‘The Walking Dead’ Season 7: Will Dwight betray Negan and the Saviors?

The “Walking Dead” in the seventh season should address the questions such as whether Dwight is actually Negan’s number two or not. The question now is whether either of those two men still have it within them to stand up to Negan and openly oppose him.

Meanwhile, a female Savior shows Eugene around, letting him know he’s part of Negan’s promised crew, who eat better than the rest. Also, Dwight was torturing an imprisoned Daryl with “Easy Street” on repeat, so it’s hard to imagine Daryl showing any mercy the next time they meet – just look at what he did to Fat Joey.

Conversely, Dwight could remain a bad guy in the show.

Eugene’s true acid test, however, comes when he befriends Negan’s wives. Negan wants Dwight to bring her back and Dwight returns to the house he once shared with Sherry before the outbreak.

I’m not that interested in the life and times of Dwight. Tanya and Frankie ask Eugene to use his unique talents to prepare a couple of suicide pills for Amber, a fellow “wife” who can’t stand being under Negan’s thumb anymore. The Sanctuary is a location we haven’t seen too much of, and spending time there with an Alexandrian (Daryl) gave us some very strong scenes in the first half of the season.

We know the history between Sherry and Dwight, they were together when first introduced on the show, but it actually spans back to pre-apocalypse. He plays the stereo, it plays Easy Street. Now, he’s not as quick to act on it as Carol is, but once he does, he’s all-in and he’s extremely confident. Did this episode do anything to change your opinion of Dwight? (What? I read spoilers.) In “Hostiles and Calamities”, though, all we saw was how one sadistic, awful man was and is able to use violence, intimidation, and a system of doling out privileges to a fortunate few to effectively terrorize hundreds of people into a pathetic state of submission. I did what I did because I didn’t want you to die. He just has to answer “Who are you?“.

Tanya and Frankie come back to Eugene the next night, looking for help. He gives Negan a great idea for reinforcing their defenses (i.e. the Zombie yard) by coating the Walkers in metal to literally reinforce them and protect their heads. It’s interesting. Negan’s got a bat to his face again and he’s very intimidating, and here Eugene just steps up and says it.

Or, is Eugene just doing what he does best, and bullshitting again? Or is he a Savior through and through now?

To redeem himself, Dwight was required to track down and kill his wife. Dwight blamed Daryl’s release on the Sanctuary’s unsuspecting doctor and explained Sherry’s disappearance as being out of fear rather than guilt. When Dwight arrives, Sherry has obviously come and gone, but she left a letter behind.

Dwight told everyone back at the Sanctuary that he found and killed Sherry, as she got torn apart by a horde of walkers. But amidst the heart and humor he always brings, he runs afoul of some trouble that just might push him into the front ranks in the coming Rick-versus-Negan war. So an emotional Dwight set off to find Sherry. I refuse to believe that because I believe Eugene is using his brain to play the chameleon role he’s done before to do whatever he needs in order to survive. In this case, “prisoner” somewhat mischaracterizes Dwight’s situation: He’s a hostage, but there are plenty of reasons by the end of the episode to think that he may not be a totally unwilling one.

So begins the seduction of Eugene Porter, who Negan sees as a potentially valuable ally. Eugene then proves his skills by making a small bomb and setting it off, much to their delight.

“If we ever get to live in a post-apocalyptic world where Yars” Revenge is the only video game left in existence, then we should all be put out of our misery. “Look at you, Doctor Smarty Pants!” When Negan finds the letter, he has Carson dragged out in front of Eugene and all the Saviors.

So, who is acting and who isn’t?