Andrew Lincoln is by no means a bad actor. Despite his natural plummy British accent he's managed to affect a decent American speech pattern; he played a jerk in Love Actually but the role called for it; and he was an engaging enough straight man in the Channel 4 sitcom Teachers. But the role of Rick Grimes has required him to push his skills further than ever before, and it's not always been successful. In the first season he seemed to be focussed on holding that accent consistently more than anything else plus the writers didn't have much more for him to do than be the hero. As they continued to scramble for ideas in the second season, Lincoln continued to be the most boring character on the show, whilst also being the most necessary. It's a trope found more in sitcoms, the lead character being personality-less so the more dynamic supporting cast can do their thing by playing off him. He was like the Ted Mosby to The Walking Dead's How I Met Your Mother. Then Rick started to get a bit more interesting. By the start of season five he was a haggard mess, hidden behind a mad person's beard and a lifetime of bad experiences. Lincoln seemed to be on board. Then he shaved the beard, and it was back to his one-note tough guy impression and husky voice. Did Lincoln's beard hold the power to his performance as Rick? Maybe. Or maybe this new turn for the character threw him off. Either way, he was not very good in this week's episode. There's still time, though...
Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/
