Four Walls and a Roof

Plot

Gareth and the remaining Terminus members taunt Bob as they eat his left leg. Gareth expresses anger toward Carol, who killed his mother, and says they saw Carol and Daryl drive off together. They had planned to capture and eat Rick's group, but Gareth says Bob will "do just fine. Bob starts laughing and tells them he was bitten the previous day.

The Terminus group panics, fearing they will turn, and Gareth knocks out Bob. At the church, Sasha confronts Father Gabriel about Bob, Carol, and Daryl's absence. Rick questions Gabriel about his congregation, and Gabriel admits he locked them out of the church to be killed by walkers. The group finds Bob outside, left by the Terminus group.

Bob tells them about his bite, Gareth, and Carol and Daryl's absence. Rick wants to stay until Carol and Daryl return, but Abraham refuses to risk Eugene's life. Glenn convinces Abraham to stay 12 more hours. Sasha instructs Tyreese to watch Bob and stab his head if he dies.

At night, Rick and some of the group leave to search for Gareth, but Gareth and his group break into the church. Rick and the others were lying in wait and return. Gareth begs for mercy, but Rick says he already made him a promise and kills him. Rick, Sasha, Michonne, and Abraham slaughter the remaining Terminus group. Maggie tells Gabriel the church is just "four walls and a roof. Michonne recovers her stolen katana.

Reception

When it first aired, the episode drew 13.801 million American viewers and a 7.0 rating in the 18-49 demographic, a drop from the prior week’s 15.143 million viewers and 7.7 rating. In the UK, 1.147 million viewers tuned in, making it the most-watched broadcast of the week, with an additional 0.062 million timeshift viewers. In Australia, it pulled 0.107 million viewers, the day’s highest-rated cable broadcast. Zack Handlen of The A.V. Club awarded the episode an A. Matt Fowler of IGN gave it an 8.6 out of 10, praising how Rick’s group wiped out Gareth’s crew in a single blow and noting their unmatched fighting skills, but he found the final split into two storylines frustrating, wishing the reasons for the separation were more convincing.

Alan Sepinwall of HitFix called it an effective, pulpy episode that showed the show’s improvement. He appreciated that the writers avoided dragging out the cannibals as a long-term threat and that Rick’s decision to leave the church was a clever ruse, not stupidity. He described the church massacre as brutal, highlighting how cold and ruthless Rick becomes when pushed.