Out Of The Grave: This Week on The Walking Dead (Episode 4 / November 4, 2012)

Last Updated on July 23, 2021

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EPISODE 4: Killer Within

THE HOOK: With Hershel’s farm overrun, Rick and company are on the move again. They come across a prison which Rick feels would be perfect…once it’s purged of walkers. But the dead aren’t the only danger lurking in the shadows.

THE LOWDOWN: (THE FOLLOWING COLUMN CONTAINS MAJOR SPOILERS, so I don’t recommend reading this if you haven’t watched the episode). Where to begin. Usually shit doesn’t hit the fan until later on in the season but tonight was wall to wall chaos. On the lighter end of things Michonne can’t wait to get out of the Governor’s pocket, while Andrea seems ready to get into the guy’s pants. I’m thinking Michonne should just leave her there and be done with her, but clearly there’s more to their eight month sojourn together than we know. Michonne’s loyalty looks to have a steep price, but having said that, it’s admirable considering she knows Andrea’s no doubt still naive to the way of the new world. I find it all exciting because it’s new territory that totally contradicts the comics, but in a good way.

My question about the Governor’s daughter appears to have been answered tonight as the Governor refers to her as still being around. He and Merle have an interesting conversation about finding Daryl–again, treading a new path away from the comics–and it feels like a brooding build-up to what I hope will be a cool climax with these characters. Poor T-Dog. Sigh. Just when things were looking up for him, they’re not. On the bright side, he had a great run for a character that didn’t exist until the show. His demise is one of many casualties that results from Rick’s clusterfuck decision to leave Andrew (the prisoner he locked out in the yard with walkers) alive and assume he’d be killed. These decisions are hard to make, but he’s the leader and should be eating hard truths for breakfast each morning.

Now I know everyone hated Lori for being a bitchy, two timing slut bag, but she was beginning to redeem herself which makes her end–via the most gruesome baby delivering scene I’ve ever seen–hard to watch. I won’t lie to you, I had tears in my eyes. For me, it was that flashback Carl had of Rick telling him it was time to put childish things away. This was another 180 from the comics, but one that ultimately works better for me. Lori and the baby don’t survive in the comics either, but their end comes in a different way that looks to not exist within the realm of the show (I’m thinking they were hesitant to have the baby die now, or maybe at all). It all ties into the Governor’s storyline which is different, but in the comics it’s sudden and there’s no words exchanged between her and Carl which creates a whirlwind of guilt for the poor kid. At least here, mother and son say goodbye and share a moment. It’s a gut-wrenching moment of pure sorrow, but that’s better than nothing at all.

THE WALKING DEAD SEASON 3’s fourth episode is a no holds barred emotional punch to the nuts Johnny Cage style. It feels like the episode you see before the finale or before a mid-season hiatus, but no, it’s right here, right now and right in our faces. It’s hard to imagine where they’ll go from here, but rest assured, there’s still loads of dark fun to stoke the fire. The final scene is hard enough to watch as Carl takes care of Lori, but when he and Maggie come out with the baby and Rick suddenly realizes what’s happened, man, let’s just say that these actors know how to pull off stellar performances. Everything tonight, from the grizzly detailed deaths, to the heart-pounding aftermath were flawlessly executed and deserves a standing ovation of praise. This show has without a doubt become one of television’s finest hours.

ZOMBIE KILL OF THE WEEK: She wasn’t a zombie yet, but knowing that Lori would turn is what makes Carl put a bullet in her head. It’s terrible, but worthy of the title.

BLOOD AND GORE: Tonight’s jam packed with walkers and everybody that dies, dies bloody. It’s a lot to take as our heroes suffer loss and tragedy.

MOST ANNOYING CHARACTER: Andrea. Again. The expression “if it looks too good to be true, it probably is” is around for a reason and would go five kinds of double in a post apocalyptic world overrun by zombies. Wake the hell up Andrea. I don’t think the Governor is dating material.

COOLEST SCENE: Personally, I loved the scene with Michonne and the Governor. She knows he’s a phoney and he knows that she knows he’s a phoney. And the tension continues to build.

FINAL VERDICT:

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