16 Times Daryl Dixon Gave Us Feelings

Ask any female fan of The Walking Dead who their favorite character is and you're sure to get lots of squealing and lots of yelling (actual yelling, in your face) “DARYL!” Norman Reedus' character, who isn't even a real character in the graphic novels, has become quite the redneck sex symbol as a result of the show. Though Daryl appears quite rough and uncaring on the outside, especially early on in the series, you soon find out that deep down he's just misunderstood. Many moments throughout the series show not only his bad-ass zombie-killing exterior, but also some softer, maybe almost romantic side with both Beth and Carol. Even though they are in the middle of a zombie apocalypse, one thing is for sure, chivalry is not yet dead.

16 When He Gave Carol The Cherokee Rose

Daryl gives Carol a Cherokee rose when Sophia is missing. Though it may not seem like a huge gesture considering her daughter is missing and presumed dead, he brings a little bit of beauty into a terrible situation and remains a gentleman.

“It's a Cherokee Rose… Cherokee mothers were grieving and crying so much 'cause they were losing their little ones… the elders, they said a prayer; asked for a sign to uplift the mothers' spirits, give them strength and hope. The next day this rose started to grow where the mothers' tears fell.” Daryl reminded you that when you have a horrible (terrible, no good) day, all it takes is someone doing something small like giving you flowers to lift your spirits up a little.

15 When He Manned Up And Did The Right Thing

Daryl saw that Dale was suffering while being attacked by a walker and there was no saving him. Where all of the others were standing around, crying and panicking over what to do in this impossible situation, Daryl put Dale out of his misery. Rick couldn't do it and although it was clearly not easy for him, he put on a brave face for both the group, and for poor Dale, and pulled the trigger. Daryl taught us that sometimes, you can't make the call or do the tough things on your own but a good man will step in and do what needs to be done.

14 When He Wouldn't Give Up

Daryl knew that Carol's daughter, Sophia was most likely dead, but he still went out day after day and tracked her using his hunting experience. He saw signs that she could have been alive. But he realized that it was not likely her. It was probably someone else who was leaving evidence of human life around, yet he still went out searching. You're not really sure if he did this for Carol or for himself, but you don't care because it's still dreamy.

13 When He Was Just Super Sexy

OMG that time Daryl made it clear how much he enjoyed eating at the prison… you remember… he finished his food and licked off his fingers.It may not have been intentional, but it was definitely very sexy. Who needs to wash off their hands in a zombie apocalypse anyway? Daryl taught us that you don't have to waste things like soap and water and that it's okay to think about sex a little bit when people around you are getting attacked by the dead. Yes, Daryl, you are indeed finger lickin' good.

12 When He Maintained His Honor

As previously mentioned, the Dixon's came from near nothing and from a life far from the Ritz. They aren't exactly treated in the best way early on, and Daryl's brother Merle even plans to rob the group and run. While Merle plans to take revenge for being left on that rooftop (stealing and taking his anger out on Glen and Maggie), Daryl does his best to talk him out of it. He often tries to be Merle's voice of reason and prevent him from making bad decisions that would both go against his honor, and harm the people around them. Just because you got the sh*tty end of the stick as a child, doesn't mean you should take it out on others. He always steps in to help, when he can. Thanks for being a good guy, Daryl.

11 When He Put His Family First

It's apparent that Daryl loves his brother from the beginning of the series. They've been on the road together for some time and all they've had is each other, since apparently, their father was a dirtbag, abusive alcoholic. Because of this bond, Daryl will choose Merle in damn near every situation. He fights with Rick to go back up to that rooftop and find his brother, no matter what hair-brained thing Merle did to get himself into trouble in the first place. Even when Merle gets in with the crazy Governor, Daryl fights to have him permitted to return to the group. Daryl possesses incredible family values that he hasn't lost despite the zombie invasion.

10 When He Looked After The Group

There are several unpleasant and all around awful tasks, from killing other survivors, to disposing of walkers, to gutting various animals for food, that fall upon the survivor group we have come to know and love. Guess what? Daryl is often the first to throw up his hand and volunteer to do it. Look for Sophia? Daryl's got that. Go get some squirrels for lunch? Daryl wants that one too. How about riding ahead (alone) to be lookout? No problem, Daryl is happy to volunteer for everything. At the end of the day, someone has to do it and Daryl is the gentleman who will volunteer every single time.

9 When He Showed His Caring Side

Sophia was not Daryl's child, or Daryl's problem. He and Carol have never officially hooked up or became an item. He never took over daddy responsibilities for Sophia after Carol's husband was killed. However, that day when the walker-barn was emptied and Sophia walked out, Daryl was so broken up about it that he couldn't take Sophia's life (in the way that he helped Dale previously). Instead he broke down and did his best to comfort Carol.

8 When He Grew Into The Character We Came To Love

It's pretty clear, pretty early on in the series that Daryl Dixon didn't exactly have the ideal home life growing up. First, there's Merle, who seems like a bit of a douchebag bully, and then there are those cigarette burns all over him… You also hear as the series goes on about how unpleasant his “old man” was. Daryl is admirable because he got through all of that, didn't turn out as bad as his brother, and grew into one of the most loved television characters of all time. Watching the progression of season one Daryl to now is both dreamy and incredibly admirable. He makes you believe that anything is possible.

7 When He Appreciated The Simple Stuff

Y'all know that Beth loved to sing, and she was pretty darn good at it. The actress even released a country CD. Back to business: Everyone knows that sometimes Daryl can be a bit of a cranky-pants; he even told Beth that no one wanted to hear her sing at one point. He had a tendency to be grumpy and negative, especially with the disappearance, then reappearance, and then death of his brother, Merle. But he changed his tune that time he asked Beth to keep singing, while he sprawled out in the coffin. Even Daryl learned that in this terrible world, sometimes you have to make time to enjoy the simple things. You never know when you're going to lose someone or something you care about.

6 When He Held Beth's Hand

Things don't always go the way you want them to when zombies are taking over the world and slowly eating the human race… Not only is it incredibly important to make time for the small stuff, like singing and giving flowers, physical intimacy is also important. Although many wanted to see more romance develop in either the Bethyl or Caryl situations, it was still super adorable to see that moment where Daryl took Beth's hand and held it. He taught us that it's okay to take a minute to comfort the ones around you; and it may even comfort you, too.

5 When He Was Heroic

When Beth was kidnapped, Daryl chased that hearse down the street and kept running, until he couldn't run anymore. He cared not for the walkers around him or if there were others, like the ones who took Beth. He only cared about finding her and saving her. When he found out where she was taken, Daryl was ready to rally the troops and go storm the place on the spot to go try to save Beth, but was talked down in attempt to be more strategic. Unfortunately, for Daryl (and Beth) the rescue attempts were futile and Beth chose death over being rescued.

4 When He Cried (And It Was Incredibly Sexy)

Nothing is more painful than having to offer relief, or euthanasia to someone you care about. Daryl did it for Dale and they weren't even besties. Not many of you could say that you could “put down” a loved one if you had to. If your mother, your brother, your partner, came at you in full zombie form, trying to eat your face, could you pull the trigger? Probably not, but that's just what Mr. Dixon had to do to, you guessed it, the other Mr. Dixon. That time Daryl had to put down zombie-Merle was heartbreaking even though viewers at home saw it coming.

3 When He Was Evolved

When you grow up in a small town, or a backwoods rural area, sometimes you are brought up with particular beliefs or ideals. That's okay. It's not your fault. However, when confronted with a large group of people from very different walks of life, sometimes those ideals have to grow or change. Remember that time Merle said something a wee bit racist about poor Glen and Daryl corrected him with the more politically correct way to refer to him? Yeah, you do, because it was absolutely adorable. There's nothing dreamier than someone sticking up for someone else, especially a much less assuming someone else.

2 When He Was A Bad Boy

Know what is the sexiest thing in the world? A guy who's so sexy and a bad boy that no mother would ever approve of (not initially at least). Not only does Daryl Dixon represent everything bada**, but he does it proudly, and without regret. He knows he's not a bad guy. He's just a little rough around the edges. He's like Miley Cyrus. He knows he's different and instead of conforming, he tries to remain unique, he's super modest and he doesn't apologize for being who he is. Yes, it's okay to go and fan yourselves now.

1 When He Was All Paternal

Remember that time Daryl held Judith and bottle fed her? Squeeeeeeeeee! Of course you do because your ovaries exploded and you either cried or had to go shower after tuning in. Not to mention the fact that when Carl brought up the late Sophia shortly after, Daryl's face turned from sort-of-stoic-but-sort-of-baby-lovin to sad panda. Usually it's women who get all gushy and doe-eyed around babies. In this case, Mr. Dixon kept his backwoods, too-cool-for-school demeanor while he coddled baby Judith, but we could all see on his face how much he loved holding that baby.