The Walking Dead: Dead City Season 2 Review - I Love How Weird Maggie & Negan’s Spinoff Has Become & It’s All The Better For It

Of all the many Walking Dead spinoffs, The Walking Dead: Dead City is the hardest sell. Given their shared history, the pairing of Lauren Cohan’s Maggie and Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s Negan is provocative, regularly calling to mind the franchise’s most contentious scene and the moment many viewers abandoned The Walking Dead altogether. That said, Dead City season 1 was a moderate success, leaning heavily on Cohan and Morgan’s strong screen chemistry to hold up a lackluster story. Its ending, however, promised a more interesting premise for season 2, and that's turned out to be exactly what Dead City needed.

Season 2 picks up with Negan under the control of the Dama (Lisa Emery), who wants him, along with the Croat (Željko Ivanek), to unite the other groups in New York City so they can withstand an attack from New Babylon. Maggie, meanwhile, is forced to join the New Babylon forces on their way to Manhattan, offering herself in exchange so that her son, Herschel (Logan Kim), won’t be drafted (or executed for dodging said draft).

Dead City Season 2 Is Better & Weirder Than Season 1

Maggie & Negan Are Still The Focus, But The Scope Is Widened

The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 is better than the first season in almost every way. The story this time around is far more interesting, and it’s populated with side characters who aren’t completely forgettable. It works as both a deep introspection of its two leads, and as a tale about how only the people with the weirdest vibes are still around, and that's who you have to make deals with to survive. As a result, the tone can sometimes be all over the place, but I still found myself really engaging with the first six episodes.

Dead City season 2 really goes in on the weird with its new survivor groups and their leaders. There’s Kim Coates’ Bruegel, a man with a taste for the finer things who enters zombies to fight in cage matches; and Pooya Mohseni’s Roksana, a zen, Mother Earth-type who performs rituals straight out of folk horror. Not to be overshadowed, Dama also ratchets up her unhinged theater-kid energy, and New Babylon is like your typical Walking Dead paramilitary force but in western cavalry cosplay, replete with cowboy hats and long duster coats.

These groups and their different flavors of weird bring an eccentricity, and Dead City is richer for having them. The best scenes come when either Negan or Maggie are forced to negotiate and strike deals, maneuvering their way around whatever delicate balance of power exists. It's not political-thriller-level diplomacy, but it's a nice change from the usual murder tactics (though there's still quite a bit of that, too).

As much as I enjoy a supporting cast of oddball characters, season 2’s focus rightfully remains on Maggie and Negan. Maggie is coming to realize the toll her grievance with Negan has had on her and, more importantly, her relationship with Herschel. Meanwhile, Negan is also reexamining his past and grappling with the lingering effects of his villain persona while being forced to readopt it. They're kept apart for much of season 2’s first six episodes, but this is beneficial for giving them their due in what's so far been a season of self-reflection.

Lauren Cohan & Jeffrey Dean Morgan Deliver Excellent Performances

The Supporting Cast Also Includes Several Standouts

Morgan is, of course, excellent as Negan. He’s taken the character far beyond what’s on the comic book page, and as part of Dead City season 2's cast, turns in another stellar performance. It’s the old Negan bravado, tinged with weariness (though, at times, I worry it comes across as boredom). Cohan is equally good as Maggie, relishing the material when it unleashes her inner mama bear. Their assuredness in their roles comes as no surprise, but it’s that familiarity that allows for the introspective material to work so well.

Season 2’s strong supporting cast has several standouts; chief among them, Coates’ Bruegel. He’s a conniving character who’s just fun to watch, and Coates plays him over the top but not too much, striking that perfect balance. Emery and Ivanek play well off each other as Dama and Croat, and their interplay with Morgan is the best in the show, helping to illustrate Negan’s evolution from pure villain to tragic anti-hero. Dascha Polanco’s Lucia Narvaez, a justice-at-all-costs lieutenant with New Babylon, is another whose committed performance makes for a memorable character, playing a well-trodden archetype with enthusiasm.

I Was Genuinely Surprised By How Much I Enjoyed Dead City Season 2

And I Hope Its Conclusion Is Just As Satisfying

The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 pushes itself in a slightly absurd direction, but that only helps to give it a firmer identity. Manhattan has historically attracted the eccentric, and I love how Dead City plays into that. It even makes better use of the setting, highlighting notable and visually dramatic NYC destinations like St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Central Park, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

It’s not a perfect run of episodes, as there are times when the story drags or the action gets too predictable, and there are a few narratives and characters who could have been scrapped. The final two episodes weren’t available for review, so it could go off the rails then, but I doubt it. The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 is set for what should be an exciting conclusion, potentially bringing closure to long-simmering storylines, like Maggie and Herschel’s strained relationship and Negan’s eventual fate. And if not, I’m content to enjoy whatever wild turn of events or strange character gets introduced next.