Warning: Spoilers ahead!
The first episode of ‘The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon — The Book of Carol’ aired on September 29, and we got to see Melissa McBride’s Carol return in her search for Daryl.
The premiere episode is titled ‘La Gentillesse Des Étrangers,’ and it brings Carol to Freeport, Maine, where Daryl disappeared. She tries to find him after he was taken by boat to France.
Melissa McBride told ComicBook that Carol’s visions of Sophia play a major role in how she deals with her past. “I’m excited for the fans to see her dealing with some of the past trauma, talking about things she’s never talked about,” she teased.
McBride also reflected on how fast the world of ‘The Walking Dead’ moves. “That world never slows down,” she explains. “It never has slowed down until Commonwealth. She’s going to seek out her friend. He hasn’t come back yet, and she really needs her friend right now.”
Carol meets a pilot named Ash (Manish Dayal) in the episode. He is grieving the loss of his seven-year-old son, Avi. Carol pretends to need help after crashing her car and hides her true intentions. She lies about her daughter Sophia to gain his trust, saying she lost contact with her before the outbreak. Sophia died years ago in reality.
Carol struggles with the guilt of manipulating Ash but feels she has no other choice.
Carol has painful flashbacks during the episode, including a memory of Sophia emerging from Hershel’s barn as a walker. This was a moment from ‘The Walking Dead’ season 2. These memories of her daughter’s death will continue to affect Carol throughout the season as she searches for Daryl.
McBride thinks Carol feels that she can’t lose Daryl, too, and this pushes her to go on this journey.
New episodes of ‘The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon — The Book of Carol’ air every Sunday on AMC and AMC+.
