In The Walking Dead’s third episode of Season 7, entitled “The Cell,” we learned a lot about the ins and outs of Negan’s Sanctuary. While we learned a ton about the logistics and his routine, even more was left to question.
Negan has set the scene to show that not all of his people are actually murderers. Calling everyone Negan would imply otherwise, which is ideal for the group as a military operation, but the truth is that many of his men are weak and afraid.
Essentially, Negan is the brutal dictator that casts a shadow over the group with threats and charm. Certain thugs work alongside Negan because they feel that they have nowhere else to go, and Negan provides some sort of safety for them. This means doing as they are told and kneeling when he passes by.
The Walking Dead | Photo Credit Image Comics
Moral Threats in the Sanctuary
In addition to the threats, there are also moral threats to consider. Not only will his servants be killed for getting out of line, but they will also be turned into walkers and forced to live as a zombie guard, pinned to the gate. This is especially demoralizing if they have other family members within the Sanctuary.
On the other end of the spectrum, Negan’s right-hand men, once they pass a series of forgiveness tests (like giving up their wife and being burned on the face with an iron), they can have all of the sandwiches they please. Negan refers this to a point system, which means they can take as they please as long as they have a high score.
The Walking Dead | Photo Credit Image Comics
Scoring Points With Negan
Negan’s point system, and general qualities, probably came from the fact that he was simply a high school gym teacher before the world ended. He has simply set up a much larger version of Phys Ed during the apocalypse.
Dwight, for example, has earned enough points to seek out any woman he chooses (except for his wife who now belongs to Negan). But, as his wife is no longer his own, he doesn’t seem to want another and remains a humble servant to stay alive within The Walking Dead.
Negan’s skills as a dictator show off his ability to be charming, charismatic, and terrifying at the same time. Lucille, his deadly bat, seems to be with him at all times, even when he’s making much smaller decisions.
We only saw a glimpse of Negan in the episode as it mainly focused on Dwight. We did see that Dwight’s former wife was taking a pregnancy test that came up negative. Given the fact that Negan made fun of Dwight for getting bit in the crotch by Eugene, it’s possible that Negan is actually shooting blanks, which would explain a lot of his ego, given his vicious nature.
It would appear that Dwight hates Negan and is waiting for a chance to get his wife back. For some reason, however, Dwight has yet to see that that chance can come in the form of Daryl Dixon and Rick Grimes.
Daryl has a new understanding of why Dwight acts the way that he does and he is doing so out of fear. So far, “The Cell” has only shown us the beginning. Dwight might be good and Daryl might break, but neither have changed thus far.
