Walking Dead: Welcome to the Tombs

"Welcome to the Tombs" is the sixteenth episode of season three of the survival horror series The Walking Dead and the thirty-fifth episode of the series overall. It was directed by Ernest Dickerson and written by Glen Mazzara. It first aired on the AMC network on Sunday, March 31st, 2013.

Synopsis
The Governor's sanity continues to erode as he mercilessly bludgeons Milton Mamet. He locks him in a room with the captured Andrea and instructs him to kill her. Milton turns on the Governor, who stabs him and leaves him to die locked in the room. Unbeknownst to him, Milton manage to sneak Andrea a pair of pliers in the hopes of setting herself free.

The Governor marshals his forces and tells them that the people at the prison are responsible for the deaths of eight of their own people. Soldiers and civilians alike rally behind him and ready to mount a massive offensive on the prison. Tyreese and Sasha elect to stay behind, wanting no part in any plan that involves killing humans. Tyreese tells the Governor that they will stay to defend the children. At the prison, Rick is still trying to come to terms with the loss of Lori, and still sees images of her. Carl grows despondent and belligerent, which worries Rick. Michonne thanks Rick for taking her in, knowing that he didn't have to. The others prepare for the Governor's assault.

The Governor leads a convoy consisting of heavy duty trucks and military vehicles. They power through the front gates of the prison, mowing down walkers. Martinez takes out the guard towers with a grenade launcher. Once they breach the perimeter, they raid the interior of the complex, but are surprised to find it empty. They continue the search and walk into an ambush as tear gas canisters rain down up them. The Governor and the others are forced to retreat. On the upper levels of the prison, Glenn and Maggie are wearing riot gear and trade shots with the Governor's men, while the others watch from a safe distance on a nearby ridge. The Governor and his followers continue their retreat and leave the prison.

While Rick goes back inside, Hershel is still on the ridge with Carl. A young member of the Woodbury crew comes upon them and surrenders his weapon. Carl takes not chances and guns him down in cold blood. When news of this reaches Rick, he cannot believe his ears. He is convinced that Carl was only acting in self defense until Hershel sets him straight, telling him that he had seen the entire episode play out. Back at Woodbury, Andrea struggles to reach the pliers, which are behind her. She kicks off her boots and reaches her leg back to reach them. After several failed attempts, she manages to grasp the tool with her feet and bring it up to her hands, where she gets to work freeing herself. Milton eventually bleeds out and turns. He lunges towards Andrea just as she frees herself.

Elsewhere, the Governor and his camp stop to rest. Dissension flows through the ranks, as many of the Woodbury residents think that it was a bad move to attack the prison. Some of the others however, remain close to the Governor. When it becomes clear that they are no longer going to follow him, the Governor takes an assault rifle and guns them all down. Allen points a gun at the Governor, but he hesitates and the Governor shoots him in the head. Martinez and Bowman remain wary, but take no action against the Governor. One of the Woodbury residents, Karen, miraculously avoid the gunfire, and plays dead beneath the body of another victim. Rick and his group go to Woodbury to rescue Andrea. Along the way, they find Karen, who tells them what the Governor did. When they arrive, they find Tyreese and Sasha guarding the gates. Karen convinces them to let Rick and the others inside. They reach Andrea's cell, but it is too late. Though she has succeeded in stabbing Milton in the head, she has been bitten. Andrea asks for a gun so she can put an end to herself. Michonne elects to stay with her the entire time and Andrea commits suicide.

Rick brings the surviving Woodbury residents back to the prison. Carl doesn't understand why he is doing this. He tells him, "They're going to join us". As everyone disperses, Rick looks up at the catwalk, which is where he usually sees the image of Lori. This time however, there is no image, and Rick knows that he is doing the right thing.

Notes & Trivia

 * "Welcome to the Tombs", "WD: Welcome to the Tombs", and "The Walking Dead: Welcome to the Tombs" all redirect to this page.


 * The Walking Dead was developed by Frank Darabont based on the series of graphic novels by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard.


 * This episode is included on disc four of the Walking Dead: The Complete Third Season DVD and Blu-ray collections.


 * This episode had a viewership of 12.40 million people.


 * This episode aired in the United Kingdom on the FOX Network on April 5th, 2013.


 * This is the finale episode for season three.


 * Robert Kirkman, David Alpert, Gale Anne Hurd, and Glen Mazzara are all credited in the main title credits.


 * Paul Gadd, Nichole Beattie, Sang Kyu Kim, Angela Kang, Scott M. Gimple, Denise Huth, Evan Reilly, Greg Nicotero, and Tom Luse are all credited in the opening title credits.


 * Producer Jolly Dale and associate producer Kenneth Requa are credited in the end-title credits for this episode.


 * Co-executive producer and teleplay writer Evan T. Reilly is credited as Evan Reilly in this episode.


 * Co-executive producer Denise M. Huth is credited as Denise Huth in this episode.


 * Director Ernest R. Dickerson is credited as Ernest Dickerson in this episode.


 * Actor Michael Rooker, who normally plays Merle Dixon is credited in this episode, but does not make an appearance.


 * Actor Dallas Roberts, who plays Milton Mamet, is uncredited for his participation in this episode. This glaring omission is quite odd since Milton plays a fairly major role in this episode.


 * Actress Sarah Wayne Callies is credited in the main title credits, but appears as a hallucination only in this episode. Her character, Lori Grimes, was killed off in episode 3x04, "Killer Within".


 * Scenes taking place in Woodbury were filmed in Senoia, Georgia.


 * This is the seventh episode of The Walking Dead directed by Ernest Dickerson. It is his second episode from season three. He previously directed "Seed". His next episode is "Too Far Gone".


 * This is the eighth and final episode of The Walking Dead written by Glen Mazzara. It is his third episode from season three. He previously wrote "Prey".


 * This episode marks the television acting debut of Tanner Holland, who plays Jody.

Allusions

 * The mysterious pregnant woman that Rick sees on the catwalk is his wife, Lori Grimes. This is a hallucination taking place in his head only. Lori was killed off in episode 3x04, "Killer Within". The crooked wooden burial marker seen outside the prison at the beginning and end of this episode is Lori's grave.


 * The Governor makes reference to this daughter while speaking to Milton Mamet in the beginning of the episode. His daughter was Penny Blake, who had become a walker and was kept inside his residence in secret until Michonne destroyed her in "Made to Suffer".


 * Daryl Dixon makes reference to Merle Dixon in this episode. Merle was Daryl's brother, who was killed by the Governor, an then turned into a walker. Daryl had to finish him off in "This Sorrowful Life".


 * Allen makes reference to his son, Ben], while talking to the Governor in this episode. Ben was shot and killed by Merle Dixon in "This Sorrowful Life".

"And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation."
 * The Bible verse that the Governor finds highlighted in Hershel Greene's King James Bible is from John 5:29.

Appearances

 * This is the first and only appearance of Jody. He is the young man killed by Carl Grimes in this episode.


 * This is the sixth and final appearance of Allen. He is shot in the head by the Governor in this episode.


 * This is the final appearance of Andrea on The Walking Dead. She dies from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after being bitten on the left shoulder by the Milton Mamet walker. Other main characters who have died during the course of this series include Dale Horvath, Shane Walsh and Lori Grimes. She is the third main cast member from the show to die this season.


 * This is the fifth appearance of Tyreese Williams. He appeared last in "Prey". He appears next in "30 Days Without an Accident".


 * This is the fifth appearance of Sasha Williams. She appeared last in "Prey". She appears next in "30 Days Without an Accident".


 * This is the fourth appearance of Karen. She appeared last in "I Ain't a Judas". She appears next in "30 Days Without an Accident".


 * This is the tenth and final appearance of Milton Mamet. He appeared last in "Prey"; dies in this episode.


 * This is the second and final appearance of Paul, who is one of the Woodbury residents shot and killed by the Governor. He appeared last in "The Suicide King".

Quotes

 * The Governor: You smell the gunpowder and you see the blood. You know what that means? It means you're alive. It means you won. You take the heads so that you don't ever forget.

....
 * The Governor: I told you to kill her but you didn't. And now you gonna turn and you gonna tear away the flesh of her bones. In this life now you kill or you die. Or you die and you kill.

....
 * Andrea: No one can make it alone now.
 * Daryl Dixon: Never could.

....
 * Michonne: I never thanked you.
 * Rick Grimes: For what?
 * Michonne: For getting me out there, that day. Taking me in.
 * Rick Grimes: Well, if you didn't have that baby formula, I wouldn't have.
 * Michonne: You could have just taken the formula.
 * Rick Grimes: Well, must have been something else then. You know, it was Carl who made the call. He said you belonged here. You're one of us.

....
 * Rick Grimes: We did it, we drove them out.
 * Michonne: We should go after them.
 * Daryl Dixon: We should finish it.
 * Maggie Greene: It is finished, didn't you see them high-tail it out of here?
 * Michonne: They could regroup.
 * Glenn Rhee: We can't take the chance, he's not going to stop.
 * Carol Peletier: You're right, we can't keep living like this.
 * Maggie Greene: So we take the fight back to Woodbury? We barely made it back last time.

....
 * Hershel Greene: That kid was scared. He was handing his gun over.
 * Rick Grimes: He said he drew.
 * Hershel Greene: (Shakes his head no)
 * Rick Grimes: Carl said it was in defense.
 * Hershel Greene: I was there. He didn't have to shoot. He had every reason not to.
 * Rick Grimes: Well, maybe it looked like that to you...
 * Hershel Greene: Rick, I'm telling you. He gunned that kid down.