Rick and his group discover an abandoned prison to become a fortified home. Before that, they have to get rid of the walkers first. This begins part II, an appreciation of Rick Grimes in The Walking Dead, seasons 3 and 4.
In season 3, episode 1, titled, "Seed," after traveling for months, Rick and his group discuss a way to avoid herds of walkers over a roadmap. Then as the others rest, Daryl and Rick go on a hunt and find an overrun prison. "It's perfect," says Rick, looking at the area as the others join. Rick discusses shutting the gate to keep more walkers from filling the yard. Glenn volunteers, though Maggie objects. "I'm the fastest," says Glenn. Yet he's overruled by Rick. For after he chooses those to attract walkers as the others gun them down, Rick says, "I'll run for the gate."
After the yard walkers are put down, later at night, the group dines and rests, except Rick who's still looking around. Daryl is given a meal by Carol, who also says, "Rick's gotten us a lot farther than I ever thought he would, I'll give him that." Daryl (Norman Reedus) concurs while munching, as Carol (Melissa McBride) also adds, "Shane could never have done that."
Later, as Rick (Andrew Lincoln) joins the others, he says, "Look, I know we're all exhausted. This was a great win. But we've got to push just a little bit more," before he discusses all about the provisions to be found inside, and more walkers. So with ammo low, he says they'll go in hand to hand. "After all we've been through, we can handle it. I know it," Rick says. And that's what Rick, Daryl, Glenn (Steven Yeun), T-Dog (IronE Singleton) and Maggie (Lauren Cohan), all five had done the next morning, while Hershel, Lori, Carol, Beth and Carl all wait at the gate.
Meanwhile, Andrea (Laurie Holden), presumed dead by Rick's group after Hershel's farm was overrun, is being taken care of by Michonne (Danai Gurira) in an abandoned town. Then ailing, Andrea pleads with Michonne to leave her. Yet Michonne refuses, and later, they leave.
At the prison, while Rick led a group into the hallways, Hershel is bitten by a walker in the leg. Soon after, Hershel is carried into the prison cafeteria. Rick hacks off Hershel's leg below the knee to halt the infection, as five inmates watch from a window, surprising Rick's group.
In episode 2, Rick's group meets, Oscar, Axel, Big Tiny, Andrew and Tomas, five inmates who were locked in a room for ten months awaiting a rescue. Rick informs them about the apocalypse. Now released, Tomas wants the prison, saying they were there first. Rick holds firm, saying, "We took it, set you free. It's ours. We spilled blood." Later, Rick makes a deal. The five give up half their food provisions in exchange for help in clearing out a cell block. Tomas agrees. Shortly after, Rick makes it clear they are to stay away from his group.
Rick, Daryl and T-Dog help the five men clear out a cell block killing walkers. Big Tiny is bit on the shoulder, then killed by Tomas. Later, Tomas tries taking advantage of the dozen walkers coming at them to deal with Rick. He first takes a swing at Rick while killing walkers, yet Rick dodges. Then he shoves a walker at Rick, yet Daryl kills it. After the clearing, Rick confronts Tomas, and Tomas pays the price. Quickly after, Andrew flees after also trying to kill Rick, yet he's chased after. Once Andrew runs into a prison yard of walkers, Rick locks him outside.
In episode 3, Michonne and Andrea are now in the town Woodbury, led by The Governor, taken after both witnessed a rescue of an Army helicopter pilot. Both are shown hospitality, yet Michonne is wary. In episode 4, Axel and Oscar approach as Rick and his group plan to clear the prison yard. Rick tells them to stay back, though both plead to join. A discussion follows.
"These two might actually have less blood on their hands than we do," says T-Dog. Though Daryl knows guys like Axel and Oscar, he's with Carol, Maggie, Glenn, and Rick, who all hold firm. Later, mayhem starts. Walkers appear from an open gate, alarms sound, attracting more. Andrew was the cause, and dealt with by Oscar who saves Rick. T-Dog dies heroically, saving Carol from walkers in a hallway. Then Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies) dies after Maggie performs emergency delivery of a baby girl, with Carl (Chandler Riggs) saving his mom from turning.
In the next several episodes, Rick becomes profoundly affected after Lori's death. Glenn steps in. Andrea gets involved with The Governor as Michonne sees right through him. Michonne leaves, and is hunted by Merle and three men of Woodbury. She kills two, and arrives wounded at the prison, after witnessing Glenn and Maggie captured by Merle. Michonne then leads Rick, Daryl and Oscar to rescue as Rick is wary of her. Glenn and Maggie are rescued after brutal mistreatment. Later, Oscar is killed. Michonne fights The Governor, sees his aquarium of walker heads, then Andrea appears, shocked. Daryl is captured, and held with his brother Merle.
Shortly after, The Governor forces Merle to fight Daryl in a macabre arena surrounded by walkers held by men. As Andrea tries to stop it all, a flashbang is lobbed into the arena by Rick. Maggie fires her rifle with telescopic sight, kills a walker, the man who held it in front of Daryl, and shoots Haley, the woman Andrea met at the wall. During the panic, Daryl and Merle go free.
Later, The Governor retaliates with a skirmish at the prison. Axel is shot. Daryl and Merle return to help, though there's odium towards Merle. For he was with The Governor when both mistreated Glenn and Maggie. Afterwards, Andrea arrives at the prison to try and make peace for both sides. She also later sets up a meet between Rick and The Governor, who makes a deal, saying, "I want Michonne. Turn her over and this all goes away," ending with giving Rick two days. Though The Governor kept the deal from Andrea, she learns about it from Milton, makes a dash for the prison, and yet is captured by The Governor/Philip Blake (David Morrissey).
In episode 15, Rick gathers all at the prison to come clean about the deal, saying that The Governor wanted Michonne handed over in exchange for peace. That Merle took Michonne to fulfill the deal, just as Rick changed his mind and sent Daryl to stop him (later, Michonne is let free by Merle, redeeming himself before he's killed by The Governor). Rick then adds, "I couldn't sacrifice one of us for the greater good because we are the greater good."
Then in episode 16, the season 3 finale, all prepare for war. Looking up at Rick, Michonne says, "We're ready." And were they ever ready. The Governor and his group go in hard, taking out a guard tower with an RPG, and tearing down the prison gate. Yet still, there's no retaliatory gunfire. The Governor and crew go deeper, splitting up into the hallways. All is quiet, until flashbangs are thrown and walkers are unleashed. The Governor's group retreats as Glenn and Maggie, both in riot armor gear, open fire. Rick, Daryl and Michonne give chase, later finding that The Governor slaughtered all of his group, except Karen who played dead, leaving with his two lieutenants. Soon after, Rick, Daryl and Michonne arrive at Woodbury seeking Andrea, finding her held in a room bitten by Milton, who turned after he was stabbed by The Governor.
In the midseason 4 finale, episode 8, The Governor returns to the prison after having captured Michonne and Hershel, accompanied with greater numbers, and with an army tank. This time, The Governor demanded the prison, and would allow Rick's group to leave. Rick tries to make a deal that all could live together, though realizing it would be hard. Finally losing patience, The Governor decapitates Hershel with Michonne's katana sword, and a battle begins. Michonne sets herself free. Rick and The Governor finally go at it hand to hand, and just as he's about to choke the life out of Rick, Michonne's katana blade is seen thrust through The Governor's chest. This ends Part II, an appreciation of Rick Grimes of The Walking Dead.