Surprising character deaths are a major part of The Walking Dead's legacy, but fan favorites turning into the very creatures they gave their all to fight against is always an especially sore subject. In the zombie apocalypse, our faves joining the ranks of the undead is to be expected, but we keep opening our hearts right back up again. Though the final season is trucking right along with the finish line in sight, we find it highly doubtful that we're going to make it to the end of the series without seeing at least one more beloved character (maybe several) going full walker.

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Still, that isn't to say that it doesn't still surprise the heck out of us every single time. A number of recurring cast members made their final appearances as zombies, and it is always at least a little bit upsetting to see someone we've gotten to know over several episodes or even seasons coming for the brains of their former loved ones. Sadly, there isn't much you can do when your faves join the ranks of the undead, but we are here to commiserate.

Siddiq - Season 10, Episode 8, "The World Before"

Though Abraham and Glenn's deaths at Negan's hands in the season 7 kick-off remains perhaps the most egregious on the series, we'd like to nominate Siddiq as another character where we just plain didn't see it coming. Serving as an ethical and compassionate member of Michonne's crew that never shied away from standing up for what he believed in, his character set-up made it seem certain that he'd be sticking around.

Turns out, not so much. Siddiq is betrayed by a friend who turns out to be a spy for the Whisperers, and his brutal death remains one of the most stunning on a series that is chockfull of them. To make matters worse, his former fling and friend Rosita is the one who finds him, now zombified, and is forced to put him down. You'd think this would be the worst of them, but up next we've got...

Sasha - Season 7, Episode 16, "The First Day of the Rest of Your Life"

Sasha is another character that fans went absolutely wild for, and her low-key vibes and ability to see things in a big picture way make it easy to see why. Having suffered no small amount of loss over her character's arc, the worst came when her burgeoning love affair with Abraham came to a crashing halt via Negan's bat.

Spending much of her ensuing time with our crew in mourning and seeking revenge against Negan, Sasha never quite got over Abraham's death. Indeed, her last appearances show how much of an impact he had on her, and it could very well be what led to moments of uncharacteristic recklessness. When she realized she would be used against her friends by the Saviors, she became a walker intentionally with the hope of taking Negan out. This was all for naught, and we lost a real one as a result.

Andrea - Season 3, Episode 16, "Welcome to the Tombs"

To be fair, Andrea didn't quite get to the point of transformation. After a somewhat convoluted character turn in which she ignored Michonne's on-point read of the villainous Governor, Andrea learned the truth in the worst possible way. This is a key lesson to surviving the zombie apocalypse; always listen to Michonne.

When she realized her mistake and turned on the Governor, it was sadly too late. Indicative of his general veneer of frightening immaturity and juvenile maliciousness, he chained her in a room with a walker. She was bitten and chose to go out on her own terms, refusing to succumb to the plague. For fans of the comics who were waiting to see a larger arc for Andrea on the series, this remains one of the most surprising deaths.

Lucille - Season 10, Episode 22, "Here's Negan"

This is a weird one because we enter the episode fully aware of the fact that Lucille is going to die, and yet it remains one of the most devastating surprises in the series' history. Before this episode, we had a number of hints and references to the tragedy that cost Negan his beloved wife, but what we didn't know was how much he failed her as a husband. We see him and Lucille struggling to survive during the apocalypse with her quickly dying from cancer as he dutifully administers chemotherapy himself.

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Through flashbacks, we see that he took her for granted and cheated on her, which adds an extra layer of guilt to his devotion in the present. When her medication runs dry, he ignores her plea for him to stay and be with her at the end, convinced that he can change the writing on the wall. When he returns, she's become a walker and leaves a note asking him not to leave her as such. If this sounds devastating, that's because it is! This adds a lot of depth to Negan, but it also shows us why he fell in love with Lucille. By the end of the episode, we have as well.

Tara - Season 9, Episode 15, "The Calm Before"

When Tara first arrived on the scene, she'd spent the better part of the apocalypse caring for her sister and father, protecting them from the walkers outside. The Governor arrived as a wandering stranger, and they helped him while he offered some valuable lessons on survival. A number of deceased love interests later, Tara transformed to an optimistic fight to the stoic the leader of the people on the Hilltop.

A lot of characters around Tara died over her time as a recurring character, but somehow we just weren't expecting her to go. Her death episode remains one of the scariest of the series, with her and other surprise deaths like Henry and Enid ending up zombified and beheaded as a message to the people of Alexandria.

Shane - Season 2, Episode 12, "Better Angels"

Shane's turn to villainy made him a fairly difficult character to mourn, but there's no denying that he left a legacy of complicated feelings for Rick. Shane had some pretty serious issues of feeling secondary to Rick and it caused all kinds of problems for the group, and it became obvious at a certain point that he was going to have to go.

Yet, we still didn't expect him to go out the way he did. When Rick tells Shane he'll have to kill an unarmed man to emerge victoriously, he actually uses the surprise advantage and stabs Shane. Surprising everyone, Shane then transforms into a zombie, leading everyone to believe that all that die will ultimately become walkers. Carl is forced to put him down, and it's an emotional scene, to say the least.

Sophia - Season 2, Episode 7, "Pretty Much Dead Already"

Carol is a champion of survival and a valuable ally, but the sad fact is that she doesn't have the best luck with kids. When her daughter Sophia arrived on the scene, it seemed certain that the two would not be separated. However, the zombie apocalypse had other plans.

Discovering that Hershel's barn was full of walkers, the group is surprised to see a zombified Sophia staggering toward them. Having known she was missing but not that she had died, Carol is absolutely devastated, while Rick is forced to step up and put her down. Child death is especially rough, and this scene remains one of the franchise's most disturbing moments.

Eric - Season 8, Episode 3, "Monsters"

Aaron's partner Eric was an all-timer, and we're sorry he had to go. Giving all he had and then some, it's easy to understand what those two lovebirds saw in one another. When he ended up gravely injured, Aaron tried to stay with him until the bitter end.

However, Eric had other plans. Taking one for the team, he urged Aaron to return to the action, assuring him that he wasn't going to be going anywhere due to his extensive injuries. Little did we know, he actually was, as he transformed into a walker and joined a larger group of the undead before Aaron had the chance to say a proper goodbye.

Hershel, Season 4, Episode 9, "After"

Hershel was the father of Beth and Maggie, and even as late in the game as season 11, Maggie is still dropping tidbits of wisdom that he imparted on her. With his laid-back farmer mentality, this was a major guiding light for Rick and the others, and his legacy as one of the most wholesome characters on a wildly violent show remains strong.

When the Governor attempted to use Hershel as a bargaining chip, we should have known that his days were numbered, but it was hard to let the sage advice-giver go. When he was transformed into a walker, Michonne stepped forward and mercifully ended his life, but we're still a little stunned that it got to that point to begin with. Imagining Hershel had stayed with the series, his interactions with Negan would have been something to behold.

Gage - Season 11, Episode 2, "Acheron: Pt. II"

Gage is one of those characters where, when he first arrived on the scene, he was annoying enough that a lot of fans were waiting for his arrogance to catch up with him, at which time he would inevitably experience a bitterly violent end. However, when it actually happened, it was pretty hard not to feel bad for the guy despite his many mistakes.

When Maggie and her group go on a dangerous mission for supplies, Gage and Roy disappear with their ammunition. When he gets separated from Roy, he tries to join back up with the group, begging Maggie to let him back in as a group of walkers draws near. She refuses to jeopardize the group, and Gage stabs himself in the chest in hopes of avoiding becoming a walker, though it doesn't work. This is a surprising death not just because of the terror he experienced but the glimpse it gives us of Maggie's increasingly calculated decision-making.

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