Merle Dixon was on The Walking Dead for a relatively short period of time at the very beginning of the series, but his brash, intense, and generally awful personality really stuck in the minds of viewers for years after he was gone.
Merle was Daryl's brother, but he was much more than that, he wound up being a villain of the series and a hero of the series and everything in between. His untimely death was sad, but did it need to happen? Here's 5 reasons why Merle needed to go, and 5 reasons why he should have shouldn't have died so soon.
10 Too Soon: Because The Show Needs More Morally Gray Characters
Within the world of The Walking Dead, it seems like the characters are pretty clearly divided between heroes and villains. And while Merle obviously began his journey as a villain, he had moments where he displayed legitimate goodness and sincerity.
The series could do with more characters who are morally gray, so someone like Merle who has shown real goodness as well as real evil would be an interesting addition into the mix.
9 Needed To Go: Because He Didn't Fit In
Clearly the main group of TWD has taken in a lot of people that might not have seemed like anyone they could ever get alone with, however it does feel like Merle is too different and has gone too far to ever really assimilate into Rick's crew.
After what he did to Glenn and Maggie, it's understandable that no one wants him around, and his personality just doesn't seem like a good fit for the group.
8 Too Soon: Because Michael Rooker Is Amazing
Obviously there are no slouches when it comes to the Walking Dead cast, however Michael Rooker is an exceptional actor who did a fantastic job of portraying this character.
The series obviously has a lot of character turnover, but it would have been forgivable for them to let Merle survive just so they could retain one of the best actors they had for a little while longer.
7 Needed To Go: Because He Was An Attention Hog
Merle Dixon isn't a particularly relaxed or reserved kind of person, and it seems fair to say that he absolutely dominates every scene and every conversation that he's in.
That works in small doses, but in the long term it just doesn't make sense to have one character who overruns the rest of them every time they're in the scene, and the only way to avoid that would have been to pretty drastically change the character.
6 Too Soon: Because He Was Capable Of Evolving
Merle was only on the series for a short time, and nearly everything that the audience saw of him made him seem like a completely insufferable ass.
However, once he realizes that Daryl really cares about the group, Merle is ready to risk his own behind for the sake of someone who hates him, just so his brother can have a decent shot at survival. It would have been interesting to see Merle evolve even more than that.
5 Needed To Go: Because He Was Annoying
Ironically, one of the main appeals of Merle as a character is that he's incredibly irritating. He says everything he thinks, and everything he thinks is awful, so while it can be really annoying it's also a big change of pace from the average character.
But again, this is something that works in small doses but would likely be intolerable in larger doses. When a character's entire personality is annoying, they probably shouldn't stick around long.
4 Too Soon: Because We Want More Dixon Backstory
The conversations between Daryl and Merle offered a few glimmers of insight into their story growing up, but that is really all the audience has ever gotten when it comes to the Dixon family history.
It would have been really interesting to get more of it, and now that Daryl is essentially the lead character of the show, it would have made a lot more sense to build up his backstory far more than it's been built so far.
3 Needed To Go: Because He Was A Bigot
Merle Dixon really embodies every negative stereotype about ignorant, racist rednecks, and his casual racism, sexism, and bigotry gets really old really fast.
Merle's ugly displays of behavior might not compare to some of the more monstrous behavior that has occurred on the series, but ultimately it's just yucky and unpleasant to watch. Not to mention, he's not the kind of character that any series wants to have in this day and age.
2 Too Soon: Because He Gave Daryl Dimension
Daryl is a very reserved guy and is a character of few words, but over the course of the show he has become one of the most important members of the TWD squad.
And while he has clearly found a new family with people like Carol, Rick, and Michonne, seeing Daryl with an actual blood family member that he grew up with would have been an interesting storyline to explore.
1 Needed To Go: Because He Stifled Daryl's Growth
At this point Daryl Dixon is arguably the most important character in the show, but to be honest, if Merle had stuck around for a long time it seems like he may not have wound up where he is now.
Merle appealed to all of Daryl's worst qualities and impulses, and while seeing Daryl lose his brother was devastating, it was probably better for his development as a person.
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August 25, 2020 at 05:30AM
