Posted in Wednesday Warriors

Daryl Dixon

Last week I wrote about Rick Grimes, the leader of the survivors of AMC’s The Walking Dead. This week, I thought I’d add to my Wednesday Warriors series by talking about Daryl, the pragmatist of the group. Not only does he have a way of making things work by taking the simple approach, but he’s also the character no one would want to lose if things in the series should end up going south.

Daryl Dixon
Daryl Dixon

There’s a running joke on the internet, more of a meme. It goes something like this:

“Everyone makes fun of the redneck until the zombie apocalypse.”

It may seem funny, and yes, I must admit that it does strike me as humorous. But it also contains an element of truth others would rather ignore. That truth being, rednecks know a lot more about survival than the rest of us could ever imagine knowing in our entire lifetime.

Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) draws the audience in with his quick use of his bow and the easy way about him as he hunts for squirrel. What would make most of us sick; Daryl will eat without a second thought. If a group goes into an abandoned house looking for food in the cupboards, he’d be the guy who’d scavenge in the basement in the hope of finding a mouse he could skewer for his evening meal.

Norman Reedus is Daryl Dixon
Norman Reedus is Daryl Dixon

I’m just getting started. His crossbow is his weapon of choice. Not only does he hunt with it, he also kills walkers with it efficiently. In some instances, he utilizes the arrow only and spikes walkers through the top of the head. Then, of course, he also can use the butt of the bow to ram it into a biter’s head, delivering an equally brutal blow as a means of silencing the undead.

He may act mean, and can sometimes go off on people, as if he were about to slap them silly, but he knows when they need his help. He’s had run-ins with folks who have wanted to kill him only for them to find later that he was willing to forgive and help. He has a conscience, and that’s a good thing. None of the survivors can dispute his loyalty. He’s always willing to help, and he is always willing to push the extreme to get things done.

Daryl Dixon may be a fictional character, yet his personality is recognizable as one who everyone knows. He may not be approachable, and he may seem aloof, but make no mistake, when things get out of hand he is there to rescue everyone in distress.

You can be sure of that.

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If you’ve watched The Walking Dead, what do you think of the character Daryl Dixon?

Author:

Jack Flacco is an author and the founder of Looking to God Ministries, an organization dedicated to spreading the Word of God through outreach programs, literature and preaching.

17 thoughts on “Daryl Dixon

  1. I like how Daryl’s storyline has developed over the past season. He started out as an outsider and now is such an integral part of the group. He’s not only the trusty warrior but is Rick’s right hand man as well.

  2. Daryl has become my Jesse Pinkman of TWD. If he dies, I’m out!
    I’m so glad you are enjoying TWD. It’s good stuff. Can’t wait for it to start up again!

  3. He seems to run on adrenaline, impulsive, a hothead. But he’s someone you’d definitely want watching your 6 o’clock position. & he doesn’t suffer fools or foolishness or incompetent types gladly.TWD would be lost without him.

  4. We’re all going thru TWD withdrawal, aren’t we?

    So here’s my faborite TWD question: who is unkillable as a charactor? Both in strength and popularity? Is anyone? IMO Darryl is officially unkillable.

  5. We have a standing this g in our house that we saw on a meme last summer ‘If Daryl dies, we riot’. Daryl is pretty bad a**. He is a very crucial member of their group. Not only does he have the talent of being very stealthy and discreet, he also is great with that crossbow and has taken a lot of waakers and saved the group and even some individuals, singlehandedly. Yes, Daryl is quite a valuable asset to their group. Without him, they would be sorely lacking in a lot of crucial areas.

  6. I did manage to watch the first season of this show. Really. 🙂 So at least I knew who Daryl was. lol

    I admire the survivalist mentality, myself. When it comes down to it, someone has to know how to stay alive and show the rest, so I think this kind of guy is a hero.

    And I got a crossbow for Christmas. Awesome engineering, that weapon. 🙂

  7. As much as I like Rick — he really is a great leader and more so now that he’s decided not to second-guess himself — I think I’d miss Daryl more. Tough, loyal and prepared to do whatever it takes.

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