When most people think back to the start of The Walking Dead, they picture Rick waking up in that empty hospital, the eerie silence, and the chaos of Atlanta unfolding around him. You likely remember the tension, the walkers, and the first ragtag group of survivors trying to figure out how to survive the apocalypse.
But here’s something you probably forgot. The show didn’t actually start with all the characters we now think of as essential. In fact, two of the most legendary, fan-favorite survivors weren’t even in those first episodes. We're talking about the ones whose names and faces are instantly iconic. It’s wild to think about, right?
The heroes we'd come to root for, the ones who’d shaped some of the show’s most unforgettable moments, didn’t make their grand entrance until a little later. Stick with us, because we’re about to reveal who these two TWD legends are and when they finally make their first appearance in the hit zombie series.
Daryl Dixon and Carol Peletier are not in the first episodes of The Walking Dead
That’s right! Daryl Dixon, the crossbow-wielding survivor with a sharp edge, and Carol Peletier, the quietly resilient and surprisingly fierce mother-turned-warrior, were nowhere to be seen in the show’s earliest moments. Their absence might be hard to imagine now, given how central they became to the story. But for the first two episodes, the apocalypse unfolded without them.
They wouldn't make their first appearances until the third episode of the first season, titled "Tell It to the Frogs." In this episode, Rick finally connects with the larger Atlanta survivor group, and that’s when both Carol and Daryl make their memorable debuts.
Carol is first seen at the camp with her family. We learn that her marriage to her husband, Ed, is strained. Ed’s abusive tendencies are immediately apparent, with Jacqui making a comment about how she and the rest of the group have seen Carol with bruises before. In this episode, Ed even slaps Carol on the face for not following his instructions, showing just how controlling and volatile he was.
Just thinking back to that scene, it’s shocking to realize how much Carol has grown since then. What starts as fear and quiet endurance evolves into the fierce, strategic, and resilient survivor fans know and love today.
Then, there's Daryl. Daryl appears separately in this episode. After hearing Carl and Sophia's screams coming from the woods, Rick and the rest of the survivor group follow the sounds and encounter a walker eating the remains of a dead deer.
They kill the walker and start chatting for a bit. That's until they hear a sound coming from the bushes. Preparing for another threat, the group turns toward the noise, and that’s when Daryl steps out of the shadows. With his signature crossbow in hand, Daryl reveals to the others that he was tracking the deer in the woods. Following this scene, things go left at the camp after Rick reveals to Daryl that he left his brother, Merle, on a rooftop. However, they manage to quickly get the situation under control.
Like Carol, Daryl also goes through significant growth over the course of the series. When we first meet him, he has this tough exterior and a mysterious edge. He starts out as somewhat of an outsider. But over time, we start to see layers to his character. That initial tough, silent exterior slowly gives way to a deeply complex survivor who becomes one of the group’s most trusted and indispensable members.
While Daryl and Carol might not have been part of the show from the very first episode, it didn’t take long for them to become two of the most iconic and beloved characters in The Walking Dead. You can currently catch them in the spinoff series, Daryl Dixon. The fourth and final season will premiere on AMC sometime in 2026.