Damn, Eugene — and we were just starting to think you were one of the good guys.
Eugene (Josh McDermitt), the biggest liar with the wildest haircut on The Walking Dead, made his debut as a Savior on Sunday, February 26, impressing Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) with his super-real ability to do science and technology — and his super-fake story about having once been employed at the Human Genome Project. But is Eugene’s new fealty to the baseball bat-toting maniac just a clever ploy, or has he gone to the dark side?
He Is, Indeed, a Smartypants
Although Eugene wasn’t exactly at his best upon arrival at the Saviors’ compound (actually, he was blubbering, wincing and clearly on the verge of soiling himself if not actively engaged therein), he sure nailed his entry interview with the psycho-in-chief. Eugene’s obvious intelligence (plus his bogus story about being a geneticist) earned him a top spot in Negan’s ranks, a room with a lockable door, a big jar of pickles, and a private video-gaming date with some of Negan’s wives. As a guy who’s been harshly (if fairly) criticized for being a useless, cowardly waste of resources, all this appreciation and respect has to be a big deal for Eugene, and may or may not be going straight to his big, mullet-covered head.
Who Let the Daryl Out?
After playing coy with the question of who freed the Saviors’ prize prisoner, The Walking Dead revealed the truth this week: it was Sherry (Christine Evangelista), whose writing her erstwhile husband, Dwight (Austin Amelio), recognized on the “go now” note left in Daryl’s cell. Sherry was long gone by the time anyone went looking for her, but a letter left behind for Dwight explained everything: “I let Daryl go because he reminded you of who you used to be,” she wrote, going on to admit that she didn’t expect to survive on her own but preferred that outcome to a life in Negan’s harem. But while Dwight might be a lot harder of heart and meltier of face than he once was, he still loved his wife enough to frame someone else for Daryl’s escape.
So Long, Dr. Carson
Remember the man in the white coat, who we last saw checking to see if Negan had put a bun in Sherry’s oven? Yep, he’s toast — literally, thanks to Dwight’s planted evidence suggesting that he was responsible for setting Daryl free. And if Eugene wasn’t sure about his place in the Saviors’ hierarchy, seeing Negan pitch Carson headlong into the smelting oven seemed to make up his mind. Not only is Eugene now the only “doctor” in the house, but he’s also referring to himself by a new name.
Utterly, Completely, Stone-Cold Negan
Earlier in this episode, we saw Eugene using his chemical knowledge to make a pair of suicide pills, supposedly so the most miserable of Negan’s wives could quietly, painlessly end it all. Only let’s be real: Negan’s wives don’t want to kill themselves. They want to kill their tyrant husband! And Eugene, who’d guessed as much, refused to give them the pills. Why? Because he’s Negan, y’all — utterly, completely, stone-cold Negan. But coming from a guy who gave himself a PhD out of thin air, and who’s as brilliant as he is cowardly, is this betrayal for real?
The Walking Dead airs on AMC Sundays at 9 p.m. ET.
