Rick is an ordinary man put into an extraordinary position. A small-town sheriff’s deputy, Rick wakes to the apocalypse in a hospital after being wounded on the job. Being the most morally sound, he is tasked with leading the group and establishing a code; “We don’t kill the living,” he sermonizes. However, he eventually struggles to maintain his morality in the face of impending danger and betrays his ideals, reasoning that “the living tried to kill us.”
After his son, Carl, is accidentally shot by a man belonging to Hershel’s group, they are taken into Hershel’s farmhouse. The farmhouse eventually proves to be vulnerable and is overrun by herds of walkers, leaving the group to once again fend for themselves.
While Rick was in a coma, his partner and best friend Shane, began an affair with his wife, Lori. Rick tells Shane he had already found out, despite Lori confessing after becoming pregnant. Not only is the paternity of the baby unknown, but Rick’s leadership is constantly questioned by Shane. Shane reasons that Rick is too lenient in how he commands the group and tries to murder him.
Rick ends up stabbing Shane in the heart, sobbing “Dam you for making me do this.” Soon after, Rick’s leadership takes a turn, as he warns “this isn’t a democracy anymore.”