Top 13 Moments from The Walking Dead Season 4
Steve Barton
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The Governor Rises to Power… Again! (Episode 7, “Dead Weight”)
It’s hard enough to become the hard-nosed leader of a ragtag band of survivors once during a zombie apocalypse, but The Governor was able to do it twice! Perhaps this time, with this group, he actually had righteous intentions. Perhaps he did just want to protect them. That’s believable. However, (from the Understatement of the Year Department) there was just too much instability about him. Sure, he kills Martinez and Pete to take control of the group, but it was to help protect them, right? Okay, maybe there was a little revenge built in there. Maybe some part of The Governor was thinking, “How do you like this?!?” as he pulled a tank up to the prison gates. Whatever the case, The Governor standing in control of a new group of individuals was one of the coolest moments of the year. He certainly knew how to gain power; he just had a hard time keeping himself under control when he got it.
The Mud Zombie (Episode 8, “Too Far Gone”)
And here we begin the load of big moments from the mid-season finale, the unforgettable Episode 8, aptly titled “Too Far Gone.” Quite clearly the mud zombie was an homage to Lucio Fulci’s Zombie, and this unexpected walker with an eyehole full of worms showed up at the worst possible time and bit young Meghan, the girl The Governor had taken on as something of an adopted daughter. This was not only beneficial to the girl and her mother, Lilly, but also seemed to provide a soothing substitute for The Governor’s lost daughter, Penny. So when Lilly shows up at the prison standoff with a bitten Meghan in her arms, The Governor does the only logical thing: He shoots her in the head and orders his people to wipe out the entire prison. No one ever said The Governor was the most mentally stable one of the bunch.
Hershel Loses His Head… Literally (Episode 8, “Too Far Gone”)
Quite possibly the most heartbreaking moment of Season 4. Hershel was the voice of reason. Although, if we are to learn from history, being the voice of reason or the moral compass on “The Walking Dead” usually proves to be fatal, right, Dale? Hershel found himself in the clutches of The Governor at absolutely the worst possible time. And good ol’ Brian/Phillip showed just how sharp that katana blade was as he decapitated the beloved elder statesman of the group. But it would not be the last time we saw the head as it turned up not only in an episode of “Talking Dead” but also in a zombified version in Episode 9 (“After”) when Michonne returned to the prison and skewered the undead head in merciful fashion. But we can take solace in the fact that Hershel seemed to be at peace when The Governor executed him, proud of the man that he had helped Rick become.
