As reflected by its declining ratings in its later seasons, most "The Walking Dead" viewers can pinpoint the moment where they gave up on the show. For many, it's Lucille's reign of terror against Glenn (Steven Yeun) in the season 7 premiere. For others, it's the untimely demise of that kid with the silly hat (also known as Carl). However, my personal breaking point is fairly rare among the fandom: I first stopped watching after the death of Denise (Merritt Wever).

Denise rarely makes the top of any fan's favorite character list, but I like her because of how much she seems like a real person. Most of the characters on this show are cool in a way that feels cinematic, whereas Denise (with her anxiety issues and her nerdy interests) comes across as a person from the real world. She's someone who was probably destined to become a librarian,...