*Will Definitely Contain Spoilers*

1. The Rick and Joe confrontation

I was expecting this confrontation to take place in the finale, but not ten minutes in; it was a complete shock when Joe comes out of nowhere from behind putting a gun to Rick’s head. This was an extremely dark and brutal scene, even by The Walking Dead’s standards. There was such a sense of despair. You have Rick and Michonne being held at gunpoint, Daryl being beaten to death, and Carl about to be raped. Even though these are the four most important characters on the show, I felt any of them could be killed.

The prolonged build-up before Rick eventually makes his move was very effective. We see Daryl getting bloodied, and this creepy guy preparing to do awful things with Carl, for what seemed like forever. A rage was rising in Rick that led to him unleashing a monster, willing to do anything to protect his son, including tearing out a guys jugular with his teeth. This scene had me falling off the edge of my seat – the definition of intense. The directing was outstanding leading to an unforgettable sequence that irrevocably changes Rick.

2. Rick’s “Too Far Gone” speech followed by Hershel’s beheading

Can we come back from the things we’ve done was a huge theme throughout the fourth season. It was weaved into the whole plot and everyone’s stories, but the most heavily with Rick. On the surface this scene is about Rick talking down The Governor and his army offering forgiveness. What this speech truly symbolized, though, is that Hershel was successful in bringing Rick back. He had spent so much time into helping him cope with the terrible things he’s done; with this speech, Rick showed Hershel’s work paid off. It was such a touching moment.

Rick pleads with The Governor, saying that he could come back from everything and live with them at the prison. Numerous lines of dialog stick with me from this scene, but David Morriseey’s delivery of the Governor final line was my favorite – “Liar.” with that he killed one of the most beloved characters to not only the fans, but the group. Right before Hershel gets beheaded, he’s seen smiling at Rick. The death was staged and executed to perfection. Don’t think I’ll ever get over this one.

3. Rick and Daryl conversation

Daryl was obviously beating himself up over the whole Joe situation, trying to apologize, and Rick picked up on that instantly, reassuring him it wasn’t his fault. He turned the situation into a positive, saying Daryl being back with them is everything. Then to top it all off, Rick says the most meaningful piece of dialog in this scene: “Your my brother.” There was something about the delivery and reaction to the line that had a really powerful effect. Rick and Daryl have an amazing relationship that’s had the chance to evolve over the course of four seasons thus far; hopefully both continue to survive.

Daryl returns saying that wasn’t the real Rick that night brutally killing Carl’s attackers, and anyone would have done what he did. Rick says it is the real him, though, and we witness a change. Rick isn’t consumed with guilt. He accepts that his dark side is just as much apart of his personality as his moral side. I don’t see it as he’s giving in, merely he understands it. He’s resigned to the fact that he’s going to have to be a different person in order to survive. You are not going to want to mess with Rick Grimes going forward.

4. Daryl’s Breakdown

Daryl was torn up over the loss of the prison and all it’s members. He completely shut down, paying little to no attention to Beth, only focusing on basic survival and nothing else. Eventually, Daryl explodes, letting everything out on Beth. Daryl feels as if the blame falls on him for not continuing his search for The Governor, even dissuading Michonne from the task.

Daryl is the only character who has actually benefited from the apocalypse. He had no meaning in society before. Was a mere roamer, doing whatever Merle wanted. Being accepted in the group gave him actual purpose, making Daryl a better person. Beth ends up saving Daryl from slipping irrevocably into his grief and regressing from the person he’s become to his old self. Norman Reedus kills it, giving his best performance to date here.

5. Carol Kills Lizzie

Ever since Lizzie was first introduced, I knew she wasn’t going to survive past this season. We got a few hints that Lizzie had problems well before the apocalypse, and that happening amplified it to a heightened new level. With how confused she was about walkers and human life in general, it presented a huge threat to the group. It was absolutely heartbreaking the way it went down. Even though Lizzie was insane, she wasn’t an awful person. Carol promised to look after Lizzie as if she was her own daughter.

Carol got a second chance in a way at raising a child. Instead of not preparing Lizzie enough for this new world like Sophia, Carol went overboard on survival with Lizzie. Carol knows she should of seen how bad things were getting. Her shooting Lizzie in the back of the head while having her look at the flowers – that would help Lizzie calm down – was heart wrenching. Melisa McBride is simply phenomenal. Lizzie couldn’t be around other people; sadly, Carol discovered that too late which lead to the death of Lizzie’s sister, Mika.

6. Michonne and Carl’s talk after the nights horrific events

Throughout the season Carl and Michonne have shared the screen together often, forming a close bond. The groundwork was set in Clear, and season four has built on it in a big way; it’s become one of my favorite relationships on the show. Carl brushes off his dad and chooses to go with Michonne when splitting up for a bit before they all enter Terminues. Michonne picks up that Carl is disturbed about what he witnessed Rick do the night before (gutting Carl’s attacker and then stabbing him repeatedly).

She tells him how Andre died. Walkers had invaded her camp while she was on a run. Andre presumably had been killed by walkers; Mike (boyfriend) and Terry (friend) had been high. Michonne tells Carl she made them into her walker repellents, and was “gone” a long time. Then, says he doesn’t have to be scared of her, or Rick. Carl reveals he isn’t frightened of his dad; it’s actually the opposite, he wanted to watch. He’s afraid of what Rick would think of him if he knew all the bad things lurking in his brain, saying, he’s a monster. Michonne and Carl hug it out after this. The fact he thinks he’s a monster, is a sign he’s a good person, and Rick did bring him back from slipping too far. I’m intrigued to see where Carl goes in season five, as his change over the course of the series is fascinating.

7. Rick slaughters the pigs

Rick sacrificing the pigs so the group could re-support the fence was brutal and difficult to watch. The pigs were a symbol of hope, a hope that they could create a better life. Rick had been asserting so much energy to bettering the prison community by farming and raising live stock, then has to take all his hard work and destroy it.

There was a very poignant subtext to the scene, especially since they weren’t 100% sure the pigs caused the sickness going around (this point was empathized when burning down the pig pen afterword’s as well). Andrew Lincoln conveyed so much emotion with his face, it nearly had me in tears. The music, and especially the squealing of the pigs, added an extra punch; in my opinion this is criminally underrated and not really mention much.

8. Daryl’s basement walker fight

Zombie action isn’t what The Walking Dead is all about, but it’s still great and fun to see. This was the best walker showdown of the season hands down. It was expertly crafted by the amazing directing of Ernest Dickerson – not too surprising since Dickerson is one of the finest directors on the show. I honestly believed for a couple of seconds that Daryl was going to die, it was that well done. Extremely gripping scene.

9. Rick and Carl mowing down the walkers in the prison

As with the Daryl choice above, it’s always cool to see some good walker killing, and this was a top-notch sequence. There was some real meaning behind it, however, along with it being insanely cool to watch. Rick and Carl had an ample amount of relationship building moments during the season.

This is the one that sticks in my mind the most. Rick realizes that his son his cable of helping, and mature enough to do so. There is still that fear that Carl is too altered to this new world, which is illustrated subtly on Ricks face. It’s fantastic bonding between the two saying a lot without dialog (The Walking Dead has flawlessly done that time and time again).

10. Bob’s Flashback

One thing season four has done marvelously, is shine some much needed light on a good deal of the supporting characters. Bob is one of the few new characters introduced this season to still be alive by the end of it. I’m glad they decided to keep him around. I liked Bob from the beginning, he just seemed like a nice guy. Granted he has his demons (he’s a struggling alcoholic), but who doesn’t?

The flashback explained a lot about him. It showcased how he was able to be hopeful and happy because he’s not alone anymore. In hindsight, showing Bob’s days by himself was a great choice because it makes you understand his more upbeat attitude when everyone else is understandably more pessimistic. Blackbird’s Song by Lee DeWyze was a flawless fit; the flashback was very memorable overall.