Which of the first four episodes of The Walking Dead was your favorite?

Vatos jumped out front and held a clean 37-40% margin through day 7 — normal enough for a pilot poll to swing early. Then day 8 hit: Days Gone Bye flipped the lead and never gave it back, settling into a steady 39-40% edge that barely wiggled for the next sixteen weeks straight.

That's the whole plot. By day 13 the gap was locked at 39%, and from there the poll just aged in place — stray votes trickling in as late as day 657 without nudging the standings. Days Gone Bye's series-premiere edge, once it landed, was permanent.

• The flip · Day 8: Days Gone Bye overtakes Vatos and the race ends
• 112-day freeze · Margin held at 39-40% from day 13 clear through day 119
• US leans premiere · United States' 167 voters favor Days Gone Bye over the raid episode