When The Walking Dead fans look back on each season, most of them don’t remember Season 8 too fondly. Season 7 hit a terrible rough patch after the killing Glenn in the premiere, and losing energy with each episode. Season 8 was not only a chance to make up for the losses, but to celebrate the AMC series’ 100th episode. Many television shows in the 2020s can’t even reach that milestone, with so many cancelations and abrupt endings.

The Walking Dead Season 8 succeeded in getting people to talk about the show again, but perhaps not in the way the creators intended. The most controversial moment of the season was Carl Grimes’ unexpected death, which radically departed from his “last man standing” fate in Robert Kirkman’s comics of the same name. Carl’s death was a poor turning point for the series as a whole, and The Walking Dead never truly recovered from it, even with Season 9’s new burst of life. Still, Season 8 always kept the ball rolling. The “All Out War” arc officially commenced, Morgan Jones was on a downward slope of losing himself, and Maggie embraced the role of “The Widow.” So many of these arcs culminated in episodes that even outranked Carl’s death episode.

10. ‘Honor’ Says Goodbye to a Key Character

Season 8, Episode 9

The Walking Dead saw plenty of deaths in the original series, but nothing struck a strong chord like a Season 8 death The Ones Who Live references.

Many of the best overall episodes of The Walking Dead are ones that say goodbye to a survivor among Rick’s group. The Walking Dead‘s greatest strength is executing the emotional gravitas of the death of a person who’s loved by many. “Honor” takes the majority of the episode to remember Carl in his last moments as Rick and Michonne help him escape the bombing of Alexandria.

The reason why this episode isn’t any higher on this list isn’t because of its controversial nature, but because it struggles with the pacing. “Honor” is structured in a bizarre manner that lingers on Carl in his dying breath while also repeatedly cutting to the size of the Kingdom. While Carl is a character worthy of a grand goodbye, the episode is stuck in a circle that prohibits the plot from moving at a reasonable pace.

9. ‘The Damned’ Reminds Rick Grimes of His Past

Season 8, Episode 2

The end of “The Damned” had hardcore fans going, “They brought him back!” and casual viewers going, “Wait, who is that again?” Maybe Morales wasn’t the right choice to bring back as a shocking cameo for everyone to remember. But the Season 1 character was a pleasant surprise that turned Rick on his heels and remind himself of the Sheriff’s Deputy he left behind.

The return of Morales was a talking point of the episode, but it also introduced Alden, a former Savior who would become one of Maggie’s most trusted allies. Between all the new and old characters getting their spotlight, various factions are reeling with the consequences of war. Rick realizing he orphaned an infant child is a particularly haunting scene.

8. ‘Time for After’ Unveils the Traitors

Season 8, Episode 7

“Time for After” practically curses its main characters. Rick learns the hard way that separating ranks during a war doesn’t always work out, and funny enough, Negan is taught the same lesson. It’s an ironic epiphany that maybe Rick and Negan are two sides of the same coin, only one is a true and fair leader while the other is a sadist.

Both Rick and Negan suffer betrayals in this episode as they deal with being locked up against their will — either mentally or physically. Daryl orchestrates a plan to ram a truck into the Sanctuary, flooding it with walkers against Rick’s wishes of hurting innocent people. Negan is trying to find the mole in his ranks, just as Eugene discovers its Dwight. The dual stories of betrayal offers a consistent theme between both sides.

7. ‘How It’s Gotta Be’ Changed The Walking Dead Forever

Season 8, Episode 8

There’s an argument to be made that people were more infuriated at “How It’s Gotta Be” than “Honor.” In the earlier seasons, The Walking Dead used to take a winter break in the middle of each season — a pretty out-of-the-world concept that’s now returning with two-parter seasons in the streaming era. “How It’s Gotta Be” was the mid-season finale of Season 8, ending on the cliffhanger of Carl revealing his bite wound.

The Walking Dead fans were still haunted by the infamous Season 6 cliffhanger, so this one stung. People had to wait two months to find out what was next. People were so desperate for Carl to live that they theorized he could still survive. Cliffhanger aside, the All Out War arc finally comes to a climactic point as Negan attacks Alexandria. Carl steps up as the leader he was born to be, and apparently died to be as well.

6. ‘Worth’ Feeds a Villain a Taste of His Own Medicine

Season 8, Episode 15

Simon was on the chopping block long before his death in “Worth.” Negan’s second-hand lieutenant wasn’t exactly delicate in his approach of overthrowing Negan as the leader of the Saviors. Simon’s death in trial by combat is a fitting end for the chaotic character (until his brief and out-of-character cameo in Dead City), which this episode never fails to remind viewers as unpredictable and hasty.

The high points of “Worth” also feature Michonne putting her vendetta aside to honor Carl’s wishes of reading Negan his note. While Carl is gone, his memory continues with the help of his father and best friend. The funny banter between Daryl, Rosita and Eugene also take some of the weight off all the mentions of death and betrayal, up until Rosita diminishes Eugene for his unyielding cowardice.

5. ‘Mercy’ Takes The Walking Dead Through Time

Season 8, Episode 1

The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live only ran for six episodes, but a hypothetical Season 2 would drag out what was a fitting conclusion.

“Mercy” is a Catch-22 situation in that it can’t possibly accomplish everything it hopes to achieve. The Season 8 premiere is The Walking Dead‘s 100th episode, so it has to hit the nostalgic factor. It’s also the official start to the All Out War arc, which can’t rely on nostalgia to shoulder that type of responsibility.

Ultimately, “Mercy” is a middle-of-the-road episode. It plays it safe, but perhaps a little too safe for a season premiere. Similar to the Season 5 premiere with the cannibals, the episode’s storyline was a tremendous risk that paid off. Unfortunately, The Walking Dead wasn’t willing to take risks at this uncertain point in time. But “Mercy” does have a brilliant opening sequence of Carl re-enacting Rick’s first scene in the series, and carefully dupes viewers into thinking Carl’s dream sequence of a perfect world is the future.

4. Do Not Send Us Astray’ Pumps Blood Back Into Season 8

Season 8, Episode 13

“Do Not Send Us Astray” is a fun and exciting entry to Season 8 after Carl’s death. Everyone has regrouped at Hilltop after Alexandria and the Kingdom’s fall, which means the small community is quite overcrowded. Having everyone under one roof is the perfect opportunity for Simon to prove his worth as more than just a lieutenant.

Dwight’s work as a spy is put to the test as he has to follow Simon’s lead in attacking Hilltop, while also assuring that no one on Rick’s side is harmed in the process. The battle is a thrilling race to see who comes out on top, which unfortunately ends with the death of Tobin. The emotional reaction to his death just goes to show how well The Walking Dead used to develop supporting characters.

3‘Wrath’ Puts an End to All Out War

Season 8, Episode 16

Fans were ambushed with Carl’s death in Episodes 8 and 9. It was a hard pill to swallow, and by the finale, people wanted a win. The problem was, the show had already taken one major deviation from the comics. They couldn’t kill Negan and send Jeffrey Dean Morgan on his way. The Season 8 finale had to honor the end of Kirkman’s comics, and by extension, honor Carl’s final wishes.

Everything comes to a close in this beautifully-cinematic finale, which mainly takes place in an open field with a cloudless sky above. Both groups meet on separate ends to commence the final fight, until Eugene’s act of loyalty to Rick gives the Militia the upper hand. Rick’s decision to save Negan is a safe, but charismatic cliffhanger that plants the seed for a civil war between the survivors. By the end, people are left questioning if one man should be in charge of several communities’ futures.

2. ‘Some Guy’ Loses a Fierce Fighter

Season 8, Episode 4

Ezekiel Sutton was always the guy nobody ever took seriously. His Shakespearan-tone and old English vocabulary came off as an offensive joke to everyone struggling to make ends meet in the apocalypse. But “Some Guy” peels back the Shakespeare and establishes that Ezekiel is just some guy putting on a mask.

“Some Guy” was the last appearance of Ezekiel’s pet tiger Shiva, who heroically died saving her owner from a group of walkers. Her death was as emotional as any other human dying in the series, and possibly even more. The loss of an innocent being was the last straw for Ezekiel, who spiraled into a dark hole that made him believe he wasn’t worth following anymore.

1. ‘The Key’ Burns and Builds Bridges

Season 8, Episode 12

No one is safe in the world of The Walking Dead, except for the fan favorites. Here are the fates of every main character on The Ones Who Live.

“The Key” on paper is one of the strangest Walking Dead episodes, and that’s including Carol’s bottle episode chasing a rat in Season 10. Newcomers arrive on the scene right smack in the middle of the conflict, taking an intermittent pause from the war. These new people, led by a clean-cut woman named Georgie with her eclectic companions, make a deal with Maggie in exchange for the “key to the future.”

Georgie and Co. were giving off Commonwealth vibes, but it turns out they had nothing to do with the new community based on the comics. While that was disappointing to eventually learn, “The Key” is the best Season 8 episode for the spontaneous hand-to-hand skirmish between Rick and Negan. It garnered one of the most iconic shots of the series, with Rick lighting Negan’s bat Lucille on fire.