Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2, episode 8, “If History Were a Conflagration”.The Walking Dead: Dead City’sshocking villain return offered an exciting twist to the story, but I’m struggling to buy the character’s survival after the show failed to fully explain how they’re still alive. Having supposedly been killed off just a few episodes prior, a majorDead Cityantagonist showed up in season 2’s penultimate episode, suggesting they’d have a big role in the finale. While they did manage to play a substantial part in wrapping up the story,Dead Cityseason 2’s endingprovided very few details about how the character overcame their near-fatal experience despite being presumed dead.
During “The Bird Always Knows”, Negan devised a plan to pit the Croat and the Dama against one another, leading to tensions boiling between the two. With the Croat feeling undervalued by his partner, thanks to Negan’s manipulation, he confronted the Dama and left her trapped in a burning room. Rather than help free her, the Croat ran away, making the audience believe that the Burazi leader was dead after a body was found. However,Dead Citylater revealed that the Dama was still aliveafter faking her death, and it’s unclear how exactly she pulled this off.
The Spinoff Show Quickly Brushed Past How The Dama Actually Survived Her Near-Death Experience
The Dama’s return in episode 7 completely caught me off guard, but my excitement about finding out how she survived faded quickly asDead Citycompletely brushed past the whole ordeal. As expected, the villain revealed that she used another body to fake her death, burning the corpse of someone who had already died to make it look like her. However,the Dama didn’t elaborate on how she actually freed herself from the trapped position she found herself in, nor did she explain how she managed to plant the body and flee the building without anyone seeing.
The Walking Dead: Dead Cityhasn’t officially been confirmed for season 3.
It’s also unclear if she had any help, as even if she somehow managed this impressive escape on her own, surely she would have needed someone to tend to her wounds.The Dama and Hershel’sDead Cityreunion suggests that the teenager could have provided some assistance, but we never got confirmation, and I doubt a third season will spend too much time expanding on what happened. Instead, we’re supposed to happily accept that the villain miraculously survived certain death without seeing what happened, and the lack of details about her escape only makes her return less believable.
The Dama just showed up again without any real explanation, having been left for dead, and it isn’t the first timeThe Walking Deadhas done this.
I’m all for characters surviving seemingly insurmountable circumstances, but these moments have to be properly illustrated; otherwise, they fall flat. Rick’s supposed death in season 9 was at least given a follow-up where we saw Jadis and the CRM rescue him, hence how he survived such a bleak scenario. In contrast, the Dama just showed up again without any real explanation, having been left for dead, and it isn’t the first timeThe Walking Deadhas done this.
Considering how many different shows and characters have been involved inThe Walking Deadfranchise, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the Dama is one of several survivors to return without a proper explanation. While the original series was less problematic in this regard,Fear the Walking Deadwas filled with major characters popping up after being presumed dead, with their returns omitting plenty of key details. Daniel Salazar was one of the earliest examples of this, as he survived an explosion after previously being shot in the face, yet his return failed to answer what really happened.
Troy received a bit more information about his return, as after seemingly being killed by Madison in season 3, he showed up in season 8, revealing he was rescued by a woman who he eventually had a child with. Still, the details of his survival remain unclear, a somewhat similar story to Madison’s. She appeared to sacrifice her life but showed up several seasons later, with only a brief spotlight being put on her miraculous recovery. Sadly,Dead Cityrepeated this frustrating trend with the Dama twist, which could become a recurring problem inThe Walking Dead’s future.
The Walking Dead: Dead City
Cast
A spin-off/sequel of the dramatic horror series, The Walking Dead: Dead City follows two significant characters from the main series - Maggie and Negan.
The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead is a television series that premiered on August 16, 2025. It follows Sheriff’s deputy Rick Grimes, who awakens from a coma to find a post-apocalyptic world overrun by zombies. He embarks on a journey to locate his family, encountering various survivors amidst the chaos.
