Walking Dead Recap: Rick Invades, Michonne Gets Revenge and a Regular Dies!

Mid-season finale of the AMC zombie hit brings an invasion and a challenge to the Gov's authority!

By Leslie Gornstein Dec 03, 2012 3:38 AMTags
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It's the midseason finale of The Walking Dead, people: Time to rustle up all the zombie extras! And what else? Well, how about a few new characters to ratchet up the intrigue? And, of course, some creeptastic antics by TV's man you love to hate: The Gov (David Morrissey)!

Who will live? And who...will...die?

Let's find out.

WHAT WE LEARNED

Ricks' Group Isn't Alone: Geez there are a lot of living survivors for a zombie apocalypse. And a new group of them is sneaking into Rick's (Andrew Lincoln) prison. The fresh humans include a guy named Tyrese, and a lady who's been bitten by a walker. What could possibly go wrong?

The Governor Has a Heart: He's still trying to maintain a relationship with his undead daughter Penny. He puts ribbons in her hair and sings to her and all this. He also feeds her bowls of raw flesh; it's real sweet.

Screw That. The Governor Is a Total Bleephole: The Gov sentences Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Glenn (Steven Yeun) to death in the Screamer Pits! We don't know what the Screamer Pits are, but we suspect it isn't a staged arena fight with toothless zombies. Luckily, Rick & Co. brought their flash-bangs. They disrupt the execution and spirit the kids to safety. It's quite a relief, except we kind of wanted to know what the Screamer Pits are.

Seriously, a Bleephole: Once Woodbury is breached, Andrea (Laurie Holden) volunteers to guard the town, not knowing that the invaders are her long-lost friends. Gov won't let her fight; Andrea's all insulted and starts shooting anyway. There's a smoke-filled gunfight in the middle Woodbury's main drag. It's Gov and Andrea vs. Daryl, Rick & Co. Oscar (Vincent M. Ward) gets capped.

Judith Is Still a Baby. So, there's that. But Carl (Chandler Riggs) becomes a man. He hears screaming coming from one of the cell blocks, discovers the newbie humans beset by walkers, and brings them all to safety, including that lady who got bitten. She dies and it's sad, but Carl locks them in a cellblock anyway. Like father, like son.

Michonne Knows Everything Now: During Rick's raid, the sword-wielding loner creeps into the Gov's house and preps for a showdown. She discovers the severed-head decor and undead Penny. The Gov steps in and begs Michonne (Danai Gurira) not to katana the kid. She does anyway. There's a brawl and the Gov loses an eye before Andrea intervenes. Andrea finally sees the secret side of the Gov, but somehow likes him fine anyway. Michonne escapes to rejoin Rick.

The Brothers Are Reunited. Sorta: Meanwhile, the Governor's one good eye gets the angry glint of the revenge-hungry. He gathers the people of Woodbury and spins another lie: He accuses Merle (Michael Rooker) of being Rick's inside man. Then Gov then presents a captured Daryl (Norman Reedus) to the crowd. Will the brothers be forced to fight? Or will one be executed?