The Governor holds a meeting with his people to say that he wants them to survive and that they aren't going to last where there are because eventually there will be a herd of biters, or a group of savage people. The Governor then brings up the prison and suggests that they can move there, if they are willing to take it from the people who currently reside there. The Governor adds that he has captured two of prison and has a plan to take the prison without anyone getting hurt. The governor does however add that they do need to be prepared to kill if necessary. We get a flash to The Governor holding a weapon to Michonne and Hershel. The Governor says that most of the people in the prison are thieves and murderers and should not have a nice place when they are suffering.He lies about his relationship with them and blames them for killing Penny and bringing and end to Woodbury. The Governor says that they need move quickly to have the upper hand. The group quickly says that they are in.
Lilly approaches and tells Philip/Brian that they don't have to fight for another place and is not impressed that they might have to kill people. Philip/Brian replies that he is going to keep her and Megan alive. Philip/Brian then professes his love and Lilly says that she doesn't know who he is anymore. Philip/Brian tells her that she knows him and that it was always going to be like this before walking away.
Brian/Philip then goes to Hershel and Michonne who are all tied up to offer them food. The Governor promises that no one is going to hurt them. Hershel asks what's going on and The Governor says that it isn't personal. The Governor says that there are people he needs to keep alive and Michone tells him that she is going to kill him. When Hershel calls him Governor, Philip/Brian says not to call him that. Hershel then suggests that they can find a way to live together. Hershel adds that he and Rick have changed but The Governor believes he cannot live with either Rick or Michonne. Hershel suggests that The Governor will hurt people and asks how he can threaten to hurt someone else's daughters, if he professes to know what it is to have a daughter. Before leaving Philip/Brian simply says because they aren't his.
Philip/Brian has moved his camp to the river because the biters can't cross water. Lilly suggests that they stay there if the place is safe. Philip/Brian argues that she should think about Megan. Megan is down by the river playing the mud when Philip/Brian approaches. He asks for a hug before he leaves and she says that her hands are muddy. He picks her up out of the dirt anyway. Lilly watches from a distance and is clearly still not happy.
In the prison, Maggie is watching over Glenn who jokes about a vacation. Glenn brings up their anniversary and he and Maggie share a laugh. Maggie brings up a vacation she took with Hershel when she was little and Glenn says that he will go load up the station wagon. Maggie leaves to get Glenn some water, promising to be right back.
Rick is telling Darryl about what happened to Carol. Rick says that Carol is going to be fine because she is a survivor and has a car and weapons. Rick adds that Carol did do this and wasn't sorry. Darryl asks what they are supposed to do about the two girls and Rick brings up his promise to look after them. Rick then adds that he hasn't told Tyreese yet and doesn't know how he is going to take it. Darryl and Rick leave to find Tyreese.
Bob is sitting by himself when Sasha walks in saying that he should get some rest. Sasha says that she wouldn't be there if it wasn't for Hershel and him. Bob denies that he had anything to do with it and Sasha reminds him that he put the meds in her IV bag and demands to thank him, as Bob starts to walk away. Sasha has a moment of weakness and tells Bob to help her.
Darryl and Rick find Tyreese and he immediately says that there is something they need to see. He takes them deeper into the prison. They find a squirrel grotesquely displayed on a wall and Tyreese brings up the feeding of the zombies with rats. Tyreese believes that the same person who killed the residents of the prison did this as well. Rick says he doesn't think so and they hear a loud explosion outside and go running.
When they head outside, The Governor is standing on a tank and he yells out that they need to talk. Rick says that a council runs the place now and The Governor asks if Hershel is on the council, before Hershel brought out tied up. The Governor then asks about Michonne, as she is led out by another person. Rick says that he doesn't make decisions anymore and The Governor calls out that Rick is making the decisions today. Rick opens the gate and heads down to talk to The Governor.
Darryl and Sasha talk and he says that if things go south they are to head for the bus. Tyreese asks how long they wait and Darryl says for as long as they can.
Rick tells The Governor to let Michonne and Hershel go and points out that because The Governor has a tank, he doesn't need hostages. The Governor says that they have until sun down to leave, or Michonne and Hershel will die. Rick says this doesn't have to go down this way but The Governor points out that he has more people and fire power. Rick points out that they have children who might not survive and The Governor replies that he has a tank and is willing to let them walk away from the prison. As they talk, Darryl discretely grabs guns and starts handing them out.
Lilly is sitting by the river and she gets up when she sees a walker trying to cross. Megan calls out for her to come and dig. Lilly calls out that she will be right there, as she watches the walker and pulls out a gun. The walker only makes it half way across before being swept away. Megan has pulled a sign out of the dirt which reads, "warning flash flood area". A hand reaches out of the dirt and then a head. A walker grabs Megan and takes a bite out of her shoulder, as Lilly comes running.
At the prison, The Governor says that if he shoots they will all be dead and once again says that it doesn't have to be like that. A couple of walkers come stumbling out of the woods and the Governor turns and shoots them. The Governor adds that the noise will only bring more walkers and the longer Rick waits, the harder it will be to get out of there.
Carl and Darryl have guns pointed at The Governor's group and Darryl suggests that they just have to trust Rick. The kids are heading towards the bus and Lizzy stop them saying that they should be strong and grab guns.
The Governor tells Rick that he has maybe an hour of sunlight left and should start packing. Rick then suggests that they can all live together because there is enough room for all of them. The Governor says that his family wouldn't sleep will with Rick there. Rick points out that they could all live in different cell blocks. The Governor says that it is not possible after Woodbury, and after Andrea. Rick agrees it won't be easy but suggests that they don't have a choice. Rick makes it clear that they are not leaving and will fight back if forced. Rick says that they can all live in the prison or none of them can. The Governor grabs Michonne's katana and holds it to Hershel's neck. Mitch says that it's time for people to leave. Rick says that some of the people from Woodbury have become leaders here and if they walk through the gates they can become one of them. Rick adds that they've all done terrible things to stay alive but can still come back. Rick adds that everyone can change. The Governor looks at the katana and hacks off Hershel's head after calling Rick a liar.
Rick screams no and fires, running from the fence. Rick gets shot in the leg, as Carl and Darryl begin shooting. Outside the fence, The Governors group starts to fire, as Michonne moves away. The Governor makes his way to Hershel and completely removes his head. Alisha puts down her weapon. When Philip looks up, he finds Lilly standing there with a very dead Megan.
Tara and Alisha argue about continuing to fight. Alisha points out that The Governor cut off someone's head. The Governor makes his way over to Lilly and takes Megan in his arms, then shoots her in the head. Tara tells Alisha to find somewhere safe and hide until this is all over, as the Governor yells for his people to kill everyone. The tank begins to move forward and through the fence. Sasha and Tyreese continue to shoot, as the Governors people drive in, in pick up trucks.
When Beth runs out of ammo, Maggie promises to cover and tells her to run for the bus. The tank blasts holes through the prison walls. Maggie tells Beth to get the people on the bus and reminds her that they all have jobs to do. Maggie runs inside the prison and grabs a limping Glenn, as more walls come down. Outside, the Governor and Rick are fist fighting. Maggie and Glenn get on the bus and Maggie leaves when she realizes that Beth is not on the bus. The Governor and Rick continue to fight, as walkers start to make their way into the prison. Darryl uses a walker for cover and throws a grenade. Bob gets shot, as Maggie comes running looking for Beth. They watch as the bus moves forward. Lizzie and the other kids start to shoot and end up saving Tyreese. Tyreese tells them that they have to go and the kids take off in the wrong direction. Rick and Philip are still fighting and suddenly a katana slices through his chest. Rick asks about Carl and Michonne says that she doesn't know. Michonne then turns to the governor but does not finish him off. Daryl puts a grenade down the gun tank and when Mitch hops out, Darryl shoots him in the chest. Beth runs up saying that she was trying to find the kids to put them on the bus. Rick stumbles around the yard calling out for Carl. When Rick and Carl meet, they hug and Rick asks about Judith but Carl doesn't know. They find an empty baby carrier with a blood stain and Rick starts to break down. Carl begins to shoot walkers and Rick tells him that they have to go because it's over. The prison is in ruins with walkers every were.
The governor is lying in a field when Lilly approaches. She shoots him in the head, as walkers make their way into the prison. Carl and Rick are walking away and Rick tells Carl not to look back and to keep walking.
That was a pretty amazing mid-season finale. We had a pretty high death count which culminated with the predictable death of Hershel, Mitch, and Alisha. It was pretty clear that the writing was on the wall for these characters for various reasons. Readers of the comics know that Hershel didn't make it out of the prison. There was also the fact that they gave Hershel a nice heroic role helping those who were sick. This was a clear indication that his time was up. Mitch was played by Kirk Acevedo who has a habit of dying in his roles or simply quickly disappearing. There is also the issue that Mitch was introduced to replace Martinez and he had speaking roles last week. The Walking Dead has a history of treating POC as disposable, as well as interchangeable and Mitch fit right into that framework. With Alisha we got a same gender loving woman of colour. Do I even need to explain why she had to go?
The last expression on Hershel's face before his head got chopped off was a smile. I think it was because he heard Rick offer to share the prison and that this is something the old Rick wouldn't have done. This was clearly Hershel's influence on him. I think he felt in that moment that everything was going to be okay and if they were dealing with someone other than The Governor, it probably would have been.
The Governor suffered in stages yesterday. Michonne clearly saved Rick by stabbing him in the chest but it was Lilly he dealt the death blow. I understand that she did because she blamed him for all of the destruction that he caused but I believe that honor should have gone to Michonne. I know that The Governor didn't brutalize her to the level that he did in the comics, or the latest book for that matter, but as a fan of the entire series, I believe that his death at the hands of Michonne would have been far more satisfying.
I found it interesting that Rick immediately tried to say that he wasn't a leader the moment that The Governor showed up yet seconds before, he was justifying his unilateral decision to cast Carol out. The Governor actually had to force him to step up to the plate. Rick needs to shit or get off the pot on this one. His rejection of leadership in this situation, makes his decision regarding Carol that more dubious. It further irks me that he defended his decision to oust Carol for fear of Tyreese.
Finally, I loved seeing Lizzie marshal the kids to defend themselves and get weapons. The fact that they ended up saving Tyreese justified exactly what Carol was doing in the prison. It made her prophetic. The truth is, no matter how nice the prison was, the zombie threat and the difficulty of surviving didn't disappear and Carol knew that better than anyone.
