The Walking Dead (season 4)
The fourth season of "The Walking Dead", an American post-apocalyptic horror television series on AMC, premiered on October 13, 2013, and concluded on March 30, 2014, consisting of 16 episodes. Developed for television by Frank Darabont, the series is based on the eponymous series of comic books by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard. It was executive produced by Kirkman, David Alpert, Scott M. Gimple, Greg Nicotero, Tom Luse, and Gale Anne Hurd, with Gimple assuming the role of showrunner after Glen Mazzara's departure from the series. The fourth season was well  received by critics. It was nominated for multiple awards and won three, including Best Syndicated/Cable Television Series for the second consecutive year, at the 40th Saturn Awards. This season adapts material from issues #40–61 of the comic book series and introduces notable comic characters, including Bob Stookey (Lawrence Gilliard Jr.), Sgt. Abraham Ford (Michael Cudlitz), Dr. Eugene Porter (Josh McDermitt) and Rosita Espinosa (Christian Serratos), as well as the Chambler Family, a modified version of the Chalmers Family from a tie-in novel, "". The season continues the story of Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and his group of survivors as  they continue to survive in a post-apocalyptic world invaded by flesh-eating zombies, dubbed "walkers". Set several months after the attempted attack on the prison by The Governor (David Morrissey) and his army, Rick has renounced his leadership in order to live a quiet and more peaceful life in contrast to his cold-hearted nature in the previous season. Striving to hold onto humanity, Rick and his fellow survivors struggle to maintain their close to an ideal life at the prison as problems arise in the face of new evil, and threats within and outside the premises, including a  deadly flu strain and the return of the vengeful Governor. Production. A fourth season of the show, consisting of 16 episodes, was confirmed in December 2012. Production began in Senoia, Georgia on May 6, 2013. In July 2013, it was reported that David S. Goyer would be directing the penultimate episode of the season, however Goyer did not direct the episode due to scheduling conflicts. Greg Nicotero, who replaced Goyer, directed three episodes for the season, while Tricia Brock and Ernest Dickerson each directed two episodes. Michelle MacLaren returned this season to direct the season finale, after previously directing episodes  in seasons one and two. Comic book co-creator Robert Kirkman wrote two episodes of the season. Filming was completed on November 23, 2013. Inspirations. In an interview with showrunner Scott Gimple, he shares: "The ultimate inspiration for "The Walking Dead" is the comic book. Sometimes, we can go far away from the comic book story, but often we ultimately serve the comic book story. And even when we go far away from it, we're inspired by it - and the novels as well. And then beyond that, all of the great stuff that we have consumed along the way , from zombie movies to "Star Wars" to other comics to really highbrow movies like "The Grand Illusion" to "Jaws". And also really, world history. The plague storyline was inspired by both Camus' "The Plague" and other stories about the plague I heard in Edinburgh. But really, it starts with the comic book." Webisodes. Following the two previous web series in 2011 and 2012, another set of webisodes titled "The Oath" was released on October 1, 2013. Section::::"Talking Dead". A third season of the live talk show aired alongside the fourth season of "The Walking Dead". Cast. Main cast. The fourth  season features thirteen series regulars, with nine actors receiving opening credits billing, while four others are credited as "Also starring". Melissa McBride and Scott Wilson, who portray Carol Peletier and Hershel Greene, respectively, were added in the opening sequence after previously being credited as "Also starring". David Morrissey, who plays The Governor, is not credited among the main cast until his reappearance in the episode "Live Bait". Credited as "Also starring" are Emily Kinney (Beth Greene), Chad L. Coleman (Tyreese Williams), and Sonequa Martin-Green (Sasha Williams), who were promoted from recurring status, and Lawrence Gilliard Jr., who joins the  main cast as Bob Stookey. Wilson and Morrissey were both removed from the opening credits, and as series regulars after the episode "After". However, Wilson was re-added to the opening credits and as a series regular for the season finale, "A". Supporting cast. Miscellaneous. Lennie James was initially reported to return as Morgan Jones, Rick's first human encounter in the apocalypse, however showrunner Scott M. Gimple confirmed that he would not appear in the fourth season, saying that he was misquoted. Despite this, Gimple stated that Morgan would return in later seasons. Morgan eventually returned in the series ' fifth season. Episodes. <onlyinclude></onlyinclude> Reception. Critical response. The fourth season of "The Walking Dead" has been well received from critics. On Metacritic, the season holds a score of 75 out of 100, indicating "generally favorable reviews", based on 16 critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the season holds an 81% with an average rating of 7.60 out of 10 based on 32 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads: "Consistently thrilling, with solid character development and enough gore to please grindhouse fans, this season of "The Walking Dead" continues to demonstrate why it's one of the best horror shows  on television." Accolades. For the 40th Saturn Awards, the fourth season of "The Walking Dead" received four nominations and three wins. The wins were for Best Syndicated/Cable Television Series, Best Supporting Actress on Television (Melissa McBride), and Best Performance by a Younger Actor in a Television Series (Chandler Riggs). The only other nomination was for Best Guest Starring Role on Television (David Morrissey). The season also received two nominations for the 66th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards: Outstanding Sound Editing for a Series ("Too Far Gone") and Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Supporting Role ("30 Days Without an  Accident"). Additionally, the season was also nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Television Series at the 20th and 21st Screen Actors Guild Awards for both halves of the season, respectively. Melissa McBride was nominated for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series at the 4th Critics' Choice Television Awards. Home media releases. The fourth season was released on region 1/A DVD and Blu-ray on August 26, 2014. It was also released in limited edition Blu-ray packaging, a replica of the tree walker (featured in the episode "Isolation"), designed by Greg Nicotero and sculpted  by McFarlane Toys. Special features include "Inside "The Walking Dead"" and "The Making of "The Walking Dead"" featurettes for every episode; six other featurettes titled, "Drawing Inspiration", "Hershel", "The Governor is Back", "Society, Science & Survival", "Inside KNB Studios" and "A Journey Back to Brutality"; deleted scenes from eight episodes; and audio commentaries on six episodes; and two extended episodes. Also, the final line of the season is uncensored, with Rick saying "They're fucking with the wrong people". This uncensored line change was added to the finale itself, unlike similar changes in the future taking the space of a secondary  version of the episode inside bonus features.