The Walking Dead and The X-Files have virtually nothing in common -- aside from the shows' male protagonists. The Walking Dead's Daryl Dixon is a crossbow-wielding, zombie slayer. At first glance, he seems the polar opposite of The X-Files' Fox Mulder, a white-collar FBI agent obsessed with discovering the truth behind his sister's alien abduction. However, upon closer inspection, Daryl and Mulder share some striking similarities that are hard to overlook.

Daryl and Mulder are fan-favorite heart-throbs. Despite this, they both lack the onslaught of romantic interests that have become a common trope for "bachelor-type" characters like them. Part of this is due to the pair's obsession with their work. Mulder completely dedicated his life to the X-Files, causing him to become a loner with little time for friends, family or romantic endeavors.

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Daryl The Walking Dead

Daryl shares a similar affliction. The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman stated the series would tackle Daryl's love life if a time came when he wasn't "consistently distracted with crossbowing." While Daryl doesn't work in the traditional sense, his full-time job involves ensuring his group's survival -- and he's always working overtime. It's one of the main reasons he never had a romantic interest before Season 10.

Despite this, Daryl and Mulder are both hung up on one woman. In Mulder's case, it's Scully, his partner, best friend and, later, his love interest. For Daryl, it's Carol, his self-proclaimed best friend. While Daryl and Carol haven't been romantic thus far, they have a similar relationship to Scully and Mulder, as platonic partners that trust nobody else more than each other.

Not to mention, Daryl shows low levels of jealousy when Carol's with other men like Ezekiel, much as Mulder does with Scully. What's funny is both duos are often mistaken for being in a romantic relationship, even when they're not. On The Walking Dead, Negan frequently refers to Carol as Daryl's "girlfriend." In The X-Files, Scully is often mistaken as Mulder's wife.

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Mulder and Scully solving a mystery

Right from the get-go, The X-Files played up the sexual tension between Scully and Mulder, though creator Chris Carter famously opposed their romantic involvement until he couldn't push back against fans any longer. While Daryl and Carol lack the FBI agents' more obvious tension, their relationship status has sparked a similar debate within The Walking Dead community, with some fans identifying as "Caryl" shippers and others maintaining the duo has a sibling-like relationship and nothing more. Either way, the characters' chemistry earned them their own Carol/Daryl spin-off.

While X-Files fans know Scully and Mulder's fate, Carol and Daryl's is still up in the air with Season 11 of The Walking Dead and the future spin-off yet to air. Throughout The X-Files, audiences watched Mulder investigate the supernatural and navigate a complex government conspiracy with only Scully by his side. The duo leaned on each other emotionally and rode out a variety of ups and downs. Not to mention they were quick to put their lives on the line for each other.

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Carol and Daryl on The Walking Dead

When broken down, Daryl, and particularly his relationship with Carol, mirrors The X-Files. While the stakes are different, Daryl has overcome tremendous obstacles and enemies, and his friendship with Carol remains a constant. Together, The Walking Dead protagonists also weathered mountains and valleys in their relationship. And whether Carol was in a relationship or not, it was Daryl who was there for her when things fell apart, like after Henry's murder. Much like Scully and Mulder, it was these intense moments that bonded them.

Romance aside, The X-Files depicted one of the greatest male-female friendships in television history. It could be chalked up to Gillian Andrson and David Duchovny's natural chemistry or great storytelling. Either way, The Walking Dead seems to be following suit with Daryl and Carol.

The Walking Dead stars Norman Reedus, Melissa McBride, Lauren Cohan, Josh McDermitt, Christian Serratos, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Seth Gilliam, Ross Marquand, Khary Payton and Cooper Andrews. The series is currently available to stream on AMC+.

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