The mid-season finale of The Walking Dead ended with a bang after this build up towards the hospital confrontation between Rick’s group and the Grady Hospital gang. While the plan seems rather feasible, the entire episode is just filled with the officers talking about how fragile this Dawn infrastructure is.

We begin with Officer Lamson sprinting away and then attempting to cut his binds against a cop car. Rick is making some epic running motions, taking some time to slash open a walker’s stomach as he charges into the other Grady cop car. Rick drives and chases Lamson down, using the loudspeaker to warn him. When Lamson refuses to stop, Rick speeds up (OH SHIT) and TAKES HIM OUT. Of course, he lands on his head which means..broken back! With the walkers slowly approaching (in this take, they walk at the rate of five min per inch), Rick listens to Lamson talking about how shitty the whole Dawn Grady situation is and was getting super annoying when Rick told him to shut up and took him out of his misery.

We go back to Gabriel coming towards the Hunters’ leftovers from their Bob-fest in front of the elementary school filled with walkers who have literally been trying to break out since the beginning of this season. Of course Gabriel takes his time to fully examine the lightly maggot seasoned leg at which point the walkers break out. The limping priest leads the walkers right back to the church where he is, ironically, locked out of the very place he had closed off to the village chasing him. As Gabriel is pounding down the door, the walkers are stopped by the steel pipes from the organ..SO FILLED WITH IRON-Y.

Unlike Gabriel, Michonne and Carl frantically try and open the door. They end up having to take an axe to the strong, wooden doors which causes the walkers to swarm into the church. Close up shot of Michonne’s sword as she finally unsheathes it and uses it to do some good old-fashioned decapitation. They rush back into Gabriel’s room and leave through the machete hole. The priest attempts to do something brave and is rewarded by karma with an accidental machete save. They run around front and Carl bangs his Gat like a hammer (literally AND figuratively).

We go back to Rick and Daryl who discuss Lamson’s rather acrobatic death. Shepard speaks out that Lamson was killed by robbers and Rick comments about how good of a liar she is. I am sure that it really helps their credibility but the big guy confirms this by saying that to Dawn, after Rick has already killed one of her officers, it would not seem like a good enough trade for her which foreshadows the finale’s finale. It is also a great transition to Dawn on an exercise bike, who is calling her officers over the radio. Beth knows something is up which Dawn tries to cover up by saying that sometimes they do not answer her. As Beth is straightening up, she picks up a picture of Hanson with Dawn. Dawn says some vague things about Hanson and goes back to justifying everything she’s done since Earth’s implosion on itself.

We return to Michonne, Carl, Judith, and Gabriel watching the walkers slowly break down the door. As it seems like it was all over, Abraham drives up with his group in the fire truck! Eugene is sleeping in the back from the pleasant drive and Michonne informs Maggie of Beth being found.

Everyone is super happy and then we switch right back to Beth watching O’Donnell beating down the strawberry man, Percy. Dawn also sees this and does nothing, Beth storms away, only to reappear, sitting at the foot of the elevator.

Dawn comes up to tell her that Percy is okay and Beth informs Dawn that because she had never changed the hiding place of her keys, Beth was able to steal it again. Beth asks Dawn about when she will actually confront the fact that the walker reality was the real one when Dawn turns it around and brings up Beth’s role in her office and Noah’s escape. Unfortunately, O’Donnell was listening in the back and turns to tattletale on Dawn. He really didn’t think that Dawn would do anything but she pulls out her pistol about to force him into the elevator to his death. O’Donnell struggles with Dawn in a badass fistfight in which he is literally holding Dawn up by her neck. She karate chops his neck when Beth distracts him and calls for Beth to tackle him into the elevator, which she does. Dawn thanks her and there seems to be a mutual understanding, or rather Dawn will now stop beating on Beth.

A short amount of time passes as we see Beth trying to snooze in the corner of Carol’s room when Dawn comes in with a drink. Beth questions her about covering for her and how it was not for protecting Beth but rather herself because the officers who were dead were no longer causing her any problems. Beth seemed to be coming to a few revelations about the place such as people will use others for what they want..which I assume is to show how innocent Beth still was to the workings of the world. Dawn says that Beth reminds her of a younger version of her and it seems that Dawn is trying to recruit Beth and Carol as officers. THEN WE FINALLY SEE MOVEMENT FROM CAROL! YAY!

We return to the exchange with Sasha and Tyreese on the roof. They talk about Marvin and we see how Sasha is still feeling super emotional over Bob. Daryl makes some impressive snap signals and we see how well-planned this meet is. Rick announces himself to the officers and lays his weapons on the ground. He explains the exchange and we see some impressive sniper work by Sasha. The exchange continues with Beth getting ready and slipping her scissors into cast. Carol is brought out in a wheelchair where Dawn is lined up in the hallway with three officers. Franco and Mckinley bring Rick and half of the gang up the hospital stairs. Tensions remain high however, it seems to ebb slightly when everyone holsters their weapon. It all seems to go smoothly until they all are about to leave. Dawn demands that Noah remain as her ward because she was losing hers.

Rick tries to talk her out of it but Noah understands he has to sacrifice his attempt to return home for the group like Beth did for him. As he walks away, Beth runs up to hug him. Dawn just could not resist and adds a snarky remark. Beth, who has been becoming more and more revolutionary, Beth says she FINALLY gets it (again) and goes to stand in front of Dawn. You know what is coming, and with teeth clenched, you see Beth attempt to stab Dawn and out of pure reflex, Dawn shoots Beth and kills her. Everything goes all slow-mo and Rick takes Dawn out with a headshot. Before everything can escalate into a huge gun battle, Shepard aka New Dawn/Hanson, screams that it is over and everything had always been about Dawn. They offer Rick and crew a place to stay and that it was better than being outside. Rick clearly does not think so and informs everyone that who ever would like to leave, could leave with them now.

At this point there is a lot of crying which only increases when Maggie approaches. For dramatic effect, Daryl is one of the last people to walk out of the hospital, carrying Beth like a litle ragdoll. Maggie promptly collapses and the world begins to cry with Daryl, who is doing a much better job of acting like the world is ending than with Meryl’s walker transformation.

The producers were sympathetic and inserted a Morgan teaser scene for us in the midst of all these tears.

Morgan comes upon the school and eventually the ransacked church. He leaves a small offering at the altar of cookies, a bullet, and a rabbit foot which Morgan begins to laugh over after saying a small prayer. He stands and sees the map Abraham left for Rick on the ground. He reads it and we see his eyes grow large when he reads the last two words: RICK GRIMES. DUM DUM DUMMMM.

On that note..UNTIL FEBRUARY!