Stuck On You: Gabriel And Negan Get Their Adventure Started In The Season 8 Premiere Of 'The Walking Dead'

Now that The Walking Dead has returned for its eighth season, we know how Negan and Gabriel wind up trapped together. After their confrontation was teased in the Season 8 trailer released at San Diego Comic-Con earlier this year, we were all left wondering how these two polar opposites would end up in that situation. The small clip provided didn't add any context to their meeting, so there was no way to tell how it would play out. But TWD's Season 8 premiere cleared it up.

The latest episode of #TheWalkingDead depicted the militia founded by Maggie, Rick, and Ezekiel, setting off the first of many assaults they'll carry out on Negan's main compound, the Sanctuary. Not much came of their first attack, but a number of small developments cropped up during the fight. One in particular saw a trapped Gabriel forced into a trailer within the Sanctuary.

Toward the conclusion of the episode, Gabriel became trapped by the horde of walkers unleashed by Alexandria's other residents. With no exit, Gabriel was forced to take shelter in the boarded-up mobile trailer, where he found the one person he never expected: Negan.

When they meet, Negan doesn't aggressively approach the former priest, which is surprising. Most people would assume that after being attacked, Negan might feel somewhat hostile toward anyone from Rick's group, but his casual response says otherwise. But Negan's question to Gabriel gives us the impression that he has something diabolical planned for the priest.

How Will Negan And Gabriel Get Out Of This Deadly Situation Alive?

Is it possible that he intends to use Gabriel as bait for the walkers surrounding them? Throwing the priest to the horde would definitely scare Gabriel and help Negan escape, but would it be enough? There's a good chance that Negan will find more use in a living Gabriel than a dead one.

As long as Negan doesn't try to kill Gabriel, they'll probably wind up working together to find a solution to their shared problem. Neither of them will be able to escape if they can't find some common ground. Plus, Negan is more rational than we give him credit for, making it reasonable to assume he's come to the realization that he needs Gabriel to get out alive. Let's just hope Negan doesn't act on impulse like he did with Spencer, because that type of scenario could see Gabriel dead before he even knows what's happening.