The Walking Dead: 5 Characters Who Overstayed Their Welcome (And 5 Gone Too Soon)

The Walking Dead has a major advantage over most television shows: in an instant they can kill off any character they choose. So when the writers run out of ideas for a specific character or fan feedback lets them know it's time for someone to go, they can make it happen - just ask Laurie Grimes. But with the power of instant death comes great responsibility. In a show focused nearly entirely on interpersonal dynamics and character development, timing is paramount when killing off a character.

Unfortunately some characters get stuck in Walking Dead limbo, when they are no longer needed from a storyline perspective or simply not connecting with fans but are kept alive and on our screens by the writers for reasons unknown. These characters who have overstayed their welcome become a nuisance to many, eating up valuable screen time while providing little to the overall quality of the show.

Other times the writers pull the trigger on the death of a character too soon, depriving us fans of some great potential story arcs. These characters live on in our hearts, but what if they were afforded more time on the show? What great story opportunities were left untold?

Rosita Espinosa is a frustratingly one-dimensional character who has experienced minimal character development during her inexplicably long tenure on the show. Appearing in over 40 episodes Rosita is one of the most obvious choices for a character who has overstayed their welcome.

It’s quite apparent - due to her lack of any substantial storylines - that she’s been brought along for nearly half of the show’s entire existence to provide eye candy for the viewers. It is primetime television after all; even a show about survival in a post-apocalyptic zombie infested world needs sex appeal. But sex appeal alone won’t keep you in the good graces of the fans.

The one shining light in her extended tenure on the show is that we haven’t had to endure a Rosita bottle episode, so fingers crossed the show’s writers decide to finish her off before they get the urge to dedicate an hour to this unneeded character. Perhaps now that her love triangle counterpart Sasha has been killed off the show, Rosita will finally be able to grow as a character. Based upon her sparse appearances so far in season 8 however, she will likely continue her pouty routine for the foreseeable future.