It’s game time in Manhattan, AKA Dead City. Negan and Maggie have figured out a way into the Croat’s domain. They plan to sneak through the secret tunnels and get this show on the road. In the meantime, Croat just got information from Marshall Armstrong about him going after Negan, so his mind is rolling with trying to figure out what to do with that information. Let’s not waste any more time and jump into “Everybody Wins A Prize.”
1. Where’s Luther?
This episode wastes no time asking where Luther, the man Negan killed, is. It feels like an awkward moment, only because Negan is responsible for him not being there, but a quick explanation was that Luther never wanted to be a part of the plan. To his credit, he didn’t want to lose any more of the people in their little crew than they had in the past and felt it better to be safe and have no suicide missions for two strangers. Tommaso and Maya quickly believe it, but Maggie has her suspicions and confirms them later when she finds a small container in Negan’s bag belonging to Luther. He tries to explain the situation, but she doesn’t want to hear it, surprisingly, not because she looks down on him for doing it but because she wants to focus on the task. That’s one episode down, but when Tommaso and Maya discover the truth, it could turn into something else.
2. Things Can Go Wrong
Mike Tyson once said, “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.” In this case, Ginny shows up in the garage while Maggie tries to steal a car to help distract the Croat. She and Negan were the distraction while Tommaso, Maya, and the others got the sneak attack on the Buratzi army. However, Ginny showing up wasn’t even the biggest kink in the gears; the others couldn’t find the Buratzi soldiers either. It’s suspicious for the Croat and the Buratzi to have a “just in case” plan already set in motion, but the Croat is more locked in on Negan, so it takes away from that moment. Ginny showing up solidifies the characters coming together, and without Negan is perfect because surely he would have let his protective feelings for her take over whatever plan they had.
3. Survival Mode
Maggie and the others find themselves forced into the room where Armstrong found himself last week, only this time, instead of being locked in the octagon, they’re trapped in the entire room, slowly filling up with zombies. A timer had been going since the Croat left to chase after Negan, and it was unknown what would happen, but it was to start music playing from that room to draw them in. Again, it feels like they had some insight into the plan; maybe a spy between Tomasso and Maya? The mood goes from fear to pure survival, and none of these people are rookies, so they start swinging and killing as many as possible. Maggie takes charge once Ginny gets separated, again in the octagon. The good news is they use it to their advantage by getting a moment to breathe and formulate their escape. They use the plastic mats on the inner poles inside of the cage and stick together to make a small and mobile shield to get them through the crowd. The plan seems a little cartoony, but anything is possible with a show filled with zombies.
4. Reunion Time
I’m glad they weren’t going to make us wait for the next episode to see Croat and Negan interact because the way the two were being chased felt like it could have ended with them seeing each other in the final minutes of the episode. Despite Croat having the higher ground, Negan has a crossbow aimed right at him and doesn’t shoot because he needs information on where Herschel is. The creepy thing from the Croat is that he genuinely seems happy to see Negan, and rather than be fearful of the arrow aimed at him, he’s giddy about everything he’s done with Manhattan and is trying to show off like a child looking for validation. Negan keeps referencing “him” rather than saying Herschel, so the Croat brings out Armstrong as a sacrifice to show he’s in good faith. Once again, Armstrong gets thrown off, but Negan being a changed man, actually helps him from falling to his death, and the two eventually escape. There’s a lot to unpack from this interaction because the Croat sees Negan has changed and has a connection to Herschel that he’ll use to his advantage the next time they meet.
5. Total Grey Area
Armstrong and Negan get away from the Croat and his Buratzi army by sneaking into a small store-like hideout, but immediately after the door is sealed, Armstrong pulls the crossbow and starts reading Negan his rights. I mean, come on now, Armstrong is limping after being shot with a grapple gun and saved by the man who has thrown him off of two edges for kicks. Yet while he’s in Manhattan, alone, with no jurisdiction, he decides this man is why I’m here so that I will try and arrest him. It’s disheartening after the background we’ve gotten on him about his old family and seen him tortured, and then we’re reminded he’s not the bad guy of the show, but he is still an enemy of the guy we’re rooting for. I’d say, for his sake, he doesn’t try to corner Negan because we’ve seen what he can do to a guy twice his size, so a guy with a limp would be no problem for him.
