Tonight's episode of The Walking Dead takes us back to Negan and the Sanctuary where we catch up with (not Stage 2) Eugene. We also see the aftermath of Daryl's escape and the effect it has on the Saviors' community. One can only imagine what Negan has in store for those he believes are responsible. Who ends up on the receiving end of his wrath? Here's where we are after "Hostiles and Calamities."
And I Am Feeling So Small
The hour opens with the Saviors discovering Fat Joey's body and a missing motorcycle. Dwight runs to Daryl's cell, finds it empty, and then dashes to his room to grab one of those miraculous walkie talkies that have range throughout the entire northern Virginia area. He finds that Daryl's disgusting yellow sweatsuit is on the floor of his room along with the "go now" note, and Dwight would look guilty as hell right now if anyone walked into the room. And they do. Cue Dwight getting his ass beat and the opening music.
As the community is all abuzz about Daryl's escape, Negan is returning home from Alexandria with a fresh bullet hole in Lucille courtesy of Smokin' Hot Rosita and her epic fail as an assassin. Eugene is in tow as well and I'd be surprised if dude hasn't soiled his pants somewhere along the way. Laura leads him to a room much like the one Negan offered Daryl back when he thought he could win Daryl over. It has a bed, kitchen, full fridge and a TV, and Eugene tells her "This will be satisfactory." He's able to request a meal of canned pasta with tomato sauce as well as potato chips, and it seems Mr. Mullet is settling in quite quickly. I do have to laugh though when he turns on the stereo and that torturous "Easy Street" song comes on. That tune is everywhere.
Dwight finds himself locked in Daryl's cell and Negan approaches the other side of the door to bestow some incredibly dry humor on us. I'll be honest and say I've missed Negan. Terribly. Negan informs Dwight that he's missing a wife... and it just so happens that the missing wife is Dwight's ex-wife (if divorce is a thing during a zombie apocalypse). Seems Sherry flew the coop the around same time Daryl did and Negan points out that this is very suspicious since Dwight's only real job lately was to break Daryl. So Negan asks "After all this, before, after, hell...after everything....who are you, Dwight?" Without hesitation, Dwight replies "I'm Negan" and he is released from his cell. Dwight is instructed to find Sherry and either bring her back or "sort it out."
Before Dwight departs on his journey, he needs to see the doctor to get his wounds dressed. The doctor tells Dwight he thinks Sherry released Daryl because she has such a big heart. He says Sherry is the type of person who isn't expected to be in the Sanctuary because she's soft. The doctor knows he's talking to her former husband, right? A very annoyed Dwight leaves the infirmary and sets out on a motorcycle to find Sherry.
Dwight ends up at the house he shared with Sherry because they'd had a pact at one point to meet there if they were ever separated. Sherry isn't there but she has left him a very heartfelt note, apologizing for making him live in Negan's world. "I did what I did because I didn't want you to die. But now you've killed and you've become everything you didn't want to be...and it's my fault. I let Daryl go because he reminded you of who you used to be, and I wanted to let you forget." She says she's not sure she will make it on her own, but being dead is better than being where they were with Negan. Dwight cries and I kinda feel sorry for him. Kinda. I mean, he put an arrow through Denise's eye during her best bit of dialogue the entire time she was on the show. He's still a dick.
And I Will Stumble And Fall
Laura takes Eugene on a tour of the main warehouse and explains the points system. Apparently Eugene is allowed to take whatever he wants though so he stumbles out to the yard carrying a very large jar of pickles. Negan meets him there and asks him for his name. Eugene introduces himself while the rest of the group does the "Who are you/I'm Negan" thing. Negan wants to know if Eugene is a smartypants and Eugene rattles off his list of PhDs and all of his other accolades. Negan challenges Eugene to figure out a way to keep the Walkers who are mounted to the fences from falling apart after a while. Eugene suggests pouring liquid metal over the Walkers to keep them tethered to the fence. Negan LOVES this plan and he is so grateful that he vows to send a few of his wives over to Eugene's apartment to show him a good time. No sex allowed...but dinner, drinks, and conversation should help Eugene feel at home. Awww. And here I was hoping the mullet would finally get laid. It would sure make up for the creepy times Eugene watched Abraham and Smokin' Hot Rosita get it on.
That evening three of Negan's wives are sitting with Eugene while he plays video games solo. No one ever taught Eugene how to entertain apparently. Amber is hell bent on getting drunk but Frankie and Tanya are eager to hear about Eugene's pre-apocalypse life as a smartypants. They want to know if Eugene knows how to make bombs out of household products and while Eugene doesn't make a bomb per se, he entertains the ladies with some exploding balloons made from blown up latex gloves. Ha! Our favorite nerd suddenly has friends who appreciate him.
The next night Frankie and Tanya show up without Amber. They tell Eugene that all Amber does is drink and cry. They say Amber wants to end her life and they ask Eugene if he can make a pill that would cause her to go to sleep and not wake up. They promise to be there to stop Amber from turning into a Walker. The ladies tell Eugene that he is a good man who should be able to help them keep Amber from suffering. Eugene asks for Amber's exact weight and says he can make a pill ASAP once he has that info. They ask him to make two (just in case?) and he is able to get the ingredients from the main warehouse with no problem. He essentially sets up a lab in his little apartment and begins concocting the medication.
And I Will Swallow My Pride
Dwight returns to the Sanctuary and tells the doctor he killed Sherry. The doctor still doesn't understand his audience and continues to talk about how Sherry shouldn't have let Daryl escape. "We don't get to have big hearts. Remember that."
Suddenly everyone is gathered in the main room where Negan likes to burn people's faces with hot irons. Uh oh. Is he going to give Dwight a matching seared cheek on the other side of his face? Laura brings Eugene in to watch just as Negan steps in front of the open furnace. The doctor takes center stage and Negan punches him...then kicks him. What? Seems Dwight planted a portion of Sherry's note in the doctor's quarters and then told Negan that Sherry gave him "the whole story" before she died. Dwight claims that the doctor was in love with Sherry and let Daryl go to try to win her over. When Sherry realized this, she fled because she thought Negan would blame her. Again. What? Negan is falling for all of this horseshit? Negan takes the hot iron and tells the doctor he won't use it if he admits his guilt. The doctor does so immediately because he apparently doesn't know how this works, and Negan puts the iron down...and throws the doctor into the furnace. Ho. Ly. Shit.
Eugene heads back to his room and Frankie and Tanya follow him. He says he made the pills but he won't give them up. Eugene tells them he knows the pills are intended for Negan and he's settled in to his new role. Tanya calls Eugene a coward and he does not disagree. The women leave, disappointed, and Eugene plays video games and eats more pickles. Later in the evening Negan arrives with Lucille in tow. He wants to know if everyone is doing right by Dr. Smartypants. He tells Eugene that this kind of invitation is not made to everyone and it is not made lightly. Negan then asks. "Who are you?" I can't say I'm surprised when Eugene replies "Negan. I was Negan before I even met you. I just needed to meet you properly to know." The episode ends with Eugene and Dwight overseeing the metal melding of the Walkers and the fences and Dr. Smartypants is a natural at asserting authority.
So, given all of the shit he used to get from Abraham and Smokin' Hot Rosita, is Eugene for real in his new found loyalty to Negan? Does he feel appreciated and valuable in a way he hasn't felt since everyone thought he had the secret to curing the virus? Is Eugene just biding his time until he can slip Negan one of those pills himself? I'm not entirely sure what to think at this point. He's a self-admitted coward who cried like a baby for the first few minutes he was on screen tonight. I have to admit though that I would love to see a badass Stage 3 Eugene emerge and turn the Sanctuary upside down. With our heroes either training in Hilltop, having audiences with tigers in The Kingdom, off elsewhere trying to find guns for the garbage people, or drawing straws in Alexandria over who is going to watch Judith, it would be great to see Eugene step up and be a hero. I'm not kidding about Alexandria. Judith's first words are most likely going to be "are you my daddy?" to any random dude walking by. Maybe one of the Saviors can manufacture a baby monitor with unimaginable range to help Alexandrians with babysitting duties. Add that to your 'to do' list, Mr. Smartypants.
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