The Walking Dead is so much more than a comic book or a TV show, it’s a cultural phenomenon. Created by Robert Kirkman, the story of Rick Grimes and a group of survivors in a zombie apocalypse has spawned a massive following. A horror series that examines how its characters deal with the emotional stresses of living through in a nightmarish world, The Walking Dead has transformed from a small-scale series into a full-blown exploration of tribal warfare. Every step of the way, the series gives audiences things to praise and to laugh at.
Since it’s such a culturally hot topic, it makes sense The Walking Dead has been the subject of countless memes. Everything from the weird characters to the sometimes inconsistent plot on the show is worthy of mockery, and memes are a great way to lovingly dig at something. No matter how much longer the show or comic continues to be released, there will always be fans ready to poke fun of this dark world. The characters in The Walking Dead may never look at a meme again, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t part of a few.
Come check out these 15 Hilarious Walking Dead Memes Only True Fans Will Understand!
Follically Challenged
When The Walking Dead first begins, Rick has been in a coma for a few months. When he finally shows up at the camp outside Atlanta, Lori and Carl both expected him to be dead. Even though he’s been in a coma, Rick wakes up with a scruffy beard and has to shave after he escapes the hospital. After all that time, Glenn still never grows any facial hair himself.
The character survives for quite a while, at least a year in The Walking Dead universe, but is never shown with anything above slightly scrappy facial hair.
Sure, Glenn could have shaved off camera every once in a while, but that’s unlikely. The show has never shied away from including moments where the male characters groom their facial hair, so it’s unlikely they would completely skip showing Glenn trim his beard.
Red Neck Skills
Made just for the TV adaptation of The Walking Dead, Daryl Dixon has become of the most beloved characters in the entire franchise. When he was introduced back in season one, Dixon was presented as a stereotypical redneck. Over time, the crossbow-wielding warrior shows progressively reveals his sensitive side and even sides with his group of new friends over his vindictive, murderous brother.
In regular, day-to-day life, a lot of Daryl’s skills would be relatively useless. Unless he’s a cop, his ability to track people isn’t that essential in a pre-apocalypse world. Similarly, his crossbow skills are nothing more than a cool hobby in the real world, but during a zombie apocalypse he’s one of the most coveted friends to have around when a horde approaches.
It’s Always Sunny in The Kingdom
The “All Out War” storyline that took over the show’s most recent season was one of the bloodiest ones yet. As Rick’s group of survivors teams up with other rag-tag groups to confront the villainous Negan, things transition from a battle of words into a full-blown war between the two sides. Instead of constantly playing defense, the good guys decide to plan an ambush of their own.
King Ezekiel, who fights with a giant tiger at his side, is an extremely confident person. He’s so sure of his abilities that before heading off into battle he predicted that his side would not lose a single soldier. Unfortunately, Ezekiel may be a good leader but he can’t predict the future. He survived the attack, but numerous soldiers from The Kingdom died defending their king during the battle.
Neegan’s Choice
Bad things happen to good people all the time in the real world. Sometimes, a person can be sitting on an airplane, just minding their own business, and then be dragged off the plane by security forces for seemingly no reason.
Equally random and cruel, Negan has no problem mistreating people in The Walking Dead. When the villainous figure was first introduced, he lined up a group of fan-favorite characters and made them get on their knees. Taunting the group and threatening them with Lucille, his baseball bat wrapped with barbed wire, Negan jokingly said someone could volunteer for the pain and spare their companions if they were brave enough.
Ultimately, the season seven finale ended on a cliffhanger that kept fans in the dark about who Negan killed off, but that doesn’t mean his final decision any less cruel.
Inconsistent Shot
While nitpicking everything can be annoying, sometimes being detail-oriented helps point out a show’s inconsistencies. Ever since The Governor was first introduced on The Walking Dead, he has been presented as a hardened warrior who can take care of himself. While he may sometimes work with an army at his side, he’s a trained killer on his own right who demands the respect of a murderous community.
Even after Michonne scoops out the Governor’s eye, his marksman abilities remained relatively sharp. When he and a group of his goons attack Rick’s community, Governor has no problem quickly taking down a guardsman with a single shot. Then, after the hole in one, The Governor doesn’t make a single shot and has to completely rely on his goons throughout the attack.
I Mustache You A Question
Whenever new characters are introduced to The Walking Dead, it takes a while for the audience - and the established characters - to get a read on them. In the case of Abraham and Eugene, it took the other characters a while to fully trust them but they both became key members of the group.
When the two are first introduced, Abraham serves as a protector of sorts for Eugene, but a dark secret comes between the two that tears them apart.
As odd as the mullet and handlebar moustache may appear to some people, they make perfect sense considering the show’s Southern setting, since both styles are still somewhat popular down there. Eugene’s a smart, inventive guy, so he’s asked a lot of questions throughout the series, but luckily he’s never once replied by saying he’ll “mullet over.”
Gottem
At the beginning of the series, Merle Dixon is a member of a rag-tag group of survivors outside Atlanta. On a journey into the city to gather supplied, Merle and T-Dog get into an argument that turns into a full-blown brawl. Despite Rick and the rest of the group trying to stop him, Merle viciously beats T-Dog and even spits on him. As a result of the disrespectful action, Rick handcuffs Merle to a pipe on a roof and leaves him there under T-Dog’s supervision.
When the group is attacked and T-Dog accidentally drops the keys, Merle is forced to take matters into his own… hand to survive. Cutting off his own arm, Merle disappeared for quite a while in the series and mysteriously reappeared years later as one of the Governor’s goons. Instead of a hand, now he has a rusty blade that he uses to intimidate and attack his enemies.
Blind Shot
The Governor is too good a character to only make fun of him one time on this list. A manipulative, abusive foe, The Governor tricks people into thinking he’s on their side while secretly plotting against them.
At different times, the character is shown as an excellent marksman and at other moments he misses almost every shot. That kind of inconsistency can quickly be explained by the Governor aiming with his dead eye. Instead of letting his goons do the fighting for him, Governor continually thinks he should be out on the front, even though he’s not the best shot.
While he is clearly aiming through his good eye, the character constantly looks like he’s using his damaged eye to peer through the scope.
Glenn’s The Best
Negan’s introduction in the television series was based on his first appearance in the comic books. Instead of letting audiences sit with suspense for months, Negan struck down Glenn after toying with the whole group.
When the character was first introduced in the comics, Abraham had already died as part of an unrelated incident. Since he became such a popular character on the show, Abraham survived for a longer time on television than he did in the comics.
Things have stepped away from the source material multiple times in The Walking Dead, and keeping Abraham around for “All Out War” could have been an interesting choice. Unfortunately, the creative team behind the show decided to kill of Abraham at the exact same time as fan-favorite character Glenn, meaning Abraham’s death had no real emotional purpose.
No Love For T-Dog
In everything from Gremlins to Jurassic Park, the black characters seem to die early on in the story. That’s why it came as such a surprise when T-Dog, a newly created character for The Walking Dead television show, survived for such a long time. Theodore Douglas is a former college football player who sacrifices himself to save Carol during the show’s third season.
After the prison everyone was using as shelter was overrun by walkers, T-Dog gets bit in the shoulder while trying to lock a gate. Even in a world where there are no active duty police officers, T-Dog meet’s his early demise underneath the prison.
Unfortunately, T-Dog didn’t have a long-lasting legacy on the show because comic book character Tyrese made his debut shortly after his death.
Hello?
After the prison is attacked and Lori dies giving birth to Judith, Rick slowly loses his mind. Struggling to regain his cool, Rick finds solace in a mysterious person over the phone. On the other line is a woman who tells him that she will consider allowing the two groups to combine, but she needs time to make the decision.
Over time, the phone calls become more intense and Rick even receives a call from another survivor from the woman’s group. As the man starts pressing Rick for details about Lori’s death, he refuses to talk about it, causing the other man to hang up the phone. When Hershel confronts Rick about the phone conversations, he discovers it is giving off a static noise and not the dial-tone necessary to take incoming calls. Or maybe Lionel Richie was on the line all along.
Dirtbag Shane
Everyone has those friends who are just awful. Upon first meeting them, they are fun to hang out with and even nice to your other friends and family. But, over time, negative characteristics slowly boil to the surface and it’s easier to notice something just isn’t right about them.
That certainly happened with Rick and Shane in The Walking Dead. After spending years as friends and partners, Rick realized just what kind of person his friend was after the world transitioned into a zombie apocalypse. He may have graciously saved them after the initial outbreak, but he also grew deeply attached to his wife Lori and grew angry with his Rick after he was reunited with Lori and Carl.
At the beginning, Shane has a lot of redeeming qualities, but after Rick’s return, he slowly transitions into a dangerous, unhinged individual.
Gregory, the great unifier
When meeting new people, it’s best to not talk about religion or politics since they are such divisive topics. Debates in which people disagree on a fundamental level can tear friendships apart and make compromise hard. Fortunately, there are certain truths that bring even the fiercest of rivals together. Nobody wants the sun to stop rising every morning, just like no one wants cute baby animals to be banned.
Similarly, people on both sides of the political spectrum can agree that Gregory sucks. The leader of the Hilltop Community, Gregory is a sneaky, manipulative individual who cares more about his position in the community than the wellbeing of his followers. Instead of allowing Maggie to take control of his people, he plots to have her killed and even considers joining forces with Negan.
Michonne’s Ready
Surviving a zombie apocalypse is a physically taxing experience. Constantly working to maintain a shelter on top of searching for food and water leaves little time for individuals to relax or take up new hobbies. Part of what makes The Walking Dead so entertaining is the fact the characters are very personable and feel real, meaning no two people have the same emotions or personalities at any exact moment.
No matter how heated things are, Michonne always deals with every situation in a calm manner. Whether she’s fighting zombies or flirting with someone, the character always has the same withdrawn, hard look on her face. While most of the other actors on the show pop a smile every once in a while, Michonne keeps her emotions to herself.
It Hurts
Sure, the nine to five grind may be exhausting, but it’s not nearly as difficult as surviving a zombie apocalypse. Before heading off to work, employees usually get to eat a hot meal or take a shower to prepare for their gruel\ling day. Rick and his crew, on the other hand, usually don’t have those luxuries to make their days easier.
Rick has survived his fair share of scuffles throughout The Walking Dead, but he doesn’t get morphine or anything to make the pain any easier. Every morning is a constant struggle for him, and in the comics he even had his hand cut off, and yet Rick perseveres and picks himself up. Hangovers may suck and rolling out of bed to sit in traffic may seem like a wasted morning, but it sure beats fighting zombies.
What did you think of these Walking Dead memes? Share your favorite memes with us in the comments!
