Gene Page/AMC

Several days have gone by since "Days Gone Bye." More than two thousand, in fact. That's a lot of trips around the sun since The Walking Dead became a global phenomenon, and that's not even accounting for when the comic books from Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard first burst into existence.

Since those days, the AMC zombie apocalypse has grown and grown, introducing countless new characters at a rapid pace, and killing many of them off just as quickly. The show that exists through seven seasons, featuring Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and his companions breaking out into war against a group of humans more monstrous than the flesh-hungry undead, is a far cry from the show that existed at the start of this adventure, when the only thing that mattered was reuniting a hopeful law enforcement officer with his estranged family.

As Walking Dead prepares to celebrate its 100th episode with the launch of season eight, we're taking one last look back at everything that's come before. With that in mind, here's how The Hollywood Reporter ranks the seven seasons of The Walking Dead, from worst to best.

The Walking Dead returns Oct. 22.