On March 30, The Walking Dead had its fourth season finale, and it was easily one of the best episodes of the season. While most of the second half of this season has felt a little slow this episode definitely upped the ante in some significant ways and we got to see some really great character development especially from Rick and Daryl.

There were also several standout scenes including some that were quite violent, even by Walking Dead standards, but also felt completely justified and not just thrown in for shock value.

I do not want to go into too much detail to avoid spoilers but the essentially Rick was forced to result to some brutal methods in self-defense.

There were some nice flashback segments featuring a few familiar faces, I will not mention names to avoid potential spoilers, that also stood out in this episode and really helped illustrate Rick’s character arc this season.

However, the last ten minutes of the episode were the most exciting, in a sprint to the finish that ended up being a real nail-biter. This season’s finale left us in a very interesting place. With the transformation of Rick from a farmer into a man who has made peace with his brutal tendencies and the things he has to do to protect the people he cares about and survive in this world, while also maintaining his humanity.

By the end of the episode Rick has become a force to be reckoned with now more so than ever. This is made abundantly clear in the final line of the episode and it will be interesting to see where the character goes next season. The dynamic between Rick and Carl was also an interesting aspect of this season, and in this episode we got to see Carl accept the kind of man his father is and Rick, in turn, acknowledging Carl.

Overall this was a very strong episode, and a satisfying season finale. It managed to deliver on the action and suspense that a season finale should have, and it left just enough loose ends to keep me excited for where things will go from here. The Walking Dead season five is currently set to air in October.

4/5