In a change of pace, “The Walking Dead’ opened with a somber and slow start that still managed to have an impact like a high-octane opening.

With Rick on watch, he continues to suffer from visions of his dead wife leading him to leave the complex of the prison. Having a tender embrace with his wife, viewers see as he hugs thin air and a worried Michonne watches from afar. It’s a great opening leading people to believe Rick truly has lost it again.

With Rick is lost in his delusions, Glenn is left as the leader of the group. Unfortunately for Glenn, it’s not the best position for him.

After the growing strength of Glenn in the last few episodes, he is lost when it comes to being the sole leader. He is sporadic in his decisions going for quick answers instead of thought out ones. When thinking of how to deal with the Governor, Glenn forgets about putting someone else on watch and falters when how to handle Maggies’ problems of almost getting raped.

Meanwhile, life with the Dixon brothers isn’t as smooth as they both hoped. Tension is high and Daryl no longer likes his brother these days. When they find a family over run with walkers, Daryl runs off to help while Merle makes a case to leave them alone and raid the spoils later.

It’s not the picture perfect reunion the brothers wanted and things end on a sour note between the two with Daryl storming off.

There were two major plot points in this episode, one involving a great scene of how believable Rick’s mental anguish is. Andrew Lincoln does a great job making Rick’s insanity real by murmuring under his breath and finding it hard to put together sentences. His blank wide-eyed look can make anyone believe he has truly gone crazy.

However, the best part of the episode was the other plot point of when the Governor makes an appearance at the prison. When all seemed normal, Axel is shot and killed by the Governor. A full-scale assault then begins on the prison by the Governor and his subordinates.

All seems lost for the group, especially Rick when three zombies corner him, but some old friends come to the rescue. The Governor leaves with a victorious smile on his face as the prison group rallies to rid themselves of the zombie infestation caused by the Governor.

The episode ends with an almost maniacal look on Rick’s face, yet, it felt somewhat satisfying. Instead of it being a crazy look, it was a look of determination to strike back as it seems the attack knocked Rick out of his stupor.

Hopefully Rick truly is, because the prison group needs it’s leader now more than ever, as it looks like a full on war is about to begin between them and Woodbury.

Nathan can be reached at: [email protected]