I’m glad to see that the governor was given two episodes to flesh out his character. Now, I think his is an interesting character, although I am still very much bothered with his portrayal. His Elvis Presley accent in particular is bothersome and at times unintentionally humorous. Moreover, despite him having a family, I do not feel any sympathy for him. If anything, the fact that he could still be a cold-blooded and selfish murderer despite having found a new family, or the beginnings of one, makes me dislike him even more. And not in the way that one might dislike villains because of their cruelty. He seems only like the worst of human trash: Opportunistic without lofty aim. Lacking principles.

Rick shows great leadership here in that he makes a speech about hope. And he was about to succeed. We will never know what would have happened Rick did not become enraged when the Governor killed Herschel (who was my favorite character). Perhaps his thugs would have realized that he is a plain, selfish murderer, especially after he killed a defenseless old man. But Rick’s weakness once again makes an appearance when he loses his cool and starts the gunfight.

Also, we see how much of a badass Michonne is when she dodges all those bullets simply by rolling like a log.

I knew that Herschel was going to die at some point. I’m just sad that he had to die in the manner that he did. I believed that he was destined for greater things and a spectacular death. Instead, he died a captive. He was an extraordinarily brave and caring man. He risked getting infected with whatever disease was going around the prison because he wanted to help the sick even if it killed him. The end times will be propped up by people like Herschel, much more than people like Rick: Brave men who do what must be done with compassion and equanimity and determination from their deeply held principles.

I was very surprised, too, when Zombie Apocalypse Elvis Presley’s newly adopted daughter was killed. I think it was handled deftly, in terms of how it was portrayed, although one cannot escape once again feeling that the story beat was rushed as well as too convenient. But ZAEP’s lack of hesitation when doing away with her so that she did not turn shows that Rick besting him as a leader finally and truly broke him. When Michonne killed his zombie daughter in Dewbury, he still had something despite that enormous loss. He knew that he was still capable of becoming a leader, of making great sacrifices to bring people together and allow them to survive and thrive. But seeing Rick almost win the battle before it even began with his charisma (speaking within universe; I do not think he is charismatic) showed him that, finally, he had nothing left. And seeing that her newly adopted daughter was now also dead reinforced that.

I am not sure why the people went through with storming the prison. There was nothing to gain from doing that. The walkers would have been attracted to the place due to the noise, as they mentioned. The prison was ruined. The people who were already living there (Rick’s group) would have been needed to maintain the farms that they have already set up. And there was no reason to take the inevitable losses. Rick fired shots, and he should have been dealt with because of the danger he posed, but coming in with the tank was not a very good decision. That is what the Governor wanted, and perhaps they could have been swayed by the force of his personality—but why would they be? He was not especially compelling, and he had not been able to do much for the camp since he came into power. So, why were they so loyal to him as to risk their lives?

It doesn’t make sense to me. And when things are presented arbitrarily like this, it weakens the story. It becomes a series of events that, although exciting, do not present insight into the human condition or what it is like to live in such times. I just want the Governor to go away and for a more compelling villain to take the stage. I miss Merle.

The Governor’s death also left me wanting more. I’m a big believer in speeches during death scenes. As a convention, it is dramatic and an opportunity to “sum up” that character’s purpose. There is a right way and wrong way to do it, of course. Still, it would have been better than simply seeing him writhe there on the grass. And of course Michonne should have sliced off his head. Big mistake. We are shown that he might have been shot in the head and killed. But we don’t know that for sure.  

Finally, we see that Judith is probably dead. The death of a child, especially a baby, is always the darkest an event could possibly be. And there is not much to be said here. I suppose what matters now is what the characters will make of it. After having lost so much, and already being riddled with grief, I do not know how Rick can go on.