'Walking Dead' Ends Season With Bloodshed and Long-Awaited Reunion

AMC's The Walking Dead ended its fifth season with a bloody finale that was capped by a long-awaited reunion as a new group of villains were officially introduced.
The zombie drama, based on Robert Kirkman's best-selling comics, started season five with its largest cast to date and featured the loss of four series regulars (Emily Kinney's Beth, Andrew J. West's Gareth, Larry Gilliard Jr.'s Bob and Chad Coleman's Tyreese as well as recurring player Tyler James Williams' Noah) as this season explored if the survivors had lost their humanity and were too far gone to return to life in a somewhat normal world.
Watch 'Walking Dead' Spinoff Debuts First Footage
Sunday's finale answered that question when Rick (Andrew Lincoln) — following his outburst in the penultimate episode — was finally given the authority to execute a member of the Alexandria Safe Zone. After the abusive/semi-banished Pete (Corey Brill) accidentally killed Reg (Steve Coulter) in a confrontation with Rick, Alexandria leader Deanna (Tovah Feldshuh) gave Rick — whom she was considering exiling — the authority to ultimately determine who lives and dies within the community. Rick then executes Pete as payback for being an abusive husband to Jessie (Alexandra Breckenridge) and killing Deanna's husband. (This follows a similar story in the comics in which Alexandria leader Douglas' wife is killed by Pete, who is subsequently taken out by Rick.) That execution came after Rick — determined to protect the community — arrived to the meeting in which Deanna was considering banishing him with a dead walker who had snuck into the gated sanctuary when Father Gabriel (Seth Gilliam) failed to properly close the gates.