It's hard to believe that AMC's The Walking Dead franchise is 15 years old. What started as one man's journey to survive in a world so different to the one he remembered expanded into one of the most successful TV franchises in entertainment history. What's even more impressive is that the vast majority of that success - and the vast majority of that run - took place on the one single show, as the mothership series ran for an incredible 11 seasons, concluding its run in 2022 with an emotional series finale.
But there was more to come from the TWD Universe, as the franchise lives on to this day via multiple spinoffs centred on many of the beloved characters who made the original show so special (alongside some new favorites, too!). Although we're currently in the TWD spinoff era, these aren't the first offshoots that the franchise has produced either, as The Walking Dead has been thrilling its fans with spinoffs since 2015.
Which one of them reigns supreme as the best of them all? And which ones fall a little bit flat when compared to the best? Let's take this opportunity to celebrate the legacy of The Walking Dead by reflecting on all of its spinoffs and ranking them.
6. Tales of The Walking Dead
It's hard to believe that Tales of the Walking Dead was one of the two spinoffs announced to take place as part of the franchise's new era after the original series concluded, because for some reason or another, it ended up premiering while the show was still on. And, as a result of that, it has been somewhat forgotten about, shut out from the new era of spinoffs.
Tales was an incredibly intriguing premise and it's one that could still work if Scott Gimple and co at AMC wanted to revive it, because the idea of an anthology series set in the world of this raging zombie apocalypse is thoroughly compelling - especially if it wanted to focus on different characters at different times throughout the apocalypse, spotlighting a snapshot of their lives. The actual product was a little hit and miss in that department, with the first episode starting things off on a high and the second installment feeling a little more American Horror Story than TWD Universe.
I'd love to see a second season of this one because the potential is there. But for now, the five-part miniseries is just feeling like that: Unrealized potential.
5. The Walking Dead: World Beyond
As The Walking Dead's first spinoff was primarily focused on showing us the early days of the apocalypse, its second attempted to showcase the future. Focusing on a group of young adults who grew up in the midst of the zombie apocalypse and never knew any different, it's definitely the most unique of the TWD spinoffs. It's also arguably the most forgotten of them. That would be pretty harmless if it wasn't also focused on the Civic Republic Military, who were designed to be the central villain of the franchise - and, in many ways, the endgame it was all building towards.
The idea of a YA Walking Dead show actually sounds pretty fascinating on paper, but The Walking Dead: World Beyond failed to capitalize on that. It wasn't edgy, fun, or even all that interesting, but it wanted to be all of the above and unfortunately failed in its attempt. The central characters came off as contrived and infuriating at times when the supporting characters were honestly the more interesting ones - and, for that reason, they should have had more of the focus.
In World Beyond's defense, it picks up after a very slow start and the more of an ensemble show that it becomes, the stronger it gets. It's just a frustratingly missed opportunity to showcase that something very different could have worked in a franchise renowned for sticking to its roots.
4. Fear The Walking Dead
When we talk about frustrating shows, there is none more frustrating than Fear The Walking Dead. The original TWD spinoff, if Fear had run for just three seasons, it might have found itself at the top of this list, for the prequel series that it was designed to be was absolutely brilliant. Flawed at times, sure, but brilliant nonetheless.
From the complex character journey that Nick Clark goes on, struggling with addiction while trying to stay alive in a zombie apocalypse, to the extreme lengths that his mother Madison is willing to go to in order to keep him alive, Fear The Walking Dead understood its assignment, introducing characters every bit as vivid as those in the original series while also operating with its own unique tone. And then they bafflingly decided to strip it all away to produce a bland copy of The Walking Dead without any of the charm (or the interesting characters).
"Killing off" Madison and replacing most of the cast with a host of dull new characters led by the empty shell of a character that TWD's Morgan had become, Fear was unrecognizable within half a season. By season 5, it was unwatchable, and in spite of a few decent comebacks throughout the remainder of its run, this dull companion series never reached the heights of the show's original format. Not even bringing back Madison and writing off Morgan could save Fear from itself. It should have ended after season 3.
3. The Walking Dead: Dead City
The first of the new wave of TWD Universe spinoffs, The Walking Dead: Dead City reunites old enemies Maggie Rhee and Negan in a new story that takes them to Manhattan, allowing the franchise to explore New York City for the first time ever. That's not the only thing that's different, as Dead City is set in 2029, deep in the heart of the apocalypse, allowing it to showcase how unsettling this world still is - 19 years after the dead first rose.
Even though this show's very existence hinges upon an old rivalry, it manages to find plenty of new, original feelings through its larger-than-life setting. Within minutes of its premiere episode, you can feel the shifts in time, tone, and energy as Dead City adopts a more Mad Max-esque feel to highlight the later stages of the apocalypse. The visuals of the broken down city looming over Maggie and Negan are extremely impressive too, as the show goes out of its way to highlight the dangers of an uncharted territory like this one. It's very effective, particularly in the first season.
Dead City does struggle on occasion due to its overreliance on reigniting a feud that had ended in the series finale of The Walking Dead and its second season didn't hit the same strides that its first did, but the show is a thrilling addition to the TWD Universe that shows us all that there is a world outside of those same long highways the original series spent 11 seasons on.
2. The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live is undoubtedly the spinoff that fans were most excited for. A six-part miniseries designed to complete the stories of Rick Grimes and Michonne, it saw the TWD returns of Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira for the first time since they left the original series in seasons 9 and 10 respectively (outside of those cameo appearances in the series finale). It was also the evolution of the originally-planned trilogy of Rick Grimes movies.
The spinoff catches us up on Rick's life since he was captured by the Civic Republic Military, his attempts to escape back to Alexandria, and eventually his submission into recruitment for them. It also showed us how Michonne painstakingly searched for him after leaving Alexandria too, and the lengths she was willing to go to in order to find her man. The moment in which she does is, by far, one of the most satisfying, powerful moments in the entire TWD franchise - one that was worth the five-year wait.
The Ones Who Live is one of the most powerful installments in the legendary franchise, blending high quality drama with that gritty action that TWD is known for. Although a somewhat questionably-paced finale leaves the final act feeling a bit rushed, it holds up as one of the finest pieces of television that The Walking Dead franchise has ever produced.
1. The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon
It goes without saying that the biggest surprise of the TWD Universe era has been The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon. As much loved as Norman Reedus' gruff warrior is, he was a part of the original series for all 11 seasons, so it wasn't clear how Daryl's own spinoff would be different. It wasted very little time in making that clear.
The first season was the breath of fresh air that the franchise needed, bringing Daryl to France for a brand new kind of adventure. In a bid to restart the revival of humanity, a convent of nuns task him with protecting a special child named Laurent, and the pair bond very quickly. However, new threats - some of whom also want the boy - loom large and new types of walkers promise intriguing changes to the TWD lore.
Although it falters somewhat in its second season, the reintroduction of Melissa McBride's Carol is a highlight as she and Reedus bring their signature Carol and Daryl energy to the spinoff, reminding us all why they had the best partnership on the original series. And the third season, which takes the show to Spain, is a return to form, offering up a healthy mix of zombie action and in-depth drama that sets itself apart from the kind of stories that its parent series covered.
Daryl Dixon is, without question, the best kind of spinoff, maintaining elements that fans loved about The Walking Dead while offering up its own unique identity at the same time. And that makes it the best of the TWD spinoffs.