The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon is quickly proving to be one of the best, if not the best, spin-offs in the long-running and ever-growing franchise. Norman Reedus reprises his role as fan-favorite character Daryl Dixon, washed up ashore in France with no recollection of how he got there. Along the way, he joins an unexpected mission with new friends while meeting several new enemies, dead and alive.

While Daryl is the central character, the series also introduces plenty of new characters. Some come later in the season, but many are introduced from the start and have become scene stealers, whether they only appeared in a single or multiple episodes.

 

9Sylvie

Sylvie might not be the focus of many episodes, but she is always there to lend a helping hand, serving loyally at Isabelle’s side. She cares for Laurent and has devoted her life to the convent. A young woman likely in her 20s, Sylvie was taken in by the convent as a young girl and grew up there, knowing no other life.

Calm, level-headed, smart, and kind-hearted, Sylvie is trained to kill and will if necessary – there’s no other way to survive this brutal world. A member of the Union of Hope, Sylvie takes an instant liking to Daryl and is among the few people Laurent trusts.

8Lily

Lily is seen in a single episode, but her role has a tremendous impact on the season’s overarching story. Biological mother to Laurent, she is saved by Isabelle during the onset of the apocalypse. Ill and pregnant, Lily suddenly goes into labor while Isabelle seeks safe haven in a convent.

The Walking Dead has several shocking deaths, and Lily’s transformation into a walker ranks among the best. She turns while giving birth, leading Isabelle to believe Laurent is a miracle baby for surviving. The harrowing scene makes Lily a compelling figure, even if fans never got to know her. The circumstances surrounding her death allow fans to wonder if Laurent may have been born with immunity to the virus.

7Quinn

Fans first see Quinn sparingly in flashback scenes, suspecting he was Isabelle’s lover or close friend. He was desperate to get her to safety, doing everything he could to protect her. However, Quinn proved cold and calculating by willingly wanting to abandon Isabelle’s pregnant and sick sister, Lily, because she was a liability.

Quinn’s callousness is further clear by the shocking reveal that he is Laurent’s biological father, making his willingness to abandon Lily all the more harrowing. While Quinn isn’t an honorable character, he is the perfect foe for Daryl, the antithesis of everything he stands for. Quinn is among the most underrated villains on television, even if he isn’t the show’s big bad.

6Codron

It’s clear from the first episodes that Codron will be Daryl’s most formidable rival. Desperate to avenge his brother’s death – something Daryl understands all too well – the vicious and angry Codron wants nothing more than to find Daryl and have his head.

Codron is resourceful, cruel, and has seemingly lost all semblance of a moral compass if he ever had one. He is a great figure and a worthy addition to The Walking Dead’s lore. Fans hope for redemption for this broken but fascinating character. However, his role as the show’s secondary antagonist makes it difficult, especially considering Daryl is among the franchise’s most beloved characters.

5Genet

Genet is like the Pamela Milton of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon. She’s the cruel and heartless leader of the political movement, Power of the Living. She commands the respect of her followers and is hellbent on finding Daryl to make him pay for his actions. He destroyed her research, killed many of her men, and escaped, making him a prime target for her wrath.

The primary antagonist for this season, Genet is an effective and loathsome villain. The Walking Dead has many memorable baddies – some even rank among the best villains in the past decade. Genet is a worthy addition to this canon, and she’ll surely commit more atrocities before season 1 ends.

4Fallou

It immediately becomes apparent when Daryl meets Fallou that he is someone who can be trusted and will be a tremendous ally. Leader of a community part of the Union of Hope resistance network, Fallou appears to be close with Isabelle and willing to do what it takes to help Laurent reach his destination.

Fallou seems like the type of person who would lay down his life to save others if it meant helping the cause. While nothing is known about his past, he is smart, resourceful, and a wonderful leader who is respected and loved. A great addition to The Walking Dead lore, Fallou is among the most sympathetic figures in Daryl Dixon, providing some much-needed support for the main characters.

3Lou

She’s only a teenager, but Lou is stronger than most adults in this world. After the fall, she was at a preschool filled with young children and their teacher, Madame DuBois. When she took ill, it was up to Lou to care for the children, ensuring they were protected and fed while futilely trying to nurse her leader back to health.

Lou was smart enough to make Daryl, Isabelle, Sylvie, and Laurent prove they were who they said they were and that their intentions were good. As a skilled fighter, Lou saved Daryl’s life when he was stuck in a pit of walkers, something fans won’t forget. Lou is a valuable ally, a brave fighter, and a clever survivor, the perfect trifecta for a great Walking Dead character.

2Laurent

Soft-spoken, sweet, and kind, it’s difficult not to love Laurent. Sheltered from the outside world, Laurent believes he has a bigger purpose and works hard to make himself a better person. Thanks to his previous experiences as a bullied child, Laurent is quite relatable.

He isn’t one of the stereotypical badass kids of The Walking Dead, as he chooses calmness and words over violence and anger. Laurent’s ability to get through to Daryl in ways no one else could (including arguably even Judith) suggests that he may be one of the best characters in the new show. His special status and possible immunity to the virus aren’t yet confirmed, but he remains a wonderful character nonetheless.

1Isabelle

Isabelle is quickly becoming a new fan-favorite within The Walking Dead universe. While she initially appeared as a soft-spoken, kind-hearted nun with pure intentions, the second episode delved into her backstory and showed that there are many more layers to her. While she has turned her life around since the apocalypse, she lived a life of excess and crime, pick-pocketing, dancing, drinking, and drugs. She was, by all accounts, a wild child.

However, her determination to turn her life around makes Isabelle admirable. Her decision to abandon Quinn when he was ready to toss her pregnant sister showed tremendous strength. When fans saw the harrowing scene of Lily’s death and how quickly Isabelle took on her nephew as her own, it was clear she was someone worth rooting for.