The Suicide King

The Suicide King is the ninth episode of Season 3 of The Walking Dead and the first episode of the second half of the season. It aired on February 10, 2013 at 9/8c on AMC.

Plot Synopsis
In the arena, The Governor declares that Merle and Daryl will fight to the death. Andrea begs the Governor to stop, but he insists it's out of his hands and up to the crowd. Merle kicks Daryl down, some of the Woodbury guards bring in walkers, and Merle tells Daryl to follow his lead, Merle states he will get him and Daryl out.

Rick and Maggie fire into the crowd, Rick throws a gas-grenade, flooding the whole arena with smoke. The group rescues Merle and Daryl, killing Haley in the process. Merle kicks down a fence and guides the group away from Woodbury. A walker finds its way to the breach in the fence and enters the town, with more walkers later following.

Later, Rick and the group rendezvous with Glenn and Michonne at the car where they last parked it. Glenn raises his gun at the sight of Merle and Michonne brings out her katana. Merle laughs off the threat and informs Michonne that Andrea is sleeping with The Governor. The group is shocked to learn Andrea is alive and well in Woodbury.

Back at the prison, Hershel dresses Allen's wound as Tyreese makes plans to bury Donna outside. Hershel warns Tyreese that others in his group may be less accepting of newcomers. "I wouldn't get too comfortable here," he says to Tyreese's group. Carl then locks the door.

Meanwhile, Rick, Glenn, and Maggie refuse to let Merle accompany them back to the prison. "Don't ask me to leave him. I already did that once," Daryl says. Realizing they're at an impasse, Daryl parts ways with the group and disappears into the forest with Merle.

Rick warns Michonne they'll tend to her injuries at the prison, but after that, she's gone.

Tyreese and his group carry Donna's body outside for a burial. Ben and Allen suggest ambushing Carl and Carol, who are standing guard nearby, but Tyreese and Sasha shoot down the idea. "These are good people," Tyreese says. Beth and Axel bring out shovels, and Tyreese and Sasha quickly grab the shovels, so Allen and Ben do not get them.

On their way back to the prison, Rick and the others push a truck from the middle of the road. Glenn opens a car door to get  the break. A  walker jumps out at him and he proceeds to smash in the skull of the walker with his boot, Glenn then turns his rage on Rick for not killing The Governor: "Do you know what he did to her?" he shouts, referring to Maggie. After yelling "Leave me alone!" at Glenn, Maggie calms the situation down by saying they can deal with it back at the prison.

Back in Woodbury, Andrea tells Milton that nine men were injured in the attack, she informs Milton that Dr. Stevens is tending to their injuries, Andrea then asks about The Governor. Milton reports that The Governor's condition is unstable and won't open his apartment door, under the excuse that he is working on something.

Nearby, Martinez and other Woodbury guards threaten residents who are trying to leave the town. As Andrea tries to calm everyone down, a walker mauls Richard, a Woodbury resident, down the street. "Help him! Somebody, please!" Karen pleads. The Governor emerges from his apartment, walks over to the infected Richard, and shoots him in the head. The Governor then walks back inside as if nothing had happened.

Carol and Carl are discussing how quiet it is, and how they would love to hear a sound like a jumbo jet. They also have a heartfelt conversation about Lori. Carol and Carl then open and close the gates as Rick and the others have returned to the prison. Carol is crestfallen when she learns that Daryl left with Merle. Carl then asks about Oscar, and Rick just says "No".

In The Governor's apartment, Andrea urges him to reassure the residents. "I'm through holding their hands," The Governor says as he loads the guns. "We're at war." Andrea asks what Daryl was doing in Woodbury, and The Governor confesses he was holding Glenn and Maggie. "Why didn't you tell me they were here?" Andrea asks. "You're just a visitor here," the Governor replies.

At the prison, Rick walks through the common room but ignores Tyreese's group. "When he's ready, let me do the talking," Tyreese tells Allen, Sasha and Ben. In the cell block, Beth hands Judith to Rick. The baby's sobs seem to rattle him.

Meanwhile, Andrea and Milton try to pacify panicked residents that have gathered outside The Governor's home. Andrea rallies the crowd with promises of perseverance and rebuilding: "Years from now, when they write about this plague in the history books, they will write about Woodbury," she says. The crowd murmurs in agreement as The Governor watches from his window.

Back at the prison, Hershel dresses Glenn's wounds and observes tension between Glenn and Maggie. He urges both Glenn and Maggie to share their feelings. "Don't disappear on me," he later tells Maggie and then they hug.

That night, Hershel tells Rick that Michonne won't be well enough to travel for another couple of days. The group agrees that The Governor will retaliate against them, and Carol predicts they'll be highly outnumbered and outgunned. "We could use some reinforcements," Hershel says, referring to Tyreese and his group.

Rick finally meets with Tyreese, who insists his group can help defend the prison and that they will do "anything to contribute". Rick refuses at first — "I can't be responsible," he claims — but is on the verge of reconsidering when he hallucinates a vision of Lori on the catwalk in a white wedding dress, her face covered in the shadows.

"What do you want from me?" Rick screams, waving his gun. "I can't help you! Get out!" Unsure who Rick is screaming at, Tyreese's group starts to back away and Glenn orders them outside, rushing them before Rick hurts someone. Everyone stares at Rick as he frantically paces the common room.

Co-Stars

 * Tyler Chase as Ben.
 * Travis Love as Bowman.
 * Daniel Thomas May as Allen.
 * E. Roger Mitchell as Paul.

Uncredited

 * Greg Tresan as Richard Foster.
 * Meaghan Caddy as Eileen.
 * Adelaide and Eliza Cornwell as Judith Grimes
 * Dango Nguyen as Guard.
 * William Curry Harris as Woodbury Survivor.
 * Hines Ward as Street Walker
 * Kacie Jo Marta Nickles as Walker.
 * Andrew Jenkins as Walker.
 * David Alexander as Walker.
 * Christopher Kelly as Walker.
 * Greg Nicotero as Walker
 * Trish Vetterick as Guard.
 * Henry Louis Adams as Woodbury Survivor.
 * Nikki O'Neal Cocroft as Woodbury Survivor.
 * Brendon Cornwell as Woodbury Survivor.
 * Nicholas Wayne Whatley as Woodbury Survivor.
 * Keith Andrew Gostel as Woodbury Survivor.
 * Elberta McKnight as Woodbury Survivor.
 * Gina Marie as Woodbury Survivor.
 * Cheryl Jones Harvey as Woodbury Survivor.
 * Gregory Wilborn as Woodbury Survivor.

Deaths

 * Haley
 * Richard Foster

Trivia

 * First appearance of Karen.
 * First appearance of Paul.
 * Last appearance of Haley.
 * Last appearance of Richard Foster.
 * The episode title refers to Rick's multiple suicidal decisions by turning away and letting strong survivors leave the prison, including Daryl, Michonne, and Tyreese.
 * The episode title may also refer to the fact that there are two suicide kings in a deck of playing cards: the one-eyed King of Diamonds (which bears a resemblance to the now one-eyed Governor) and the full-faced King of Hearts.
 * The Governor mentions to Andrea that Rick and his group killed seven of their people: Tim, Crowley, Gargulio, Haley, Bob Adams, Eisenberg‎, and Richard Foster. This contradicts the actual number of dead, as more were killed during the initial attack, six unnamed defenders in total, in addition to Warren. However, it is possible that The Governor was not made aware of some of the deaths.
 * This episode marks the second time someone willingly leaves Rick's group (the first being Morales and his family), but the first time a main character has done so.
 * In both cases, the character left with and for family.
 * This is the first episode of the TV Series that wasn't given a TV-14 rating, as it's been boosted to TV-MA.
 * This is the third time Greg Nicotero plays a walker in the TV series, The first being the walker in "Tell It to the Frogs" that Daryl kills, and the second being the walker that bites Amy in "Vatos".
 * While Daryl tries to convince Rick, Glenn and Maggie to let him leave the group with Merle, Glenn mentions Carol (as if she were alive) twice to Daryl (first as a reason to keep him from bringing Merle with them, then as a reason to get him to stay with the group), despite the fact that Glenn had presumed Carol to be dead and had not yet returned to the Prison to learn of her survival. It is possible that Michonne informed him that Carol was found while the two waited for Rick and the others to return.
 * The Dixon brother showdown at the arena and the events of the morning after were filmed on separate days, which would account for the major changes in the background cast for the Woodbury survivors, as some people only appeared at the arena and others only appeared in the streets on the morning after, while some extras were able to be present for both scenes.