Twigs - The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon Episode 6

The first arc of Daryl's French adventure ends.

[Warning: This essay contains spoilers for all of The Walking Dead and The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon through the Season 1 finale.]

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon Season 1 has ended—and with it, the best season in The Walking Dead universe in quite some time.

As promised throughout the season, Daryl Dixon’s finale ended Daryl’s mission to deliver Laurent to the Nest alongside Isabelle and Sylvie. However, he still had a long way to go in the first half of the episode, forced to fight zombies injected with an agent concocted by the Pouvoir to make them stronger and faster. While the first one didn’t prove much of a challenge, Daryl was soon forced to work together with Quinn to dispatch two others. This scene was an exciting way to establish some ideas surrounding how variant zombies are created and the threats they pose. I was particularly interested in how the Pouvoir’s injection made one of the zombie’s attack another. Its actions could be indicative of the injection having some kind of adrenaline origin, something that gives zombies an aggressive boost that strips them of any reasoning for their attacks. The scene that followed was also enthralling, with Daryl and Quinn doing what they could to combat the now-strengthened undead.

Eventually, everyone but Quinn—who got bit—escaped the Pouvoir in a high-octane action sequence with the help of Fallou and his group. I’m glad to know that, despite not having much to do in the previous episode, Fallou’s people ended up being important parts of the season finale. It makes me wonder where they could go from here, and if they’ll be assisting in combating the Pouvoir in future episodes or seasons. Beyond them, there was a scene where Laurent was forced to act like Daryl, killing a zombified Quinn in order to save Isabelle. The moment proves that, despite being taught to be softer than most survivors by the Union of Hope, Laurent now has it in him to do what is necessary to save people. While he inspires hope because of his birth circumstances and his maturity, the boy was truly lacking in the survivability department. Something that seems to be on its way to a resolution now that he’s proven he can physically protect Isabelle.

Their escape was followed by one of the more interesting moments of the finale. While stopping to fix something that’s gone wrong with their car, Daryl’s group is ambushed by Codron and three other Pouvoir loyalists. Daryl begs for the lives of Laurent and Isabelle, asking Codron just to take him. While this underscores just how connected Daryl’s become to the small family unit he’s now part of, it also doesn’t change the fact he killed Codron’s brother. Codron is about to kill Laurent in front of Daryl as revenge…but then stops. Seeing how eager his fellow soldiers are, Codron kills them all, realizing that he doesn’t have it in him to kill Laurent. He gives Daryl and the group a head start, wandering back to Genet at her base. While Codron has been an intimidating, stone-cold antagonist this whole time, the moment he can seek vengeance, he’s unable to. As if his journey to find Daryl has somehow changed him, making him realize the immutability of the world if he continues a cycle of revenge. It’s something that feels like it comes out of left field, but given the stellar writing in the show so far, I’m looking forward to seeing how this plays out for Codron in Season 2.

Once Daryl and his friends arrive at the Nest, it’s clear the location will be a safe haven for Laurent to grow up. And, it seems, for him to lead a cause that can rival Genet’s Pouvoir. Daryl also meets the leader of the Nest there, Losang, who as it turns out is an American just like him. While he leads the Nest and ensures its people are well-fed, educated, and can defend themselves, he also understands Daryl’s plight. It’s why he’s willing to offer a boat that will take Daryl to Newfoundland, Canada, where Daryl could make his way back to Virginia by land. But it’s also why he’s able to discern the deeper feelings Daryl is having now that he’s managed to settle down for some time. Feelings that he may not entirely want to stay, but also doesn’t want to leave Isabelle and Laurent behind after growing attached to them. What I liked most about this more outward development for Daryl is how he remains reserved about his own feelings for most of the episode. He continues to hold a badass, darkly brooding persona that doesn’t fully reflect what he actually feels on the inside. Something that becomes clearer near the end of the episode.

This is because part of the episode is used to explain that Daryl has a connection to France already, one that he never brought up because he didn’t think the story was worth telling. His grandfather, William Dixon, was a solider on Normandy Beach during D-Day, dying as soon as he hit the sand. While this moment starts a running theme that’s present throughout the episode, it’s not until Daryl arrives at Normandy Beach to get his boat to Newfoundland that everything comes together. Here, we get a scene of Daryl looking at the row of World War II graves, desperately searching for his grandfather’s name. When he finds it, he begins to get emotional. This scene can be interpreted in many different ways. But to me, this moment was indicative of the push and pull Daryl feels now that he’s finally almost home. William’s death caused a cycle within Daryl’s family history that resulted in him and Merle getting abused and neglected by their father. It seems to be part of the reason why Daryl wants to go back to America. But it’s also something he needs to grapple with when it comes to Laurent, ensuring the boy can grow up in a positive future.

That’s why it’s so unclear what Daryl will choose to do once he arrives on the beach. After fighting off a surprise horde of Walkers, Daryl makes his way to the shoreline, only to be stopped by a familiar voice. Turning around, he sees Laurent standing atop a structure near hills above the beach. Daryl’s story in Season 1 ends with him stuck between a boat coming to shore to take him back to North America, and Laurent, seemingly alone, tempting Daryl to stay in France—a place he now feels is his second home. While it appears based on teasers for Season 2 that Daryl decides to stay in France for now, him wrestling with that choice will no doubt be a major part of the show moving forward. While Daryl has found a home in France, earning a sense of belonging among those in the Nest, he also still has a family back home. A fractured one that needs somebody to come put the pieces back together.

This is when the final twist of the episode transpires. As it turns out, Carol has left the Virginia communities as well, searching for Daryl in Maine. While this premise feels very similar to what Rick and Michonne’s The Ones Who Live will be about, it’s aided by the context of Daryl’s journey so far—and the mystery of whether or not Daryl decides to stay with his new family. While one has to wonder who’s taking care of Judith and RJ while all their parental figures are gone, Carol’s return is an expected yet exciting development that proves how confident Daryl Dixon is in reshaping The Walking Dead universe through its newest chapter. And, given just how good the first season was from start to finish, it very well might.

The Daryl Dixon season finale is a testament to the show’s ability to reinvent the franchise while delivering familiar stories in new settings. The major focus on Daryl’s sense of belonging helped illustrate that this series wants to be something more than the version of The Walking Dead that came before it. In addition, the inclusion of fanservice via Carol’s return didn’t feel forced, but instead a natural part of the story itself. It showed me how, even when appealing to fans of the franchise by focusing on their favorite characters, Daryl Dixon intends to be an experience beyond appeasement. It wants to be a show built on the foundation of being its own story, and it’s something that it succeeds with in every single episode. This season finale was a strong look into the much larger world coming for the show soon, and I’m excited for the subtitled Book of Carol second season in the future.

With plenty already delivered and more potential on the way, The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon feels like it just saved the franchise.

***

If you like the blog and want to support me, consider buying one of my books here.

For weekly updates on my writing, subscribe to The Crown Informer!

For more Frayed Branches, you can subscribe to get new essays (usually) every Tuesday and Thursday at 5 PM EST below:

You can also share this essay by clicking the box below:

Thank you for your support!