4. A Human Villain You Can Hate
He may not be the Danny Trejo-looking psychopath he was in the comic, but The Governor (played by David Morrissey) added something that the series was ultimately lacking: a true human villain that fans could latch onto and hate. While zombies are fun to see killed in a variety of ways, the audience doesnt really hate them. The Governor changes that. He is a charismatic individual who is able to pull the wool over the eyes of the entire town of Woodbury through deception and manipulation. When tidbits about him are revealed (his walker daughter he keeps locked up, the room filled with severed heads), you quickly realize what a sick individual he really is. The audience is able to hate him because he is fully capable of doing anything he says he is going to do. Shortly after his introduction, you see him lead an ambush on nearby members of the Army. A hero is only as good as his main adversary. While the Governor was unable to be portrayed doing some of the more vile things he did in the comics (which, to be fair, would never pass the censors even on a cable network), you still feel that general essence of evil based on the limited interaction he had with Maggie while she was captured. Having a main villain gives the show focus. While Rick may not be able to cure the zombie-apocalypse alone, he can certainly go after the Governor and pay him back for capturing members of his company. When we finally see Rick confront the Governor, its going to be an epic showdown. The show also accomplished being its own story based on some of the changes they made to the Governor/Woodbury storyline. This not only gives fans of the show something to enjoy, but also fans of the comics who know what might happen, but arent certain given the changes. Everyone gets to be surprised, and ultimately, that is a good thing. Fans may not have a reason to hate every zombie that comes on screen, but we have plenty of reasons to hate the Governor. Hes everything a great villain should be.