Fall of the Prison (TV Series) (2024)

The Fall of the Prison was a major battle that took place during the fourth season of AMC's The Walking Dead.

Battle[]

As Rick and Tyreese have a discussion over who left a rabbit discarded, there is an explosion from outside the gates, which rocks the prison. Running outside, they find Philip standing on the top of a military tank, surrounded by his armada of cars and armed survivors outside the prison fences.

Philip demands that Rick come down to negotiate. Rick tries to refuse, stating that there is a council that makes the decisions now, but Philip then reveals that he has Michonne and Hershel held hostage, forcing Rick to come down and talk. The Prison group prepares for the possibility of fleeing, as they seemingly no longer have the numbers to hold off the militia. They plan that, if their defenses fail, they will all get on the nearby bus and escape. Philip is quick to give Rick an ultimatum: leave the prison by sundown or he will kill Michonne and Hershel. Rick counters that they have several ill people and children, but his pleas fall on deaf ears. Meanwhile, Daryl secretly begins handing out weapons and prepare for a war.

Philip handily shoots several oncoming walkers in the head, warning Rick that the sound will draw more of them in and that they'll be forced to leave soon. Carl notifies to Daryl that he has a good shot on the Governor, but Daryl tells him not to take it because it could start a war for the third time, which they are obviously trying to avoid. Mika and Molly bring Judith out to put her on the bus, but Lizzie wants them to remember the fighting mindset that Carol had taught them and she believes that they should help.

Rick tells Philip that the prison could definitely be shared, as per Hershel's advice. "Not after Woodbury, not after Andrea," Philip responds, which seems to fill Michonne with fury. Rick maintains that his group isn't leaving. And, just like Philip said, the battle between them would attract more walkers, and when they come, they'll tear down the fences and no one will be able to live at the prison. Infuriated, Philip jumps down from the tank and holds Michonne's katana to Hershel's neck, muttering that he will "fix the damn fences." Rick pleads to Tara and the rest if a fight is truly what they want. "I've fought him before and after, we took in his old friends. They've become leaders in what we have here. Now, you put down your weapons, walk through those gates, and you're one of us. We let go of all of it, and nobody dies. Everyone who's alive right now. Everyone who's made it this far. We've all done the worst kinds of things just to stay alive, but we can still come back. We're not too far gone.", Rick says. Hershel smiles, knowing that Rick has found what he lost. "We get to come back, I know we all can change.", Rick continues. Philip thinks for a moment and starts to move the katana away from Hershel. However, Philip mutters "liar", before slashing the katana down, partially decapitating Hershel. Beyond enraged, Rick and the Prison inhabitants open fire. While Carl manages to graze the Governor in the arm, a bullet from the returning volley hits Rick in the thigh and he drags himself behind the overturned bus for cover. Taking advantage of the distraction, Michonne rolls away. She tackles one of the Governor's militia to the ground and strangles him with her boot before proceeding to attempt to untie herself.

A still-alive Hershel attempts to drag himself away, but Philip uses the katana to chop at Hershel's neck until completely decapitated, to Beth and Maggie's horror from afar. Nearby, Tara is paralyzed by this brutal act as well. Just then, Lilly walks up with Meghan's corpse, witnessing Philip's act of murder. Upon seeing Meghan's body, Philip becomes completely stoic. He takes Meghan in his arms and shoots her in the head with his Beretta to prevent her from reanimating. Now with nothing to fight for, he gives another order to his militia: "Go through the fences in your cars, get your guns, we go in. Kill them all." Mitch, in control of the tank, drives it straight through the fence and ultimately collapses it, destroying the crops in the process. The Governor and some of his militia use the tank for cover, while the rest attack/invade the prison in cars and pick-ups. The third war officially begins.

With the tank blasting holes on the prison's building's walls, the inhabitants begin evacuating to the best of their ability. Maggie and Beth oversee the movement of the elderly and the infirm to escape into the bus, before Maggie runs back into the prison to grab Glenn. Rick jumps out from behind the overturned bus and attacks Philip, which begins a brutal fistfight. Maggie and Glenn both arrive at the bus, but Beth is missing, having also left to find Judith. She leaves a protesting Glenn on the bus, telling him to leave if she isn't back in time. The tank tears down the fence leading into the courtyard, pinning Daryl in a corner. Walkers wandered in as well, and one of them attacks Daryl, who is focused on the militia. Rick and the Governor are still fighting. The noise from the battle is drawing in even more walkers from outside the prison boundaries. Herds began to pour in through the destroyed fences, interrupting the battle between the two groups.

Daryl uses the walker that nearly bit him as an effective shield. He grabs it and proceeds toward the hostiles. After he throws out a grenade, Tara runs off from behind the tank. Maggie runs into Sasha and Bob, who are pinned down as well. Bob is shot through the arm, but since there is an exit wound, it can most certainly be treated. They see the bus leave without them, so the three of them flee as well. Tyreese is pinned down by Alisha and another soldier, but Lizzie and Mika arrive and shoot the both of them with Alisha taking a shot to the head. Tyreese tells the children that they have to get out, as walkers begin to fill the whole courtyard. The children run in the direction of the prison while Tyreese chases after them, yelling for them to go in the opposite direction.

Rick is overwhelmed by Philip, who pins him down and brutally beats him before beginning to choke him to death. Suddenly, Michonne's katana blade bursts through Philip's chest, impaling him. She casts him aside and helps Rick up. Immediately, he asks about Carl's whereabouts, but she couldn't know. Rick whole-heartedly goes off to find him. Michonne takes one last glance at the dying Philip, and decides to leave him to die in agony.

Daryl takes out a few walkers and manages to destroy the tank by dropping a grenade down the cannon barrel. Hearing the grenade rolling, Mitch bails out, but is quickly put down by Daryl, who sends a crossbow bolt through his chest. He runs into Beth, who was unable to find Judith. She wants to keep looking, but Daryl tells her that it's time to go. They then run away from the prison.

A bloodied and bruised Rick stumbles back into the courtyard, where a few walkers appear. They begin to walk towards him, but Carl shoots them in the head. They search for Judith, only to find her bloody baby carrier, which brings them to the conclusion that Judith is dead. Infuriated, Carl takes out his rifle and shoots a walker repeatedly down to his last shell, before tearfully breaking down. The pair then limp off, away from the Prison, which has been overrun by hordes of walkers, amongst them, a zombified Clara.

Meanwhile, a dying Philip is still lying on the grass painfully, where Lilly approaches him and shoots him in the forehead with his own pistol, ending the Governor once and for all.

Result[]

• The prison is destroyed, forcing the survivors onto the road.
• The Governor's Militia is wiped out.

Casualties[]

Trivia[]

• The battle marked the conclusion of the Woodbury Conflict.