2. Sophia
Most of season 2 was taken up by our group’s endless search for Carol’s daughter Sophia (Madison Lintz), who mysteriously went missing in the woods during the season premiere.
Basing themselves at Hershel’s family farm, the group scours the land far and wide in search of Sophia, all while Carol anxiously awaits the news. They use up a lot of resources on their expeditions, each time coming up short. It’s not until almost all hope is lost that they eventually find her, but when they do, it’s too late. Turns out Sophia was hidden, zombified, in Hershel’s barn all along. Right under their noses.
Carol’s reaction is tragic. After all this time holding out hope that her daughter found a way to survive, she finally breaks down in tears while Daryl tries to console her.
If there was one death that set a precedent for how brutal and unforgiving The Walking Dead would be, this was it.
1. Carl
The Walking Dead started with Rick searching for his son Carl. We spent seasons with this father-son pair as they faced the harsh new world together. The relationship between Rick and Carl was the beating heart of the show.
If there is one character death who the majority of fans will agree that it was a mistake to kill off, the answer would undoubtedly be Carl Grimes. But that’s exactly what happened in season 8, episode 9, “Honor.”
At least they decided to give Carl an honorable death. Carl died saving the people of Alexandria from an attack by Negan, unfortunately getting bitten by a zombie in the process. Seeing him have his final moments with Rick and his little sister Judith…there’s not a dry eye in the house.
What makes his death even more controversial is that Carl is important to the final arc of the comics. SPOILER: Rick Grimes is murdered in the Commonwealth, and then there’s a huge time jump where we see an older Carl wander around his own community. The show can’t do this, although they could sub in Judith in his place.
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