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Madison Square Garden is a location in AMC's The Walking Dead: Dead City, located in Manhattan, New York. It serves as the base of operations for the Burazi.
Pre-Apocalypse[]
New York[]
Before the apocalypse, it was an arena and entertainment venue for various performances.
Post-Apocalypse[]
Season 1[]
"People Are a Resource"[]
From a window overlooking Madison Square Garden which is surrounded by a massive herd, Tommaso informs Maggie and Negan that, "if you wanna get to the Croat, you just gotta get through that. He's been bringing fleshies in from all over the city." A vehicle drives by playing music and drawing more walkers behind it towards the arena, the same thing that Maggie, Negan and Jano had encountered on their first night in Manhattan. Luther says that there's no way inside of the arena and Amaia shoots down Maggie's idea of the sewers as the Army had shoved in all of the walkers that they killed until they got killed themselves and turned into walkers at which point the sewers were sealed up nice and tight.
Inside, a captive Perlie Armstrong is removed from the back of the ambulance. The Croat welcomes Perlie who is led past where some of the Burazi are loading a body into a fluid filled tank. Handcuffed to a railing in the Croat's office, Perlie watches as some of the Croat's people practice near a large ring in the center of the arena.
In Perlie’s lavish cell, a Buraz delivers two plates of dinner, a bottle of wine and turns on a record player before standing off to the side. The Croat enters the room and joyfully greets Perlie, turning on a heat lamp and the lights. The Croat invites Perlie to dine with him, reassuring the marshal that "it isn't magic, I promise. Only science. That was my profession. Alternative energy. So naturally, when I first arrived here, I couldn't help asking myself what is the most abundant natural resource on this island? Death. The sewers are full of it. The bodies break down and produce methane and because the intermolecular forces are weak, the gas can be pressurized into a liquid fuel at regular temperature. Amazing, isn't it? What we have built here is a sanctuary. And all are welcome." The Croat pushes a handcuff key across the table towards Perlie, and asks why he is here and who he brought with him. The Croat can't offer Perlie refuge until he no longer poses a threat because, above all in this world, we must stay safe.
The Croat suddenly discovers that the meat on his dish is rotten with larva inside of it and shoves himself away from the table. The Croat is concerned because rotten meat can host all kinds of bacteria and, without the treatment that humanity once had, it can be deadly. The Croat demands to know why the Buraz would serve him rotten meat before interrupting his explanation and forcing him to swallow the handcuff key. The Croat furiously shoves the Buraz's head and neck several times into the railing, breaking the man's neck, killing him, before shoving him over the edge to the arena floor below and leaving.
At the arena, a cheering crowd chants "doma smo" or "we are home" in Croation and the Croat announces that they are celebrating the Buraz that Negan killed because death is no end, but rather it is their fuel "because people are a resource." Cheering, some of the crowd take hits off of the methane coming from the corpse and the Croat forces Perlie to take one too before shoving him into the ring.
A disorientated Perlie is chained to a post in the ring and the zombified Buraz that the Croat had killed earlier, his head tilted at an angle from his broken neck, is shoved in with him. Dodging the walker a few times, Perlie manages to grab him from behind, wrap his handcuff chains around the walker's throat and, pinning the walker against the post, dig the chain into his neck hard enough to decapitate the man. The disappointed crowd throws bottles into the ring and Perlie grabs a broken one and uses it to cut open the walker's stomach and retrieve the handcuff key, freeing himself. Two more walkers are shoved into the ring with Perlie who searches for a way out. Unable to find one, Perlie removes his right boot, after hesitating over his left boot, and he uses it to bash in the walkers' faces, impressing the Croat.
In Perlie's cell, the Croat congratulates Perlie on the best show that this place has ever seen in years and offers the marshal a towel to clean himself up. While the Croat claims not to enjoy such barbarism, it had to be done. "When the world became unstable, my family and I found shelter in a post office. We were starving, so I went to look for food. When I got back, I smelled it immediately. My family... my wife Mia, and my daughters Nika and Hana, and my son, Filip, had become a meal for another starving family. And I was too distraught to even think of killing myself. By the time that would've occurred to me, I had already found a man who had become my new family, and teach me how to protect the things that matter, which makes me wonder what it is that you are protecting in that boot." One of the Buraz holds a blade to Perlie's neck while another removes his boot. Inside, the Croat find the envelope with Joel's address on it and reads Joel's letter to his emotional brother begging for Perlie's help after everyone had changed their phone numbers on him. Perlie tearfully begs the Croat to stop, admitting that it's just him as Perlie's two partners are dead. Perlie reveals that they had come to Manhattan to bring a wanted man named Negan home. The Croat is shocked to learn that Negan is in Manhattan.
"Everybody Wins a Prize"[]
In a control center for the arena, the Croat powers up the systems and checks with a young Buraz that she knows how to operate it, giving her instructions just to be sure. The Croat notices that the Buraz seems nervous and realizes that she's afraid of him despite the young woman's claims that she's not. The Croat recalls the day that she joined the Burazi, hiding in a fire station with a group of barbarians and how she was smart enough to lay down her weapon. The Croat states that it's been a joy watching her blossom over the past few years into a strong, faithful, confident protector. She has made the Croat incredibly proud, and she should have no reason to ever be afraid of him. The Croat gives her some candy before they both notice the sound of a whistle echoing through the halls - the distinctive whistle that was used by Negan and the Saviors. With the sound repeating itself, the Croat grabs his jacket and runs off while the Buraz inserts a disc into the player and starts a 5 minute countdown. The Croat excitedly runs off, following the whistle that he realizes is from Negan.
In the garage, Maggie sneaks into an old taxicab and begins trying to hotwire it before she finds the keys in the ignition. Before Maggie can start the car, she hears a noise, and she spots Ginny nearby. After exchanging a look with Maggie, the girl runs off and Maggie follows her. With just three and a half minutes left on the timer, someone lights a fuse. The tribespeople enter the main area of the arena which is empty while the Croat's search for Negan leads him to the garage where Negan hides behind a truck before moving amongst the vehicles to the cab. The Croat begins imitating Negan's whistle in an effort to draw him out, but Negan notices Maggie's screwdriver on the cab's passenger seat. As the timer reaches 1 minute, Maggie finally catches up to Ginny in the main area of the arena where Amaia informs her that the Burazi aren't here. As Negan climbs into the cab and picks up the tool, the Croat continues to try and draw him out while more Burazi rush in behind him.
The timer reaches 0 and all of the arena's entertainment systems turn on, broadcasting music through the main area. The fuse burns to the end in what's revealed to be a barrel fuel set in one of the arena's doorways. Explosions rock the outside of the arena as the doors are blown open, letting in the herd. The Burazi climb into various vehicles and begin making their escape as their trap is sprung on the tribespeople. Negan gets out of the car just in time as one of the Buraz takes the cab for himself. Drawn by the music, walkers flood the main area of the arena from all directions, trapping the tribespeople. The strobe lights turn on as the tribespeople get cornered by the massive herd against the ring. The Croat orders the cab driver to go on without him and has two more Burazi stay with him. When the cab drives away, Negan is gone from behind it, taking cover in the room full of tanks containing dead bodies.
In the main area, Maggie and the tribespeople desperately fight the herd but, severely outnumbered, they are quickly overwhelmed, and the tribespeople fall to the walkers one by one. Much to Maggie and Amaia's horror, Tommaso eventually gets grabbed by a group of walkers and carried away to his apparent death. Once the rest of the Burazi have cleared out, the Croat orders his two remaining men to search for Negan and grabs one of the tribespeople's modified nail guns. Negan takes the opportunity to run which is noticed by the Croat who excitedly chases after him. As the fight continues, Maggie is consumed with flashbacks of Hershel calling out to her for help as the Croat drags him away and she notices that one of the exits is nearly clear of walkers and that Ginny is trapped in the ring in the center of the arena. Rather than escaping and leaving Ginny behind, Maggie leads Amaia and Rizza - the only other survivors - inside of the ring where they barricade themselves in. Maggie and Ginny exchange a look while Negan runs up a stairwell, pausing only briefly to look at his former friend when the Croat calls out to him.
In the ring, Maggie and the others stab the walkers through the chain link fence, but there are far too many for them to take out, even from within cover. Maggie has everyone grab the ring's rubber supports as makeshift shields while the Croat splits up with his men after spotting Negan entering another stairwell after reaching a higher floor. Maggie's group uses their makeshift shields to force their way through the herd towards the exit that Maggie had spotted earlier, but Rizza gets grabbed and devoured by walkers on the way with the others being forced to press on, unable to help her. Amaia nearly suffers the same fate, but she is unexpectedly saved by Tommaso who had somehow managed to fight off the walkers and escape. With too many walkers between them and the no longer clear exit, Tommaso instead leads everyone into the tunnels beneath the arena where they eventually find an unlocked door, but they find themselves caught in a dead end with no other way out of the room as walkers start to bang on the door.
The Croat's search for Negan leads him onto a catwalk over the main area of the arena where he observes the carnage below him with amusement. The Croat calls out that there's nothing for Negan to be afraid of as he's safe and it's only him. Hearing a noise, the Croat turns around to find Negan, also armed with a modified nail gun, standing on a lower catwalk. The Croat delightedly greet his "brother" and notes Negan's new weapon of choice, but Negan doesn't respond to him. The Croat recalls hearing about what had happened at the bank which he knew sounded like Negan's handiwork. The Croat also knows that Negan had assumed that he wanted revenge on Negan for blowing off his ear and found common cause with his new friends, but the Croat actually doesn't care, telling Negan that he has another ear. The Croat asks about Lucille and Negan, speaking to his former friend for the first time since they had parted ways, admits that the bat is gone and the Croat correctly guesses that she broke from too many hits to people's heads.
"No, I... I understand. I saw Jerome on the mainland. He told me about the war with the Hilltop, the Kingdom... Alexandria. I should've been there. I can only imagine the damage Simon caused. He never listened... never really listened to you. It's okay. It's okay you lost the Sanctuary, 'cause I have built a new one! And we'll keep going. We'll build something bigger, stronger! The whole island will become our sanctuary, fueled by the death in its bowels. Okay, business first, then pleasure. I know who you want. He's here with me, now." Negan asks to see him, and the Burazi bring out the captive Perlie Armstrong.
The Croat believes that Negan wants the marshal who has been pursuing him so doggedly, but Negan clarifies that he actually wants Hershel. The Croat already knows because Perlie told him, and he asks what Maggie has promised Negan to get him to help her. Negan simply reiterates his demand for Hershel, but the Croat tells him that it will be difficult and require a conversation and asks Negan to come to him to talk, but Negan just stands his ground instead. Understanding that Negan doesn't trust him, the Croat decides to make a gesture to show him that the Croat only comes in the spirit of friendship and brotherly love. On the Croat's signal, the three men fling Perlie off of the catwalk, but he manages to grab onto the one that Negan is standing on. Much to the Croat's shock, Negan begins pulling Perlie up instead of letting him die. The Croat sends his two men after Negan and Perlie and he shoots the marshal in the leg with his weapon and tries to pull him up with it, but Perlie manages to rip the hook out of his flesh. Pulling Perlie up, Negan flees with the marshal as the Croat watches on in shock that Negan would save the other man's life rather than kill him.
In the basement room, Maggie, Amaia and Tommaso manage to use an old boiler to block the door. Maggie notices a sign warning of a sewer pipeline and she realizes that they can get out through the sewers. As the walkers try to break through the barricaded door, Maggie and Tommaso move some barrels that are in the way, but Amaia objects that it's too dangerous as all of the dead are down there and they can't breathe in the air. Tommaso points out that they don't have any other choice, and Amaia reluctantly concedes.
Tommaso, Amaia, Ginny and Maggie descend into the sewer system with Maggie moving the barrel back into place before she follows after the others.
"Doma Smo"[]
Madison Square Garden will appear in this episode.
Inhabitants[]
Formerly[]
- The Croat (Leader)
- The Dama
- Buraz 1
- Buraz 3
- Buraz 4
- Buraz 6
- Buraz 7
- Buraz 8
- Buraz 9
- Many unnamed Burazi members
Deaths[]
- Buraz 5 (Alive)
- Tribeswoman
- Tribesman
- Rizza
- 6 unnamed tribespeople
Appearances[]
Dead City[]
Season 1[]
Trivia[]
- In real life, The Walking Dead premiered its sixth season at Madison Square Garden.