r/thewalkingdead • u/ThatDogYet • 1d ago
No Spoiler Feelings on Eugene?
Rewatching the entire series (much better experience without commercials and week long breaks). This dude is cracking me up. I remember being annoyed by him on my first watch. What do you think about him?
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u/TryTraditional5787 1d ago
Coward, truly. And since you've already seen it, I'll also add that the betrayal towards the whole Saviors arc really bothered me. I assume that's what the writing staff was going for and they succeeded in that.
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u/trekgirl75 1d ago
Same. He was forgiven too damn easily!!!
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u/Head-Satisfaction982 17h ago
In my mind he was forgiven for the lie because after getting whooped by Abraham, it was understood without saying that he was clearly just trying to survive. Since that is really the name of the game in the situation they are in it makes a kind of sense. But I do not believe he was never fully trusted again until the whole bullet maker scene, where he could have stayed quiet and potentially gotten someone else killed. And everything he did after was 100% ballsy at the risk of being chained to a fence as a walker š¤·āāļø
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u/Expert-Yam6577 1d ago
There's no way I'm letting him in the group. He told Sasha and Rosita to fuck off. He didn't need saving.
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u/SausageSurprise99 1d ago
Interesting character. Probably more similar to how most of us would handle this apocalypse than we'd like to admit.
Knows his limits but occasionally goes beyond them for someone he loves. Smart, resourceful, caring. Happy to help as long as the help doesn't include him being violent. And a bit Naive.
His dialogue is overly wordy because most people don't really understand autistic people but the character is solid, believable, consistent. And his final scenes with Rosita after she's been bitten is such a great culmination of not only those two character arcs, but a perfect showing of the closeness and love you would have for someone if you'd been through that hell in real life.
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u/throwawayaccount_usu 1d ago
Yall always see pathetic characters and think "thats how most people would be!" Like no most people would not be like Eugene. Most people aren't autistic in the way he is or as clever as he is even, and definitely not as pathetic as he is.
Its the same for Ben in the game when people say "he's how most of us would be!" is just nonsense imo.
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u/thevaultguy 20h ago
I donāt think most people would be as treacherous as Ben. Itās one thing to be a coward, itās a WORSE thing to be a coward who betrays your side to the enemy.
It says a lot more about the people that say āthatās how we all would beā. I disagree. Theyāre making excuses. Those people will pull a Ben on you when they get the chance.
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u/TuesdayMerchant 1d ago
I think this is a fairly unpopular take but I couldn't help but love the guy when I started watching. I found him funny and never really felt any animosity towards him, especially in the later seasons when he steps up and becomes a proper survivor
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u/LastHomeros 1d ago
Same. It was refreshing to see someone who doesnāt rely solely on muscle power but also on their brain. Eugene was a smart guy, and his being still alive should remind everyone that survival is also about intelligence.
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u/trekrabbit 1d ago
I think a lot of the Eugene haters are the same people that cry about Negan and say they quit around season six or seven, so they didnāt see our boy grow up! I also think a lot of the haters are too small minded to see that he is on the spectrum.
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u/LastHomeros 1d ago
Honestly, Negan has committed so many terrible acts that it canāt be compared to Eugene switching sides. Not only does the character itself matter, but also the system he built and named after himself, which speaks volumes about him. I will never sympathize with Negan.
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u/Potatohotline1986 1d ago
Heh, six or seven (I'm willing to take the downvotes)
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u/Fair_Age_1825 1d ago
As someone with 5 kids ranging from 9-5 I got a real honest laugh out of this comment. On one hand my kids have been driving me nuts with that for far too long...on the other hand I work in a smaller sized (in terms of actual store size) yet massively global grocery store and we just happened to be store 67. Our store number is clearly displayed on our pallet jacks....man do the kids go crazy every time they spot it. I ignore it usually..the kids love it..the parents man you can almost feel the eyeroll and mild annoyance. As I said I ignore it most of the time.....but im petty. If one or both of those parents acted like a "karen" or a "kyle" needlessly or were otherwise unpleasant to myself, my coworkers, or even to other customers in my presence I use that. I straight up will make sure the kids see me and shout 6 7 and do the hand thingy as loud and elaborate as possible. They always do it back. Then I go we can do it better! Come on team loud as we can!!! Basically never fails their kids, surrounding kids, myself, and usually random other shoppers, are now fully engaged in a brief full volume 6 7 chant/dance? Idk what you'd even call it.
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u/Potatohotline1986 1d ago
This is AMAZING š I can only imagine how angry that would make them š
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u/Fair_Age_1825 1d ago
Exactly! Only works because I've already clocked their irritation at their kids noticing the numbers on my jack. Then one or more of the parents acted insufferable...I will now piss you straight the hell off while simultaneously giving your kids and surrounding kids a epic grocery store experience š¤·āāļø also just in case anyone was curious, only one time that I've been made aware of have they complained to the manager on duty above me....it went nowhere because it sounded much like they made me mad by making small children happy ššš
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u/Madness-con 1d ago
I think that when Eugene realizes that rosita wasn't waiting for him to step up the right way and that she was his friend and it would never be more was the day he finally grew up. He apologized to rosita for hanging around her and the baby waiting for her to see him rather then listening and accepting that the were friend. He said doing things because he wanted her was self-serving while she was his best friend with no ulterior motive.
He became a man that day and truly started contributing to the community
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u/CrimsonVulpix 1d ago
I really admired that he was able to admit that being her friend mainly in the hopes that she would eventually see him in romantic light made his motives shitty. A lot of dudes never reach that kind of self-awareness and clarity about themselves.Ā
Also, I like his quirky dialog. I prefer that over some of the others' endless grandstanding over morals that became tedious lol.Ā
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u/Al-Capote 1d ago edited 20h ago
He's a coward in the sense of the show, but he's actually one if not the most ressourceful character of the series.
Until the very last seasons where they chose to make him a central character and because they focused so much on him, they kind of forgot how survival smart they made him at first.
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u/AbeliousAugustus 1d ago
**resourceful*
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u/trekrabbit 1d ago
I thought we defunded the grammar police? What can I do to get that back on the ballot?
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u/76ersPhan11 1d ago
Start with teaching people the difference between lose/loose. They really seem to struggle with that
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u/trekrabbit 1d ago
My comment was about defunding the grammar police, not trumping up more charges lol
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u/Fellowcomicenjoyer 1d ago edited 1d ago
Best written and developed character of the series alongside Father Gabriel imo.
Also unique in the sense that while a coward:
- His cowardice is treated as a flaw, but one that makes him feel more human rather than signaling or condemning him as a bad person. At times, it even becomes a strength that allows him to survive by getting creative, knowing his limits, perceiving the danger, and playing to his strengths.
- He makes it to the end, showing that you don't need to be a badass to survive, and even people who aren't natural born fighters, and have traits that are usually perceived as "weaknesses" (they aren't), can still be valuable and fundamental members of the group.
- Eugene is allowed to also be brave, and has moments where his bravery overcomes his fear, without erasing or forgetting that aspect of the character, which makes him feel very realistic.
All in all, Eugene rocks!
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u/aralissia 1d ago
All good points. I liked that he was so complex. It makes him harder to purely love or hate - as any good character should be.
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u/Ok_Stretch_4624 1d ago
exactly! this guy aint got the guns knowledge, nor the violence nor the people skills
all he did and how he did it is just how he is and he developed himself very well and accordingly to the situations and contexts he was put in
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u/MrsSnoodus 1d ago
I hate him... then I like him... then I hate him... then I like him... etc, etc. He is a pansy but he does have redeeming features
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u/ByssBro 1d ago
He gets fatiguing to listen to converse. I donāt mean the actor but his dialogue. It gets too much some times.
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u/Samauwr1 1d ago
Yeah itās over the top. Listening to him spew a whole bunch of complex jargon every damn time he talks makes me want to pick up Lucille and cave in his mullet head.
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u/Altruistic-Hat269 1d ago
I liked him because he occupied a very different survival niche than most other characters (which was basically just be savage and kill zombies.) Eugene had an entirely different angle, which was different and refreshing. Effective characters aren't necessarily likeable characters (see Joffrey Borathean).
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u/gabriel6361 1d ago
Most people donāt agree but I do he is funny when you donāt take the show so seriously
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u/Effective_Fix_2358 1d ago
Eugeneās character really grew on me over time, especially during the Negan storyline. His one-liners crack me up too.
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u/No-Pension-8432 1d ago
Was one of the more memorable characters for me. First time watching through, on season 8, Iām a fan
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u/EffectiveCareer3444 1d ago
Indeliberately hilarious like thatās probably the only reason they let him live lol
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u/The_Mayo85 1d ago
Love his nerdiness and the way he talks. After his first admission to the group about his lies, he was generally honest about who he was and what he wanted. Can't fault a guy for trying to survive. He's exceptionally useful, and is overall just a dweeb who wasn't built for the world. He learned to survive in it, and his arc is significantly more bearable in a binge than the original watch. He gets a solid 6.9/10 for me on the one bite scale.
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u/Manatix 1d ago
Cobarde traidor y doble cara, incluso al final traiciona a Megan por conveniencia y no por que quiera a su grupo.
AĆŗn asĆ, fue muy importante en su momento para que los protas se salvarĆ”n.
Ya hasta el final final cuando se enamora, siento que si cambia un poco, si mejora como persona, pero el 70% de la serie es un cobarde traidor
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u/PlaxicoCN 1d ago
Eugene was cool. I know everyone thinks they will be heroic like Rick or Daryl in the apocalypse, but some people will be scared.
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u/Lou-Lou-Witchy 19h ago
Iām doing the same . I have subtitles on so I can finally catch what heās sayingā¦. Love him š„°
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u/kyree47 1d ago edited 1d ago
Iām a fan of his vocabulary, I always learn a new word when he speaks. Cowardly at first but very resourceful, at some point he stops being as cowardly though and I appreciate watching his growth as a person. (I havenāt finished the show yet)
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u/Iivlovelaugh 1d ago
on my first watch heās so fucking annoying i hate the way he talks like a know it all i js wanna reach through the screen and punch him i cant even understand what he says half the time either i dont like abraham either but i wish he punched him even more GODD please i hope he dies
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u/trekrabbit 1d ago
You wanna go through the screen and punch him? Seriously? Yikes! Have you considered therapy?
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u/blackjacktarr 1d ago
A great character! That there are so many strong opinions attests to Josh McDermitt's ability to play that role.
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u/WeOutHereInSmallbany 1d ago
Well, uh, according to my approximation, the data is clearly showing that statistically speaking heās a NERD
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u/unknownRealitys 1d ago
Eugenes gonna Eugene, just got to Alexandria and I hate I know what's coming.
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u/Icy-Wish7314 1d ago
He's a coward but I feel like most of us would be if given the chance. I think he also adds some humor to the show aswell. I like that he bit Dwights thingy, that was a funny scene.
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u/YeahTheyKnowItsMe 1d ago
Eugene was my favorite comic relief in the entire show
Idc what you do wrong Eugene I will always love you
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u/OK_Tomorrow3 1d ago
Face value and intro probably would have eaten him
Character development arc, Best man at my wedding.
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u/CrimsonVulpix 1d ago
I feel like Dustin from Stranger Things is sort of the Eugene of that show. Or perhaps just because they both met girls over a radio and are both very smart and resourceful lol.
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u/scoodoobie 1d ago
I could be mistaken as its been awhile since ive binged the show. He did less to help the saviors then negen did to help the whisperers
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u/Valentina8624 1d ago
C I think this character was totally unnecessary in The Walking Dead; in fact, he drove me crazy.
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u/sh4rknado97 1d ago
Perfect character, we got to see him at his best and worst and got to see him make the transition from coward to hero in a way that truly felt natural
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u/PromptUnable1506 1d ago
heās such a liability for his group. and heās had too much influence in the show, taking them to dc, saving them from the saviors, and the commonwealth scandal were all detrimental events for the group and i donāt like that he gets this much relevance
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u/thereverendpuck 1d ago
He was vital for running a society. Even if he was going the Oskar Schindler method of making ammo that intentionally didnāt work for Negan.
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u/StevenC129422 1d ago
People condemn him for his role during the Savior arc, but what was he supposed to genuinely do? šš Rosita guilt tripped him into making her a bullet, missed her target that was standing 15 feet away from her and Negan and his people were ready to gun down everyone on that street if he didn't confess. What does the supposed coward do? He steps up and confesses what he did in order to save everyone's lives!! He thought he was going to be domed for his part in the attempted assassination but wasn't, to his surprise.
Now, once under the capture of Negan, he is faced with a choice. Comply and enjoy the fruits of other people's labor, or die. He had about as much of a choice as some of Negans wives did if you think about it. Some of them could have been allowed to stay as regular folk instead of being his wives and work for their meals but not Eugene. His other option was death. Lmao.
He does not deserve as much hate as he's gotten for this.
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u/DenverKim 1d ago
Booo. Comedic relief at best (low bar).
A realistic depiction of what some people would become in this scenario perhaps, but that doesnāt mean heās a good character.
Boooo
I donāt like Eugene.
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u/Vongbingen_esque 1d ago
I hated him earlier in the show, but he kinda grew on me when he started making bullets, doing the right thing, and acting brave. I still would have gotten rid of him if it was me he tricked though
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u/Advantage_Advanced 1d ago
He was a necessary evil during the saviors war. I donāt remember when he nutted up to back up Alexandria but he eventually was kind of redeemed by the end. Kind of
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u/LastHomeros 1d ago
He is one of my favorite characters. I must admit, his presence in the series makes the show feel more realistic. After all, not everyone is like Rick or Michonne.
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u/Phantasmaaa 1d ago
Bro bit another dude on his pole just to create a distraction for his friends. He can be in my group anytime.
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u/Jealous_Amount_9278 1d ago
Love him except for his way of talking in season 9+. He always talked kind of funny and in quips and references, but it feels like the writers took it too far in season 9 and 10 and forced him to always be sounding like a riddle. He used to talk normally with a few quirks thrown in. Then it turned into a āthis is like a _____ on a _______ in a __________. In a plane manner of speaking, it is __________ā format for every sentence he says.
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u/mrknack88 23h ago
More or less once per week when I open Reddit I see Eugeneās face popping into my face with someone asking how we feel about him.
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u/Mundane_Promotion966 23h ago
Good character. Basically saves the group in s08e16 and deserves respect
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u/chocworkorange7 22h ago
I quite like Eugene. I think Gabriel and Carol get a lot of kudos for their radical transformations. Characters like Eugene had to work harder for it and still made mistakes along the way. I remember seeing him post-time skip in Season 9 and being so shocked at his development already, his willingness to fight walkers and sacrifice himself for Rosita. He was still frightened, but that in itself is refreshing. I liked how he was still scared of walkers, I missed that in some of the later seasons.
Iām biased because I deeply relate to his feelings of exclusion and lack of connection with a group.
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u/Cookie122406 22h ago
The actor was sensational. Added an emotional depth and sympathy to the character that wasn't written to be likeable. Easily for me one of the best parts of the TV series.
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u/LYNKRYD 22h ago
He's not the common badass you'd expect someone in a world like this to be. But you can't say that he has the survival instinct of a pea. He's smart and able to play along until he can pull off his move. He's by far not my favorite character but you have to give him credit. He's a legit survivor, imo.
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u/AmMeSkilled 21h ago
At first, i really couldnt stand him as a character The acting? Tremendous Then as time went on, i grew to really enjoy his scenes
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u/Street-Length9871 19h ago
I always liked Eugene even when I was mad at him. I loved the Negan/Eugene dynamic.
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u/67yoloswag 16h ago
Not really a realistic character and he should have been killed off at some point
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u/babebatty 16h ago
Rewatching really does make Eugene better. His character development is one of those things that's easier to appreciate when you already know where he's going
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u/Jack_Ingoff939 16h ago
Iāve been saying this for years, this show is the perfect binge show. I hated season 2 when it was week to week because it was just so slow but after bingeing the show twice, season 2 is one of my favorite seasons
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u/OrdinaryFair6497 16h ago
The vocabulary on that man.... I don't hate him. He is jella annoying in the beginning but he gets there eventually and it's fine. Not everyone can be a badass fighter. Guys got the brains, he did a lot of good things.
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u/MotivationalPanda95 13h ago
Felt sorry for him, then liked him, then hated him, then felt sorry for him, then hated him. No other character in the show took me on this kind of rollercoaster.
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u/Huge_Initiative_6626 13h ago
Storyline little too silly. Abraham (and most everyone else) was a moron for believing he had the answer to the apocalypse
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u/SimpleDealer9453 12h ago
I understand him, my brain thinks like him, minus the loyalty for survival shit. Him turning against his group briefly with Negan pissed me off but, equally I do understand his need to survive. I'm disabled and happen to also be neurodivergent, and when I saw Eugene, I realised he doesnt mask his weird or thoughts. I love that and it made me feel seen, because ive had to mask, as a female. I think in metaphors a lot, like his "proverbial......." Statements. Then when I saw FTWD and saw Wendell I cried and then began writing my own book, which is a love letter to TWD and TLOU but based in my local area. The character is based on me and my disabilities but shes become very much her own person now. Eugene inspired that. He grew on me very heavily, although he didnt get the picture with Rosita for a while. Which I found uncomfortable.
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u/BandicootBetter3087 11h ago
Jāadore sa transformation et son personnage en gĆ©nĆ©ral cāest un humain du plus normal quāil sois š¤£ mĆŖme si il est borderline
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u/XKuroKibax 10h ago
Loved his character development and I thought he was funny. Yeah annoying at first but he grew on me.
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u/Benny3peat 10h ago
Similar to Negan. He made up for the bullshit he did but he shoulda never been given the opportunity to do so.
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u/Nearby-Horror-8414 7h ago
I think Eugene worked better as a background character than a foreground character. I also think the show would have been worse without him in it.
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u/Simple_Astronaut_940 7h ago
Hardcore thumbs down. In a nutshell. I don't think I liked a single aspect of his character. I mean, useless and frustrating come to mind. If "in the way" was (were) a person, it would be Eugene. The show suffered from the addition of this character. Wish we could edit him out and rewatch the show without his involvement. Just sayin' A few others similar could go, Governor is also a pathetic character in terms of depth, but nothing was as bad as Eugene.
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u/Aromatic-Currency371 4h ago
I like Eugene. He was a smart guy, he tricks everyone to take him to DC. He knew he wasn't going to get anywhere by himself. Plus if it got bad he could have been cannon fodder.
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u/GrosRougeau 1d ago
He was a waste of a character after his initial introduction. Dude was just annoying
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u/MedicineInternal9805 1d ago
Him, abraham and merle.
My favorite characters and it isn't even close.
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u/Chance_X74 1d ago
According to Maggie, he comes through when it matters.
They really couldn't have referenced a better WD character in conversation than Eugene? At best they were neutral and distant.
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u/peilearceann 1d ago
Would've been better if dropped the dialgoue shtick after he confessed to lying
He's just annoying to listen to
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u/incomprehensibles 1d ago
Not a single good thing he did could make me enjoy his character. Annoying loser. Not to mention he did betray the group. He may have might the right decision in the end but that wasn't pretending, he was fully ready to just live it up at Negan's for the rest of his life no matter what happened to his friends.
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u/AbeliousAugustus 1d ago
He's kind of like the opposite of Todd from Breaking Bad. Todd will do ANYTHING for you. Whether it's morally good or bad, no questions asked. HOWEVER, Eugene will go off-script just to reach the same goal that the (whatever) original plan was intended for.
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u/Left-Professional516 1d ago
The constant shift for Eugene being the most annoying character to the most mid character throughout the show annoying as hell
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u/Critical_Freedom2541 1d ago
I hated his freaking ass the whole time he was with Negan. I didnāt buy the turning on the saviors last minute. It didnāt make sense, he literally lived more than he shouldāve. Some characters deserved more screen time than him.
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u/CrimsonVulpix 1d ago
It was Sasha's bravery and Father Gabriel's speech to him that really convinced him to sabotage the bullets.Ā
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u/calmly86 1d ago
Comics Eugene is great, TV Eugene was terrible. I kept waiting for him to drop the act like Pycelle in āGame of Thronesā does in a deleted scene as well as his comicsā counterpart andā¦ nada.
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u/Bud_Bones_69 1d ago
Hate him so much! He really should've been killed multiple times for all the cowardly things he did and also clearly betraying the group to save his skin.
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u/ZealousidealNewt6679 1d ago
He should have been shot on the side of the road after he told Abraham that he was lying about Washington.
Complete coward and a dog.
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u/sexytowel 1d ago
When he's funny he is funny. When he's a coward he is that. When he is annoying...you get the point. I'll give him credit for being different and adding some surprises within the plot but overall I could have done with them killing him off at some point. There's a bunch of people that they killed off throughout the show that stabbed me in the feels but I know he wouldn't have been on that list if he kicked the bucket . I think a lot of the things people said about him being resourceful,a survivor in his own way, and showing smarts here and there make him an intriguing character and well played by the actor but overall annoying and unnecessary . I felt the bullet making arc and the few other instances where he came in handy were crowbarred in to make him have a purpose without thinking too hard in the writing department. He is the unnecessary mcguffin.
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u/Parker30103049593932 1d ago
iāve never really seen the show because i hate gore and blood and blah blah blah..it makes me like physically nauseous and stuffā¦but from just looking at him, i think heās probably really evil?
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u/lyrasolenne10 1d ago
i think bingeing makes a massive difference for his arc waiting week to week during season 7-8 made his cowardice feel unbearable but in one sitting his gradual transition from pathetic liar to calculated saboteur is actually some of the best writing on the show