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Post by v on Jun 21, 2016 0:51:33 GMT -5
This is a thread to discuss opinions of what went wrong for the character of Daryl Dixon. Did you lose your love for the character? Why? Please Note: This is not a hate thread nor is it a bash on the actor thread. Sexual Chocolate Meggo358
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Post by v on Jun 21, 2016 1:55:31 GMT -5
I wasn't a fan of Daryl's in season one, he was too much of a one note character and very sterotypical. He had moments after the search for Merle where I kind of liked the character but that was it.
In season two, we started to see another side of Daryl, mostly in relation to Carol and their interactions (Norman has attributed the change in his character to his interactions with Carol so this is not just a ship thing). We also saw a change in him when interacting with others including T-dog, Andrea, Rick, Glenn and Dale. he started to show another side to him that wasn't just "angry redneck", instead we got to see his intelligence, sense of humor and the "goodness" that was hidden within. he still had his moments of "angry redneck" but they made sense with the plot. the change really became apparent not only in his search for Sophia but his change in attitude with Lori and his mercy killing of Dale. He started to be part of the group and it was great to see. I had a lot of hope for his character.
season three started out promising, he was working as part of the group, hell they all were. He seemed lighter despite the situation. He was almost playful in his interactions with the others (the "You coming?" scene) He stepped up when they lost Lori and T-dog and while Rick was riding the cray cray train. He mourned his losses in private as I would have expected from the character. the moment that I started to side eye Daryl wasn't when he was reunited with Merle, it was when Rick convinced him to leave without finding Merle in the first place. Even then, I could appreciate the situation Daryl found himself in. Merle was an asshole (RIP Brother Merle, you were an asshole but you were our asshole)but he was family. Rick and the others were by this time also his family. He had grown with these people, survived, found a place for himself that wasn't just in the shadows. Sadly, season 3 was the first hints of his beta personality coming through.
30 days was when I really started to not like daryl. I get they wanted to build him up, show how important he was to the prison population and how important they were to him, but the over the top walker kills that had him posing like a second hand action figure took me out of the moment at the big I. (this was also the start of me realizing how limited Norman was as an actor. No hate, but there are some people that he shines when he acts with them, but not very many. he needs a stronger actor to work off of IMO.) As the season went on and the walker kills got even more unrealistic as did the posing I found myself not looking forward to any of Daryl's scenes. By the time Still rolled around, I was pretty much done. This was why they were building him up to give his fall more impact, but it just didn't work for me at all. Even before season 2 would Daryl have manhandled a girl he was responsible for? piss in front of her? get drunk and burn down their shelter at night? They didn't make Daryl fall, they took away his intelligence and all the things that made Daryl a survivor in the old world. You also had even more beta behavior and at the worse possible time. Joining the claimers was icing on the cake. His "they had a code... it was stupid" comment to rick made me want to scream. Yes we know Daryl followed Merle around and Rick, but really? there were a few eps in 5a when I felt I was watching the Daryl I loved, No Sancutary, Strangers, Consumed, but then crossed happened and he was gone again. He stayed gone for the rest of the season. If all Aaron had to do was give him a bike and say a couple nice things to him for them to become bff's then I knew the Daryl I loved was not there. Season 6 was hit and miss as far as Daryl was concerned, there were once again moments that I felt we almost had Daryl back but then he was gone again. My biggest issue is the way they seem to make him "more damaged" to fit plots instead of crafting plots to fit his character. tptb also have a bad tendency to not write Daryl consistently. It's my opinion his character is all over the place and the writers don't know what to do with him.
The few filming spoilers we have from season 7 don't seem to bode much better, despite that, I have the foolish hope that they can fix his character, make his arc's make sense and give me back the Daryl that made him such a fan favorite in the first place.
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Post by Sexual Chocolate on Jun 21, 2016 4:57:07 GMT -5
I used to adore Daryl. I couldn't get enough of the story of a man, so lonely and undervalued pre-ZA, who found his family and in turn his self-worth when the rest of the world was falling apart. He excelled at survival and at keeping others alive, and that made him a King among men. And boy was he smart. Not a Rhodes Scholar by any means, but in a way much more important. He could track and because he could track he could hunt, and because he could hunt he and his new family didn't starve.
He could read people. He knew that Shane killed Otis, not because he was clairvoyant but because his own father was a brutal teacher who trained him from birth to identify falseness and danger in others. He was crude and sometimes rude, but Merle didn't lie when he called him the "sweet one." This was a man who couldn't stand the sound of Carol crying so he went out in the middle of the night to look for her lost little girl. Who gave an injured T-Dog Merle's antibiotics, even though T-Dog was the last one to see Merle alive on the roof. He shared the story of his own mother's death so Carl, who had to put down Lori, wouldn't feel so alone. This is the character I fell in love with.
The Daryl post season 3, I barely recognize. Suddenly he can't track worth shit or only when it's convenient to the plot. There's no way the "old" Daryl would have missed the diaper and candy wrapper practically under his feet or the footprints of one large man, a woman, and the two kids who put them there. There's no way Daryl would waste time searching for alcohol or burn down his only shelter, especially when he was responsible for the welfare of a sheltered girl. And on what planet would Daryl Dixon, who was raised to expect the worst and never hope for the best, open a door without first checking thinking there would be a one eyed dog on the other side?!!! Let me stress, he doesn't know whether the Governor (or his men), who maybe a day before - give or take a few hours, cut off Hershel's head, are nearby and determined to finish what they started, and he OPENS THE DOOR. And there's a lot more and I haven't even gotten out of season 4 yet. Almost everything that made Daryl great has been stripped away and that's a damn shame because I once thought he was one of the best characters on tv.
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Meggo358
Retired Moderator
Aspiring Furiosa
Posts: 1,749
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Post by Meggo358 on Jun 21, 2016 7:52:17 GMT -5
Daryl has a lot to do with what made me love the walking dead. In the earlier seasons, he was complex, easy to root for, funny and you believed in his pain.
Long story short, I blame gimple. I dont know if Gimple is simply not interested in this character, or doesnt know how to write for a non comic based character, but either way they've seemed to be content to present his character in a much more one-note way, one which is more responsive to his character's "hype" than story. As others have noted, his story has become repetitive and problematic in his interactions with others and how his pain seems to be elevated in terms of importance compared to other characters. His terrible treatment of others (no one would have treated Beth as badly as he did, and he's been terrible to carol multiple times throughout the series) seems to be something the show doesnt ever care to address, or at least believes his sad past is an excuse for it.
I wish they would revisit the funny, caring, non self involved, resilient and smart tracker we knew back in the earlier seasons. He was a good member of the group, and good for other people. Or, i wish they'd explore his flaws more - in a real way, a way that shows he isnt tptb's special snowflake - someone having a sincere argument with daryl or taking him to task would actually endear him to me. Based on what seems to be coming forward, however, I'm not expecting much more than the pained superhero routine.
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Post by nana on Jun 21, 2016 8:41:31 GMT -5
I have naive optimism for Daryl, even though the realities are that they seem to want him to be this one type of character and I want something else for him. But they give me enough glimmers that I keep hoping. You all have nailed it on the head so I won't repeat. You all think this upcoming storyline will be awful; I am looking at it as possible character development. I don't think he is going to be super hero Daryl. See? Naive optimism.
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Post by candyp on Jun 21, 2016 9:00:35 GMT -5
You all have eloquently stated what went wrong with my favorite character, so I will just add that I too hold on to Nana's naive hope that "imprisoned Daryl" will lead to the first new character development we have seen in seasons.
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Post by Starlight on Jun 21, 2016 9:19:05 GMT -5
Daryl use to be amazing character right up until season 3. But the moment the TPTB bought into the hype 110%. The character was changed to fit certain quota ( the broody dark type) to make him more desirable to a bigger audience. To do that they had to take away the smart funny one liners, the smart observant guy who had a mouth which formed full sentences. They replaced the smart funny observant guy with a raven haired regressed emo who doesn't seen to know how to speak full sentences. I blame AMC for that decision not SG and Co, A big issue with Daryl and the writing is that the show doesn't want to rock the boat with character similar to Michonne. Both characters are written as comic characters for the GA. Who when they do something questionable the show simply glosses over the act. So we are left the characters doing the same stuff over and over again. Saying that I do have hope that Daryl will get development. we saw a glimpse of development with Daryl in season 5a. But due to storylines being reworked in 5b and season 6. The show regressed the character yet again and gave him a redo arcs again. So hope lies in season 7 and his arc with {Spoiler} Negan He has to get growth from this...
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Post by Mia on Jun 21, 2016 14:50:38 GMT -5
I really think Gimples hates Daryl or he hates Norman. He doesn't seem to care about Daryl's story so he rinses and repeats. Daryl becomes friends with Beth and she dies in front of him. Then man pain. Then he becomes friends with Denise and the same thing. Give me something different please. And let Daryl get out from behind Rick's shadow. I hate Rickyl. Every since Rick told Daryl not to go find his brother when he found out he was alive. I have been done with Rickyl.
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yuna
Woodbury Partygoer
Posts: 122
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Post by yuna on Jun 21, 2016 15:04:25 GMT -5
I really think Gimples hates Daryl or he hates Norman. He doesn't seem to care about Daryl's story so he rinses and repeats. Daryl becomes friends with Beth and she dies in front of him. Then man pain. Then he becomes friends with Denise and the same thing. Give me something different please. And let Daryl get out from behind Rick's shadow. I hate Rickyl. Every since Rick told Daryl not to go find his brother when he found out he was alive. I have been done with Rickyl. I agree with you Mia I always thought Gimple had no interest in Daryl I think if Gimple had it his way he would have killed Daryl off long time go. This just my opinion I am not saying its fact But I do believe Gimple probably doesn't care for Norman either.
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Post by Mia on Jun 21, 2016 15:31:24 GMT -5
I really think Gimples hates Daryl or he hates Norman. He doesn't seem to care about Daryl's story so he rinses and repeats. Daryl becomes friends with Beth and she dies in front of him. Then man pain. Then he becomes friends with Denise and the same thing. Give me something different please. And let Daryl get out from behind Rick's shadow. I hate Rickyl. Every since Rick told Daryl not to go find his brother when he found out he was alive. I have been done with Rickyl. I agree with you Mia I always thought Gimple had no interest in Daryl I think if Gimple had it his way he would have killed Daryl off long time go. This just my opinion I am not saying its fact But I do believe Gimple probably doesn't care for Norman either. I have seen a few interviews where Norman and Gimple have seemed kinda cold to each other. It sucks that he doesn't give Daryl something better to do.
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