In The Walking Dead, characters came and went over the eleven seasons the show ran, many of whom I have loved for years, only to watch them bite the dust one way or another. However, my favorite character has also shifted time and time again.
While Daryl (Norman Reedus) was obviously one of my favorite characters at one point, time has changed who I adore and who I think had the most potential.
But over the years, one character from my past has consistently stayed up there with some of my favorites, mainly because I truly connected with them back then. This might surprise you, but it’s actually Beth Greene (Emily Kinney) — and I’ll never forgive the show for doing her dirty.
Beth started weak and became strong in a certain way
The biggest characteristic I truly loved about Beth is that she is the best example of someone starting very weak and then slowly shifting to fit the new environment she was forced to live in. I can’t just say that she gave up and died, because she did try to do that. In season 2, she attempted to take her own life after the loss of her mother because she truly felt that all hope was lost in the world.
She quickly changed her mind and lives, thanks to the quick action from her family (and the fact that she didn’t cut deep enough to kill herself and truly end it). But from there, we start to see a shift as she begins to take more responsibility.
Season 3 is where we really start to see that, as Beth becomes something of a surrogate mother to Judith after Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies) dies in childbirth. She makes sure she is warm, safe, and fed, especially when Rick (Andrew Lincoln) is off on his bender after Lori dies.
Season 4, however, is when we really start to see her open up more and her character expand.
She experiences real character growth after the prison falls
Season 4 of The Walking Dead is often considered one of the best seasons, mainly because we don’t see the group together for eight episodes. They’re all off trying to survive and somehow reunite after the prison fell, and Beth is stuck with Daryl.
During this time, we see these two genuinely connect, even if they come from two completely different pasts. Daryl makes it his mission to keep her safe until they get back with the rest of the group, and we see a serious friendship develop between them because he helped her grow in a way that she did him. She helped him face a lot of his past trauma, and he made her stronger in a way—which we see in season 5.
This character change was so drastic that a whole slew of shippers started shipping Daryl and Beth. Which, yes, isn't the most realistic relationship and is pretty problematic given the age difference, but there have been far worse relationships in the comics, so at the time, I could totally see it.
However, after she was kidnapped, we knew it would involve a major storyline in season 5, until it didn’t. And it was squandered.
Beth’s death was meant to be shocking — and it ruined everything
This series hinted that Beth is trying to be strategic, using the strength she learned from being on the run and her kindness as she tries to help Noah (Tyler James Williams) escape from the hospital she was taken to. But because of a strange decision at the end, when she was just about to leave, she stabbed Dawn (Christine Woods) in the shoulder.
And then Beth was killed.
The shot that rang out in Beth’s head from Dawn’s reflexes still haunts me to this day, and it annoys the heck out of me that it happened. Her character was finally moving in the right direction, showing that after all her shame and depression, she was beginning to become someone stronger. And then they just… killed her.
It started a trend of horrible deaths that made no sense to the plot, but I’ll always recall hers because it really did her story dirty. It doesn’t matter that Emily Kinney was brought back for an alternate reality episode years later. It’s a wound that still stings.
She could have become a major character, at least for a few more seasons, but they ended up killing her, and that just… bothers me. Deeply. And I don’t believe I’ll ever quite get over it. I'll always remember her as the group's songbird before they shot her down."
You can stream all 11 seasons of The Walking Dead on Netflix.
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