History Awesome / TheWalkingDead

* Issues 125 and 126, which conclude the All Out War arc, depicting the climactic show down between Rick, his allies, and [[BigBad Negan's]] forces. After Negan demands surrender, Rick comes out from the Hilltop to parlay and hits Negan with a positively devastating TheReasonYouSuckSpeech wherein he calls Negan out for being a world-class {{hypocrite}} and essentially says to him "Hey, maybe if you'd stop being such a murderous prick and actually live up to your [[IDidWhatIHadToDo rhetoric]] about rebuilding civilization, maybe we could actually work together and do that instead of killing each other like idiots. But even better? Against all odds and expectations, [[spoiler:Negan actually [[HeelRealization realizes that Rick is right]] and starts seeing things his way. Then, as soon as his guard is down, Rick stabs him in the neck and triggers the ambush that (in part) ends the war in his favor.]]

* Issues 125 and 126, which conclude the All Out War arc, depicting the climactic show down between Rick, his allies, and [[BigBad Negan's]] forces. After Negan demands surrender, Rick comes out from the Hilltop to parlay and hits Negan with a positively devastating TheReasonYouSuckSpeech wherein he calls Negan out for being a world-class {{hypocrite}} and essentially says to him "Hey, maybe if you'd stop being such a [[Jerkass murderous prick]] and actually live up to your [[IDidWhatIHadToDo rhetoric]] about rebuilding civilization, maybe we could actually work together and do that instead of killing each other like idiots. But even better? Against all odds and expectations, [[spoiler:Negan actually [[HeelRealization realizes that Rick is right]] and starts seeing things his way. Then, as soon as his guard is down, Rick stabs him in the neck and triggers the ambush that (in part) ends the war in his favor.]]

** But that's not even the best part. [[spoiler:After finally defeating Negan and ending his reign of terror, Rick refuses to let his hated enemy die and actually insists that they save his life. Why? So that they can deliver him to legitimate justice, prove that the new society he's building can be humane to its enemies, and [[CruelMercy so that Negan will be forced to watch the new world he envisioned thrive without him.]] After enduring two years of constant tragedy and brutal loss, after watching himself slowly [[HeWhoFightsMonsters lose his humanity and become little more than a savage, ruthless animal, even a murderer, Rick actually turns it all around. Rather than simply continuing to perpetuate the cycle of violence that he had previously surrendered to, Rick shows immense personal growth and vision, and triumphantly [[HeelFaceTurn reclaims the nobility of spirit]] that he had long ago abandoned.]] Why is this arguably the most awesome of all The Walking Dead's awesome moments? Because after more than 100 issues of brutal, unrelenting cynicism, the story and our hero suddenly rise from the muck to defiantly embrace idealism and optimism despite a world gone mad.

* In the ''No Way Out'' arc, Rick is holding off the zombies alone so that. He's being overwhelmed. Cut to each of the members of the group seeing him fighting alone, and each one of them going out to help fight them. In a series devoid of optimism, this doubles as a CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming.

* Tyreese wades into the middle of a bunch of zombies after acting suicidal all day. He's later discovered alive, having taken out all of them, and casually greets the people who find him.

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[[folder:Comic]]

[[folder:TV show]]
!!Season 1
-->'''Rick''': All I am anymore is a man looking for his wife and son. Anyone who gets in the way of that is gonna lose.
* The last moments of the premiere when Rick, after getting surrounded by zombies, hides in a tank. Over the radio, a voice says "Hey dumbass, you in the tank, are you feeling cozy now?" Music plays as it cuts to a camera above the tank moving up to show just how many zombies are around it.
* Glenn racing out of Atlanta in the sports car is certainly awesome.
** Doubles as a CMOF.
* No matter what you think of Shane, (and even though it's implied that the beating is more of a way to vent his frustrations about Lori) his NoHoldsBarredBeatdown of Ed for abusing his wife and trying to hurt the other women is a ''deeply'' satisfying scene.
* Proving that even asshole dickheads can be awesome, Merle cuts off his own hand to escape being cuffed to a rooftop, takes out at least two walkers -- [[IncrediblyLamePun singlehandedly]] -- while bleeding heavily, then cauterizes his wound before leaving the building he was trapped on from an upper floor and making his way out of town. Double the awesome when [[FridgeBrilliance you realize he would have had to do this all quietly]] so as not to attract zombies.
!!Season 2
* In "What Lies Ahead", Lori's defense of Rick after some of the others start to question his leadership, asking if any of them think they could do a better job.
* Maggie riding on horse back and cracking a walker in the skull to save Andrea.
* With his snarky attitude, cool head in intense situations, badass crossbow, and being ''just'' crazy enough to be useful in a zombie outbreak, Daryl has proven himself to be a walking, talking awesome machine.
** In "Chupacabra", a downed zombie gets up and starts growling. Without breaking stride, Daryl mutters, "Shut up," and shoots an arrow through its skull.
** In the rest of that episode, he falls off a cliff and gets impaled on a crossbow bolt, wakes up to see two zombies, beats one to death with a ''stick'', then pulls an arrow ''out of his own side'' and kills the other one. And then he [[spoiler: climbs up that cliff, all while still bleeding out the hole in his side]]. Not ''quite'' as impressive as the above, but still very awesome.
* Glenn gets one in the episode "Secrets", taking out a zombie solo with the help of a piece of store shelving.
** In the same episode, Andrea getting over her mental block regarding moving targets and mowing down several zombies until Shane has to yell at her that they can just leave now.
** Earlier, when Shane is training Andrea to shoot a moving target, he angrily starts telling her that she needs to lock down her emotions or she'll never be able to make a clean shot. Andrea rebuts that he's losing control of his emotions too, so Shane draws, aims and bulls-eyes the swinging stump in less than a second.
* Shane finally breaks everyone out of their complacency in the mid-Season 2 finale, showing Hershel that the Walkers are dead, killing all the zombies in the barn with the help of Glenn, T-Dog, Andrea, and Daryl, and [[spoiler: finally figuring out what happened to Sophia]]
** What really makes the scene is ''how'' Shane demonstrates that the Walkers are dead, by repeatedly shooting one of the ones that Hershel is attempting to capture in what would be increasingly vital areas to a living human, almost screaming a demand to know why the Walker is still moving after every shot.
* Andrea finishing off the walkerfied Annete with a [[SinisterScythe scythe]] in the opening of "Nebraska", complete with with meaty crunch.
* Rick's crazy awesome quickdraw against the two creepy randoms from out of town. As soon as the first guy goes for his gun, Rick draws, shoots him in the head, turns and puts two in the big guy so fast he can only fire his shotgun in the air uselessly. Rick then finishes big guy off with a shot to the head.
* Hershel shooting a gunman at night after he fired at Glenn, weighing up whether he could spare the attacker before he finally put him down.
* Hershel telling Shane to shut up, saying that the only reason Shane's still on the farm is because Rick persuaded Hershel not to kick him off, but that he would if Shane pushed him any further.
* Rick and Shane finally throwing down during "18 Miles Out".
* Rick saving [[spoiler: Shane from the bus]], by leaning out of the window while another survivor drives, headshotting zombies as he passes. When they burst the head of a zombie like a melon by driving over it, the moment just becomes all the sweeter.
* Rick headshotting a zombie through the mouth of one he already killed.
* The ending to "Better Angels" is HolyShitQuotient to the max. [[spoiler: First, Rick killing Shane in a self-defensive move, then an EPIC shot of a GIANT swarm of walkers coming toward the farm, all the while awesome music cues in the background.]]
** The brutal zombie killing in the opening when the gang goes out hunting, including Andrea taking one out with a pitchfork through the jaw.
* Andrea being saved by the hooded stranger at the end of the Season 2 finale. Fans of the comic will automatically identify this person as [[spoiler: Michonne.]]
* Before this point, Andrea proves that she's made it to badassery by escaping through the horde of walkers and escaping them on foot for, based on the timeline, ''at least 12 hours''. By the time the above action happens, she's only still not killing them because she'd apparently run out of ammo and was too exhausted to continue. The actress playing Andrea mentioned on the ''Talking Dead'' show that actually filming the scene was almost as long and gruelling.
* The final shot of Season 2 showing that the group is close to a prison, promising that the next season will adapt what is easily the comic's most popular storyline.
* Also from the finale, [[BadassGrandpa Hershel]] picking off walker after walker with a shotgun, never flinching and never falling back, because he's just ''that'' determined to protect his farm. He only retreats when he runs out of ammo and Rick convinces him that staying is no longer an option.
* Speaking of Rick, there's also him and Carl leading a part of the herd into the barn and then setting them on fire. If nothing else, this is a CMOA for production -- that last shot of the burning barn is just epic.

!!Season 3
* Season 3 has shown that even though the [[FanNickname Ricktatorship]] has begun, the group is tighter than ever because of it. Using military formations and following Rick's orders to the letter [[spoiler:allowed the group to take the prison, almost hassle free.]]
** This is exemplified by their clearing of an infested house without a word, complete with Carl going point man and headshotting a zombie.
** Some highlights included Maggie finding a way to kill the armored walkers. T-Dog and Glenn's faces say it all. Even Maggie can't help herself and grinning ear-to-ear, excitedly goes, "Did y'all just see that?!?"
** The next day, we also see Hershel suiting up and joining the main fighters as they try to clear out more of the prison, and almost nobody objects to the group's resident BadassGrandpa joining the battle.
* Just in case you forgot how badass her introduction at the end of the second season was, our first sight of Michonne in Season 3 has her lop two zombies heads off, with one swing of her katana.
* After [[spoiler: Hershel has been bitten on the leg by a walker]], Rick acts quickly and decisively, incredibly calm at the time, to amputate his leg with a nearby axe. He had literally seconds to save his friend's life, and managed to achieve the first on screen saving of a bite victim.
* [[IronicEcho "Shit Happens"]]. [[spoiler: Cue Rick delivering a machete to Tomas' skull.]]
* Oscar gets one when Rick is pointing a gun at his head and asking why they should let him live after [[spoiler:Tomas and Andrew tried to kill Rick.]] In comparison to Axel, who was sobbing and pleading for his life, Oscar remains completely calm and tells Rick that he will not beg for his life, and for Rick to do whatever he thinks he has to do. Considering the fact that he had just seen the man [[spoiler:drive a machete into Tomas' head]], that must have taken some BrassBalls. And it works!
* [[spoiler: One-legged]] Hershel beaning an advancing Walker with his crutches.
* When a desperate Rick, Glenn and Daryl run into the center of the prison [[spoiler: after Andrew opens it up ]], Daryl takes out a walker by leaping at it, grabbing its shoulders and driving a knife into its head in one swift movement. This is immediately followed by Glenn slicing a zombie's head in two sideways.
** Now in [[http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_md1kpdoOfr1qd6a26o7_250.gif GIF form, to showcase the awesomeness fully.]]
* Oscar gets another one when he [[spoiler: saves Rick by shooting Andrew in the eye, having already broken up the fight by throwing a big barrel at Andrew.]]
* Having been bitten, [[spoiler:an unarmed T-Dog]] [[DyingMomentOfAwesome throws himself]] into a pair of walkers to buy Carol a way to escape.
* Rick's solo rampage through the prison with an axe after [[spoiler:Lori's death.]].
* Michonne letting out six walkers from their cage in Woodbury, then slicing and dicing them up with her katana, ''Film/KillBill'' style.
* Michonne knows that she's being followed by Merle and some men, so she kills a zombie and uses its parts to spell a message to leave her alone. When they don't, she drops down from a tree nearby and kills two of them with her katana, running off with Merle only being able to land a flesh wound on her.
* While roaming around the prison, Daryl, Oscar, and Carl all step inside a cell. When they hear a telltale Walker moan, they all three whip around in a flash, and [[NoKillLikeOverkill utterly annihilate]] said Walker.
* In "When The Dead Come Knocking" after Glenn has been [[spoiler:kidnapped by Merle, Glenn has a walker thrown at him while he's tied to a chair. Glenn ''kicks its ass'', ultimately finishing it off with a broken piece of the chair]].
** In a similar situation in the same episode, Maggie [[spoiler:is forced by the Governor to take her top off. He then bends her over a table and makes it seem like he is going to rape her. Maggie's response? "Do what you have to do and ''go to hell''." The Governor almost immediately backs off]].
* Michonne [[spoiler:[[EyeScream eye-shanking The Governor]]]] with a piece of glass.
* Glenn tearing the bones out of a walker's arm for makeshift weaponry.
* Carl going into the tunnels ''alone'' and saving Tyrese's group, then immediately locking them apart from the others until they can be properly screened to be trustworthy.
* A minor one comes from Carol in Season 3, when she catches friendly-yet-shady prisoner Axel hitting on [[JailBait seventeen-year old Beth]]. Without any hesitation, she gets him away from her and tells him, in no uncertain terms, to keep his pervy mitts off Beth. Keep in mind that this is a woman who started the series as an abused, timid housewife, and now she's threatening a felon who might very well be lying (as far as the group knows) about why he was in jail in the first place.
* Rick and Maggie pulling a BigDamnHeroes by storming Woodbury's arena with assault rifles and tear gas, completely taking out most of the town and causing walkers to be released in the chaos. Merle and Daryl then easily make a break for it, having been show-fighting to delay the Governor just shooting them.
** During the chaos, Daryl grabs his crossbow from the Mook using it and ''smacks him in the face'' with it.
*** Merle was the one who smacked the Mook with his metal plating "hand" as they were running away.
* Rick pistol whipping [[spoiler:Merle]], so he'll shut up.
* The Governor casually taking out walkers when Rick's group attacks, and later, dealing with a member of his town who'd been bitten, while everyone just looks on. He strolls up, puts a bullet in the man's brain, and then strolls away. Without blinking.
* Glenn throwing an attacking walker to the ground without a second's hesitation, then taking out some pent-up anger by stomping it's head into ''paste''.
* "Home" is basically Daryl awesomeness everywhere. From yanking an attacking Walker out of a van, and ''crushing'' his head with the tailgate, telling off Merle, and [[spoiler:saving Rick from a Walker with a headshot]].
** To clarify, Daryl almost single-handedly saves a family of four strangers from a pack of walkers, and then threatens to put an arrow through Merle's neck when the latter threatens the family and tries to steal their supplies. He then tells Merle that he no longer needs him, and decides to return to Rick's group with or without him.
-->'''Daryl''': You lost your hand because you're a simple-minded piece of shit!
* It's hard to admit, but the Governor's assault on the prison was cool. Sneaking a man onto a guardtower and more into the trees, he then pumped the prison full of bullets, both as an onslaught and to attract walkers. The final piece of his plan is to have a man in light body armor drive a truck through the prison gate and release its cargo: a pack of walkers. Result: [[spoiler: Axel]] dead; Rick, Merle and Daryl trapped outside the prison; his enemies' severely depleted on ammo and their main defense against walkers ruined.
* Andrea walking through a horde of walkers with her nicknamed guardian angel -- a walker whose arms and jaw she removed with a hatchet and a stone, and directed by a pole -- to get into the prison. Her only weapon is the hatchet, and she's doing all of this to secure the beginnings of a peace treaty, without The Governor's knowledge. Say what you will about her, but that takes balls.
* Michonne giving Andrea a {{The Reason You Suck Speech}}, about how much she willingly deluded herself about the kind of man the Governor was, to the point of betraying her friend.
-->'''Michonne''': You chose a warm bed over your friend.
* Carol telling Andrea to have sex with the Governor, then stab him while he's sleeping.
* Carl sneaking up on [[spoiler: Morgan]] and putting a bullet in his side.
* In a dark sort of way, the sheer crazy defenses [[spoiler: Morgan]] put into his base. He places rats in cages on barrels surrounded by stakes to attract, impale and trap walkers. He attacks outsiders from rooftops with a scoped assault rifle, a metal helmet and a bulletproof vest. He places a trip wire in his house that releases a fireaxe to swing through curtains into an intruder. And best of all, the "welcome" mat on his porch covers a pit filled with stakes.
** That's the part that makes him awesome. Want to know what makes him CrazyAwesome? The door at the bottom of the stairs says "turn around". The sheet says "not shitting you". The axe says "told ya".
* Michonne and Carl fighting their way out of a zombie-filled cafe. And when they have to leave behind the reason Carl was there in the first place, [[spoiler:the one remaining picture of Lori]], Michonne tells him to just stay there, and somehow returns with it in just seconds.
* Daryl and Martinez's zombie killing competition. Martinez effortlessly caves in walkers' skulls with his baseball bat, then Daryl shows off with his crossbow and steals a kill from Martinez by throwing a knife into a walker's skull.
* Andrea finally being unable to hide from the kind of person the Governor is after learning about his sexualized mental torture of Maggie. Her decision to stay behind with them seems to be some sort of "inside man", with the hope of saving at least some innocent lives, and [[spoiler: the next episode shows her damn near succeeding in helping the prison team out.]]
* In a subtle sort of way, Milton revealing that he's compiling a history of what happened after the apocalypse, including asking the prison survivors what happened to them and details about Hershel surviving his [[spoiler: bite and amputation]]. He's a man who can completely look past present difficulties, and try to look forward to building a culture for tomorrow.
* The entirety of Andrea [[spoiler: fleeing Woodbury to warn the prison. She takes down three walkers while pinned to a tree and with just an itty bitty knife, and then manages to unleash over a dozen on The Governor when he had her cornered in a warehouse. Hell, she made it to the prison, and the sheer effort of doing that all on foot shows off her Badass status. Of course, that it fails on account of The Governor being MadeOfIron was just plain cruel, but her quest no less awesome.]]
* The Governor taking on a dozen walkers swarming him alone in a warehouse, armed with a shovel and a pistol.
* [[spoiler: Milton]] burning the walkers in the pit to prevent The Governor from unleashing them on the prison.
* Tyreese putting Allen in his place by suspending him over a walker pit, after the latter has spent all his screen time acting like a complete shit.
* Michonne. Bound to a beam by [[spoiler:Merle]],, she kicks a walker down then stomps its head in, then beheads another advancing Walker with the wire she was tied up with.
* Merle takes a moment to relax, sipping whiskey in a car listening to {{Music/Motorhead}}, with walkers swarming around his car. So he then [[spoiler:lures a huge cadre of Walkers to the Governor's encampment at the mill, and guns down several of his men while disguising his shots among his foes' gunfire. He comes very, very close to killing the Governor.]]
* [[spoiler:Merle's last words after getting beat down by the Governor, having two fingers bit off, and moments away from death?]]
-->'''Merle:'''[[spoiler: [[FamousLastWords I ain't gonna beg!]]]]
* Hershel leaving a highlighted Bible verse for the Governor to read in the prison in "Welcome to the Tombs".
--> "And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation."
* [[spoiler: Milton's]] very calm instructions to [[spoiler: Andrea]] when he's been fatally stabbed in the abdomen, and they've been locked in a room together while the latter's been handcuffed to a chair.
-->[[spoiler: '''Milton''']]: "And when you get free you are going to find something very sharp and you are going to stab me in the head, that is what you are going to do."
-->[[spoiler: '''Milton''']]: "I am still here, I am still alive. You need to hurry…
* Carol slicing a zombie's head in two with a machete, and Beth skewering another's on a bar, when they're closing the gates.
* The prison group's counterattack on Woodbury's last attack on the prison. They let the latter storm into the prison, wasting plenty of ammunition taking out the zombies in the yard. Then they lure them into the corridors which haven't been completely cleared of walkers, then flashbang them, fire their rifles and set off the prison alarms, having clearly learnt from [[spoiler: Andrew's attack]]. The result: the Woodbury group run out of the prison completely demoralised and panicked, leaving behind men, several of their own dead and weapons, while Glenn and Maggie fire on them to encourage them, all while decked out in riot squad protection.

!!Season 4
* In the Season 4 premiere, the group is searching an abandoned supermarket, when suddenly, the ceiling caves in because of the crashed helicopter and ''dozens'' of zombies on the roof. It is, quite literally, raining men, and it's simply spectacular. Special points go to Sasha for impaling a zombie through the chin and out the eye with a pool cue, and newcomer Bob picking a zombie's head apart as it comes close to him (and Daryl stomping it's head into mush).
* Tyrese [[spoiler:''somehow'' fighting his way unbitten out of a '''MASSIVE''' horde of Walkers]] during "Isolation".
* Rick and Carl kicking ass Father and Son style with automatic rifles when [[spoiler:the Walkers bust through the fence.]]
* In "Internment", Hershel "[[BadassGrandpa Asskicking Oldie]]" Greene is the major focus of the episode, and is shown whooping Walker ass left and right as he holds the quarantined prison wing together basically on his own, including just up and heaving a walker over the rails of a walkway.
* For those who thought [[spoiler:The Governor]] might have lost his edge, "Live Bait" proves he's still as brutal an asskicker as ever. Especially when he and Megan fall into the pit, and he goes barehanded PapaWolf on the Walkers.
** He kills the first walker by pounding its head against a pile of bones; he kills the second one by punching its head to pulp, the third by ripping out its brain stem after clawing out its throat; the fourth by ripping off the top of its head with a bone through its mouth.
* Several moments from "Too Far Gone".
** Daryl using a grenade to put out of commission an invader's vehicle, [[spoiler:dropping it down the barrel of the tank]], and then taking care of the driver [[spoiler:fatally]].
** The camera cuts away just as a walker is about to chomp on Daryl's shoulder. When it next switches back to him, [[OffscreenMomentOfAwesome the zombie has an arrow through its head]] and is being used as a shield.
** The kids pulling off a last second rescue of Tyreese [[spoiler:by headshoting Alisha, as she can't bring herself to shoot them.]]
** The long-awaited Rick/Governor beatdown.
** Michone stepping in to help Rick against the Governor, with her katana [[spoiler: being shoved through the latter's chest from behind,]] then leaving him [[spoiler:without killing him so he will return as a zombie.]]
** The [[spoiler: fall of the prison]] is a cinematic masterpiece. Starting with the tower being shot by the freaking tank and ending with Rick and Carl walking away from the destruction, the entire battle is heavy-laden with symbolism, and the cinematography is in the tier of Film/ChildrenOfMen. The creators and production team pulled out all of the stops, creating a near-perfect battle sequence.
* "After" has Michone cutting down an entire herd of walkers (twenty something strong) entirely by herself.
** Carl manages to take out three walkers by himself to save his dad, while low on ammo and while piled under two of them.
* When Rick is stuck in the house with a violent and armed gang staying there, he comes up with a very clever idea to aid his escape. After he chokes one of them to death, he leaves the room's door open so when the man reanimates he attacks his comrades.
* In "Inmates", Glenn and Tara work together to fight their way out of the prison. Before he finds her, Glenn gets through a walker mob by dressing in riot gear and charging through them. When they ally, Glenn creates a distraction by burning a car with a Molotov cocktail, then has the two of them quickly run out of the prison while gunning down walkers.
* Several moments from "Inmates" in addition to the above:
** The entire opening sequence, with Beth and Daryl running through the forest and killing walkers in slow motion before collapsing from exhaustion, juxtaposed with a voiceover of Beth reading from her journal shortly after they found the prison.
** Beth and Daryl tag-teaming to take down a walker together.
** Tyreese singlehandedly taking out several walkers with his hammer in an admittedly futile attempt to save a total stranger.
** Maggie killing the walkers from the prison bus, including grabbing one by the hair and repeatedly slamming its head against the side of the bus.
** The introduction of several characters from the comic, Abraham, Rosita and Eugene, with the awesomeness doubled by the fact that, according to Tara's actor on the ''Talking Dead'' talk show, the poses when first shown on screen were an intentional reproduction by the production crew of the cover of the issue in which they were introduced to the comic, Issue 53.
* "Alone"
** Trapped in a dead end room with Walkers? That would spell doom for a normal person. Unfortunately for the Walkers, they cornered Daryl Effing Dixon. He badasses his way out of the situation unbitten, by corralling the walkers with stretchers after luring them down into the basement away from Beth, then running back up the stairs.
** Maggie shows a rare display of gutsy and excellent foresight for the characters. She periodically kills walkers along the train tracks, then paints messages to Glenn in their blood directing him to Terminus.
* "A" gives us Rick at his most badass PapaWolf, when he [[spoiler:tears Joe's throat out. ''With his teeth.'' And then he viciously guts the man who was attempting to rape his son.]]
** The latter's OhCrap expression at what Rick had done is [[AssholeVictim especially]] [[KickTheSonOfABitch satisfying…]]
** And then there's the line they leave us on with the Season 4 cliffhanger, cementing Rick's return to character as well as referencing one of the more badass lines from the comics.
-->'''Rick''': They're gonna feel real stupid when they find out.
-->'''Abraham Ford''': When they find out what?
-->'''Rick''': ''They're screwing with the wrong people...''
** The entire Season 4 finale can be considered as a CMOA for Rick as a character, as it showed his return to character after suffering from BadassDecay the entire season.
!! Season 5
* "No Sanctuary"
** Despite being bound hand and foot, Rick manages to sneak a shank into the trough room, and in the 30 seconds they're distracted by what's going on outside, he gets himself free and shanks the trough workers, leaving them to turn.
** Rick shiving the straggler in a firing line, stealing his gun and mowing down a whole group of Terminus residents repelling Walkers. This episode clearly demonstrates that Rick is finished screwing around.
** Tyreese getting tossed out to certain doom, winning and coming back inside to bash a certain dickhead's skull in. He killed at least three walkers with ''his bare hands.''
** Rick's group wastes no time making a whole lot of {{improvised weapon}}ry from the things they had on them and could carve from the walls of the train car -- Michonne uses a couple wooden spikes to turn her scabbard into a double-sided spiked quarterstaff, Abraham makes a spiked glove, and Rosita makes WolverineClaws with her belt. And as soon as Rick opens the door for them, they get to work, slaughtering Walkers left and right and escaping Terminus without so much as a scratch. When Rick said the Terminus crew were screwing with the wrong people, he meant it.
** Carol becoming a certified OneManArmy. To-wit: She blows up a fuel tank and brings the fence down, sneaks in among the walkers by wearing a poncho smeared with one's guts, massacres numerous Terminus residents getting in her way and leaves Mary as Walker chow. On The Talking Dead, she's described as the fulcrum that allowed the rest of Rick's group to escape.
*** Mary telling Carol to put her gun down and turn around would seem to be a lead-up to a lengthy monologue where Carol has to figure out a way to get the upper hand. Instead, Carol turns toward her with ''another'' gun in hand, sprays bullets at her and then kicks her gun away to start fighting. And when Mary hesitates to tell her where her friends are being kept? Carol just casually shoots her in the leg. This episode marked Carol as the ''poster child'' for TookALevelInBadass.
*** And the best thing is that it's done in a completely believable way. We've seen her, in the last couple of seasons, become harder and more ruthless, and this episode is just a continuation of that. She doesn't suddenly morph into a super-ninja with ImprobableAimingSkills. She just [[GuileHero uses her head]] and ''gets the job done''.
** A subtle one: Tyreese tells Carol that he had to put Martin down because he put his hands on Judith's neck. Carol says nothing, just makes to move past him, ready to finish Martin off until Tyreese says he killed the S.O.B. rather than just knocked him out.
* "Four Walls and a Roof"
** Two words. [[spoiler: '''TAINTED. MEAT.''']]
*** Bob laughs at and mocks the Hunters for [[spoiler: eating his leg without noticing his bite, until Gareth kicks him unconscious.]]
** Rick's plan for dealing with the Hunters. [[spoiler: He leads most of the group's fighters out of the church and expects the Hunters to see that. When the Hunters move into the church, the group then double back and Rick shoots two of them with silenced pistols.]]
** Rick fulfills his promise from the season premiere: [[spoiler: he dices up Gareth with his red-handled machete after waiting for the Hunter to beg for his life. Sasha meanwhile repeatedly stabs Martin, and Abraham and Michonne beat two other Hunters to death.]]
* "Slabtown"
** Beth [[spoiler: taking down her would-be rapist by cracking him across the skull and basically ''siccing a walker on him''.]]
** She also [[spoiler:singlehandedly fights her way out of a walker infested basement and parking lot, while at the same time clearing a path for the injured Noah to escape.]]
** Emily Kinney, Beth's actor, essentially said that this episode marked Beth [[TookALevelInBadass taking a level in badass.]]
* "Self-Help"
** Eugene hosing down some Walkers.
** Rosita threatening to pull her gun on Abraham if he dares to hurt Eugene more, even if [[spoiler:he lied to all of them.]]
* "Crossed"
** Daryl gets in a fight with a cop outside Grady, and the cop tries to push Daryl toward a walker (who thankfully can't move much due to being melted to the pavement), so what does Daryl do? He ''sticks his fingers in another nearby walker's head'', '''rips its head off''', and '''HITS THE COP IN THE HEAD WITH IT'''. Because, apparently, Daryl wasn't enough of a {{badass}} already.
** Father Gabriel Stokes, a NonActionGuy and an Actual Pacifist, nearly kills his first Walker by [[WrestlerInAllOfUs chokeslamming it to the ground]] and impaling it.
* "Coda"
** After Officer Lamson refuses to stop while Rick chases him in the cop's own car, Rick mows him down breaking his back, the shoots him in the head.
** Rick negotiates with two Grady cops on a rooftop with apparently no backup or weapons.
--->'''Cop''': Where are your people?\\
'' A nearby walker is sniped in the head.''\\
'''Rick''': They're close.
** Beth [[spoiler: stabbing Dawn to free Noah with a pair of scissors]].
** Morgan visiting more season 5 landmarks in the post-credit scene and [[spoiler: discovering Abraham's note to Rick Grimes.]]
** Dawn's fight with O'Donnell is a remarkably well choreographed and brutal fistfight for the show.
* "The Distance"
** Rick shooting a flare into a walker's head, illuminating its skull.
* "Remember"
** Glenn not taking any crap from the self-proclaimed douchebag who led the supply group and nearly got them killed, then ducking his punch and hitting him in the face instead.
*** Daryl's instinctual reaction to the second guy coming at Glenn was to tackle him and nearly suffocate him in the ground, only getting up when Rick forcibly pulled him away, really highlights the episode's emphasis on the group being a [[TrueCompanions family]].
*** Michonne even stepped in, approaching Aidan when he got back up and threatened to lay him on his ass again.
---> '''Michonne:''' Wanna get knocked on your ass again?
** In an epic moment of downplaying, Carol, in her video interview with Deanna, acts like she's nothing more than the emotional center and "denmother" of the group. At some point down the road, [[TookALevelInBadass Carol]] is most likely gonna stun the Alexandrians with the truth.
* "Forget"
** The titular forget. Carol's NightmareFuel of a speech to the kid to had witnessed her [[spoiler:steal a few of the stockpiled weapons]]. She blackmails him with cookies but also states if he did tell, he would wake up one morning, tied up to a tree, and alone with the monsters. Hot damn, Carol. She has come a very long way from Season 1.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]

!!The Telltale Game series
!!!In General
* Meta-example, but the game has won the 2012 ''Video Game Awards'' "Best Game of the Year" award.
** Even better, it won GOTY when facing up against financial and critical juggernauts like ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'', ''VideoGame/{{Halo 4}} '' and ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyBlackOps2''. The fact that a downloadable episodic adventure game from a smaller studio won isn't just a CMOA for Telltale, it's one for the whole gaming industry.
** The success of the game has also marked a turning point for the otherwise waning AdventureGame genre, which had been stagnant since [=LucasArts=]' departure in the 1990s. Combined with the impressive funding of ''VideoGame/BrokenAge'', the genre is expected to see a growth in the near future.

!!!Season 1
[[AC:Episode 1 -- A New Day]]
* Lee at the motel, taking out three walkers stealthily with an awl, trapping one behind a rolling car in neutral then driving the pick handle-deep into its forehead. Then Lee acquires his ''[[AnAxToGrind fire axe]]'', butchering one; then decapitating the final walker in one swipe.
** Plus his plan to create a make-shift silencer for Carley's Glock with a pillow to take out the first lurker.
-->'''Glenn:''' Man, that was [[TotallyRadical sick!]]
* If you side with Kenny when Larry threatens to toss Duck out of the drugstore, under the mere suspicion of him being bitten (when he clearly wasn't), Lee will ''dare'' Larry to try and lay a finger on the poor kid, but warns him that he'll have to go over Lee's dead body first. The sheer amount of righteous fury in his voice whilst standing up to a man twice his size is nothing short of extremely admirable.
-->'''Lee:''' NO! You don't ''touch'' that boy! You don't touch ''anybody!'' I've got a little girl I'm trying to protect in here too. You want to get violent you old fuck?! WELL, COME ON! You better have a plan to kill me though, because it's ''ME'', BEFORE ANYONE ELSE IN HERE!
* Near the end of the episode, when Lee is sucker-punched by Larry and lying dazed on the ground, about to get horribly eaten by the living dead, who else but Kenny comes charging back in and saves him with the fire axe Lee lent him beforehand in a great StabTheScorpion moment. Needless to say, players were very grateful to the Florida fisherman.
* Carley is walking Awesome (except where batteries are concerned). She is a crack shot with her pistol and she uses it to deadly effect on several occasions.
* According to Carley, Doug also got a (sadly off-screen) CrowningMomentOfAwesome when he saved her from a horde of walkers attacking their film crew's van. Not bad for a quiet, awkward nerd.

[[AC: Episode 2 -- Starved For Help]]
* Lee cutting David free from the modified bear trap to ensure he's not eaten alive by walkers.
* When David or Travis reanimate, Lee has no choice but to attempt to stop the new-born walker ''unarmed'' by gouging its eyes out with his thumbs as it pins him down. It doesn't work, but give the man props for trying!
* Often goes unnoticed, but Mark mentioning in passing to the St. John brothers how Lee saved his life in an OffScreenMomentOfAwesome. Mark has military training and [[MemeticBadass Lee]] saved ''his'' ass.
* "[[PrecisionFStrike YOU FUCKER!!]] ''[[PapaWolf I'LL TEAR YOU APART!!!]]''"
* Clementine rescuing everyone from inside the meat locker thanks to being small enough to fit inside the vent. And for being brave enough to volunteer straight away when Lee can't squeeze through.
* Doug or Carley also get a BigDamnHeroes moment at the end of the episode. After Andy shoots Kenny in the side and is holding Lee at gunpoint, Doug distracts Andy with the laser pointer he found earlier, or Carley shoots his left ear off from a great distance, lowering his guard and giving Lee the opening he needs to take him out.
* Seriously. Dat BattleInTheRain, as the rest of the group watch and realise there was only one man who was ''ever'' truly the leader of their little group.
-->'''Lee:''' ''(NoHoldsBarredBeatdown, [[VisualEffectsOfAwesome one that leaves Andy's face a puffed up mess and two rows of his teeth smashed out]])''
-->'''Andy:''' Is that all you got, Lee?! Hah! ''(tries to sit up)'' You -- You ain't shit! ''(collapses)''
-->'''Lee:''' IT'S -- ''OVER!''
-->'''Andy:''' Fuck you! ''(struggles to get up and just manages)'' As soon as Dan and Mama get out here, you're - you're all ''fucked!'' Heh hah!
-->'''Lee:''' They're not coming. ''(turns to go)''
-->'''Andy:''' What do you mean, Lee? What the fuck do you ''mean?!'' Don't you ''dare'' walk away from ''me'', Lee! ''(falls to his knees)'' GET BACK HERE AND ''FINISH THIS, LEE!!!''
-->'''Lee:''' ''(looks back, then down, shakes his head in disgust, [[UnflinchingWalk and exeunts]])''
-->'''Andy:''' Get back here and fight me like a man, Lee! LEE! Leeeee!! [[AlasPoorVillain Leeeee...]]
** Yeah, that is awesome. ''Or'' you could KickTheSonOfABitch. ''Literally'', as in Sparta punting him into the electric fence. You know, [[{{Irony}} the very thing that kept them all safe and alive?]]

[[AC: Episode 3 -- Long Road Ahead]]
* In Episode 3, Carley biggest CrowningMomentOfAwesome and unfortunately her last, was telling off Lily when the woman accused her of stealing food and medicine to give to the bandits, despite being right (though the truth wasn't revealed until later). Carley, sick of Lily's bullshit, gives her one of the best {{The Reason You Suck Speech}}es yet:
-->"You think you're some tough bitch, don't you? Like ''nothing'' can hurt you, but you're just a scared little girl. Get the fuck over it. Take a page out of Lee's book and try ''helping'' somebody for once."
** How she defended herself against Lily when Lily accused her of being ''related'' to the bandits.
-->"Whoa, my family's not a bunch of meth-riddled forest people. They're [[PrecisionFStrike fucking]] Lutheran!"
* Lee gets yet another in Episode 3. He almost holds off both bandits and walkers all on his lonesome, with covering fire from Lilly and Carley, when they invade the motel; long enough for ''the entire group'' to get into the RV and escape.
* Even Duck gets one in Episode 3. He offers to help you look for clues about the stolen supplies. Not only is he [[HypercompetentSidekick very helpful]], but you can acknowledge his efforts with a high-five, causing a message to appear saying: "Duck thinks you are incredibly awesome!" It's fair to say that Duck is officially RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap. Before he died, that is.
* Doug's, admittedly unintentional, HeroicSacrifice.
* Depending on your choices, you can get this out of Lily:
-->"He knew who you were, he treated you like shit and you still tried to save him. The last thing you have to do is apologize."

[[AC:Episode 4 -- Around Every Corner]]
* Clementine, if you take her to Crawford, makes an amazing shot and saves Molly's life from a walker. Carley would be proud.
** Alternately, if you leave her in the house and let her keep a gun, you'll return to find that a walker got in, but she killed it before it could get upstairs to hurt her or Omid.
* Lee killing over a dozen walkers in the bell-tower stairwell of Crawford's Catholic School, first with a shotgun and later his hatchet. Cut off from the others, he retreats up the stairs, gets his leg trapped in a rotten step, manages to save himself and then get back to the group, hacking through every walker with such power that they fly over the railings as he bulldozes back up to them.
* Molly in general, the sole survivor of Savannah. At one point during the infiltration of Crawford she takes on a group of walkers ''by herself'', sinking her ice climbing axe into their craniums with dance-like precision and grace.
* Molly also gets one in her ''first appearance''. She can potentially deck Lee if the player fails a rather difficult QTE, and then effortlessly disarm Kenny (who was armed with a gun and flanking her) with a neat little leg sweep.
** For Lee, and the player, being slick enough to beat the QTE with Molly, Lee blocks his own wrench with his forearm and doesn't even seem to feel a damn thing when intercepting a hefty chunk of metal! Before subduing arguably ''the second'' most BadAss character in the game!
* Chuck holding off several zombies with a shovel to save Clementine. This costs him his life.
* For those who despise Vernon for his hypocrisy, not to mention his duplicity against Lee's group no matter how accommodating you are to him; intimidating the pasty septuagenarian cancer patient is a fantastic treat.
-->'''Lee:''' You threatenin' me, old man? Because you're not going to like how that goes. Put the fuckin' gun down before you ''really'' make me mad.
-->'''Brie:''' He's bluffing!
-->'''Lee:''' You think so? Try me.
-->'''Vernon:''' ''(trembling)'' Keep back! Or I swear I'll shoot!
-->'''Lee:''' ''(with a supremely disdainful expression)'' [[LittleNo No.]] I don't think so. I ''know'' killers. Seen my share. You ain't got the look. And that means you ain't got the balls. Now drop the goddamn gun! ''(snatches the Colt off him)''
* Or the truly quote-worthy raison d'etre that Lee delivers to Vernon when he offers to take care of Clementine. It's a bit more than just a stern telling off.
-->"That little girl's in ''my'' care! We've been through more together than you can ''imagine''. Anyone who tries to get between me and her -- ''ANYONE!'' Is gonna wind up ''DEAD!'' You hear me?!"
* Players may have the option of delivering this line at the end of Episode 4. For those who aren't too fond of Kenny, it may be one of the most satisfying lines in the whole game.
-->"You know what, Kenny? ''Go fuck yourself.'' You gonna let a little girl die just because I didn't have your back every damn minute? Maybe you should grow the fuck up! Do whatever you want, asshole."

[[AC:Episode 5 -- No Time Left]]
* If Ben's still around in Episode 5, he eventually stands up to Kenny and just lays into the guy. The whole rant is a mix of this and TearJerker, and the best part? He actually gets ''through'' to Kenny. Depressed, guilt-ridden, [[TheLoad burdensome]] Ben actually gets Kenny to ''listen'' to someone else for once.
* Kenny staying behind to deliver a MercyKill to Ben, and when cornered by walkers, [[DyingMomentOfAwesome he goes down swinging]].
** Alternatively, if Ben died in Episode 4, Kenny performs a HeroicSacrifice to save Christa from walkers.
** However, Season 2 reveals that he actually ''survived'' and managed to escape the hundreds of Walkers in an OffscreenMomentOfAwesome that even ''he'' isn't sure how he managed to pull off!
* Admittedly, Ben stops being too much of bad luck guy in Episode 5. He was about to chop off Lee's arm to stop his infection but refused when he was awake (understandable since he would faint). He got the elevator door open when Lee was unconscious. He also helped shoot the Walkers in the mansion. He picked up Lee's gun when he dropped it, and stands up for himself against Kenny. Additionally, in Episode 2 he tells the whole group about what actually causes you to become a Walker. Poor kid does deserve some credit.
** Also in episode 5 if you chose to bring just Ben along he will actually ''save'' Lee if he misses the jump from the bell tower.
* Lee marching down a crowded Savannah street, with just a meat cleaver, [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome a guitar solo at his back]], and a look on his face that is the picture in the dictionary next to {{Determinator}}. He can potentially make it through ''completely unscathed''. It's even more bad-ass if Lee has his arm removed. He LITERALLY takes on an army of zombies one-handed and ''wins''.
** If you ''didn't'' cut off Lee's arm, the scene is arguably even ''more'' awesome. The bite on his wrist has rendered his left hand completely numb, so he grabs a huge wicked shard of broken glass off the pebbles and grips it in his bare palm to use as a secondary weapon, squeezing it so hard that his life-blood drips down the shiv while securing it in place. Then you can [[DualWielding alternate them]] as you stab, chop, slice, cut, skewer and crunch your way through a half-score of walker skulls. There is not a more fitting send off for Lee Everett's final hours then parting the sea of dead keeping him from the Marsh House and Clem.
** The final kill culminates with Lee using the cleaver to [[AbsurdlySharpBlade completely cut a walker's head in half]]!
* And lets not forget how Clementine handles her kidnapper. She quietly sneaks out of the room, grabs Lee's meat cleaver (or a variety of blunt objects if you held on to the cleaver), and slices/bludgeons the guy just as he's telling his wife's zombified head that she: "wouldn't hurt a fly".
** When the struggle ensues and Lee fights the guy to the finish, and he can either ''choke him to death with one hand'', or Clementine takes the Stranger's gun and saves Lee with a single shot to the crazy bastard's temple.
** A fantastic bit of role-playing is available for those who have not even done the Stranger ''any'' wrong. Lee can implore him to give up Clementine back into his care, to which the Stranger promptly retorts by saying he'd rather ''[[MoralEventHorizon "kill her myself."]]'' [[ReactionShot Lee's face says it all.]] Lee can then give a terrific ShutUpHannibal to the obviously insane individual by telling him he's bitten and that he'll ensure he bites the Stranger before the day is done; unsettling the creep truly for the first time. Upon collecting himself, the Stranger throws Lee's words back at him. ''"No. I'll be with her, and you'll be rotting in the street."'' However. You can then throttle him to death and ''not'' give him the mercy of a bullet to the head, and then have Clementine gift you with not reanimating to hurt anyone else unwary enough to enter Savannah; shattering every delusion the camper-man ever had pre ''and'' post-mortem.
* Clementine gets an off-screen moment at the end of Episode 5: When the sepsis (or whatever is killing him) finally catches up with Lee, and he collapses in the street, it leaves Clementine surrounded on all sides by the herd. No one would have faulted her for just freaking out and running away at that point--especially since she's just seen her parents as walkers. But what does she do? She keeps it together, and then this ''nine-year-old'' drags the dead weight of an unconscious grown man to shelter without alerting the herd in the process.
** And then she escapes the city all by herself. Sure she's a bad-ass little nine year old girl, but she's still a nine year old girl who just found out her parents are gone and her only guardian she had left as well, and she still had to wade through the city of Savannah and escape into the countryside all on her own.
* And again, just a while later, when Lee's dying words are instructions and advice to Clementine. The fact he was still alive and not zombified just by sheer will is this, mixed with TearJerker.
* Let's face it. [[PapaWolf Lee]] in general is the epitome of this during the final chapter. He knows that he's infected, and that he has very little time left, but he ''will'' find Clementine, he ''will'' get her back from the Stranger, and he ''will'' get her to safety. Until then, ''[[MilesToGoBeforeISleep death is just not on today's agenda.]]''
* All of Lee's [[YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre final wisdom]] to Clementine bodes well for her future badassery.
-->'''Lee:''' You're strong, Clem. You - you can do ''anything''.
-->'''Clementine:''' But -- I'm little.
-->'''Lee:''' Don't mean nothin' ... You're gonna see bad stuff, but, it's okay...

[[AC:400 Days]]
* Several moments in ''400 Days'': Russell, after being TheChewToy for pretty much the entirety of his chapter, standing up to [[JerkAss Nate]] after he [[MoralEventHorizon tries to kill an old couple]] who were defending themselves from him for the sake of taking what they have left. Which is so little that it seems like he's just doing this to KickTheDog to Russell after his story about his old group leader.
-->'''Russell''': [[spoiler: "Are you fucking serious? there are real monsters out there! And you're just gonna joke about the shit I've seen? [[PrecisionFStrike Fuck]] you Nate!" *walks away*]]

!!!Season 2
[[AC:Episode 1 -- All That Remains]]
* Christa not even missing a beat in [[spoiler: killing Omid's murderer]], all in a broken, TranquilFury.
* Clementine gets a pretty bad-ass one in Season 2 after [[spoiler: stitching her arm and fending off a walker after being locked in the shed by the group she finds.]]
-->'''Clementine:''' I am [[PunctuatedForEmphasis still. NOT. Bitten.]] I never was. [[WhatTheHellHero And you left me out here to die]].
** She gets one before that when she manages to win a fight with a bandit twice her size, ending in the bandit getting eaten. It shows just how far she has come since Season 1.
*** Clementine has graduated ''several'' [[TookALevelInBadass levels of badass]] since the time-skip.
* The mere fact that Clem snuck out of the shed she was supposed to be trapped in for the night, snuck into the cabin, and got all she needed for her arm stitching with possibly only one person aware of her presence. All this using just a knife and a claw hammer. Not bad for a little girl. Pete certainly seems impressed when he and the rest of the group stumble upon you killing a walker with the aforementioned claw hammer.
* Clementine can confront Rebecca, who quite obviously wants her gone, about [[spoiler: her possibly illegitimate child]] and give one of the most satisfying lines of dialogue in the game:
-->'''Rebecca''': I wouldn't get comfortable if I were you.\\
'''Clementine''': [[spoiler: Whose baby is it?]]\\
'''Rebecca''': ...Excuse me?\\
'''Clementine''': [[spoiler: If it's not Alvin's, whose is it?]]\\
'''Rebecca''': You shut your fucking mouth.\\
'''Clementine''': You should probably think about being nicer to me... [[ShameIfSomethingHappened That's just my advice]].
** Just to add the gravitas to the scene, the camera is positioned above her head, so her hat bill is covering her eyes. Adds just the right amount of menacing to the scene.
*** [[TwoBestFriendsPlay Matt and Pat]] referred to it as a [[DevilMayCry "Dante shot"]]. Clementine, an [[ActionSurvivor action surviving]] little girl in the zombie apocalypse, got compared to a half-demon half-human who regularly fights the demons of hell with insane weapons and combos. That fact alone makes this scene all the more awesome.
** Then Episode 3: In Harms Way arrives, and the above scene [[HarsherInHindsight becomes much less awesome and more mean-spirited]] upon finding out that [[spoiler: Rebecca was heavily implied to have been raped by Carver, thus making her suspicion and hostility towards Clementine being a scout for Carver's group a lot more justified.]]

[[AC:Episode 2 -- A House Divided]]
* Nick punching a walker in the face. While intoxicated.
* Luke and Clem come upon two walkers, one missing its legs. Luke tells Clem that he'll take out the big one, and she can take out the short one. One dialogue option is for Clem to say that ''she'll'' take the big one. Luke disagrees, but you can still run ahead of him and [[DropTheHammer beat the big one to death with a claw hammer.]]
* Later on the bridge part of it collapses, trapping Luke with a walker and leaving Clem to deal with the remaining two walkers. It '''definitely''' wasn't easy but it's still quite an accomplishment, taking two if them out in Melee combat when she can barely reach their heads.
** The first one she hits with her claw hammer, but since she hit it with claw end, it gets stuck again. She reels toward the edge of the bridge after pulling it out and the walker takes this opportunity to try and tackle her off the bridge. She [[DeadlyDodging dodges and clings to the sides of the bridge, leaving the Walker to fall into the river below]] which leads to...
** ... The other walker trying to grab her while she's vulnerable and clinging to the side of the bridge. She kind of drops down/falls down, hanging onto the bridge with just her hands now. She manages to get back on the bridge and she either [[InstantExpert buries Luke's machete in the Walker's head, killing it]] or [[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice ultimately impaling it through the brain with a metal pole she finds on the bridge]] and then possibly using said pole to kill the walker trapped with Luke and using it to help him out from under the bridge.
* There's an implied off-screen moment of awesome for [[spoiler: Kenny, as he somehow ''survived a whole horde of walkers'' while either putting Ben out of his misery or saving Christa's life.]]
* If Clementine is inside the lodge at the time, taking the option to [[spoiler:save Alvin]] sees her pushing herself to her feet despite [[spoiler:Carver's gun-toting bandits and charging Carver himself while he has a gun pointed at Alvin's head. He easily knocks her down and starts holding her hostage instead, but she successfully saves Alvin's life this way.]]

[[AC:Episode 3 -- In Harm's Way]]
* Clementine having the option to not buy the excuse of why [[spoiler:Carver killed Reggie]] and call him out that no matter how he wants to twist things, he's nothing more than a murderer.
* Alvin's possible [[spoiler: LastStand despite being near death and only having one bullet he still manages to kill one of Carver's thugs.]]
* When Reggie tries to find every reason to justify Carver's actions [[spoiler: even after he learns Carver murdered Walter and potentially Alvin]], Rebecca drops this gem.
--> [[spoiler: "After what he did to Alvin, I want him ''dead''."]]
** She tops it off with a PreAssKickingOneLiner when she learned [[spoiler: Alvin had died when Clementine didn't bring him back to escape from Carver's camp]] and basically gave [[spoiler: Kenny]] the green light to [[spoiler: kill Carver]] when Luke didn't take it.
--> [[spoiler: "Kill him".]]
* Clem's BigDamnHeroes moment by jumping from a large stack of boxes or having a small gun on [[spoiler: Carver and shooting him in the shoulder.]]
* [[spoiler:Kenny brutally beating Carver's head in with a crowbar mere hours after Carver gave him a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown that cost him an eye. After all the bullshit he pulled it was ''extremely'' satisfying seeing Kenny put the bastard out of the group's misery for good.]] Woo boy, did [[spoiler:Carver]] ever decide to fuck with the [[BadassCrew wrong group of people.]]
** You have to give props to Carver for being as [[DefiantToTheEnd defiant]] as he was, knowing he was about to be beat to death with a crowbar. That man was not afraid ''at all'' despite what was coming.
** How about the fact that [[spoiler:you can basically ''subvert'' Carver's argument about you and him not being so different, by actively leaving prior to his being beaten to death - in spite of his claims that Clem needs to watch? If you're still trying to preserve some sense of innocence in Clementine, it's incredibly satisfying to have that option because it just ''shows'' that you are not as monstrous as him. Carver ''is'' right on several points, that he and Clementine are alike because they're assertive leadership figures who have taken the initiative and make decisions and do things others will not, but Clementine is not a savage who beats people half to death, throws them off rooftops, or rules over her fellow survivors with an iron fist. Tellingly, Carver even gives up trying to make her see his perspective once she opts to walk away, and tries to demean ''Kenny'', instead - which is typical behaviour for ''common bullies'' once someone's stood up to them or shown they aren't affected]].
* Jane [[spoiler:blowing Troy's nuts off and leaving him to be savaged by the walkers. As with Carver, it's ''incredibly'' difficult to drum up any sympathy for him.]]
* [[spoiler:Kenny]]'s response to Carver more or less announcing he is gonna beat the shit out of him. It's short, simple, and full of resistance.
-->'''[[spoiler:Kenny]]:''' Heh. Fucker.
** There's also the aftermath of the beating. As the group discusses whether to leave [[spoiler:Kenny]] behind, if Clem votes not to, Luke tries to assure her that no one wants to leave [[spoiler:Kenny]] behind. Right then, you get the message "[[spoiler:Kenny]] will remember that."
-->'''[[spoiler:Kenny]]:''' Good, 'cause... you won't have to.
* Carver [[GenreSavvy repeatedly]] [[WorthyOpponent acknowledging]] the eleven-year-old ''Clementine'' is the most ruthless and dangerous member of the group. Although as he then proceeds to taunt her by claiming that deep down, she's become just as brutal and determined to survive [[NotSoDifferent as he has]], this is not particularly a good thing.

[[AC:Episode 4 -- Amid the Ruins]]
* Jane and Clementine successively saving [[spoiler:Luke and possibly Sarah]] in the trailer.
* [[spoiler: After fighting off walkers, Rebecca giving birth to her baby.]]
** Clem knocking down the observation deck. Smart and a badass.
* For those who didn't like Jane, getting to yell at her after [[spoiler:Sarah's death about how she didn't even want to save her]] can feel like this.
** In a similar way, telling Kenny, who is sitting inside the tent [[spoiler: as he mourns Sarita]], that he's not the only one whose lost people is pretty satisfying.

[[AC:Episode 5 -- No Going Back]]
* The beginning, picking up from the BolivianArmyEnding shootout from the last episode: [[spoiler: amazingly, the only death between either group is Arvo's sister, and only Mike and Buricko are wounded (but both keep fighting regardless). Clementine saves Rebecca's baby. Kenny gets into a shootout with Buricko and Vitali and with help from Luke (who takes a non-fatal bullet in the process), you create a distraction good enough for Kenny to [[BoomHeadshot kill]] Buricko. Vitali refuses to back down, but [[BigDamnHeroes Jane makes a triumphant return]], and stabs him in the nape of his neck. Kenny then unceremoniously shoots him, either as a MercyKill or the possible reason that Vitali's death-gargling was annoying him]].
* If you [[spoiler: return to Howe's Hardware with Jane]] you meet a small group of people asking you if they can come in. Turning them away results in the most badass Clem moment yet:
--> '''Man:''' Are you sure you want to do this, little girl? I mean, what if.. what if we're dangerous?\\
'''Clementine:''' [pulls her gun] What if ''I'' am?
** Doubles as NightmareFuel if you believe them, but don't want to risk trusting them. [[spoiler: Clem just threatened to kill a family of three - including ''a child her own age'' - because they asked for food and shelter. Holy ''shit.'']]
* One for Jane- she pulls [[spoiler: an effective BatmanGambit to prove to Clementine that Kenny's gone berserk and can't be reasoned with by lying that AJ is dead. She's willing to put her faith in Clementine, even though Clem has the choice to let Kenny drive her knife through her chest.]]
* If you were against Jane's actions, [[spoiler:Clementine angrily telling her off and potentially abandoning her can feel like one]].
* A meta one for Telltale games- this episode has ''five different ending states''. Season 3 may be a nightmare to code, but for a relatively small adventure game company, that's astounding.

!!Survival Instinct
* Daryl's dad having witnessed one of his friends getting mauled immediately begins shooting at the walkers until he runs out of ammo. That should tell you something about [[BadassFamily the Dixon family]].
* Everything that Merle does in this game, including:
** Sniping from a rooftop like in the show.
** Taking out his old motorcycle gang when he realized they ratted him out.
** Gave Daryl his crossbow.
** Saved him at the last minute from a large herd of zombies when he tried to get aboard a rescue chopper.
* Daryl has these himself, too. Taking out countless walkers, helping survivors and even rescuing a cat. That takes balls.
* Most of the survivors you meet have already managed to survive the first few days of the outbreak and have basically holed themselves up in unreachable locations behind stacks of boxes or on the top of a roof.
* Definitely the last part of the game where you not only get access to the assault rifle but can even use a tank-mounted machinegun to mow down the walkers.
* Herd Mode: Your last stand, because the walkers will never stop coming.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Books]]

!Rise Of The Governor

!The Road To Woodbury

!Fall Of The Governor

[[/folder]]

* After the time skip, Carl is jumped by two bullies armed with a brick, who plan to kill Sophia, and mock Carl when he retreats. Carl then immediately comes back once he finds a shovel, and beats (and probably kills) the two of them while they beg for their lives.

*** Michonne even stepped in, approaching Aiden when he got back up and threatened to lay him on his ass again.

*** Daryl's instinctual reaction to the second guy coming at Glenn was to tackle him and nearly suffocate him in the ground, only getting up when Rick forcibly pulled him away, really highlights the episode's emphasis on the group being a [[TrueCompanions family.]

*** Daryl's instinctual reaction to the second guy coming at Glenn was to tackle him and nearly suffocate him in the ground, only getting up when Rick forcibly pulled him away, really highlights the episode's emphasis on the group being a [[TrueCompanions family]]

** Rick's group wastes no time making a whole lot of {{improvised weapon}}ry from the things they had on them and could carve from the walls of the train car -- Michonne uses a couple wooden spikes to turn her scabbard into a double-sided spiked quarterstaff, Abraham makes a spiked glove. And as soon as Rick opens the door for them, they get to work, slaughtering Walkers left and right and escaping Terminus without so much as a scratch. When Rick said the Terminus crew were screwing with the wrong people, he meant it.

* Proving that even racist dickheads can be awesome, Merle cuts off his own hand to escape being cuffed to a rooftop, takes out at least two walkers -- [[IncrediblyLamePun singlehandedly]] -- while bleeding heavily, then cauterizes his wound before leaving the building he was trapped on from an upper floor and making his way out of town. Double the awesome when [[FridgeBrilliance you realize he would have had to do this all quietly]] so as not to attract zombies.

-->'''Cop''': Where are your people?
-->'' A nearby walker is sniped in the head.''
-->'''Rick''': They're close.

* "Consumed"

** Rosita pulling a gun on Abraham if he dares to hurt Eugene more, even if [[spoiler:he lied to all of them.]]

* It's hard not to feel a sense of "hell yeah!" when the [[ImAHumanitarian cannibal gang]] finally gets their comeuppance. [[MoodWhiplash What comes immediately after]]... eh, [[HeWhoFightsMonsters not so much]].[[/folder]]

** In a similar situation in the same episode, Maggie [[spoiler:is forced by the Governor to take her top off. He then bends her over a table and makes it seem like he is going to rape her. Maggie's response? "Do what you have to do." The Governor then backs off]].

* ''Self-Help''

** Rosita pulling a gun on Abraham if he dares to hurt Eugene more, even if [[spoiler:lied to all of them.]]

* The mere fact that Clem snuck out of the shed she was supposed to be trapped in for the night, snuck into the cabin, and got all she needed for her arm stitching with possibly only one person aware of her presence. (As far as I know, you NEED to go to Sarah to get the disinfectant. The bandages can be found without Alvin.) All this using just a knife and a claw hammer. Not bad for a little girl. Pete certainly seems impressed when he and the rest of the group stumble upon you killing a walker with the aforementioned claw hammer.

-->'''Lee:''' I said, ''it's over!'' Just walk away! ''(turns to go)''
-->'''Andy:''' Don't you ''dare'' walk away from ''me'', Lee! ''(falls to his knees)'' GET BACK HERE AND ''FINISH THIS, LEE!!!''