'The Walking Dead: Dead City' Season 2 Episode 5 Recap: Negan Plays Both Sides and Maggie Has a Brush With Death

Editor’s note: The below recap contains spoilers for The Walking Dead: Dead City Season 2 Episode 5.

Season 2 ofThe Walking Dead: The Dead Cityhas beena bit of a slog to get through this time around. After a fun first season, the second outing has Maggie (Lauren Cohan) going back to New York City in a forced plot, while Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), perhaps the most popular character in the Walking Dead universe, is reduced to being a mopey guy who says and does very little. Still, there have been a few elements to keepDead Cityworth watching. One has been Hershel (Logan Kim), asMaggie’s son has fallen under the influence of the Dama(Lisa Emery). Another has been the emergence of another villain, asthe fourth episode, “Feisty Friendly,” fully introduced us to Bruegel(Kim Coates), a charismatic man who is starting to wake up the old Negan.With Bruegel advancing on the Dama’s turf and creating tension with the Croat(Zeljko Ivanek), what will happen next in Episode 5, “The Bird Always Knows”?

Narvaez Has a Plan To Kill Negan and the Croat

The episode begins with a group of men invading where the Croat and his men are staying at Radio City Music Hall. They kill the power, leaving a concerned Croat in darkness. Meanwhile, Maggie, Hershel, and Perlie (Gaius Charles) are dispatching walkers in Central Park as Perlie wonders if they can invade the Dama’s church with just twelve soldiers left. Maggie thinks it can work if no one knows they’re coming. Hershel goes off to sit alone on a bench, only for Maggie to follow him.Both lie to the other, with Hershel saying his drawing of the Dama is just a woman he saw on a billboard, and Maggie saying that Negan told them to go home (she leaves out the part that Hershel shouldn’t be trusted).

Back at the Dama’s hideout, Negan sees his “boss” talking to her rat, so he leaves her be, waiting for the Croat to show up and accompany him. The Croat tells her about the attack. She’s unhappy. If they lose the methane operation, all hope is lost. She needs to get the only holdout, Christos (Jake Weary), to join her, but Negan interrupts. He needs to know that they’ll be done after this, and he’ll get his family back. She tells Negan that he’s not living up to the hype, but promises that all is good once he gets Christos to join.She also insists that Negan go alone, as the Croat didn’t do so well with Bruegel. Negan is becoming her favorite now, and he knows it.

Meanwhile, Narvaez (Dascha Polanco) has Roksana (Pooya Monseni) detained until she agrees to support her cause and fight with New Babylon. She has taken power from Perlie and has him arrested for treason for lying about killing Negan. Perlie admits that he let him go, but says that he is now with the Croat and his methane operation. With Negan trusting Maggie, they can get to the fuel. Both Perlie and Maggie are taken to Narvaez’s quarters,where Ginny finally speaks. She’s the one who sold them out. Maggie says that New Babylon has no chance against the Burazi.. Narvaez has a plan though.She wants Maggie to go to Negan and surrender; then, when he and the Croat go to escort them off the island, New Babylon can ambush them. Narvaez tells Ginny that they will save Negan for her. To get Maggie to do it, Hershel will be staying with them.

The Croat Defies the Dama and Kills Christos

Back at Radio City Music Hall, the Croat is inspecting the damage when he finds something that makes him smile. We don’t know what it is just yet, as the focus shifts to Negan being taken in by Christos' army. Negan meets with the leader to ask one last time for him to join them. Christos won’t be intimidated. He is not interested. He takes Negan’s electrified bat and points it at his throat, but before anything else can happen, Christos' little kids walk in. It’s then that we see that many women and children are here. Now understanding that Christos has people to protect, Negan tells him that he relates.Is he backing down or trying a new strategy?

Perlie sits with Roksana in custody. She is calm as she tells a story about a bird that would pull riddles out of a box with its beak. “Whatever it chose, that was the riddle for us.” The bird always knew what to pick. Roksana’s path is chosen. She would rather die than fight with New Babylon.Roksana talks to Perlie about endings being beginningsand how he can be his own little bird. She speaks about a man coming upon a fork in the road. He can go back to a past he can’t remember or into an unknown future. Maggie attempts to free them, but Perlie is afraid, so she decides to betray Narvaez on her own. At the New Babylon headquarters, Narvaez talks to Hershel about Negan, wanting to know why Maggie never killed him. She doesn’t notice Maggie right behind her, who puts a knife to Naravez’s throat.But there’s Ginny, waiting in the shadows, now with a gun pointed at Hershel, forcing Maggie to back down.

‘The Walking Dead: Dead City’s Latest Episode Proves ‘Daryl Dixon’ Was the Only Spin-Off We Needed

Negan can only do so much.

Christos talks to Negan about losing to Bruegel. Negan tells him that if Christos sits out that the Croat will come for him. It’s either fight now or fight later. It’s then that the Croat walks in even though the Dama told him to stay away. Negan’s sympathetic approach is replaced with the Croat accusing Christos of attacking his substation. As proof, he shows Christos the knife he left behind. Negan tells his former friend not to do anything, butthe Croat reveals that gas has been pumped into the building and Christos has just seconds to live. He and his men begin dropping dead as the Burazi put on gas masks. In the car, the Croat tells Negan that he let the women and children live. Negan is sullen. He will never get out now.

Narvaez Gets a Fitting Death

Back home,Negan starts messing with the Croat, acting concernedas he tells him that the Dama treats her rat better than the Croat. He’s building her a methane empire, but he gets no respect! Is he going to put up with that? Negan tells the Croat that he has his back. To prove himself to the Croat, he lies and tells Dama that Christos had them surrounded when they got there, but she doesn’t buy it for a second. She’s not upset with Negan, but she is angry with the Croat. This causes him to snap about how she cares about her rat more than him. Negan’s plan to separate them is working so easily.

Narvaez leads Roksana outside where she hangs her in front of everyone. Roksana doesn’t fight back, refusing to change her mind, and although Maggie sees it all happen, there’s nothing she can do. Roksana’s followers begin to moan in mourning, which gets the attention of nearby walkers.Maggie is supposed to be the next to be hanged, but the dead break through the gatesof Central Park and rip nearly everyone apart. Ginny, having seen things go too far, saves Maggie, who fights straight towards Narvaez, who has taken Hershel hostage. Fittingly, a reanimated Roksana takes Narvaez out. Maybe the bird always does know, indeed. Maggie, Perlie, Hershel, and Ginny survive, although at a cost, asGinny has a gash in her side. Is that from a human or a walker? Hershel confesses to Maggie that his drawing was of the Dama. He also admits to sending the smoke signal.Maggie wants to know if she has something over him. Hershel describes the Dama as a nice woman who talked about plans for the city and wanted to know him. He was inspired, but he didn’t know so many people would die.

The Walking Dead: Dead City

The episode ends with two big moments. First, our heroes hear a knock at the door. They walk out to find Bruegel and his men killing the walkers. “It looks like I’m late to the party,” he tells Maggie. Miles away, the Dama discovers that her rat has been killed. We know a plotting Negan did it, but the Dama accuses the Croat when he goes to her quarters to talk to her. She wants to know if he’s trying to take over. “You are nothing without me!” they both yell at each other. The Croat is letting loose now, calling her pathetic. They fight, and then the Dama is knocked down and trapped, unable to get up.She begs for help, calling the Croat by his real name of Mile, but he flees, leaving her to die. Negan is quickly getting rid of everyone in his way.