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** The positives of the crossbow far outweigh the negatives. First of all, He can never really run out of ammo. As long as there are trees or wood for him to carve more bolts, or he can keep retrieving the ones he's already shot the ammunition will never be a problem. It's QUIET. You can't stress how important that is. Which means he can always use it without attracting too much attention. It seems to be sturdy and durable enough to be used as a bludgeon in a pinch, usually knocking out zombies with one swing without suffering any apparent damage. And the thing also doesn't seem to require much maintenance, and it will never jam.
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Rewrote and trimmed the bio, most of which was my own writing anyway.
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[[quoteright:300:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/daryl.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:300:''"I ain't ever gonna kneel."'']]
[[caption-width-right:300:''"I ain't ever gonna kneel."'']]
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Daryl is one of two redneck brothers who joined the group. Merle was the nastier and more vicious of the two, and eventually got left behind in Atlanta in a DirtyBusiness sort of situation. Daryl is slowly growing away from the behavior he displayed with his brother now that he is among the rest of the group without Merle's influence. He is proving himself to be a loyal, loving man who will almost always try to go the extra mile if he thinks one of his friends is in trouble. His skills as a hunter, quick thinking, cool head under pressure, and ability to call bullshit when he sees it makes him a major member of the group and one of its' leaders.
He has developed a friendship with Carol and become a [[TrueCompanions brother]] to Rick, acting as one of his biggest supporters within the group and one of the most dependable members of the group in general. So dependable, in fact, that he takes it ''very'' personally whenever the group suffers a loss, and usually withdraws into himself to cope with his grief. Despite coming a long way since he joined the group, he still feels like an outsider at times, and Daryl's friends occasionally struggle to keep him close when he feels like drifting away.
After Merle's disappearance, Daryl takes it upon himself to lead the search for the missing Sophia, earning Carol's friendship and the respect of the group at large even when Sophia turns up dead. When Shane dies, Daryl takes over as Rick's [[TheLancer lieutenant]] and will often run things if Rick's otherwise occupied. After the group moves into the prison, he gets his wish to find his brother when Merle is revealed to be the lieutenant of the despotic Governor in the neighboring town of Woodbury. When Merle is forced to defect from The Governor, Daryl considers whether to stay with his exiled brother or return to Rick, but ultimately decides that he belongs with the group, and Merle is forced to join him. Despite trying his best to keep his abrasive older brother in check, Merle ends up sacrificing his life to take out many of The Governor's militia and Daryl is forced to put him down when he reanimates.
Daryl becomes one of the leaders of the swelling prison community, but the population takes a hit when a strain of influenza ravages the prison. Daryl returns from a supply run only to find The Governor with an army at their doorstep. Though devastated at the loss of Hershel, many of the group and their home, Daryl retreats with Beth. The two become close, and Beth begins to bring about a deep change in Daryl, but she ends up captured by Grady Memorial Hospital. Daryl subsequently briefly joins Joe's pack and is soon reunited with Rick and the gang at Terminus. After their escape and a reunion with Carol, Daryl goes after Beth in Atlanta, but Beth ends up killed after a hostage exchange gone awry. It takes weeks for Daryl to finally come to terms with his latest loss, during a time when the group at large is feeling hopeless.
Daryl's outsider status makes him fell ill-at-ease in Alexandria after the group arrives. After establishing a friendship with Aaron he accepts a job as a recruiter for the safe-zone. Daryl loses his crossbow and bike to Dwight, a member of the Saviors, and forms a murderous rivalry with him as the group goes to war with the Saviors.
He has developed a friendship with Carol and become a [[TrueCompanions brother]] to Rick, acting as one of his biggest supporters within the group and one of the most dependable members of the group in general. So dependable, in fact, that he takes it ''very'' personally whenever the group suffers a loss, and usually withdraws into himself to cope with his grief. Despite coming a long way since he joined the group, he still feels like an outsider at times, and Daryl's friends occasionally struggle to keep him close when he feels like drifting away.
After Merle's disappearance, Daryl takes it upon himself to lead the search for the missing Sophia, earning Carol's friendship and the respect of the group at large even when Sophia turns up dead. When Shane dies, Daryl takes over as Rick's [[TheLancer lieutenant]] and will often run things if Rick's otherwise occupied. After the group moves into the prison, he gets his wish to find his brother when Merle is revealed to be the lieutenant of the despotic Governor in the neighboring town of Woodbury. When Merle is forced to defect from The Governor, Daryl considers whether to stay with his exiled brother or return to Rick, but ultimately decides that he belongs with the group, and Merle is forced to join him. Despite trying his best to keep his abrasive older brother in check, Merle ends up sacrificing his life to take out many of The Governor's militia and Daryl is forced to put him down when he reanimates.
Daryl becomes one of the leaders of the swelling prison community, but the population takes a hit when a strain of influenza ravages the prison. Daryl returns from a supply run only to find The Governor with an army at their doorstep. Though devastated at the loss of Hershel, many of the group and their home, Daryl retreats with Beth. The two become close, and Beth begins to bring about a deep change in Daryl, but she ends up captured by Grady Memorial Hospital. Daryl subsequently briefly joins Joe's pack and is soon reunited with Rick and the gang at Terminus. After their escape and a reunion with Carol, Daryl goes after Beth in Atlanta, but Beth ends up killed after a hostage exchange gone awry. It takes weeks for Daryl to finally come to terms with his latest loss, during a time when the group at large is feeling hopeless.
Daryl's outsider status makes him fell ill-at-ease in Alexandria after the group arrives. After establishing a friendship with Aaron he accepts a job as a recruiter for the safe-zone. Daryl loses his crossbow and bike to Dwight, a member of the Saviors, and forms a murderous rivalry with him as the group goes to war with the Saviors.
to:
Daryl is one of two redneck brothers who joined the group. Merle was the nastier and more vicious of the two, and eventually got left behind in Atlanta in a DirtyBusiness sort camp with the initial intent of situation. robbing them, but Daryl is slowly growing grew away from the behavior he displayed with negative tendencies of his abrasive brother now that Merle when he is among the rest of the group without Merle's influence. He is proving went missing. Daryl proved himself to be a loyal, loving hard-working man who will almost always try to go goes more than the extra mile if he thinks one of his friends is to help the group when they're in trouble. His skills as a hunter, quick thinking, cool head under pressure, and ability to call bullshit when he sees it makes him a major member of the group and one of its' leaders.
He has developed a friendship with Carol and become a [[TrueCompanions brother]] to Rick, acting as one of his biggest supporters within the group and one of the most dependable members of the group in general. So dependable, in fact, that he takes it ''very'' personally whenever the group suffers a loss, and usually withdraws into himself to cope with his grief. Despite coming a long way since he joined the group, he still feels like an outsider at times, and Daryl's friends occasionally struggle to keep him close when he feels like drifting away.
After Merle's disappearance,Daryl takes took it upon himself to lead the search for the missing Sophia, earning Carol's friendship in the process, and ultimately became the respect of the group at large even when Sophia turns up dead. When Shane dies, Daryl takes over as Rick's group's [[TheLancer lieutenant]] and will often run things if Rick's otherwise occupied. second-in-command]] after Shane's death.
After the group moves into the prison,he gets Merle resurfaced as the tyrannical Governor's lieutenant. Daryl was reunited with his wish during a raid on Woodbury, and decided to find strike out with his brother when Merle is revealed to be the lieutenant of the despotic group refused to accept him even after The Governor in the neighboring town of Woodbury. When exiled him. Daryl realized where his true place was, and Merle is was forced to defect from The Governor, accompany him to the prison anyway. Daryl considers whether to stay with his exiled brother or return to Rick, but ultimately decides that he belongs with the group, and Merle is forced to join him. Despite trying tried his best to keep tabs on his abrasive older brother in check, Merle ends up sacrificing reckless brother, and was forced to put him down when he sacrificed his life to take out many of attack The Governor's militia and reanimated.
After Rick stood down as leader, Darylis forced to put him down when he reanimates.
Daryl becomes onejoined the governing council of the leaders of the swelling prison community, group, but the population takes a hit when a strain of influenza ravages the prison. Daryl returns returned from a supply run only to find The Governor on their doorstep with an army at their doorstep. Though devastated at the loss of Hershel, many of the group and their home, army. Daryl retreats with Beth. The two become close, and Beth begins to bring about a deep change in Daryl, but fled the destroyed prison together, and grew close until she ends up captured was abducted by Grady Memorial Hospital. Daryl subsequently briefly joins Joe's pack and is soon reunited with Rick and the gang at Terminus. After their escape and a reunion with Carol, Daryl goes after Beth in Atlanta, but Beth ends up killed after a hostage exchange gone awry. It takes weeks for Daryl to finally come to terms with his latest loss, during a time when the group at large is feeling hopeless.
Daryl'sTerminus, and also found Carol again after they escaped. However, a standoff with Grady Memorial ended with Beth dead, devastating Daryl for weeks. Daryl was an outsider status makes him fell ill-at-ease in at Alexandria after the group arrives. After establishing a friendship with until Aaron he accepts gave him a recruiting job as a recruiter for the safe-zone. Daryl loses then lost his crossbow and bike to Dwight, a member of the Saviors, and forms formed a murderous rivalry with him as the group goes went to war with the Saviors.
He has developed a friendship with Carol and become a [[TrueCompanions brother]] to Rick, acting as one of his biggest supporters within the group and one of the most dependable members of the group in general. So dependable, in fact, that he takes it ''very'' personally whenever the group suffers a loss, and usually withdraws into himself to cope with his grief. Despite coming a long way since he joined the group, he still feels like an outsider at times, and Daryl's friends occasionally struggle to keep him close when he feels like drifting away.
After Merle's disappearance,
After the group moves into the prison,
After Rick stood down as leader, Daryl
Daryl becomes one
Daryl's
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A Man Is Not A Virgin is no longer a trope.
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* AManIsNotAVirgin: Averted. [[http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2011/10/the-walking-deads-norman-reedus-daryl-is-a-total-virgin.html Word Of God]] states that Norman Reedus plays Daryl as so socially awkward that he could be considered a "total virgin." Due to his CharacterDevelopment, he swings between this trope and ChasteHero.
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* CanonForeigner: Fans of the show may be surprised to find that he and his brother are nowhere to be seen in the comics.
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* TheLancer: As tension between [[TheHero Rick]] and [[TokenEvilTeammate Shane]] rapidly escalates towards the end of Season 2, Daryl gradually became Rick's right-hand man. Following Shane's death at the end of Season 2, Daryl officially becomes this starting Season 3.
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* TheLancer: As tension between [[TheHero Rick]] and [[TokenEvilTeammate Shane]] rapidly escalates towards the end of Season 2, Daryl gradually became Rick's right-hand man. Following Shane's death at the end of Season 2, death, Daryl officially becomes this starting Season 3.
* ReformedButNotTamed: Daryl has since dropped his {{Jerkass}} and racist ways, but he's as easily riled up as ever.
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** Daryl's crossbow may be quieter than guns, but it has its shortcomings too. It needs a unique type of ammunition that only Daryl really knows how to make more of, and it's large and clunky as compared to Rick's personal Python which can be stored in his holster. Trying to pull out the clunky crossbow from a bag nearly costs Daryl his life in "Always Accountable". This scene caused IGN to speculate if Daryl was perhaps becoming too reliant on his crossbow. [[spoiler: It was stolen by Dwight for about half of Season 6.]]
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** Daryl's crossbow may be quieter than guns, but it has its shortcomings too. It needs a unique type of ammunition that only Daryl really knows how to make more of, and it's large and clunky as compared to Rick's personal Python which can be stored in his holster. Trying to pull out the clunky crossbow from a bag nearly costs Daryl his life in "Always Accountable". This scene caused IGN to speculate if Daryl was perhaps becoming too reliant on his crossbow. [[spoiler: It was stolen by Dwight for about during the first half of Season 6.]]6 until Daryl got it back in "Twice as Far". Dwight stole it back again in "Last Day on Earth" after Daryl was taken prisoner by the Saviors.
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* ArcherArchetype: We rarely see him use a weapon other than his crossbow. [[spoiler: Until it is stolen in "Always Accountable." Then we see him with knives and guns.]]
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* ArcherArchetype: We rarely see him use a weapon other than his crossbow. [[spoiler: Until it is stolen in "Always Accountable." Then we see him with knives and guns.]]
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* BadassBoast: Gives a short but nevertheless effective one to Dwight and Sherry when they [[spoiler: steal his bike and crossbow.]]
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* BadassBoast: Gives a short but nevertheless effective one to Dwight and Sherry when they [[spoiler: steal his bike and crossbow.]]
** He's going through another one in Season 7 after his actions inadvertently caused [[spoiler:Glenn's death]], though he's also doing it for his own safety and to prevent Negan from harming Rick and Co in Alexandria.
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** This comes back to bite him in the ass in a big way in Season 7 when he [[spoiler:attacks Negan for taunting Rosita over Abraham's death. Negan responds by keeping good on his word that he would "shut that shit down", and proceeds to kill Glenn too.]]
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** This comes back to bite him in the ass in a big way in Season 7 when he [[spoiler:attacks Negan for taunting Rosita over Abraham's death. Negan responds by keeping good on his word that he would "shut that shit down", and proceeds to kill follows up by killing Glenn too.]]
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** He also has them when his outburst against Negan in the Season 7 opener ends up [[spoiler:costing Glenn his life.]]
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** He also has them when his outburst against Negan in the Season 7 opener ends up [[spoiler:costing Glenn his life.]]]] He has a full crying session two episodes later after Dwight presents him with [[spoiler:a picture of Glenn's remains]].
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* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Daryl has a look of pure horror on his face when [[spoiler:Negan makes good on his word that he will "shut any shit down" after Daryl punches him in the face and he smashes Glenn's head in as punishment, just a few minutes after he killed Abraham.]]
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* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Daryl has a look of pure horror on his face when [[spoiler:Negan makes good on his word that he will "shut any that shit down" after Daryl punches him in the face and he smashes Glenn's head in as punishment, just a few minutes after he killed Abraham.]]
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* NobleBigot: While being no fan of Glenn or T-Dog, he won't simply stand by and withhold assistance if either one of them is in need, even if it means putting his life on the line. Used to demonstrate his character development in Season 3 when Merle calls Glenn Chinese. While Daryl had called Glenn a Chinaman in the past, this time he responds by telling Merle that Glenn is Korean.
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* NobleBigot: While being originally no fan of Glenn or T-Dog, he won't simply stand by and withhold assistance if either one of them is in need, even if it means putting his life on the line. Used to demonstrate his character development in Season 3 when Merle calls Glenn Chinese. While Daryl had called Glenn a Chinaman in the past, this time he responds by telling Merle that Glenn is Korean.
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[[caption-width-right:300:''"Shoot me again? You best pray I'm dead."'']]
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!!Due to the AnyoneCanDie nature of the show and quickly moving plots, only spoilers from the current/most recent season will be spoiled out to prevent entire pages of whited out text. These spoiler tags will be removed upon the debut of the following season, and the character bios will be updated then as well. If you have not seen the first five seasons read at your own risk!
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!!Due to the AnyoneCanDie nature of the show and quickly moving plots, only spoilers from the current/most recent season will be spoiled out to prevent entire pages of whited out text. These spoiler tags will be removed upon the debut of the following season, and the character bios will be updated then as well. If you have not seen the first five six seasons read at your own risk!
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Making Season 7 portraits the same size as other promotional portraits before it.
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[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/daryl.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Shoot me again? You best pray I'm dead."'']]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Shoot me again? You best pray I'm dead."'']]
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[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/twd_s7_daryl.jpg]]
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[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/twd_s7_daryl.org/pmwiki/pub/images/daryl.jpg]]
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Changed line(s) 127 (click to see context) from:
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler: He loses his cool and punches Negan after he brutally beats Abraham to death with [[NamedWeapons Lucille]] and taunts Rosita with the bloody bat. Negan's response? Not only does he punish Daryl by proceeding to beat ''Glenn's'' head in as well, but he's also impressed with Daryl's bravery and decides to force him to work for him]].
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* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler: He loses his cool is triggered by Negan's abuse and manipulation of the group and punches Negan after he brutally beats Abraham to death with [[NamedWeapons Lucille]] and taunts Rosita with the bloody bat. Negan's response? Not only does he punish Daryl by proceeding to beat ''Glenn's'' head in as well, but he's also impressed with Daryl's bravery and decides to force him to work for him]].
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[[caption-width-right:350:''"The longer they're out there, the more they become what they really are."'']]
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* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Daryl has a look of pure horror on his face when [[spoiler:Negan makes good on his word that he will "shut any shit down" after Daryl punches him in the face and he smashes Glenn's head in as punishment, just a few minutes after he killed Abraham.]]
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** This comes back to bite him in the ass in a big way in Season 7 when he [[spoiler:attacks Negan for taunting Rosita over Abraham's death. Negan responds by keeping good on his word that he would "shut that shit down", and proceeds to kill Glenn too.]]
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** He also has them when his outburst against Negan in the Season 7 opener ends up [[spoiler:costing Glenn his life.]]
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*** [[WordOfGod According to his actor,]] "Daryl don't give a ****."
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Changed line(s) 123 (click to see context) from:
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler: He loses his cool and punches Negan after he brutally beats Abraham to death with [[NamedWeapons Lucille]]. Negan's response? Not only does he punish Daryl by proceeding to beat ''Glenn's'' head in as well, but he's also impressed with Daryl's bravery and decides to force him to work for him]].
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* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler: He loses his cool and punches Negan after he brutally beats Abraham to death with [[NamedWeapons Lucille]].Lucille]] and taunts Rosita with the bloody bat. Negan's response? Not only does he punish Daryl by proceeding to beat ''Glenn's'' head in as well, but he's also impressed with Daryl's bravery and decides to force him to work for him]].
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* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler: He loses his cool and punches Negan after he brutally beats Abraham to death with [[NamedWeapons Lucille]]. Negan's response? Not only does he punish Daryl by proceeding to beat ''Glenn's'' head in as well, but he's also impressed with Daryl's bravery and decides to force him to work for him]].
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Daryl's outsider status makes him fell ill-at-ease in Alexandria after the group arrives. After establishing a friendship with Aaron he accepts a job as a recruiter for the safe-zone.
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Daryl's outsider status makes him fell ill-at-ease in Alexandria after the group arrives. After establishing a friendship with Aaron he accepts a job as a recruiter for the safe-zone.
safe-zone. Daryl loses his crossbow and bike to Dwight, a member of the Saviors, and forms a murderous rivalry with him as the group goes to war with the Saviors.
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* RatedMForManly: The show always find ways to highlight his {{Badass}}ness, such as taking out the crossbow impaled to him or destroying a tank by himself.
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* RatedMForManly: The show always find ways to highlight his {{Badass}}ness, badassness, such as taking out the crossbow impaled to him or destroying a tank by himself.
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* HatesBeingTouched: Flinches back when Carol (probably the least threatening member of the group) leans in to give him a motherly kiss on the forehead. WordOfGod states that he's "constantly expecting to be hit" due to his childhood abuse.
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* HatesBeingTouched: Flinches back when Carol (probably the least threatening member of the group) group at the time) leans in to give him a motherly kiss on the forehead. WordOfGod states that he's "constantly expecting to be hit" due to his childhood abuse.
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[[quoteright:300:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/twds6daryl.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:300:''"The longer they're out there, the more they become what they really are."'']]
[[caption-width-right:300:''"The longer they're out there, the more they become what they really are."'']]
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[[caption-width-right:300:''"The
[[caption-width-right:350:''"The longer they're out there, the more they become what they really are."'']]
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* BadassBoast: Gives a short but nevertheless effective one to Dwight and Honey when they [[spoiler: steal his bike and crossbow.]]
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* BadassBoast: Gives a short but nevertheless effective one to Dwight and Honey Sherry when they [[spoiler: steal his bike and crossbow.]]
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So many character pages, so little time.
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** BrokenAce: He is not the most well-adjusted individual.
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* {{Badass}}: Uses a crossbow, has a no-nonsense attitude to the apocalypse and panicking camp members, kills walkers with deadpan one-liners, is a fantastic shot and a very competent tracker.
** BadassBeard: Gets more noticeable after Season 1.
** BadassBiker: Becomes one in late Season 1 and afterwards. Apparently the CoolBike used to be Merle's, so he probably counts as one too.
** BadassInDistress: See below, and also happens in the mid-season finale of Season 3 when he is captured in Woodbury.
** BackToBackBadasses: with Merle in "The Suicide King".
** BadassBoast: Gives a short but nevertheless effective one to Dwight and Honey when they [[spoiler: steal his bike and crossbow.]]
** BadassBeard: Gets more noticeable after Season 1.
** BadassBiker: Becomes one in late Season 1 and afterwards. Apparently the CoolBike used to be Merle's, so he probably counts as one too.
** BadassInDistress: See below, and also happens in the mid-season finale of Season 3 when he is captured in Woodbury.
** BackToBackBadasses: with Merle in "The Suicide King".
** BadassBoast: Gives a short but nevertheless effective one to Dwight and Honey when they [[spoiler: steal his bike and crossbow.]]
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* {{Badass}}: Uses a crossbow, has a no-nonsense attitude to the apocalypse and panicking camp members, kills walkers with deadpan one-liners, is a fantastic shot and a very competent tracker.
**BadassBeard: Gets more noticeable after Season 1.
** * BadassBiker: Becomes one in late Season 1 and afterwards. Apparently the CoolBike used to be Merle's, so he probably counts as one too.
** * BadassInDistress: See below, and also happens in the mid-season finale of Season 3 when he is captured in Woodbury.
** BackToBackBadasses: with Merle in "The Suicide King".
*** BadassBoast: Gives a short but nevertheless effective one to Dwight and Honey when they [[spoiler: steal his bike and crossbow.]]
**
**
* BackToBackBadasses: with Merle in "The Suicide King".
* BrokenAce: He is not the most well-adjusted individual.
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* RedOniBlueOni: The Blue to Merle's, Rick's, and Carol's Reds.
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!!Due to the AnyoneCanDie nature of the show and quickly moving plots, only spoilers from the current/most recent season will be spoiled out to prevent entire pages of whited out text. These spoiler tags will be removed upon the debut of the following season. If you have not seen the first five seasons read at your own risk!
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!!Due to the AnyoneCanDie nature of the show and quickly moving plots, only spoilers from the current/most recent season will be spoiled out to prevent entire pages of whited out text. These spoiler tags will be removed upon the debut of the following season.season, and the character bios will be updated then as well. If you have not seen the first five seasons read at your own risk!
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Changed line(s) 144 (click to see context) from:
* PoliticallyIncorrectHero: At first, though he grows out of it, eventually counting an Asian man, a black woman, and a gay man among his best friends.
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* PoliticallyIncorrectHero: At first, though he grows out of it, eventually counting an Asian man, a black woman, a gay man, and a gay man lesbian among his best friends.
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* PoliticallyIncorrectHero: Mildly racist to start but pretty much gone by the third season, but he was always willing to stick his neck out for all the members of the camp from the beginning.
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* PoliticallyIncorrectHero: Mildly racist to start but pretty much gone by the third season, but At first, though he was always willing to stick grows out of it, eventually counting an Asian man, a black woman, and a gay man among his neck out for all the members of the camp from the beginning.best friends.
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!!Due to the AnyoneCanDie nature of the show and quickly moving plots, only spoilers from the current/most recent season will be spoiled out to prevent entire pages of whited out text. If you have not seen the first five seasons read at your own risk!
to:
!!Due to the AnyoneCanDie nature of the show and quickly moving plots, only spoilers from the current/most recent season will be spoiled out to prevent entire pages of whited out text. These spoiler tags will be removed upon the debut of the following season. If you have not seen the first five seasons read at your own risk!
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** In Season 6, he is opposed to Rick indefinitely ending Alexandria's recruiting campaign, but while he makes this known, he also loyally concedes that it's Rick's call no matter what. He ends up reversing
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** In Season 6, he is opposed to Rick indefinitely ending Alexandria's recruiting campaign, but while he makes this known, he also loyally concedes that it's Rick's call no matter what. He ends up reversing reversing.
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YMMV
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** Regarding the later incident -- Norman Reedus said in interviews that he had spent an hour before the shot sitting on a crate and 'crying his eyes out' in order to work out all that emotional reaction. Multiple viewers noted that it didn't really work as well as Reedus might have wished.
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** Regarding the later incident -- Norman Reedus said in interviews that he had spent an hour before the shot sitting on a crate and 'crying his eyes out' in order to work out all that emotional reaction. Multiple viewers noted that it didn't really work as well as Reedus might have wished.
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Daryl is one of two redneck brothers who joined the group. Merle was the nastier and more vicious of the two, and eventually got left behind in a DirtyBusiness sort of situation. Daryl is slowly growing away from the behavior he displayed with his brother now that he is among the rest of the group without Merle's influence.
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An original character created for the show, Daryl Dixon is one of the {{Deuteragonist}}'s of ''Series/TheWalkingDead'' with enough examples of tropes to necessitate his own page.
Daryl is one of two redneck brothers who joined the group. Merle was the nastier and more vicious of the two, and eventually got left behind in Atlanta in a DirtyBusiness sort of situation. Daryl is slowly growing away from the behavior he displayed with his brother now that he is among the rest of the group without Merle's influence. \n He is proving himself to be a loyal, loving man who will almost always try to go the extra mile if he thinks one of his friends is in trouble. His skills as a hunter, quick thinking, cool head under pressure, and ability to call bullshit when he sees it makes him a major member of the group and one of its' leaders.
Daryl is one of two redneck brothers who joined the group. Merle was the nastier and more vicious of the two, and eventually got left behind in Atlanta in a DirtyBusiness sort of situation. Daryl is slowly growing away from the behavior he displayed with his brother now that he is among the rest of the group without Merle's influence.
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After Merle's disappearance, Daryl takes it upon himself to lead the search for the missing Sophia, earning Carol's friendship and the respect of the group at large even when Sophia turns up dead. When Shane dies, Daryl takes over as Rick's [[TheLancer lieutenant]] and will often run things if Rick's otherwise occupied. After the group moves into the prison, he gets his wish to find his brother when Merle is revealed to be the lieutenant of the despotic Governor in the neighboring town of Woodbury. When Merle is forced to defect from The Governor, Daryl considers whether to stay with his exiled brother or return to Rick, but ultimately decides that he belongs with the group, and Merle is forced to join him. Despite trying his best to keep his abrasive older brother in check, Merle ends up sacrificing his life to take out many of The Governor's militia and Daryl is forced to put him down when he reanimates.
Daryl becomes one of the leaders of the swelling prison community, but the population takes a hit when a strain of influenza ravages the prison. Daryl returns from a supply run only to find The Governor with an army at their doorstep. Though devastated at the loss of Hershel, many of the group and their home, Daryl retreats with Beth. The two become close, and Beth begins to bring about a deep change in Daryl, but she ends up captured by Grady Memorial Hospital. Daryl subsequently briefly joins Joe's pack and is soon reunited with Rick and the gang at Terminus. After their escape and a reunion with Carol, Daryl goes after Beth in Atlanta, but Beth ends up killed after a hostage exchange gone awry. It takes weeks for Daryl to finally come to terms with his latest loss, during a time when the group at large is feeling hopeless.
Daryl becomes one of the leaders of the swelling prison community, but the population takes a hit when a strain of influenza ravages the prison. Daryl returns from a supply run only to find The Governor with an army at their doorstep. Though devastated at the loss of Hershel, many of the group and their home, Daryl retreats with Beth. The two become close, and Beth begins to bring about a deep change in Daryl, but she ends up captured by Grady Memorial Hospital. Daryl subsequently briefly joins Joe's pack and is soon reunited with Rick and the gang at Terminus. After their escape and a reunion with Carol, Daryl goes after Beth in Atlanta, but Beth ends up killed after a hostage exchange gone awry. It takes weeks for Daryl to finally come to terms with his latest loss, during a time when the group at large is feeling hopeless.
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!!Due to the AnyoneCanDie nature of the show and quickly moving plots, only spoilers from the current/most recent season will be spoiled out to prevent entire pages of whited out text. If you have not seen the first five seasons read at your own risk!
!!Daryl Dixon
[[quoteright:300:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/twds6daryl.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:300:''"The longer they're out there, the more they become what they really are."'']]
->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/NormanReedus
-->''"You want to know what I was before all this? I was nobody. Nothing."''
Daryl is one of two redneck brothers who joined the group. Merle was the nastier and more vicious of the two, and eventually got left behind in a DirtyBusiness sort of situation. Daryl is slowly growing away from the behavior he displayed with his brother now that he is among the rest of the group without Merle's influence.
He has developed a friendship with Carol and become a [[TrueCompanions brother]] to Rick, acting as one of his biggest supporters within the group and one of the most dependable members of the group in general. So dependable, in fact, that he takes it ''very'' personally whenever the group suffers a loss, and usually withdraws into himself to cope with his grief. Despite coming a long way since he joined the group, he still feels like an outsider at times, and Daryl's friends occasionally struggle to keep him close when he feels like drifting away.
Daryl's outsider status makes him fell ill-at-ease in Alexandria after the group arrives. After establishing a friendship with Aaron he accepts a job as a recruiter for the safe-zone.
Daryl and Merle are also the protagonists of ''VideoGame/TheWalkingDeadSurvivalInstinct'', a FirstPersonShooter by Activision that tells the story of the brothers before they arrived at the Atlanta camp.
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[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:Tropes #-H]]
* TenMinuteRetirement: Daryl briefly loses the will to help others after failing to save Sophia. He goes back to his usual self once the situation escalates again. As detailed below, he usually lapses into this after the group takes a heavy loss.
* AbusiveParents: Daryl was beaten and neglected as a child, to the point that his back is badly scarred as seen in "Home."
* TheAce: He's pretty much the best overall fighter in the group, able to do anything that he needs to and is a force to be reckoned with. In Season 4, he takes down a tank alone.
** BrokenAce: He is not the most well-adjusted individual.
* AchillesInHisTent: After leaving the group in "The Suicide King", he spends most of "Home", away from them after leaving with Merle. [[ChangedMyMindKid He]] [[BigDamnHeroes comes]] [[ForegoneConclusion back]].
* AlliterativeName: His first and last name starts with a ''D''.
* AManIsNotAVirgin: Averted. [[http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2011/10/the-walking-deads-norman-reedus-daryl-is-a-total-virgin.html Word Of God]] states that Norman Reedus plays Daryl as so socially awkward that he could be considered a "total virgin." Due to his CharacterDevelopment, he swings between this trope and ChasteHero.
* TheApocalypseBringsOutTheBestInPeople: At least it does once his brother is out of the picture.
* AwesomeButImpractical:
** Daryl's crossbow may be quieter than guns, but it has its shortcomings too. It needs a unique type of ammunition that only Daryl really knows how to make more of, and it's large and clunky as compared to Rick's personal Python which can be stored in his holster. Trying to pull out the clunky crossbow from a bag nearly costs Daryl his life in "Always Accountable". This scene caused IGN to speculate if Daryl was perhaps becoming too reliant on his crossbow. [[spoiler: It was stolen by Dwight for about half of Season 6.]]
** His use of a motorcycle also counts. Sure he's a BadassBiker, but it's engine is much louder than that of a normal car and it does leave him a bit more vulnerable to walkers and gunfire than he would be if he was in a car.
* AnAxeToGrind: He uses two axes at once in the Season 1 finale.
* AntiHero: At the start of the series. His CharacterDevelopment has turned him into more of a straight up hero while Rick has descended into being an anti-hero.
* ArcherArchetype: We rarely see him use a weapon other than his crossbow. [[spoiler: Until it is stolen in "Always Accountable." Then we see him with knives and guns.]]
* AutomaticCrossbows: Averted. It can be difficult to spot, but Daryl does occasionally nock another bolt.
* {{Badass}}: Uses a crossbow, has a no-nonsense attitude to the apocalypse and panicking camp members, kills walkers with deadpan one-liners, is a fantastic shot and a very competent tracker.
** BadassBeard: Gets more noticeable after Season 1.
** BadassBiker: Becomes one in late Season 1 and afterwards. Apparently the CoolBike used to be Merle's, so he probably counts as one too.
** BadassInDistress: See below, and also happens in the mid-season finale of Season 3 when he is captured in Woodbury.
** BackToBackBadasses: with Merle in "The Suicide King".
** BadassBoast: Gives a short but nevertheless effective one to Dwight and Honey when they [[spoiler: steal his bike and crossbow.]]
-->'''Sherry:''' We're sorry.
-->'''Daryl:''' You're gonna be.
* BattleTrophy: Daryl begins a collection by making a necklace of the ears of the zombies he killed while searching for Sophia, as an indication to himself how tough and strong he is. It might also have had the practical use of masking his living scent.
* BashBrothers[=/=]SiblingTeam: With Merle. Although not much seen, but they've already played these tropes when the apocalypse started. Since Season 3, Daryl is also BashBrothers with Rick.
* BigDamnHeroes: A few notable examples:
** In the Season 2 opener, he saves T-Dog from becoming walker food by shooting the walker about to chomp on T-Dog and then dumping said walker's body on T-Dog to mask his scent.
** Subverted late in Season 2 -- he tackles down a walker that's about to eat Dale, but he's moments too late from saving him and he personally delivers the MercyKill as an apology.
** Midlate in Season 3, he does it twice in one episode, once to save a group of Mexican strangers he didn't even know, and once to save Rick.
* TheBigGuy: Class 3. Becomes TheLancer after Shane is killed.
* BreakoutCharacter: One of the most popular characters, he was promoted to the main cast in Season 2 and given an entire episode to show his badass credentials. In Season 3, he's become the second-in-command to Rick and runs the group when he's not available. By Season 4, he's probably the show's {{Deuteragonist}} and in Season 5 it's probably safe to say that he's one of few characters on this show with PlotArmor.
* BrokenTears: When finding his brother Merle as a Walker then {{Mercy Kill}}ing him.
* ByronicHero: He is cynical, determined, and brooding and also has a strict personal code with a lot of loyalty to his friends.
* CatchPhrase: Some variation of "That ain't you/us/her."
* CelibateHero: Due to his abusive past, he has trouble with letting people get close or touching him. When Carol starts joking about the two of them having sex he gets real quiet and asks her to stop.
* CharacterDevelopment: Daryl is one of the characters who has changed the most out of the cast, highlighted in the episode "Home", where his new personality clashes with Merle's outdated perception of him. While Daryl was originally a mildly racist, belligerent redneck who only looked out for himself and his brother, as Merle dominated him through mild psychological bullying, Daryl chooses Rick's group over Merle in the episode. He's now a brave, compassionate and stronger man, who has bypassed Merle and can see his flaws.
** He hasn't completely left his old HotBlooded ways behind, just tempered them with something that looks suspiciously like maturity and civilization.
* CharacterTics: He bites his thumb when he's apprehensive, such as when he waited in the hall while Andrea shot herself.
* CombatDiplomacyStealth: Fills the Combat role, with Rick commanding Diplomacy, and Glenn handling Stealth.
* CombatPragmatist: Daryl at one point [[Recap/TheWalkingDeadS05E07Crossed uses a Walker's head as a melee weapon]] while desperate.
* ConflictingLoyalty: Brought to the fore in "The Suicide King", when he's forced to choose between Rick's group and his brother Merle, and ends up [[ThickerThanWater going with the latter]]. Then in "Home", he decides that Rick's group is his real family and goes back to them, with Merle reluctantly being forced to follow.
* CoveredWithScars: Seen in the episode "Chupacabra". [[http://thewalkingdeadfanclub.blogspot.com/2011/12/walking-dead-star-norman-reedus-talks.html Norman Reedus]] states they're from Daryl's childhood abuse. "Home" confirms that both he and Merle were physically abused by their father.
* ChronicHeroSyndrome: Explored in "Home".
* ADayInTheLimelight: Season 2's "Chupacabra", Season 3's "Home" (shared with his brother), Season 4's "Still" (shared with Beth), Season 5's "Consumed" (shared with Carol), and Season 6's "Always Accountable" (shared with Sasha and Abraham).
* DeadpanSnarker:
** When Jenner gives a pretty damn bleak exposition about the walker virus and how a person reanimates, Daryl mutters, "''Damn'' I'm about to go get shit-faced again."
** After a walker growls at him, he replies with a crossbow bolt through the head and "Shut up".
** Instead of asking for help while he's bleeding from one of his own arrows on his way back to Hershel's farm, he simply notes to Rick that this is the third time Rick has pulled a gun on him at this point and then asked if Rick would pull the trigger this time. [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor He is then shot by]] [[IJustWantToBeBadass Andrea]], who doesn't know it's him from afar. The bullet just barely grazes his ''head''. Most would be unconscious or [[NormallyIWouldBeDeadNow just plain dead]], but [[TheDeterminator Daryl]], being... [[MadeOfIron Daryl]], still manages to mutter as the others pick him up, "I was kidding."
** When the group elects to leave their temporary base in a barn to go to Alexandria with Aaron, despite Rick's reservations, Daryl agrees, as "this barn smells like horse shit."
* DecompositeCharacter: While pretty much still a CanonForeigner, he filled in most of Tyreese's role in the first two and a half seasons, specifically TheLancer (after Shane's death) and his close relationship with Carol.
* DefrostingIceKing: Initially hostile to everyone else in the group, he slowly grows closer to each group member and becomes loyal to them.
** History repeats itself when the crew move into Alexandria, where Daryl is clearly uncomfortable with this new lifestyle. Aaron (and a little bit of Eric) eventually get him to warm up again by the end of "Forget" saying that Daryl knows the difference between a good person and a bad person and appoint him the new recruiter of the safe zone.
* {{Determinator}}: Even after being stabbed in the side by one of his crossbow bolts following being tossed from a spooked horse down into a ravine, he still manages to make it back to the camp on his own.
** After running all day, he spent an entire night up to keep watch for walkers while inside a car's trunk.
* {{Deuteragonist}}: Begins occupying this role from the third season onward, and later begins sharing it with Carol.
* DifficultButAwesome: The crossbow can actually be harder to aim with and use than a conventional gun, but mastering it offers Daryl a lot of advantages. He can both hunt food for the group and silently stealth kill any Walkers he encounters without bringing a dozen more down on his head. In addition, to overcome its low ammunition limitations, Daryl has learned to always retrieve bolts, and even knows how to make new ones if he needs to.
* DontYouDarePityMe: After the group finds and shoots the undead Sophia, Daryl separates himself from the others in frustration. Carol, who knew how hard Daryl searched for Sophia, tells him he can't just shut the others out and that the group needs him. Daryl angrily tells her that he was better off on his own to begin with, that Sophia wasn't his problem, and that he doesn't need her to try and take care of him. Knowing that this is Daryl's way of handling what happened, Carol stands there and lets him vent as long as he needs.
* FailureKnight: Daryl has a tendency to blame himself for almost any tragedy that befalls the group. WordOfGod says that he officially feels that he's this after Beth was killed.
* FishOutOfWater: To say that Daryl doesn't fit in well at Alexandria is an understatement.
* FriendToAllChildren: Willing to look for Sophia in Season 2, bonds with Carl, and cares for the new born Judith Grimes and even calls her Little Asskicker. His main reason for saving a random Mexican family in Season 3 is that he could hear their crying baby. In Season 5, despite being extremely against the new posh lifestyle of Alexandria, he admits that it's good that the group has come because Carl and Judith deserve a roof over their heads.
* GoodIsNotNice: Well, not ''all'' the time.
* GuiltComplex: It's revealed in "Still" that he feels responsible for Hershel's death and the destruction of the prison, as he gave up looking for the Governor and later talked Michonne into doing the same. Sophia's name also comes up.
* GutFeeling: He's typically very good at judging character. It's stated by Aaron to be one of Daryl's most invaluable qualities.
* {{Hallucinations}}: After two falls down a riverbank and a pretty severe injury, Daryl starts having hallucinations about his brother Merle - mocking him and egging him on to survive.
* HandicappedBadass: Or, in this case, an injured one. After being badly injured after a fall and impaled on one of his own crossbow bolts, Daryl wakes up with a walker attempting to eat his (thankfully booted) foot. He kills it with a stick, and then pulls the aforementioned bolt out of his own body and uses it to shoot another.
* HatesBeingTouched: Flinches back when Carol (probably the least threatening member of the group) leans in to give him a motherly kiss on the forehead. WordOfGod states that he's "constantly expecting to be hit" due to his childhood abuse.
** By Season 4, he is openly more physically affectionate with many people -- including Rick, Carol, and Beth -- and even around people he does not know very well.
*** A CallBack in "Them" has Carol kiss his forehead again -- Daryl lets her.
* HeroicBSOD: He shuts down almost completely for a time after the loss of the prison, hunting for food and killing walkers when necessary but mostly following Beth around and communicating in monosyllables. He eventually snaps out of it after getting into a drunken argument with Beth that leads to him breaking down and opening up to her, only to lapse into ''another'' one in the very next episode when Beth is kidnapped and he falls in with the Claimers.
* HeroicSacrifice: He was prepared to perform one for Rick and the others, buying time to escape from Woodbury by laying down cover fire. He's subsequently captured by the end of the episode, but is rescued in the next one.
** Another subversion in the Season 5 finale, when he prepares to fight through the walker herd alone to give Aaron an opening to escape. Fortunately, Morgan pulls off a BigDamnHeroes moment at that exact second, allowing them both to survive.
* HiddenDepths: Shown to have this side to him in Season 2. He's the most confident that they will find Sophia alive and even comforts Carol. The Cherokee Rose scene won him a LOT of fans.
* HiddenHeartOfGold: Daryl actually has a compassionate side to him, but on the rare occasion it is observed he will brush it off or try to change the subject.
* HotBlooded: Becomes less so as the series goes on.
** Arguably by the third season, after taking over as TheLancer, he has switched roles with Rick who was very level headed in Season 1, and is now more Hot Blooded and unpredictable. Daryl is now the calmer, more reliable one.
** Season 4 has shown that alcohol brings out Daryl's hot-blooded {{Jerkass}} side, to the point where he's shouting quite loudly at Beth despite having walkers within earshot. Ironically in the first season, when the group indulged in some of Jenner's alcohol, he was one of the jolliest drunks in the group.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Tropes I-P]]
* IconicItem: His crossbow. Also his wing-embroidered vest.
* TheIdealist: Surprisingly; aside from Rick, he was the one who was the most confident they would find Sophia alive. Sadly, he was wrong.
* InVinoVeritas: A little moonshine helps Daryl let out all the frustration and anger he's been keeping inside.
* IWorkAlone: Used to believe this, but grows used to working with the other survivors and in "This Sorrowful Life" he tells Merle that they can't survive without people anymore.
** Tends to slip back into this whenever something bad happens to someone in the group, most noticeably after Sophia, and later, Beth die.
* JackBauerInterrogationTechnique: On Randall in "Judge, Jury, and Executioner".
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: A mildly racist redneck like his brother Merle, but he continually goes out of his way to help others in the group, such as helping Rick rescue Glenn from the Vatos, saving T-Dog's life several times, and even revealing Merle's secret drug stash when T-Dog gets a nasty infection. He also cares about finding Sophia far more than any of the other members of the group besides Carol.
* KillTheOnesYouLove: Killed the zombified Merle.
* KnifeNut: Capable of being this when he needs to be. Besides using one as a secondary weapon, he's also comfortable enough throwing them that he is able to hit a walker with in the face with a knife throw, without so much as grazing someone inches away from said walker's face.
* TheLancer: As tension between [[TheHero Rick]] and [[TokenEvilTeammate Shane]] rapidly escalates towards the end of Season 2, Daryl gradually became Rick's right-hand man. Following Shane's death at the end of Season 2, Daryl officially becomes this starting Season 3.
* LightningBruiser: Since his arrows can be reused, he has quicker reload time than his allies. He is well adapted to close-range combat, too.
* LonersAreFreaks: Daryl grew up having only himself to rely on, and as an adult prefers solitude. He also has a violent temper, and has some disconcerting hobbies, such as collecting pieces from his zombie kills.
* LonerTurnedFriend: For a long time, he alienated himself from the group and preferred avoiding human intimacy as much as possible. Eventually, he becomes one of the group's most loyal members.
* MadeOfIron. He falls down a steep slope and impales himself on one of his crossbow bolts. He then climbs up the slope, falls, then tries again, eventually limping back to camp, where not even being grazed on the head by a rifle shot keeps him down.
* ManlyTears: Some prominent examples were when he discovered Merle's HeroicSacrifice and subsequent zombification, reuniting with Carol in the Season 5 premiere, and after Beth's death in "Coda".
** Regarding the later incident -- Norman Reedus said in interviews that he had spent an hour before the shot sitting on a crate and 'crying his eyes out' in order to work out all that emotional reaction. Multiple viewers noted that it didn't really work as well as Reedus might have wished.
* MoralityPet: To Merle.
* MultiRangedMaster: While he's often seen with crossbow, he also sometimes uses guns.
* NeverBeHurtAgain: It's implied Daryl likes to keep his distance from others because he's afraid of the pain he'll feel should he lose them.
* TheNicknamer: Called Glenn [[InterchangeableAsianCultures Chinaman]] in Season 1 and coined Lori's newborn baby as "Little Asskicker" before being named Judith by Carl.
* NobleBigot: While being no fan of Glenn or T-Dog, he won't simply stand by and withhold assistance if either one of them is in need, even if it means putting his life on the line. Used to demonstrate his character development in Season 3 when Merle calls Glenn Chinese. While Daryl had called Glenn a Chinaman in the past, this time he responds by telling Merle that Glenn is Korean.
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: While going out of his way to search for a missing Sophia alone, Daryl ends up falling down a cliff ''twice'', the initial fall causing one of his arrows to impale him, the second when he's trying to get back up. Then he is nearly eaten by walkers and when attempting to (successfully) climb back the second time, he had hallucinations of Merle mocking and berating him. Once he got back in the farm, his friends mistook him as a walker and was nearly killed when one of them (Andrea) shot him. This all happened in a ''single'' episode.
* NoOneGetsLeftBehind:
** This is a big issue for him, possibly because of what happened to Merle. Whenever someone goes missing, he will be the first to volunteer to look for them. The only time he refused was shortly after the barn massacre and Sophia being found as a walker, as he was too torn up about his failure. He also is the most insistent on returning to search for Andrea when the farm is overrun and she is separated from the group. In Season 3, when Glenn and Maggie are kidnapped, he immediately volunteers to go after them.
** He brings this up as a big reason for why he leaves the group in "The Suicide King". He isn't willing to abandon Merle a second time. However, he realizes that they parted ways in how they think a long time ago and decides to return to the group, followed in shock by his brother.
** Despite his strong disapproval of Bob's actions in Season 4's "Indifference", Daryl doesn't even threaten to leave him behind.
** Eventually subverted in "Too Far Gone", when he and Beth are forced to flee the prison without the others after the defenses are lost and the group is scattered during the final battle with the Governor.
* NoSocialSkills: He's never been terribly good at interacting with others, but he slowly improves over the course of the series.
* NoSympathy: When the group considers booting out the inmate survivors, Daryl compares himself to them, stating that while they're degenerates, they're not monsters. Regardless, [[BaitAndSwitch he still thinks they should hit the road]].
* OddFriendship: Most obviously with Rick, with whom Daryl was initially deeply at odds with. (What with the whole cop-who-left-my-brother-to-die thing going on.) By Season 4 Rick says Daryl is his brother.
** With Carol, who becomes an important figure for him during Season 2 and beyond. Carol jokes about the idea of them being attracted to each other, and it's obvious that they're both devoted to each other, but beyond that, nothing definitive has been shown in canon.
** Starting with "Still", he developed this with Beth, despite their outlooks and pre-apocalypse lives being complete polar opposites.
** He also forms one with Aaron in "Forget" after the latter offers him a job as a recruiter for Alexandria.
** He forms one, yet again, with Denise in the second half of season 6. She even tells Daryl that he reminds her of someone she used to know.
* AnOddPlaceToSleep: He at one point tries to sleep in a ''coffin'', calling it the most comfortable bed he's had in years.
** He also initially refuses to sleep in a prison cell, choosing instead to sleep in the upstairs hall.
* OutOfFocus: He has an jarringly [[DemotedToExtra reduced role]] the first half of season six. It's not until the sixth episode of the season that he finally gets a starring role in an episode. He returns to the spotlight in the second half of the season.
* PeekABangs: Progressively starting Season 3. He even maintained it when he had the chance for a haircut during Season 5.
* PhraseCatcher: A minor example. He gets called that "Robin Hood cat" on two separate occasions by unrelated characters: Tomas in Season 3 and Tony in Season 4.
* PoliticallyIncorrectHero: Mildly racist to start but pretty much gone by the third season, but he was always willing to stick his neck out for all the members of the camp from the beginning.
* PromotionToOpeningTitles: Beginning in Season 2.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Tropes R-Z]]
* RatedMForManly: The show always find ways to highlight his {{Badass}}ness, such as taking out the crossbow impaled to him or destroying a tank by himself.
* RedOniBlueOni: The Blue to Merle's, Rick's, and Carol's Reds.
* ScarilyCompetentTracker: Shown when he and Rick look for Sophia at the start of Season 2.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: After he and Merle are rescued by Rick's group from Woodbury, Daryl abandons Rick and the group to stay with his brother. The next episode, he pulls this on Merle and heads back to the group, deciding that they are his real family. Merle is forced to follow along so he doesn't get left alone.
* SillyRabbitIdealismIsForKids: His relationship with Merle has him as the one more willing to help out others without insisting on payment, which he gets called on by Merle.
* SherlockScan: Twice. He figured out that Shane killed Otis due to the fact that Shane had Otis' gun when he supposedly did a HeroicSacrifice, and the second time when he determined Shane killed Randall by noting their footprints were walking together, the tree which Shane banged his face against to make it seem like Randall had attacked him, and Randall's broken neck.
* SleevesAreForWimps: His signature look, though he dons sleeves when winter blows through.
* SmokingIsCool: Daryl is a smoker, as seen in Season 3's "Arrow on the Doorpost", Season 4's "Indifference", and Season 5's "Them".
* SuicideIsShameful: Daryl has no sympathy for people who give up and take the easy way out (besides those who put themselves down before they can reanimate like the bitten Andrea).
* TakeMeInstead: Tries to do this in the Season 4 finale by offering his own life in exchange for the Marauders letting Rick, Carl, and Michonne go free. It doesn't work, as they just decide to kill him as well.
* ThinkNothingOfIt: When Carol thanks him for trying to save Sophia, he only responds by insisting Rick and Shane would have done the same. Likewise, when Carol notes his efforts to bring in refugees in S4, Daryl notes that Rick saved many as well. When Aaron reminds him of how he saved his group from a storm that eventually spawned a tornado, Daryl tries to shrug it off.
* TokenGoodTeammate: When he joins the Claimers in Season 4.
* TokenWhite: In Season 4, he goes on a medicine retrieval arc being accompanied by Michonne, Bob, and Tyreese.
* TookALevelInKindness: Daryl's CharacterDevelopment since the first season is very evident, to say the least.
* TragicKeepsake: Daryl eventually receives ownership of Beth's knife after the latter is killed, keeping it at his side.
* UnableToCry: For a long time after Beth's death. After several weeks, while all alone, he finally cries.
* UndyingLoyalty: Towards Rick, from the end of Season 2 onwards. Even when Merle comes back into the picture in Season 3, Daryl ends up choosing Rick, and he always backs Rick's play even if he doesn't necessarily agree that it's the best course of action.
** By S5, this is beginning to fracture somewhat. As Rick becomes more ruthless (as highlighted in HotBlooded above), Daryl begins to advocate against some of Rick's methods. Daryl sides with Tyreese regarding a peaceful prisoner exchange with Grady, frustrating Rick, who had wanted to go in guns blazing. When Rick and Carol begin plotting to prepare to take over Alexandria by force if need be, Daryl is not receptive to the idea (though Reedus contends that he would've if it really came to it). While for now the two are brothers, a rift is starting to form between Rick and Daryl.
** In Season 6, he is opposed to Rick indefinitely ending Alexandria's recruiting campaign, but while he makes this known, he also loyally concedes that it's Rick's call no matter what. He ends up reversing
* WarriorPoet: In "Cherokee Rose", describing the myth about the plant.
* YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre: Carol constantly reassures Daryl that he's more than just a killer, and has more good in him than he'd like to admit. Aaron also takes up this job when Daryl arrives in Alexandria.
[[/folder]]
[[Characters/TheWalkingDeadTVShow Click here to return to the main character page]]
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!!Daryl Dixon
[[quoteright:300:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/twds6daryl.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:300:''"The longer they're out there, the more they become what they really are."'']]
->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/NormanReedus
-->''"You want to know what I was before all this? I was nobody. Nothing."''
Daryl is one of two redneck brothers who joined the group. Merle was the nastier and more vicious of the two, and eventually got left behind in a DirtyBusiness sort of situation. Daryl is slowly growing away from the behavior he displayed with his brother now that he is among the rest of the group without Merle's influence.
He has developed a friendship with Carol and become a [[TrueCompanions brother]] to Rick, acting as one of his biggest supporters within the group and one of the most dependable members of the group in general. So dependable, in fact, that he takes it ''very'' personally whenever the group suffers a loss, and usually withdraws into himself to cope with his grief. Despite coming a long way since he joined the group, he still feels like an outsider at times, and Daryl's friends occasionally struggle to keep him close when he feels like drifting away.
Daryl's outsider status makes him fell ill-at-ease in Alexandria after the group arrives. After establishing a friendship with Aaron he accepts a job as a recruiter for the safe-zone.
Daryl and Merle are also the protagonists of ''VideoGame/TheWalkingDeadSurvivalInstinct'', a FirstPersonShooter by Activision that tells the story of the brothers before they arrived at the Atlanta camp.
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[[folder:Tropes #-H]]
* TenMinuteRetirement: Daryl briefly loses the will to help others after failing to save Sophia. He goes back to his usual self once the situation escalates again. As detailed below, he usually lapses into this after the group takes a heavy loss.
* AbusiveParents: Daryl was beaten and neglected as a child, to the point that his back is badly scarred as seen in "Home."
* TheAce: He's pretty much the best overall fighter in the group, able to do anything that he needs to and is a force to be reckoned with. In Season 4, he takes down a tank alone.
** BrokenAce: He is not the most well-adjusted individual.
* AchillesInHisTent: After leaving the group in "The Suicide King", he spends most of "Home", away from them after leaving with Merle. [[ChangedMyMindKid He]] [[BigDamnHeroes comes]] [[ForegoneConclusion back]].
* AlliterativeName: His first and last name starts with a ''D''.
* AManIsNotAVirgin: Averted. [[http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2011/10/the-walking-deads-norman-reedus-daryl-is-a-total-virgin.html Word Of God]] states that Norman Reedus plays Daryl as so socially awkward that he could be considered a "total virgin." Due to his CharacterDevelopment, he swings between this trope and ChasteHero.
* TheApocalypseBringsOutTheBestInPeople: At least it does once his brother is out of the picture.
* AwesomeButImpractical:
** Daryl's crossbow may be quieter than guns, but it has its shortcomings too. It needs a unique type of ammunition that only Daryl really knows how to make more of, and it's large and clunky as compared to Rick's personal Python which can be stored in his holster. Trying to pull out the clunky crossbow from a bag nearly costs Daryl his life in "Always Accountable". This scene caused IGN to speculate if Daryl was perhaps becoming too reliant on his crossbow. [[spoiler: It was stolen by Dwight for about half of Season 6.]]
** His use of a motorcycle also counts. Sure he's a BadassBiker, but it's engine is much louder than that of a normal car and it does leave him a bit more vulnerable to walkers and gunfire than he would be if he was in a car.
* AnAxeToGrind: He uses two axes at once in the Season 1 finale.
* AntiHero: At the start of the series. His CharacterDevelopment has turned him into more of a straight up hero while Rick has descended into being an anti-hero.
* ArcherArchetype: We rarely see him use a weapon other than his crossbow. [[spoiler: Until it is stolen in "Always Accountable." Then we see him with knives and guns.]]
* AutomaticCrossbows: Averted. It can be difficult to spot, but Daryl does occasionally nock another bolt.
* {{Badass}}: Uses a crossbow, has a no-nonsense attitude to the apocalypse and panicking camp members, kills walkers with deadpan one-liners, is a fantastic shot and a very competent tracker.
** BadassBeard: Gets more noticeable after Season 1.
** BadassBiker: Becomes one in late Season 1 and afterwards. Apparently the CoolBike used to be Merle's, so he probably counts as one too.
** BadassInDistress: See below, and also happens in the mid-season finale of Season 3 when he is captured in Woodbury.
** BackToBackBadasses: with Merle in "The Suicide King".
** BadassBoast: Gives a short but nevertheless effective one to Dwight and Honey when they [[spoiler: steal his bike and crossbow.]]
-->'''Sherry:''' We're sorry.
-->'''Daryl:''' You're gonna be.
* BattleTrophy: Daryl begins a collection by making a necklace of the ears of the zombies he killed while searching for Sophia, as an indication to himself how tough and strong he is. It might also have had the practical use of masking his living scent.
* BashBrothers[=/=]SiblingTeam: With Merle. Although not much seen, but they've already played these tropes when the apocalypse started. Since Season 3, Daryl is also BashBrothers with Rick.
* BigDamnHeroes: A few notable examples:
** In the Season 2 opener, he saves T-Dog from becoming walker food by shooting the walker about to chomp on T-Dog and then dumping said walker's body on T-Dog to mask his scent.
** Subverted late in Season 2 -- he tackles down a walker that's about to eat Dale, but he's moments too late from saving him and he personally delivers the MercyKill as an apology.
** Midlate in Season 3, he does it twice in one episode, once to save a group of Mexican strangers he didn't even know, and once to save Rick.
* TheBigGuy: Class 3. Becomes TheLancer after Shane is killed.
* BreakoutCharacter: One of the most popular characters, he was promoted to the main cast in Season 2 and given an entire episode to show his badass credentials. In Season 3, he's become the second-in-command to Rick and runs the group when he's not available. By Season 4, he's probably the show's {{Deuteragonist}} and in Season 5 it's probably safe to say that he's one of few characters on this show with PlotArmor.
* BrokenTears: When finding his brother Merle as a Walker then {{Mercy Kill}}ing him.
* ByronicHero: He is cynical, determined, and brooding and also has a strict personal code with a lot of loyalty to his friends.
* CatchPhrase: Some variation of "That ain't you/us/her."
* CelibateHero: Due to his abusive past, he has trouble with letting people get close or touching him. When Carol starts joking about the two of them having sex he gets real quiet and asks her to stop.
* CharacterDevelopment: Daryl is one of the characters who has changed the most out of the cast, highlighted in the episode "Home", where his new personality clashes with Merle's outdated perception of him. While Daryl was originally a mildly racist, belligerent redneck who only looked out for himself and his brother, as Merle dominated him through mild psychological bullying, Daryl chooses Rick's group over Merle in the episode. He's now a brave, compassionate and stronger man, who has bypassed Merle and can see his flaws.
** He hasn't completely left his old HotBlooded ways behind, just tempered them with something that looks suspiciously like maturity and civilization.
* CharacterTics: He bites his thumb when he's apprehensive, such as when he waited in the hall while Andrea shot herself.
* CombatDiplomacyStealth: Fills the Combat role, with Rick commanding Diplomacy, and Glenn handling Stealth.
* CombatPragmatist: Daryl at one point [[Recap/TheWalkingDeadS05E07Crossed uses a Walker's head as a melee weapon]] while desperate.
* ConflictingLoyalty: Brought to the fore in "The Suicide King", when he's forced to choose between Rick's group and his brother Merle, and ends up [[ThickerThanWater going with the latter]]. Then in "Home", he decides that Rick's group is his real family and goes back to them, with Merle reluctantly being forced to follow.
* CoveredWithScars: Seen in the episode "Chupacabra". [[http://thewalkingdeadfanclub.blogspot.com/2011/12/walking-dead-star-norman-reedus-talks.html Norman Reedus]] states they're from Daryl's childhood abuse. "Home" confirms that both he and Merle were physically abused by their father.
* ChronicHeroSyndrome: Explored in "Home".
* ADayInTheLimelight: Season 2's "Chupacabra", Season 3's "Home" (shared with his brother), Season 4's "Still" (shared with Beth), Season 5's "Consumed" (shared with Carol), and Season 6's "Always Accountable" (shared with Sasha and Abraham).
* DeadpanSnarker:
** When Jenner gives a pretty damn bleak exposition about the walker virus and how a person reanimates, Daryl mutters, "''Damn'' I'm about to go get shit-faced again."
** After a walker growls at him, he replies with a crossbow bolt through the head and "Shut up".
** Instead of asking for help while he's bleeding from one of his own arrows on his way back to Hershel's farm, he simply notes to Rick that this is the third time Rick has pulled a gun on him at this point and then asked if Rick would pull the trigger this time. [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor He is then shot by]] [[IJustWantToBeBadass Andrea]], who doesn't know it's him from afar. The bullet just barely grazes his ''head''. Most would be unconscious or [[NormallyIWouldBeDeadNow just plain dead]], but [[TheDeterminator Daryl]], being... [[MadeOfIron Daryl]], still manages to mutter as the others pick him up, "I was kidding."
** When the group elects to leave their temporary base in a barn to go to Alexandria with Aaron, despite Rick's reservations, Daryl agrees, as "this barn smells like horse shit."
* DecompositeCharacter: While pretty much still a CanonForeigner, he filled in most of Tyreese's role in the first two and a half seasons, specifically TheLancer (after Shane's death) and his close relationship with Carol.
* DefrostingIceKing: Initially hostile to everyone else in the group, he slowly grows closer to each group member and becomes loyal to them.
** History repeats itself when the crew move into Alexandria, where Daryl is clearly uncomfortable with this new lifestyle. Aaron (and a little bit of Eric) eventually get him to warm up again by the end of "Forget" saying that Daryl knows the difference between a good person and a bad person and appoint him the new recruiter of the safe zone.
* {{Determinator}}: Even after being stabbed in the side by one of his crossbow bolts following being tossed from a spooked horse down into a ravine, he still manages to make it back to the camp on his own.
** After running all day, he spent an entire night up to keep watch for walkers while inside a car's trunk.
* {{Deuteragonist}}: Begins occupying this role from the third season onward, and later begins sharing it with Carol.
* DifficultButAwesome: The crossbow can actually be harder to aim with and use than a conventional gun, but mastering it offers Daryl a lot of advantages. He can both hunt food for the group and silently stealth kill any Walkers he encounters without bringing a dozen more down on his head. In addition, to overcome its low ammunition limitations, Daryl has learned to always retrieve bolts, and even knows how to make new ones if he needs to.
* DontYouDarePityMe: After the group finds and shoots the undead Sophia, Daryl separates himself from the others in frustration. Carol, who knew how hard Daryl searched for Sophia, tells him he can't just shut the others out and that the group needs him. Daryl angrily tells her that he was better off on his own to begin with, that Sophia wasn't his problem, and that he doesn't need her to try and take care of him. Knowing that this is Daryl's way of handling what happened, Carol stands there and lets him vent as long as he needs.
* FailureKnight: Daryl has a tendency to blame himself for almost any tragedy that befalls the group. WordOfGod says that he officially feels that he's this after Beth was killed.
* FishOutOfWater: To say that Daryl doesn't fit in well at Alexandria is an understatement.
* FriendToAllChildren: Willing to look for Sophia in Season 2, bonds with Carl, and cares for the new born Judith Grimes and even calls her Little Asskicker. His main reason for saving a random Mexican family in Season 3 is that he could hear their crying baby. In Season 5, despite being extremely against the new posh lifestyle of Alexandria, he admits that it's good that the group has come because Carl and Judith deserve a roof over their heads.
* GoodIsNotNice: Well, not ''all'' the time.
* GuiltComplex: It's revealed in "Still" that he feels responsible for Hershel's death and the destruction of the prison, as he gave up looking for the Governor and later talked Michonne into doing the same. Sophia's name also comes up.
* GutFeeling: He's typically very good at judging character. It's stated by Aaron to be one of Daryl's most invaluable qualities.
* {{Hallucinations}}: After two falls down a riverbank and a pretty severe injury, Daryl starts having hallucinations about his brother Merle - mocking him and egging him on to survive.
* HandicappedBadass: Or, in this case, an injured one. After being badly injured after a fall and impaled on one of his own crossbow bolts, Daryl wakes up with a walker attempting to eat his (thankfully booted) foot. He kills it with a stick, and then pulls the aforementioned bolt out of his own body and uses it to shoot another.
* HatesBeingTouched: Flinches back when Carol (probably the least threatening member of the group) leans in to give him a motherly kiss on the forehead. WordOfGod states that he's "constantly expecting to be hit" due to his childhood abuse.
** By Season 4, he is openly more physically affectionate with many people -- including Rick, Carol, and Beth -- and even around people he does not know very well.
*** A CallBack in "Them" has Carol kiss his forehead again -- Daryl lets her.
* HeroicBSOD: He shuts down almost completely for a time after the loss of the prison, hunting for food and killing walkers when necessary but mostly following Beth around and communicating in monosyllables. He eventually snaps out of it after getting into a drunken argument with Beth that leads to him breaking down and opening up to her, only to lapse into ''another'' one in the very next episode when Beth is kidnapped and he falls in with the Claimers.
* HeroicSacrifice: He was prepared to perform one for Rick and the others, buying time to escape from Woodbury by laying down cover fire. He's subsequently captured by the end of the episode, but is rescued in the next one.
** Another subversion in the Season 5 finale, when he prepares to fight through the walker herd alone to give Aaron an opening to escape. Fortunately, Morgan pulls off a BigDamnHeroes moment at that exact second, allowing them both to survive.
* HiddenDepths: Shown to have this side to him in Season 2. He's the most confident that they will find Sophia alive and even comforts Carol. The Cherokee Rose scene won him a LOT of fans.
* HiddenHeartOfGold: Daryl actually has a compassionate side to him, but on the rare occasion it is observed he will brush it off or try to change the subject.
* HotBlooded: Becomes less so as the series goes on.
** Arguably by the third season, after taking over as TheLancer, he has switched roles with Rick who was very level headed in Season 1, and is now more Hot Blooded and unpredictable. Daryl is now the calmer, more reliable one.
** Season 4 has shown that alcohol brings out Daryl's hot-blooded {{Jerkass}} side, to the point where he's shouting quite loudly at Beth despite having walkers within earshot. Ironically in the first season, when the group indulged in some of Jenner's alcohol, he was one of the jolliest drunks in the group.
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[[folder:Tropes I-P]]
* IconicItem: His crossbow. Also his wing-embroidered vest.
* TheIdealist: Surprisingly; aside from Rick, he was the one who was the most confident they would find Sophia alive. Sadly, he was wrong.
* InVinoVeritas: A little moonshine helps Daryl let out all the frustration and anger he's been keeping inside.
* IWorkAlone: Used to believe this, but grows used to working with the other survivors and in "This Sorrowful Life" he tells Merle that they can't survive without people anymore.
** Tends to slip back into this whenever something bad happens to someone in the group, most noticeably after Sophia, and later, Beth die.
* JackBauerInterrogationTechnique: On Randall in "Judge, Jury, and Executioner".
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: A mildly racist redneck like his brother Merle, but he continually goes out of his way to help others in the group, such as helping Rick rescue Glenn from the Vatos, saving T-Dog's life several times, and even revealing Merle's secret drug stash when T-Dog gets a nasty infection. He also cares about finding Sophia far more than any of the other members of the group besides Carol.
* KillTheOnesYouLove: Killed the zombified Merle.
* KnifeNut: Capable of being this when he needs to be. Besides using one as a secondary weapon, he's also comfortable enough throwing them that he is able to hit a walker with in the face with a knife throw, without so much as grazing someone inches away from said walker's face.
* TheLancer: As tension between [[TheHero Rick]] and [[TokenEvilTeammate Shane]] rapidly escalates towards the end of Season 2, Daryl gradually became Rick's right-hand man. Following Shane's death at the end of Season 2, Daryl officially becomes this starting Season 3.
* LightningBruiser: Since his arrows can be reused, he has quicker reload time than his allies. He is well adapted to close-range combat, too.
* LonersAreFreaks: Daryl grew up having only himself to rely on, and as an adult prefers solitude. He also has a violent temper, and has some disconcerting hobbies, such as collecting pieces from his zombie kills.
* LonerTurnedFriend: For a long time, he alienated himself from the group and preferred avoiding human intimacy as much as possible. Eventually, he becomes one of the group's most loyal members.
* MadeOfIron. He falls down a steep slope and impales himself on one of his crossbow bolts. He then climbs up the slope, falls, then tries again, eventually limping back to camp, where not even being grazed on the head by a rifle shot keeps him down.
* ManlyTears: Some prominent examples were when he discovered Merle's HeroicSacrifice and subsequent zombification, reuniting with Carol in the Season 5 premiere, and after Beth's death in "Coda".
** Regarding the later incident -- Norman Reedus said in interviews that he had spent an hour before the shot sitting on a crate and 'crying his eyes out' in order to work out all that emotional reaction. Multiple viewers noted that it didn't really work as well as Reedus might have wished.
* MoralityPet: To Merle.
* MultiRangedMaster: While he's often seen with crossbow, he also sometimes uses guns.
* NeverBeHurtAgain: It's implied Daryl likes to keep his distance from others because he's afraid of the pain he'll feel should he lose them.
* TheNicknamer: Called Glenn [[InterchangeableAsianCultures Chinaman]] in Season 1 and coined Lori's newborn baby as "Little Asskicker" before being named Judith by Carl.
* NobleBigot: While being no fan of Glenn or T-Dog, he won't simply stand by and withhold assistance if either one of them is in need, even if it means putting his life on the line. Used to demonstrate his character development in Season 3 when Merle calls Glenn Chinese. While Daryl had called Glenn a Chinaman in the past, this time he responds by telling Merle that Glenn is Korean.
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: While going out of his way to search for a missing Sophia alone, Daryl ends up falling down a cliff ''twice'', the initial fall causing one of his arrows to impale him, the second when he's trying to get back up. Then he is nearly eaten by walkers and when attempting to (successfully) climb back the second time, he had hallucinations of Merle mocking and berating him. Once he got back in the farm, his friends mistook him as a walker and was nearly killed when one of them (Andrea) shot him. This all happened in a ''single'' episode.
* NoOneGetsLeftBehind:
** This is a big issue for him, possibly because of what happened to Merle. Whenever someone goes missing, he will be the first to volunteer to look for them. The only time he refused was shortly after the barn massacre and Sophia being found as a walker, as he was too torn up about his failure. He also is the most insistent on returning to search for Andrea when the farm is overrun and she is separated from the group. In Season 3, when Glenn and Maggie are kidnapped, he immediately volunteers to go after them.
** He brings this up as a big reason for why he leaves the group in "The Suicide King". He isn't willing to abandon Merle a second time. However, he realizes that they parted ways in how they think a long time ago and decides to return to the group, followed in shock by his brother.
** Despite his strong disapproval of Bob's actions in Season 4's "Indifference", Daryl doesn't even threaten to leave him behind.
** Eventually subverted in "Too Far Gone", when he and Beth are forced to flee the prison without the others after the defenses are lost and the group is scattered during the final battle with the Governor.
* NoSocialSkills: He's never been terribly good at interacting with others, but he slowly improves over the course of the series.
* NoSympathy: When the group considers booting out the inmate survivors, Daryl compares himself to them, stating that while they're degenerates, they're not monsters. Regardless, [[BaitAndSwitch he still thinks they should hit the road]].
* OddFriendship: Most obviously with Rick, with whom Daryl was initially deeply at odds with. (What with the whole cop-who-left-my-brother-to-die thing going on.) By Season 4 Rick says Daryl is his brother.
** With Carol, who becomes an important figure for him during Season 2 and beyond. Carol jokes about the idea of them being attracted to each other, and it's obvious that they're both devoted to each other, but beyond that, nothing definitive has been shown in canon.
** Starting with "Still", he developed this with Beth, despite their outlooks and pre-apocalypse lives being complete polar opposites.
** He also forms one with Aaron in "Forget" after the latter offers him a job as a recruiter for Alexandria.
** He forms one, yet again, with Denise in the second half of season 6. She even tells Daryl that he reminds her of someone she used to know.
* AnOddPlaceToSleep: He at one point tries to sleep in a ''coffin'', calling it the most comfortable bed he's had in years.
** He also initially refuses to sleep in a prison cell, choosing instead to sleep in the upstairs hall.
* OutOfFocus: He has an jarringly [[DemotedToExtra reduced role]] the first half of season six. It's not until the sixth episode of the season that he finally gets a starring role in an episode. He returns to the spotlight in the second half of the season.
* PeekABangs: Progressively starting Season 3. He even maintained it when he had the chance for a haircut during Season 5.
* PhraseCatcher: A minor example. He gets called that "Robin Hood cat" on two separate occasions by unrelated characters: Tomas in Season 3 and Tony in Season 4.
* PoliticallyIncorrectHero: Mildly racist to start but pretty much gone by the third season, but he was always willing to stick his neck out for all the members of the camp from the beginning.
* PromotionToOpeningTitles: Beginning in Season 2.
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[[folder:Tropes R-Z]]
* RatedMForManly: The show always find ways to highlight his {{Badass}}ness, such as taking out the crossbow impaled to him or destroying a tank by himself.
* RedOniBlueOni: The Blue to Merle's, Rick's, and Carol's Reds.
* ScarilyCompetentTracker: Shown when he and Rick look for Sophia at the start of Season 2.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: After he and Merle are rescued by Rick's group from Woodbury, Daryl abandons Rick and the group to stay with his brother. The next episode, he pulls this on Merle and heads back to the group, deciding that they are his real family. Merle is forced to follow along so he doesn't get left alone.
* SillyRabbitIdealismIsForKids: His relationship with Merle has him as the one more willing to help out others without insisting on payment, which he gets called on by Merle.
* SherlockScan: Twice. He figured out that Shane killed Otis due to the fact that Shane had Otis' gun when he supposedly did a HeroicSacrifice, and the second time when he determined Shane killed Randall by noting their footprints were walking together, the tree which Shane banged his face against to make it seem like Randall had attacked him, and Randall's broken neck.
* SleevesAreForWimps: His signature look, though he dons sleeves when winter blows through.
* SmokingIsCool: Daryl is a smoker, as seen in Season 3's "Arrow on the Doorpost", Season 4's "Indifference", and Season 5's "Them".
* SuicideIsShameful: Daryl has no sympathy for people who give up and take the easy way out (besides those who put themselves down before they can reanimate like the bitten Andrea).
* TakeMeInstead: Tries to do this in the Season 4 finale by offering his own life in exchange for the Marauders letting Rick, Carl, and Michonne go free. It doesn't work, as they just decide to kill him as well.
* ThinkNothingOfIt: When Carol thanks him for trying to save Sophia, he only responds by insisting Rick and Shane would have done the same. Likewise, when Carol notes his efforts to bring in refugees in S4, Daryl notes that Rick saved many as well. When Aaron reminds him of how he saved his group from a storm that eventually spawned a tornado, Daryl tries to shrug it off.
* TokenGoodTeammate: When he joins the Claimers in Season 4.
* TokenWhite: In Season 4, he goes on a medicine retrieval arc being accompanied by Michonne, Bob, and Tyreese.
* TookALevelInKindness: Daryl's CharacterDevelopment since the first season is very evident, to say the least.
* TragicKeepsake: Daryl eventually receives ownership of Beth's knife after the latter is killed, keeping it at his side.
* UnableToCry: For a long time after Beth's death. After several weeks, while all alone, he finally cries.
* UndyingLoyalty: Towards Rick, from the end of Season 2 onwards. Even when Merle comes back into the picture in Season 3, Daryl ends up choosing Rick, and he always backs Rick's play even if he doesn't necessarily agree that it's the best course of action.
** By S5, this is beginning to fracture somewhat. As Rick becomes more ruthless (as highlighted in HotBlooded above), Daryl begins to advocate against some of Rick's methods. Daryl sides with Tyreese regarding a peaceful prisoner exchange with Grady, frustrating Rick, who had wanted to go in guns blazing. When Rick and Carol begin plotting to prepare to take over Alexandria by force if need be, Daryl is not receptive to the idea (though Reedus contends that he would've if it really came to it). While for now the two are brothers, a rift is starting to form between Rick and Daryl.
** In Season 6, he is opposed to Rick indefinitely ending Alexandria's recruiting campaign, but while he makes this known, he also loyally concedes that it's Rick's call no matter what. He ends up reversing
* WarriorPoet: In "Cherokee Rose", describing the myth about the plant.
* YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre: Carol constantly reassures Daryl that he's more than just a killer, and has more good in him than he'd like to admit. Aaron also takes up this job when Daryl arrives in Alexandria.
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