This post contains spoilers from The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 episode 5.
Negan is ready for The Dama to hold her end of the bargain, but she has one last job for him to complete, which would have been successful if not for The Croat. It's time for Negan to put an end to The Croat and The Dama's alliance.
In The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 episode 5, "The Bird Always Knows," the war for the methane hits an all-time low, placing Maggie and Hershel's life in immediate danger.
One last job
The episode opens with The Croat shopping for a new suit while an armed guard waits outside. He is killed by a mysterious group who manages to enter one of the methane locations and cut power to it and a small section of the city. Naturally, The Dama, who has been teaching a rat to make its way through a maze, is far from pleased, blaming The Croat who she wants to investigate and fix the problem.
While Bruegel may have joined forces with The Dama, they still need Christos. Negan has already upheld his end of the bargain and wants himself and his family free. She agrees under the condition that he convinces Christos to join them. Dama makes it abundantly clear that she doesn't want The Croat getting involved at all.
Negan knows this will be no easy feat, as Christos was the one who recently lost his home to Bruegel and was embarrassed in front of everyone at the cathedral in the season 2 opener. But Negan's luck changes when Christos' little girls interrupt the meeting accidentally, revealing to Negan a room filled with children and teachers.
Negan suddenly understands the situation, seeing Christos in a new light, and thus takes a new approach. No tricks, no showmanship, just pure honesty. Negan tries to convince Christos to join them because of the unfortunate reality that someone, someday, will try to take everything away. There is safety in numbers. But just as everything was finally coming together, The Croat shows up to ruin everything. Apparently, when he was investigating the methane attack, he found a knife that belonged to Christos' group.
Too stupid to realize this was an obvious setup by Bruegel, it's too late to save them as everyone in the room, including Negan, get sick and faint from the methane. Negan had brought methane tanks as a gift, but never noticed they were turned on the entire time?
Negan is pulled away, while The Croat's people kill everyone in the room, but he assures Negan he spared the women and children. Great, now those kids and women have no one to protect them, just great!
When they arrive back at the theater, Negan pulls The Croat aside to reassure him he'll take his side, reminding him once more that Dama does not and will never appreciate him. She values the rat more than him. Sure enough, when they speak with Dama, Negan tries to vouch for The Croat, but Dama is not hearing any of it. The Croat finally snaps, defending himself, which surprises Dama. She asks to meet with him later that night when she believes he'll act more like himself.
And then there were four
Meanwhile, Maggie, Hershel, and Perlie return to Central Park, where, not surprisingly, Lucia had captured the leader Roksana for not complying with the New Babylon Federation. She then arrests Perlie for lying about killing Negan, Maggie for bearing false witness, and Hershel. It becomes clear to Maggie that Ginny had told Lucia about Negan. While Perlie is locked up with Roksana, they discuss how they feel about the situation, with Roksana accepting her fate either way.
Lucia places Maggie in the hot seat where she needs her to lure Negan and The Croat into a trap, while keeping Hershel hostage. Maggie is able to sneak her way back inside, attempting to kill Lucia while Hershel distracts her, but Ginny arrives to save Lucia. Now Maggie, Perlie, and Roksana are going to hang for their crimes. Roksana is killed with Maggie next in the lineup, when thankfully, walkers break in and start killing everyone. The extras get killed off all at once, too.
In the chaos, Ginny saves Maggie, who saves Hershel from Lucia, who thankfully dies (FINALLY), by walker Roksana. With only Maggie, Hershel, Perlie, and Ginny left, the obvious thing to do would be to go home, but alas, they still can't because Bruegel just so happens to show up at their doorstep. Hershel comes clean to Maggie about the woman, The Dama, and his time spent with her. He also confesses to starting the fire, signaling their location from season 2 episode 2.
The Croat vs. The Dama
That evening The Croat goes to visit The Dama where she accuses him of killing her beloved rat. What starts out as The Croat trying to make peace turns into a full-blown screaming fight. In the process, The Croat pushes Dama to the ground. Candles topple over, causing a fire.
The Dama trapped and unable to escape the flames, calls out for The Croat, using his real name Mile, to help her, but he surprisingly leaves her to her fate. And while this is happening, Negan is busy cleaning the rat guts off his shoes.
The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 episode 5 review
Well, that all escalated quickly. As frustrating as this episode was, it was also equally gratifying. I'm quite shocked how well Negan is playing the long game with The Croat and The Dama. Perhaps past Negan would have killed The Croat himself, especially for the last stunt he pulled against Christos.
But present Negan has to play the long game to protect himself and his family. While I doubt Dama is dead, at least just yet, I'm curious if any bad guy will survive the end of the season. The story is beginning to wrap up fairly conveniently. Aside from The Croat and Dama, the only baddie left to worry about would be Bruegel, and then only the walkers will roam the city.
Which, in a way, is quite fitting. No one but our core group will know of the methane; they can all go back home and return to their lives, and this will all become one giant memory. But at the same time, will it all fall into place so easily?
The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 releases new episodes Sundays on AMC.