Daryl Dixon (TV Series)

"Look, the world is just shit sometimes. And you live with it. Sometimes that's all you can do."

- Daryl to Henry after handing Lydia back to the Whisperers and her abusive mother "Alpha" to save Alden and Luke.

Daryl Dixon is a main character and a survivor of the outbreak in AMC's The Walking Dead. He is the younger brother of Merle and the last surviving member of his family. Daryl is an expert at hunting, tracking, navigation, and observation. Due to his survival skills, Rick Grimes values him as an important member of the group. Following the deaths of Ed and Sophia Peletier, Daryl has developed a close bond with fellow survivor Carol Peletier. He later formed a brief yet close bond with another fellow survivor Beth Greene before her demise. Daryl is at first a brazen, surly, impulsive redneck but develops himself as an integral part of the group. His aggression is unprecedented, and it remains one of his most valuable assets, as well as one of his most noticeable. Following the end of the war against Negan and the Saviors, Daryl becomes the new leader of the Sanctuary, though he eventually resigns from the role, giving it to Carol instead. In the years following Rick's assumed death, Daryl eventually started living in the woods after spending a long time searching for his best friend's body. He also found and trained a dog, who he just refers to as "Dog".

Overview
Daryl is both a physically and mentally strong man who is often surly and very resourceful but his compassion and loyalty towards the people he cares about are second-to-none; despite his hardened personality, he is not without a soft, emotional side. He is often volatile, but still significantly more level-headed than his older brother, Merle Dixon. Though he is usually distant, Daryl has often shown to be caring and selfless. All on his own, he attempts to find the lost Sophia Peletier on multiple occasions, one of which nearly cost him his life. He also immediately takes initiative to go back to find Andrea when she gets separated from the group.

In Season 1, Daryl is portrayed as a southern specialist tracer who constantly lives in the shadow of his older brother, Merle. Despite his hostile and distant behavior, he is a member of the team because of his hunting skills and his unparalleled craftsmanship in dealing with walkers.

In Season 2, Daryl becomes more friendly and cooperative. He also begins to develop a special bond with fellow survivor Carol, helping her find her lost daughter, Sophia. Daryl begins to grow up, becoming more and more responsible. Having been an outsider for most of his life, he is now starting to become a loyal member of the increasingly closely-bound team. However, after Sophia's death, he returns to his original, more hostile personality and is emotionally detached from the group. With the help of Carol and the rest of the group, he is involved in some issues (eg. helping Rick and Shane handle Randall) and seems to care about the farm and his shelter. On the night the farm is destroyed, he escapes with Carol and while she tries to persuade him to leave with her, Daryl, with a sense of respect for Rick, seems to be committed to keep the team safe.

In Season 3, Daryl proves to be invaluable, helping Rick and the rest of the group to clear the prison from the walkers so they can turn it into their new home. Moreover, he helps defend the prison after Rick's psychological collapse due to Lori's death, takes care of Judith, and also demonstrates his leadership capabilities by keeping the team united. The group has now become a large family, for which he is willing to even die for. Not surprisingly, when he learns that Glenn and Maggie are detained by The Governor at Woodbury, Daryl is one of the first members of the group to voluntarily go with Rick and penetrate the town to get their people back. However, Daryl ends up imprisoned there and after many hardships manages to escape with his brother, Merle. Then, Daryl is forced to choose between his old family and his new family. He finally decides to go with his brother. Daryl and Merle meet a family that is threatened by walkers. Daryl shows his altruistic mentality, leaping in to save them while Merle ignores them and then tries to plunder their car. However, Daryl prevents him, deciding to leave his brother behind and return to the prison. Merle then decides to follows him as he has nowhere to go. Merle eventually sacrifices himself while trying to kill the Governor. Later, Daryl finds Merle as a walker and for the first time Daryl shows his conflicting feelings. On the one hand, he is devastated by his brother's death and on the other hand, he unleashes a torrent of frustration and anger in Merle's body.

In Season 4, his role in the group is even more important. He has become a member of the Prison Council, being responsible for the prison administration and is also one of the key members of the group. However, the security of the prison does not last long, as The Governor leads a new team that manages to eventually destroy the team's shelter. After The Governor's assault, Daryl and Beth are separated from the others and Daryl firmly believes that they all died during the assault. He feels guilty about not being able to protect Rick, Hershel and the rest of the group. However, everything changes when Daryl meets Rick, Michonne, and Carl once again just before they all head to Terminus. Rick's relationship with Daryl has become so strong that Rick considers him a brother.

In Season 5, the group is trapped in Terminus. They all face a great risk, but for good luck, an explosion gives them the opportunity to escape. Thanks to Carol, the group is able to reunite. During the fifth season, Daryl and Carol's bond gets stronger, having been separated from each other for a long time. However, Daryl hasn't forgotten what happened to Beth. At the same time, the group meets a new survivor, Father Gabriel. At one point, Daryl sees the car he had seen the night Beth was lost and follows it with Carol. In their effort to find Beth, they meet Noah, who are kept as hostages, but they manage to escape. After a long time Daryl starts to mature, he went to prevent Carol from killing Noah, saying "He's just a kid". Later in the season, the group who captured Beth, captures Carol as well and Daryl returns to Father Gabriel's church with his main motivation being revenge. The whole group is preparing to get back its members. Unfortunately, only Carol manages to come back as Beth ends up with a bullet on her head. Daryl responds with swift vengeance on Dawn Lerner because of his wrath. After a long search for a shelter, the group finds a barn and temporarily stays there, but a new and seemingly suspicious survivor named Aaron approaches them and suggests they follow him. After a lot of thinking, they finally join Aaron and end up in Alexandria. At first, Daryl cannot adapt to Alexandria's life and is isolated. However, soon and due to his hunting and tracing skills, he is offered to be Alexandria's new recruiter along with Aaron.

In Season 6, he blasts with a RPG a group of Saviors saving Abraham and Sasha. After a meeting with Jesus and Hilltop Colony the group unleashes an attack on a Savior Outpost. Later in the season, Daryl ends up injured and hostage to Dwight. In the last episode of the sixth season, everyone's future is uncertain as they are confronted by Negan and his group.

In Season 7, after the deaths of Abraham and Glenn. Daryl is seen for the first time truly broken. Alexandria ends up working for Negan and for the first half of the seventh season, Daryl is imprisoned in The Sanctuary. Through the hardships and psychosomatic torture, Daryl still manages to maintain his sanity. After a while, Daryl reunites with the group at Hilltop after he manages to escape from The Sanctuary by killing Fat Joey. They try to persuade all of the communities to participate in the war against Negan and The Saviors. Later in the season, Dwight goes to Alexandria and tells them he wants to help them kill Negan. On the one hand, Daryl wants to kill the man who imprisoned him, killed Denise, shot him, and took part in his torture; and on the other hand wants Alexandria free from Negan. Eventually, he receives Dwight's help, still suspicious of his motives. The war against The Saviors begins, with the communities of Alexandria, Hilltop and Kingdom winning the first battle but certainly not the war.

In season 8, Daryl is the key character for the success of the plan to trap The Saviors inside The Sanctuary. Daryl, along with Rick separate from the rest in order to get some weapons from a Savior outpost. However, it soon becomes clear that Daryl, seething over Glenn's death and the torture he suffered at the hands of the Saviors while imprisoned by them, is determined to kill them all, not caring what their reason for following Negan's orders may be. This is shown when he kills Morales despite their history prior to his joining the Saviors stating that the history in question no longer matters, murders an unarmed Todd despite the fact that Todd was just a worker and that Rick had just promised Todd they would spare him if he gave them the information he'd agreed to give them and drives a bus through the Sanctuary wall in a determined attempt to allow walkers they'd lured to the Sanctuary to get in and kill everyone inside, so blind with hate that he was unconcerned that many of the people the walkers subsequently killed were innocent prisoners and workers. After a while, Daryl comes in contact with Dwight and takes back his vest saying he will kill him when the war is over. Finally, Daryl participates in the final battle against The Saviors. Then, he leads Dwight into a forest, where Dwight waits to be killed. However, Daryl, finally accepting that Dwight had been forced to follow Negan's orders against his will, drives him away and encourages him to look for his wife Sherry, warning that he will kill him if he returns.

In Season 9, eighteen months after the victory of the communities against The Saviors, Daryl has become the leader of the Sanctuary, which seems to not thank him. Indeed, he expresses to Rick his desire to do what he is good at; being out there, but Rick doesn't agree. The relationship between the two men is not at its best, as they have different beliefs and it seems clear when Daryl is eager to help Maggie, who wants to kill Negan, contrary to Rick's "belief". Later, Daryl tries to prevent Rick from stopping Maggie. They have a bad fight, but in the end, they reconcile. Then, when a horde of walkers is preparing to attack the communities, Daryl and Rick split up with the latter presumably dead. After a six year time jump, everything has changed and Daryl now lives alone with a dog. Daryl later assists Jesus and Aaron in looking for a missing Eugene. In their effort to find him, they notice that something strange is going on with the horde of walkers. When they finally find Eugene they are confronted by The Whisperers.

In "Omega," Daryl shows a knowledge of how abusive parents work and sympathy for Lydia when he realizes that the girl has been abused. Upon confronting Daryl, Henry realizes that Daryl himself is likely a victim of abuse, explaining his knowledge and sympathies. Henry tells Daryl that "sometimes you act like the kind of guy that slams people against walls, but I don't think that's it." Henry suggests that Daryl's perspective could help to show Lydia that Daryl could be the one person to show Lydia that there's nothing to be afraid of with Daryl suggesting that Henry could as well.

Survival Instinct
Daryl grew up in the mountains of Northern Georgia alongside his older brother Merle, under the roof of their neglectful redneck parents, their father, an abusive alcoholic alongside their chain-smoker mother. Merle was the only inspirational figure he had during his youth and thus inherited his backward views on society, however due to his older brother's service in juvenile detentions, he became frequently absent from Daryl's life and thus he was reluctantly forced to fend for himself, upon where he developed a hard-boiled survivalist mindset.

At a young age, the brothers lost their mother in a house fire which had been caused by a cigarette while she was asleep or presumably drunk. Some point after this event Daryl found himself lost in the woods for nine days during where he was forced to consume wild berries and utilize poison oak as substitute for toilet paper. Eventually he managed to find his way back home, upon arrival however, his father had unnoticed his absence and thus Daryl simply walked through the back door and made himself a sandwich.

The siblings were mentally and physically abused by their father, which eventually caused Merle to abandon the family and join the military, subsequently leaving Daryl in the process which resulted in severe scars located on his back, this abuse however was, according to Merle, unknown. Following their father's death, Daryl moved out from his birth home and eventually reconnected with Merle and thus simply followed his brother's lead upon where they entered into a drifter lifestyle, where the pair utilised their survival instincts, upon where Daryl grew into a proficient hunter and tracker, hunting for food and dealing in contraband.

At one point, the pair resided in Merle's drug supplier's house where the trio watched TV and by noon had become intoxicated, a discussion turned violent where the dealer punched his older brother, where Daryl retaliated by savagely beating the man. However, the dealer then threatened to shoot Daryl, a large argument ensued, which ended with the dealer punching Daryl in the gut, causing him to vomit. Merle and the dealer laughed the incident off. Following this near-death experience, Daryl gradually came to view himself as an unimportant individual who held no value or purpose in life.

Post-Apocalypse
When the apocalypse began, he and Merle headed towards Atlanta (a declared safe-zone) for shelter. Along the way, they both met up with Shane's group and found out Atlanta was overrun. They helped set up camp near a quarry. During their stay at the camp, they spent a considerable amount of time hunting animals. According to Merle, they had planned to rob the camp blind before Merle was left in Atlanta.

Daryl owned a grey 1973 Ford F-250 pickup truck. He used it to transport the corpses of the fallen camp-survivors, such as Ed Peletier and Amy, to the graveyard made by Jim. When the group left for the CDC, Daryl was driving his truck with his brother's motorcycle in the back. When his truck ran out of gas, he put his belongings in one of the other vehicles, (possibly Dale Horvath's RV) and switched vehicles to his brother's motorcycle. His truck was then abandoned and is never seen again in the show. The motorcycle was in use up until "Too Far Gone" in which it was abandoned when Daryl was forced to flee the prison during the Governor's attack.

"Tell It to the Frogs"
After Merle Dixon was abandoned on a rooftop in Atlanta during a supply run, Daryl is mentioned by Morales, who notes that he may be the only one who'll be upset at Merle being left behind. He is mentioned again as being away hunting by Dale Horvath, who also mentions that he will become volatile. When a walker appears nearby the camp eating the corpse of a deer, Daryl appears out of the woods, complaining that he was on the trail of the deer that he had shot with his crossbow. He finds it partially eaten by a walker, surrounded by the rest of his group. After Dale decapitates the zombie, the head continues to growl only to be permanently silenced by a bolt from Daryl's crossbow.

At the camp, Daryl arrives calling for his brother, but he is informed by Rick Grimes and the others that Merle was insane and a threat back in the city, so he was handcuffed to a roof and left behind. This prompts Daryl to snap. He tries to attack Rick, but Shane restrained him as T-Dog reassures Daryl that Merle is okay, as he had locked the roof door shut before fleeing the city. Daryl then demands the location of the building so he can go there and rescue his brother. Rick offers to go with him. T-Dog and Glenn Rhee also offer to go. Daryl is later seen telling the others to hurry up, so they can rescue Merle quickly. The four men get in a truck and depart.

Daryl and the others arrive at Atlanta. Rick says that he also came back to retrieve the bag of guns that he dropped when he first came into the overrun city. Daryl silently kills all the walkers in the way with his crossbow, and when they reach the rooftop of the department store, they find that the only thing remaining is the handcuffs, a hacksaw, and Merle's hand. Daryl, shocked and angered at what he sees, breaks down and starts crying.

"Vatos"
Daryl, after seeing what he saw, points his crossbow at T-Dog, blaming him for his brother's disappearance, but gives in after Rick holds a gun to his head. Daryl wraps Merle's hand in a cloth and puts it in Glenn's backpack. They begin to follow the blood trail left by Merle. The trail leads them into a room with two dead walkers where all but Daryl are astonished that Merle was able to kill both with just one hand. In the same room they find an iron steak weight covered in burnt skin which Merle used to cauterize his stump. Later they find a window with a hole in it, possibly meaning Merle has escaped. When Daryl decides to go search for Merle on the streets, T-Dog reminds him that they need to get the bag of guns first. Glenn makes a plan to get the guns: Daryl must accompany Glenn to the store's alley, while Rick and T-Dog wait in an alley two blocks away.

The plan gets underway, and Glenn is able to retrieve the guns, but another survivor, Miguel, runs into Daryl from the back of the alley, to which Daryl rationally asks him about his brother and begins to beat him with his crossbow. Miguel screams, alerting Rick, T-Dog, and two other survivors: Jorge and Felipe. Jorge and Felipe arrive first and beat up Daryl, until they spot Glenn with the bag of guns. They tackle Glenn, who drops the guns, and Rick's hat, which gives Daryl enough time to aim his crossbow and fire an arrow into Felipe's behind. A car arrives at the scene. Jorge and Felipe grab Glenn and get into the car, leaving Miguel behind. When Rick and T-Dog arrive, they see Daryl closing a gate to prevent the walkers from crowding the alley. Daryl throws Miguel against the wall, in which Rick restrains him.

Later, while they are trying to get information about Glenn's whereabouts, Daryl threatens Miguel and shows him Merle's hand, bluffing and threatening that it was an enemy of his. They head to the "Vatos"' hangout, where Rick tries to negotiate into giving Miguel to them and getting Glenn back, but their leader, Guillermo, also wants the bag of guns. They return to the building and Daryl, T-Dog, and Rick decide to go back and threaten the Vatos. They return and then enter the Vatos' hideout threatening bloodshed, but an elderly woman enters the room and they find out that the gang are actually nurses taking care of elderly people. After solving the problem, that was just a misunderstanding, Rick gives the gang half of the guns inside the bag. Daryl, Rick, T-Dog and Glenn are returning, Daryl comments how he was against giving away half of the guns. On the way back, they notice that the truck they used to get to Atlanta was stolen, they assume that Merle stole the truck to go back to the camp and get revenge.

Daryl and his crew return to the camp on foot, and notice that walkers had infiltrated the camp, where they were attacking the survivors, killing/infecting quite a few of them. Despite the high number of casualties, Daryl, and the rest, are able to kill all of the invading walkers, thanks to the weapons inside the bag of guns.

"Wildfire"
The next morning, Daryl helps in the cleanup of the zombie carcasses and the bodies of the fallen campers. He and Morales drag the body of a man towards the bonfire but Glenn stops them, demanding that the dead be buried properly. Daryl hesitates but eventually agrees, he ultimately curses everyone, saying that they deserved what they got after leaving Merle behind. As Daryl impales each corpse with a pickaxe to prevent reanimation, Carol stops him as he is about to hit Ed Peletier, saying that she should impale her husband's head. When the survivors find out that Jim has been bitten, the group unites to discuss what to do with him, Daryl immediately grabs the pickaxe to take Jim out, but is stopped by Rick, who points his gun do Daryl's head, prompting him to drop the pickaxe and walk away.

After the funeral of the fallen camp survivors, the group decides to move to the Center for Disease Control in hopes of finding a cure and saving Jim's life. They part ways with Morales' family, who decided to go look for their relatives, and Daryl heads with the group to the CDC. Along the way, the RV breaks down, so Shane and T-Dog scout out the gas station ahead for parts, while a dying Jim is perched against a tree as everyone says their goodbye to him. Daryl glares at Jim and after a moment gives him a nod, before turning back to his car. As the night comes, Daryl and the survivors reach the CDC complex to find it locked, walkers start to close in on the group, but Rick refuses to leave as he says that the security camera is moving. Shane finally convinces Rick to get out of there, but right when everybody is leaving, the doors open at the last minute.

"TS-19"
Daryl and the rest of the group are admitted into the CDC by Edwin Jenner after going through a blood test to ensure none of them are infected. He is introduced to the luxuries the facility has to offer, including hot water and real beds. He enjoys dinner and wine with everyone and learns about Test Subject 19 and Dr. Jenner's work, and the fall of the CDC's infrastructure. After Dr. Jenner reveals the purpose of the countdown timer and shuts the control room's door, Daryl is enraged and tries break through the metal door with an axe. While Rick tries to convince Dr. Jenner to let them leave the building and try their chances on the road, Daryl loses his temper and tries to cut the scientist's head with the axe, but is restrained by Rick and the others. As the survivors finally get Dr. Jenner to open the door for their escape, they all reach the lobby to find the doors permanently locked and the windows bulletproof. However, Daryl and the others are able to escape to their caravan after Rick's grenade explodes a window pane. During the escape he spectacularly decapitates a Walker with an axe. After everyone gets in their vehicles, the CDC explodes; Daryl drives off in his pick-up truck following the rest of the caravan, getting away from the complex as the ruins burn.

"What Lies Ahead"
During their excursion to Fort Benning, the group is forced to hide from a herd of walkers, Daryl saves T-Dog from one of them, then covers himself and T-Dog up with corpses to fool the rest of the walkers. When Carol's daughter Sophia goes missing in the aftermath, Rick enlists Daryl's expert tracking abilities to help find her. During the search, they dissect a zombie to see if it had eaten Sophia. When the trail runs cold, they are forced to return to the others empty-handed.

"Bloodletting"
On their way back, Lori hears a gunshot and is suspicious about it as Rick or Shane wouldn't risk wasting or alerting walkers to kill a single walker. He reassures Carol that they are going to find Sophia and she is going to be fine. When Andrea is facing a walker and Maggie Greene comes in by horse for Lori, Daryl rushes with the rest of the group as Lori jumps on the horse. He says that they don't even know her or who she is so how could they trust her, but in the end with nothing really to stop her, he lets her go to the Greene family farm. Later, the group decides what to do as they need to head to the farm and meet up with Rick but don't want to risk Sophia coming back to an empty highway. Daryl offers to stay one more day and set up signs to tell her just in case, after Dale mentions that T-Dog is in bad shape and needs medical attention. Daryl goes to Merle's stash and gets him some "first class" antibiotics for his blood infection.

"Save the Last One"
Daryl wakes up at night hearing the sound of Carol sobbing over Sophia. Daryl grabs his crossbow and decides to go out and look for Sophia and is joined by Andrea who could not sleep either.

While in the woods, Daryl assures Andrea that Sophia is going to be fine. Andrea protests and tells him that Sophia is only twelve years old and is not yet capable to survive on her own with no food or weapons. To reassure Andrea, he tells her a story about his childhood when he was lost in the mountains living off of berries and cleaning himself with poison oak. No one ever knew he was gone, not even Merle because he was in a juvenile detention center, and when he finally made it back, he walked into the kitchen and made himself a sandwich. The story lightens the mood and Andrea laughs.

Daryl and Andrea continue on down a path and hear something that they suspect to be Sophia but are mistaken and arrive at a campsite where a man hanged himself and had turned into a walker. Daryl read the sign that the man wrote that said, "Got bit, fever hit, world gone to shit, might as well quit" that Daryl commented on saying that the guy was too stupid to shoot himself in the head. Daryl continues to describe the flesh that had been eaten off the man's legs by other walkers and Andrea pukes. Andrea then asks if he was planning on just leaving him hanging up there which Daryl replied that he wasn't doing any harm up there. Daryl asked Andrea if she still felt like dying and Andrea said she would answer for an arrow. After answering with a fairly confusing answer, Daryl shot the walker in the head and said it was a "waste of an arrow." They return home without Sophia.

"Cherokee Rose"
Daryl goes searching for Sophia again, alone this time, and finds a Cherokee Rose for Carol. He sets it on the counter beside her and explains that when the Native Americans were being relocated, many of their children died and went missing, and it was believed that the tears of the mothers made a Cherokee Rose bloom. He also stated he doubted the flower had grown for his brother, Merle, but instead for Carol's daughter, Sophia.

"Chupacabra"
The next day, Daryl and the rest of the group continue to search for Sophia. Daryl takes a horse and heads to search alone. While searching near a creek he discovers Sophia's doll. Shortly afterwards he falls off a cliff-side into a river when his horse is spooked by a snake. On the way down Daryl hits his head and impales himself on one of his arrows. He leaves it in and attempts to climb a steep cliff only to fall and lose consciousness. As he drifts in and out he hallucinates his brother Merle who mocks and taunts him, calling him a failure and telling him the others in the group just see him as a freak. Daryl awakes to see a walker gnawing on his boot and another one approaching. He kills the closest one with a branch and pulls the arrow out of his side to dispatch the second one. After bandaging his wound he once again attempts to climb up the cliff. On the way up he again hallucinates Merle who again mocks him, telling him nobody cared about him but his brother and that he should shoot Rick next time he saw him. Eventually Daryl makes it back to the farm, but due to his blood soaked appearance and limp, Andrea takes him for a walker and shoots him. The bullet grazes his left temple and Rick and Shane rush Daryl back to the house. His injuries are not mortal and Hershel bandages him up. Later, Carol brings him dinner and thanks him for doing so much to find her daughter, kissing him on the forehead to show someone does care about him.

"Secrets"
Daryl is seen recuperating from his injuries in a tent outside the farm house. Andrea gives him a book and attempts to apologize for accidentally shooting him, but Daryl brushes off her concern stating she was just trying to protect the group and that he did not blame her. As she left, he added, "You shoot me again you best pray I'm dead."

"Pretty Much Dead Already"
Daryl is first seen eating breakfast with the rest of the survivors; when Glenn tells them that the barn is full of walkers, Daryl sets his jaw.

Later, he walks to the stable and readies a saddle to go out looking for Sophia again, but as Carol sees he's still hurt from the arrow wound, she tries to stop him, telling him she doesn't want to lose him too. He throws the saddle to the floor, and, still in pain, walks away calling Carol a "stupid bitch." Shortly after he takes Carol to a pond where he apologizes and shows her another Cherokee rose that's blooming to restore her faith in finding her daughter. Much later, when Shane starts giving out the guns to the group, Daryl takes one quickly. As the group sees Rick and Hershel walk up to the barn with two walkers on long poles, he approaches them and keeps his gun aimed at the male until Shane shoots it and opens the barn doors. He quickly lines up with Shane, Glenn, T-Dog and Andrea and starts shooting the walkers. When zombified Sophia finally steps out of the barn, he catches a horrified and grief-stricken Carol to stop her from getting too close to her daughter.

"Nebraska"
Daryl is angered that Carol won't attend her own daughter's funeral but he still attends with all the other survivors. Lori decides that Daryl is the best choice to look for Rick, Hershel and Glenn, but he is still upset over the sacrifices he made in vain to collect Sophia and snaps, "I'm done lookin' for people."

"Triggerfinger"
Daryl tells Carol that Lori had asked him to find Hershel, but he had refused. He speculates that Lori went on her own to town. Back at the Greene Farm, Carol goes to check on Daryl, finding many dead squirrels and severed walker ears hanging on a clothes line. Daryl catches her and confronts her. After their argument Daryl walks away from Carol and she yells out that she will not let him push her away.

"Judge, Jury, Executioner"
In the farm's slaughter shed, Daryl beats a bound and whimpering Randall who cries out, "I've told you", to which Daryl replies "You've told me shit!" Randall says he barely knows the guys he was with so Daryl asks how many are in his group, but when he receives no reply, he draws his knife. Randall confesses that he was traveling with a group of about 30 men who never stayed anywhere for more than one night, but he doesn't know where they plan on going next. Continuing the interrogation, Daryl rips Randall's bandage off and sticks his knife into his wound. Randall quickly admits that the group is heavily armed with automatics but is insistent that he's not dangerous and is nothing like them. Randall tells a story of how one night, whilst scavenging, the men found a father with his two teenage daughters whom they proceeded to rape in front of their father for fun. Randall insists he didn't touch them but Daryl continues to beat him. Throughout the interrogation Randall begs and cries for it to stop, to no avail.

Daryl reports what he's found out to the rest of the group, explaining that if this gang "rolls through here, our boys are dead, and our women they're gonna... well, they're gonna wish they were". Carol asks what Daryl did; he replies that they "had a little chat". This leads Rick to declare Randall a threat, and that he must be killed, "You can't just decide on your own to take someone's life," Dale objects, begging Rick to give him time to talk to the group and find another way. Rick reluctantly agrees to give Dale the rest of the day, after a short bit of persuasion.

Later, Daryl can be seen inspecting bolts and placing them into his crossbows quiver as Dale approaches. "The whole point of me coming up here is to get away from you people" Daryl expresses, before Dale can speak. Daryl asks if Carol sent him but Dale explains that it's not only her that's concerned about him, or his new role in the group. "This group's broken, I'm better off fending for myself" Daryl says, stating he doesn't care what happens to Randall in reply to Dale asking where he stands. Dale asks Daryl to stand with him anyway, but Daryl won't because he believes his opinion won't matter and he knows that Rick only listens to Shane. He also mentions about how Shane killed Otis and how he didn't believe Shane's story because he came back with a dead man's gun, this leaves Dale shocked that Daryl seems disinterested at the fact Shane is a killer. Before walking off Daryl reiterates "The group's broken".

An upset Carl comes across Daryl's (Merle's) motorcycle and starts looking through its satchels, he finds a handgun and decides to take it.

At the meeting to decide Randall's fate, Dale pleads with the group to do what's right. Andrea eventually sides with him, but the others still want him dead, bar Carol, Maggie, Hershel, Patricia, and Daryl who remain neutral. Despondent, Dale leaves the room. Putting a hand on Daryl's arm, he says "This group is broken."

Afterward, Rick, Shane, and Daryl walk a begging Randall to the barn. Shane says "This is all going to be over soon." and Randall suddenly realizes what is going on, which leaves him scared and begging even more. Rick asks him whether he wants to stand or kneel but when he doesn't answer Daryl forces him to the ground. Rick now asks if he has any final words to which Randall just continues begging for his life. As Rick raises his gun, Carl enters the barn. "Do it Dad, do it" he says. Shocked, Rick lowers his gun and orders Randall taken away which Daryl obliges. Shane then storms out of the barn.

When Dale's screams are heard, Daryl, who at the time is about to cut Randall with his knife, runs to the scene. Being the first to get there he sees the walker on top of Dale, tearing into his stomach. Daryl leaps at it tackling it off Dale, he rolls and stabs it in the head. He calls for help and tries to comfort Dale but his intestines are spilling out of his gut and he goes into shock, just as everyone else arrives. When Hershel finally gets down, he says that Dale can't be saved. A teary Andrea who is also comforting Dale begs Rick to help. Rick takes out his gun, but can't bring himself to shoot so Daryl takes the weapon and aims it at Dale's head. "Sorry brother," Daryl says and shoots Dale in the head out of mercy.

"Better Angels"
To the dismay of Shane, Rick now promotes Daryl as his new wing man. When Rick and Daryl prepare to leave, T-Dog is sent to get Randall. He discovers the barn empty, as a short time earlier, Shane had brought Randall into the forest informing him he is done with Rick's group and wants to join with the others. This is merely a ruse as Shane breaks Randall's neck, killing him. Before returning to the group, Shane pounds his own face into a nearby tree to make it seem as if Randall had injured him during an escape.

A thorough search of the farm shows no sign of Randall. Shane buries his gun upon returning, before he shouts to the group announcing that Randall escaped and is armed. Rick assembles Glenn and Daryl to go with him and Shane to track him down.

Glenn and Daryl come across the area of the forest where Randall was last seen. Daryl notices that the area shows signs of a struggle. As a walker appears, the two of them take cover behind some nearby trees. The walker turns out to be Randall and tries to attack them, but Glenn drives a knife into his head, killing him. Daryl conducts a brief examination of the body, only to find that it shows no sign of bites or scratches, and that his cause of death was his neck being broken. Daryl starts to wonder what is going on that could cause him to turn into a "walker".

"Beside the Dying Fire"
As the inhabitants of the farm notice the herd approaching, Daryl is asked by Lori to go and look for Carl. He puts his crossbow and pistol to good use, killing many of the walkers. Eventually he notices Carol surrounded and rescues her, fleeing the farm afterwards.

Later on, he and Carol meet up with everyone else on the highway. After everyone realizes Andrea is not with the group, Daryl volunteers to go back and find her but his attempt is thwarted by Rick, who says she's either dead or far away from the farm by that time. Later on, when Rick suggests they camp out on the road, Daryl brings up that Randall reanimated due to a broken neck and wasn't bitten. When Rick shares that Jenner told him everyone was infected, Daryl was at first skeptical but later accepted that Rick did the right thing by not telling everyone about it. That night around the campfire, Carol tries to persuade Daryl to separate and go off on their own; Daryl wants to stay. Carol then says that Daryl is a man of honor and that he should be leading them, not Rick. Daryl refuses, saying Rick has honor and that he trusts him.

"Seed"
Daryl has now completely replaced Shane as Rick's right hand man, and is seen along with T-Dog, Rick, and Carl leading the charge in killing the Walkers that have taken over the abandoned house they stumbled upon. Daryl kills an owl that he finds in an bedroom upstairs. He is seen picking off the feathers to get it ready for cooking. The group, however, is forced to flee when more walkers show up to their location. Daryl offers to take Rick hunting while the others fetch water, where they stumble upon the prison. Daryl and the rest of group help Rick to shut the main gate by distracting and killing the walkers inside of the prison yard.

At night, after Carol brings Daryl some food, she seems to be in discomfort, complaining that her shoulder hurts because of the kick-back of a rifle she was shooting, and that she's just not use to that rifle yet. Uncharacteristically, Daryl quickly tries to relieve her pain with a shoulder massage, but after only seconds and some nervous eye contact, Daryl stops and suggests they should return with the others. Carol points out that they just had a romantic moment and jokingly asks if he would be interested in screwing around. Daryl and Carol both laugh off the statement.

The next day, Daryl, Rick, T-Dog, Glenn and Maggie lock themselves within the prison courtyard and kill the remaining walkers, where they secure Cell Block C (The safest). Daryl and Rick are the only two that choose not to sleep in the cells that night. The next day, Daryl, Rick, Glenn, Hershel, T-Dog, and Maggie go in search for the prison's cafeteria and infirmary but get ambushed by a group of walkers. Unfortunately, Hershel is bitten in his right calf by a lurker lying against a wall when he, Rick, and Daryl go back to look for Maggie and Glenn. Once they reach prison's cafeteria, Daryl notices a group of what he believes to be walkers behind a metal grate on the other side of the cafeteria. Upon further inspection, he (along with the others) realizes that they are surviving inmates.

"Sick"
Continuing right where the last episode ended, Daryl has his Crossbow raised at the five figures and asks who they are; the five men are prisoners. One of them, Tomas, is scared and points a gun at Daryl and T-Dog, this confrontation is cut short as Rick and the rest are taking Hershel back to the cell block and Daryl decides to go with them, leaving the five prisoners behind. As Hershel is taken to a safe place, Daryl keeps guard on the approaching prisoners and once again a confrontation starts between him and Tomas until Rick shows up and stops the heated argument by calming the prisoners down and explaining what is going on. When Rick explains about the walkers, Daryl is the one who tells the prisoners that no matter how they die, they will come back as a walker unless their brain is damaged.

After Tomas creates another argument, this time with Rick, they decide to take half of the food supplies that the prisoners kept in the cafeteria, in exchange, Rick, Daryl and T-Dog helps the prisoners clearing another cell block so they can live in it. Daryl is mostly seen for the rest of this episode accompanying Rick, T-Dog, and the prisoners on the way to secure Cell Block B. After the cell block is secured for the last two remaining prison survivors (Oscar and Axel), he apologizes to the both of them for the loss of their friends. He then watches Hershel with some of the group and sees him wake up (signifying that he will be all right).

"Killer Within"
Daryl, Rick, T-Dog, Carol, Glenn, and Maggie are preparing to burn the bodies of all the walkers they killed so far in the prison. Oscar and Axel approach the group, asking to join them since they claim that Cell Block B is a haunted place and they can't just live there with all those corpses. Rick consults Daryl about this decision and Daryl gives Rick a sign to not to trust the prisoners. They decide to let the prisoners leave the prison, since they don't want to live in the Cell Block B. T-Dog questions this action, Daryl expresses his opinion that he knew guys like Axel and Oscar and they are not psychos, even though, they should try their own luck on the road. Rick, Glenn and Daryl go out to get some wood to burn the bodies, when they realize that walkers are invading the prison's courtyard and the three men run to try to save the others from the group.

After killing the walkers and realizing that the others disappeared and someone broke the gate open, allowing the walkers to get in, Rick blames the two prisoners, but the prison alarms start blaring, proving that someone else is messing with the group. He, Oscar, and Rick go to the generator room to disable the alarm. When Andrew attacks Rick, Oscar leaves the door to help out, and Daryl is left holding the door shut alone. He eventually goes for his crossbow, and kills the walkers. He is seen sneaking up on Oscar after Oscar killed Andrew, saving Rick. When he realized that Oscar was not acting hostile, he relaxed. He, Glenn, Rick, Oscar, and Axel reunite and find T-Dog's devoured body, along with Carol's head scarf. He assumes that she was devoured by walkers.

"Say the Word"
Rick is brought to a breaking point, leading him to abandon the group and find Lori's body. Daryl steps up and takes on the role of the leader and giving everyone a job to do. He then offers to go on a supply run with Maggie and Glenn in order to find formula for the baby. Maggie suggests that Glenn not go. Daryl and Maggie head to a daycare center not far from the prison in search for the formula that Hershel suggested retrieving earlier. While entering the daycare, Daryl notices a child's paper cut-out hand hanging on the wall with the name "Sophie" written on it. Inside, Maggie grabs supplies while Daryl searches the building for Walkers. Eventually, he hears rattles within a closet and spots a possum, which he shoots and says will be dinner. Eventually, the two return to the prison with the formula and the proper supplies. Daryl is seen giving the formula to the baby and the baby's name is brought up. Carl suggests all the names of the women in the group they've lost. Daryl then jokingly suggests the name "Ass Kicker". At dawn the next day, Daryl places a Cherokee Rose on a grave designated for Carol and holds a moment of silence for her.

"Hounded"
Daryl is seen talking with Rick while eating. Daryl, Carl, and Oscar explore the prison in search of supplies. While they do so, Daryl talks to Carl about how he had also lost his mother when he was young, and Carl reveals to Daryl that he was the one to shoot Lori before she could reanimate. Daryl, Carl, and Oscar are startled by a walker and kill it, with Daryl discovering Carol's knife plunged in its neck. Daryl is seen sitting alone after having a breakdown, while a door shutters. In frustration, he opens it, and discovers a weak and dehydrated Carol. Daryl carries her back to the group.

"When the Dead Come Knocking"
Daryl arrives back in the cell block, and witnesses Rick carrying Michonne into the prison. After watching for a few moments, he invites everyone over to a cell, where he reveals the weakened, frail Carol. After several embraces between Carol and the group members, he prepares for the journey to Woodbury after learning the locations of Glenn and Maggie from Michonne. While on foot, Rick personally thanks Daryl for taking care of Judith. Soon they are approached by a large group of walkers and are forced to take shelter in the home of a hermit. While there, the hermit nearly allows walkers inside, but is killed by Michonne. They toss his body to the walkers, giving them the time to escape through the back door. Later, they arrive at Woodbury, and survey the area, crouching behind the wrecks of cars.

"Made to Suffer"
In this episode, Daryl assists the group in recovering the captive Maggie and Glenn from Woodbury. While hiding out in one of the houses, Daryl learns that Merle was responsible for brutally beating Glenn and yearns to talk with him before they depart, but Rick refuses, due to it being too risky. Daryl throws out a flash grenade and fires during the shootout between the Woodbury soldiers and their group. Once Rick, Glenn, Maggie, and Michonne are ready to escape, they notice that Daryl has fallen behind. It turns out that Daryl was captured by Woodbury soldiers during the shootout and is brought to the walker pit as Philip asks the residents what they should do with the "terrorists". The Governor brands Merle a terrorist and traitor as well, having conspired with his brother. Two Woodbury soldiers bring out a person with a potato sack on his head, who is revealed to be Daryl. Merle stares at Daryl in shock as he was one of those who were in the shootout. The Dixon brothers are finally reunited as the crowd cheers for their deaths.

"The Suicide King"
In the arena, Philip orders Merle and Daryl to fight to the death, with the winner walking away free. Merle says that he will do whatever he can to prove his loyalty to Woodbury before beginning to fight Daryl. On the ground, Merle tells Daryl to follow his lead, proving that he has no intentions of killing his brother. Daryl and Merle flee with Rick's group when Rick and Maggie return. Daryl seems to be angered at Merle for aligning himself with The Governor, and doesn't object when Rick knocks him out. The group, however, doesn't want Merle to live in The Prison. Daryl then lays down an ultimatum: either Merle comes with them or he's leaving. After Rick firmly says that Merle will be too much of a liability, Daryl begins grabbing his stuff. He tells Rick to take care of Judith and Carl, and says that Carl is a tough kid; Daryl also says that Carol will understand his reasons for leaving. Rick pleads one more time for him to stay, but Daryl refuses to abandon his brother again and walks off with Merle.

"Home"
Daryl and Merle wander through the woods after departing the group. They argue about where they should go, as Daryl says they should loot the houses they come across. This urges Merle to sarcastically mention it as something his "sheriff friend" taught him. They hear sounds, which Merle believed emanated from a wild animal, but Daryl recognizes it as a baby's crying. They find a Mexican Family stuck with their car on a bridge over Yellow Jacket Creek. Daryl decides to help them, to Merle's disapproval. After killing multiple walkers with Merle watching, only shooting his gun once to save Daryl, the family is finally saved. Merle then ransacks the car for food. Daryl raises his crossbow on Merle, insisting that he allows the family to depart freely. After doing so, Merle argues about Daryl's pointless act of saving people who wouldn't do the same to them. When the argument becomes heated, Merle tears Daryl's shirt apart, exposing multiple scars inflicted by their abusive father. Merle claims that he was unaware that Daryl had received the same abuse as him from their father. Daryl decides to go back to The Prison, saying he belongs there, rather than with Merle. Merle reluctantly decides to go along with him, despite knowing that nobody wants him there for attempting to kill Michonne and beating up Glenn. When The Governor attacks The Prison and releases some walkers in the yard, Rick, trapped outside the fences following a hallucination of Lori, is almost devoured by multiple walkers before Daryl shoots an arrow through one of the walker's head. Together, Daryl, Rick, and Merle kill the walkers outside of the fences, and watch the remaining walkers roaming inside the yard.

"I Ain't a Judas"
Daryl assists in creating a plan to eliminate the walkers in the yard. He gets into an argument with the others concerning Merle's presence. Later, Daryl is seen sitting in his cell when Carol appears to talk to him. Carol tells Daryl that Merle is no good for him, and not to allow him to bring Daryl down with him. When Andrea arrives at The Prison, Daryl threatens to gouge out The Governor's other eye when he sees him again. Later that night, while Beth sings by candlelight, Rick informs Daryl and Hershel of his plans to go on a supply run with Carl and Michonne. Daryl volunteers, but Rick insisted he stayed behind to take care of the others and keep an eye on Merle.

"Arrow on the Doorpost"
Daryl accompanies Rick along with Hershel to a meeting that was set up with The Governor. Later, he is seen talking to Caesar Martinez when Rick is trying to talk with Philip about a compromise for their rivalry. Daryl and Martinez quickly get into a fight, and then proceed to have an unspoken walker-killing contest. Afterwards, the two share their thoughts on the situation while smoking cigarettes.

"This Sorrowful Life
Daryl is first seen being informed by Rick about the plan to hand over Michonne; he disagrees and states "This ain't us", but is convinced by Rick that it is the only option. After this, he is seen aiding Glenn and Michonne in setting up barbed wire in the field to deter The Governor's trucks, lest they attempt to take the yard. Later Daryl aids Glenn in securing a broken gate and tries to convince him that Merle is sorry and that he intends to make things right. Daryl later finds his brother in the generator room, and talks to him about the plan with Michonne. Merle mentions that he feels like the group needs him as a "bad guy", to do the "dirty work". He states that before the apocalypse Daryl would've called people acting like he is "sheep". Daryl expresses his concern for Merle's change in personality and states that he wishes he had his brother back. Towards the end of the episode, Daryl tracks down his brother to bring him back to the prison. Along the way, he encounters Michonne alone. He continues on to the feed store, and finally finds Merle, but not in the way he had hoped: zombified. He then breaks into tears as a zombified and bloodthirsty Merle walks towards him. Daryl pushes his zombified brother back three times before stabbing his neck and pinning him to the ground. In rage, he stabs his brother's head multiple times. After he is finished Daryl breaks down crying over his brother's death.

"Welcome to the Tombs"
Daryl is back at the Prison, mourning his brother's death. When the Woodbury Army arrives at the Prison, they enter "The Tombs". While in there, Daryl and Rick throw out smoke bombs to lure them out. When everyone regroups at the gate, Daryl, Michonne, and Rick decide to head out and attack Woodbury. On the road they find almost every soldier dead, with the exception of Karen. They go to Woodbury, where Tyreese and Sasha are on the gate. After a brief firefight, Tyreese lets them in. Rick, Daryl, and Michonne learn that Andrea is most likely being held captive in The Governor's torture room. In there, they find a dying Andrea, who suffered a bite wound from Milton Mamet. Daryl leaves the room when she wishes to end her life.

Back at the prison, the group lead the women, children, and elders from Woodbury to stay. Daryl is seen entering on Merle's motorbike.

"30 Days Without An Accident"
Daryl first appears at the inner courtyard looking for food from Carol. He is then thanked by Patrick for getting food for the prison people, and shakes his hand. Daryl is commented by Carol how walkers don't spread out anymore and they are pinning up against the fence. Daryl doesn't seem to worry about it, but for the supply run to the Big Spot, which he had been planning for weeks and wishes to use the place as a constant supply-place. He, along with Sasha, Tyreese, Glenn, Michonne, Bob Stookey, and Zach, go the store and is revealed that he is looked up to by Zach, who is constantly trying to guess what he did before the apocalypse. The group clears the entrance from the only apparent walkers in the store and enter the place, not knowing that there is herd on the rooftop. The herd begins to fall through the decaying roof after Bob knocks a wine aisle to the ground, breaking all of the bottles and pinning himself under the shelf. Seeing that there is a wrecked helicopter on the roof about to fall over their heads, Daryl and the group kill all the walkers they can and he and Zach free Bob, but Zach is caught by a walker and bitten. Knowing that he is doomed and that the helicopter is about to fall, the group leaves as the helicopter falls, crushes Zach, and destroys the store. After returning to the prison, Daryl informs Beth about Zach's demise, which whom the boy was in a relationship with. Beth doesn't seem affected, as she claims that she doesn't cry anymore, which concerns Daryl. They are both glad that they got to know Zach and hug each other.

"Infected"
Daryl is first seen when the cell block D is attacked and helps clear out the walkers and save the citizens in the process. He then joins the others in making sure the dead do not reanimate and saves Glenn from a undead Patrick during this before joining Rick, Dr. Caleb Subramanian, Hershel, and Bob to discuss the new infection. At some point after this he along with the rest of the "council" discuss the new situation at the prison and how to deal with it before he leaves to dig graves for the dead. While he's digging he talks with Rick telling him he deserves a rest before Maggie calls for their help dealing with walkers at the fence and eventually helps Rick use the pigs to draw them away.

"Isolation"
In the inner courtyard, Tyreese explains to Rick, Carol and Daryl how he found Karen and David's burnt corpses; he came to see Karen, saw the blood trail on the floor, and it led him outside. Tyreese demands Rick to find who did it and bring the killer to him; when the latter tries to calm him down, he turns violent and attacks Rick, punching him in the face. Daryl holds him up, and Carol tries to stop Rick from retaliating, but it's too late. Rick charges at Tyreese, knocking him down and brutally beating his face. Daryl eventually pulls Rick off Tyreese before it goes any further. Rick looks at his severely injured hand, horrified with what he just did. Daryl and Bob fuel up a car, and Bob is disturbed when Daryl reveals that it was Zach's car. Back in A-Block Tyreese, who's there watching the sick (making sure no one will try to kill them), is asked to join the supply run for medical supplies with Daryl, Michonne and Bob. He refuses at first, but Daryl is able to convince him otherwise, saying he'll help them more in the run, looking for medicine than there, watching. He bids farewell to a sick Sasha, and leaves with the team. While driving towards the hospital for the supply run, the group hears a voice over the car radio repeating the word "Sanctuary... Sanctuary...survive..." Daryl is distracted by it and hits a few walkers on the road. He stops the car, shocked at the massive herd of thousands of walkers between them and their destination. Daryl drives in reverse and runs over several more walkers, but the car eventually gets stuck, forcing them to ditch it. Daryl, Michonne and Bob make it out and hold their own, but Tyreese stays behind, seemingly in a stupor. Bob eventually snaps him out of it and Tyreese storms out of the car and in a rage, ferociously begins to kill the walkers that are quickly surrounding him, yelling at the others to go as he is swarmed. After running in the woods for a while, the group stops to rest, and notices movement in the bushes. Tyreese emerges, covered in walker guts and blood, but alive and unharmed. They keep moving as the walkers chase after them.

"Indifference"
Daryl continues with Tyreese, Michonne, and Bob on their mission to retrieve medicine from the veterinary college. While helping Daryl jump-start a van they found, Bob says that he almost started to run when Daryl found him because he was the last man standing in the first two groups he was with, and that he blames himself for Zach's death because of accidentally knocking over the liquor shelf and attracting the herd of Walkers, to which Daryl tells him that it is "bullshit". After getting the medicine, the group is forced to jump outside onto the roof of a walkway where Bob almost loses his bag to a herd of walkers, but manages to retrieve it despite the protests of the others to let it go. Daryl discovers Bob's bag contains nothing but a bottle of liquor, but Bob has his hand on his holster when Daryl attempts to throw it away. Daryl disarms Bob and grabs him until Tyreese breaks it up, saying that Bob has made his own choice. Daryl says that they should have never let him join the prison group to begin with and threatens to beat Bob into the ground if he takes a sip of the liquor before the medicine is given to the sick members of the group.

"Internment"
Daryl appears near the end of the episode, returning with the supply search party to the prison. Next morning, Daryl is informed by Hershel to talk with Rick about Carol.

"Too Far Gone"
Daryl is first seen talking to Rick about Carol's banishment due to her killing Karen and David, clearly upset and shocked at the decision. After calming down, he and Rick go to tell the news to Tyreese. When they arrive in the tombs, Tyreese shows them a dissected rat inside the prison, which he believes is the work of the same person who killed the two. Before they have a chance to say anything, the Governor's camp attacks and everyone able relocates outside.

Daryl is as shocked as everyone when he reveals Hershel and Michonne are his prisoners and demands Rick come down and negotiate, which he does. As Rick descends to the gates, Daryl discreetly arms everyone and lines up a rifle against the gates next to Carl. Carl suggests he take out the Governor with one shot, but Daryl tells him to let Rick handle it. However, Hershel is executed and war abruptly erupts. Daryl takes out several of the Governor's people and eventually destroys the tank with grenades, killing its operator Mitch with a crossbow to the chest. As the Prison falls, Beth came across Daryl and together, they left the prison to places unknown.

"Inmates"
Daryl and Beth appear deep in a forest fighting walkers. After killing numerous of them, the two run into a field and collapse, visibly exhausted. By nightfall, the two have made a campfire in the forest, and Beth convinces Daryl to go with her and look for any other survivors. The next morning, the two find small footprints. They follow them for a bit to a grape bush, where Daryl suggests the owners of the tracks picked up the pace. Beth says Daryl should have hope, to which Daryl replies "[Faith] sure as hell didn't so nothing for your father," upsetting Beth. The two find a plant with blood on it, and Daryl states that it is human blood. They continue down to railroad tracks, where they find a pile of dead bodies, including those of Molly and Luke.

"Still"
Beth and Daryl make their way out of the woods and come across a destroyed car. Walkers are heard coming from the trees and Daryl tells her to hide in the trunk. The next morning they get out, scavenge the car for anything useful and leave. Later, Daryl tries to shoot a squirrel with his crossbow, but it dodges at the last second and the arrow is destroyed when it hits a tree. He later kills, skins a rattlesnake and shares it with Beth. When Beth says she wants a drink, Daryl throws her a water bottle. She says that she wants some alcohol (due to her father not allowing it). Daryl ignores her and she goes off to find some on her own. After she lures several walkers away, Daryl finds her and brings her back to camp. Furious, Beth says that she wanted something to do and will find some alcohol, whether Daryl helps her or not.

They make their way to a country club and Daryl looks for supplies while Beth goes to find some alcohol. Daryl hears a scuffle going on and sees her stab a walker. She sarcastically thanks him for the help, but he said she "had it under control." He is seen taking money in several rooms; when Beth asks why, he doesn't respond. The two later find the bar as well as a bottle of Peach Schnapps. While she looks for a glass, Daryl grabs some darts and throws them at a picture of the country club presidents. He hears Beth crying and he smashes the bottle of Schnapps, saying that it won't do for a first drink.

Daryl leads Beth to a shack he found with Michonne and brings out some moonshine from the back. He says that the house reminds him of the one that he grew up in with his parents and Merle. He pours Beth a drink and after some hesitation, she drinks it and pours one for him. After awhile, she teaches Daryl the drinking game 'I never' but accidentally angers him, sending him into a rage and attracts a walker outside. After he haphazardly shoots several arrows at the walker, Beth stabs it in the head and the two have a fight. After Beth continues to belittle Daryl for his cold and distant outlook since they left the prison, he eventually breaks down and says everyone else is probably dead now because he stopped looking for the Governor with Michonne. He starts to cry, blaming himself for Hershel's death while Beth comforts him by hugging him from behind.

That night, Daryl finally reveals what he was doing before the outbreak; he was a drifter and a junkie who traveled from place to place with Merle. Never having to care or look out for anyone but himself or his brother, Daryl had to learn by himself and never had anything given to him like Beth did in her life. Beth acknowledges that she doesn't have the skills necessary to survive like he does and that out of them all, he will most likely be "the last man standing." Daryl disagrees, saying that she's changed as well. Beth then says they both should burn the building down; Daryl goes inside, saying they need more booze. After emptying all the jugs of moonshine, Daryl hands her a book of matches. She lights the wad of money Daryl took earlier and they light the shack on fire. They flip it off, and as they leave the burning shack, Daryl smiles.

"Alone"
About a week prior to the events of "30 Days Without an Accident", Daryl is seen, through a flashback, coming across with Glenn a wandering Bob Stookey. He asks Rick's three questions (How many walkers have you killed? How many people have you killed? Why?) before allowing Bob to accompany them back to the prison.

In the present, Daryl is first seen accompanying Beth as she uses his crossbow and practices her tracking skills, and she correctly deducts walker footprints and finds it feasting. Before she can silently kill it, she gets her foot caught in an animal trap and alerts the walker. Beth fires the crossbow, but it doesn't pierce the brain, and she is saved by Daryl. Daryl takes her via piggyback to a nearby funeral home, where they first pay their respects to a "beloved father" at his grave, which reminds her of Hershel, and she then holds Daryl's hand. At the funeral home, Daryl and Beth find that the home is in a clean condition and that the shelves are stocked with foods which have no dust, and Daryl determines that someone else is using the funeral home for themselves. Daryl is then questioned by Beth on why he stayed, and he implicates his reason being Beth herself. Daryl mistakes the ruckus at the funeral home's door for a stray dog that had approached him earlier, only to have a herd of walkers attempt to barge in. Daryl instructs Beth to run outside and meet him there, but she is kidnapped by an unknown party as Daryl sees their car driving off when he finally makes it out. Daryl gives chase after the vehicle, but eventually is forced to give up after he could no longer push through and sits down near the railroad tracks.

Joe and his group of marauders approach Daryl, who responds by punching Joe and aiming his crossbow at him. Joe says to Daryl if he kills him, his buddies will kill Daryl, saying it would be suicide, and asks Daryl why hurt himself when he can hurt other people. Daryl and Joe introduce themselves.

"Us"
Daryl is first seen in the woods aiming his crossbow at a rabbit. He fires at it at the exact time that Len, one of Joe's group members, fires his bow and strikes the rabbit. Daryl says that he has been tracking the rabbit all morning and that it is his, but Len disregards this because "the rules of the hunt don't mean jack" and because he already "claimed" the rabbit. Len reasons that the loss of Beth is the cause of his poor mood, and begins to speak provocatively of her before Joe arrives out of nowhere to diffuse the situation. He asks Len if he claimed the rabbit, which he says he did, but Daryl does not relinquish the rabbit. Joe explains his rules and system of "claiming", but Daryl says that there are no rules anymore. Joe assures him that there are, and that's why he didn't kill him for his crossbow. Joe takes his hatchet and cuts the rabbit in half, giving one half to each man.

Later while on the tracks, Joe speaks to Daryl and asks him what the plan is. Daryl says that he will be sticking with the group for right now. Joe talks about his rules and says that, if you break them, you will be punished. He explains that when men like them follow the rules, the world becomes theirs. When they come across an old mechanic building, Joe whistles and orders them to stop, saying that they will be camping there for the evening. Daryl says that "there ain't no us" and Joe says, "You leaving right now?" When Daryl does not respond, Joe says, "Then sure seems like there's an us."

Later that night when things are quiet, Len claims that his half of the rabbit is missing and accuses Daryl of stealing it. Joe asks Daryl if he took the rabbit, but Daryl assures he didn't take anything. When Joe empties Daryl's bag, Len's half of the rabbit falls out. Daryl accuses Len of planting it in there when he went out to use the bathroom. Len is eager to teach Daryl a lesson for lying and stealing, but Joe turns and punches Len to the ground. Joe orders his men to "teach him all the way" for being a "lying sack of shit". The Claimers savagely beat Len. Joe tells Daryl that he saw him put the rabbit in the bag. Daryl asks him why he didn't stop him, and Joe says that he wanted to play that out; he let him. The next morning when they leave from the building to continue their walk, Daryl finds Len beaten horribly and with an arrow shot through his head. He is about to cover him with a sheet but decides against it and leaves him exposed.

On the tracks, Joe explains their mission to Daryl: They are heading to Terminus in the hope of finding the man who strangled their colleague Lou in the bathroom of a house in which they were staying some time ago. Unbeknownst to Daryl, this man is Rick Grimes, who was staying in the house after the fall of the prison. Spotting some radishes in the ground, Daryl claims them and stoops down to collect them, seeming to have found his place in this group.

"A"
Daryl appears right after Joe and his group have ambushed Rick, Carl and Michonne on the road in the night. As Joe begins to count down from ten, to shoot Rick in the head, Daryl comes out, "stopping him at eight". Daryl looks as Joe and the rest have Rick and Michonne held at gunpoint and Dan having Carl caught inside the car. He reasons with them that the trio are "nice people", but Joe does not believe this and tells him that Rick killed their group mate Lou and thus that Daryl is lying. He orders Billy and Harley to beat Daryl to death. While Daryl is assaulted and Dan prepares to rape Carl, Rick becomes enraged and kills Joe, biting his jugular out of his neck. Michonne kills Tony by turning the gun pointed at her back on him and shooting him in the head. Daryl punches Harley and Michonne shoots him, and Daryl finishes his attackers by stomping Billy's head in. Daryl turns and watches as Rick disembowels Dan on the other side of the truck.

The next morning Daryl explains to Rick how he ended up in Joe's group. He says that he was with Beth for a short while after the prison fell until they got separated when a group of walkers attacked them and split them up. He also says that Joe and his group had only one "stupid" rule, but it worked. Rick assuages Daryl's fears that his interaction with the group had anything to do with the attack the night before and affirms that he is his brother.

As they continue their journey, they come across Terminus from the side of its fences. After scouting for a short while, Rick, Daryl, Michonne, and Carl climb inside from the back of the sanctuary's fences and sneak inside. They run to a nearby door and end up in a large spacious room, where a resident is doing a broadcast over a PA system repeating the words "Sanctuary for all" to all the survivors who can manage to hear them via radios. They are welcomed by man named Gareth who tells them to lower their weapons and frisks them. After the check, they are welcomed to Terminus and Gareth warns them to not do anything stupid while his brother Alex shows them around.

A woman, Mary, offers them some food while they're shown around. Rick becomes suspicious as he spots someone donning the hitchhiker's orange bag (which Glenn took with him from the prison), Glenn's riot gear (which he also retrieved), and Daryl's poncho (which Maggie was wearing upon entering Terminus). When Rick spots Hershel's pocket watch dangling from Alex's pocket, he concludes something is up and grabs Alex and holds him at gunpoint. He demands where he got the pocketwatch, riot gear, and poncho. A gunfight ensues between Rick, Daryl, Michonne, and Carl and the Terminus people. The Terminus people force them through an alley while they are being fired at. They make it to the back fences but are cut off when Terminus people emerge from the bushes. Gareth arrives and orders them to go to the nearby boxcar in order of Ringleader (Rick), Archer (Daryl), Samurai (Michonne), and Kid (Carl). As they enter the boxcar, they are reunited with Glenn, Bob, Maggie, and Sasha and meet Abraham Ford, Tara Chambler, Rosita Espinosa, and Eugene Porter. As Daryl walks around the boxcar, Rick says the last line to be said in the season: "They're screwing with the wrong people".

"No Sanctuary"
Daryl and the others create makeshift weapons to fight off their captors, but the Terminus guards instead drop a flash-bang grenade into Boxcar A and drag Daryl, Rick, Bob, and Glenn out. They are taken to the slaughterhouse and lined up bending over a pig trough next to another four male survivors from another box car. One by one, the four survivors are brutally slaughtered over the pig trough. Before Glenn can be executed, an explosion distracts the guards which gives Rick an open window to break free and slaughter the guards. Rick lets Daryl, Bob, and Glenn free before the four discover that Terminus were planning to butcher them and use them as food. Rick orders them to not put down the guards and kill any Terminus member on sight.

After fighting through a horde of zombies invading Terminus as well as the Terminus residents without his crossbow, Daryl and the others make it back to Boxcar A and set the rest of the group free. The group manages to escape Terminus, hitting Gareth with a bullet in the process. As everyone regroups on the outskirts of Terminus where Rick buried his weapons, Carol re-appears, which causes a tearful Daryl to run over to her and embrace.

"Strangers"
Daryl travels with the group as they leave Terminus. Later that night, he's sitting with Carol. She tells him she doesn't want to talk about what happened and needs to forget it. They hear a noise in the woods, and Daryl stands up. After a while, he concludes it was nothing and they leave.

The next day, Daryl has hunted for squirrels and brings them back to the group. He tells Rick he saw no trail of who/what was making the noise in the night. They continue on until they hear someone screaming and rescue him; the man reveals himself to be Father Gabriel Stokes. Daryl expresses his skepticism about him many times. The group arrives and decides to split up, hunting for supplies. Daryl travels with Carol and they collect some water. As they're on the road, Daryl tells her they get a chance to start over and "whatever happened, happened." They manage to find a car with a dead battery and a working emergency starter in the trunk, and Carol thinks it best if they leave it for emergencies. Daryl offers to carry some water, but Carol playfully refuses.

Daryl is later enjoying dinner with the others and is present when Abraham makes his speech and Rick accepts the idea to go to Washington, D.C.. He eventually goes to find Carol at the car once again and starts to bring her back when he spots the car with the white cross driving away. He and Carol immediately follow suit in the car.

"Four Walls and a Roof"
Daryl appears at the end of this episode after Michonne heard some rustling in some bushes, and in turns out that it was Daryl. Michonne is relieved and happy to see him and smiles, but it soon fades away as she asks where Carol is, but Daryl answers it by telling someone in the bushes that they can come out.

"Consumed"
Daryl and Carol are seen following the car believed to have taken Beth. They follow the car into the city, up until the car stops at an intersection. Discovering that the driver is a cop, the two question each other about the fact of who took Beth in the first place. As this is happening, a walker tries to get them but is blocked by the car window. Visually alerted, the cop gets back into the car. As the cop drives away, their car runs out of gas and stalls. This forces the two to kill several walkers that surround the car, before continuing to a building. As Daryl is trying to pry open a barricade on a window, Carol rushes towards an upcoming walker, but before killing the walker, the two notice a herd is coming. The two then crawl into the building and decide to stay for the night.

Carol takes the first watch as Daryl sleeps even though he offers to take first watch, but Carol insists to stay up. As Daryl sits on the bedside, the two talk about "starting all over". The conversation between the two ends by a rattling sound heard outside. Following the sound, the two discover two walkers, one being a child, trapped behind a glass door. Carol wants to kill the child, but Daryl stops her and insists that she doesn't have to.

When morning comes, Daryl kills the two walkers he and Carol found the previous night, and burns them as Carol joins him, thanking him for doing so.

The two then continue their journey on finding where Beth is believed to be. They burn a paper to lure the walkers blocking their way, before entering a parking lot and building. As they enter the building, they discovered a camp of walkers, and the two kill most of them, but not the ones that are trapped in the tents. The two then rest up in an office after crawling into the room from the gap in between the chained doors. Observing the scenery of the destroyed city from the window, Daryl sees a van with the white crosses on them stuck on a bridge. Daryl and Carol then decide to go check it out, but as they crawl out from the room, they encounter Noah. While holding Carol's rifle, Noah asks Daryl to put down his crossbow at gun point. Daryl obeys what the boy asked, before killing the walkers that Noah freed from the tents to give him time to escape. The two kill the walkers, and Noah is still in sight, giving Carol a clear shot. Despite of what he has done, Daryl stops Carol from shooting him, saying that Noah is just a child. As Carol explains to him that regardless of his age, he could've killed them, could've killed Beth, and added that's why she did what she did at the prison to Karen and David, saying that she can not be one of those people who just stand there and do nothing.

Nevertheless, Daryl still disagrees with Carol. Despite not having any primary weapons, Carol and Daryl still go to where the van is that's believed to be related to the people who took Beth and her location. They search the van to find some clues to where the place is located but they find nothing. A herd of walkers then comes their way and Carol hints to Daryl that they have to fight through the herd. They try to but the walkers overwhelm them, forcing the two to go back into the van, which falls off the bridge and onto the ground below. The two survive the fall but Carol injures her shoulder when landing. The two then enter another building and rest up in one of the rooms. While in there, Carol tells Daryl about her past with Ed. The conversation is distracted by a sound they hear outside. As they walk towards the sound, they find a walker that's nailed to the wall by a bolt of Daryl's crossbow. Daryl kills the walker. Then they hear gunshots and they follow the sound and find Noah killing a walker. Then he gets hit by Daryl and eventually gets pinned down underneath a book shelf. A walker is seen trying to pry open the door that once barricaded by the book shelf. Seeing this as an opportunity to kill Noah without getting his hands dirty, Daryl tells Carol to leave him be. Carol disagrees and insists Daryl help her help him up.

Daryl leaves Carol to save Noah by herself. When the walker successfully pries open the door and tries to bite Noah, Daryl sends a bolt into the walker's skull, saving Noah's life and then helps Carol lift the bookshelf. After being saved, Noah mumbles about the folks at the hospital, whom are hunting him down. Hearing this, Daryl asks Noah whether or not he knows a blonde girl. Noah is shocked upon knowing that Daryl and Carol know Beth, before realizing the cops are just right outside the building. Fearing the cops will find them, Noah tells Daryl and Carol to run away with him. As the three are running away from the building, Noah trips and causes Daryl to lag behind. Carol leads the way but once she is outside, a car hits her. Witnessing this, Daryl tries to go to Carol, but is held back by Noah who tells him that he needs to let the people take her because regardless of how the place is, they have a doctor and Carol needs one. Daryl, overwhelmed by seeing Carol get taken, asks Noah about what is it gonna take to save Carol and Beth. Noah answers, "A lot. They've got guns and people." "So do we." Daryl replies back, hinting the people at the church.

The two then leave the city, using a truck they find. Daryl stares sharply to the road as the episode ends.

"Crossed"
Daryl is seen along with the others, fortifying the church, before leaving to Atlanta in order to rescue Beth and Carol from the hospital they are hold in, as said by Noah. When doing his chores, he is somewhat concerns about Sasha's well being after Bob's death. He asks to Tyreese how is she doing, to which Tyreese replies she is not 'there' yet. Daryl then leaves with the stockade of organ pipes, fortifying the entrance of the Church, using it, piercing the pipes to the ground, just like what they did to the Prison's entrance.

Daryl, Rick, Noah, Tyreese, and Sasha leave the church, heading towards Atlanta. Upon arriving to the hospital. The group formalizing their plan, when Rick said that they need to attack the hospital, Daryl supports Tyreese's plan on making a trade instead of attacking the hospital, and thus everyone will go home safe, and sound. Rick refused, disagreeing with Tyreese's thought on his plan, but changes his mind and agrees after Daryl backs up Tyreese.

The group then capture Officers Amanda Shepherd and Bob Lamson from the hospital, who was drawn in by Noah, and their plan. They hold the officers captive, and said they need to talk. Bob asks Rick if Rick is a cop by the way he talks and acts. Daryl is seen holding Bob to stand on his feet, before eventually takes cover from the incoming shots of the gun fight that ensues.

Sasha managed to shoot one of the tires, forcing the officers to leave the vehicle. the group chases the three, while the others doing so, Daryl hears something behind an already burned CDC van. He lags behind to check it out, and gets pounced on by Officer Licari. Licari drags him to a paralyzed but still alive walker on the ground, trying to kill him by having the walker bite him. Daryl saves his own life by pulling off a walker's head, using it to beat Licari with. Rick then intervenes, shooting the walker that almost bit Daryl. Realizing what might have happened next, Daryl calms Rick down and talks him out from killing Licari.

He is later seen hearing the officers' testimony on whether or not they should trust Dawn on the trading. He calls Rick over to hear what Bob is saying on how they should execute the plan, before eventually decided that they will go with the trades.

"Coda"
Daryl and Rick discuss strategy after Lamson's escape and death, and is surprised when Shepherd and Licari agree to the prisoner trade and that they will lie about Lamson's fate; that he was killed by walkers instead of Rick. He and Sasha later provide security for Rick at the parking garage, where Rick discusses the trade terms with Officers Franco and McGinley. At the hospital he presides over the successful exchange, but Dawn's demand to have Noah returned to her prevents the group from leaving. Beth suddenly attacks Dawn, and after witnessing Dawn shoot her in the head, Daryl is overcome with rage and he retaliates - shooting Dawn in the head as well. He aims his gun at the other officers, devastated by the violent loss, but he stops after Carol manages to pull him away. He carries Beth's lifeless body depressed to the rest of the arriving group, utterly grief-stricken.

"What Happened and What's Going On"
Daryl appears at the end of the episode during Tyreese's funeral.

"Them"
Daryl appears when he is digging up worms and eating them. He reunites with Maggie and Sasha and all three of them head back to the group. When they run out of gas Daryl and the group are forced to walk. Daryl goes off for a moment along with Carol. When Daryl and Carol are out, Carol kisses him on the forehead and tells him that Beth saved her life. She gives him Beth's knife and they head back to the others.

When Daryl shows up and he grabs the walker out of Rick's hand. The group continue to move along the road but Daryl decides to to head into the woods to circle back. He finds a dead deer and a walker by a tree. He then again returns back to the group. While the group are sitting and taking a moment, four dogs come out of the forest and start barking. Sasha kills them almost instantly and they start barbecuing them. While the others keep moving, Daryl decides to go ahead into the woods to see if he can find anything. He finds a barn in the distance but just sits down by a tree and lights a cigarette. He starts to cry and burns his hand with the cigarette. Daryl shows back up when the group spot water bottles in the middle of the road.

The majority of the group think the water is poisoned but Eugene grabs one and tries to drink it. Abraham knocks the water out of his hand. The group then hear thunder and lightning and it starts to heavily rain. When the storm gets worse, Daryl tells them there's a barn to take shelter in. During the night Rick gives a speech saying what his grandpa told him when he was in war. Rick tells the group that they are "The Walking Dead" to which Daryl replies with "We ain't them."

Later, Daryl checks outside to see a herd of walkers heading towards the barn. Daryl starts to hold the door shut to stop the walkers coming in. One by one the survivors wake up and all push against the storm. The storm ends and everyone is asleep. Maggie wakes up and sits with Daryl. They talk about Sasha and how she is grieving Tyreese's and possibly still Bob's death. Daryl tells Maggie that Beth was strong but she didn't know it.

"The Distance"
Daryl pats Aaron down when he first enters the barn. He then agrees with Michonne about going to the community. He rides in the RV during the night, arriving at the flare which Eric Raleigh fired unharmed. He then takes the RV to Alexandria.

"Remember"
Daryl is first seen entering Alexandria with the others, shooting an opossum at the gate and bringing it inside. He refuses to hand over his crossbow with the others weapons once inside. In his interview he refuses to sit down, pacing the room. Deanna Monroe does not know what to do with him, being one of the only ones not immediately assigned a job. He has trouble adjusting, not showering and remaining at the house whilst the others explore. When Glenn gets in a fight with Aiden Monroe, Daryl tackles Nicholas to prevent him from helping Aiden, before storming off again.

"Forget"
Daryl is with Rick and Carol out near the house where Rick hid his gun before entering Alexandria. They decide one of them should sneak into the supply house and get the guns that they were forced to hand over when the coast is clear. A walker ambles out from behind the house and Carol puts it down. When they near it, they notice that it has a "W" carved into its forehead!

While Daryl is out in the woods when he hears something. He raises his crossbow and orders the person to show himself, but it is Aaron, who claims he was only out to hunt rabbits. Aaron joins him to hunt with him. While they are out they spot a horse. Daryl tries to wrangle it but walkers to the scene and scare the horse away. They chase it down to an enclosed field but walkers get to it before they can and devour it. The two put down the walkers and Aaron puts Buttons out of its misery. Later that night, Daryl is seen hanging outside of Deanna's house, considering joining the party, but he decides against it. Heading home, he is approached by Aaron, who invites him inside to join him and Eric for dinner. After dinner, Aaron reveals that he wants Daryl to be Alexandria's recruiter because he doesn't want to risk Eric's life anymore and Daryl can tell the difference between a good person and a bad person. The next morning, Daryl reconvenes with Carol and Rick. He considers that they do not need the guns anymore and refuses to take one.

"Spend"
Beginning a new recruitment mission, Daryl rides out of Alexandria on his new motorcycle while Aaron follows him in a car.

"Try"
Daryl appears at night as he shoots a walker with his crossbow while out on the recruiting mission with Aaron. They continue scouting until they spot a light far off in the distance. They decide to quietly observe whoever is at the light, but find little success in actually seeing the person. Aaron comments on how this person clearly did not want to be found, and they continue tracking until morning. After sunrise, the two stumble upon a dismembered corpse along their trail. They continue on and find a naked, dead woman tied to a tree with her entrails spilling from her torso. Daryl inspects her face to see if she was a walker and notices a "W" crudely imprinted on her forehead. She reanimates shortly after, and Daryl somberly puts her zombified body to rest. Daryl and Aaron continue to track the killer of this woman, following a path of both blood and crushed flowers.

"Conquer"
Daryl appears when he is riding his bike and Aaron is driving his car behind him. They stop and head into the woods, looking for the person they saw the night before. Daryl mentions someone came through here a while ago.

Next, Daryl and Aaron find a truck shipping building with a few walkers trapped inside the chain-link fence. They eliminate the walkers before going to check out the trucks. Aaron stoops to collect an Alaskan license plate while Daryl tries to open the back of one of the tractor trailers. The trailer was booby-trapped to release walkers when it opened, as well as the other trailers that were also full of walkers. Aaron and Daryl manage to kill a few walkers before making it to the refuge of an abandoned car parked near by. While they were searching the car, Aaron found a note telling them the car was a trap and 'bad people' were coming. Daryl tells Aaron that he will draw the walkers away so Aaron can make it to the fence. When Aaron refuses, the two of them get ready to make a break for the fence. Just before they open the doors, Morgan Jones appears and helps them escape. Outside the fence, Aaron asks him to come to Alexandria but Morgan explains that he was going somewhere but he is lost. He shows a map to Daryl who recognizes that it was the map that Abraham gave to Rick.

They return to Alexandria, arriving just in time to see Rick execute Pete.

"First Time Again"
In a flashback, Daryl eats while Rick and Morgan talk. While outside Rick tells Daryl that Morgan told him all about the truck traps and the men he fought the W's on their foreheads. Rick states that they need to protect themselves and there is no need to go out and recruit people anymore. Daryl, however, disagrees with this but in the end follows Rick's lead. While at the meeting, Daryl listens to Rick's plan. While constructing the set up for the walkers at the quarry, Daryl tells Rick, hoping to change his mind, that going out and recruiting people is taking care of themselves, but ultimately says it's Rick's call. While getting everything set a few walkers came by. Rick wanted to let the new people take care of themselves, however, Morgan intervened. Meanwhile Rick, Daryl, and Morgan show up just in time before Carter shoots Eugene. Carter states that he's taking the community back from Rick and his people. Rick quickly disarms Carter and points the gun at his head. Rick threatens Carter and tells him that he has no idea who he's talking to. Carter tells Rick to just kill him as it was his idea and not Spencer, Tobin or Olivia's idea. Daryl silently tells Rick to give him the gun, saving Carter's life.

In the present, Daryl is at the quarry with the group who are going to help remove the herd of walkers trapped inside the quarry. When the truck trapping the walkers gives in, Daryl rushes along with the others to execute the plan on the spot. Daryl leads the horde of walkers through the designated zone in which Rick planned out. Later on, Sasha and Abraham meet up with Daryl to help him keep the horde on course. Daryl is last seen in this episode, along with Sasha and Abraham, leading the walkers down the designated path 20 miles out.

"Thank You"
After the horn is blown, over the walkie, Daryl asks Rick what's going on. Rick tells him that half of the quarry herd broke off and that they're moving towards Alexandria. Daryl offers to help, but Rick tells Daryl to stay the course and keep the rest of the herd moving along the road. However, Daryl tells Abraham and Sasha that he's leaving them to help defend Alexandria. Abraham and Sasha implore Daryl to stay until they reach the 20-mile marker as planned, but Daryl refuses and rides off on his bike. Later, Rick radios Daryl to inform him that the breakaway herd will soon be back on track. When Rick gets attacked by the Wolves, the group that set up the trap at the shipping building, Daryl hears gunfire over the walkie and calls Rick's name, but gets no response. He races down the road, reluctantly rejoining Abraham and Sasha as the herd trails behind them.

"Always Accountable"
Daryl, Sasha and Abraham arrive at the 20-mile marker set for leading the herd away from Alexandria. As they pull away from the herd and begin the journey back to Alexandria, a group of gun-wielding assailants ambushes them in cars. As they flee, Daryl crashes on his bike and is separated from Sasha and Abraham. Daryl eludes his attackers and quietly walks his motorcycle through a burnt-out forest littered with charred walker bodies. He tries to radio Sasha and Abraham but gets no response. As he inspects a wound on his arm, he hears a noise nearby. He hides his bike under a pile of branches and finds two sisters, Tina and Sherry, with their hands up, telling him they took what they deserved. Just then, a man knocks him out from behind.

As Daryl drifts in and out of consciousness, he sees his captors rummage through his supplies and put his crossbow in a bag. The man pegs Daryl as a soldier from an outpost – one of the men who originally attacked Daryl, Sasha and Abraham. The man, Dwight, wakes Daryl at gunpoint the next morning. Daryl insists he isn't who they think he is, but Dwight doesn't believe him. Daryl's captors march him through the woods. Dwight declares that they are not returning to the community they came from. "You feel you gotta kneel? Fair enough. We don't." Dwight tells Daryl. As they keep moving, Dwight lays out a plan to find "Patty" and then leave immediately. He describes how he and Sherry burned the entire forest with the walkers in it. He then explains that they joined up with a community, thinking naively that they would rebuild society together. Daryl argues that they should let him go, but Dwight refuses to listen, and holds him at gunpoint when Daryl suggests that they're making a mistake. Dwight angrily questions if Daryl possesses an immediate threat and demands to be told whether he should be killed. Daryl says no. They arrive at a gated parking lot full of walkers and start to panic. "Patty", Dwight says. "She's gone." Tina faints, and as they tend to her, Daryl grabs their duffel bag and runs back into the woods, evading gunfire from Dwight.

Safe in the woods, Daryl again tries to radio Sasha and Abraham without luck. He grabs his crossbow from the duffel to shoot a nearby walker. Afterwards, he looks down at the fallen contents of the duffel and sees a cooler filled with insulin: Tina's a diabetic. Daryl returns Tina's insulin and forces Dwight to hand over their gun as well as a wooden figurine that Dwight carved. They're interrupted by the arrival of men in a truck. Wade, the leader, orders Dwight to return what he took – Tina and Sherry, who angrily reply that they're not going back. In response, the truck begins to plow through the forest, trying to flush them out. Daryl helps them find a hiding place further away, and gives their gun back to Dwight. He lures one of Wade's men into the path of a walker, which bites him. Wade hacks off the man's arm and calls off the search. Daryl's group comes across a burnt and melted greenhouse. Tina recognizes the two dead people encased in melted glass inside and lays flowers at their side. The corpses awaken and attack Tina, breaking through the glass and killing her. Daryl kills the walkers as Sherry breaks down and Dwight looks on distraught. Daryl and Dwight dig a grave for Tina.

Daryl asks him how many walkers he's killed, how many people, and why. Satisfied with Dwight's answers, Daryl invites them to come live in Alexandria, and Dwight acknowledges his offer, seemingly interested. Daryl brings Dwight and Sherry to his motorcycle, and explains that he doesn't know where Abraham and Sasha are, but that he's going to find them. Dwight looks at Sherry, and then turns his gun on Daryl, forcing him to hand over the crossbow. Dwight and Sherry get on the bike and ride off. Daryl finds a fuel truck in the woods branded "A.A. Pattrick Fuel Co." Its license plate reads "Patty". He kills the walker in the cab and drives to pick up Abraham and Sasha. They drive down the road in the fuel truck. Daryl tries to radio Rick. "Help," a muffled voice on the radio replies.

"Start to Finish"
Daryl's voice is heard when he is asking if anybody is receiving his voice. Eugene picks up the walkie-talkie and says, "help."

Daryl, Abraham and Sasha are still headed back to Alexandria, but are stopped by a group of bikers blocking the road. One of the bikers, tells them to give up all their supplies and their truck, to which, Daryl asks, "Why should we?". The biker then claims, "Your property, now belongs to Negan".

"No Way Out"
The leader takes their sidearms. He orders Timmy to take Daryl to the back of the truck and inspect its cargo while Sasha and Abraham stay behind. After some conversation between Abraham, Sasha and the leader of the gang, the whole group of bikers explodes. Daryl then comes out from behind the truck holding an RPG, having subdued and killed the Savior who went to check cargo with him, getting cut on the back in the process, and leaves with Abraham and Sasha. They arrive in Alexandria that night, only to find the safe-zone overrun by walkers. Glenn gets in the truck and proposes to Daryl that they use the vehicle to lead the walkers away, but Daryl suggests an alternate plan. As the fighting intensifies, he dumps fuel from the truck into the pond in the middle of Alexandria, then launches an RPG into the water. A ball of fire erupts in the sky, distracting the walkers. Rick’s group and all the Alexandrians keep killing and killing as the walkers flock to the fire, going up in flames as they stumble into the lake. The next morning, Denise stitches up the cut on his back.

"The Next World"
Daryl tracks down Denise to review her list of requested supplies and asks why she wants orange soda. Denise explains her plan to surprise Tara, who's leaving with Heath on a two-week supply run. Rick and Daryl leave for the supply run. He gives them a map to agricultural supply stores and instructions to track down sorghum, a "criminally underrated grain" that could help replenish their low food supply. In the car, Rick predicts they will finally find food and new people that day.

Daryl notes that they haven't encountered anyone in weeks. Rick and Daryl spot a sorghum barn and find a truck inside. They open the truck and discover a large store of supplies. Rick proposes they drive the truck and come back for their car later. En route to Alexandria, Rick and Daryl stop at a gas station to scavenge. Daryl finds a tipped over vending machine, and they chain it to the truck to flip it over. Just then, a masked man races over and crashes into Rick, prompting Rick and Daryl to pull their guns on him. The assailant introduces himself as Paul Rovia -- though his friends call him Jesus -- and tells Rick and Daryl that he was just running from walkers. Rick asks him how many walkers he's killed -- the test for new members of the group -- but Daryl cuts him off. Eventually, they decide to let Jesus go on his way.

While Daryl and Rick talk about Jesus and whether to follow him, they're surprised by the sound of gunshots behind the gas station. They investigate and discover firecrackers in a trash can. Realizing it was a trick, they run back just in time to see Jesus driving off with the truck, dragging the vending machine behind it. Rick and Daryl sprint after the truck and find the vending machine discarded in the middle of the road. Daryl shatters the display case and stuffs orange sodas for Denise and some snacks into his bag. Then they keep running. Rick and Daryl catch up with Jesus and hold him at gunpoint. Rick ties Jesus up, assuring him the knots are loose enough to eventually wriggle free. Then Rick and Daryl drive off in the truck. As they drive across a field, Rick and Daryl hear a sudden noise and realize that Jesus is on the roof of the truck

Rick screeches to a halt, sending Jesus tumbling to the ground. On foot, Daryl chases after Jesus while Rick kills nearby walkers. Jesus and Daryl wind up struggling inside the truck and Jesus accidentally knocks it into neutral, causing the truck to roll into a pond and sink. Daryl begrudgingly agrees not to abandon Jesus, who was knocked unconscious, after Rick points out that Jesus saved Daryl from a walker.Later, Daryl guards an unconscious Jesus in the back seat as Rick drives them back to Alexandria. As they arrive in Alexandria, Daryl tells Rick that he was right when he once suggested they stop bringing new people into the community. Rick disagrees: he thinks Daryl was right in the first place.

Rick and Daryl bring Jesus to the infirmary so Denise can check him out. Later, in the townhouse basement, Daryl and Rick leave water and a note next to Jesus' still unconscious body. Back at home, Rick wearily flops onto his couch, where Michonne joins him. He tells her Daryl is guarding a man that they brought in.

"Knots Untie"
Daryl is first seen preparing the motor home for the trip to Hilltop, and reluctantly accepts a homemade oatcake from Denise for his efforts in trying to retrieve a soda for Tara.

On the road, the group stops as they approach an overturned car and Jesus recognizes it as one of Hilltop's. Daryl follows tracks to a nearby building where they rescue four of Jesus' people before continuing on their journey.

They arrive at the Hilltop, where they meet Gregory who orders the group to clean up before talking with him. As they wait in the foyer, Abraham asks Daryl if he's ever thought about settling down. "You think shit's settled?" Daryl replies.

After Ethan stabs Gregory, Daryl saves Abraham by breaking the arm of the resident who was throttling him. He asks Abraham if he is alright, to which he replies he is better than alright.

Jesus explains that a group called the Saviors agreed not to attack the Hilltop in exchange for half of their supplies. Rick mentions Daryl, Sasha and Abraham's encounter on the road with a group of Saviors', and Daryl argues that they just have a good story. He suggests that they wipe out the Saviors and strike up a deal with Hilltop in which they exchange supplies. Jesus agrees to discuss this with Gregory.

After the deal is made, the group head back to Alexandria. Daryl looks at Glenn and Maggie's ultrasound scan before passing it on to the others.

"Not Tomorrow Yet"
Daryl is present at the church meeting where Rick discusses the deal that was made with the Hilltop.

At a meeting to coordinate the attack, Andy draws a map of the interior and exterior of the Saviors' compound for Daryl, Rick, Glenn, Maggie, and Michonne.

At the Saviors' compound that night, as Andy waits for one of the guards to get Craig, Daryl approaches silently and kills the other guard. The others emerge from hiding and clear the scene before killing the first guard when he returns with Craig. They then sneak into the compound.

After the alarm is activated, Daryl and the others shoot at the Saviors' as they make their way through the compound. When the fight is over, the group emerge from the building. Suddenly, a lone surviving Savior tries to escape on Daryl's motorcycle. He is shot off the bike and Daryl tackles him as he tries to flee, punching him as he demands to know where he got the bike. A voice comes over the Saviors' walkie-talkie, revealing that they have Carol and Maggie.

"The Same Boat"
Daryl is seen at the beginning of the episode along with the rest of Rick's group when Paula is spying on them. At the end of the episode, Daryl and the group arrive at the slaughterhouse to save Carol and Maggie. He and Carol hug each other.

"Twice as Far"
Carol visits Daryl, who is sitting by his recently recovered bike. Daryl admits to Carol that he should have killed Dwight while he had the chance. Daryl and Rosita soon accompany Denise on a run for medical supplies. However while returning, Denise is shot by Dwight with Daryl's crossbow, leading to a standoff with Dwight and Neil's group. A captive Eugene creates a distraction allowing Daryl and the others to kill several Saviors, including Neil, forcing Dwight and the remaining to flee. Later back at Alexandria, Daryl buries Denise, clearly somewhat saddened.

"East"
Daryl sits on his motorcycle, looking at the Dennis keychain that Denise found at the apothecary. Despite Rosita’s protests, Daryl opens the front gate and leaves on his motorcycle.

Daryl is seen making his way through the field where Dwight fled towards. He hears a noise in the trees and shoots his crossbow, coming inches away from hitting Rosita in the head. He tells him they shouldn't have come after him, to which Michonne says he never should have left. Glenn tries to stop Daryl from going after Dwight, but he refuses. He explains that he tried to help him before but if he had killed him, Denise would still be alive. Rosita joins Daryl as Glenn and Michonne head back to Alexandria.

In the woods, Daryl and Rosita creep up on the Saviors' camp where Glenn and Michonne are being held. Glenn tries to scream a warning to Daryl through his gag, but Daryl is caught off-guard by Dwight sneaking up behind him. "Hi Daryl," he says as he points a gun at him. Daryl turns around and Dwight pulls the trigger. A large amount of blood splatter is seen as Dwight then says, "You'll be alright."

"Last Day on Earth"
As the other members of Rick's group are lined up outside the truck Daryl is being held in, Dwight drags an injured Daryl out along with Rosita, Glenn and Michonne. As they are sitting in line on their knees, Negan begins his monologue and points his bat towards Daryl and the others during his game of "Eeney, Meeney, Miney, Moe".

"The Day Will Come When You Won't Be"
After Negan kills Abraham and starts taunting Rosita, Daryl attacks Negan by punching him in the face. The Saviors however restrains Daryl and Dwight points Daryl's crossbow at his head and asks Negan if he can do it, but Negan has other plans. Dwight drags Daryl back in line. Daryl's outburst prompts Negan to bash Glenn's skull in as well. Daryl is seen shocked, even flinching in horror as Glenn is beaten to death because of his own refusal to cooperate. Daryl feels a deep sense of guilt and responsibility for Glenn's death and then watches on helplessly as Negan returns with Rick and threatens the lives of the surviving group members (Daryl included) if Rick does not obey Negan's command to amputate Carl's left arm. After Negan is satisfied, he stops Rick from performing the amputation believing he has become submissive and thus spares Daryl's life along with the others who were also threatened.

He is later taken captive by Negan, and declares that due to his bravery, he shall now join Negan's group. However, Negan says that if Rick ever tries to fight Negan and his Saviors again, Daryl will suffer slow mutilation from either Negan or Rick, who will be forced by Negan. Negan leaves a truck with Rick's group so they can transport the goods they are to produce for him. He says they will return for their first offering in one week. When the bodies of Abraham and Glenn are being carried away, Rick imagines life for his group if they never went to war with the Saviors and Daryl is seen eating dinner with the others.

"The Cell"
Daryl appears huddled in a dark corner of a cell, naked. Dwight occasionally comes by with a small sandwich made with dog food to feed Daryl, and leaves a radio playing "Easy Street" by Daryl's cell all day. Daryl endures this torture for several days, before he is taken out of his cell by Dwight. Dwight brings Daryl to the doctor of the Sanctuary, who says that Daryl's gunshot wound will heal. Daryl encounters Sherry, who he recognizes, but Dwight forbids her from talking to him. Before leaving, she tells him he should do whatever the Saviors tell him, or he will receive worse treatment. Dr. Carson examines Daryl's injured shoulder and assures him that Negan will take care of him.

As Dwight leads Daryl back down the hall, Negan appears and pulls Dwight aside for a talk. Fat Joey guards Daryl at gunpoint. Directly in front of Daryl is an open door; beyond it, he sees an efficiency apartment. Dwight drags him away. Dwight takes Daryl outside and shows him the compound’s fence-line. They watch as two workers secure a new walker outside, it's the red-headed man from the marketplace. Dwight says Daryl will be forced to work in the yard if he doesn't make the right choices.

Back in his cell, Daryl tells Dwight that he will never kneel for Negan. "I said that, too.," says Dwight. He shuts the door. The sound of the lock is heard and the music resumes. Daryl desperately probes the cell walls and kicks the door. While Dwight is off capturing a Savior who deserted the Sanctuary, Daryl makes an escape attempt. Joey brings him a sandwich. As he shuts the door, and this time, the sound of the lock isn't heard. Daryl waits, then gently eases the door open.

He then sneaks out, and creeps down the hallway, but Sherry stops him and attempts to convince him to go back, but he ignores her and makes his way outside. He does not make it far as he is stopped by a group of Saviors who anticipated his escape. Negan appears: "Are we pissing our pants yet?" he asks. Negan asks the Saviors surrounding Daryl "Who are you?" They all respond, "Negan." He tells Daryl that he failed his chance to prove he's ready for the next step. Negan presents three options: Death, working for points, or working for Negan and living like a king. Daryl doesn't reply. Negan swings Lucille at Daryl, stopping just short of hitting him, but Daryl doesn't flinch which Negan admired. Negan leaves as the Saviors beat Daryl up.

Sherry stops by Daryl's cell and apologizes for stealing his motorcycle and crossbow in the woods. Upon his return, Dwight is infuriated at Daryl's escape attempt. Dwight taunts Daryl, claiming his actions got Glenn killed. He leaves a picture of Glenn's smashed skull in the cell before closing the door. Dwight changes the radios music to Roy Orbison's "Crying" in order to torture Daryl physiologically. The picture combined with the music overwhelm Daryl, who begins to cry in guilt for Glenn. Dwight hears him sobbing from the hallway and slightly smiles and walks away. Dwight returns sometime later and finds Daryl passed out next to a pile of vomit. He brings Daryl to Negan, who attempts to lure Daryl to work for him. He asks who Daryl is, in which Daryl plainly responds "Daryl". Dwight brings Daryl back to his cell, and yells at him for jeopardizing his own life. "I get why you did it, why you took it," says Daryl. "You were thinking about someone else. That's why I can't." Daryl settles back into his cell as "Easy Street" begins playing once more.

"Service"
Daryl has become a slave to Negan, and helps him round up Alexandria's supplies. When Rick tries to talk to Daryl, Negan immediately butts in and forbids Rick and everyone else in Alexandria from talking to Daryl, or else Negan will make Rick mutilate Daryl. When Negan is told that Maggie had died and had been buried alongside the graves of Glenn and Abraham (when in actuality Gabriel had made a false grave for Maggie to keep her status and whereabouts a secret from Negan), Daryl looks sad as he believes that Maggie had died because of Glenn's death taking its toll on her, causing Daryl to feel even more guilty. At the end of the day, Daryl is offered the chance to beg to stay in Alexandria, but says nothing, and leaves with the Saviors. Dwight takes the motorcycle from Spencer and rides up to Daryl and says, "You can have it back; just say the word." Daryl remains silent, so Dwight drives off.

"Sing Me a Song"
Daryl is seen looking at what happened between Carl and Negan.

Later, we see Daryl entered the room where Negan is showing Carl his "wives" with Dwight. Daryl asks why Carl's there, but Negan tells him that's none of his business. Seconds later, Negan tells him to go with Dwight to get a mop.

Time passes, Daryl is seen holding a mop. As Negan arrives, Daryl is kneeling, helplessly, along with everyone else. While Negan is using an iron to burn the left side of Mark's face, Daryl is seen showing sorrow. Afterwards, Negan tells Daryl to clean up the floor.

Daryl is then seen walking to the truck of which Negan and Carl are in. Negan tells him he's taking him home because he was worried. Daryl responded, "If you do anything to him-" but gets interrupted by Negan. Negan tells Dwight to put Daryl in a "time-out", and gets put back to his room.

While Daryl sits in his room, he hears footsteps outside his door. A note slides under, and the footsteps fade away. Daryl picks up the note, and reads it. The sign says "go now," with a key attached to it.

"Hearts Still Beating"
At the Saviors' compound, Daryl escapes his cell. He sneaks down the hallways and hears Saviors approaching, so he ducks into Dwight's apartment. Inside, he devours a jar of peanut butter, changes into Dwight's clothes and listens to the Saviors in the hall. He notices Dwight's carved figurines on a table.

Daryl hears the Saviors leave the hallway. He seizes the moment and flees the apartment, but not before flipping the table and smashing Dwight's carved figurines.

Daryl grabs a pipe from the hallway before heading outside and running over to the motorcycles. Fat Joey appears and pleads for his life, but Daryl beats him to death with the pipe as Jesus arrives. Daryl notices Rick's gun on Joey's belt and takes it before hopping on a motorcycle and leaving the compound with Jesus.

As the others reunite at the Hilltop gates, Daryl appears with Jesus. Rick is shocked to see him and the two share a hug before Daryl presents Rick with his gun that he retrieved from Fat Joey. Together, they all stride towards the mansion.

"Rock in the Road"
Daryl is seen with Rick and the others in the Hilltop mansion, trying to get Gregory to join the fight against the Saviors. Daryl calls out to Gregory, for his big mouth and not being part of their plan.

After they leave his office, Enid shows them that Hilltop members had agreed to join the fight after she had been telling each one of them the plan.

Rick states that more soldiers will be needed to take on the Saviors and their many outposts. Daryl reasons they might not need a large army and if they find the right supplies they could blow them up. Tara reminds him there are civilians inside the Sanctuary.

Afterwords, Jesus then decides to take Rick and the group to the Kingdom, to meet Ezekiel. He leads them to the outskirts of the Kingdom, where they are greeted by Richard and Alvaro. When taken in to meet Ezekiel, Jesus introduces him to Rick and requests Ezekiel to join in on Rick's plan to fight the Saviors

Ezekiel is reluctant to break the peace with the Saviors and ultimately refuses, however, Daryl is offered asylum by Ezekiel since the Saviors won't harm him there. While reluctant, Rick tells Daryl to stay and try to convince Ezekiel to change his mind about helping them. Simon and the Saviors later search Alexandria for Daryl, but are unable to find him due to Daryl being at the Kingdom.

"New Best Friends"
Daryl confronts Morgan about his meeting with the Saviors. He comments on his injury and says if Carol saw that and knew about Glenn and Abraham, she'd be leading them straight to the Saviors. Morgan agrees and says that's why she left.

Daryl joins Richard as he practices archery. Richard says that Morgan told him he was a bowman and hands him a new crossbow before asking for his help. Daryl and Richard take some weapons from his hidden trailer and arrive at a location by the side of a road commonly used by the Saviors. Richard tells Daryl his plan to kill the Saviors when they pass and when the others find them, they will follow a trail that leads to a weapons cache then to a house that someone Ezekiel cares about is living in. When Richard mentions it's a woman, Daryl demands to know her name. Richard says it's Carol and he was hoping he didn't know who she was. Daryl refuses to put her in danger, and when Richard is about to go ahead, Daryl tackles him to the ground and they fight. Daryl tells Richard that if anything happens to Carol, he will kill him.

Daryl arrives at Carol's house and the two hug. He tells her that Jesus took them to the Kingdom and he asks why she left. Inside, Carol explains to him why she had to go and starts to cry as she asks if everyone back home is OK. Daryl lies and tells her the Saviors came but they made a deal like Ezekiel did and everyone is fine. They eat together and as he leaves, he turns back to hug her and tells her to watch out for herself.

Back at The Kingdom, Daryl sits by Shiva's cage as Morgan appears. Daryl tells him that he found Carol and Morgan tells him she didn't want him to tell anyone where she was. Daryl says he understands, and that they need The Kingdom and he has to make that happen. Morgan apologizes and says it can't be him. Daryl says whatever he's holding on to is already gone. Morgan says that he is the same as him and Daryl says he doesn't know anything about him, but Morgan says he knows Daryl didn't tell Carol about Glenn and Abraham or she'd be there now. Daryl leaves and tells him he's going back to The Hilltop in the morning to get ready.

The next day, The Kingdom gates open and Daryl walks out. He looks back at Morgan before heading to The Hilltop.

"The Other Side"
Daryl sits outside Maggie's trailer, despondent. She brings him a plate of food and places her hand on his shoulder before heading back inside.

Kal yells that the Saviors are coming. Enid runs over to Daryl and asks him to help her hide Maggie.

Enid guides Daryl and Maggie to a root cellar and they hide behind some shelves. As a Savior takes some supplies, Daryl readies his knife to attack but Maggie holds him back. When the Savior leaves, they come out of their hiding place. Maggie remarks that Daryl nearly killed a Savior unnecessarily, and he says that he deserves to die. Maggie says that ever since he arrived, he has avoided her. She asks Daryl to look at her. He starts to cry and apologizes. Maggie insists he is not to blame for Glenn's death, and that Glenn thought Daryl was one of the good things in this world. She tells Daryl they need to win and hugs him.

Later, Daryl asks Jesus where Sasha and Rosita are.

"Something They Need"
Tara revealed to Rick and the group that she encountered a group with guns while on her supply-run with Heath called Oceanside who had once fought the Saviors but lost, and are now in hiding. Realizing she needs to break her promise in order to acquire the guns and people to win the war against the Saviors, Tara leads the group to Oceanside. Following Tara, Rick brings Daryl, along with Eric, Aaron, Carl, Michonne, Gabriel, Enid, Tobin, Francine, Scott and Jesus.

While talking to Daryl, Jesus voices his regrets about Rosita and Sasha, chastising himself for not stopping their attack against Negan. Daryl assures Jesus that Sasha is a good shot and guesses that they could be back at the Hilltop.

Later, Rick's group sets off the explosives near the Oceanside walls. Daryl and Jesus capture Beatrice and Kathy as the other residents flee. They are able to round up the residents and Rick assures them that he doesn't plan to hurt anyone but they have something they need. Natania appears, holding Tara at gunpoint. Cyndie tells her people that Rick's group wants to fight the Saviors. Beatrice suggests they join the fight, but Natania refuses to lose more people to the Saviors.

Michonne warns Rick that walkers are approaching. Rick's group and the Oceansiders work together and take down the walkers. Beatrice hands Rick his knife back and they shake hands. Natania angrily concedes and allows Rick's group to take their guns but she remains adamant they won't fight.

The Oceanside residents watch Rick's group leave with their guns. Gabriel wonders whether they need to take all the guns. Rick insists it's necessary.

Rick's group returns to Alexandria late at night. Rosita opens the gate for them. Jesus asks about Sasha, but Rosita doesn't answer. She tells them they have a visitor.

Rosita leads Rick's group to the Alexandria prison cell: Dwight sits behind bars. Daryl charges at Dwight but Rick and Michonne hold him back. Rosita says that Dwight wants to help. "Okay," says Rick. He aims his gun at Dwight and orders him to kneel.

"The First Day of the Rest of Your Life"
Daryl and the group interrogate Dwight in the prison cell. As Tara furiously reprimands him for murdering Denise, he replies that she was not his intended target. Daryl slams Dwight against the wall and holds him at knifepoint. Dwight insists he's on their side and offers to work with them as Tara insists Daryl kills him, but he stands down. Dwight presents his plan to take down Negan.

The group agree to Dwight's plan and he heads back to the Sanctuary. Daryl says that no matter how sorry he is, he will kill him once this is all over.

Daryl, Rosita and Aaron wire explosives in an empty truck outside the Alexandria gate in preparation for the Saviors arrival.

When Eugene arrives with the Saviors, speaking through a megaphone and telling the group to surrender, Rick gives Rosita the signal to detonate the explosives, however when she pushes the button, there is no explosion. Suddenly, the Scavengers then turn their guns on the group. Negan demands they turn all of their guns as well as Daryl to him.

When Negan is attacked by Sasha, who died and reanimated, Daryl and the Alexandrians use the distraction to turn their guns on the Scavengers. Then, the Kingdom and Hilltop members arrive in time to save them. He continues to fight alongside the others. After the Saviors and Scavengers have fled, Daryl finds one of Dwight's figurines hidden by the gate with the words "Didn't know" written on the back.

Daryl gathers around with everyone else as Rick, Maggie and Ezekiel address the crowd, united and ready for an all out war.

"Mercy"
Daryl communicates with Dwight by shooting crossbow arrows with information wrapped on them at each other. Dwight supplies Daryl with the locations of the Saviors lookouts on the road to their compound. He also directs a large force of Saviors to investigate an explosion set up by the Militia, well-aware that its actually a trap for whoever goes to investigate.

Daryl and Morgan kill Saviors at various lookout points. One by one, they cross the targets off a list supplied by Dwight. Daryl takes the dead Saviors gun and posts, analyzing his gun which is marked with the number of kills on it. "Neighborhood" is marked off of the list.

At the bridge, Daryl meets with Carol, Tara and Morgan in the highway. Daryl, Morgan, Carol and Tara wait on the highway until the herd arrives; they vacate the road in haste. Moments later, the SUV they parked on the exit ramp explodes. Dwight dispatches a large team of Saviors to investigate the explosion. Daryl and Morgan rig a tripwire across a road. They join Carol and Tara on a pedestrian overpass.

The group on the overpass spots a walker nearing the tripwire. Morgan kills the stray walker endangering the tripwire and sees the caravan of Saviors in the distance. On the road, the Savior caravan trips the wire and sets off an explosion, killing them all. The herd approaches, drawn by the explosion. Morgan and Tara get in a car, preparing to leave. Carol urges Daryl to be careful.

Daryl continues leading the herd on his bike. Daryl shoots a succession of explosive barrels while riding his motorcycle toward the Sanctuary, guiding the herd. Daryl regroups with Rick’s group, while they wait for Gabriel at their rendezvous point. Rick tells Daryl that Gabriel stayed behind to save him, but they can’t wait for him any longer. Daryl signals the group to get back in their vehicles. They prepare to enact the next phase of their plan.

At a second Savior outpost, Daryl and Rick shoot a guard and enter the front gate.

"The Damned"
Daryl, Rick and and three others enter the Shephard Office Plaza from another direction, silently taking out the two guards. While the others stay behind to watch for Saviors retreating inside from the courtyard, Rick and Daryl go from room to room searching foe the weapons armory. They are here to find guns.

In the office building, Rick scrutinizes the layout provided by Dwight. Upon rejoining with Daryl and having swept the ground floor, they deduce that the weapons, including 50 calibers, must be upstairs.

Daryl tosses his crossbow into a ventilation shaft. Daryl and Rick arrive on the second floor, and Daryl expresses doubt that Dwight's instructions were accurate, but Rick points out that they have been so far. He tells Daryl that they will use the heavy artillery to take out the Saviors in the courtyard below, bringing a swift end to the battle. They split up.

Daryl searches the office block room to room and discovers a small cavity with a shackled handcuff and stale food; it is a cell for torture, similar to the one he was subjected to at the Sanctuary. While this is happening, Rick is encountered by Morales, who hasn't been seen since Atlanta.

"Monsters"
Daryl saves Rick from Morales who is holding Rick at gunpoint and kills him without hesitation despite Rick's pleas. Rick tries to explain how they both knew Morales, but Daryl says he knew fully well who he was and that them knowing each other in a past life now meant nothing given their current circumstances. Daryl then asks Rick if he was able to find the guns they were looking for, Rick answers that he was unable to. Suddenly, the Saviors that Morales had called back earlier close in on them and attack.

After Daryl runs out of ammunition, Rick notices a fire extinguisher and shoots it to create a cloud of smoke. Daryl and Rick are able to take out some of the Saviors until other Aaron and members of the Militia arrive.

After taking out the outpost, Daryl and Rick are about to leave onto their next mission when they are fired at by an unknown assailant. Rick, hinting that the attacker is alone, gives his word that they will not harm him if he surrenders and give him a car to escape an oncoming herd. The attacker turns out to be Todd, a worker for the Saviors who had survived the attack at the outpost. Rick asks where the supposed guns that were meant to be at the outpost are and Todd answers that they were moved to Gavin's outpost. When Todd asks if he can leave after answering their question, Daryl promptly shoots Todd in the head which surprises Rick. The two then leave.

"Some Guy"
Daryl and Rick pursue the Saviors on an empty road. Daryl opens fire but the machine gun opens fire on him, causing him to fall off the bike. Rick continues his pursuit. There are walkers in the road ahead, causing the Savior truck to swerve and the shooter to lose balance for a moment.

When fires opens up again, Rick swerves and Daryl is revealed behind him. He shoots the turret operator. Rick pulls up beside the truck and jumps into the passenger seat. He stabs the driver and tosses him from the truck. Still, it drives through a rail and off the road.

Daryl rushes to the roadside to see the truck on its side as Rick crawls up the hill. Rick says they have the weapon, and the two of them go check to see if the driver survived.

"The Big Scary U"
On the roadside, Daryl and Rick go after the Savior they kicked out of the truck. He is dying. He tells Daryl and Rick that the Kingdommers are dead and Ezekiel, Jerry and Carol killed everyone. As a result, he promises everyone in Rick's group is going to die before he dies himself.

Daryl explores the crashed truck. Gas is leaking from it. He tries to gather the guns and ammo with Rick's help. They find explosives inside. He says that with the Kingdom gone, they should use these bombs to bust open the Sanctuary and end everything. Rick, however, vouches for the workers and families inside. Daryl wants to blow open the south side. Rick still claims those people might not make it out. If the Saviors don't surrender, everyone will fight them and he insists that Daryl stick with the plan.

Daryl refuses to listen and heads off with the bombs on his own. Rick tries to stop him, but Daryl bites back and insists he has his own people to look after. Rick again tries to stop him, but Daryl punches him in the face, igniting a fight. Rick and Daryl's fight continues. Rick throws the bombs, but ends up in a choke hold. The truck starts on fire and eventually explodes just as the two were running from it. They sit and watch it burn, disappointed, together.

Back on the road, Rick tries to start his truck but it's no good. Daryl pulls up on his bike. "There's a plan," Rick said. "We gotta win," Daryl insists. He asks Rick if he still going to talk to the Scavengers, he says he will. Then, they head off in separate directions.

"The King, the Widow, and Rick"
After Daryl returns to Alexandria, Tara tells him that she understands why he spared Dwight and feels he made the right choice as Dwight is the only reason they've gotten so far. However, Tara is determined to kill Dwight when its over. Daryl suggests that they will kill him together and that they won't have to wait for the war to be over. Later he and Tara get in a truck and crash into Zia's vehicle killing her. Then he, Tara, Michonne and Rosita are outside of the Sanctuary looking at the walkers then says "finishing it."

"Time for After"
Daryl, Michonne, Rosita and Tara discuss their rogue plan; with Daryl charging the truck into the building and send the walkers into the Sanctuary. Michonne, Rosita, and Tara will cover him and distract the walkers. Morgan joins them soon after and offers to help. Rosita shows doubts about the plan, concerned about the workers inside the building and the plan going awry. Daryl argues that, without the Kingdom's forces, they do not have the numbers to force a surrender, but Rosita reminds them of Rick's proposition to the Scavengers. Tara refuses to trust the Scavengers for their betrayal and regrets not saying anthing about Oceanside soon, and Tara is willing to follow with Daryl's plan.

Rosita leaves, not wanting to do with the plan, while Daryl, Tara and Michonne drive the truck to the edge of the Sanctuary's perimeter as Morgan keeps watch. As Tara takes point, Daryl turns to Michonne, asking if she's prepared. Having taken Rosita's words into consideration, Michonne decides the risk is not worth it. Daryl allows her to leave. Daryl, Tara and Morgan and the lookouts set themselves up for the breach.

Daryl drives toward the building. Several Saviors perched at the window are fired upon by Tara, Morgan and the lookouts as Daryl crashes the truck into the Sanctuary, breaching the walls and allowing the herd to pour in. Daryl and Tara retreat as the walkers begin making their way inside.

"How It's Gotta Be"
Daryl is first seen at the camp with the others, he talks to Michonne about the game plan going forward, and he's sure of what they're about to do. She apologizes for not going with the plan, but Daryl tells her not to be sorry.

Daryl is with Tara, Michonne and Rosita as they look out from the woods nearby and they talk about the mistakes. Daryl uses smoke bombs to attract the Saviors. Dwight drives a caravan right into Daryl's trap and he, along with everyone else opens fire on them. Dwight then kills some of the Saviors himself. Laura shoots Dwight in the arm and escapes before she can be killed.

Daryl and the others approach Dwight with their guns raised. He says that one of the Saviors got away so he can't go back to the Sanctuary. He tells them that Eugene is the one who orchestrated the Saviors' escape. Daryl takes the vest Dwight was wearing off from him and the group takes Dwight, along with all of the Saviors' guns, and leave.

Daryl is later seen at the sewers along with everyone else.

"Honor"
Daryl is seen holding Judith as he remains in the sewers with the other Alexandrians as the Saviors' grenades continue to blow apart Alexandria above them. Dwight points out that the Saviors will soon run out of ammo and insists they stay put until the siege is over, but Daryl insists they'll die if they stay here. Rosita tells Dwight that they must get everyone at the Hilltop. Dwight questions the plan to bring everyone together in the Hilltop. "All of us, together," Daryl injects, "We'll be their worst damn nightmare."

Daryl approaches Rick and Carl. He hands over Judith and offers condolences to Rick. He and Carl share a glance at one another and Daryl nods to him before heading out. Daryl and Tobin resurface to confirm that the Saviors have indeed left Alexandria. Rick insists on staying in Alexandria with Carl, who won't make it, while the rest of the group travels to the Hilltop. Daryl takes Judith and promises he'll keep her safe. "These people, you saved them all," Daryl tells Carl. "It's all you, man." He says his goodbye to Carl and he walks off and Tara follows.

"Dead or Alive Or"
Daryl leads the remaining Alexandrians and Dwight under the bridge and out of sight of the Saviors. The group comes across a walker in the forest. Tara moves in to deal with it, but allows it to cross over to Dwight, claiming that it escaped her grasp. Dwight dispatches it before the group heads forward. Rosita and Daryl discuss the Savior report and deduce that Carson and Gabriel are also heading towards the Hilltop.

The Alexandrians, having walked a considerable distance, rest in the forest. As Daryl and Rosita retrace their steps to cover their tracks, Tara, still vengeful, questions why Dwight is still alive. Daryl and Rosita agree that Dwight may still prove to be a valuable asset, with Rosita deciding to wait on dealing with him until they reach the Hilltop.

Daryl, Rosita and Tara look over a map at the different routes the Saviors can travel from the Sanctuary to the Hilltop, finding that most of their paths can be potentially dangerous. Dwight, however, points out that an alternate path - through a swamp is seldom used, due to the risks it poses against the Saviors. Silence falls over the group, and Tara realizes that they are considering taking the swamp route, voicing her opposition to the plan.

The Alexandrians question Dwight's loyalties, fearing that he could potentially turn against the Militia the same way he deserted the Saviors. He argues that while he put down his fellow survivors, one escaped, and affirms that he will not return to the Saviors, seeing that there is now a price on his head for his betrayal. He solidifies his choice to side with the Militia, accepting that whatever happens to him after Negan's fall happens. Having heard his words, Daryl agrees to traverse the swamps.

En-route to the swamp, Daryl and Dwight discuss Sherry and the possibility of finding her in the swamp. They approach the edge of the water, finding the murky depths littered with decaying walkers. Daryl gathers volunteers to assist with clearing out the infestation. Dwight is disallowed and Tara opts to stay behind to watch the group.

Daryl, Rosita, Siddiq, Scott and the other volunteers continue to dispatch walkers in their path, with Rosita coming close to being dragged under. Daryl and Siddiq later find a multitude of gurgling corpses blocking their route forward. They press on, quickly and carefully putting down each walker in their path.

Back at the swamp, Daryl lets his rage fly, berating Tara for allowing Dwight to leave and risking him giving away their group to the Saviors. Having seen Dwight's efforts to sway the Saviors away from their location, Tara is convinced that Dwight has changed for the better. Daryl remains unconvinced, but forgoes continuing the conversation any longer, leading the Alexandrians through the now-clear waters.

Daryl and the Alexandrians arrive at the Hilltop gates, with Daryl bearing the news of the town's downfall and the loss of Carl. News of Carl's death brings Enid to her knees in sorrow, and Maggie comforts her.

"The Key"
Daryl is seen when Rick and Michonne arrive at Hilltop and reunite with Judith. Daryl talks to Rick near Glenn's grave, and apologizes to Rick for attacking the Sanctuary behind Rick's back. Rick says it's right and he should've only worried about their people. He assures him that he's ready to fight Negan despite Carl's death. They decide to join a team of lookouts scattered around Hilltop. He goes on to thank Daryl for getting everyone to Hilltop.

"Do Not Send Us Astray"
Daryl is among the lookouts who blares their horns to signal to the Hilltop that the Saviors are en route to the town. When Simon and the Saviors arrives, Daryl rides up on his motorcycle and opens fire with his machine gun, killing several Saviors. Simon's convoy follows Daryl through the gate. Hilltoppers block the convoy with a bus and fire at the Saviors. The battle begins in earnest and Daryl and everyone open fire at the Saviors.

During the battle, Daryl sees Simon and Dwight sneaking up on Tara and shouts a warning, but is too late as Dwight shoots Tara in the arm with an arrow. The group manages to drive the Saviors out as they escape in their vehicles.

Hilltop cleans up in the aftermath of battle. Daryl and Tara discuss Dwight shooting her. Tara tells Daryl that she was with the Governor when they first met. Daryl references his brother and says he would be with the Saviors if he were still around. Tara has been vouching for Dwight. "I saw him try and help us win," she tells Daryl, but he refuses to accept her word and leaves.

During the night, the injure residents turn and move in on the Barrington House. Mayhem breaks out as the walkers attack. Daryl, Rick, Michonne, Ezekiel, Jesus and Siddiq fight back. Daryl kills the zombified Wesley and Dana, as Rick and Morgan kill the remaining walkers. They notice that the walkers were all their people.

Carol informs Rick, Daryl and Maggie that Tobin wasn't bitten. Rick recalls that Negan's bat was covered in walker blood, leading them to realize that the Saviors used their weapons to infect them. Daryl and Rick inform Tara. Having been wounded by a Savior arrow, Tara accepts her fate.

"Still Gotta Mean Something"
Daryl talks with Tara and she tells Daryl that her arrow wound did not infect her. She deduces that Dwight shot her with a clean arrow and saved her life. Daryl is not convinced by this, thinking he still turn traitor when he didn't warn them about the walker guts, but Tara abandons her immediate quest to kill him. Daryl works on his motorcycle and spots a knife with dried blood, which sparks an idea.

Daryl is seen in Maggie's office, Dianne reports that they don't have enough ammo to fend off another big attack. Presuming the Saviors are low on ammo themselves, Daryl points out that the Saviors might have to go hand to hand if the walker guts were their only option and suggests they fight them hand-to-hand. Rosita points out that Eugene is probably making ammunition for the Saviors.

Daryl and Rosita observe the Bullet Factory Outpost, they see Eugene receiving a shipment of hundreds of bullet casings to make into new bullets. Rosita decides that instead of taking out the machines, they will take out the man, implying she intends to kill Eugene, something that Daryl agrees with.

"Worth"
Daryl and Rosita take out the guards escorting Eugene and they capture him. Daryl and Rosita escort Eugene back to the Hilltop. He talks, endlessly, prompting Daryl to threaten to cut his tongue out. Rosita calms him down, insisting Saviors will be out looking for Eugene by now.

Eugene tries to defend his alliance with Negan, but Rosita blames everyone's deaths on him for helping the Saviors escape the besieged Sanctuary. Eugene argues that Rick is the real cause of the war. Rosita snarls that they are going to lock Eugene up. Daryl, Rosita and Eugene encounter a herd of walkers. While Daryl kills walkers, Eugene makes himself vomit on Rosita and runs off before she is able to recover. Daryl and Rosita follow Eugene's tracks through a pile of ash, completely overlooking his hiding spot.

"Wrath"
Daryl and the group review the map, which had been previously delivered by Gregory on behalf of Dwight and prepare to leave to investigate the Savior plans. However, they are unaware that Negan planted these as a ruse to entrap them. Following the map, Daryl and Rick's group witness a massive walker horde in the distance and continue on.

They end up in a large field where Negan taunts them over a public address system. Negan reveals he has Gabriel at gunpoint, their traitor Dwight is a prisoner, and that his people are ready to fire. He counts down from three, as a firing line of Saviors appears on the ridge line of the hill, ready to shoot down Rick's group.

However, as they fire, their weapons all backfire due to Eugene's purposely faulty ammo, killing or injuring many including Negan and rendering the guns ineffective. Gabriel and Dwight overpower their captors and force Negan to flee with "Lucille", his baseball bat. As Rick's group moves in, the remaining Saviors willingly put down their arms and surrender.

After Rick defeats Negan, Daryl listens in as Rick orders the Saviors to return home and proclaims that Negan's rule is over. He tells the gathered people that they will start a new world, living in peace and points to the massive herd in the distance and declares that they must unite to fight the walkers, the real threat.

After the war is over, Daryl drives Dwight deep into the woods. He profusely apologizes for his former actions, but acknowledges to Daryl he deserves to die. Instead, Daryl gives him the keys to the truck and tells him to leave, go make it right and find his wife Sherry, but warns him to never return.

Back in her office at the Hilltop, Daryl listens as Maggie privately talks to Jesus. She is angry at Rick and Michonne, believing that they were both wrong for keeping Negan alive. Together, the two allude to later rectify this error once the Hilltop has time to regroup and fortify. Daryl comes out of the shadow and agrees with her plans.

"A New Beginning"
During the year and a half that passed since the end of the war, Daryl reluctantly took charge of the Sanctuary and it's residents.

At the Sanctuary, the walker-filled yard has been replaced with crops. Rosita helps Eugene with an experiment while Laura reports something to Daryl. He goes to the yard and notices Arat and Justin trying to use a walker as a Scarecrow, like they used to do, under the pretense to scare off the crows, but Daryl puts it down.

A while later, Daryl rides off to meet Rick, Michonne, Carol, Maggie and the others in downtown Washington D.C, to search for a covered wagon and farming equipment in the Smithsonian. Inside, as they walk over a fragile glass floor, they notice a group of walkers under it. Suddenly, a walker drops from a balcony onto it, cracking the pane, before Daryl puts it down.

Rick tells everyone to be safe and the group separates.

By the stairs, Cyndie sees an old canoe and remembers an experience with her brother. Daryl relates to her and the two of them lift the canoe.

Shortly after, the whole group reunites and gingerly uses ropes to drag an old covered wagon down the stairs and over the glass floor. The glass finally gives way and Ezekiel falls through it, dangling by the rope. Before the walkers can bite him, Daryl shoots at one and Rick and the others finally pull him to safety. Carol joyfully kisses him to celebrate.

The group leaves D.C. and prepare to head back to their own communities.

On the road, Daryl and Rosita catch up with everyone to inform them that the main bridge is out due to a storm. Rick tells Tara, Gabriel, Aaron and Anne to head back to Alexandria and the rest will go to an alternate route and spend the night at the Sanctuary.

In the woods, the wagon gets caught in the mud as walkers appear from the bushes. It finally budges and everyone rushes to gather the supplies until the walkers overwhelm them and they're forced to leave. Ken runs back to free his horses, but is bitten in the arm by a walker and then kicked in the ribs by the horse.

Siddiq and Enid try to save him, but Ken succumbs to blood loss and dies from his injuries. A saddened Maggie sobs by his side before putting him down.

At the Sanctuary, Rick and the group arrive to deliver supplies. Michonne points out graffiti that proclaims, "We are still Negan", and Daryl demands Justin to clean it up. Rick promises to the Saviors that he'll continue to support them so they can get back on their feet. Everyone applauds him and treat him like a celebrity.

Daryl pulls Rick aside to tell him that he no longer wants to lead the place because he doesn't belong there and since it's factory, it can't produce crops. He suggests he return to Hilltop to check on Maggie and Hershel, but Rick argues he should return to Alexandria. "Things have changed," Rick says, but Daryl claims it's because Rick changed them, before going out.

Outside, Carol follows Daryl and offers to take over the Sanctuary for him. She tells him about Zeke's proposal and says she wants to take her time. Daryl's surprised and asks if he should stay with her. She declines and rests her head on his shoulder.

The next day, Daryl, Michonne and Rick arrive at the Hilltop to find the workers building gallows.

In the night, the residents gather around the gallows as Maggie explains to her people that the punishment fits the crime. She looks on at Gregory, who has a noose around his neck and is sitting on a horse. Gregory pleads for someone to stop this, but no one moves. A couple of kids show up and Michonne yells for Maggie to stop but it's too late as Daryl smacks the horse and it rides off, leaving Gregory to hang to death to everyone's shock.

Maggie tells her people that she wants this to be the last time they do something like this. A shocked Rick and Michonne look on as Maggie then orders Daryl to cut off the noose.

"The Bridge"
While constructing on the bridge, Aaron shares with Daryl his experience as a father with Gracie and tells him someday he'll make a great dad. Meanwhile, Henry arrives to give water to the workes. Justin shoves him down for not giving him extra water and starts drinking from the jug. Henry gets angry and knocks him down with his stick.

A furious Justin gets up to retaliate, but Daryl stops him, saying that the kid's just doing his job. Justin swings at him and Daryl punches him in the face. They start fighting.

Rick arrives and stops them. He tells everyone to go back to work. He takes Daryl to his tent to calm him down, reminding him that they need the Saviors to help in building the bridge in spite of several deserters. However, Daryl says that the Saviors won't fall in line just because he says so.

Rick explains that he wants everyone to be on the same side, and Daryl questions if they actually are, before leaving. Carol advises Rick to talk to him once he has calmed.

A while later, a herd of walkers arrive at the labor site and a commotion ensues. Jed panics and lets go of one of the giant logs, making it fall onto Aaron's arm, crushing it. Daryl yells to the crew to lift the log while he double-knives the walkers around him. They lift the log but Aaron's arm is crushed. Daryl carries Aaron to the camp as Rick and his group arrives to hold off the walkers.

Daryl rushes Aaron to the infirmary and Enid quickly decides they need to amputate. Aaron reluctantly agrees as Daryl ties the tourniquet. Enid amputates his arm.

Daryl angrily goes to confront Justin on why the second siren wasn't sounded. Justin claims the radio wasn't charged and Daryl leaps at him, punching him repeatedly with a frying pan. Carol begs for him to stop as the rest of the camp watches. He listens and storms off.

At night, Daryl accompanies Aaron as Rick apologizes to him for what happened. Aaron says that he couldn't know and claims that thanks to Rick: "It's not the end of the world anymore... It's the start of a whole new one." Daryl listens in thought.

"Warning Signs"
At the camp, the Saviors are furious with the news of Justin's death. Alden promises they'll get to the bottom of it but is punched in the face by Jed, who claims he isn't one of them anymore. Carol steps in with her gun at her hip, stopping Jed.

From afar, Daryl aims his crossbow as the Saviors start accusing him and Anne of being the culprits. They grab axes to retaliate when Rick rides in the middle of the group with his gun drawn and warns everyone to back off.

A while later, Rick confronts Daryl about Justin, suggesting he might have been shot with an arrow or bolt. "If I was going to kill him, I'd a done it in plain sight," he counters before saying the Saviors don't deserve to have a new beginning while their dead friends didn't get a chance.

Rick ends the conversation asking Daryl to try, reminding him that he once spared the man who left his brother on a rooftop to die. Daryl is left in thought at this.

Later, in the woods, Daryl, Rick and Rosita arrive to save Cyndie and Maggie from a group of walkers. They check on Beatrice over the walkie but receive no response, so they try to find her and locate her unconscious in the woods. When she wakes up, she tells them she was attacked from behind and that Arat is missing.

At the camp, Rick implores his team to find Arat before the Saviors find out and leave, delaying the bridge construction.

On the woods, Maggie admits to Daryl that what Rick's doing is right for the future. They find a walker with a bolt in it and Daryl says, "I know who took Arat."

At night, Daryl and Maggie arrive at the "Final Warning" building to find Cyndie and a group from Oceanside holding up Arat. Cyndie emotionally reveals that this was their former settlement and recalls how Arat and the Saviors wiped out her people. Justin killed Beatrice's husband while Arat killed Cyndie's brother without mercy.

Cyndie says that they went along with Rick's rules because they thought they had to, until Maggie executed Gregory, "showing them the way". Since that moment, they have been killing the Saviors responsible for wiping out Oceanside.

Arat starts crying, claiming she had no choice but Cyndie reminds her how she smiled when she killed her brother. Arat begs Daryl and Maggie to help her but they walk away as Cyndie stabs her through the back of the head with a spear.

The next morning, Maggie tells Daryl that they gave Rick's way a chance, but it's time to see Negan.

"The Obliged"
At the camp, Daryl watches as Jerry arrives to warn Rick about Maggie's march to Alexandria and as a panicked Rick radios Rachel to warn his people not to let Maggie into the community. He walks over to Rick and offers to take him to Alexandria on his motorbike.

On the road, Daryl rides past the right turn and Rick angrily tells him to pull over. Rick asks what is he doing and Daryl reveals he messed with the relay so Maggie will be allowed into Alexandria to kill Negan. Rick jumps at him and the two wrestle until they roll into a giant ditch.

In the ditch, Daryl and Rick argue over the merits of keeping Negan alive. Daryl reminds Rick how Negan turned him into a slave and how no one's on board with him sticking around. Rick says if they martyr Negan then Carl will have died for nothing. Daryl tells Rick he'd die for him and he would have for Carl too, but he has to just let him go. Rick says he never asked anyone to follow him, and Daryl says, "Maybe you should have."

Suddenly, they hear gunshots coming from the camp and are forced to help each other escape. As they struggle to climb out, several walkers slip into the ditch. Rick finally crawls out of it and uses a tree branch to get Daryl out as well. With a horde building near the camp, Rick concocts a plan to lead them away while Daryl heads for the river.

"What Comes After"
On the bridge, as Rick limps away before collapsing, he hallucinates as Daryl, Maggie, Carol, Ezekiel, and the others rush past him to kill the walkers. Michonne stops and sees Rick's wound. She reminds him she fell in love with him because he's a fighter. After killing the walkers, everyone stops to watch them. Michonne tells Rick how much she loves him and he tells her, "This isn't real." Michonne tells him to wake up and he does, now alone on the bridge.

The walkers approach as Rick hobbles away. He makes it across the bridge and turns around hoping to see the walkers fall through, to no avail. A walker makes its way inches away from Rick before getting shot in the head by a crossbow bolt. Rick watches as Daryl, Michonne, Maggie, and the rest arrive nearby.

Maggie and Michonne hatch a plan to divert the walkers but Rick won't allow it. He notices the dynamite on the bridge, takes aim, and says to himself "I found them," before shooting and igniting the dynamite. The bridge ignites and explodes as Michonne and the rest can only watch in horror. Assuming Rick is dead, Michonne screams out while Maggie and Carol comfort her. Daryl weeps and then walks away.

"Who Are You Now?"
Six years later, Daryl now lives alone in the woods. He spearfishes in a lake and kills a walker. As he returns to his tent, he watches as nature takes over a walker stuck in a tree.

The next day, as he walks with a pack of logs, he encounters Carol and Henry on their way to Hilltop. Carol tells him to come along and Daryl accepts with a smile.

"Stradivarius"
Daryl escorts Carol and Henry to his camp by a dam. As he feeds his dog, Carol asks him when was the last time he ate. "Dog ate yesterday," he says and walks off.

Carol asks why he's been living in the woods so long and he says it's quiet. She updates him on Henry moving to Hilltop while she deals with things at the Kingdom. Daryl asks why she's really here and she reveals she wants him to come with them. "Want me to babysit your boy?" Daryl growls. Carol admits Henry could use a mentor to toughen him up, but Daryl says he'll have to learn on his own.

A while later, Daryl skins a snake and throws it into the fire for dinner while Henry asks Carol if she brought him here so Daryl could be his chaperone. At night, Carol gives Daryl a haircut and he reveals he never found Rick's body and got used to being in the woods. Carol suggests he should let it go. Later, as they have dinner, Henry asks Daryl how he got his scar on the eye but he ignores him and leaves to find his dog.

Henry tails Daryl and finds a walker instead. Daryl shows up and asks if he was following him. Suddenly, Daryl hears his dog barking wildly nearby and rushes over to find it stuck in a trap and surrounded by walkers. Daryl picks off the walkers to save his dog and before a walker can bite him, Henry jumps in and saves him. "I told you to stay back," Daryl scolds. From the bushes, Carol secretly lowers her bow and arrow.

Back at the camp, Henry notices a x shaped scar on Daryl's back as he changes his shirt. He sits next to him and tells him that this is the first time the dog got caught in his trap. Henry thanks him for the save and tells him Carol misses and worries about him. "She knows how to find me," Daryl says. Henry suggests he should come to Hilltop with them. Daryl asks if it's so he can look over him, but Henry says "It isn't just about me."

In the morning, Daryl loads up his bike for Hilltop and Carol seems overjoyed she convinced him to come. Later, they arrive at Hilltop and hug Tara. Carol tells Jesus that Henry wants to learn how to be a blacksmith. Aaron greets Daryl and tells him they could use his help locating Eugene. Henry tries to tag along but Carol instead says he needs to stay and she will help him find a home.

With the dog leading the way, Daryl, Aaron and Jesus head out to find Eugene.

"Evolution"
In the woods, Daryl, Aaron, and Jesus discover a herd middling around in the middle of a field. As they leave, an odd looking walker watches them from the herd.

Later, Jesus tells Aaron that Daryl used to trade with Hilltop before he stopped coming to visit. Aaron encourages him to embrace his new leadership role when Daryl cuts them off and says he can hear the walkers nearby through the wind. As they leave, Jesus looks with suspicion at the incoming herd.

At night, Daryl, Jesus, and Aaron locate Eugene hiding in a barn cellar. A terrified Eugene warns them a herd of walkers is looking for him and they need to leave immediately. "This wasn't a normal herd... They were whispering to each other," he tells them. They look at him confused, when suddenly Dog barks, warning them of the nearby herd.

In the foggy woods, Eugene suggests to the group that the walkers are evolving. Daryl calls bullshit when Aaron notices they're drawing closer. Jesus demands they split up but Daryl says that instead, he will guide the herd away while he and Aaron take Eugene to the horses.

From the top of an abandoned car, Daryl sets off fireworks to redirect the herd, but a group of walkers ignore the noise and the rest follow their lead, leaving him shocked. A while later, he, along with Michonne, Magna and Yumiko arrive to help the others unlock the gate.

Jesus tells Aaron and Eugene to get out while he finishes the walkers and starts taking out several with his sword. He goes to kill the last one but as he attacks it, the walker dodges and stabs him from behind through his chest, shocking everyone. "You are where you do not belong" the walker whispers to a shocked Jesus before throwing him on the ground.

Daryl shoots it in the head as several more Whisperers arrive and the rest of the group run in to finish them off. As Aaron goes over to Jesus' body, Daryl notices something on the back of the walker and cuts into his neck, revealing a mask. Before they can process it, the whispers get louder and the group circles up to fight them off.

"Adaptation"
In the cemetery, Daryl and the rest proceed to kill the Whisperers and walkers around them. When more arrive, they’re forced to carry Jesus’ body away and lock the gates. As they leave, a whisperer opens the lock.

On the road, Michonne tells Daryl they're bringing Jesus back to Hilltop so everyone can have closure and thanks him for helping her with everything. Suddenly, the group notices a small group of walkers nearby. Daryl corners them on a bridge and uses his crossbow to see who are whisperers. He hits one in the leg and the man falls down screaming in pain, attracting walkers to him. The rest try slowly escaping to the other side, where Michonne is waiting for them. They draw their knives and attack, but Michonne and the rest kill them with ease as the final whisperer gets on her knees to surrender. Daryl rips off her mask, to reveal a girl begging for her life. Michonne angrily questions her but when more walkers show up Daryl decides to take her with them.

Later, Daryl and the group arrive at Hilltop with Jesus' body and the captive girl, causing the whole community to react in disbelief. In the cellar, Daryl throws the girl in a cell and tells Henry that Jesus is dead. Michonne rips off her blindfold and tells her "No more bullshit!"

Daryl, Michonne and Tara interrogate the girl. She claims to not have a name and that her group were good people just trying to survive. Michonne asks if her people know about Hilltop but the girl begs to be left alone. Outside, Michonne tells Daryl and Tara she's heading back to Alexandria. Tara agrees and tells her she's going to allow Magna's group to stay because it's what Jesus would have done. Michonne secretly reminds Daryl that he knows what to do if the girl keeps refusing to talk.

Afterward, Daryl scolds Henry for behaving stupidly and reminds him he has one more night left in the cell before he can be released. Michonne then informs Daryl that he should stay at Hilltop to help Tara and suggests he lead the effort in questioning the girl to ensure they don't lose anyone else.

A while later, a funeral is held for Jesus and everyone take turns hammering the nails in his coffin. Daryl looks in sadness, before rushing back to the jail to demand the girl to reveal her identity. Henry tries to intervene but Daryl shuts him down. He slams her against the bars and asks if she comes from a place with walls. She tells him that places like Hilltop never last and her mom told her they needed the dead to stay safe. He raises his knife to her and demands why her people killed his and she says they were always going to, that's what they do. She tells him her mother is out there alone but he calls her a liar before dragging her towards the exit. She begs for her life and he lets her cower back in her cell.

Daryl then reminds Henry of his place and warns he'll stay in that cell until he realizes it. After he leaves, the girl thanks Henry for saving her and introduces herself as Lydia. Outside, next to a window, Daryl listens in.

"Omega"
In Hilltop, Daryl sits by a window outside the cell and listens at Lydia telling Henry how she survived with her parents at the start of the apocalypse. He is then left in thought as Lydia tells Henry her mother is not someone you want to mess with.

Later, Daryl runs inside the cells to take Henry out after he tells Lydia about the Kingdom. Outside, Daryl scolds him for endangering his family and reveals he has been using him to get information out of her. Henry lashes out, believing Lydia to be a good person who got messed up. He calls Daryl an asshole and tells him to get the information himself.

Daryl goes back to Lydia's cell and offers her medicine to help with her ear, but she refuses. He tells her that Luke and Alden are missing, but she says she knows nothing about it. He then asks her if her mom would kill their people if she crossed them. Lydia says that she would if she had to and tells him how her mother had to kill a man who was panicking and scared. Daryl says to Lydia that her mom did what she had to keep her alive. Lydia again pulls at her ear and Daryl tosses her the medicine, reminding her the people at Hilltop will help her if she helps them. She asks him for water and when he gets close she tries grabbing him. He grabs her arm and pulls up her sleeve, revealing a series of cut marks, causing her to retreat in the corner. Daryl looks at her for a moment and then leaves.

At night, Daryl visits Lydia again to find out more about her bruises. She says she got them from her mom, so Daryl asks why she won't tell her where she is. He says she’s safer here than out there but she disagrees and says her mother’s abuse makes her hard. Daryl calls it bullshit, but Lydia says staying soft makes you die and tells him that her father was weak and died saving her. Lydia then tells him that he is strong and doesn't belong in Hilltop. Daryl says she doesn't know shit about him and leaves.

Outside, Henry confronts Daryl but he claims Lydia is Tara's problem now. Henry realizes that Daryl was most likely abused himself, which Daryl doesn't confirm but doesn't deny it either. Henry tells him that he overheard Carol telling Ezekiel that she kept her hair short because Ed used to pull it and abuse her when it was long. He guesses that it took her this long to feel safe again. Daryl listens in thought as Henry tells him he knows Lydia's people are bad but he doesn't think Lydia's bad. He thinks she's just scared and Daryl can show her there's nothing to be afraid of. Daryl says, ''"Not just me". Later, ''Daryl watches as Henry and Lydia spend time together outside the cells.

In the morning, Daryl finds them holding hands. Lydia asks for the pills, promising not to attack this time. She confesses she was trying to get intel from them and that if her mom did find Luke and Alden then they're probably dead. She then explains her people are always on the move and that her memories were mixed up because her mother lied to her. Lydia confesses her father was caring and her mother was the monster. She then finishes her story by claiming her mother killed her father. Lydia cries and apologizes to Daryl for wasting his time, but he says she didn't and goes outside.

Outside, Henry follows and asks him why a mom would do that to her kid. Daryl tells him that some people ain't meant to be parents. Henry asks if Lydia can stay. Daryl says they'll see and tells Henry to get Lydia fresh clothes, while he talks to Tara about their camp. Henry tells Daryl that he's glad he and his mom are friends.

Suddenly, Tara calls out to him and Magna below to join her and Yumiko on the guard post. In front of the gate, Alpha leads a group of Whisperers. She introduces herself and tells them she just wants her daughter back.

"Bounty"
At Hilltop, Daryl listens as Alpha and the Whisperers wait for them to bring Lydia to her. Daryl asks them to leave and Alpha signals for more Whisperers to show up. Magna asks Alpha if they killed their people. Alpha says no and promises if they don't bring her Lydia there will be conflict. Daryl then decides to walk outside to talk to Alpha face to face.

Daryl walks outside and Alpha instructs one of her people to bring someone. Daryl informs Alpha he's ready to fight her people to ensure she doesn't get Lydia back, when he then spots one of the Whisperers with a baby. Alpha explains they're animals and "animals have babies." Suddenly, a couple of whisperers bring up a tied up Alden and Luke. Alpha offers to trade both of them for her daughter.

Inside, Daryl informs Enid he's going to make the trade when Magna says Lydia and Henry are missing. He tells everyone to split up and find them. He gives their scent to Dog and sends him off. Suddenly, he discovers Henry and Lydia escaped and decides to look for them. Addy says she knows where they went, so she and Enid head out to find them while Daryl stalls.

Meanwhile, Connie runs out of the cornfield, sling-shots a walker, and grabs the baby to save it from a nearby herd. The Whisperers around her unsheathe blades as Connie escapes back into the cornfield. Daryl runs in and kills the walkers around her while Kelly, Tammy, and Earl step in to rescue her. Later, Lydia and Henry return to Hilltop and Daryl goes outside to make the trade.

Outside, Daryl hands Lydia over to Alpha in exchange for Alden and Luke, who are embraced by Enid and Magna's group. Lydia apologizes to her mother and Alpha smacks her across the face, ordering her to address her as Alpha like everyone else. She then smiles at Daryl as they leave. Later, Henry tells Daryl that what they did isn't right, but Daryl reminds him they had to and they just have to live with it.

At night, Daryl sits alone when Addy hands him a note from Henry, where he says he left to find Lydia. Nearby, Connie sits on a table and stops Daryl, writing him a note, claiming that she wants to tag along. He reluctantly agrees and they set off.

"Guardians"
In the woods, Daryl and Connie look for Henry and realize that the Whisperers caught up with him. They kill some walkers and Daryl orders his dog to bring him the bolt back, but he refuses. Connie smiles as Daryl calls him a bad dog. Later, he and Connie watch from some bushes as some Whisperers draw a herd to devour some corpses.

At night, Daryl and Connie, dressed as Whisperers, lure the herd into the Whisperers' camp. In the middle of the chaos, Daryl and Connie grab Henry, who grabs Lydia, and together they escape.

"Chokepoint"
In the woods, following their daring escape from the Whisperers, Daryl blames Lydia for getting them into this mess and says she can't go with them back to Hilltop. Connie and Henry refuse to leave her behind and run off with her in another direction. Daryl reluctantly follows them.

At dawn, Daryl and Connie devise a plan to use an office building as a means of separating the Whisperers from the undead. Lydia warns Daryl that Alpha’s going to send Beta, who's their best fighter. "We'll kill him first", Daryl promises. Inside the office building, Connie reveals to Daryl that her group used the building to hide supplies and they argue about how they should proceed afterwards, with Connie saying Lydia should come back with them because they have more to lose than her.

Later, Lydia spots a group of walkers/whisperers emerge from the bushes. In the middle of the group is Beta, who quietly instructs his people to spread out as Daryl shoots one of them with his crossbow. Beta and his people break in and quickly discover a trap meant to separate them from the dead. Meanwhile, Daryl makes Lydia hide in a closet as the Whisperers creep upstairs.

Daryl aims his crossbow at the main door, which gets busted down by Beta, who's using another door as a shield. Daryl regroups and he strikes a Whisperer through a tarp with a fire axe while Connie and Henry hunt down the others. Daryl slits Zion's throat, before he is bull-rushed by Beta, whose size startles him. The two size each other up and Beta forces Daryl's neck towards a blade, but he manages to punch him and break free. Beta returns with a punch of his own and Daryl stabs him in the chest before escaping into the trap door. Beta grabs the knife out of his chest and announces all he wants is Lydia. Daryl sneaks up through the crawl space behind him and pushes him down the elevator shaft. He spites down and grabs his knife.

Afterward, Connie draws the herd away with her slingshot and Daryl tells the others they're headed to Alexandria to get Henry help because it's closer. However, he doesn't intend to stay and they will instead keep moving on.

"Scars"
In a flashback to at least eight months after Rick’s presumed death, Daryl finds Michonne in the riverbank and tells her he followed the river to the ocean but hasn't found Rick. Michonne asks when he’s going to return to Alexandria, but he says when he finds something.

In the present, Daryl arrives at Alexandria with Henry, Lydia, and Connie. From a guardpost, Michonne tells him she's skeptical of Lydia but he assures her she's on their side. Inside, Daryl tells Michonne they should head to Kingdom soon. Later, nearby the lake, Judith tells Daryl she's happy he helped Lydia and suggests they could all defeat the Whisperers if they came together since it's what her dad would have done.

At night, Daryl, Henry, and Lydia prepare to leave for the Kingdom. Michonne tells Daryl Judith's still mad at her so he suggests he tell her the truth. "That's not just a little kid you got there," he says.

In the past, Daryl joins Michonne in her mission to find Judith and the missing Alexandrians in the woods. During a break, Michonne laments how stupid she was to trust her old friend, but Daryl reminds her some people just have too much evil in their heart. A while later, Michonne and Daryl spot one Jocelyn's kids outside of an abandoned school. They chase him until they're met by all of the kids in a hallway. One of them shoots Daryl in the shoulder with an arrow while Linus knocks Michonne unconscious.

Sometime later, they wake up bloodied and tied to a pipe. Linus painfully brands an iron X on Daryl and Jocelyn tells Michonne the kids can't be soft. Winnie then brands Michonne as she shrieks in pain. When they are left alone, Daryl and Michonne break free and split up. A while later, Daryl emerges from the school and watches in confusion at the children killed by Michonne, but smiles as Judith emerges from the trailer and happily embraces her mom. Later, Daryl and Michonne return to Alexandria with the kids as the parents rush up to greet them.

In the present, Daryl, Connie, Henry, and Lydia encounter Michonne and Judith in the woods and join them on their way towards the Kingdom.

"The Calm Before"
Daryl and the group arrive at the Kingdom as the fair starts. Carol scolds Henry for running away and then hugs Daryl. As everyone catches up, Tara spots Lydia among the group. "The plan was to bring Henry…just Henry" Tara says angrily to Daryl. Additionally, Ezekiel and Carol offer Daryl a home at the Kingdom which he promises to consider.

Inside the theater, Daryl listens as the leaders reunite and decide to grant asylum to Lydia in Alexandria, send some soldiers to Hilltop to guard against any potential attacks from the Whisperers and to re-establish the charter. He then sees as they all sign the charter.

Later, Daryl, Carol, Michonne, Magna and others prepare to leave the Kingdom to go to Hilltop and leave some soldiers in case of a possible attack. He says goodbye to Connie and tells her to watch out for his dog until he returns. In the woods, he and the rest encounter Ozzy, Alek, and D.J. and find one of Hilltop's carts overturned. He, Michonne, Carol, and Yumiko decide to track any possible survivor.

At night, Daryl and the group gets attacked by walkers. They take them out one by one until the Whisperers surround them. Beta emerges from the trees and tells them to drop their weapons. "You just had to give me the girl," he growls at Daryl, telling him their deal is off. After the group is tied up, Alpha approaches them and tells them she ran into trouble on the road as she wipes her bloody knife on her pants. Michonne warns her if she tries to get Lydia back they'll respond in force, but Alpha assures her Lydia isn't her concern anymore. She takes out a shotgun and tells Daryl to come with her alone.

At dawn, Alpha forces Daryl to the top of a cliff where a massive horde of walkers and Whisperers walk beneath them. Alpha says Daryl's communities are a joke and that her way of life is best for her people. She then tells him his friends at the camp are fine, but the next time his people cross into her land she'll release the horde into theirs. She clarifies she marked the border and Daryl asks if she killed Lydia. Alpha tells Daryl she didn't and doubts he can protect her. He tells her she's wrong and leaves.

On their way back to the Kingdom, Daryl, Michonne, Carol, and Yumiko find a beaten and bloody Siddiq tied to a tree. He points them to a nearby hill, which has ten pikes in the ground. Each spike has a severed head stabbed through the top. The group walk devastated towards it and look in horror at the victims: Ozzy, Alek, D.J., Frankie, Tammy, Rodney, Addy, Enid, Tara, and Henry. Daryl comforts Carol and tells her to look away, but she is overwhelmed with emotion.

Later, in the Kingdom, Daryl listens from the crowd as Siddiq delivers the tragic news, tells them how brave everyone was in their final moments and how he was intentionally kept alive to tell this very story. He encourages everyone to remember the fallen.

Sometime later, Daryl and Lydia return to the border. Lydia leaves the necklace Henry made for her on the ground and as the two walk away, snow flurries begin to fall.

"The Storm"
Several months after the fair massacre, Daryl has become a fatherly figure to Lydia, protecting and caring for her. In the Kingdom, as everyone gets ready to leave and move to Hilltop, he makes dinner for Lydia.

On the road, the group spots walkers in a field but keep moving undetected. Suddenly, Alden asks Lydia if they’re her people. “We followed their rules, haven’t they done enough to us?” but is shut up by Daryl. Lydia tells him, “I don’t want to cause any more problems," but Daryl reminds her people should stop blaming her.

Later, as it becomes colder, Daryl reminds Carol that Henry wanted Lydia to be with them. She admits all she can see is Henry when she looks at her and Daryl asks what she sees when she looks at him. She assures him she just sees him and puts her hand on his shoulder. A while later, Daryl and Carol kill a couple of walkers. He tells the group to keep moving as he and Ezekiel go to retrieve his bolt. In the woods, Ezekiel tells Daryl he wants a fresh start with Carol at Hilltop “it would be easier if it was just us.” Daryl doesn’t say anything and looks at him in thought. As more snow starts falling, Michonne decides to take the group to Sanctuary.

In the Sanctuary, Daryl sits with Carol and she asks him if something happened back there between him and Ezekiel. He says no, but Carol’s suspicious. She admits with Henry gone she feels like she’s losing herself again, so Daryl offers to take Lydia away and protect her on his own, even though he doesn’t want to leave.

A while later, Daryl listens as the leaders map their route through a frozen lake on Alpha’s land and Michonne warns they have to leave now or they won't make it. The group gets ready and leave the Sanctuary.

In the woods, the group passes the pikes into Alpha’s territory. Michonne kills frozen walkers, unsure if they’re Whisperers or not, before reaching the frozen lake. Daryl notices Lydia’s missing again, so Carol leaves to find her and instructs him to get everyone across safely. Suddenly, walkers awaken from the snow banks and the group kills them one by one before escaping across the ice.

In the morning, Daryl and the group finally arrive at Hilltop, where he knocks off the head of a frozen walker. That night, he informs Lydia they’ll leave for Alexandria in the morning. She asks why he left Hilltop and he says he'll tell her that story another day. The next day, Daryl, Michonne, and the others return to Alexandria, along with Carol and several Kingdom refugees. He then plays with the group in a snowball fight.

Season 10
Daryl will appear in this season.

Killed Victims
This list shows the victims Daryl has killed:
 * Shawn Greene (Zombified) (Alongside his fellow survivors)
 * Arnold Greene (Zombified) (Alongside his fellow survivors)
 * Duncan (Zombified) (Alongside his fellow survivors)
 * Lacey (Zombified) (Alongside his fellow survivors)
 * Mr. Fischer (Zombified) (Alongside his fellow survivors)
 * Mrs. Fischer (Zombified) (Alongside his fellow survivors)
 * Greene farm inhabitants (Zombified) (Alongside his fellow survivors)
 * Dale Horvath (Out of Mercy)
 * Merle Dixon (Zombified)
 * Greg (Zombified)
 * Patrick (Zombified)
 * Owen (Zombified)
 * Mitch Dolgen
 * Billy
 * Dawn Lerner
 * Cam (Possibly; Caused)
 * Carla (Zombified)
 * Delly (Zombified)
 * Tina (Before Reanimation) (Alongside Dwight and Sherry)
 * Timmy
 * Lead Savior
 * Savior Guard
 * Neil (Alive)
 * Glenn Rhee (Indirectly Caused)
 * Joseph
 * Morales
 * Todd
 * Zia
 * Wesley (Zombified)
 * Dana (Zombified)
 * Bruce (Possibly, Alive or Before Reanimation, Off-Screen, Out of Mercy)
 * Lance (Alongside his fellow Militia members)
 * Gregory
 * Whisperer 1
 * Rasmus (Off-Screen, Alongside Connie)
 * Whisperer 5 (Alive, Caused; Zombified)
 * Whisperer 7
 * Zion
 * Martin (Zombified)
 * Ozzy (Zombified) (Alongside Carol, Michonne, Yumiko, and Siddiq)
 * Alek (Zombified) (Alongside Carol, Michonne, Yumiko, and Siddiq)
 * D.J. (Zombified) (Alongside Carol, Michonne, Yumiko, and Siddiq)
 * Frankie (Zombified) (Alongside Carol, Michonne, Yumiko, and Siddiq)
 * Tammy Rose Sutton (Zombified) (Alongside Carol, Michonne, Yumiko, and Siddiq)
 * Rodney (Zombified) (Alongside Carol, Michonne, Yumiko, and Siddiq)
 * Adeline (Zombified) (Alongside Carol, Michonne, Yumiko, and Siddiq)
 * Enid (Zombified) (Alongside Carol, Michonne, Yumiko, and Siddiq)
 * Tara Chambler (Zombified) (Alongside Carol, Michonne, Yumiko, and Siddiq)
 * Henry (Zombified) (Alongside Carol, Michonne, Yumiko, and Siddiq)
 * 1 deer
 * Numerous animals
 * A few unnamed camp survivors of Atlanta (Before Reanimation)
 * 3 unnamed Woodbury soldiers (2 Alive, 1 Zombified)
 * A few unnamed prison newcomers (Before Reanimation and Zombified)
 * 7 unnamed members of the Governor's militia
 * 43 unnamed Saviors (26 Direct, 7 Indirectly Caused) (10 Alongside Alexandrians)
 * 2 unnamed Scavengers
 * At least 6 unnamed Whisperers (4 Caused, 1 Direct, 1 Alongside Connie)
 * Numerous counts of zombies

Relationships
{{Scroll-1|1====Merle Dixon=== {{Quote|I just want my brother back.|Daryl's last words to Merle|This Sorrowful Life (TV Series)}}

Daryl was raised by his brother to share his beliefs. Merle was Daryl's biggest influence growing up, and was also apparently the only member of their family that paid any attention to him growing up. When the apocalypse broke out, Merle and Daryl worked together and easily survived. When Daryl found out in "Tell It to the Frogs", that Merle had been left for dead by the group, he became furious, even attacking T-Dog before Rick put a revolver against his head. After discovering Merle had escaped Daryl had no doubts his brother was still alive. Daryl was the only person during Season 2 who was interested in looking for his brother, and even had an hallucination about Merle in "Chupacabra". In the hallucination, however, Daryl expressed his own dislike of his brother and how Merle was never really there for him and how he lived in Merle's shadow. Although it did seem to be implied that the image of his brother tormenting him was the only thing to help him survive in such a broken down state, possibly a testament to tough love that Merle gave him, and his understanding of this is why he still cares for his brother.

After being captured in Woodbury, Daryl finally reunites with his brother in the arena. When Merle attacks him, Daryl feels betrayed and hurt at his brother's actions, but is then told it's a ruse and they both fight their way out and flee with Rick's group. Despite calling him an asshole for taunting Rick and siding with The Governor, Daryl's bond with his brother is still shown to be strong when Daryl refuses to go back to the prison without Merle and eventually leaves Rick and the others over their refusal to allow Merle to come back with them.

In the episode "Home", Daryl and Merle disagree on where to go. Daryl helps save a family from walkers on Yellow Jacket Creek. After the walkers are dealt with, Merle goes to raid the family's car, but Daryl holds his crossbow on Merle and tells him to let them go. Merle does this reluctantly. Afterwards they argue and Merle rips Daryl's shirt, showing scars the latter received from childhood beatings from their father. For the first time, Merle looks horrified and claims he didn't know their father also beat him but Daryl claims that, since it happened to Merle and that he left at a young age, the former knew that their father would eventually start beating Daryl as well. Finally, Daryl says he is going back "where I belong". Merle tells Daryl that while the group will accept him, he won't be due to his previous actions in Woodbury but Daryl goes to leave anyway. Merle, not wanting to lose his brother again, reluctantly follows him. They both arrive at the prison and save Rick from walkers. When the gunfight is over, all three look into the prison's grassy grounds filled with walkers.

In the episode "This Sorrowful Life", Daryl is seen attempting to talk Glenn into forgiving Merle because he knows Merle is too proud to apologize. Later on he finds Merle in the generator room and the two talk about the plan to hand Michonne over. Merle says that the group needs someone like him to do their dirty work - a bad guy. He goes on to say that the group -sans Daryl- looks at him like he's the Devil. Daryl tries to convince Merle that he can't do things without people anymore. Merle comments on the way Daryl has changed, stating that he would've have called people acting as he does "sheep" before the apocalypse. Daryl then expresses his concern of his brother's own change, mentioning that above all, he just wants his brother back. Daryl being the only thing in the world that Merle cared for, in fear that Rick won't follow through with his plan to hand over Michonne to The Governor, decides to handle the situation himself. Showing how much he cared for Daryl's safety. Daryl later goes to track down his brother when Merle leaves with Michonne. Upon finding him reanimated as a walker, he breaks into tears. After shoving his brother back three times, all the while trying not to break down, he tackles Merle to the ground and stabs his head multiple times in rage. Daryl then breaks down crying over the loss of his older brother, showing just how much he cared for him.

Rick Grimes
"It's not on you, Daryl. Hey, it's not on you. You been back with us here, now. That's everything. You're my brother."

- Rick to Daryl

Daryl at first does not show a liking towards Rick, as he is responsible for Merle being left behind in Atlanta. Rick and Daryl's relationship grows stronger in Season 2. This is noticeably seen when Daryl takes Rick's gun from him and shoots a dying Dale, as Rick can not bring himself to do it. When Rick's relationship with Shane grows more and more tense, Daryl starts to become his right hand man.

By the start of Season 3, Rick and Daryl have become very close and protect and help each other on multiple occasions. They are able to communicate very easily, not even needing words. After the death of Lori, Daryl helps take care of Judith and leads the group while Rick is mentally unavailable. Afterwards, Rick thanked him for what he did.

In "Made to Suffer", Daryl and Rick argue over Merle, Daryl stating he needs to see him. Rick asks him where his loyalties lie. Daryl confirms he is loyal to Rick. However, in "The Suicide King", when Rick does not allow Merle to join the group, Daryl leaves with Merle, telling Rick if Merle doesn't come back, neither does he.

After discovering that his brother is alive, Daryl's loyalty to Rick is tested, yet confirmed that he is still loyal to him as shown once he returns to the prison after shortly leaving with Merle. In "This Sorrowful Life", Daryl says to Rick "You're family, too", before leaving to track Michonne and Merle. This shows that he cares for Rick just as much as he does for his own brother.

Daryl is clearly upset with Rick's decision to banish Carol, though it's unknown how much this has affected their relationship since their abrupt separation during the conflict at the prison. However, it is likely that Daryl still has a close relationship with Rick and cares for him as Rick is the very first survivor mentioned that could possibly be dead during Daryl's breakdown in "Still". After they reunite, it is shown that their bond became even stronger, and Rick says to Daryl that he is his brother, showing just how much Rick cares for him.

During Season 5, Rick and Daryl's relationship remains strong. The two look out for each other during their escape from Terminus. When Daryl agreed with Tyreese that a more peaceable plan be executed to retrieve Beth Greene and Carol Peletier from the officers of Grady Memorial Hospital, Rick reconsidered his own plan and decided to opt for a trade. After the group arrives at the Alexandria Safe-Zone, Rick constantly looks to Daryl for his opinion on matters. When Daryl gets taken prisoner for attacking Negan, Rick was devastated for his captive. When Paul Rovia returns to Hilltop with Daryl, Rick and Daryl hug each other, and Daryl also retrieving Rick's Colt Python to him. Rick and Daryl's relationship becomes some what strained in "The Big Scary U" when they fight after a disagreement on whether to kill the workers and families in The Sanctuary. In "The Key", Daryl apologizes for his actions and Rick thanks him for getting everyone to the Hilltop. In "What Comes After" Daryl is shown to be devastated and heartbroken over Rick's assumed death.

Carol Peletier
"They came; we got them all. We made a deal with the rest of them, like Ezekiel. Everyone's alright… everyone's alright."

- Daryl lying to Carol to protect her

A close bond begins to develop between the two during Season 2 as Daryl risks his life by going out in the woods to search for Sophia. After Daryl is injured by accidentally getting shot by Andrea, Carol brings him food and even gives him a kiss on the forehead as an act of thankfulness. She later tells Daryl that he did more for Sophia than her own father, Ed, ever did, and that he is just as good of a person as Rick and Shane. Their relationship becomes strained after the events during the barn massacre and Sophia's revelation as a walker, with Daryl becoming rude towards Carol. However, he soon apologizes to her, and even rescues her from zombies on his motorcycle during the barn invasion in the Season 2 Finale. In the Season 3 premiere, "Seed", Carol brings Daryl some food and they begin talking. While they converse, Carol rubs her shoulder uncomfortably, and Daryl asks "What's wrong?" She replies she had used a rifle, and that she wasn't used to the kickback. Daryl then gently massages her shoulder, but stops after realizing how this might seem. Carol starts to jokingly flirt with Daryl, but he denies the offer and they both laugh. Additionally, in Season 3, in the episode "Hounded", Daryl goes to look for Carol, who has been presumed dead, after finding her knife stuck in a zombie. Daryl finds Carol in an empty cell and proceeds to carry her back to the safety of the group. This likely strengthened their relationship. In the return of Season 3, "The Suicide King", Daryl leaves the group with his brother, Merle, and when word comes back to the other members of the group, Carol is saddened at the loss, but is later happy at Daryl's return. Daryl is shown to be extremely upset with Rick's decision to banish Carol in Season 4, despite the fact that she killed Karen and David.

Daryl was ecstatic to see Carol outside of Terminus at the start of Season 5, and was grateful to her for rescuing them all from being killed by the Terminants. The two seem to pick up where they left off, with the exception of the unspoken understanding of Carol's actions at the prison which caused Rick to excommunicate her. Despite her claims to the opposite several times throughout "Strangers", Daryl respects her privacy in not wanting to talk about it.

In season 6, Carol gets kidnapped along with Maggie. When the group finds them Daryl immediately pulls Carol to the side to ask if she is OK. When she answers "no" he pulls her into a hug. He later asks her what her kidnappers did to her, to which she replies that they did nothing and then walks away.

Carol leaves the group at the end of season 6 and relocates to a little house outside the Kingdom in season 7. Upon Carol's request, Morgan does not tell Daryl that he knows where Carol is and simply says tells him that she "is gone". Daryl is shown to be saddened by this.

In the following episode, Daryl gets in a fight with Richard after finding out that he has planned to kill Carol, and threatens to kill him if anything happens to her. After the fight, Daryl finds Carol's house and knocks on the door. When Carol opens, they first look at each other, Carol seemingly in shock, after which a teary-eyed Carol hugs Daryl who also is shown to be close to tears. During his visit, Daryl decided not to tell Carol that Glenn and Abraham have been killed by the saviors because he wants to protect her from the pain. He also knows that if he tells her she will want to fight, and that that's the last thing she needs at that moment in time. He shows how well he knows her by giving her a chance to heal. The two have dinner and then Daryl leaves, but before walking away completely he turns around and walks back to hug Carol, telling her to "watch out for herself", again showing great concern for her well-being.

A year and a half after the war, Carol and Daryl meet up in the middle of the night and talk about her ongoing relationship with Ezekiel. Daryl is shown to be jealous of Ezekiel, but says that she deserves to be happy.

Dog
Daryl and dog have a good relationship. Daryl is Dog's owner and cares for him greatly, as seen that Daryl goes out of his way to feed Dog, at his own expense. Dog also is seen to listen to Daryl. In "Evolution", Dog starts barking at the herd when the firecrackers go off, to re-route them, but when the plan fails, Daryl commands Dog to stop, which he does without hesitation.

Maggie Rhee
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

- Daryl to Maggie about Glenn's death.

Maggie was at first shy and quiet around Daryl. As time goes on, Maggie warms up to Daryl and gathers enough courage to talk with him. Maggie forgives Daryl for participating in the barn shootout, and lets him stay on the farm. During their time at the prison, Daryl and Maggie have formed a strong friendship and hold a lot of respect towards each other. The two went on a supply run for Judith, and seemingly bonded with one another.

After learning that Maggie was captured, Daryl willingly risked his life to save her. Maggie was angry and saddened of Daryl's decision to leave the group with Merle, but forgave him afterwards and was happy of his decision to return. Before the governor's second assault on the prison, Daryl hands Maggie a rifle and tells her to be ready for the coming battle. Later on, Daryl and his friends had been captured by the cannibals of Terminus and had been locked up in a train cart. There, Daryl told Maggie that he was with Beth after the Prison's fall and that she had been taken captive and was likely still alive. Three weeks later, Daryl and Maggie would comfort each other regarding the death of Beth. Daryl would tell Maggie how Beth believed she was not tough, but she truly was deep down. Also, Daryl had fixed the ballerina box Carl gave to Maggie and returned it to her. Weeks later, after Negan, the leader of the Saviors, introduced himself to the group and killed Abraham and Glenn, he took Daryl captive. Along with the other part of the lineup, Maggie had been upset with Daryl being taken from them. When the Saviors came to Hilltop for Harlan Carson, Daryl and Maggie were forced to hide in a bunker. There, Daryl had apologized to Maggie about getting Glenn killed, which Maggie never blamed him for. The two then embrace.

Following the events of All Out War, Maggie and Daryl plot to kill Negan behind Rick's back, believing he should die for what he's done.

When Oceanside begins to kill Saviors (such as Justin), Daryl and Maggie are the ones to figure it out. They find Cyndie and a group of Oceanside women about to kill Arat. Arat begs for her life while Cyndie explains that Arat mercilessly killed her brother, saying "no exceptions" as she did it. This echoes the words Negan spoke before killing Glenn. As both Daryl and Maggie are haunted by Glenn's death, they turn around and leave Arat to die.

Back on the road, Maggie says that they can no longer keep going with Rick's way and that they need to see Negan. Daryl agrees and the two walk off together.

When Rick tries to stop Maggie from getting to Alexandria, Daryl tricks him and accidentally gets them both stuck in a pit. He berates Rick about what Negan did and how he knows how much it means to Maggie to see Negan dead. Rick says he knows too.

Daryl and Maggie are both horrified when Rick seemingly dies at the bridge, both crying at the loss of their brother.

Michonne
"Nice rock you got there, Daryl. Brings out the color of your eyes."

- Michonne to Daryl about the rock he found

Daryl was at first wary of Michonne, but eventually he and Michonne have established a friendly relationship following the Woodbury residents moving into the prison. Michonne often jokes around with him, such as when she joked to Hershel that Daryl had given her fleas. Daryl was also the person who convinced Michonne to end her search for the Governor, saying that the trail had gone cold. Daryl has also indicated he would have gladly helped Michonne look for him, but Daryl believes the prison group needs Michonne around. Michonne comments on the rock Daryl found, and says that it brings out the color of his eyes. Eventually, when the leader of the Saviors, Negan, introduced himself to the group, he took Daryl captive, making Michonne and the others were upset with it. When Daryl escaped the Sanctuary with the help of Paul Rovia, he was reunited with his group at Hilltop and was kissed on the cheek by Michonne, who was very glad to see him.

Carl Grimes
"Hey, don't you worry about your old man. I'm gonna keep my eye on him."

- Daryl tells Carl not to worry about Rick

Carl and Daryl didn't get along well during their time in Atlanta and the campsite, but as time goes on, they have established a brotherly like bond. After the death of Lori, Daryl asks Beth to look out for Carl. Daryl consoles Carl when even his own father cannot. He shares a story on how he lost his own mother to try and get Carl to open up, and they exchange their sorrows. Daryl repeatedly looks out for Carl since the loss of Lori and has acknowledged that he is a tough kid.

As Carl attempts to kill Negan, Daryl immediately reacts behind the fence and worries for Carl's safety. Daryl even goes as far as to threaten Negan if he does anything to Carl, initiating Negan to tell Dwight to send him back to his Cell.

Daryl was saddened when saying goodbye to Carl after finding out that he has been bitten.

Glenn Rhee
"You've got some balls for a Chinaman."

- Daryl to Glenn

Daryl and Glenn had a solid friendship in the time that they knew each other and saw one another as family.

At first, Daryl had a more racist view of Glenn, calling him a "Chinaman" on occasion and also Short Round (The Chinese character from Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom). Daryl eventually grew out of this prejudice fairly quickly, accepting Glenn as a strong fighter both in resolve and willingness to protect others. As Glenn continued to strive as a survivor and warrior in spirit and skill, he and Daryl coordinated greatly as a team.

Daryl rescues Glenn and Maggie from Woodbury alongside Rick, Michonne and Oscar when his own brother, Merle, kidnaps them. Daryl's allegiance to his brother puts a strain on his relationship with Glenn as Glenn resents Merle for beating him and kidnapping him with Maggie who was 'terrorized' by the Governor. But even then, Daryl is shown to have great respect for Glenn, correcting Merle that he's Korean not Chinese. This mirrors when Glenn and Daryl had a similar interaction in Atlanta before becoming family.

Daryl and Glenn's relationship is shown to have mended months after Merle's death and the group's defeat of Woodbury as they continue to work together as a team on scouting and runs.

When the flu epidemic becomes widespread in the prison, Glenn succumbs to the virus among many others. Daryl takes out a group to scavenge medical supplies necessary to combat the flu and manages to save Glenn's life. Daryl even mentions Glenn as being a "tough som'bitch" for enduring the sickness.

Daryl and Glenn don't interact for a while when they become split after the fall of the prison but Daryl is thrilled to see him again when they meet up with other group members at Terminus. After excaping Terminus, Daryl and Glenn continued their relationship where they left off as they survive on the road and find Alexandria.

Daryl and Glenn's final moments together would be when they, along with other prominent group members, are captured by Negan and the Saviors. After Abraham is brutally beaten to death by Negan who also mocks Rosita, Abraham's former girlfriend, Daryl springs from his knees and punches Negan in the face before being quickly restrained. Negan retaliates to Daryl's insubordination by proceeding to beat Glenn to death as well. Daryl is devastated and heartbroken as he helplessly watches his friend be bludgeoned to a bloody pulp. This loss impacts Daryl profoundly as he feels responsible.

Later on, when in the Savior's capture, Daryl is shown a picture of Glenn's splattered remains by Dwight as an attempt to break him mentally. Whilst Daryl remains defiant in being broken, he begins to cry uncontrollably due to his immense guilt for causing the death of a dear loved one.

When hiding out at the Hilltop with Maggie, in "The Other Side," Daryl breaks down crying, admitting his guilt over his role in Glenn's death. Maggie tells him Glenn's death wasn't his fault and hugs him.

Lori Grimes
"Selfish? Listen to me, Olive Oyl, I was out there lookin' for that little girl every single day! I took a bullet and an arrow in the process - don't you tell me about getting my hands dirty!"

- Daryl to Lori

Daryl and Lori have rare interactions throughout the first 3 seasons. In "Wildfire", when Daryl suggests that they kill Amy (who is dead and about to reanimate), Lori immediately shoots him down. In "TS-19", Lori, along with the others, cheers with Daryl when they give their respects to Jenner. At the beginning of Season 2, Lori seems to have come to respect Daryl - once again, their interactions are rare. Lori is shown to be concerned for Daryl's injuries as she tris to have Rick convince Hershel to let them stay at the farm. After the barn massacre, Lori and Daryl are the ones to comfort Carol, distraught over the death of Sophia. Afterwards, Lori asks Daryl to go into town to search for Rick and Glenn, a request that he declines, resulting in Lori calling him 'selfish'. Daryl becomes angry with Lori with this and calls her "Olive Oyl". As of Season 3, the entire group has come closer - when the group clears the prison yard from walkers, Daryl and Lori are seen smiling at each other in relief. Once the group learns of Lori's death, Daryl can be seen looking down in sorrow as Rick mourns in front of everyone. In the aftermath of Lori's death, Daryl has become somewhat fond of Carl and Judith, showing that he cared nonetheless.

Judith Grimes
"Nope, no way, not her. We ain't losing nobody else, I'm going on a run!"

- Daryl telling Hershel that he's going to get Judith formula.

Daryl is apparently fond of her, which is why he nicknames her, "Little Ass-Kicker." Judith reveals a soft spot in Daryl, as witnessed by the way he preciously handles the baby and fed her formula. In "The Suicide King" when Daryl leaves, he tells Rick to look after "Little Ass-Kicker," showing that despite him leaving, he still cares about her. Later when Beth and Carol are putting her down, the box has "Lil' Ass-Kicker" written on the side. It is believed Daryl wrote this. Also, Beth tells Carol that Judith would be dead if it wasn't for Daryl because he refused to lose anyone else and personally went out to find formula so she would live.

Sophia Peletier
"You ain't my problem! Sophia wasn't mine! All you had to do was keep an eye on her!"

- Daryl yelling at Carol

Daryl and Sophia don't get along well during their time in Atlanta and the campsite, though Daryl cares for her and does whatever he can to protect her. A quick glance is shown to be exchanged between Daryl and Sophia in Season 2. It is assumed that perhaps Sophia had something against Daryl, seen when she looks a little angry when she looks at him. However, in the very same episode, when Sophia runs into the woods, trying to escape walkers, Daryl is the one who looks for her the most, from that point, till the episode of her demise in "Pretty Much Dead Already". In season three, after thinking he lost Carol, Daryl goes on a run for baby formula with Maggie Greene. They find a nursery, and while searching for formula, Daryl comes across a wall covered with cut-out paper hearts, with children's names on each one of them. One of these papers reads "Sofie". Daryl is shown to be saddened when he sees this. Perhaps it is because it reminds him of not only Sophia, the little lost girl, whom he failed to find, but also her mother, Carol, who, at that point he thought was dead.

Shane Walsh
"You found her doll, Daryl. That's what you did. You found a doll. I'm just saying what needs to be said. You get a good lead, it's in the first 48 hours. Let me tell you something else, man. If she was alive out there and saw you coming all meth'd out with your buck knife and geek ears around your neck, she would run in the other direction!"

- Shane insulting Daryl

Shane and Daryl don't get along well during their time in Atlanta and the campsite, and are quite distant to one another. Daryl and Shane seem to respect each other, however, due to Daryl's hunting skills and Shane's leadership abilities. While discussing Sophia, Daryl states that she may be still alive while Shane states that Daryl was just wasting his time in looking for "a girl that was already dead." Shane then states that Daryl's redneck personality and appearance (when he wore walker ears around his neck) would most likely scare Sophia away, which causes a huge argument to break out between him and Daryl. However, Daryl seems to agree with Shane's decision on killing the walkers at the barn and executing Randall. Shane on the other hand is disgusted when Daryl is appointed as Rick's right hand man. When Rick reveals that Shane had brought out Randall to the woods to lure him so he could kill him as well, Daryl is shocked and loses any slight respect he had for him.

Dale Horvath
"Sorry, brother..."

- Daryl to Dale before he mercy kills him

Daryl and Dale initially didn't get along well during their time in Atlanta and the campsite, but as time goes on they have established a good friendship. When the group wanted Randall dead, Dale approached Daryl, and asked Daryl where he stands. Daryl asks if Carol sent him but Dale explains that it's not only her that's concerned about him, or his new role in the group. Daryl said that the group was already broken and that he was better off by himself. Dale asks Daryl to stand with him anyway, but Daryl won't because he believes his opinion won't matter and he knows that Rick only listens to Shane. He also mentions about how Shane killed Otis and how he didn't believe Shane's story because he came back with a dead man's gun, this leaves Dale shocked that Daryl seems disinterested at the fact Shane is a killer. However when the group decides Randall will be executed he acknowledges Daryl's previous view on the group being broken. When Dale was attacked by a walker, Daryl runs to the scene and saves him by killing the walker. Unfortunately, the walker had already ripped open Dale's stomach. Daryl desperately calls for help and tries to comfort Dale in his last moments. Showing that despite his attitude Daryl did indeed care about Dale. When Hershel said that Dale couldn't be saved, a depressed Daryl takes Rick's gun and shoots Dale in the head to end his suffering. As a result Daryl began to take a more active part in the group once more.

Andrea
"I don’t know if I want to live... or if I have to, or if it's just a habit."

- Andrea in response to Daryl's question

Andrea and Daryl initially didn't get along well during their time in Atlanta and the campsite, but as time goes on they have established a good friendship. In Save the Last One, Andrea decides to join Daryl in a midnight search for Sophia. During their walk in the woods they discuss Sophia's chances, and come across a suicide victim by hanging. Though the suicide worked, it didn't prevent reanimation and the man now hangs helplessly in the tree as a walker. Daryl asks Andrea if she wishes to continue on living. She bargains with Daryl that she will answer his question if he puts the suspended walker out of its misery. Andrea mistakes Daryl for a walker and shoots him in the head, though luckily for Daryl, the bullet only grazes his head. Though Andrea is mortified that she almost killed Daryl, it may prove to be only a minor setback to her growing confidence. Andrea apologizes to Daryl for shooting him and he forgives her. Daryl comforted Andrea in her last moments and was shown to be depressed when she committed suicide.

Amy
"Y'all can't be serious. Let that girl hamstring us? The dead girl's a time bomb. Take the shot. Clean, in the brain from here. Hell, I can hit a turkey between the eyes from this distance."

- Daryl to Rick regarding Amy

Amy and Daryl didn't get along well during their time in Atlanta and the campsite, and were quite distant to one another. After Amy's death, Daryl states that he should shoot her in the head to prevent reanimation so that she won't be a threat to the group. Despite this, Daryl was slightly saddened of her death, and buried her alongside the other survivors who perished in the walker attack.

T-Dog
"Good idea. Maybe you'll see your chupacabra up there, too."

- T-Dog to Daryl

T-Dog and Daryl initially didn't get along well due to the fact that T-Dog was partly responsible for abandoning Merle in Atlanta. At first, Daryl threatens to kill T-Dog numerous times during their time in Atlanta and the campsite. At some point, Daryl forgives T-Dog and eventually saves his life when he is attacked by a walker. The two would later form a strong friendship as they both become Rick's right-hand men and the main defenders of the group. Daryl was saddened when he finds T-Dog's devoured body, and has a silent moment for his former companion.

Jacqui
"Hold on. Let me process this. You're saying that you handcuffed my brother to a roof and you left him there?!"

- Daryl to Rick

Daryl and Jacqui didn't get along well during their time in Atlanta and the campsite, and were distant to one another. Daryl was enraged when Jacqui and the others who went on the supply run abandoned Merle in Atlanta, though he later forgives them. At the CDC, Daryl and Jacqui had a toast for Dr Edwin Jenner who offered them food and shelter. Daryl is saddened when Jacqui chooses to commit suicide by staying in the CDC, but understands and respects her decision to do so.

Morales
"I know who it was, don't matter, not one little bit."

- Daryl to Rick about Morales

Daryl and Morales didn't get along well during their time in Atlanta and the campsite, and were distant to one another. Daryl was enraged when Morales and the others who went on the supply run abandoned Merle in Atlanta, and states they had the walker attack which killed many coming. Daryl is slightly saddened when Morales and his family leave the group, and bids them farewell and good luck.

In "Monsters", Daryl encounters and kills Morales. Rick is shocked and Daryl says he knows who he is and says it doesn't matter to him, showing no remorse for killing him.

Jim
"You go looking for aspirin, do what you need to do. Someone needs to have some balls to take care of this damn problem!"

- Daryl attempting to kill Jim

Daryl and Jim didn't get along well during their time in Atlanta and the campsite, and were distant to one another. When the group realize that Jim was bitten, Daryl attempts to kill him to prevent reanimation, but refrains from doing so when Rick points his gun at his head. Daryl usually complains that a bitten Jim is slowing them down and that he needs to be killed. Despite this, Daryl was saddened when the group left Jim to reanimate, showing that he cared for him.

Hershel Greene
"You're a tough son of a bitch."

- Daryl to Hershel

Daryl was grateful towards Hershel for letting him and the group stay at his farm, and tries to help him out whenever he can. The two came at odds when the group discovered that Hershel had been hoarding his undead family and neighbors in his barn thinking they could be cured. Hershel forgives Daryl for participating in the barn shootout, and lets him stay on the farm. During their time at the prison, Daryl and Hershel have formed a strong friendship and hold a lot of respect towards each other. Daryl values Hershel's medical skills while the latter admires his hunting skills. Daryl was impressed by Hershel, who managed to save the sick prison residents, and tells him that he is a tough son of a bitch. After Hershel was decapitated by the governor, Daryl mercilessly fired at The Governor's Militia, enraged over the death of his friend. From then on, he appeared to blame himself entirely for watching as Hershel died.

Beth Greene
"You've got to stay who you are, not who you were. Places like this... you have to put it away."

- Beth to Daryl during their time together

Because of Beth's shyness and Daryl's quiet nature, Daryl and Beth are not seen interacting very much until Season 4. Daryl acknowledges Beth's ability to handle Judith and Carl. Beth was angered and confused when Daryl left the group and felt that they are weak without him. Carol told her that this world needs more men like Daryl, who has his own code. After spending months with her, they became even closer and Daryl thought of her as his own family. After the fall of the prison, Daryl and Beth are separated from the rest of the group. Withdrawn and dealing with his own emotions eternally, Daryl says little to Beth during their first few days alone. She eventually gets him to release his anguish and guilt over what happened at the prison, and she slowly draws him out of the darkness he has allowed to take over him. Daryl and Beth became good friends and since then, Daryl is a lot more open to Beth about his feelings. After Beth goes missing in "Alone", Daryl feels overwhelmingly guilty that he was unable to protect her. After Daryl has found the rest of the group and escaped Terminus, he sets out to find Beth; Upon discovering her whereabouts, he and the group prioritize getting her back and plan a mission, showing how much he cares for her. The trade in "Coda" proves to be a success at first, but fails as Beth attempts to kill Dawn Lerner. This goes awry and as a result, Beth is accidentally shot in the head by Dawn. Quick to react, Daryl fires a shot into Dawn's head immediately after in vengeance, anger and grief. After the action stops, Daryl is seen crying as he looks downwards to Beth's bleeding corpse on the floor. He then carries her lifeless body outside, distraught. Daryl is shown to be distraught for over 2 weeks, trying to ignore the pain, but Carol convinces him to let himself feel it and when sitting alone near a barn he finally breaks down in grief allowing him to move on, and remarks to Maggie that Beth was tough even if she didn't think so.

Randall Culver
Daryl clearly did not care much for Randall and saw him as a danger to the group's security. When Randall was being held in the barn, Daryl brutally interrogated him, and also threatened him and stabbed him in his injured leg in order to obtain information about his group. Daryl appeared to be disgusted about the cruelty of Randall's group and this caused him to further beat Randall. During the meeting to decide Randall's fate, Daryl seemed to be in agreement of killing him. However, Daryl seemed surprised to find Randall as a walker without getting bit and shocked of how Shane killed him in order to lure Rick out and kill him as well.

Axel
"We liked him. He was one of us."

- Daryl to Andrea about Axel

Daryl was initially distrustful towards Axel and the other prisoners, and threatened to kill them if they turn out to be bad people. When Axel wept and begged for his life, Daryl was sympathetic towards him, and spared his life. Later on, Axel offers to repair Daryl's motorbike for him. When the prison alarm sounds, Daryl enlists Axel to help him, and Axel eagerly complies in order to gain Rick's trust. Daryl eventually comes to trust Axel, and accepts him as a member of the group. Daryl was shocked and saddened of Axel's death, and said that he had been one of them.

Oscar
"You know, end of the day, relaxing."

- Oscar to Daryl about the slippers he found

Daryl was initially distrustful towards Oscar and the other prisoners, and threatened to kill them if they turn out to be bad people. Daryl eventually comes to trust Oscar, and accepts him as a member of the group. When the prison alarm sounds, Daryl enlists Oscar to help him, and Oscar eagerly complies in order to gain Rick's trust. The two inspect The Tombs for walkers where they come across a pair of slippers. Oscar happily grabs the slippers, and Daryl asks why he needs them. Oscar jokingly states that he needs them to relax, bonding them. Daryl and Oscar became good friends and Daryl accepted him as an official member of the group, along with Axel. Daryl was shocked and saddened of Oscar's death, and mourned his former companion.

The Governor
"I'll tell you what. Next time you see Philip, you tell him I'm gonna take his other eye."

- Daryl to Andrea about Philip

Daryl didn't have many chances to talk to Philip in person, though it was shown that he severely holds a grudge against him. Daryl hated Philip for killing Axel and Merle, and stated to Michonne that he would help her track down Philip in revenge for what he did to the group. When Philip returned to attack the Prison with Martinez's former camp, Rick attempted to negotiate with him, but The Governor was blinded with anger and killed Hershel. This action sparked nothing but vicious firing from Daryl and the others in which Daryl mercilessly kills many members of Philip's militia. It is later shown that Daryl holds himself responsible for Philip's actions as he gave up looking for him, and could have prevented his attack if he'd have found him and killed him.

Caesar Martinez
"Pussy."

- Caesar insulting Daryl

When Daryl and Martinez first met each other, they were hostile towards each other and even insulted each other, with Daryl calling Martinez a douchebag and Martinez calling Daryl a pussy. The two of them tried showing off to see who is the better zombie killer. After that, Daryl and Martinez talk about the war between The prison and Woodbury and how there is no avoiding it. Daryl finds cigarettes in a dead walker's pocket and offers one to Martinez, though Martinez says he prefers Menthols, he accepts Daryl's offer and the two share a slight bond.

Milton Mamet
"Great. He brought his butler."

- Daryl insulting Milton and his affiliation with the Governor.

Daryl and Milton did not get along well during their brief meeting. While The Governor and Rick were discussing inside, Daryl stated that he should join them, to which Milton replied that the two should have a private discussion. Annoyed, Daryl addresses Milton as The Governor's butler, which results in Milton telling Daryl off. Daryl angrily tells Milton to watch his mouth and almost starts a fight with him. Despite this, Milton cares for Daryl and his group, and tries his best to convince The Governor not to kill them.

Tyreese Williams
"We're on the same side, man."

- Daryl to Tyreese

Tyreese did not have much initial interaction with Daryl, but it can be assumed that they had a fairly good relationship with each other. When the remaining Woodbury residents are brought to the prison, Daryl goes along with it, showing that he trusts Tyreese as a friend. After Karen is murdered, Daryl promises to find her murderer, and tries to calm Tyreese down. Tyreese pins Daryl to a wall, and Daryl replies that the two are on the same side. Daryl later requests for Tyreese's help for the supply run, and is grateful towards him when he agrees. Daryl is relieved to see Tyreese alive after his run in with a herd of walkers, and the two continue working with each other during their supply run. Daryl's reaction to Tyreese's death which occurred months later was unseen but he appeared saddened while presiding over his funeral.

Sasha Williams
When Sasha, her brother Tyreese, and the remaining Woodbury residents were brought to live at the Prison. Daryl seemed fine with the idea. Overtime, Daryl began trusting Sasha, with the two sometimes going on supply runs and both being part of the Prison Council. When Sasha's boyfriend Bob had died, Daryl should sympathy for her and asked Tyreese how she was doing. When the group became members of the Alexandria Safe-Zone, Rick had discovered a herd of walkers that could threaten the community. When laying out a plan to handle them, Daryl was going to lead some away by himself, but Sasha joined in and believed Daryl shouldn't do it alone. When the leader of the Saviors named Negan introduced himself to the group, he took Daryl captive and Sasha had been upset about it.

Bob Stookey
"You take one sip before those meds get in our people, I will beat your ass into the ground."

- Daryl to Bob

Bob was found by Daryl before the start of Season 4. Though not much interaction between them is shown, Daryl saves his life, only for Zach to get killed instead. After a huge number of prison inhabitants became sick, Daryl brings him, Tyreese, and Michonne to look for medical supplies, even though he contemplates that he would be a liability. Bob also talked about his past with two other groups with Daryl, implying he is comfortable with the latter. When Daryl finds out that Bob took the booze, he gets angry with him, and said he should have kept walking when Daryl came across him. Tyreese tells Daryl to let it go, and Daryl tells Bob that he will beat his ass into the ground if he drinks the booze before they return with the medicine. During the Governor's attack, Daryl gives Bob an assault rifle and asks if he's good, showing that Daryl has forgiven him. He and Bob along with Rick and Glenn fight together out of Terminus, showing they do get along better now at least in the heat of the moment. Daryl's reaction to Bob's death was unseen but he is later shown to be aware of it and was presumed saddened somewhat.

Zach
"Ok, I think I got it this time... I've been trying to guess what Daryl did before the turn. Yeah, I've been pacing myself. One shot a day. Well, the way you're at the prison, you being on the council, you being able to track, you're helping people, but you're still being kind of... surly. Big swing here. Homicide cop."

- Zach, guessing Daryl's former occupation

Zach and Daryl were good friends and often joked around with each other. Zach looks up to Daryl to some extent, and tries to guess what he did before the apocalypse. Throughout the supply run, Zach assists Daryl with killing walkers. Daryl was upset of Zach's death, stating that he was a good friend and that he is tired of losing people.

Patrick
"Permission to shake your hand, sir?"

- Patrick to Daryl

Patrick looked up to Daryl as the hero of the group, and was "honored" to shake his hand when the group was eating breakfast in the morning. He referred to him as "sir" or "Mr. Dixon", and directly told him that he was thankful for bringing back food for the group, viewing it as "a real treat". Before shaking hands with Patrick, Daryl playfully licks his fingers and shakes hands with Patrick, who didn't mind at all. When Daryl found out that Patrick had succumbed to the flu, he was saddened.

Tara Chambler
Daryl and Tara are on good terms and seem to care about each other. In "Hearts Still Beating," Tara hugged Daryl when the group arrived at Hilltop. In "Time for After" Tara helped Daryl to attack the Sanctuary by providing the covering fire.

Abraham Ford
Daryl and Abraham had been seen interacting with each other several times. When a massive herd of walkers had threatened the safety of Alexandria, Daryl, Abraham, and Sasha would lead half of them away would encounter groups of Saviors. When the group met Paul "Jesus" Rovia, Daryl, Abraham, and others had be shown his community, the Hilltop Colony. There, Daryl would be asked by Abraham his thoughts on Rick and Michonne falling in love. When a fight between Rick and a Hilltop resident named Ethan broke out, daryl saved Abraham from another resident named Andy. When Negan, leader of the Saviors, killed Abraham, Daryl seemed to be very angry over his death. Daryl would punch Negan afterwards, after he was taunting a crying Rosita, but it could have also been for Abraham.

Eugene Porter
Daryl and Eugene haven't had much interaction on screen, but seem to have a negative relationship due to Eugene siding with the Saviors.

Their relationship is presumably repaired after Eugene's betrayal of the Saviors, which led to their defeat.

In "Stradivarius", upon hearing that Eugene was missing, Daryl quickly agreed to join Aaron in finding him.

Rosita Espinosa
Daryl and Rosita are shown to be to be close friends and formed a brief bond over the loss of Denise. He is shown to be a good friend to her. When Negan taunted her over Abraham's death Daryl gets mad and punches Negan in her defense, which causes him to kill Glenn as a punishment, and after that he gets taken prisoner.

In "The Day Will Come When You Won't Be", Negan is taunting a devastated Rosita by forcing his bloody baseball bat into her face after beating Abraham to death. This is shown to anger Daryl and he attacks Negan in Rosita's defense. She is later shown to be upset when Daryl was being taken away.

In "Time for After", Daryl and Rosita get into an argument about driving the truck into the Sanctuary and finishing off the Saviors, but Rosita says its too risky and she leaves.

In "Still Gotta Mean Something", Daryl agrees with Rosita's plan to take out Eugene so that the Saviors can't make anymore ammunition.

Joe
"I didn't know what they could do."

- Daryl to Rick about Joe and the Claimers

Joe and Daryl had a somewhat good relationship, as Joe spared Daryl after finding him alone, instead of having his men kill him for his supplies. He later forced Len to share a rabbit that he had claimed with Daryl, as Daryl was unfamiliar with the rules. Later he has his group kill Len for trying to frame Daryl for the theft of the other half of the rabbit, and his trust in Daryl is reinforced for telling the truth. All respect Joe had for Daryl was lost when Daryl called Rick, Michonne, and Carl "Good People". He then made his people "teach" Daryl by attempting to beat him to death.

Len
Len and the rest of his group come across Daryl sitting down in an open road, and they allow him to join them. In the preview for "Us", Len and Daryl are seen hunting together, and Len tries to claim a rabbit that Daryl killed, and proceeds to talk about how Daryl must have lost a young woman, and how "the little ones" never last, resulting in Daryl pulling his knife on Len. This tension rises after the two settle with the rest of Len's group. Len plants his half of the rabbit that the two split in half in Daryl's knapsack, and calls out Daryl so he will be punished by Joe. Ultimately, Len is beaten after Daryl is proven right. The next morning, Daryl finds Len's body, which had been beaten to death, and contemplates on whether to cover the body with a bed sheet, showing remorse; however, he ends up leaving the bed sheet on the deck instead.

Gareth
Though they didn't interact much Daryl was noticeably distrusting of Gareth to begin with and this only escalated when his group began firing on them and were captured. When Gareth's men slaughtered Sam and 3 other innocent people Daryl stared at Gareth with a look of disgust. When he learned Gareth's people were cannibals Daryl even stated that he and his people "weren't people" after Bob asked.

Gabriel Stokes
Daryl, along with most his group, did not seem to trust Gabriel. Daryl even questions Gabriel when he claims that God had protected him from walkers. Afterwards, the two are not seen interacting much.

Noah
Daryl distrusted Noah to begin with, since he was trying to steal their equipment, but knew he was just a kid trying to make it but after hearing that he knows Beth he became more trusting and brought him back to the group. He later stood up for him when Dawn demanded him back in exchange for Beth. It's unknown how, or even if due to being on runs with Aaron at the time, Daryl reacts to Noah's death but he was presumably saddened if he is aware.

Dawn Lerner
Though the two only verbally interacted once Daryl originally seemed to respect Dawn's attempt to keep things the way they used to be, and supported Tyreese's plan to capture some of her police officers rather than kill them all like Rick wanted. However when Dawn demands Noah back Daryl stands up for him and when Dawn accidentally shoots Beth, after she stabbed her with a pair of scissors, Daryl immediately pulls out a gun and executes her despite her pleas for mercy.

Aaron
Like most of the group Daryl was immediately distrusting of Aaron and his claim of a nearby community, especially after he admitting to have been following them. However after the group discovers that Aaron does have some cars and supplies nearby, as he previously claimed, Daryl becomes more open to his claim and is eventually proven true when they reach his community: The Alexandria Safe-Zone. While hunting outside Daryl encounters Aaron also hunting and they work together and bond over trying to retrieve a horse named Buttons. Aaron is also impressed by Daryl's ability to tell a human from a walker. Aaron also says he knows why Daryl keeps heading outside, because he feels like an outsider because of his upbringing to which Aaron can relate because of his own sexuality. He later invites Daryl over for dinner and shows him a garage with parts for a bike and offers him to be Alexandria's newest recruiter, which he accepts. Later they try to find survivors only to wind up trapped in a car with a hundred walkers surrounding them, as rigged by The Wolves. When survival seems hopeless Daryl tells Aaron to make a run for the gate as he distracts them, showing that he's willing to give his life for him, but Aaron insists if they're gonna die they die together. After accepting their seeming fates they prepare to exit the car only to be saved by Morgan and after learning of his connection to Rick, they decide to bring him back to Alexandria.

Eric Raleigh
"I thought it was done... you didn't ask him already?"

- Eric asking Aaron about Daryl's new role as recruiter.

When observing Rick's group for days along with Aaron, both of them decided on recruiting them to Alexandria following Daryl's actions to secure his group to a nearby barn when a storm hits. While trying to bring Daryl and Rick's group to Alexandria, Eric nearly died and suffered a broken ankle. Aaron, fearing for Eric's safety, retires him from the recruitment program, but needed to find his replacement. Eric and Aaron asked Deanna to hold off giving a job to Daryl, and after Aaron hunted with Daryl, Aaron decided on making him Eric's replacement. Deanna held a party for Rick's group, but Eric couldn't go because of his broken ankle, which had Aaron stay home with him. When Daryl rejected to go to the party, Aaron invited him to dinner with him and Eric. While having dinner, Eric, without knowing Aaron hadn't asked Daryl to be his replacement, requested that during a recruiting run that he find a pasta maker to shut up Mrs. Neudermeyer. However, Eric saw Aaron's face and realized he had not yet asked Daryl to be a recruiter. Regardless, Daryl accepted and befriended Eric and Aaron.

Deanna Monroe
When Rick's group had arrived to Alexandria, they were told each member would meet and be interviewed by the Deanna, the community's leader. When Deanna was interviewing Daryl, he did not seem too interested in her questions and the community. When Daryl had tackled Nicolas during a scuffle between Glenn and Deanna's son Aiden, Deanna tried to get Daryl to stop, but he had not listened. When Daryl became a recruiter for the community, it is thought Deanna began to trust him.

Morgan Jones
"Look, whatever it is you're holding on to it's already gone, man. Wake the hell up."

- Daryl to Morgan on his pacifism.

Daryl meets Morgan when he saves them from the Wolves trap but is puzzled to why he would save the, to which he simply tells him that "all life is precious, Daryl". Though he initially refuses a place in Alexandria he tells them that he is looking Washington, D.C., and hands Daryl the map Abraham Ford left for Rick. Realizing that Morgan knows Rick, Daryl and Aaron decide to bring him back to Alexandria.

Daryl and Morgan are not shown to interact until much later when Daryl is offered asylum at the Kingdom to hide from the Saviors where Morgan now resides. Daryl and Morgan are vastly opposed in their views in how to handle the Saviors and the damage they've caused with Daryl wanting to use lethal methods while Morgan proposes a peaceful approach. They also bond on their respective relationships with Carol. Morgan claims they are alike, however Daryl fiercely opposes this.

Denise Cloyd
Denise and Daryl first met in "No Way Out" stitching his wound on his back. In the few next episodes, they've interacted more as Denise asks a favor for Daryl who was about to go out to scavenge for supplies and requests a particular soda as a surprise for Tara. In "Knots Untie", Denise persuaded Daryl into eating her baked oatcake which he refuses at first but took it later on. It is later revealed in "Twice as Far" that Denise sees Daryl as his older twin brother, whom both are very alike. Daryl even compares her brother to his own brother. During Denise's breakdown after raiding the Gift Shop Denise found, Daryl praises and comforts a crying Denise telling her "Hey.. You did good finding this place." During Denise's attempt to kill a Walker to get a cooler, she fell down and was in the verge of getting eaten. Rosita and Daryl immediately come over to help and witness her first Walker kill and proceed to get one particular soda from the cooler and both Rosita and Daryl scold her for it. Later on Denise gives a speech to both of them but was accidentally shot in the back of her head with a crossbow by Dwight. Following Denise's death, Daryl and Carol both bury her body. In "East" Daryl goes out of Alexandria to avenge Denise. Michonne, Glenn and Rosita chase after him and convince him to back to which he refuses and Rosita comes along with him.

Dwight
"When this is done, I don't give a damn if he's sorry. I will kill that son of a bitch."

- Daryl to Rick about Dwight.

Dwight initially distrusted Daryl, believing him to be a member of the group they were hiding from sent to locate them. Dwight discovers this not to be the case as Daryl helps them escape Wade and his men, even surprising Dwight that Daryl would want to help them after holding him captive and threatening to kill him. Despite Daryl saving him, he is still only concerned about his safety and Honey's as he takes Daryl's crossbow and motorcycle at gunpoint, and even fires the pistol to show how serious he is. This puts an immediate strain on their newly negative relationship.

In "Twice as Far", Dwight re-encounters Daryl with Rosita after he kills Denise with the crossbow Daryl gave him. He and his group has caught Eugene by hostage and threatens to kill all three of them if they do not lead his group back to their community. He further taunts Daryl by explaining that he wasn't even aiming for Denise, suggesting he may have been trying to kill him instead; this shows that, despite Daryl's efforts to save Dwight in their earlier encounter, Dwight sees him as an enemy and possibly a potential threat. Dwight later ambushes Daryl in "East" and greets him in a mocking tone before shooting him as he turns around, telling him "You'll be alright". Altering from a basic uneasy alliance, it can be confirmed that Dwight and Daryl have developed into a violent hostile rivalry with one another. When Daryl get the Sanctuary he learns about Dwight pass, and come to understand why Dwight is like this. Though Daryl realizes why Dwight behaves how he does, he still has a hatred for him.

In "Mercy", Daryl acts as Dwight's contact in the Militia with the two developing a system of shooting crossbow arrows with messages attached at each other. This shows that despite their rivalry and Daryl's hatred for Dwight, he is willing to work with Dwight for the greater good. The two are not seen interacting directly however and it is unknown if their relationship has grown better besides being reluctant allies.

After Negan's defeat, Daryl, seeing that Dwight genuinely regrets his actions, spares his life and encourages him to find Sherry (though he still warns him not to return, or he will kill him).

Sherry
When Daryl rode into a burnt forest after being separated from Sasha Williams and Abraham Ford by a group of Saviors, he encountered Sherry along with her ex-husband Dwight and sister Tina. They had been running from Saviors and believed Daryl to be one. Daryl would show them he was not with the Saviors and even saved their lives. After Tina's death, Daryl showed some remorse for Sherry and Dwight. Daryl had decided to take the two back to Alexandria, until they betrayed him and took his crossbow and motorcycle. Daryl had been very angry and hated the two. Weeks later, Daryl was taken captive by the Saviors and brought to the Sanctuary. There he saw Sherry again, but did not talk to her and was still likely angry with her. When Sherry tells Daryl she regretted betraying him, he may have forgiven her, but it is unknown.

Paul Rovia
When they first met, Daryl was a little more suspicious of Jesus than Rick was. Daryl is also heated when Jesus steals the van full of supplies. Later, when Daryl and Rick catch up with Jesus and drive off with the van, only to realize that Jesus has been on the roof of the van the whole time. Daryl chases Jesus, and as Jesus is about to drive away in the van, Daryl catches him. However, a walker sneaks up in Daryl and, as the walker is about to attack him, Jesus tells Daryl to duck and shoots the walker, saving Daryl's life. It can be assumed Jesus and Daryl have a stable relationship, since Jesus has helped the group, and vice versa. When Daryl had been taken captive by the Saviors, Jesus had helped Daryl escape and brought him to the Hilltop.

Negan
"You don't scare easy...I LOVE that."

- Negan telling Daryl he's impressed by his fearlessness.

Daryl bitterly despises Negan for brutally murdering Glenn and Abraham along with other atrocities committed by the Saviors. Negan on the other hand shows admiration and respect for Daryl for his defiance against him and decided to spare him and make him one of his own.

Daryl suffers through psychological and physical torture at Negan's demand in order to break him into the Savior's ranks. While he never fully commits himself and yield, Daryl becomes a slave to Negan and follows his orders without question.

When Daryl is given the opportunity to escape, he carefully makes his move and leaves the Sanctuary with Paul 'Jesus' Rovia shortly before beating 'Fat' Joey, a Savior, to death. Once free and hiding from the Saviors, Daryl works with Rick in creating a resistance to overthrow Negan.

It is assumed Negan harbours resentment to Daryl for escaping and murdering Fat Joey and views him as a threat as he sends a search party led by Simon to hunt and kill him.

Ezekiel
"Well, figure any guy that has a pet tiger can't be that bad. He's okay by Carol."

- Daryl to Morgan about Ezekiel.

Daryl didn't like Ezekiel at first due to his reluctance to go to war with the Saviors. But Ezekiel offers him asylum in the Kingdom where the Saviors couldn't find him, to which Daryl reluctantly agrees to. Later on, Daryl seems to trust Ezekiel more after what Carol Peletier told Daryl about him. Daryl seems to like Ezekiel for the fact that he keeps a tiger for a pet.

After the death if Henry Ezekiel request Daryl stay away from Carol as a way to fix his failing relationship with Carol. This creates a rift in their friendship.

Richard
"She gets hurt. She dies. She catches a fever. She's taken out by a walker. She gets hit by lightning. Anything. Anything happens to her, I'll kill you."

- Daryl threatening Richard should harm befall Carol.

Daryl first meets Richard when Jesus introduces him along with the group to Ezekiel and the Kingdom. Daryl quickly dismisses Richard and the community's theatrics but grudgingly plays along with the group.

Richard later recruits Daryl for a mission to combat the Saviors. Daryl however dismisses the plan immediately when Richard reveals wanting to use Carol as a pawn in order to convince Ezekiel to fight the Saviors. The two come to physical blows as Daryl foils Richard's plan to attack a Savior convoy. Daryl threatens Richard that should any form of harm come to Carol he will kill him. Richard says that he would proudly die for the Kingdom. "Why don't you?", Daryl counters before he leaves.

Justin
Daryl and Justin have an extremely negative relationship.

Daryl and Justin first interact, when Daryl, the new leader of the Sanctuary after the war with Negan and the Saviors, orders Justin to clean up a recent graffiti that has been written by an unnamed Savior.

In "The Bridge", when Justin pushes Henry after the latter refuses to give him more water to drink, Daryl demands Justin to stop, stating that Henry is just a kid who's doing his job, but Justin reminds him that he's not in charge of the Saviors anymore, so he can't give him orders. As a result a fight begins between the two men. Rick sees the fight and puts an end to it. Later, Daryl angrily goes to confront Justin on why the second siren wasn't sounded. Justin claims the radio wasn't charged and Daryl leaps at him, punching him repeatedly and hitting him with a frying pan. Carol begs for him to stop as the rest of the camp watches. Daryl remarks that it's the only way to deal with "these assholes" before walking off.

Henry
Daryl and Henry had a relatively positive relationship, considering Daryl and Henry's adoptive mother Carol's close friendship. Daryl is angered by Henry's decision to befriend Lydia who had recently been captured and imprisoned. Daryl later listens to Henry and Lydia talk with each other. Henry calls Daryl an asshole when he learns about this. When Lydia tells Daryl the real story of her abusive mother, Daryl has sympathy for her. Henry then tells Daryl that he's glad he and his mother are friends.

After Lydia's arrival, Daryl and Henry form an alliance to protect Lydia from Alpha and the Whisperers, though Daryl appears to be disapproving of their romantic relationship. In "Scars", Aaron jokes that Daryl has gained children in Henry, Lydia and Connie. After Henry is murdered by Alpha, Daryl does his best to comfort Carol and is visibly devastated himself.

Daryl feels guilt over Henry's death due to his actions causing the Whisperers to retaliate. However, Carol does not view this as his fault.

Lydia
At first Daryl views her as a threat as being apart of the enemy. As time goes on and Lydia opens up to him over her past. He feels sympathetic towards her and no longer views her as a threat. When rescuing Henry he rescues Lydia too, albeit reluctantly. Daryl develops into a father figure for Lydia to the point that Aaron jokes that he's become a father. Daryl remains very protective of Lydia, though he appears to disapprove of her romantic relationship with Henry. When confronted by the Whisperers, Daryl seems worried when Alpha implies Lydia is dead. After she shows Daryl her large horde, Alpha says that she doesn't think Daryl can protect her daughter, but hopes she's wrong, to which Daryl replies "You are".

Magna
Daryl and Magna seem to be on good terms.

Yumiko
TBA

Connie
Daryl and Connie have a positive relationship.

In "Bounty" they interacted for the first time, when Daryl saved Connie and lead her out of the corn field. When he found out about Henry going after Lydia, Connie decided to join him. Even though Daryl was against it initially, he let Connie go with him.

In "Guardians", he and Connie followed the Whisperers and eventually led a herd of walkers to the Whisperer camp. The two worked together to protect Henry and Lydia in the following episodes with Aaron joking that Daryl has become a father through his relationship with Henry, Lydia and Connie. When Daryl leaves the Kingdom in "The Calm Before," he and Connie wish each other luck and Daryl leaves Dog in her care.

Kelly
TBA

Alpha
"Now... if it's a fight you're lookin' for, we got enough firepower to light you up. Right here and now."

- Daryl to Alpha.

Daryl despises Alpha and her way of life, because her abuse towards Lydia reminds of his parents, as well as because he views the Whisperers as a threat to his friends.}}

Appearances
{{scroll
 * content = ===TV Series===

Season 1

 * "Tell It to the Frogs"
 * "Vatos"
 * "Wildfire"
 * "TS-19"

Season 2

 * "What Lies Ahead"
 * "Bloodletting"
 * "Save the Last One"
 * "Cherokee Rose"
 * "Chupacabra"
 * "Secrets"
 * "Pretty Much Dead Already"
 * "Nebraska"
 * "Triggerfinger"
 * "Judge, Jury, Executioner"
 * "Better Angels"
 * "Beside the Dying Fire"

Season 3

 * "Seed"
 * "Sick"
 * "Killer Within"
 * "Say the Word"
 * "Hounded"
 * "When the Dead Come Knocking"
 * "Made to Suffer"
 * "The Suicide King"
 * "Home"
 * "I Ain't a Judas"
 * "Arrow on the Doorpost"
 * "This Sorrowful Life"
 * "Welcome to the Tombs"

Season 4

 * "30 Days Without An Accident"
 * "Infected"
 * "Isolation"
 * "Indifference"
 * "Internment"
 * "Too Far Gone"
 * "Inmates"
 * "Still"
 * "Alone"
 * "Us"
 * "A"

Season 5

 * "No Sanctuary"
 * "Strangers"
 * "Four Walls and a Roof"
 * "Consumed"
 * "Crossed"
 * "Coda"
 * "What Happened and What's Going On" (No Lines)
 * "Them"
 * "The Distance"
 * "Remember"
 * "Forget"
 * "Spend" (No Lines)
 * "Try"
 * "Conquer"

Season 6

 * "First Time Again"
 * "Thank You"
 * "Always Accountable"
 * "Start to Finish"
 * "No Way Out"
 * "The Next World"
 * "Knots Untie"
 * "Not Tomorrow Yet"
 * "The Same Boat"
 * "Twice as Far"
 * "East"
 * "Last Day on Earth" (No Lines)

Season 7

 * "The Day Will Come When You Won't Be" (No Lines)
 * "The Cell"
 * "Service" (No Lines)
 * "Sing Me a Song"
 * "Hearts Still Beating"
 * "Rock in the Road"
 * "New Best Friends"
 * "The Other Side"
 * "Something They Need"
 * "The First Day of the Rest of Your Life"

Season 8

 * "Mercy"
 * "The Damned"
 * "Monsters"
 * "Some Guy"
 * "The Big Scary U"
 * "The King, the Widow, and Rick"
 * "Time for After"
 * "How It's Gotta Be"
 * "Honor"
 * "Dead or Alive Or"
 * "The Key"
 * "Do Not Send Us Astray"
 * "Still Gotta Mean Something"
 * "Worth"
 * "Wrath"

Season 9

 * "A New Beginning"
 * "The Bridge"
 * "Warning Signs"
 * "The Obliged"
 * "What Comes After"
 * "Who Are You Now?" (No Lines)
 * "Stradivarius"
 * "Evolution"
 * "Adaptation"
 * "Omega"
 * "Bounty"
 * "Guardians"
 * "Chokepoint"
 * "Scars"
 * "The Calm Before"
 * "The Storm"

Season 10
TBA }}

Trivia

 * Daryl has been shown to survive the most severe situations. In the episode "Chupacabra", Daryl fell off a horse and, in result, getting impaled through the torso by one of his own arrows. Later in the episode, he got shot at the side of the head by Andrea. In "East", he got shot in the shoulder by Dwight and still survived. In "The Day Will Come When You Won't Be", he had enough strength to land a single punch on Negan, and in "Scars" he was shot with an arrow by a child then branded with an X mark, which clearly pained him.
 * Originally Daryl was never planned for the AMC show, however after Norman Reedus' audition for the role of Merle Dixon, the producers admired his performance so much they created Daryl Dixon specifically for Norman.
 * Daryl has been responsible for three of the original Atlanta group member’s deaths.
 * He put Dale out of his misery by shooting him in the head.
 * His violent outbreak during Abraham’s execution resulted in Glenn’s death.
 * He shot and killed Morales with a crossbow bolt because he had a gun pointed at Rick.
 * While the pike victims were not original Atlanta people, Daryl is somewhat responsible for their deaths due to entering the Whisperers territory, killing many Whisperers, taking Lydia, and refusing to hand her over to Beta. This lead to Alpha kidnapping and killing Henry, Tara, Enid, Tammy, Addy, and Rodney. Ozzy, Alek, and D.J. were also killed but they died trying to save them. Siddiq was the only pike kidnapping victim to survive.
 * Daryl won IGN's "Best TV Hero" of 2012.
 * His signature weapon is a Stryker Crossbow.
 * Daryl has been captured six times.
 * He was captured in the episode "Made to Suffer" by Woodbury and forced to fight his brother Merle. He was captured a second time in the episode "A" by Gareth at Terminus. He is then captured again by Dwight and The Saviors in "East" after he and Rosita were trying to free Glenn and Michonne. Then he was captured in the episode "The Day Will Come When You Won't Be" after being recaptured by the Saviors because Negan liked the way he stood up to him. He was then captured along with Michonne in "Scars" by Jocelyn and her kids. The final moment was in the episode "The Calm Before" when he, along with Michonne, Carol, and Yumiko were captured by the Whisperers, however they were released afterwards.
 * Daryl has the highest number of appearances than any other character in the show.
 * Daryl's crossbow has been stolen 5 times on the show.
 * The first time was by Shumpert when he was captured by The Governor and forced to fight Merle.
 * The second time was when the group attempted to flee Terminus, but were guided by multiple gunshots to a train car, and being made to drop their weapons for confiscation.
 * The third was when Carol and Daryl visited Atlanta in Season 5 while looking for Beth, but get held-up by Noah in an abandoned building.
 * The fourth time was when he saved Dwight and Sherry in the woods from the Saviors and Dwight double crossed him, stealing his bow and motorcycle.
 * The fifth and final time was by Dwight again when he shot Daryl in his upper shoulder area and added him into Negan's lineup.
 * Daryl is currently the longest male living character of the TV Series, and the second longest living character behind Carol.
 * Skybound published a 2014 April Fools Joke in which it was "spoiled" that Daryl would appear in Issue 129 of the Comic Series.
 * Though Daryl is a fan favorite on the show, Kirkman confirmed that he has no interest in including him in the comics.
 * Daryl displays several stereotypes of a redneck.
 * He possesses a southern American accent.
 * His most consistent trait is his aggressive and hostile demeanor.
 * He has shown to have a fondness for alcohol.
 * He has shown to be a chain-smoker.
 * Daryl may be a motorcycle enthusiast - this can be theorized through several hints throughout the series.
 * He owns a personal motorcycle jacket
 * He drove a 1976 Triumph Bonneville Hardtail Frame Conversion, which was originally owned by his older brother Merle.
 * When questioned by Aaron, Daryl dryly remarks, "I ride bikes".
 * Daryl appears to have a proficient knowledge of mechanical engineering where he has been seen repairing several broken vehicles to the point of being able to construct a fully working 1992 Honda CB 750 Nighthawk out of spare parts in a garage.
 * Daryl possesses several tattoos including one located on his left chest which says 'Norman' - (Reedus' own and father's name), a small devil located on his upper right arm, a red tattoo with the name "Mingus" (Norman's son's name), and two individual demons located on his back.
 * On Talking Dead for "Coda", Robert Kirkman confirmed Daryl is straight, if slightly asexual, as previous fan theories suggested that Daryl was gay and Kirkman himself had alluded to the possibility.
 * Daryl had previously owned Beth's Browning Hunter Knife, which he kept as a memento of her, which was possibly taken by Dwight.
 * Daryl has killed the fourth largest amount of living characters on the TV show with a total of at least 78 victims, Carol has the third largest with at least 110, Simon has the second largest with a total of at least 172, Negan has the largest with a total of at least 225.
 * Coincidentally, whenever the group comes into conflict with an antagonistic force, Daryl often finds himself with the antagonists in some way and is separated from Rick's group. When Rick's group began a conflict with the Governor, Daryl left with Merle. When Rick's group encountered the Claimers, Daryl was associated with them. Right after meeting Negan, Daryl is then held captive by the Saviors.
 * As of "What Comes After", Daryl and Carol are the only remaining characters introduced in Season 1.
 * Daryl is one of two original Atlanta camp members still alive out of 33 others. Carol is the other one.
 * Originally, Daryl was named Dwight in the scripts for Season 1.
 * The "A" on Daryl's sweatshirt while in Savior captivity stands for "asshole", as confirmed by Angela Kang. She also revealed Daryl was supposed to be in a factory jumpsuit, but they did not want it to look similar to the jumpsuits worn by the DHARMA Initiative in Lost.
 * Daryl bears a scar, similar of a black eye, on his right eye due to the fight with The Claimers in the Season 4 A|finale episode.
 * As of "Stradivarius", Daryl is missing the whole right wing off of his vest, first only missing half of his right wing in "What Comes After".
 * In episode "Omega" Daryl told Lydia how some abusive fathers are, possibly referring how Daryl was abused in his past. This is more noticeable on episode "Home", when Merle rips off Daryl's shirt, revealing the scars on his back.
 * In Season 9, Daryl, like Michonne, bares an X shaped scar on his back. "Scars" reveals he was branded this scar by Linus, on Jocelyn's orders.