One of the most impressive aspects of AMC's The Walking Dead, is the in-depth, groundbreaking evolution of Melissa McBride's character, Carol. At the beginning of the series, Carol was little more than a background character, but from there she became a series regular and inarguably the most badass survivor on the show.
Throughout The Walking Dead's decade-long run on the air, Carol has garnered quite a fanbase, and become one of the most iconic characters. That being said, the show does not hold back from giving Carol some of the darkest and most heartbreaking storylines.
Carol has been through her share of trauma and grief, more so than any other character. The TWD writers just never want to give her a break, so let's take a look at 10 times Carol totally deserved better.
HER RELATIONSHIP WITH ED
Not long after Carol was first introduced on the show early in season 1, the fact that she was in an extremely abusive relationship with her husband, Ed. This was touched on in an infamous scene in season 1's third episode, Tell It To The Frogs, in a violent sequence in which Ed physically abuses Carol.
Ed is killed by a walker before the end of the first season, but his impact on Carol was still relevant and was unfortunately only the beginning of her suffering.
SOPHIA'S DEATH
The loss of her daughter was Carol's first trauma in the apocalypse, and even then, she had to endure far more than most of the other characters. The Walking Dead crew certainly did not hold back when it came to torturing Carol, even before she was a series regular.
Sophia's disappearances and the search for her was the biggest focal point of season 2, and the lasting impact of the tragic events was still present in the second half of the season. For Carol, Sophia's death was the start of a string of traumatic losses.
TREATMENT FROM THE AUDIENCE IN EARLY SEASONS
Carol set fire to Terminus and saved her family's lives at the beginning of season 5, instantly claiming warrior status. Today, Carol is one of the only surviving original characters and is undoubtedly a fan-favorite, there was a time when the fanbase did not give Carol the praise and attention that she obviously deserves.
Carol deserved appreciation way before she infiltrated Terminus, as she was an iconic, strong character way before she infiltrated Terminus.
WHEN RICK BANISHED HER FROM THE PRISON
Out of all the harsh things that other characters have done to characters, Rick is at the top of the list for this one. When it was revealed that Carol had been the one who had killed Karen and David when the flu broke out at the Prison, audiences obviously questioned her actions.
But the show quickly revealed that protecting her family was behind everything Carol did, no matter how extreme. And for that, Rick kicks her to the curb. Indifference, as an entire episode, is absolutely an absurd, surreal experience, but the idea that Rick would banish Carol from her home and judge her for what she did, while he has done countless things that were 100% worse, has to be one of the dumbest storylines this show has created.
THE TRAGEDY OF LIZZIE AND MIKA
The Grove was the fourteenth episode of season 4, and today it is still regarded as the most haunting, deeply disturbing episode of The Walking Dead. This episode was expertly written and directed and certainly makes for a chilling, unsettling watch.
After the events of The Grove - which involved Carol having to witness the fact that Lizzie had murdered her own sister, Mika, and then having to put Lizzie down herself - Carol was, of course, completely traumatized, but what's even more crazy is that The Walking Dead was nowhere near done with their arcs that involved Carol and the death of children she was close to.
BEING GUILT-TRIPPED BY MORGAN
Morgan's role on the show when he was brought on as a series regular in season 6 - after making sporadic appearances since season 1 - was a very unexpected, widely hated one. Morgan was not the Morgan audiences had known and loved from the pilot episode, because the show turned him into some all-knowing zen who made a career out of trying to convince everyone that killing any living person - aka, defending themselves - was bad.
Morgan particularly singled out Carol. He really made it his mission to change Carol, and in the end, he did - for the worse.
IGNORING HER GRIEF FOR THE GOOD OF THE GROUP
After the tragedy of Lizzie and Mika, Carol changed as a character and was given countless arcs in which she was forced to swallow her own grief. In one season 5 scene, while comforting Daryl, she states that she can't let herself feel her grief, which is just a completely destructive mindset.
The show stalls Carol in this state for several seasons, giving her repetitive arcs and storylines that focus wholly on her suffering with absolutely no closure and resolution.
HER RELATIONSHIP WITH EZEKIEL
Once The Walking Dead decided to cool it with Carol's torture arcs, her story changed and she moved to the Kingdom, where she struck up a romance with Ezekiel and took in Henry as her adoptive son.
In retrospect, this should have been a great arc for Carol, if it weren't contrived and ultimately purposeless in the end, as Henry was killed by the Whisperers, which then resulted in Carol and Ezekiel's "marriage" falling apart.
ING THE KINGDOM
When Carol ed the ranks of the Kingdom in season 7, it was the beginning of The Walking Dead sidelining her terribly, giving her nothing but arcs that involved either propping up Morgan and later Ezekiel.
For Carol, becoming a part of the Kingdom was one of the worst things that ever happened to her as a character, as it used her solely to delve into the lives of new characters, and it completely isolated her from her original family.
THE LOSS OF HENRY
Over the course of the series, Carol has undoubtedly lost more than any other character. In season 2, she lost her daughter; in season 4, she lost her two adoptive daughters; in season 6, she became close to Jessie's son, Sam, who was promptly torn apart by walkers; in season 7, she witnessed the death of Henry's older brother, Benjamin; finally, in season 9, after dedicating years of her life to raising Henry and believing that maybe she wouldn't lose this one, the show rips that away from her.