Rick Grimes-Part one: #2

 Rick Grimes

Rick Grimes is the main character in The Walking Dead television show.

If you aren't sure what The Walking Dead is about, I'd advise that you go back and read my first blog. It gives a brief summary of what happens in the beginning of the show. If you've already read it, well, bro-fist to you good sir or madame!

**I'd also like to add that there will most likely be spoilers in every single one of my blogs. I would avoid spoilers if I could, but it would be a fairly ineffective blog if no one learned anything about the show.**

Actor Biography

Rick Grimes is played by Andrew Lincoln, a British actor. He was educated at Beechen Cliff School in a town called Bath, in England. He went on to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London, which is quite a prestigious place.

Previous jobs
Lincoln's first big chance came in 1996, when he was given the role of Edgar Cook in the popular UK drama series, "This Life". In 2003, he played the role of Mark in the popular film "Love Actually". Seven years later, in 2010, Lincoln received the lead role in The Walking Dead.


Who was he before the Apocalypse?

Rick (right) shares a joke with Shane

When we first met Rick, he was a police officer in King County, Georgia. He worked alongside his partner and best friend, Shane Walsh. Rick and Shane were close all through high school, with Rick being the more quiet one and Shane being the popular ladies man. After graduating from high-school, the two of them both went to college for police administration and became sheriff deputies at the King County Sheriff's department.
Rick met his wife, Lori, in high-school and after dating for a short period of time they married and had a son named Carl.

Personality
Rick's personality changes considerably throughout the show. During the first season, we are introduced to a charismatic man who is calm during tense situations, smart and just. A perfect example of this is when he meets up with some other survivors in Atlanta: Glenn, Andrea, Jacqui, T-Dog, Morales and Merle. The group has been trapped in a building by walkers (a term used in the show, meaning "zombies"), and there does not seem to be a way out. Time is running out with the walkers pounding on the fragile glass doors. While the others are beginning to panic, Rick spots their new getaway vehicle, a van, across the street. The only problem, however, is a large group of walkers that want nothing more than to eat their guts, is in the way.

Using the knowledge that if the walkers hear you, see you, or smell you, they eat you, Rick comes up with a brilliant yet sickening idea. Using an axe, he hacks apart the body of a dead walker (how dead can a zombie get?). He and Glenn then grudgingly wipe the corpse's guts on their jackets.

Rick in action as he and Glenn "stealthily sneak" through the Walker Horde.

Rick and Glenn, now smelling just like all the other walkers, proceed to walk through the horde towards the van. The pair then drive back to the rest of the group and save the day. They all proceed to escape Atlanta to meet up with the rest of their group in an encampment outside of town.

In each episode, challenging situations arise. While everyone else panics, Rick manages to keep a cool head and make smart decisions that follow his personal code of what is right and what is wrong.

Fast forward to where we are now, just over halfway through the third season. Several traumatic and trying events have occurred (you will have to read future blogs to find out all of them!). Rick is shaken, unable to make smart and well thought-out decisions, and has become ruthless, killing anyone who may pose a threat to his group. His rule over the group has become more dictatorial, but he still has the respect and trust of the group.

This new, more traumatized version of Rick has developed a mindset that clashes with his strong personal values from the earlier seasons. He has learned that sometimes the decisions he has to make to ensure the survival of the group are not always just. This forces him to do things he would never have imagined doing a few months earlier.

When I started writing this blog about Rick, I did not imagine that it would grow to be so long. In an effort to ensure you do not become bored, I have split Rick's blog into two parts. In part two, I will examine Rick's apparent loss of sanity during the third season, his strengths and faults, and more.

Stay tuned,

-Ben Ferguson