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Ranking every episode from The Walking Dead season 1

By Adam Carlson

(L-R) Shane Walsh (Jon Bernthal), Dale (Jeffrey DeMunn), Lori Grimes (Sarah Wayne Callies), Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), T-Dog (Robert 'IronE' Singleton), Carl Grimes (Chandler Riggs), Andrea (Laurie Holden), Glenn (Steven Yeun), Sophia (Madison Lintz), Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus), Carol (Melissa Suzanne McBride), Jacqui (Jeryl Prescott) and Dr. Edwin Jenner (Noah Emmerich)
(L-R) Shane Walsh (Jon Bernthal), Dale (Jeffrey DeMunn), Lori Grimes (Sarah Wayne Callies), Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), T-Dog (Robert 'IronE' Singleton), Carl Grimes (Chandler Riggs), Andrea (Laurie Holden), Glenn (Steven Yeun), Sophia (Madison Lintz), Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus), Carol (Melissa Suzanne McBride), Jacqui (Jeryl Prescott) and Dr. Edwin Jenner (Noah Emmerich) /
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The Walking Dead; AMC; Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes
The Walking Dead; AMC; Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes /

1. “Days Gone Bye”

  • Episode number: 101
  • Original airdate: October 31, 2010
  • Major debuts: Rick Grimes, Morgan Jones, and Shane Walsh.

There is just something too special about the series premiere of The Walking Dead to not put it at the top of the list. Seeing Rick Grimes waking up from his coma in an Atlanta hospital only to discover the world was filled with flesh-eating monsters set the stage for a show that is still going on a decade later.

Getting a glimpse at who Rick was before the apocalypse was interesting. It helped to establish him not only as a capable survivor but a character with layers that fans could get behind for many, many episodes to come.

Highlights from the episode:

  • The journey. Seeing Rick fight against the unknown on a mission to find his family wasn’t a long journey, but it was enjoyable to set the stage for a reunion and allowed him to meet a lot of interesting people along the way.
  • Setting the tone. This one episode put the entire world of The Walking Dead in front of fans for them to give or take. Thankfully, watching the scope of the show slowly expand while learning about the characters was enough to draw fans in for the long haul.

Lowlights from the episode:

  • Many continuity errors. While fans love the bunny slipper girl, there are just some things the show tried in the series premiere that just didn’t stick with the series. Walkers who had memories were erased, and they became mindless monsters as the show went on. This was especially clear with Jenny Jones, who seemed to want to get back into her old house using the doorknob.

How would you rank the episodes from season 1 of The Walking Dead? Are there any other big positives or negatives from each episode that would cause you to rank them higher or lower? Let us know in the comments.

Next. TWD season 1: All named character deaths. dark

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