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This article is about the TV Series character. You may be looking for his Comic Series counterpart. For other pages with the same name, see: Joe

See now that's right. It's not some damn lie. Look we can settle this, we're reasonable men. First we're gonna beat Daryl to death, then we'll have the girl, then the boy, then I'm gonna shoot you and then we'll be square.
―Joe taunting Rick Grimes.[src]

Joe is an antagonist and a survivor of the outbreak in AMC's The Walking Dead, as well as a main character in The Walking Dead: Red Machete. He is the leader of the Claimers and served as the primary antagonist for the second half of Season 4.

Overview[]

Joe is portrayed as being a sadistic, violent, and dangerous man with no qualms about committing heinous crimes such as rape, physical and psychological torture and murder but at the same time a strong leader to those in his group. He established only a few rules for the group and therefore he allows his men to do as they please, as long as they don't break them. When a rule is broken, he is cruel and merciless toward the offender and his approved methods of punishment are harsh, and often lethal. Joe appears to have complete power over his group and appears to be respected by them all, as they rarely seem to question his orders.

He is shown to be a savage and ruthless man, very much capable of cold-blooded murder and torture, however he still exercises patience and fairness (especially for Daryl), when newcomers wish to join him. Nonetheless, he is very cautious and inquisitive, making it clear that not just anyone will be allowed in.

Joe is also a hardened survivor, and appears to take sadistic pleasure in the violence that he and his group inflict on others as shown during the run-in with Rick's group, where Joe joyfully informs Rick of what he and his group plan to do to him, Carl, Daryl, and Michonne, and is shown to have no qualms about harming and killing children as he allowed his group member Dan to molest Carl and surely would have allowed him to kill him afterwards, showing that Joe is completely remorseless.

Joe is also shown to be a very honest and direct man and has made it very clear that he despises liars, as seen when he had Len beaten to death for lying after attempting to frame Daryl and also nearly had Billy and Harley kill Daryl when he believed Daryl was lying about Rick being a good person. However, at the same time he lacks the ability to look at things through the perspective of other people, as when he thinks that Daryl is lying about Rick being a good person, he fails to consider the possibility that Daryl may perceive Rick as a good person and may not be lying through his own point of view. Joe is also shown to be a little bit of a hypocrite, in the sense that when he thinks that Daryl is lying about Rick being a good person on the grounds that Rick had killed Lou, Joe arrogantly fails to see that he and his men are not good people either and this ironically is why Rick killed Lou in the first place. That and the fact that Joe and his men are rapists and murderers who evidently have no problem with killing children, making them worse than even Rick has ever been.

Despite his villainous nature, Joe appears to hold respect and care for most of the members of his group, most notably Lou, as he makes it a mission for his group to track Lou's killer, Rick, down and slaughter him as revenge and to also bring harm to those whom Rick cares about to further intensify their revenge towards him; an act that eventually leads to his violent demise as well as the deaths of the other members of his group.

Pre-Apocalypse[]

Georgia[]

Joe grew up in rural Georgia. At the age of 3, Joe gained an affection for cats where he believed there was nothing more sadder than an "outdoor cat" thinking it was an indoor one.

As an adult, Joe worked as a mechanic. It was through his work with vehicles that he grew to become a motorcycle enthusiast and presumably a member of a Harley's motorcycle club. Joe was also an outdoors-man, as he held a genuine respect for bowmen and their ability to wield crossbows. He experienced a country-based lifestyle where he enjoyed camping, hunting, and even bared knowledge on brewing homemade alcohol.

Post-Apocalypse[]

At some point after the outbreak, Joe eventually formed a small group of survivors whom he maintained a firm leadership over and thus he strongly enforced his personal set of rules towards which included a sense of honesty along with the notion of claiming supplies in order to prevent tension from arising within the group.

Over time however, Joe and his group gradually descended into a sinister lifestyle where eventually they became a group of marauders where they committed numerous horrific actions which included murdering innocent survivors, savagely raping several women as well as sadistically hunting their victims.

Red Machete[]

Content
"Made to Suffer"

A walker with a red machete stuck in its chest wanders the region until it is punched in the head. Joe appears and grabs the machete, before claiming it.

"What We Become"

After claiming the red machete, Joe leads his men throughout the woods near Terminus, passing a sign along the way. They are seen taking supplies from an abandoned campsite and later come across a lone man fighting against walkers. Joe watches the man fight and tightly grips the handle of the machete, implying he wants to either help the man or kill him for his supplies. Eventually, the man is taken down by the walkers and Joe loosens his grip on the machete and watches the man be eaten alive.

At a later time, Joe is seen smoking a cigarette while watching his men brutally beat another man after infiltrating his house. Later on at night, two thieves attempt to steal supplies from the Claimer's camp but Joe, Tony and another unnamed Claimer emerge from a tent and they subdue the thieves and as punishment for trying to steal from them, Joe hacks one of the thieves' arm off with the machete and presumably kills them both off-screen.

Joe is later seen during a flash forward to the events of the episode "A" in which he packs his red machete into a bag and pulls out his pistol and goes to ambush Rick, Michonne, and Carl on the road. After Joe's death, Rick finds the bag with the red machete in it.

TV Series[]

Season 4[]

Content
"Claimed"

Joe is one of the men who arrive at the house Rick Grimes, Carl Grimes, and Michonne Hawthorne are staying in. He is first heard laughing at Harley beat a dishonest member of their group to death and then declaring the house will be their "abode" for the evening. He is later physically seen when he comes upstairs and bounces a tennis ball in the back room where Rick is hiding. When one of the Claimers discovers Michonne's recently cleaned shirt and realizes she is taking shelter in the house, Joe is heard giving orders to prepare an ambush for Michonne and whoever else is with her and allow his men to rape her. After Rick sneaks outside, Joe sits on the porch eating a can of fruit and whistling. With Michonne and Carl returning from their supply run, unaware of the situation, Rick readies himself for battle, until Lou reanimates, attacks the group, and Joe quickly goes back inside to dispatch the walker, giving Rick the time he needed to escape.

"Alone"

Joe is first seen with his group gathering around Daryl Dixon, while Daryl is sitting down in the middle of a road. Joe approaches Daryl, but Daryl quickly rises up and punches Joe in the face, which bloodies his nose and knocks him down. Daryl then points his ready-to-fire crossbow at Joe's face, but Joe just gets back on his feet, laughs, and says he is pleased to see that Daryl is a "bowman". Joe then remarks some more on his admiration of Daryl's crossbow, including the range and force of its projectiles. Meanwhile, the other group members all point their weapons at Daryl, as Joe talks to Daryl. Joe then warns Daryl that if he kills him, the other group members will quickly kill Daryl in retaliation. After Joe talks Daryl into lowering his crossbow, the other group members lower their weapons too.

"Us"

Joe is first seen sleeping with his group who are all then woken up by a walker. Joe later breaks up a potential fight between Daryl and Len and explains to Daryl that if you "claim" something it's yours. Joe also tells Daryl that any rule breakers will be punished by beatings or worse. Joe splits the rabbit by cutting it in half, giving the upper body to Len and the lower body to Daryl.

Later in the episode, Len frames Daryl for stealing his half of the rabbit but Daryl denies that he stole it. Joe empties Daryl's bag and Len's half of the rabbit falls out. Joe asks Daryl if he stole the rabbit and again Daryl denies it. Joe then asks Len if he framed Daryl and Len says no. Joe then punches Len and tells Daryl that he saw Len put it in Daryl's bag. Joe then gives orders to the rest of the men to beat him up. While on the railroad tracks, Daryl finds the Terminus signs and asks Joe if they have come across the signs before. Joe says that there is no sanctuary for them and tells Daryl that his group has been tracking down a "walking piece of fecal matter" (Rick) who was hiding out in a house they marauded, killed one of their men (Lou) and left him to turn. Joe says that he has seen the Terminus signs, and the group has used it as an endpoint for where Rick may have gone.

"A"

During the middle of the night, Joe and his group ambush Rick, Michonne, and Carl while they are camped by the roadside. Joe holds his gun to Rick's head and is about to joyfully kill him, counting down from 10. As he gets to 8, Daryl emerges from the woods and tells Joe to stop. Joe allows Daryl to speak, and Daryl says that he is going to let Rick, Michonne and Carl go, claiming they are good people. Joe disagrees, bringing up that Rick killed Lou in a bathroom, and Daryl offers to take the punishment for Rick.

Joe then becomes visibly angered and says that Rick killed their friend and isn't a good person, stating "now that's a lie!" to Daryl, then proceeds to order his men to kill Daryl. Dan, one of Joe's group members, grabs Carl and holds a knife to his neck. Rick gets angry and tells Joe to order his men to leave Carl alone, claiming it was only him who killed Lou. Joe agrees with Rick's confession, citing it is not a lie and joyfully informs him that he will personally kill him after Daryl is beaten to death, and Michonne and Carl are raped and killed which will put an end to their conflict. As Joe is laughing sadistically, Rick head-butts Joe causing him to shoot his gun in reflex (and missing). Rick then punches Joe in the face. Joe quickly counters Rick's punch and knocks Rick to the ground and proceeds to kick him while he is down. Joe grabs Rick and locks him tightly. Joe taunts Rick, asking "What the hell are you gonna do now, sport?" Rick, after some thought, leans forward and bites a chunk out of Joe's neck and rips out his jugular vein, causing him to bleed to death.

Joe's entire group are then killed by Rick, Daryl and Michonne seconds later after being distracted by Joe's death.

Death[]

Killed By

Joe locks Rick with his arms, to prevent him from saving Carl of being raped and starts taunting him. Rick, in response, bites Joe's throat and rips out his jugular, killing him.

He is presumably put down before reanimation.

Killed Victims[]

This list shows the victims Joe has killed:

  • Thief 1 (Off-Screen)
  • Thief 2 (Off-Screen)
  • Lou (Zombified, Possibly, Alongside fellow Claimers)
  • Len (Caused)
  • 2 unnamed men (Caused, Alongside fellow Claimers)
  • 1 unnamed Claimer (Caused)
  • Numerous counts of zombies and unnamed people (Caused and Direct)

Relationships[]

For a more in-depth look at Joe's relationships, read here; Joe (TV Series)/Relationships

Allies[]

Enemies[]

Quotes[]

The following is a list of some of Joe's most memorable quotes.

Season 4

"A bow man! I respect that. See a man with a rifle, he could've been some kind of photographer or soccer coach back in the day but... a bow man's a bowman through and through."
- Joe complimenting Daryl's crossbow, "Alone"


"You pull that trigger, these boys are going to drop you several times over, that what you want? Come on fella, suicide is stupid. Why hurt yourself when you can hurt other people? Name's Joe."
- Joe introducing himself to Daryl, "Alone"


"Looks like you may be wanting an explanation. See going it alone that ain't an option nowadays. Still, it is survival of the fittest. That's a paradox right there, so I laid out some rules of the road to keep things from going Darwin every couple hours. Keep our merry band together and stress-free. All we gotta do is claim, that's how you mark your territory, your prey, your bed at night, one word, "Claimed"."
- Joe explaining the rules to Daryl, "Us"


"People don't gotta be friendly. They don't have to be nice, they don't have to be brothers in arms. (…) You still steal you keal (mispronouncing "kill"). I know that sounds a little funny but nobody laughs when something goes missing. And you don't lie, because that's a slippery slope indeed. Oh, you catch a beatin'. The severity of which depends upon the offense and the general attitude of the day. But that don't happen much 'cause when men like us follow rules and cooperate a little bit, well, the world becomes ours."
- Joe to Daryl about the group, "Us"


"You leaving right now? No? Then it sure seems like there's an us."
- Joe about Daryl wanting to leave the group, "Us"


"You a cat person Daryl? I am. Love 'em since I was three years old, vicious creatures. Anyway, I'll tell ya, and this is true. Ain't nothin' sadder than an outdoor cat thinks he's an indoor cat."
- Joe to Daryl, "Us"


"Whoa, whoa. Now Daryl says he didn't take your half of the rabbit so we got a little conundrum here. Either he's lying, which is an actionable offense, or, well you didn't plant it on him like some pussy, punk-ass, cheatin', coward cop did ya? 'Cause while that wouldn't specifically breaking the rules, it'd be disappointing."
- Joe breaking up a fight between Daryl and Len, "Us"


"Teach him a lesson gents! The lying sack of shit, I'm sick of it. Teach him all the way!"
- Joe ordering the Claimers to kill Len, "Us"


"I saw him do it. (…) He wanted to play that out I let him. You told the truth, he lied. You understand the rules, he doesn't. Looks like you get the head too."
- Joe to Daryl about Len framing him, "Us"


"Fell apart? I never looked at it like that. Seems to me like things are starting to fall together. At least for guys like us. Livin' like this, surviving. We've doing that from the start."
- Joe to Daryl about his view on the apocalypse, "Us"


"I'll tell you what it is, it's a lie. Ain't no sanctuary for all. Think they'll welcome guys like you and me with open arms?"
- Joe to Daryl about Terminus, "Us"


"We were in a house, minding our own business, and this walking piece of fecal matter was finding in the home. Strangled our colleague Lou and left him to turn. We've tracked him to these tracks, one of those signs, and thus we've got a destination in mind."
- Joe telling Daryl about Rick killing Lou, "Us"


"Oh dearie me! You screwed up asshole! You hear me? You screwed up. Today is the day of reckoning sir! Restitution! Shit and I was turnin' in for the night on New Year's Eve. Now who's gonna count down the ball dropper with me, huh? Ten Mississippi, nine Mississippi, eight Mississippi-. You're stopping me on eight Daryl!"
- Joe after finding Rick, "A"


"The thing about nowadays is we got nothing but time. Say your piece Daryl. (…) Now I think Lou would have to disagree with you on that. I'll of course have to speak for him and all because your friend here strangled him in a bathroom. (…) This man killed our friend and you say he's good people. Now that right there is a lie. It's a lie! Teach him fellas! Teach him all the way!"
- Joe arguing with Daryl about sparing Rick, "A"


"See now that's right. It's not some damn lie. Look we can settle this, we're reasonable men. First we're gonna beat Daryl to death, then we'll have the girl, then the boy, then I'm gonna shoot you and then we'll be square."
- Joe as he holds Rick at gunpoint, "A"


"I got him. Oh it's gonna be so much worse now! Come on get up! Come on! Let's see what you got!"
- Joe taunting Rick, "A"


"Huh? Whoa there! The hell you gonna do now sport?"
- Joe as he bearhugs Rick, also his last words, "A"


Appearances[]

Episodes 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
Season 1
Season 2
Season 3
Season 4
Season 5
Season 6
Season 7
Season 8
Season 9
Season 10
Season 11
Appears Voice is heard
👁 Appears with no lines Appears in a flashback
Appears as a walker 🖼 Appears in a photograph/video
Appears as a corpse Appears in a hallucination/dream

Gallery[]

For more images of Joe, please visit Joe (TV Series)/Gallery.

Trivia[]

  • Joe is the first primary antagonist on The Walking Dead to appear physically in both the main series as well as a webisode.
  • Joe is the first and only character in the Red Machete webisodes to have lines.
  • Rick killing Joe was indirectly mentioned by Shane during Rick's dream in the episode "What Comes After".
  • Despite his appearance in the webisode taking place prior to his appearance in the TV Series, his hair is visibly longer in the former.
    • It's likely that he cut his hair at some point.
  • Jeff Kober, who portrayed the character, also voiced Silas' grandfather on World Beyond.

International Dubbers[]

Language Dubber Other Characters Voiced
Czech Pavel Šrom Otis
Bruce (5)
George Geary
French Bernard Métraux N/A
German Jan Spitzer N/A
Hungarian N/A N/A
Italian Enrico Di Troia Victor Strand
Japanese Katsuhisa Hōki B.J.
Portuguese Mauro Castro Big Tiny
Abraham Ford (6-7)
Bud
Spanish (Latin America) N/A N/A
Spanish (Spain) Jorge García Insúa Tobin

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