I Don't Care How Much You Love The Walking Dead, These 10 Episodes Are Impossible to Rewatch

"Now" Takes a Break From the Action (And No One Cares)

Season 6, Episode 5

The Walking Dead's sixth season was heavily criticized at the time, but has since found vindication in its bold, trailblazing storylines that build to a powerful crescendo, particularly in the first nine episodes. Unfortunately, not all of the season's episodes measure up to the test of time. Season 6, Episode 5, entitled "Now," takes an explicable break from the action outside Alexandria's walls to focus on the residents safe inside the community, leaving viewers anxious to get back to the main story.

• IMDB Rating: 7.2/10

While some important storylines progress during the events of "Now," the episode is a painfully boring break from the major storyline that eats up much of the first half of Season 6. At this point in the arc, most of The Walking Dead's major characters are outside Alexandria's walls, fighting to keep a walker horde from reaching the community. However, "Now" chooses to focus on the characters who aren't in the middle of the action, and therefore feels incredibly boring in comparison. The episode is also notable for kickstarting the controversial and short-lived romance between Rick Grimes and Jessie Anderson, while the revelation of Maggie's pregnancy stands out as a highlight.

"Last Day on Earth" Features a Long Trek to a Frustrating Finale

Season 6, Episode 16

"Last Day on Earth" will forever be remembered as one of The Walking Dead's most controversial episodes of all time. The Season 6 finale follows Rick Grimes and his allies as their world slowly begins to unravel at the unveiling of their greatest new enemy. After seemingly defeating the Saviors weeks earlier, Rick and the group discover that there are far more of them than they had anticipated. As they desperately try to get Maggie to a doctor, they find the Saviors waiting for revenge.

• IMDB Rating: 7.1/10

This episode marks the debut of Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan, the most important antagonist of the series. While Morgan delivers a powerful monologue that kicks off his storyline in style, the episode itself spends too much time treading water in anticipation of Negan's arrival. The Walking Dead's writers are too aware of the hype surrounding Negan's debut and, therefore, save it until the very end of the episode. Then, in the show's most controversial move of all time, the episode ends on a cliffhanger without revealing the identity of Negan's first victim. While the resolution comes in the most painful way possible at the beginning of Season 7, the cliffhanger leaves Season 6's finale feeling unresolved and empty.

"Rogue Element" Loses the Core of What Makes The Walking Dead Unique

Season 11, Episode 11

A major focus of The Walking Dead's final season is the Commonwealth, an advanced post-apocalyptic community that takes in the survivors of Alexandria after its walls fall at the end of the Whisperer War. However, it quickly becomes clear that not everything is as it seems in the Commonwealth. In "Rogue Element," Eugene Porter goes on a desperate hunt for his missing girlfriend, Stephanie, leading him to uncover a bizarre conspiracy within the Commonwealth community. Meanwhile, Connie returns to her roots as a reporter to investigate a related story within the Commonwealth, and Carol accompanies Lance Hornsby on a mission off-campus.

• IMDB Rating: 6.6/10

"Rogue Element" holds an odd space in The Walking Dead. Taking place primarily within the walls of the Commonwealth. As a result, the episode loses itself in the surprisingly normal day-to-day life of the community. Zombies take a backseat to political intrigue and covert conspiracies until the episode barely feels like The Walking Dead anymore. "Rogue Element" would work better as part of another show that takes place in the real world, but feels out of place in The Walking Dead. The episode's final twist, where Max is revealed as the real Stephanie, feels like a cheap transplant from a campier television series, cementing "Rogue Element" as one of The Walking Dead's worst episodes.

"Monsters" Cements The Disappointment of the Savior War Storyline

Season 8, Episode 3

"Monsters," the third episode of The Walking Dead's eighth season, picks up after the previous entry's massive cliffhanger, where Rick was faced with a familiar face inside a Savior base. Morales, a survivor who had been a part of Rick's group all the way back in Season 1, is revealed as a member of the Saviors years later, and he no longer views his former ally as a hero. Meanwhile, the Savior War continues to rage on numerous fronts, leaving significant casualties in its wake.

• IMDB Rating: 6.5/10

Morales's return was something that The Walking Dead fans had theorized about for years. However, it proves to be incredibly disappointing, with Daryl killing the returning character in a matter of minutes. This is only one of many disappointing parts of Season 8, which had been built up heavily over the last several years as the ultimate conclusion to the Savior War storyline. At this point, it was rapidly becoming clear that the season wouldn't be everything that fans were promised.

"Time for After" Continued a Losing Streak for The Walking Dead Season 8

Season 8, Episode 7

"Time for After" takes a break from the relentless action of The Walking Dead's eighth season to offer a deeper insight into the inner workings of the Sanctuary, the Saviors' home base. As Negan's captive, Eugene struggles with the revelation that Dwight is secretly a mole working with the Alexandrians. Meanwhile, Rick Grimes is held hostage by Jadis, the former leader of the Scavengers, who has ties to another mysterious community.

• IMDB Rating 6.5/10

The Sanctuary storyline of this episode has its high points, including some much-needed redemptive moments for Dwight's character. It is the B storyline that truly drags this episode down. The Walking Dead never really knew what to do with Jadis's character, often featuring her in drawn-out storylines that bring the larger arc to a screeching halt. Audiences are made to suffer through far too many of Jadis's antics before the episode finally ends. While this helps set up her larger role in The Ones Who Live, it still feels like the writers were making up Jadis's story as they went. All things being fair, the episode has at least one memorable sequence as Rick is forced to battle a heavily armored walker in a cluttered scrapyard.

"The King, the Widow, and Rick" Spreads Itself Too Thin

Season 8, Episode 6

"The King, the Widow, and Rick" launches the second phase of the Savior War as the Coalition of Communities regroups and plans their next attack. Maggie struggles to accommodate a large group of Savior soldiers captured during the early raids, wondering if it would be better to execute them all as a show of force. Meanwhile, Ezekiel struggles with the weight of the Kingdom's heavy losses and wonders if he should lay down his title of king. Outside Alexandria, several characters go out on their own adventures, including Carl, who goes on a mission to find Saddiq in the woods.

• IMDB Rating: 6.2/10

This episode has plenty of interesting storylines, but struggles to do them all justice in its limited runtime. Had the episode focused on one or two of these arcs, it might have made for passable filler. Instead, it feels like an overstuffed episode that still somehow goes nowhere. Worse, this episode has become infamous for featuring a scene that would later spell Carl Grimes's demise, as he is secretly bitten by a walker while trying to save Siddiq.

"Find Me" Disappoints With an Unnecessary Flashback Storyline

Season 10, Episode 18

The Walking Dead's tenth season was a victim of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the season finale delayed by several months as post-production stalled. To make up for the delay, AMC gave fans a humble offering of six additional episodes to bridge the gap between seasons ten and eleven. Unfortunately, the majority of these bonus episodes were disliked by the fanbase. Among the least popular is "Find Me," a bonus episode that flashes back to Daryl's desperate search for Rick Grimes sometime during Season 9's major time jump.

• IMDB Rating: 6.2/10

During the events of "Find Me," Daryl becomes distracted from his Rick-seeking mission when he encounters a solitary survivor named Leah Shaw (guest star Lynn Collins). The two entertain a whirlwind romance that ends suddenly when Leah disappears without a trace. Some fans were put off by the sudden introduction of a love interest for Daryl, especially when previous episodes had clearly been setting up a potential relationship with Connie. While Leah eventually returns to the series in Season 11, "Find Me" still feels like unnecessary filler that doesn't add much to the overall story.

"Swear" Proves That One Supporting Cast Member Can't Lead a Storyline

Season 7, Episode 6

The Walking Dead interrupts the flow of its already bleak seventh season with "Swear," an episode that catches up with Tara Chambler and Heath as they embark on a scouting mission far beyond the walls of Alexandria. Along the way, Heath goes missing and Tara finds herself captured by an all-female community at Oceanside. With no allies to help her, Tara must find a way to escape and make it back home to her friends at Alexandria, unaware of the devastating losses they have faced while she was gone.

• IMDB Rating: 5.7/10

The Walking Dead puts Alanna Masterson's Tara Chambler in the spotlight for the first time in years, giving her a storyline of her own. Unfortunately, "Swear" only proves that there isn't enough substance to Tara's character to sustain an entire episode. While she works well as a side character, Tara struggles to lead a storyline of her own. This episode essentially doomed Tara's storyline, relegating her to little more than a background character for the rest of her tenure on the series. Furthermore, "Swear" also introduced one of the most frustrating loose ends of The Walking Dead with Heath's disappearance, which remains unresolved almost a decade later.

"Splinter" Treads Water In an Entirely Unnecessary Filler Episode

Season 10, Episode 20

As part of the bonus episodes that premiered after the end of The Walking Dead's tenth season, "Splinter" follows up on the massive cliffhanger that introduced the Commonwealth to the series. After being captured by a group of soldiers, Eugene, Yumiko, Ezekiel, and Princess are kept imprisoned in train cars awaiting their fate. Isolated and insecure, Princess begins to experience traumatic flashbacks to her dark past.

• IMDB Rating: 5.2/10

"Splinter" is a pointless episode that leaves audiences frustrated. Viewers were already sold on Princess following her introduction earlier in the season, but this episode hammers home elements of her backstory that previous episodes had already introduced. The worst crime of this episode, however, is that it merely treads water, teasing the Commonwealth without actually delving into the new community. This episode could be skipped without missing anything vital to the larger story of The Walking Dead.

"Diverged" Is a Frustrating New Low for The Walking Dead

Season 10, Episode 21