At the prison, someone unknown uses a deer carcass to
lure and distract some walkers – then break open the chain on the gate and
leave a heart in the open gateway to attract the walkers.
Rick and co are preparing for a long day of burning
bodies and making sex jokes at Glenn and Maggie’s expense (T-Dog actually got
to speak! Almost a full sentence!) They’re approached by Oscar and Axel who beg
to be included in the group, Axel begs for a chance to prove themselves. They
can’t live in their cell block, it’s full of bodies of people they knew and
they can’t dispose of them because one of the fences are down in their area. Rick
stands firm and Oscar speaks up much more strongly – the people whose bodies
they were dumping were the good people, people who protected them from the
worst criminals in the prison like Tomas. They’d rather hit the road than go back to the
cell block.
The group moves off to discuss this and T-Dog is their
advocate (he speaks! Even more!) wants to give them a chance and integrate them
into the group. Maggie, Glenn and Carol don’t trust them – they’re convicts,
Axel looks unstable and they can’t even kill Walkers (so aren’t very useful)
and they’re so used to it only being them. T-Dog points out Oscar and Axel
probably have less blood on their hands than they do. Daryl, who grew up among
criminals, adds “they’re degenerates but they ain’t psychos” it could have just
as easily been him. But at the same time he doesn’t see why they should give
them a chance, let them take their chances like their group did. Rick steps in –
as a policeman he’d seen fake remorse and that doesn’t make people less
dangerous and he stands by keeping them apart, which definitely troubles T-Dog.
T-Dog makes it clear he thinks they’re killing Oscar and
Axel by forcing them to leave and Rick asks T-Dog if he’d rather have their
blood on their hands or the group’s – he says neither; I like that he refuses
to accept Rick’s framing of the situation, his narrative that Oscar and Axel
are a threat.
They give the prisoners a week worth of food and continue
to plan how they’ll live in the prison – they’re low on ammo, the armoury
having been picked clean and they want to get the bodies out of the prison
rather than risk growing crops in soil filled with rotting Walkers.
Inside, with Beth, Lori and Carl, Hershel takes his first
steps in crutches. He’s tough as old boot leather and impresses everyone by how
far he’s ready to go on his first day, including Glenn who calls out to him (a
little out of character since he’s always been the scout but it also shows the
pressure of never being able to let your guard down).
They seem to be having an almost happy, peaceful moment –
when a horde of Walkers appear behind Lori, Hershel, Carl and Beth. People
start shooting, Glenn starts re-wiring the fence so they don’t get Walkers from
2 directions and everyone else starts running (Rick screaming Lori’s name – see
he does care). And Hershel takes on a Walker with his crutch (I think I’m going
to like tough-as-boot-leather Hershel). Hershel and Beth manage to get behind a fence
and Maggie, Carl and Lori inside into a cell.
T-Dog manages to close the open gate they’re coming
through – fighting through the Walkers to re-seal it. And he gets bitten by a Walker
from behind. Oh you are kidding me, is this why he got lines to say this
episode?!
Carol and T-Dog stagger through the tunnels, she urges
him to stop since he’s so badly injured but he asks why wait – for him to turn?
He’s determined to get her through the tunnels. She says she won’t let him
become a Walker and he says he can’t ask that of her – and he finds religion.
And Maggie, Carl and Lori run through the tunnels, dodging and running from
packs of Walkers – which is when Lori’s contractions
start. They make it to the boiler room and hide inside, with Carl scouting, but
the door doesn’t close.
Rick, Glenn and Daryl start clearing out the Walkers and
Glenn points out the chain was broken by an axe. Rick blames Oscar and Axel –
and then the prison alarm sounds. It’s really really loud and is a dinner bell
for the Walkers. They start shooting out the speakers and Rick runs to Oscar to
ask him how this is happening, he says it must be the backup generators. Oscar
has worked on them for a few days and may be able to stop it and be able to
close the main gates with full power.
While Rick & co clear out Walkers and split up
looking for the others and the generator, Maggie enlists Carl to help because
Lori’s baby is on its way. This is less than ideal to say the least and Lori
starts bleeding profusely, Maggie says there’s something wrong.
