Top 20 Times Rick from The Walking Dead Went Beast Mode

Top-20-Times-Rick-from-The-Walking-Dead-Went-Beast-Mode

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the top 20 times Rick Grimes went beast mode. If you aren’t caught up with everything from the original “Walking Dead” to the “One Who Live” show, beware of major spoilers ahead.

#20: Cutting Through a Carnival of Walkers

“Say Yes”

Rick was initially composed as he cut down dozens of walkers in an amusement park. But after he accidentally falls in front of a crowd of hungry enemies, he’s forced to unleash his beastly side. Rick started by shooting walkers down with cold precision. Upon running out of ammo, it briefly seemed like he got devoured by the undead. But in an epic moment, Rick remerged, shoved a walker aside, and sliced his way to safety with his trusty hatchet. His sudden burst of energy gave Michonne the jolt she needed to fight back after his fake out death. Rick’s refusal to give up ensured that they were the only two left standing among a carnival of walkers.

#19: Hitting Bob With a Car

“Coda”

During Rick’s search for Beth, he captures a survivor named Bob. Although the prisoner promises to help, he tries to escape as soon as he gets an opening. Rick eventually finds a car and relentlessly pursues Bob. Officer Friendly tries to gently encourage the escapee to stop. When his pleas for peace are ignored, Rick puts his foot on the gas and mows Bob down. The gruff hero showed absolutely no remorse as he walked up to his injured target. Rick even calls the broken Bob out for running. After this incident, we knew for sure that if Officer Friendly tells you to stop, you should definitely listen.

#18: Establishing His Ricktatorship

“Beside the Dying Fire”

Not every beast mode moment involves lots of death. In fact, one of Rick’s most famous and fierce scenes was all about keeping people alive. Shortly after his group’s sanctuary goes up in flames, people start openly doubting him and questioning his decisions. An enraged Rick eventually lashes out and makes it known that he won’t tolerate dissension. During his angry rant, he tells people to fend for themselves if they don’t like his way of doing things. Many fans remember this pivotal speech as the moment where he established his Ricktatorship. Only Rick could make an awesome speech that hits harder than any punch.

#17: Taking Out Tomas

“Sick”
Rick forms an uneasy deal with a group of prisoners led by a man named Tomas. The officer agrees to help the felons take out some walkers in exchange for food. When they are all fighting together, Tomas tries to get rid of Rick while making it look like an accident. But after Rick survives these attempts on his life, he immediately and violently takes out Tomas. A prisoner named Andrew tries to retaliate. But Rick chases him down and leaves him at the mercy of walkers. No matter how tough these prisoners were, even they were helpless against an angry Rick. Betraying him is the biggest mistake any survivor can make.

#16: Escaping the Atlanta Walkers

“Guts”

Every “Walking Dead” fan remembers the time Rick hid in a tank to escape from Atlanta’s walkers. But the awesome moment that’s less talked about is how he got out. After some…
“encouragement” from Glenn, Rick makes a run for safety with limited ammo and a shovel. Officer Friendly then proceeds to deliver an incredible series of headshots without breaking his stride. He’s even able to turn around and nail a few extra walkers on with his remaining ammo. Outside of Rick’s incredible accuracy, what made this scene especially impressive was the fact that this was the first time he faced so many undead enemies at once. This sequence served as early proof that the hero could take on hordes of walkers without getting a scratch.

#15: Hunting the Wolves

“Thank You”

While Rick was trying to lead a gigantic horde of walkers away from Alexandria, he was suddenly attacked by the violent members of the Wolves group. After narrowly dodging gunfire, he takes on two opponents at once with his bare hands. Rick manages to keep them at bay until he reclaims his gun and takes them out. Before he can take a breath, he realizes a few more Wolves are on the way. Without hesitation, Rick shoots through an RV wall and doesn’t stop until he’s sure that every last enemy is down. The villains genuinely thought they could get a jump on Rick. But the wolves quickly learned that they were no match for a true beast.

#14: Slaying Surrendering Saviors

“Still Gotta Mean Something”

Near the end of the Savior War, Rick and Morgan get captured by a group of Negan’s soldiers. The heroic duo initially promises to show mercy to anyone who’s willing to work with them. When a bunch of walkers rush into the impromptu prison, the saviors decide to prove they can be allies by freeing Rick and Morgan. The heroic duo initially fight the undead alongside the enemies. But after Rick and Morgan exchange a tense glance, they start attacking every savior within reach. The duo savagely executes every person they come across. Rick’s savage actions here showed that he would go to extremely dark lengths to win the Savior War.

#13: Shutting Shane Down

“18 Miles Out” & “Better Angels”

Although Rick tried not to let his verbal disagreements with Shane turn into physical altercations, there were two occasions where he couldn’t hold back. Their first major fallout occurred when the two argued about whether they should spare a prisoner. When Shane implied his old friend would fail to protect his family, Rick lashed out. Officer Friendly didn’t stop fighting until his former partner was left lying bloody on the ground. After letting Shade slide, Rick later found himself on the wrong end of his friend's gun. This time around, Grimes didn’t hesitate to go for the kill. Shane learned the hard way twice that Rick won’t let foes or friends threaten his family.

#12: Retrieving The Hatchet

“The Day Will Come When You Won't Be”

Shortly after Negan dealt two crushing blows to Rick’s group, the villain wanted to see if Officer Friendly was willing to work for him. The big bad decided to test the water by giving the hero a nearly impossible task. After Negan tossed a hatchet into a foggy crowd of walkers, he commanded Rick to fetch it. The hero kept hungry enemies at bay with almost no visibility and or weapons. When Rick finally got his hands on the hatchet, he took out his frustration over his loss to Negan on any walker that got close. The hero was ready to cut the entire horde down until the big bad intervened. Rick’s ferocious fighting skills allowed him to pass Negan’s cruel test with flying colors.

#11: Murdering An Assassin

“Knots Untie”

A desperate man named Ethan was told that he could only get his brother back if he killed Hilltop leader Gregory. But while he was trying to get the dark deed done, Rick intervened. The hero didn’t hold back as he repeatedly pummeled Ethan. Despite Rick’s ferocity, he still ended up at the mercy of the would-be assassin. When Ethan made the mistake of looking away, the hero gave him a fatal wound that we absolutely cannot show here. Just trust us when we say that Ethan lost a lot of blood very quickly. Rick was feeling so confident after his brutal kill that he immediately agreed to take out some more enemies for the Hilltop.

#10: Cutting Down Prison Walkers

"Say the Word"
When Rick gets the news that his wife lost her life, he is overwhelmed with a sense of loss. He decides to process his feelings by picking up an ax and hacking away at walkers trapped in the prison. Rick manages to take down a ridiculous number of them single-handedly in extremely dark hallways. While that sounds intimidating on its own, what really makes his rampage frightening is that he doesn't speak a single word the entire time. We know there are many different ways people can process grief. But we’re pretty sure that Rick’s insane ax spree is the most intimidating coping method we’ve ever seen.

#9: Fighting Pete

"Try"
Shortly after arriving in Alexandria, Doctor Pete welcomes Rick with an ominous greeting. And upon observing how Pete misuses alcohol and mistreats his family, Rick becomes wary of him. The tensions between the two rise until they finally boil over in a climactic fight scene. It doesn’t matter that the doctor is bigger or that they both crash through a window. Rick is so focused on reducing Pete to a pulp that he pushes away his son Carl when he tries to stop the fight. Rick ultimately decides to let the doctor live another day. However, as soon as Alexandria’s leader Deanna decides she wants Pete gone for good, Rick doesn’t hesitate to put him down.

#8: Ambushing Negan Solo

“The Key”
In the middle of the Savior War, Rick decides to try to end the conflict early by ambushing their leader Negan. When they both crash their cars, Rick walks out of the wreckage and starts shooting immediately. He ignores walkers completely while pursuing Negan into a dark building. Their ensuing fight is filled with hard hits, near-misses, and plenty of taunts. Although Rick manages to light Negan's signature weapon on fire, he still isn't able to take down the head savior in this fight. Rick shows incredible determination and courage during his single-minded pursuit. His hard work would later pay off when he overcame pain, and the odds, to beat Negan in their one-on-one rematch.

#7: Escaping Terminus

“No Sanctuary”
Things weren't looking good for Rick after he arrived in Terminus. He’s bound, gagged, and held captive by a group who see humans as gourmet meals. But he turns things around with a piece of wood. While the villains are distracted by an explosion, Rick cuts himself free and takes out two of them. He frees his allies, cuts down walkers, and ambushes a gun-toting Terminus resident. Rick uses the stolen gun to shoot his way through the living and undead enemies until he’s reunited with his family. His success fills him with so much adrenaline that he wants to head back into Terminus to finish off the residents. While Rick couldn’t get revenge...yet... he could still celebrate pulling off a badass escape.

#6: Defeating the Spiked Walker Winslow

“New Best Friends”
While preparing to battle the saviors, Rick finds himself at the mercy of a group called the Scavengers. Although he attempts to make an alliance with their leader Jadis, she refuses to negotiate until Rick proves himself. She then pushes him into a junkyard pit and makes him fight a walker covered in spikes named Winslow. Rick doesn't have any weapons and can't touch his foe without injuring himself. But after getting some advice from Michonne, he sends the garbage around him toppling onto Winslow. He then picks up a piece of glass and finishes the spiky walker off for good. Rick’s victory in this impromptu gladiator match is one of his most impressive accomplishments.

#5: Removing His Own Hand

“Years”

Once the crooked military organization known as the CRM got their hands on Rick, they refused to let him go. They even put one of his hands on a leash to prevent him from escaping. But that didn’t stop Rick from attempting a daring escape. During a walker battle, Rick isolated himself and heated up a hatchet. He then used the weapon to remove his leashed hand from his body. Not only does Rick stay conscious after the unimaginably painful scene, but he managed to kill a walker and cauterized the wound. Unfortunately for Rick, a CRM soldier tasered him before he could escape. While we’re used to seeing the hero rebel against villains, this impromptu surgery stands as his most brutal act of defiance.

#4: Fulfilling a Harsh Promise

"Four Walls and a Roof”
One of the most despicable “Walking Dead” villains was the head of Terminus, Gareth. Rick promised to dispatch him during their first confrontation. After escaping Rick's wrath once, Gareth makes the fatal mistake of going after the heroes again. Rick decides to lure the villain into a trap. He's barely able to contain his quiet rage as he confronts Gareth with harsh truths. Eventually, Rick can't hold back anymore and reaches for a weapon he promised to end Gareth’s life with. Knowing that Rick planned this visceral scene is really, really intense and unsettling. But his actions are arguably understandable for a villain as despicable as Gareth.

#3: Taking on a Horde

“No Way Out”
It turns out that Rick's prison rampage was just a warmup for Alexandria. After the city is overwhelmed by walkers and Carl is severely wounded, Rick decides to take on the horde by himself. Armed with nothing but a hatchet, he wades into the walkers and cuts down every single one he sees. Even when Rick is completely surrounded with no hope of escape, he refuses to stop swinging at them again and again. His insane display of courage and endurance eventually inspires other Alexandria residents to rise up and fight the horde with him. But we have a feeling that if you gave Rick enough time, he could have taken care of all of them by himself.

#2: Destroying a Bridge While Wounded

“What Comes After”

As a large horde of walkers descends on his friends and family, Rick volunteers to lead the undead army away. Unfortunately, he suffers a severe wound after his horse throws him off. Although Rick loses a lot of blood, and keeps hallucinating, he still tries to lead the walkers away from his loved ones. He eventually makes it to a bridge. After somehow gathering the strength to take a few walkers down with a hatchet, he uses his gun to ignite sticks of dynamite. The resulting explosion destroys the bridge and takes out a huge amount of walkers. But the most incredible part of this amazing feat is that he survives both his wound and the explosion. Is Rick Grimes just immortal?

#1: Desperately Biting Joe

“A”

A peaceful moment between Rick and Michonne is completely shattered when Joe and his gang of Claimers show up and hold the heroes at gunpoint. Joe makes it clear that he will assault and likely end the lives of everyone there. When Rick fails to gain the upper hand with a headbutt, he does the only thing he can think of. He bites Joe. The gruesome results of the act leave Joe’s crew so shaken that Rick, Michonne, and Darryl are able to turn the tide and overwhelm the gang. Rick's bite marks the moment that he fully embraced his most savage and animalistic instincts. It was also when we knew he was willing to put his humanity aside to save the ones he loves.


What’s your favorite Rick Grimes beast mode moment? Let us know in the comments below.