The Good Man

"You can get out. But there's nowhere to go. I'm sorry."

Written by Robert Kirkman & Dave Erickson
Directed by Stefan Schwartz

Travis: It's not safe for us to stay. Each for our own now.
Madison: Going back to our original plan. We're driving east.

The camera pans over the city of Los Angeles, which is now in darkness and dotted by fires burning in various buildings...

At the Clark residence, Madison tells the rest of the family to get ready to leave. She tells Chris and Alicia that the plan is to still head east to the desert. When Travis promises him that they'll go rescue Liza, he asks how they're supposed to do that.

They go downstairs and find Daniel confirming the information Adams gave him. Daniel wants to execute the soldier, but Travis tells him not to. Adams tells them that they'll need his help and offers to draw up a map for them. At the same time, Daniel promises Ofelia that they'll find Griselda. Despite her railing at him because he didn't tell her about his Dark and Troubled Past, he tells her that it was something that was needed at the time.

At the medical clinic, Exner is finalizing evacuation plans for a transport to Andrews Air Force Base. Liza appears and asks if Travis and her son can go too, and she reluctantly agrees to allow them to come along.

Adams successfully gets Travis to untie his bonds, as he reasons that he's dead either way. He tells Travis where to go in the facility and heads off on his own before the family drives towards the command post. When they arrive at a checkpoint, Daniel opens the gate and Alicia notes that all of the soldiers have bugged out.

Soon after, Daniel walks up to the gates of the military base. The soldiers order him to get back and aim their weapon at them, but he responds by telling them to save their ammunition. As he walks off, the soldiers look over to see that he released the horde in the arena, which is advancing down the street towards them. They freak out and begin firing.

As the soldiers scream in the background, Daniel jogs into a nearby parking garage and meets with the rest of the family. He tells them that the soldiers are engaged with the horde and they should use the opportunity to escape. Travis tells his son and Alicia to wait with the truck while they go to rescue Liza at the command post.

Madison sees the hordes advancing on the gates and wonders if what they just did was good. Daniel tells them that this was the easy part - it will be getting back out that will be tough.

At the jail cells, people pace back and forth in uncertainty. Nick stalks around, but Strand tells him to calm down and not create unnecessary attention. At that point, several of the lights fail in the building. Strand tells him the moment is here, and they use the key to exit the cell. When they pass the other shouting prisoners, Strand tells Nick that they're leaving the others behind because they have no value to him. He tells Nick that they have to head towards something called "Abigail"...

Exner and Liza also notice the horde attacking the soldiers at the gates. She tells the other doctors to go downstairs and wait for transport. She then tells Liza to go and find her family if she can, then looks on at the clinic in despair.

The family breaks into the command post (revealed to be a community college) via a service entrance and begins searching. They eventually find the jail cells and release the prisoners, who tell them they saw Nick and Strand leaving.

At the same time, Chris and Alicia debate whether or not to save themselves or wait for the family. They hear someone coming and jump into the SUV, and are pulled out moments later by a group of soldiers, who tell them that they're taking the vehicle. When Chris attempts to fight back, the soldiers knock him out and antagonize Alicia before leaving.

Outside, the soldiers are fighting a losing battle against the horde, who begins to break through the fence. Liza runs outside and stares in shock at the carnage, then goes to get onto a military truck. She stops and stares at a bit soldier, who runs headlong into a helicopter rotor. Realizing that the compound is overrun, she flees back inside.

Strand and Nick sneak into the main foyer, where they find Melvin (the soldier talking to the former previously) being Eaten Alive by a walker. He takes back his cufflinks and grabs a pistol, but they are forced to run when walkers advance on them.

Fleeing down a hallway, they are impeded by a locked door. As they realize there's no way out, Travis and the others arrive on the other side of the door and attempt to open it to no avail. When it looks as though both of them will be killed by the walkers, Liza runs up and uses her keycard to open the door and they barely escape into a nearby kitchen.

More walkers attack, and everyone uses improvised weapons to dispatch them. Afterwards, Liza reveals Griselda's death to him and Ofelia, to their shock and sadness.

The family goes back to the medical center, only to discover that Exner terminated all of the stable patients with the captive bolt gun. She tells the group that they can escape via one of the back entrances back to the parking garage, but that it's futile. Liza begs her to come along, but Daniel says it's not worth it and they all head out. Exner picks up the bolt gun...

As they leave, Madison tells Strand about their plan to head to the desert. He tells her that it's pointless, and reveals that he is going to "Abigail", a boat just off the coast. They exit the command post at daybreak and discover a pile of charred bodies - including Griselda's. Ofelia cries and Daniel stares in shock.

The group arrives at the parking garage and find Chris and Alicia, who tell them that the soldiers left them alone. Before they leave, though, a wounded Adams appears and points his gun at Daniel, intending to exact revenge for his torture. Ofelia tries to talk him down while Travis sneaks up around him. At that moment, Adams shoots Ofelia in the shoulder and Travis attacks him. The family watches as Travis brutally beats Adams to within an inch of his life before being pulled back. The group gets in their vehicles and drive out.

Los Angeles is seen going up in smoke as the group travels away from the safezone. Strand warns them not to go downtown and says that there's a safehouse they can go to.

They eventually arrive at a large mansion overlooking the coast. Strand reveals that he was prepared for their situation and has supplies and a backup generator. He tells the group to relax and get something to eat, then goes outside to look into a telescope.

Madison walks up to Nick and tells him that she's sorry for letting the soldiers take him, but he tells her not to worry. He explains that he has reached an epiphany, where he feels after several years of treating his life like the end times, everyone else is catching up with him. He goes outside to Strand, who shows him the boat through the telescope and suggests that he's going to go off on his own.

Liza dresses Ofelia's wound and tells Daniel that she'll pull through, then goes to hug her son and tell him that she loves him. She goes outside and Madison follows.

On a nearby cliff, Liza stands looking out at the sea. When Madison walks up and asks her what's wrong, she reveals that she was bit, and shows the wound on her side. She tells Madison that she has to kill herself to prevent reanimation, but says she can't bring herself to do it. She asks Madison to shoot her and hands over a gun, but Travis walks up at that moment and asks what's happening.

Liza tells him about what happened, and he begins to cry at the revelation. She reveals to both of them that there is no cure, and that anyone who is bit dies and reanimates. She says that she doesn't want it to happen to her, and tells him to protect the rest of the group. He tearfully takes the gun from Madison's hands.

In the house, everyone is sharing a happy moment when they hear a single gunshot go off. They run outside and see Liza's body, and break down upon seeing her.

As Travis and Madison console each other at the cliffside, the camera pans to the sea and its darkening shade of red...

Tropes:

Affectionate Nickname: While the group drives away from the base.
Strand: You and I are going to get along just fine... Nick's Mom.
All for Nothing: From Daniel's perspective, the entire infiltration of the military base could be seen as this. Not only was his wife already dead, but his actions to get in there also led to Ofelia getting shot by the soldier he had tortured for information.
Always a Bigger Fish: Faced with few options, Daniel releases the horde in order to distract the soldiers long enough to escape before Cobalt is initiated. Subverted, in that the intended strike never goes through.
Asshole Victim: Melvin. After antagonizing Strand and nearly carting Nick off (presumably to be executed), they find him being gnawed on by a walker (while still alive) in the command post foyer.
Badass in a Nice Suit: Strand, who proves to be a very capable shot with a gun during the escape.
Call-Back/Death by Irony: Madison and Liza's conversation/death pact in "The Dog" comes back in a big way when the latter reveals her bite marks, and makes the exact same comments about not letting Travis put her down because it would break him. However, it turns into Death by Irony when Travis does see what's happening and ends up pulling the trigger himself.
Character Death: Liza.
Chekhov's Gun: The horde in the arena (revealed by Adams in the previous episode) is utilized by Daniel to cause a distraction and overthrow the military while the group sneaks in to rescue Nick and Liza.
Chekhov's Gunman:
- Adams. After Travis releases him, he shows up later to shoot Ofelia in the shoulder.
- Liza's keycard saves Nick and Strand after they're trapped in a hallway with no exit and walkers advancing towards them.
Children Are Innocent: When they drive away from their home, Madison sees her neighbours laughing and smiling in their home, unaware that the situation has grown increasingly desperate.
Continuity Nod:
- Travis also wields the Tran's shotgun, which was taken by the Clarks three episodes prior.
- When Strand discovers Melvin (the man he was speaking with in the previous episode), he retrieves the cufflinks he gave to the latter in the previous episode.
Cool Boat: Abigail, a yacht owned by Strand that he shows off to Nick.
Crazy-Prepared: Strand, who has a mansion filled with supplies and a backup generator, as well as a boat called the Abigail that he plans to head out to.
Designated Hero: Arguably the most prominent example in the entire show. While the Clark/Manawa and Salazar families are the show's protagonists, their actions in this episode to infiltrate the military base to rescue Griselda and Nick are anything but heroic. To wit, the horde they lead to the base's gates to distract the soldiers prevents the evac helicopter from landing, condemning all the patients inside who were going to evacuated to Edwards AFB. They essentially sacrificed dozens of innocent lives trying to save two.
Devoured by the Horde: When a large horde of walkers are invading the military base, the walkers knock down a watchtower with two guards on it. When the guards try to get back up, they were already surrounded by the walkers and they start eating them.
Dissonant Serenity: Nick uses the drive from the city to stick his head out the window and enjoy the breeze.
Driven to Suicide: Exner, although whether she went through with the act isn't seen.
Dying as Yourself: Liza refuses to die of the infection and let her son see her reanimated.
Eaten Alive: Melvin Allen.
Face Death with Dignity:
- Before Liza runs up with the keycard to open the hallway door, Nick seems resigned to death, and calmly tells his mother to go before smiling at her.
- Liza also does this, holding Travis' hand and telling him that things will be alright while looking out at the sun.
False Reassurance: Exner tells the other medical personnel to escape, then promises that she'll "take care" of the patients.
False Utopia: Madison and Ofelia spot a neighbor out walking his dog just before they leave the safezone, and leave him (and another family they see in their home joking with each other) to their own fate.
Freeze-Frame Bonus: During the walker attack in the base's kitchen, a very quick shot shows a walker biting into Liza's side.
Heroic BSoD:
- Travis has a breakdown after shooting Liza.
- Exner has a subdued one after she realizes the evac helicopter is going to abandon them.
Hidden Depths: Strand indicates that he (and, by extension, the rest of the group) always need to keep moving from place to place, while looking at a framed photo of something (or someone). It's hinted that an incident has caused his unique outlook on life (to fight madness, it has to be embraced).
I Cannot Self-Terminate:
- Liza says this to Madison after finding out she's infected. In the end, Travis is the one to pull the trigger.
- Melvin also begs Strand to kill him, but the latter responds that "it looks like you're on your way already" before leaving him to the pack of walkers.
I Lied: Exner says this to Liza after informing the staff that they can escape.
Impairment Shot:
- Liza is momentarily stunned into silence when a bitten soldier commits suicide by putting his head in the trajectory of a helicopter rotor.
- The camera goes blurry when Travis has his breakdown on the beach.
Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy: It's shown that, while the soldiers are able to score some headshots on walkers, they continue to fire entire clips at point-blank range into their midsections, which doesn't slow them down at all and results in the gate being breached.
Improbable Aiming Skills: Strand is able to score several headshots on walkers, while firing one-handed and in a hallway where the lights are flickering on and off.
Improvised Weapon: The family uses crowbars and hammers as weapons during their escape from the command post.
Incendiary Exponent: Cityscape shots show raging fires that aren't being curbed in any way, and are burning vast swaths of the downtown L.A. core.
Just a Flesh Wound: After being shot in the shoulder, Ofelia is no worse for wear when the group arrives at Strand's house.
Kill It with Fire: It is implied that anyone who was suspected of being infected (like Doug Thompson) and any other corpses were put down and incinerated to keep the infection from spreading.
Kill the Cutie: Liza.
Laser-Guided Karma: Travis releases Adams, who shows up later when the family is escaping to threaten Daniel and shoot Ofelia.
Manly Tears: Travis starts crying when Liza tells him to shoot her (and prevent her from reanimating).
Man of Wealth and Taste: Strand is shown to own a fancy waterfront home, but also a number of dress shirts that he neatly packs in a bag while getting ready to leave for the yacht.
Mercy Kill: How Travis deals with Liza, with a bullet to the head.
Murder the Hypotenuse: The pseudo-love triangle between Travis, Madison and Liza is resolved when the latter is bit and dispatched by the former. It's even referenced in the Talking Dead episode that aired afterwards, where Cliff Curtis mentions that he wore skull socks for fellow castmate Kim Dickens because "the wife is finally out of the picture".
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: All of the patients being treated by Dr. Exeter at the base were going to be evacuated to Edwards Air Force Base, until Daniel led the horde to the gates, causing the helicopter sent to transport them to bug out. Dr. Exeter chooses to euthanize her patients rather than let them turn.
No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Travis brutally beats Adams after the latter shoots Ofelia in the shoulder.
No OSHA Compliance: Doors with panic bars like the crucial one in this episode are specifically designed NOT to lock on the side Nick and Strand are on. And disabling the mechanism that prevents locking would essentially seal the door in either direction, keycard or not.
Notice This: When Strand and Nick walk through a security door, the camera stays on it as they walk off, before panning over slightly to show a green-lit card reader turn red. This becomes a hindrance when they try to escape down the same corridor and discover that it's locked.
Not So Stoic: The soldiers still retain their composure (and talk about the chain of command breaking down) just before Daniel shows up at the gate. When they see the horde appear, though, they panic and start unloading rounds into it.
Oh, Crap!: The soldiers and Exner get this, once they see the horde advancing towards the gates.
Pay Evil unto Evil: Ofelia refuses warning the safe zone neighbors of the impending Cobalt airstrike because they did nothing when the military took Nick and Griselda.
Pragmatic Villainy: Strand leaves the people locked in the jail cells behind, reasoning to Nick that they're safer in the cells than outside.
Race Against the Clock: Played With. Throughout the episode, the military is hurrying to evacuate before the Cobalt Protocol is enacted. When the family escapes at daybreak, however, the bombs never drop. It's likely that the military leadership responsible for implementing the strike were killed by walkers.
Screw This, I'm Outta Here:
- Three soldiers decide to flee when the horde attacks the base.
- A military chopper, upon seeing the carnage down below and telling Exner that they're "assessing" the situation, immediately turns around and leaves everyone to their fates.
- Strand also immediately goes to pack up his belongings when they reach the safehouse, and tells Nick that they "can't stay". However, whether he means for the group to keep moving on their own or come with him to the Abigail remains to be seen.
Shell-Shock Silence: Liza momentarily gets this after seeing the infected soldier walk into the helicopter rotor.
Took a Level in Badass: Everyone gets this during the escape once they start working together.
- Daniel leads an entire horde to the gates of the base, while acting completely calm and deadpan towards the soldiers.
- Ofelia uses a pair of bolt cutters to crush the head of a walker that was attacking Madison.
- Nick smashes in the head of a walker with a ball-peen hammer to save his mother.
- Chris attempts to beat down three soldiers on his own, and even succeeds in knocking one down before he's subdued.
- Travis brutally beats down Adams after the latter shoots Ofelia in the shoulder.
Understatement: Daniel does not waste any words when warning the soldiers of the incoming walker onslaught.
Daniel: You should save your ammunition.
What Happened to the Mouse?:
- The soldiers who stole the SUV from Chris and Alicia, the Clarks' neighbors and the prisoners in the medical facility aren't seen after the group leaves during the horde attack.
- Also subverted. Word of God (via the Talking Dead aftershow) confirmed that Tobias is still alive.
What the Hell, Hero?: Daniel calls Travis out for letting Adams go, pointing out that doing the right thing often gets people killed. He's very nearly proved right when the enraged Adams shows up later and shoots Ofelia in the shoulder.
Your Head A-Splode: One unfortunate soldier walks headlong into a helicopter blade while reeling from a walker bite.