Reunited and it feels so good. With apologies to Peaches & Herb, that’s the sentiment Walking Dead fans will feel when season 2 of Daryl Dixon premieres Sept. 29 on AMC. That’s because Norman Reedus will be joined by fellow franchise OG Melissa McBride in a season being billed as “The Book of Carol.”

McBride’s Carol made her first appearance on the spinoff series in the final scene of season 1 as she began searching for what happened to her old friend — a search that becomes a main focal point of season 2. Meanwhile, Reedus’s Daryl continues his quest overseas in France to help potential messiah Laurent (Louis Puech Scigliuzzi).

Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon on season 2 of 'The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon'.

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon final Carol scene explained

It wasn’t supposed to take this long for the dynamic duo to join forces on the offshoot project. It was originally announced back in 2020 that Reedus and McBride would star together on the series from the get-go, but McBride later dropped out for personal reasons. As she says now, “Norman was off to France to do the first part of it, and I had things I needed to take care of.”

But the plans for a Daryl and Carol series actually go even further back than that. “We talked about doing a spinoff together way before anybody came to us,” Reedus reveals. And what was their original concept? “The idea was that she and I were going to be on a road trip to see who’s left out in the world,” he explains. “One of the ideas was that everybody dies, and we might get on the bike and there’s no way to go back to anything because everyone’s dead. So it was sort of a travel show, kind of figuring out who’s left in the world.”

Melissa McBride as Carol Peletier on season 2 of 'The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon'.

Emmanuel Guimier/AMC

Melissa McBride talks future of Carol after The Walking Dead

Those plans morphed once AMC pitched their own idea. “When they came to us and said, ‘We want you guys to do a spinoff,’ they hadn’t announced that the main show was ending, so we sort of thought we’d go out on adventures and come back to the group,” says Reedus. “So it all kind of happened backward.”

Eventually, Daryl landed in France, and a season later, Carol is following him to the land of berets and baguettes. And even though McBride took some time off and was now filming with a new crew in a new country, it was relatively easy to seamlessly slip right back into her role. “It was a little weird, but then again it wasn’t, because both of our characters are very adaptive,” she says. “It was kind of like riding a bike. We knew where she was, knew what she wanted, what she was trying to do. So that part was easy.”

Melissa McBride as Carol Peletier on season 2 of 'The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon'.

Emmanuel Guimier/AMC

Though it won’t necessarily be the same Carol we’ve known. “She is determined,” says McBride. “But it’s a different type of fearlessness that’s driven by her determination to find her friend — and also by the headspace that we find Carol in, which will be revealed.”

McBride declines to elaborate on that mysterious headspace, but Reedus provides more clues on what to expect: “There’s a lot of action in season 2. There’s a lot of business and a lot of very heartfelt moments. There’s also a lot of hero stuff with Melissa. It’s beautiful.”

Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon on season 2 of 'The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon'.

Emmanuel Guimier/AMC

The show will also continue to differentiate itself from the original series with unique locations, music, and tonal shifts. “Melissa and I and everybody else wanted to do something new,” Reedus says. “This was a real opportunity to take all these elements that make this show and these characters so compelling, and make something brand new and fresh. And that’s what we did.”

The actor also has a bold proclamation sure to raise eyebrows among longtime viewers. “I think the finale of season 2 is the best one hour of Walking Dead anything ever,” he promises. “And I’ve been here since day 3, so for real, it’s my favorite one hour of Walking Dead anything.”

Now that Carol is back, it may be fans’ favorite as well.

A version of this story appears in EW's complimentary Comic-Con 2024 Preview print edition, being passed out in San Diego throughout the convention.