Carl Grimes (TV Series)

"I did what I had to do."

- Carl to Rick about killing Jody to defend the group.

Carl Grimes is a main character in The Walking Dead. He's the son of Rick and Lori Grimes who made his first appearance during the series premiere episode, "Days Gone Bye". During the initial outbreak, Carl believed his father to be dead, so he and his mother followed Shane Walsh to Atlanta to stay safe.

Appearance
Carl is an adolescent Caucasian male with dark brown hair and a slightly freckled face. He shares the same eye colour as his father, blue. As the show progresses, he matures physically.

Personality
Carl is shy and reserved, commonly only striking conversation with his parents and members of the group he feels comfortable with. Like many kids his age, he is sometimes disobedient, but he does show shame and guilt when his actions negatively impact the group. After getting shot, Carl becomes stricken with negative thoughts, largely wanting to fend for himself and to prove his independence and maturity. He also takes to becoming rather pessimistic and rude, such as when he insults Carol. He is naturally curious, a trait that gets him into frequent trouble.

However, by the third season, Carl has become battle hardened from months on the road. His firearm skills and tactician abilities have greatly increased, and he has seemingly become numb to much of the emotions he feels, a result no doubt of becoming accustomed to loss, even when he is forced to shoot his own dying mother. Despite his new found maturity, he retains some childlike qualities, such as still being shy around members of the group he is not comfortable with, and not speaking regularly in front of the group, and a childlike crush on Beth Greene, Hershel's daughter. Throughout the course of the third season Carl slowly becomes colder to the point where he killed a surrendering teenager in cold blood. Carl now has a mindset where he believes that if you don't eliminate immediate threats they will come back and kill you as it has happened to the group multiple times.

King County, Georgia
Carl was a normal 12 year old who lived with his parents in King County, Georgia where he attended school during the day. One morning, Carl witnesses his parents fighting and having an argument about whether or not Rick cared about the family or not. Later that day after he finishes school, Lori comes to Carl and informs him that his father, Rick, was shot and is in a coma. After Rick was shot, Carl wanted to donate blood for his father as they are of the same blood type, his mother had to talk him out of it.

"Days Gone Bye"
When the apocalypse started Carl and Lori were at home. Shane Walsh, Rick's best friend and another survivor, comes and takes Carl and Lori to Atlanta which is thought to be free of walkers. Shane then tells Carl and Lori that Rick is dead. They notice Atlanta is overrun and take cover at a campsite not far from Atlanta where a few more survivors are staying. Carl develops a friendship with a girl of the same age named Sophia and plays with her a lot during his time at camp. When his Mom gets angry that Shane isn't allowing her to go out and post warning signs, she marches away. Later, he almost walks in on Lori and Shane kissing. He is seen in the picture in Rick's police cruiser at the end of the episode.

"Guts"
Carl is not seen much in this episode; however, he is seen hanging around the camp with his mother. He is still sad over his dad being supposedly dead and spends a lot of time with Shane, his mother, and Sophia.

"Tell It to the Frogs"
Carl is first seen with his mother and is annoyed as she is giving him a haircut. Shane bonds with the child and tells him in playful manner: "You think this is bad, wait till you start shaving. That stings. That day comes, you'll be wishing for one of your mama's haircuts. I'll tell you what-- you just get through this with some manly dignity and tomorrow I'll teach you something special. I will teach you to catch frogs." Carl laughs. As Carl and the rest of the group hear Glenn's Challenger's alarm going off from a distance, they all approach it with caution. When Morales is reunited with his family, Carl begins to cry under the realization that he'll never see his father again, and thus Lori comforts him. As Rick leaves the van Carl sees him and runs toward him in tears - Rick picks him up, embracing him.

Later that night, Carl is seen around the campfire with everybody else as Rick shares his story. The next day, Carl is heard screaming out for his parents shortly after encountering a walker eating a deer. Shortly after, Carl nods in understanding after being told that his father needs to go back for Merle. Later that day Lori tries to comfort Carl and she tells him Rick will be fine, despite her being worried herself about him to which Carl responds: "Think about it, Mom. Everything that's happened to him so far-- nothing's killed him yet." Towards the end of the episode Carl is seen playing with Shane as he teaches him how to catch frogs. Shortly after, Lori tells Carl to stay away from Shane and tells him it doesn't matter what Shane says as Shane told her that Rick died.

"Vatos"
Carl is seen around the survivors' camp talking, he asks Amy and Andrea if they could teach him to catch fish after being impressed by the amount they caught. He later joins the group to see what Jim is digging holes for. Lori tells Jim he is scaring Carl and Sophia. Jim brings up an uncomfortable topic to Carl as he asks him about Rick. At the end of that same day, he joins the group for dinner around the camp-fire, and then the walkers attack the camp and kill many of the survivors. Carl survived the attack and then Rick returns to camp with the bag of guns, and Carl embraces his father, crying.

"Wildfire"
Just after the walker attack, Carl can be seen resting. Carl is still sad that his father left and asks his him if they are safe now that they're together in to which Rick responds: "I won't leave again. I promise you that. Not for anything. Now give me a chance to discuss some things with your Mom, okay?" Carl then later joins the group on their plan to leave the camp and head for CDC. He says goodbye to the Morales Family and everybody leaves the camp. He is later seen with the others as they arrive at the CDC.

"TS-19"
Carl makes it to the CDC along with the group. He takes a blood test shortly before he's seen with the others laughing and enjoying a fine meal. The others boast Carl to taste the wine and he cringes in disgust. He is later seen playing checkers in the rec room with Sophia and then heads to bed. Towards the end Carl is seen crying as he does not want to die. When Dr. Jenner lets the group free he flees with the others to Dale's RV and watches as the CDC burns in flames. They then head towards Fort Benning.

"What Lies Ahead"
Carl is first seen in the car with Lori, Rick, Sophia and Carol. Lori touches on some of their past and explains to Carl that when he was a baby he was taken on a trip to the Grand Canyon. They playfully joked and laughed when told he threw up a lot. Carl expresses how he would like to go see the Grand Canyon one day. Carl is then seen gathering supplies with his fellow survivors. When a herd of walkers approach to which they hide under the cars. Carl appears very frightened but Rick who is just a few feet away calms him down. Sophia is then chased by a duo of walkers and later gets lost.

Later, after the herd passes by, Carl finds a Gerber bag of tools, which he is ordered by Shane to give to Dale. Carl and the others then go out to look for Sophia; when they reach a church, they decide to split. Daryl leads the group back to the the Interstate, and Rick and Shane keep on looking for Sophia. Carl asks his father to let him help with the search, so Rick says yes. Later, Carl, Shane and Rick see a buck in the woods. Shane is about to shoot it, but Rick stops him and the two watch Carl approach it slowly. However, the peaceful and happy moment is interrupted by loud gunshot. Both Carl and the buck fall to the ground, as the bullet passed through the buck into Carl. He's then seen laying on the ground unconscious. When Rick goes running to his son, it can be seen that a bullet had passed through the buck and shot almost right through Carl's back.

"Bloodletting"
During a flashback at the beginning, Carl is seen going to school like any other regular kid. As he is leaving the school and heading towards his mother, he is told by his mother that his father has been shot and is in critical condition at the hospital. He begins to cry and hugs his Mom as Shane watches on. Back in the present, he is carried by Rick who runs towards Hershel's Farm after being told by Otis that Hershel can help fix him. After a lengthy run, Rick arrives at the farm with the unconscious Carl and hurries inside the house. Rick places Carl on the bed, and Hershel checks his pulse telling him that he is alive. Carl is mainly unconscious due to trauma and blood loss. However, he does wake up while Hershel is performing surgery, because he can feel the bullet fragments and Hershel preying his tools inside. He screams in agony and Rick tells Hershel to stop since he's killing him, but eventually Carl passes out from the pain.

Rick then gives blood to Carl as they are of the same blood type. Hershel confronts Rick about Carl about his condition: "He's out of danger for the moment, but I need to remove the remaining fragments. I need to go deeper to get the others. There's more. His belly's distended, his pressure's dropping, which means there's internal bleeding. A fragment must have nicked one of the blood vessels. I have to open him up, find the bleeder and stitch it. And he can't move while I'm in there. I mean, at all. If he reacts the same as before, I'll sever an artery and he'll be dead in minutes. To even try this, I have to put him under. But if I do, he won't be able to breath on his own. Same bad results." Later, Shane and Otis head towards a former FEMA evacuation centre which used to be a high school for medical supplies to operate on Carl.

"Save The Last One"
Carl is still unconscious and is losing too much blood due to internal bleeding. Rick is unable to donate anymore blood to him since his blood levels are critically low as well. Later Rick is talking to Lori telling her Carl is going to be okay and that he's in this world now to which Lori responds: "Maybe he shouldn't be. Maybe this is how it's supposed to be. Why do we want Carl to live in this world? To have this life? So he can see more people torn apart in front of him? So that he can be hungry and scared for however long he has before he... So he can run and run and run and run and then even if he survives he ends up... He ends up just another animal who doesn't know anything except survival? If he... If he dies tonight, it ends for him. Tell me why it would be better another way." Carl does wake up briefly in pain, to which his parents quickly rush to his side. Carl tells Lori: "You should have seen it. The deer. It was so pretty, Mom. It was so close. I...I've never been..." shortly before his eyes glaze over and goes limp. He has a horrifying seizure and his parents are forced to watch him convulse on the bed.

Hershel informs Rick and Lori that if Shane and Otis do not arrive in time with the needed medical supplies, they have to make a choice on whether to allow Hershel to perform the surgery knowing the risks of what could happen to Carl. Rick and Lori tell him to go ahead with the surgery. Before Hershel makes an incision, however, Shane makes it back to the farm with the supplies, but sadly without Otis. Later that night, Rick and Lori are waiting outside for the news if Carl has survived or not and it turns out that he has indeed survived. Rick thanks Hershel, as Lori goes to Carl relieved and crying.

"Cherokee Rose"
The rest of the group finds out that the surgery was successful and they sigh in relief. Carl wakes up for the first time and his parents are instantly at his side calming him down from everything he's processing. He asks Rick if they found Sophia yet. Rick lies and tells Carl that she's fine. Carl is told the truth later by Lori since at the time, they didn't want Carl to worry and wanted him to recover. Later, he and Rick talk for a bit and Rick takes his badge off his hat, and gives Carl the hat to wear.

"Chupacabra"
Carl is seen at the beginning of the episode on the highway with Sophia asking for food. Lori and Shane are off watching the military bomb Atlanta. Sophia tells Carl that she likes his dad (she thinks Shane was his father), but Carl responds with "Shane's not my dad... My dad is dead." Carl is seen later in the episode still lying in bed sleeping and recovering from being shot by Otis.

"Secrets"
Carl is finally seen walking after recovering from being shot. He is feeding the chickens with his mother at the beginning of the episode. He states that the mother of the chicks was probably eaten, stating "Everything's food for something else." Carl is seen in the back when the group are talking about gun training Shane approaches him and Carl wants to learn too asks if he can teach him how to shoot a gun. Shane tells him that's up to his parents and before Carl leaves he catches him with a gun and informs his parents about it immediately. His mother is furious, but his father says that he does need to know how to handle a gun, for his own protection. Carl then apologizes to his mother, telling her he wants to help look for Sophia and defend the camp. He goes on and says he can't do that without a gun. He goes to shooting practice, along with Rick, Shane, Andrea, and T-Dog. He continues to care about and wants to help with the search for Sophia.

"Pretty Much Dead Already"
Carl tells Shane that he doesn't want to give up on the search despite Shane's arguments and wanting to move on: "I know you think Sophia's dead and that we should stop looking for her. But that's...that's bullshit. We're going to stay here until we find her." Shane decides to support Carl for now until the end of episode where the group of survivors shoots all of the walkers that were in the barn. Carl is saddened to see that Sophia was in fact a walker and clutches to Lori for comfort, weeping uncontrollably, as Rick shoots Sophia.

"Nebraska"
Carl talks to Lori, his mother, about Sophia, stating that he wanted to be the one to find her alive, but thinks that Rick did the right thing in shooting Sophia. He states that he would have done the same thing had he been in his father's place. Lori appears shocked that he would say such a thing, and is worried that he's getting too cold. Carl attends Sophia's ,Annette's and Shawn's funeral with Lori and Rick.

"Triggerfinger"
After Lori is  brought back to Hershel's farm by Shane, Shane reveals to everyone, including Carl, that Lori is pregnant. Carl is furious that his mother didn't tell him she was pregnant. He later asks questions about the baby and his mother informs everyone that they never had "the talk." He turns to Dale, expecting him to fill him in, but Dale says that that job is for his father.

"18 Miles Out"
Carl did not appear in this episode.

"Judge, Jury, Executioner"
Carl speaks with Shane about Randall, but Shane tells him that Randall's fate is the adult's business. He later sneaks into the barn where Randall is being held prisoner, but Shane discovers him and tells him to stay away from Randall. They bicker back and forth until eventually Carl backs down and nods in understanding. Carl is seen at Sophia's grave mourning shortly before insults Carol for believing that Sophia is in a better place, stating that Heaven does not exist and that she is an idiot for believing in it.

Rick later tells him that he must keep his act together and to consider the fact that Carol just lost her daughter. He states that if she wants to believe that she's in a better place for comfort, he should not insult her for thinking that. Rick goes on his lecture saying "Don't talk. Think." Carl later steals a gun from Daryl's motorcycle and goes to the woods. He finds a walker trapped in the mud and decides to taunt it. He stares at it for a while and then begins to throw rocks at the walker, intimidating it. Carl then steps onto the mud and holds up the gun, ready to shoot it. He takes too long, however, and one of the walker's legs breaks free. Carl falls back, terrified, and loses the gun in the mud. The Walker manages to grabs onto Carl's feet trying to pull him closer so he can eat him. After a struggle he manages to get loose, Carl runs back to the house, where he is forbidden to speak of Randall's fate.

Later, he sneaks to Randall's execution and tells his father to kill him while he is watching. Shane takes him away and Rick spares Randall. Later, Dale is attacked by a walker that mortally wounds him. Carl arrives to the scene and sees that the walker that attacked Dale is the same one that he taunted in the swamp. Horrified and feeling guilty, he goes to cry in  Lori's lap as Daryl kills Dale out of mercy.

"Better Angels"
At the  beginning of the episode, Carl is  seen crying at  Dales funeral. He then goes to Shane, telling him that he stole Daryl's gun, and the walker that killed Dale was the same one he found in the swamp and that Dale's death was his fault. He asks Shane not to say anything to his parents. Shane, however, tells Rick what happened to Carl. Rick finds Carl in the barn. They have a father and son as Rick tells him: "No more kids stuff. I wish you could have the childhood I had, but that's not going to happen. People are gonna die. I'm gonna die. Mom. There's no way you can ever be ready for it. I try to be, but I can't. The best we can do now is avoid it as long we can. Keep one step ahead. I wish I had something better to say, something more profound. My father was good like that. But I'm tired, son. Please, take it." Rick then hands the gun back to Carl.

When Shane informs everyone that Randall has escaped, Carl is instructed by his Mom to stay in the house while Rick, Shane, Glenn, and Daryl go looking for him. Eventually, Carl sneaks out of the house and walks onto the field where Rick is standing over Shane's dead body. Carl is frightened and points his gun in the direction of Rick as an undead Shane rises, unbeknownst to Rick. Rick asks Carl to calm down, thinking he's going to shoot him. Carl instead shoots an undead Shane in the head. Carl goes towards the body of Shane, but Rick warns him to stay back. At the end of the episode, a horde of walkers are seen reacting to the sound of the shot and begin approaching the farm.

"Beside the Dying Fire"
After shooting a reanimated Shane, the gunshot rings through the woods, and a herd of walkers is seen advancing towards the farm. These zombies followed a helicopter that was flying  away from Atlanta and have  walked in the same direction since. They heard the gunshot noise that Carl made and they walked towards it. As Carl and Rick walk back to the farm, they see the herd of walkers. Rick ushers Carl ahead and they start running towards the farm. Back at the farm, Lori realizes that Carl is missing. As chaos ensues Carl goes into the barn with Rick and kills more than a dozen walkers with fire.

As the pair run, they find Hershel making a final stand in front of his house, shooting walkers. Rick convinces him to leave. After being saved, they go on the road just as the sun rises. Carl asks where his Mom is. Rick says that they have to keep moving and Carl begs him  not to give up. Rick continues to try and persuade Carl to move on. Carl is next seen getting very angry. Just then, cars arrive with the rest of the surviving group members, including Lori. Later that night, he is seen crying into Lori's shoulder as Rick talks to the group, relieving how Shane was killed.

"Seed"
Carl is seen to have a lot more responsibility and an overall more vital role within the group by this time. His parents are no longer overly protective of him, as he is part of the first team of the group (along with Rick, Daryl, and T-Dog) to clear any walkers out of an abandoned house. Rick entrusts Carl to check over the kitchen and other parts of the house on his own, and gives him other important jobs such as guarding the vehicles, killing walkers from a watch tower in the prison, and leaving him to protect the women while he and the others inspect the rest of the prison. He also no longer has any problems with shooting walkers, as he's seen shooting one in the house and shooting others in the prison. Throughout the episode it appears he has also developed a crush on Hershel's 16 year old daughter Beth, but has not told her because of his apparent shyness.

"Sick"
Carl is mostly seen by Hershel's side during this episode. When Rick and the others came back from the search, Rick called to his son to open the door quickly because Hershel is bitten. Lori ordered Carl to get a towel to hold off Hershel's bleeding. After T-Dog and Rick got provisions from the prisoners, Carl is assigned to organize the food, but also locates the prison's infirmary on his own and salvages a small amount of medical supplies, and killing two walkers in the process. Lori chastises him for going out by himself, although she appreciates Carl helping out Hershel. Carl got angry and told his mother to "Get off his back". Beth scolded him not to talk to his mother with disrespect, then Carl runs off in embarrassment. When Hershel woke up, Carl is waiting outside Hershel's cell with Beth. Carl points his gun at Hershel after he is mistakenly thought to have become a walker. Near the end of the episode, Hershel woke up again, and Carl smiled at him.

"Walk With Me"
Carl does not appear in this episode.

"Killer Within"
Carl is first seen sitting on a stair while waiting for the others to go outside the prison cell. He smiled at Beth while helping Hershel walk into the prison yard. As Carl was looking at his father, he noticed that the walkers are invading their yard. He ran with Lori and Maggie back into the prison and they got separated from the others. He and Maggie protected Lori along their way until she suddenly went into labor. They escorted Lori into an empty room and Carl watched as Maggie gave Lori a C-section for the baby, killing her. Before she died, she said to Carl; "You are going to beat this world, I know you will. You are smart, and you are strong, and you are so brave, and I love you. You gotta do what's right. It's so easy to do the wrong thing in this world. So, so, if it feels wrong don't do it, alright? If it feels easy don't do it, don't let this world spoil you. You're so good, my sweet boy. Best thing I ever did, and I love you, I love you. My sweet, sweet, boy I love you", just as Maggie and Carl were leaving, Carl thought about his mother reanimating and couldn't bare it so he just hugged her dead body and shot Lori in the head, killing her once and for all. After Carl and Maggie walked outside the prison yard with the baby, the group automatically guessed that Lori is dead. Carl just stands there, holding back tears, as Rick cried.

"Say the Word"
Carl is first seen holding his baby sister with the others just moments after his mother died. He walks over to Hershel and they discuss what they will do for formula. Carl then watches sadly as his father storms off into the prison to reach his wife's dead body. He is later comforted by Beth at Daryl's request. Towards the end of the episode, Daryl feeds Carl's sister and he asks him if he's thought of a name yet. Carl says: "Not yet. But I was thinking maybe Sophia? Then there's, Carol too. And... Andrea. Amy. Jacqui. Patricia. Or...Lori. I don't know." - His voice begins to crack and he walks off.

"Hounded"
Carl is first seen eating cereal with the rest of the group and looking very depressed. Shortly after he's briefly checked on by his father before leaving again. Later, Carl, Daryl, and Oscar go out to clear the remaining walkers from the cell block. Daryl in an attempt to comfort Carl and get him to open up reveals to him that he also lost his mother at a young age: "Come on. You know, my Mom, she liked her wine. She liked to smoke in bed. Virginia slims. I was playing out with the other kids in the neighbourhood. I could do that with Merle gone. They had bikes, i didn't. We heard sirens getting louder. They jumped on their bikes, ran after it, you know hoping to see something worth seeing. I ran after them, but I couldn't keep up. I ran around a corner and saw my friends looking at me. Hell, I saw everybody looking at me. Fire trucks everywhere. People from the neighbourhood. It was my house they were there for. It was my Mom in bed, burnt down to nothing. That was the hard part. You know, she was just gone. Erased. Nothing left of her. People said it was better that way. I don't know. Just made it seem like it wasn't real, you know?" Carl then says to Daryl: "''I shot my Mom. She was out; hadn't turned yet. I ended it. It was real.''" They exchange sorrows and move on.

Later, a walker sneaks up on them and they kill it shortly before Daryl discovers Carol's knife in the dead walker's neck. Carl and Oscar return to the group. Later, Rick returns and holds the baby for the first time. Carl, Rick, Hershel, and Beth walk outside. Rick hands the baby to Carl when he notices something strange at the fence.

"When the Dead Come Knocking"
Carl is first seen outside watching Michonne struggling to fight the walkers that are attacking her. After she passes out, Carl makes the call to save her and shoots the two walkers about to eat her. Rick then joins in and both of them take out the remaining walkers threatening her life. Carl takes the basket full of baby formula, and they bring Michonne into the prison. Shortly after Rick finds out Carol is alive, Carl tries to hold back his tears when Carol finds out Lori is dead. When Oscar, Daryl, Rick, and Michonne set off to rescue Glenn and Maggie, Daryl lets Carl know not to worry and that he'll keep an eye on his Dad. Rick brings Carl over in private and puts Carl in charge of watching over the prison. He also acknowledged that he had shoot his mother in the head and tries to comfort him. Carl and Rick agree to name the baby Judith, after Carl's third grade teacher.

"Made to Suffer"
Carl is first seen at Beth and Axel's side as Beth cradles Judith in the cell. Axel tries to flirt with Beth, and Carl gets a bit defensive. Later, he, Hershel and Beth are discussing what to do about formula for Judith. Carl states he will take Carol on a run because he's under the impression that Rick and the others might not come back. After hearing screams coming from the tombs Carl goes to investigate, stopping when he notices faint sounds emanating from the boiler room where his mother died. After killing a walker that almost jumped him he investigates the noise, only to discover Tyreese's group surrounded by walkers.

Carl assists in shooting and killing several of the surrounding walkers, before escorting the group safely back to the cell block's common room. Carl attempts to shoot the infected Donna, but Tyreese intervenes, stating that their group takes care of their own. Carl locks Tyreese's group out of their cell block, but announces that the common room is secure and that they have access to food and water.

"The Suicide King"
Carl is first seen watching over both his own and Tyreese's group in the prison cell. He is later seen talking to Carol about how loud the world used to be and how quiet it's now. They both joke about being on a jumbo jet. Carol tells Carl how proud his mother was of him - Carl denies that and starts to cry - Carl feels tremendous guilt from being so mean to Lori, it's all he thinks about. When Rick arrives back at the prison, he hugs Carl in relief. Carl asks about Oscar, shortly before finding out he didn't make it. Carl is later seen watching Tyreese's group again shortly before being scared by Rick during his breakdown.

"Home"
Carl is first seen mapping out where he helped Tyreese's group for Glenn so that they can get a better idea of where the weak spots are in the walls. He later says that the boiler room is over run by walkers again. He and Glenn later go to check it out, before coming back realizing that it's no good and there's to many of them. Carl is outside when The Governor begins to attack the prison. He and Beth take cover near a wall while someone in the guard tower shoots at them. Carl shoots back, but because he is using a pistol is unable to kill the unknown attacker. The unknown attacker is finally killed by Maggie, then someone drives a van full of walkers through the gate and releases them into the prison yard.

"I Ain't a Judas"
Carl is first seen with the group as they discuss if they should leave the prison or not. After Rick walks off Carl follows him and tells him he should stop: "Being the leader. Let Hershel and Daryl handle things. You deserve a rest." He stands guard during the rest of the episode, and is present when Maggie spots Andrea from the bushes. Near the end of the episode, Rick states that he will make another run and that Carl is to join him, as Rick reveals that, "he is ready." Carl is then seen outside, near the gates on guard duty, observing The Prison yard that is overrun with walkers.

"Clear"
Carl, along with Rick and Michonne, are traveling to King County in the hopes of finding more weapons. He stares at the road survivor while the car passes by, while Rick and Michonne are don't bat an eyelid. Later, Michonne who is driving gets the car stuck in mud and thus Carl appears annoyed. Walkers start banging on their car, Rick rolls down the window aims his python and tells Carl to cover his ears. Rick takes opportunity to bond with Carl and teaches him how to free the car by using traction. Carl doesn't seem to like Michonne and asks "Why'd you let her come? She took you to Woodbury and you said she just split on you. - And Oscar died and you guys--" before he could continue Rick cuts him off explaining it wasn't that simple and that explains the situation to him. They hear and see the road survivor again shouting for them to stop, only for them to drive off. Arriving in King County Carl and the others walk into Rick's old police weapon locker room to find that it is empty. Carl looks on as Michonne and Rick bicker back on forth discussing where to get more weapons.

After walking around a corner to get to the main street which is filled with Walkers and booby traps, A Walker walks into a wire and is shot in the head. Carl along with the others are took by surprise by a man on a roof, telling them to drop their weapons, Rick orders Carl to go back to the car as a shootout begins. The attacker disappears from the roof and tries to shoot Rick, but before he could do something, Carl shoots him in his chest, causing him to fall unconscious. Rick looks at his son with a concerning look not wanting him to do something like that - Carl says he had to. It is revealed that the attacker is wearing an armor, and that he is actually Morgan. They drag him back to his building, while avoiding a few close calls with the traps and eventually stumble upon the arsenal Morgan had acquired through the months. While searching the apartment, Carl finds a painted map of King County on a wall, and learns that their old house was burnt down. He is then questioned by Rick if that was the reason he came with them, which he denies.

Carl says he's going on a run. He wants to get a baby crib for Judith. Rick doesn't allow his son to go at first, but Michonne offers to go with him to which Rick allows. Carl tells Michonne, that she didn't need to come - and tells her to dispatch a lone Walker which gives him enough time to make a run for it. Michonne catches up to him, and he explains that he wants to do this by himself. Michonne notices Carl had passed the baby place to which he replies that he's getting something else for Judith first. Carl and Michonne arrive at the door to the King County Cafe. Carl wipes away at the window to get a better look inside and grabs the doorknob but before he can open the door Michonne pulls him away. Michonne explains how she wasn't going to let him go in there to which Carl snaps back saying: "I just think it's none of your business. You don't know me. You don't know my Dad. You came out here for common interests. We have the same enemy and the same problem. And that's why you're here. That's it. This is important. I'm going to do this." - Michonne replies saying she can't stop him but he can't stop her from helping him.

Carl rolls the skateboard-traps to get the Walkers attention and the duo sneak in the cafe without alerting the Walkers attention. Carl spots what he wants, and stands on the chair to be able to grab it while Michonne stands watch. A Walker that was hiding grabs onto Carl's foot but Michonne quickly dispatches it silently before the walker can kill Carl. The duo make their way back, but a mouse managed to escape one of the traps and runs past them, alerting the Walkers to their presence - the duo dispatch multiple Walkers - but before get out, Carl drops his prize. Carl is seen getting furious saying how they need to go back, and that it's the only one left. After some arguing, Carl backs down and follows Michonne's order to stay put while she gets his prize for him. It turns out to be an old picture of him, Lori and his father. He has hopes that Judith could at least know how her mother looked like, and he thanks Michonne.

Later, Carl and Michonne are seen carrying the crib back to the car and Rick asks him if everything went alright to which Carl smiles and replies "I think she may be one of us" - Rick surprised at this answer, takes his sons input. Shortly after Carl apologies to Morgan for shooting him, saying it was something that had to be done. Morgans tell Carl to never be sorry. On the way back, the road survivors remains are all over the road and Carl gets out the back and grabs the backpack he was carrying.

"Arrow on the Doorpost"
Carl is seen helping when Glenn, along with the rest of the group were organizing their new arsenal, while Rick, Hershel, and Daryl are off to the meeting with The Governor. Merle tells him that his father could very much be dead and that his head is on a pike to which Carl snaps back: "My father can handle himself!" Later he is briefly seen when Rick tells them they are going to war.

"Prey"
Carl did not appear in this episode.

"This Sorrowful Life"
Carl is seen first with Maggie on the other side of fence, screaming and shouting while banging on the plates to get the walkers attention to create a diversion. Carl is seen hearing his father's speech regarding decisions that affect the whole group.

"Welcome to the Tombs"
Carl is first seen depressingly packing his and Judith's bags as they prepare to leave the prison. As Carl is packing his stuff, he pulls out the old picture of him, Rick, and Lori that he and Michonne recovered previously. He stares sadly at the picture reflecting on what has happened to him thus far and what could happen to the rest of his family. Before Carl leaves his room, he takes and stares at Rick's old badge before putting it in his pocket so he has something else to remember the old world and his father. When Rick tries talking to him, he pushes his Dad away and throws his stuff in the car. Everybody notices how angry Carl is including Glenn who tells Rick "I've never seen him this mad. Even with Lori. He just shutdown." Rick says how he's still and kid and it's easy to forget. Rick and the others decide to stay at the prison and defend it. Carl is sent with Hershel, Beth, and Judith to a safe location in the Woods. As the firefight ensues, Carl is getting annoyed because he feels that he should be there, fighting along side the rest and that they shouldn't be risking their lives for him.

When Rick and the others gain the upper hand, The Governor and his army retreat. A fleeing Woodbury soldier named Jody stumbles upon Carl and the others in the Woods. Jody is told to drop the gun. Instead, Jody holds the gun in his hands and slowly walks towards Carl appearing that he wants to give it to him. Before Jody gets too close, Carl shoots him in the head, killing him, leaving Hershel and Beth shocked. They all meet up, and Rick hugs Carl in relief that he's alive. Carl tells Rick how he did his Job out there just like everyone else and that he took out one of The Governors soldiers, and he's going with them, not wanting to be left out. Hershel tells Rick what really happened, leaving Rick in a very concerned and worried state.

Later, Rick approaches Carl and tries to talk to him about the boy he shot. Carl dodges his fathers questions stating how Jody had a gun and how he had just attacked us. Rick asks if he was handing the gun over and Carl says that he couldn't take the risk of letting him live, reliving how he had the chance to kill the walker that eventually bit Dale, but didn't. When Rick tries to argue, Carl brings up how he let Andrew and The Governor live, which resulted in the deaths of Lori, T-Dog and Merle, respectively. Carl tells Rick to go before The Governor kills anymore of them leaving Rick shocked at his sons understandable logic. Rick has nothing to say and before Carl leaves, he drops the badge from Rick's hat on the ground. However, he ends up staying behind and only Rick, Daryl and Michonne go.

When they come back with all the Woodbury citizens, Carl angrily asks his dad what's going on. When Rick explains that the survivors left Woodbury and will be staying here, Carl angrily walks away concerned that Rick is letting residents of the town that just attacked them without caution.

Season 4
Carl will appear in this season. The growing tension between Carl and his father will be a main focus of the season.

Killed Victims
This list shows the victims Carl has killed:
 * Dale Horvath (Indirectly Caused)
 * Shane Walsh (Zombified)
 * Lori Grimes (Before Reanimation)
 * Jody
 * Numerous counts of zombies.

Rick Grimes
"No more kid stuff."

- Rick to Carl before handing him back Daryl's gun.

As his son, Rick completely loves Carl and does whatever is necessary to protect him. He shows a desire to shield Carl from the difficulties of the world as made evident by how he discouraged Shane and Lori  from arguing in front of him, and by how he lied to Carl about Sophia being lost in the woods. However, this changes when he realizes that Carl needs to be able to protect himself and that sheltering him from the reality of the world would only hurt his chanced of survival. He trains Carl in the use of firearms, and he tries to ready Carl for the inevitable death of both his parents, telling him "No more kids stuff" Carl's trust in his father is momentarily put into question following Shane's death by Rick's hand. Carl briefly fixes his gun on his father before switching his sights to an walker Shane. Following their escape from the farm, Carl is visibly upset upon the revelation that his father had killed Shane.

During the time lapse between Seasons 2 and 3, Carl's faith and trust in his father is shown to have been restored. He is also shown to have become an incredibly adept fighter to the point where Rick allows him to participate in combat against walkers and to guard the group. Rick's desire to provide and safeguard Carl is shown to be have remained strong as shown in the beginning of the Season 3 premiere when Rick stops Carl from consuming dog food, and is both frustrated as well as angered by the fact that Carl would consider degrading himself in such a manner. Along with caring for Carl's physical well-being, Rick also seems concerned about Carl's emotional and psychological health. After Lori's death and upon realizing that Carl had been forced to put her down, he immediately looks to Carl to see how his reaction to the loss of his mother. Afterwards, Rick consoles Carl about what he was forced to do and comforts him. After Lori's death, Carl watches his father slowly lose his sanity. Rick continues to leave Carl, making Lori's death all about him. As a result to the bad decisions that Rick has made and that has resulted in death, Carl has become much colder such as when he murdered Jody. Carl has adopted a mindset that all threats must be eliminated before they come back and kill us. Rick shocked and worried realizes just how far his boy is gone, and brings in the people of Woodbury to hope and try to give Carl a sense of normality.

Lori Grimes
"You are going to beat this world, I know you will. You are smart, and you are strong, and you are so brave, and I love you. You gotta do what's right. It's so easy to do the wrong thing in this world. So, so, if it feels wrong don't do it, alright? If it feels easy don't do it, don't let this world spoil you. You're so good, my sweet boy. Best thing I ever did, and I love you, I love you. My sweet, sweet, boy I love you."

- Lori's last words to Carl before dying.

Lori's firstborn child and only son, she was fiercely protective of him. In addition to her own efforts to keep her child safe, Lori often relied on Dale and other members of the group to watch him. In Rick's absence, she was relieved that Shane dutifully stepped into the father role. While Rick remained the group's reluctant leader, Lori's main focus was invested into preserving Carl's innocence in a world that grew colder and more bleak as days went by. However, she realized, just as Rick had, that efforts to shelter Carl from the blatant horrors were futile. When she was about to die, she told Carl not to be afraid, and that she thought he was brave, strong, clever, and told him to always make choices based on what he thought was right and to never doubt his decisions. She feared that he could become the biggest monster of all. Her death has caused Carl to look back on the memories he had with his mother and regretting all the mean things he said to her.

On a run to King County for guns, Carl decides to retrieve a picture of Lori, in the hopes Judith could know how her mother looked like. He smiles when he looks at his mother's picture.

Judith Grimes
"Judith. Do you think that's a good name?"

- Carl to Rick while thinking of a name for Judith.

Carl appears to be very protective of his baby sister. He was present during her birth and even suggested some names. Rick later pulls Carl aside to give him advice as to what he should do if anything goes wrong while he's absent. Carl asks him what they should name the baby, and suggests naming the baby after his 3rd grade teacher, Judith Mueller, which Rick agrees to.

Carl's strong attachment to Judith has shown to alter his judgement when he tries to get a photograph of Lori alone. He manages to retrieve the old picture of Lori, hoping that Judith could know how her mother looked like.

Beth Greene
"I was just making sure Beth was safe."

- Carl lying to Hershel about his intent to share a cell with Beth.

It has been hinted that Carl has a crush on Beth, despite the fact that she is 4 years older than him. This is seen is the episode "Seed", when Carl tries to sleep on the top bunk bed in Beth's cell. Hershel tells him to find his own cell, to which he stutters and lies that he was just making sure Beth was alright. Afterwards, Hershel gives Beth a questioning look and she rolls her eyes. In later episodes, he and Beth share in a few private looks when the others aren't looking, hinting that their feelings are becoming mutual.

Daryl Dixon
"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.

At first they never interacted but during Season 3 they have formed a brotherly like bond. After the death of Lori, Daryl consoled Carl when even his own father would not. He shared a story on how he lost his own mother, to try and get Carl to open up, and they exchanged their sorrows. Daryl has repeatedly looked out for Carl since the loss of Lori and has acknowledged that he is a tough kid. (In a deleted scene in Season Two, It was shown that Carl did idolize Daryl at the time, with Carl asking about Daryl beating the prisoner and even asking for Daryl to teach him how to use a crossbow).

Carol Peletier
"Heaven is just another lie and if you believe it, you're an idiot!"

- Carl yelling at Carol.

Carol can often be seen not only keeping a close eye on Sophia, but Carl as well. When Carl is accidentally shot by Otis on a hunting trip, Carol becomes very nervous about his well-being (in spite of her own daughter's recent disappearance). She is quite relieved to find out that Carl makes a full recovery. After Sophia's rediscovery as a Walker, a bout of tension briefly erupts between Carl and Carol: When Carol sees Carl at Sophia's grave, she tells him Sophia is in heaven now; he scorns her for this, saying that there is no God or afterlife, and if Carol believes it she is an idiot. This event is long forgotten, however; though Carl and Carol seldom interact in Season 3, they appear to be on good terms with each other. In "The Suicide King", Carol and Carl work around the guard tower to keep watch and await Rick's return. As they are doing this, they have a heart-to-heart conversation about life before the apocalypse, and how it compares to life as it is now. Further into the conversation, Carol tells Carl that Lori is proud of him; though he seems to believe otherwise.

Tyreese
"Come on!"

- Carl helping Tyreese and his group.

After hearing the screaming of Tyreese's group being attacked inside the prison, Carl goes to investigate. Carl helps the group and brings them to safety. He then locks them inside a room, as the group was unsure what to do with them. While Sasha is upset and yells at him for locking them up, Tyreese is understanding and respects Carl for saving him and his group.

Michonne
"I think she may be one of us."

- Carl to Rick about Michonne.

Carl is initially distrustful with Michonne just like the rest of the group. He's upset when Rick decides to bring her along on a run to King County, looking for guns. Later when he decides to go on a run to retrieve something and get a baby-crib for Judith, Michonne comes along and Carl storms at her. Eventually she gains Carl's trust by helping him retrieve what was revealed to be an old family picture of him, Rick and Lori. This gets Carl to respect and appreciate Michonne more. Later on, he tells his dad that Michonne may be "one of us" which causes Rick to allow her to stay.

Sophia Peletier
"... No, I mean.. me.. that I'd be the one. Like, maybe she was hiding somewhere, in a cave or a tree. She'd be safe and I'd find her and bring her back."

- Carl to Lori, hoping he would find Sophia.

Carl was Sophia's closest friend. They met when Shane and Lori came across the Peletier family outside of Atlanta the night the military bombed the city. As both groups joined the other survivors at the Atlanta Survivor Camp, they spent more time together. They played, studied, and lived alongside each other and so became good friends. When Sophia went missing, Carl repeatedly voiced his concern for her and hoped that he'd be the one to find her safe. Her death deeply affected him and he became cynical as he grieved. When Lori becomes pregnant with Judith, Carl at first proposes that the baby be named "Sophia" in order to honor her memory.

Maggie Greene
Little interaction is seen between Carl and Maggie, but in the episode, "Arrow on the Doorpost" she is very protective of him. Later in the Season, in "This Sorrowful Life", the two are seen working together to draw walkers in the Prison yard to the fences. Also, in Season 2's episode, "Bloodletting", Maggie is in the room with Carl when being operated on by Hershel to retrieve bullet fragments, she is seemed to be very concerned about Carl's injury and whether he will survive.

Appearances
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Trivia

 * Carl is indirectly responsible for Dale's death, as he provoked the walker who killed him. He also aided in the deaths of both Shane and Lori, shooting both of them in the head (Shane after reanimation and Lori to prevent it.)
 * Carl is usually seen wearing a Science Dog T-shirt, a character from Robert Kirkman's other comic series, Invincible.
 * Carl is the first of two people among the survivors to fall victim to friendly fire and Daryl Dixon being the second.
 * Rick and Carl share the same blood type, which is A+.
 * It is very clear that, like many others in the group, Carl no longer believes in God or an afterlife, as he stated that believing in Heaven is "stupid." Though none are as vocal about it.
 * It is revealed by Carol in "Seed" that Lori had a C-Section in order to give birth to Carl.
 * This is similar to the Comic Series, when Rick mentions that Lori had to receive a Cesarean-Section when giving birth to Carl.
 * Carl and Beth have both lost their mothers, and both have an object that once belonged to their parents (Carl's hat and Beth's necklace.)
 * Similarly to his father, Carl has developed a darker and colder personality since the outbreak began.
 * Carl uses a Beretta 92FS with a suppressor as his main sidearm. The gun that he took from Daryl's motorcycle was the Browning BDA, which he used during the farm invasion and to shoot Shane after animation and Lori before reanimation, is his secondary. Like his father, who uses the Colt Python as his signature weapon, Carl seems to use the Beretta as his.
 * "Home" marked the first episode that Carl ever attempted to kill a human (the Woodbury gunman in the watchtower).
 * This also displayed his accuracy as a shooter, as most of his bullets (from a pistol) came within 10 feet of the gunman, despite the long distance.
 * Carl was the only person to participate in the shootout in "Home" not to use an assault rifle, likely due to him only being comfortable with a pistol, or simply because of Maggie being unable to carry one to him.
 * "Welcome to the Tombs" marked the first time that Carl killed another living person.
 * Carl is also one of the two remaining living characters that made an appearance in the very first episode of the series, the other being Rick, as Morgan's status is currently unknown.
 * Carl currently has the second most episode appearances in the series, the first being his father.

Comparison to the Comic

 * In the Comic Series, Carl is 7 years old, now being 9, whereas in the TV Series, he is 12, recently turning 13 between Seasons 2 and 3.
 * In the Comic Series, Carl kills Shane while he was alive to defend his father, and Rick kills his reanimated-self. Whereas in the TV Series, Rick kills Shane during a forced confrontation with him, and Carl shoots Shane as a walker to defend Rick.