15 Greatest Episodes Of The Walking Dead

15. The Day Will Come When You Won't Be (Season 7, Episode 1)

Season seven's opening has become so controversial and divisive since its premiere that it's easy to forget just how masterful the episode is.

Taking its name from Edwin Jenner's final warning to Rick (Andrew Lincoln) in season one, The Day Will Come When You Won't Be is an epic, daring exercise in tension, fear and character.

Of course, it's easy to see why it's such a widely discussed, love-it-or-hate-it episode, what with the gratuitous nature of the violence and the deaths of Glenn (Steven Yeun) and Abraham (Michael Cudlitz), but outside of the controversy, the episode is a perfect example of how horrifying, gruesome and unpredictable the world of The Walking Dead can be.

The stand-out of the episode is without question Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), a character who burst onto the show like no other in the previous episode. With The Day Will Come... Negan proves without fault to be the most terrible, awful and seemingly irredeemable character the show has ever seen, and the biggest threat the Survivors have ever faced.

All told, the season seven premiere is a tour de force, and whether you agree with its pay-off or not, there's no denying the emotional power it holds and the masterful performances it created.