WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Fear the Walking Dead Season 6, Episode 9, "Things Left to Do," which aired Sunday on AMC.
Throughout Season 6 of Fear the Walking Dead, Virginia took a page from Negan. In Season 7 of The Walking Dead, Negan forced the people of Alexandria, the Hilltop and the Kingdom to share supplies for nothing in return other than him not bashing their heads in with Lucille. It was a raw deal that closely resembled the one Virginia struck with Morgan's group. The difference being when the Fear protagonists were corralled into a circle on their knees, like in The Walking Dead's infamous episode "The Last Day on Earth, Virginia's plan failed miserably.
In Fear the Walking Dead's latest episode, "Things Left to Do," Virginia instructs Strand to gather up Morgan's people. Daniel, Luciana, Grace, Sarah and June are forced into a line on their knees with guns pointed at their heads. The scene is immediately reminiscent of The Walking Dead episode "The Last Day on Earth," which introduced Negan in one of the most shocking and brutal moments in TWD history. While playing a terrifying game of "eeny, meeny, miny, moe," Negan brings his bat down on Glenn and Abraham, killing the fan-favorite characters as punishment for the group's retaliation.
While Virginia lacks Negan's trademark baseball bat, lengthy monologues and wisecracks, the interrogation scene's introduction mirrors Negan's interaction with Rick's group. Much like Glenn lunged at Negan for threatening Maggie, Daniel does the same to one of Virginia's men after threatening Luciana. However, Virginia's and Negan's motivations for their meetings differ. Negan wanted to lay the ground rules and instill fear. On the other hand, Virginia is trying to find Morgan by intimidating the group into divulging his whereabouts. Regardless, the scenes play out with a similar intensity. Virginia holds a gun to Daniel's head before turning her attention to a pregnant Grace.
Grace talks back, saying Virginia won't kill them because, without them, she has nothing. Virginia responds, "That was very stupid, a very stupid thing to say." While she shows more hesitation than Negan ever did, Virginia's anger prompts her to put her guards in position. Negan killed two of Rick's people, but Virginia is ready to kill all five of Morgan's members. Right before she gives the signal, Morgan bursts onto the scene, halting the executions.
Luckily, Morgan has Virginia's sister, Dakota, to use as leverage. He is quick to tell Virginia that it's over for her. She calls his bluff, and Morgan uses the opportunity to call out Virginia's hypocrisy. Much like Negan, she has rules. The big one being that anyone who threatens the future she's building will be killed. However, Morgan tells her guards that Virginia covered up the murder of one of her rangers to protect her sister -- the killer. Although a few of her people stay loyal, the others take up arms against her under Strand's orders.
While Virginia tried to have a terrifying Negan moment, her hypocrisy was ultimately her undoing. Negan's eery confidence and strong following meant "The Last Day on Earth" played out much differently than Fear's "Things Left to Do." Instead of maintaining a cool exterior, Virginia succumbed to panic and horror as her own people turned against her, and she lost control. Though she escapes by using Grace as a hostage, Virginia's fate is sealed later in the episode when June murders her to avenge John's death in Episode 8.
"Things Left to Do" proves that being a successful leader means not going back on your word, and leading by example is what matters most, even for villains. Thanks to Morgan, Virginia could not carry out her horrific plan as Negan did in The Walking Dead.
Fear the Walking Dead stars Lennie James, Rubén Blades, Colman Domingo, Danay Garcia, Maggie Grace, Garret Dillahunt, Jenna Elfman, Alexa Nisenson, Karen David, Austin Amelio, Mo Collins, Zoe Colletti and Christine Evangelista. New episodes air Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on AMC.