1. Norman Reedus (Daryl Dixon)
You had to know that this was coming. Playing the only main character not to appear in the comics, Norman Reedus began on
The Walking Dead as a guest star who did not appear until the third episode of the first season. By the end of the third season, Reedus was the fourth-billed actor on a show with a substantial ensemble cast. There are fans who proclaim their willingness to riot if Daryl dies, and Reedus was the second
Walking Dead actor to receive his own
Entertainment Weekly cover (after Andrew Lincoln). Norman Reedus has become immensely popular, and you know what? He deserves it. Beginning the show as a racist, sexist, vulgar mini-Merle, Daryl was clearly originally only tolerated by the other survivors because of his crossbow skills. Now, Daryl has become Rick's right-hand man and possibly the most selfless character on
The Walking Dead. He is certainly the most competent. While his character growth from ugly guest star duckling to badass crossbow-wielding swan could have been insufferable, Norman Reedus has kept Daryl's edge (and fondness for eating small woodland creatures) intact while simultaneously transforming him into a man who really
should be tasked with continuing the human race. He's experienced the most character progression aside from Carol (although this can be attributed to his unexpected popularity) and as with Andrew Lincoln his best scenes are distinctly unromantic, particularly his wonderfully platonic friendship with Carol, his bromance with Rick, and his misguided devotion to Merle. When he picks up, feeds, and nicknames Rick's infant daughter, a hefty percentage of the audience swoons rather than worries about Lil' Asskicker being cuddled against the chest of a man who is dirty, greasy, sweaty, and spattered with opossum and Walker gore. He's as believable feeding a baby as he is stabbing Walkers through the skull. He loves his brother without really liking him. There is never any one single emotion on Reedus' face, and the complexity that he brings to a character that could so easily become one-dimensional has kept him on the show against all odds and brought him to the very top of this list.
MVP Moment: Oh, so many. Still, one of his most understated and touching scenes comes in the fourth episode of Season 2, in which he tells Carol the story of the Cherokee rose to try to comfort her as they search for her daughter. He knows that no flowers will bloom for Merle (whom they believed to be dead at the time) but tells Carol that this flower has bloomed for Sophia.