Looks like the zombie-fighting gang of The Walking Dead won't be stuck in the Terminus train car for too long according to the trailer for Season 5 (hoorah!). But to get out, it looks like they will be forced to join their captors in an expedition to Washington D.C. with the “valuable information” mullet scientist Dr. Eugene Porter has. Abraham Ford has claimed that Eugene knows what caused the zombie apocalypse and can end it. This is convenient as a way of escaping Terminus and hitting the road, but is it true?
So far, the disheveled Eugene (portrayed by Josh McDermitt) has not shown any evidence or proven that he actually knows the science behind what caused the zombies. He's pretty quiet, but Abraham is an outspoken supporter of him. I want to agree with Abraham since he’s such a likable and intense character — but a huge part of him believing so staunchly in Eugene seems to come from a sense of purpose and hope. If Abraham's mission is to get Eugene to D.C., he has something important to live for.
I was shocked at how quickly Glenn and Tara trusted the information about Eugene being a scientist with this all-important knowledge. But maybe it was for lack of any other choice. When people are desperate, it can be beneficial (and sometimes necessary) to have something to hope for in order to survive. And the fact that Eugene, Abraham, and Rosita dropped their mission to help Glenn find Maggie can be evidence in itself that Eugene isn't for real.
Although Eugene did directly reference his knowledge of the zombie cure when he decided to help Glenn and Tara.
Although the show and The Walking Dead comics differ significantly (spoilers ahead), I think the show and the comics will align in the truth about Eugene — which is that he is not telling the truth. Plot-wise, it doesn't seem believable that the answer to all the zombie problems lies in this man's hands.
I mean, no offense to persons of the mullet persuasion, but how are we even entertaining the idea that mullet doctor has all the answers? Although maybe his hair is a result of living through the zombie apocalypse.
Team Rick may find out early on that Eugene is not the top-notch scientist he says he is. But in the Season 5 trailer, Bob pleads with Terminus leader Gareth to let them go to "put the world back to how it was."
Bob seems pretty passionate, but he's still too mysterious for me to know if he believes what he's saying to Gareth or if he's just using the information to trick him and escape. Either way, it looks like our group gets back out on the road again where anything can happen.
So, their chances of surviving Terminus have jumped significantly, but the chance of surviving a zombie attack out in the open is never a sure thing. But to successfully long play Gareth and the rest of the Terminus people (and maybe Rick and crew), Dr. Eugene better be one helluva liar.
Images: Gene Page/AMC; anarchygrimes/Tumblr
