The Walking Dead: Daryl’s Cell

First Aired November 6th, 2016.

Daryl (played by Norman Reedus) is kept locked in a dark cell in Negan’s (played by Jeffery Dean Morgan) compound, and fed only dog food on bread. He’s kept filthy and forced to listen to the same song on a loop in an attempt to break him down.

Dwight (played by Austin Amelio) brings Daryl to the doctor to check on his old gunshot wound. He’s forced to watch other men put into a containment area with chained walkers, and warned by Dwight that can also be his fate. Negan offers Dwight his pick of any woman he wants as a reward for breaking Daryl down, but Dwight turns him down, visibly upset at the offer. After being delivered food, Daryl realizes the guard forgot to lock the door and escapes, but is discovered by Sherry (played by Christine Evangelista), Dwight’s ex-wife. She warns Daryl to go back while he can, because he will get caught and his torture will be made worse. But he ignores her, and attempts to steal a motorcycle—but is quickly captured. Negan asks them who they are, and each reply they are “Negan.” Negan tells Daryl he can either die, be forced into labor, or willingly join Negan’s group. Seeing that Daryl is still not broken, Negan has his men beat him as punishment.

Negan employs just about every psychological torture there is on Daryl, but to his credit, Daryl never wavers. But this episode isn’t just another hour of Negan being violent and sadistic, it’s meant to further show us who he is as a person. The way everyone kneels when he walks by and how they collectively call themselves “Negan” shows that he commands loyalty, but when you dig deeper, it’s mostly based out of fear. But even with that loyalty, Negan makes sure everyone knows their place; killing or punishing people for even the slightest infractions. In that scene where he chides Dwight about not taking his “reward” of a woman, he was relishing the opportunity to rub his superiority in Dwight’s face. In fact, the only genuine relationship Negan has is with his bat Lucille; it’s the only thing he talks gently to or shows affection.

Sherry visits Daryl in his cell and apologizes for when she and Dwight first ambushed Daryl in the woods for his supplies. Dwight meanwhile has been dispatched to find Gordon (played by Michael Scialabba), a member of the Saviors who ran off, and bring him back. But, in the process, his bike is destroyed. He forces Gordon to walk back at gunpoint, but unwilling to go back to living under Negan’s tyranny, Gordon begs to be killed instead. Gordon hints that his wife, like Dwight’s, was taken from him by Negan, and only after Dwight threatens to kill everyone else Gordon knew back at the compound does he consent to go back. After telling Dwight there’s nothing there for either of them back there and starts walking, Dwight shoots him. After returning, Dwight shares a moment with Sherry and asks if Negan treats her well, and she says he does. Daryl begins to refuse food and Dwight calls him out over feeling guilty about Glenn’s (played by Steven Yeun) death, and gives him a picture of Glenn’s dead body which causes Daryl to break down.

If Sherry were truly sorry, she might have brought Daryl something a little more savory than dog food. Gordon does have an interesting point that Negan is only one man and they could all stand against him, so why don’t they? Aside from fear and intimidation, I think a lot of these people believe they need someone like Negan to navigate the harsh realities of the present day. So much so that they were willing to let Negan take their wives in order to secure their safety. Watching Dwight talking with his wife, but trying to remain emotionally detached, was a very powerful scene. The fact that Gordon was willing to die rather than be forced to live in the relative safety Negan provides speaks to the level of punishment Negan can dish out. Giving Daryl a souvenir photo of Glenn’s body was cold, and it’s not only hard on him because he “caused” his death, but also because he doesn’t have the support of anyone like his friends do.

Daryl is brought before Negan, who tells the story of how Dwight and Sherry once ran off, but Negan spared them after Sherry agreed to marry Negan. Negan then asks him who he is, and he says “Daryl” in defiance. Daryl tells Dwight he knows he joined with Negan to keep his wife safe. After going outside, Dwight sees Gordon reanimated and being chained up with the other walkers. You have to wonder how much abuse Dwight can take before he snaps and turns against or tries to kill Negan. Daryl is resilient and would continue to defy Negan if only out of spite, but if anyone could break him down it’s Negan. Gordon’s reanimated corpse was a metaphor for the idea that the only way out of the Saviors is death, and even then you continue to service Negan.

Quotes/Thoughts

“You got your friend killed, I got Tina killed. Don’t pretend you don’t know the score. You should be dead but Negan’s taken a shine to you. You’re lucky, don’t forget it.”

Negan is super affectionate with Lucille, it’s possible she’s one of his wives.

“You should know, there is no door number four. This is it, this is the only way.”

Daryl used to live off wild animals and whatever he found in the forest. He can stomach a little dog food.

If you enjoyed Manny’s review, you can find the rest of his work right HERE on Sci-Fi Bloggers. You can also follow him on Twitter @KN_Manny.

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