<Tr> <Th> Occupation </Th> <Td> Criminal Drug dealer Woodbury enforcer </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Family </Th> <Td> Will Dixon (father) Daryl Dixon (brother) </Td> </Tr> <P> Merle Dixon is a fictional character from the horror drama television series The Walking Dead, which airs on AMC in the United States . He was created by series developer Frank Darabont and portrayed by Michael Rooker . The character was first introduced in the first season as a Southern redneck hunter who has a younger brother, Daryl . He is misogynistic and racist, which causes tensions between him and his group of survivors . Following an encounter with series protagonist Rick Grimes, Merle disappears and joins the community of Woodbury, Georgia, where he becomes the right - hand man of the Governor . He becomes caught in the conflict between the Governor and Rick, especially when nobody in Rick's group wants him in the group, except for Daryl . </P> <P> The character's introduction garnered negative reviews from professional critics, but fan response was positive . When the character reappears in the third season, reviewers began to have more favorable views towards him . Merle is an original character in the television series and shares no counterpart in the comic books . He is also a main character in the 2013 video game The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct, which focuses on him and Daryl during the early days of the zombie apocalypse . Rooker made guest appearances as Merle in the series' first and second seasons, before he was upgraded to a series regular for the third season, where he lost a significant amount of weight in preparation for the role . Rooker was among the cast members who were awarded the Satellite Award for Best Cast--Television Series in 2012 . </P>

Where did merle go in the walking dead