[Warning: This article contains spoilers from The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 finale, “If History Were a Conflagration.”] “What’s the longer term with out the previous? What’s an ending with out that outdated story?” That’s the query that Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) ponders in Sunday’s Dead City finale, which forces Maggie (Lauren Cohan) to discover a approach to transfer ahead together with her son Hershel (Logan) by placing the previous behind them. That “outdated story” is Maggie’s 15-12 months vendetta towards Negan, one which began on The Walking Dead when Negan bludgeoned Glenn (Steven Yeun) to loss of life together with his barbed-wire baseball bat, widowing Maggie and leaving her unborn son with out his father. And, in a manner, his mom.

The collection finale of The Walking Dead ended with Maggie and Negan reaching an uneasy détente. Negan apologized for killing Glenn, and Maggie acknowledged that she couldn’t forgive him, saying, “I don’t wish to hate you anymore. I don’t wish to harm like that, and I don’t need my son to see that anyone has that type of maintain over me.” Maggie and Negan then went their separate methods, with Maggie relocating the Hilltop colony to the Bricks and Negan leaving Virginia with spouse Annie (Medina Senghore) and son Joshua.

In Dead City season 1, Maggie tracked down Negan after his former Savior underling, the Croat (Željko Ivanek), kidnapped Hershel and took him to the Isle of the Dead that’s New York City. Negan, a wished man on the run from New Babylon Marshal Perlie Armstrong (Gaius Charles), agreed to assist Maggie get her son again from the Croat on one situation: she shelter his orphaned ward, Ginny (Mahina Napoleon).

It turned out that Negan additionally killed Ginny’s father, and that the Croat strongarmed Maggie into bringing the fugitive Negan from the mainland to Manhattan by taking her son. Maggie gave up Negan to the Croat, who proceeded at hand him over to the Dama (Lisa Emery), an influence dealer who wished Negan to unite and lead town’s gangs to defend the island’s useful resource — energy-producing methane fuel — from New Babylon, a Federation of States underneath the management of Governor Byrd (Jasmin Walker).

To recap, season 2 of Dead City has been a literal energy wrestle between New York’s fundamental energy gamers, which incorporates the Dama and Bruegel (Kim Coates), chief of a rival gang that the Dama tasked Negan with getting in line. Beneath menace of invasion by the New Babylonians, who sought to interchange their dwindling ethanol provide with methane, Negan was capable of persuade Bruegel to affix the Dama’s alliance — solely for the playing Bruegel to plot his personal energy seize.

In the meantime, Negan turned the Croat towards the Dama earlier than exiling him from the Burazi, the Dama’s manipulations turned Hershel towards Maggie, and Bruegel turned on Negan as he conspired with New Babylon Colonel Armstrong to grab the methane. Now that the desk has been set, let’s break down “If Historical past Had been a Conflagration,” the eighth and ultimate episode of this season, and the way it units up The Walking Dead: Dead City season 3.

How is the Dama alive?

It appeared that the Dama died throughout a Negan-triggered confrontation with the Croat, lengthy unappreciated and unacknowledged for his brilliance in producing the methane powering her empire. A bodily altercation ensued, and the Croat tossed her right into a desk, knocking over lit candles that triggered a hearth. He then left the Dama to die as she was pinned beneath an overturned clothes rack whereas the room was consumed by flames.

The charred corpse that gave the impression to be the Dama was really “one of many already lifeless,” she explains within the finale, telling Maggie she let the zombie “burn till she obtained good and crispy.” (How the Dama managed to flee with the intention to pretend her loss of life with a walker goes unexplained.)

What does the Dama need with Hershel?

The Dama has a maintain on Hershel, who resents his mom for the maintain that Negan has had over Maggie his total life.

As a result of Hershel by no means knew the “outdated world,” the Dama explains to Maggie, he might help construct the brand new world. She tells Maggie her son might “dream up one thing that you just and I by no means might,” and they’ll want somebody to guard the brand new world.

The Dama wished that to be Negan — first threatening to hurt Hershel to coerce Negan into performing as her enforcer, and then utilizing Negan’s household as her leverage — however after he turned the Croat towards her and practically obtained her killed, the Dama manipulates Maggie into going after Negan. Hershel informed her how succesful Maggie is, so the Dama sics the widow on the person who murdered her husband.

Why does Maggie go after Negan?

Episodes earlier, Negan informed Maggie the place she might discover the methane for New Babylon earlier than warning her that Hershel was serving to the Dama. After Hershel led the Dama to his mom final episode, Maggie awakens as her prisoner.

“I might’ve thought that now we have this in widespread, wanting Negan lifeless. However I perceive,” the Dama tells Maggie. “When Negan is up, you’re feeling the necessity to knock him down. And when he’s down, it’s a must to prop him again up. You’re caught in a loop. You may’t let it go. You may’t let him go. And the way might you? He murdered your husband. Violently. Gleefully. After shedding so many individuals who meant a lot to you — your mom, your father, your sister, and now your son. He wanted you.”

“However how might you be there for him if you couldn’t be there for your self?” the Dama continues, accusing Maggie of neglecting Hershel and nurturing her hatred of Negan. “It’s
okay, Maggie. You may nonetheless get him again. Negan remains to be on the market… widowing wives and orphaning youngsters. Solely you’ll be able to cease him. Solely you’ll be able to kill him. Don’t do it for me. Do it for you. Do it for Hershel. Set yourselves free.”

How does Maggie really feel about Negan?

Maggie admits to Hershel that she nonetheless hasn’t moved on regardless of making an attempt to get previous the harm that Negan triggered her.

“I’m not over it. I’ve by no means been over it,” Maggie says. “I take into consideration him on a regular basis. I take into consideration what he did. And I do know that I’ve to let it go. I do know that it’s the one manner. However irrespective of how laborious I strive, I can’t appear to do it. I’m sorry.” Hershel, apologizing for his betrayal, tells his mom he is aware of she’s tried. However it hasn’t labored.

“I would like us to be a household. I wish to transfer on, and be free,” Hershel says. “However there’s just one manner. After which… we will simply be accomplished with it. We are able to begin over.” To that, Maggie tells Hershel, “I’ll end it.”

The Dama smiles, having maneuvered Maggie into taking out the rogue Negan.

New Lucille, Outdated Negan

Negan’s flamethrower and walker-wielding Burazi assault Bruegel’s gang of Silk Stockings at St. Patrick’s Cathedral after Armstrong learns that Ginny got here to Bruegel whereas gunning for Negan to avenge her father. Regardless of her try to kill him, Negan risked his life to get Ginny antibiotics and a ventilator to assist deal with her worsening an infection. (She was impaled throughout a scuffle between New Babylon and the Foragers in Central Park.)

Armstrong stops Bruegel from going after Ginny with a flamethrower, however Negan has them each captured by the Burazi. Bruegel blames the coup on Armstrong’s folks and tries to speak his manner into making a take care of Negan to get the methane, beat New Babylon, and deliver again the outdated world “the way in which it was.”

“Not simply a few blocks, however the entire metropolis. The entire f—ing planet,” Bruegel pleads. “And you then and me, we’ll be again on prime. The winners, with all of the spoils… similar to it was.”

In the meantime, Maggie eavesdrops and watches as Negan — wielding the brand new electrified Lucille bat that the Croat made for him — forces Bruegel and Armstrong to their knees for a sport of “eenie, meenie, miney, mo.” Maggie recoils in horror on the acquainted sight: Negan in a black leather-based jacket, swinging a barbed wire-lined baseball bat, choosing a sufferer in a lineup as he did all these years in the past with Glenn…

Who dies in The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 finale?

“Eenie, meenie, miney, mo. Catch a tiger by his toe. If he hollers, let him go. Eenie… meenie… miney… mo.” Negan lands on Armstrong, however decides he needs to kill Bruegel first. As Bruegel begs for his life, Negan grabs a tube from the flamethrower tank, inserts it into Bruegel’s mouth, and forces him to inhale methane.

Negan grabs a lit torch and units hearth to Bruegel’s huge mouth, and then brings the bat down on his head, bashing Bruegel’s brains into pulp — and triggering a visceral response within the shivering Maggie.

Earlier than he can swing on Armstrong, Maggie sneaks up behind Negan and stabs him within the again. Negan drops Lucille and flees, leaving Maggie to choose up the reproduction of the bat used to kill Glenn. As Negan crawls away, slithering to security, Maggie goes after him to complete it as soon as and for all.

Does Maggie kill Negan?

Negan will get to the cell the place Ginny has been recuperating — solely to seek out that Ginny died, having succumbed to her an infection and reanimated. Negan sobs and Maggie withdraws a blade. Softened, Maggie palms it to Negan to plunge the blade into Ginny’s head, placing her down.

Negan mourns Ginny’s loss of life, and Maggie decides towards killing him.

How does The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 ending arrange season 3?

Negan regrets that Ginny died alone, and Maggie goes again to Hershel. He is aware of she didn’t kill Negan.

“You stated you understood. You stated we might begin over, however you didn’t imply it,” he yells because the Dama sneaks away. “It’s the identical because it at all times is.”

“We have been flawed. It’s not like how we stated. And killing Negan would solely make it worse,” Maggie tells Hershel, including that’s not how they’re going to maneuver ahead from the previous. He’s livid together with his mom and says he and the Dama will “get there collectively.”

“I do know what you’re going via,” Maggie responds. “You assume that you just wanna run off and be someone completely different. You wanna harm me. You wanna harm me again. Simply know I’ll at all times be right here for you. I received’t go away town.” 
Hershel leaves to go off with the Dama, and Maggie cries as mom and son are separated.

Maggie, Negan, and Armstrong gap up within the metropolis as they watch the second wave of the New Babylon military march into New York to grab the methane. “So the place can we go from right here?” Maggie asks.

Armstrong remembers the riddle that Roksana (Pooya Mohseni) of the Foragers imparted to him earlier within the season. “Walking via the woods, a person involves a fork in his path. To go left is to go residence, his previous. To go proper is to exit into the unknown, his future,” he says. “He is aware of his previous. It’s comforting. However will or not it’s like he remembers? And his future is filled with potentialities. However what if he will get misplaced? Which manner does he go? He goes left.”

We see flip-flopping New Babylon historian Benjamin Pierce (Keir Gilchrist) lead the New Babylonians to the methane plant as Maggie narrates the following part of the riddle. “Again residence, to the way in which issues have been. However all that’s ready for him is an outdated story that hurts an excessive amount of to recollect.”

Elsewhere, the Dama, with Hershel at her facet, watches New Babylon take the cathedral. “So he goes proper, however there’s nothing there for him both,” Negan intones in voice over. “As a result of what’s the longer term with out the previous? What’s an ending with out that outdated story?”

“The fact is there is just one manner ahead. One approach to transfer on. We gotta work via what was,” Maggie continues, with Negan’s voice including, “To get to what shall be.” Maggie and Negan’s phrases play over the previous, from the primary season, when the enemies made their manner into New York collectively.

Maggie and Negan’s voices turn into intertwined. “It’s a path that’s laborious and tough, all uphill. We hold pondering we’ll by no means make it. Typically we see the place we’re headed. We catch a glimpse of the mountaintop. It’s so stunning, it takes our breath away. 
However then we lose our footing.
 We tumble backwards, proper again to the underside. In order that it appears like we’ll by no means rise up once more… 
However we do. We assist one another up. 
And the trail turns into a lot clearer now.”

“We transfer on,” Negan remarks, with Maggie ending, “Collectively.” Within the ultimate phrases of the season, Maggie and Negan say collectively: “And we get there.”