way only leads to loneliness and her time with Rick and the group is more important to her than anything. And soon enough she reunites with them after Rick confesses that his decision to teach Carl how to farm and breed animals was his small hope that things can be returned to normal. Just as Carl understands and forgives his father there is a knock on the door from Michonne and all three become one group. What a super touching ending.

#05 - Episode 701: The Day Will Come When You Won't Be

This is a controversial episode, with the season 6 finale ending on a bad note and people who watched (or didn't watch) episode beginning to say things like The Walking Dead is torture porn. But in the end it was still a great episode. Not the best, but a really good one. Yes the ending of season 6 was a downer in that we can't see who Negan kills and maybe they could have put just one of the two dead cast members in that episode. But for those people who call The Walking Dead torture porn, I call bullshit. You think such acts of violence can't happen or it shouldn't be in the Walking Dead universe? Then you don't understand the show or this episode.

This episode was made in order to nail in the type of character Negan is. We've had revenge-driven betrayers with Shane, psychopathic and manipulating killers with the Governor, cannibals with the people of Terminus, and degenerates who cannot learn to form civilized societies with the Wolves. All of them had some degree of mental damage or obsession that made them flawed and a bit overused, so a new type of antagonist was needed. Negan is a smart, charismatic, strong, and most of all sane villain. Robert Kirkman has stated that if Negan was the main character instead of Rick they'd most likely end up in the same situation, but in reverse, in this episode, with Rick holding Lucille and Negan on his knees. The show and series needed a new, better villain, and Negan, played by Jeffery Dean Morgan, was the one for the job.

Negan's tactics and ability to put his enemies in a helpless position nails now great of a villain he is. He breaks our main hero, the determined, hard going, and powerful Rick Grimes into working for him. The spirits of all of Rick's followers is severely damaged or broken as well, making them feel like they have to follow Negan or face dire consequences. Yes, for television this is Red Wedding levels of graphic violence, but for Negan to be taken seriously it had to be done that way. And in the end it was successful (maybe a bit too successful) in doing so, making it one of my favorite episodes in the series.

#04 - Episode 501: No Sanctuary

After the phenomenal ending of season 4, season 5 started super strong with explosions, an escape, and a butt-ton of walkers! We Carol at her strongest, busting the new group out of Terminus with masterful skills of survival, we got Rick as his most leader-like, and the cast going their hardest in an insane situation. It’s no wonder this episode got the most viewings out of any Walking Dead episode, 17.28 million viewings to be exact. This episode has made The Walking Dead one of the most-watched drama series in television history!

The tactics made by the survivors as they escape Terminus feel lively, exciting, and smart. The use of cover, walkers, and the minimal tools they have around them works great! I felt on the edge of my seat throughout all the scenes in Terminus, having the now massive main cast working together in an epic escape while avoiding the invading walkers and the Terminus residents. And once they all escape we get the big reunion with the group and Carol, Tyreese, and baby Judith.

In the end, Rick proved to the people of Terminus that they were screwing with the wrong people.

#03 - Episode 312: Clear

One of the darkest episodes in the show, Clear hit me like a brick to the face. This episode brought back Morgan, the character who introduced us and the Rick Grimes to the world of Walkers, in one of the worst possible ways. From a caring father and a smart survivor to a broken man who only believes in killing, Morgan's reveal was a shock to many fans of the show. Those who read the comics knew he would return, but this reveal much sooner than in the comics and was still shocking to readers as they actually might have seen Morgan even more mentally unstable than in the comics. Almost killing Rick, he explains the pain of losing his son and of the lack on contact he got from Rick after season 1. All of it and more drove him to kill anything he can see, whether it’s dead or alive. Also, unlike the comics, where he grudgingly agrees to join Rick and the group, Morgan declines Rick’s offer to return to the prison, saying that he wants to be alone. The last time we see of him in the episode is him returning his clearing.

While Morgan was the main focus of the episode, Michonne began to change with this episode in a positive manner. When she first meets Rick she's a loner, not fully willing to side with Rick's group or bond with them. But in this episode we see her and Carl bond, opening her up more and eventually starting a friendship with Carl and Rick. Clear is just an amazing bonding episode between big characters, while touching on some of the worst outcomes a living person can be in during an apocalypse.

#02 - Episode 213: Beside the Dying Fire

After Shane's death, reanimation, and second death, what was going to top that for the season finale? A horde of walkers drawn in by Shane's gunshot. And with such little preparation the Greene Farm, which many of the group worked so hard to make their new home, was lost. The fight to defend the farm was a valiant and epic one, but the horde was too large and too many people were lost, so the sanctuary that had so much effort put into it was lost.

But that's not what fans remember the episode for. What they remember most from the episode is the final two scenes: First is the big reveal that no matter how you die you reanimate as a walker unless the brain is damaged. The reanimation was hinted at in the season 1 finale, but it was found out and confirmed in the previous episode. Second is Rick’s announcement of it to the group. They all could hardly believe he would keep such information away from them, which almost lead to the group breaking up. That was until Rick told everyone how Shane tried to kill him and that he himself was putting so much into keep all of them safe, even to the point of killing his best friend.

This was the episode that coined the word, “Ricktatorship,” meaning Rick taking full charge of the group/ people under his leadership in times of danger. This form of government was needed and proved successful in keeping everyone in the group alive in the times between seasons 2 and 3, and at times is still needed in order to keep order.

Here are some honorable mentions before the #01 episode:

Ep 207: Pretty Much Dead Already

Ep 713: Bury Me Here

Ep 610: The Next World

Ep 104: Vatos

Ep 211: Judge, Jury, Executioner

And my number one best episode of The Walking Dead is:

#01 - Episode 408: Too Far Gone

This was the episode that made me devote myself to the The Walking Dead franchise. It was the first time I really cried in response to TV show and it will always remain as one of the most impacting episodes of television. I loved Hershel Greene, played by Scott Wilson, as he was an old, yet strong character who, while still having a sense of religion, denies then later accepts the new ways of the world. Not just that but he's the only character on the show that has ever gotten a Walker bite and has survive the amputation of his bitten limb. So seeing him die was an absolute heartbreaker of a moment. I remember screaming at the television, trying to deny that could possibly happen. But it did and it still hurts to remember he's no longer a part of the show.

This also the final confrontation between Rick and the Governor, almost ending in Rick’s death if not for Michonne’s intervention. I mean the previous episodes had the Governor almost becoming a new, moral person, but this episode just prove to us that he was never going to change, no matter what he said. Meanwhile Rick, having become more peaceful, was doing his best to convince the enemy they would not have to fight. Maybe if the Governor was no in charge that would happen, but some madness took over the one-eyed monster and he slew Hershel Green without a second thought.

With a massive confrontation, a great loss in the prison and of people, and the failure to negotiate a possible, final peace between two old enemies, Too Far Gone horrified the audience and the characters of the show as if left deep scars that will never be fully gone.

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As my favorite show on television, The Walking Dead has done things that not even masterpieces like Game of Thrones have been able to do successfully. It's memorable, highly developed characters, both good and bad, have made this series a must-not-miss as it continues to explore a broken world and the attempts to have it fixed. It's definitely not perfect, but for a television show it's paving the way to even more epic series in the future!

In the next article I will be revealing my top ten worst episodes of The Walking Dead. Until then, watch out for walkers and keep enjoying the marathon on AMC!