THE WALKING DEAD: DEAD CITY Series Premiere Recap: (S01E01) Old Acquaintances

Noetta Harjo

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Lauren Cohan returns as Maggie Rhee on The Walking Dead: Dead City

The Walking Dead: Dead City opens up a new world for two fan favorites in The Walking Dead Universe. In the series premiere, “Old Acquaintances,” Maggie Rhee (Lauren Cohan) seeks help from Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) after her son Hershel (Logan Kim) is kidnapped.

It’s been two years since the TWD finale. Maggie is in search of two people, one of them being Negan. A lot has changed for Negan since we last saw him. He’s a wanted man. There’s even poster that he is very proud of. So why is Maggie looking for Negan. 

Maggie tells Negan that raiders took Hershel to Manhattan. Their leader is someone Negan might know. She assumes this because the guy whistled the same tune that Negan liked to whistle when he ran the Sanctuary. The man who took Hershel is called the Croat (Zeljko Ivanek). His raiders took the kid as collateral for food and supplies. Maggie wants Negan to help her find Hershel. Plus, he owes her.

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Negan is on the run from the New Babylon marshals from the New Babylon Federation. A young girl is with him. Maggie figures if she can find Negan, then they can too. He asks if Maggie is still at Hilltop and she knows why he’s asking. Maggie agrees to put up the girl, and possibly Negan depending on how things play out.

Maggie contacts someone from Hilltop to meet her. She mentions that Hilltop has moved. Mainly because they couldn’t rebuild after the Whisperers burned it down. Negan is on the run with a teenage girl named Ginny (Mahina Napoleon). Ginny doesn’t talk because she found her dad after he turned into a walker. Someone killed him and she hasn’t spoken since. 

New Babylon Perlie Armstrong finds a clue to Negan's whereabouts on The Walking Dead: Dead City
Gaius Charles as Armstrong – The Walking Dead: Dead City _ Season 1 – Photo Credit: Peter Kramer/AMC

The New Babylon marshals are closer than Negan knows. They show up at the bar and motel where Maggie found Negan. Negan is wanted for the murder of five people. The lead marshal Perlie Armstrong (Gaius Charles) asks if anyone has seen him, and no one answers. He threatens to arrest the bar owner for many other charges that are prohibited in the New Babylon Federation. The owner gives in and says Negan was there, but a woman took him. Perlie backs off, but then executes the owner for aiding and abetting. Before the marshals leave, Perlie finds Maggie’s map book and sees that they are headed for Manhattan.

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Negan promises Ginny that he will return for her before she leaves for Hilltop. Later that night, Maggie wakes up from a nightmare about the night Negan killed Glenn (Steven Yeun). They sit and talk, but it’s mainly about how who needs who more. Maggie says she camped out for three nights watching the island. There is a fire the same time every morning and evening. Maggie thinks that’s where the Croat took Hershel.

The marshals are at the Hudson, looking for Negan and Maggie. The junior marshal Jano (Trey Santiago-Hudson) asks what’s special about Manhattan. Perlie says it was an epicenter. The military blew up all the bridges and tunnels hoping to contain the dead. They start their search and Perlie pulls out an envelope with a New York City address on it.

Maggie and Negan catch Jano and take him hostage. Pearly and the other marshal, Gritz (David Chen) have a boat of their own and prepare to follow them. Negan and Maggie get to the middle of the river and argue about what to do with Jano, but that argument turns into who’s the worse killer. Negan tries to say Maggie is just as bad as he is, but they both know he’s wrong.

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Negan and Maggie in NYC on The Walking Dead: Dead City
Lauren Cohan as Maggie Rhee, Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan – The Walking Dead: Dead City _ Season 1 – Photo Credit: Peter Kramer/AMC

When they land, Negan asks Maggie to look after Ginny for him. He doesn’t plan to return with her to Hilltop. She doesn’t answer and they walk into the city. Once inside, they find booby traps and falling walkers. Someone knows they are there and are trying to either chase them away or kill them. And someone watches them from the top of a building. They hear a car drive by with loud music. Walkers follow the car, forcing Maggie, Negan and Jano to hide near a heap of trash. Bugs start crawling on them as the walkers approach them.

Perlie and Gritz arrive, shooting the walkers down. Maggie and Negan drag their hostage into a dry-cleaning shop. They split up to find a way out. Perlie and Gritz follow them into the shop. Perlie leaves Gritz at the door with instructions not to let anyone out. Walkers start piling outside the door though.

Maggie hears Perlie come in and hides. He addresses her directly saying he’s not her enemy. He gives her chance to come out and talk. If she doesn’t, he won’t be as willing to talk. Maggie hears him but doesn’t move. Negan and Jano hear him too. Negan tells the kid to move, but a walker comes up behind Jano and pushes him to the ground. A rat crawls out of the walker’s mouth, spilling blood into Jano’s mouth. Negan saves him from the walker, but not from a bullet. Perlie shoots at Negan and kills Jano.

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The walkers get into the shop, killing Gritz. Negan and Maggie run, searching for a way out. Perlie sees Negan and prepares to shoot. Maggie tries to sneak up on him to stop him and they fight. Maggie comes clean and says she needs Negan to save her son. She uses her chain to hit Perlie, knocking him off her. Then she gets up and hits him in the head, knocking him out.

Negan finds a way out and Maggie follows. The walkers are munching down on Gritz but when they get to Perlie, he’s gone. Maggie and Negan light a match to follow the path of the room. They run into a woman who blows out the flame before anyone can say anything.

Hershel is alive and tied to a chair. The Croat pays him a visit. He knows exactly who Hershel is and who is parents are. The Croat is especially interest to know what Hershel knows about Negan, but Hershel refuses to talk. The Croat holds a weapon to Hershel’s leg and says he’s going to like it there. Someone opens the door and tells the Croat that someone escaped.

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The Croat and two of his henchmen go to the roof. There is a shirtless man running around, frantically looking for a way down. He sees on and runs around the roof to a cord that connects the buildings. The man tries to zip line to the next building, but the Croat cuts the cord and the man falls 20 stories.

 

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Noetta Harjo
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