The Walking Dead made so many major changes from Robert Kirkman's comic series that the biggest zombie show of all time is based on. At times during its 11-season run on AMC, the show didn't even feel like the comics' story at all.
One of the biggest changes from The Walking Dead comics actually created the show's best character: Daryl Dixon, played by Norman Reedus.
A lot of fans know that Daryl was not a character from The Walking Dead comics. Reedus, who auditioned for the role of Merle, was so loved by Frank Darabont, Robert Kirkman, and the creative team that they created a character for him and worked him into the series.
Reedus told the story in an interview with The Wall Street Journal more than a decade ago. He revealed that he read Merle's lines, knowing that Michael Rooker had already been cast. He just wanted to be part of the project.
"And, then, I went back to New York, and they had me do it again for Merle's lines," Reedus said. "Then, when I left, I got a phone call that Franke created a new character. So, that's how that happened."
The rest, as they say, is history.
Daryl became one of the most beloved and best characters in The Walking Dead. He stayed alive through a lot of adversity through 11 seasons. AMC and fans loved him so much that Daryl, along with his partner in crime, Carol, played Melissa McBride, got his own spinoff, The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon. It's the best and most successful of any of The Walking Dead spinoffs since Fear the Walking Dead.
What makes Daryl such an incredible character
Now, there are a lot of great characters in The Walking Dead. I'm partial to Glenn (Steven Yeun), Michonne (Danai Gurira), Rick (Andrew Lincoln), at times, and Carol, of course. Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) is a terrific villain, even though I hated him when he was introduced. Daryl, in my opinion, stands out above the rest.
There's an argument that Daryl, because he was created specifically for the show and filled a massive void, wasn't bound to the confines of Robert Kirkman's comics. Of course, there were so many changes to the original characters from Kirkman's vision, but Daryl feels like a blank canvas or, like, play-doh. His character could be molded to offer the perfect solution at the perfect time.
While Rick is the focus of most of the series, especially early in the series, Daryl is more of a slow burn. He's a man of principle, despite his background. He genuinely cares for those around him, and he's never unwilling to put his life on the line to save another. He has his demons and flaws, of course, too. There are few characters as stubborn as Daryl, which gets him in trouble throughout the series. In the end, though, he's just a good dude in a time when there aren't many good dudes at all.
Daryl Dixon proves what's possible when adaptations elevated the source material
With so many TV shows and movies based on other works, notably books and comics, these days, there's a lot of pushback when there are key changes made for creative reasons. The Walking Dead has been at the center of this debate for years. Some of those changes along the way were absolutely the wrong decisions. You can look at Andrea's death, Carl's death, and so many others.
Daryl Dixon is proof that some of those changes were absolutely the correct decisions. Daryl is such a great character, and he unlocked so many options for the main group because he's such a protector. He would have been fine on his own, surviving the wilderness and walkers, for as long as he wanted. Instead, he chose to ally with Rick's group, and he continued to choose them every day. Did he lose his way at times? There's not one character who didn't. Even as far back as the Sophia storyline in the second season, Daryl elevates that reveal because he spent so much time and was so committed to finding her alive.
In a lot of ways, it's hard to imagine The Walking Dead without Daryl. He's the glue that holds the group together when it became fractured time and time again. He becomes, basically, Rick's best friend, and that bond continues to this day. It's why fans are so convinced that Rick will return to The Walking Dead universe in Daryl Dixon season 4.
It's so interesting because Daryl became, to Rick, everything that Shane Walsh was not. They have each other's back, basically, the entire way, although their paths veer away from each other. I have a feeling that Daryl and Rick's journeys will lead them back to each other.
And, it might never have happened if Reedus hadn't read Merle's lines and Darabont and Kirkman didn't have the flexibility and willingness to bring a character like this into the fold.
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