Episode 3 of The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 premiered on ACM+ tomorrow and on AMC at 9pm EST. Negan tries something new with The Croat. Maggie travels into a dangerous, surprising place. If you are new here, then I will be covering The Walking Dead: Dead City every week before its release date. I did get access to all 6 episodes. Last I checked, I now have the last 2 episodes, so I will be covering the show up to its finale on June 22.

Once again, this is a solid episode where it feels like the show is taking its time to tell its story thanks to its 8-episode order over last season’s 6-episode count. Out of all the latest spinoff’s currently running, this one is the best as the story takes its time to lay the foundation in order to execute its plot.

This episode tackles Hershel’s backstory. I always found it interesting how we have seen different iterations over the years of Hershel and how we now see him as this teenage boy. Ten years ago, in real time, this character wasn’t even born yet, so the show is taking the liberty of propelling the timeline forward to show how Hershel learns to live in this world. Promoted to a series regular this season, Logan Kim, who plays Hershel, has the ability to tell more of the story from what we missed in the first season.

As this episode continue to push other stories forward, we also see what happened to Hershel when he was imprisoned by The Dama. There is an interesting dynamic between Hershel and The Dama as The Dama tries to brainwash the young boy’s mind. I have already seen the show up to its 6th episode, so I already know what happens. There is a lot of important information that helps shape this character.

My personal favorite story thus far, with this episode included, is Negan’s story. He is now sort of in Hershel’s position. Now, he’s just trying to survive as someone a part of this new group. His story leads to him running into someone that knows him and has the potential to kill him. This episode also has a high degree of violence that makes it shocking and exciting.

The show’s strongest component is the dialogue. It reminds me of the early days that made the original show great to begin with as these characters have to wrestle with who they are, what they have done, and who they will ultimately become. There are still questionable character choices that feel over the top at times, but it really feels like the dialogue and the story is leading towards something without having to feel rushed.

Overall, episode 3 of this season of The Walking Dead: Dead City is another solid episode that feels like it’s leading towards something. The dialogue is sharp and we learn more about character’s that help shape the story, even if some character motives still feel over the top at times.

VERDICT: 3.5/5 (Pretty Good)