The Walking Dead has seen its share of villains come and go, but none have been more popular than the baseball bat wielding antagonist, expertly brought from the comic book page by Jeffrey Dean Morgan. Negan joined the show as the cruel leader of the Saviors in the season 6 finale, and was determined to keep Rick Grimes and his group firmly under his heel.
Both men have been successful authority figures in their own ways, despite their wildly different leadership styles. With that in mind, here are reasons why Negan was a better leader than Rick, and reasons why his reign at the Sanctuary was always doomed for epic failure.
Better Leader: Negan's Group Was A Stronger Functioning Society
Rick has been a steady leader throughout the series, but his location, his group's size, and their level of comfort has always been in a constant state of fluctuation. Negan's Saviors were a larger and more successful group than any that Rick had ever led up to that point.
The Saviors had the Sanctuary, they had some amount of electricity, and due to their raiding ways, they were not short on food and supplies. Negan's methods were questionable, but his people always had their immediate needs met.
Terrible Leader: He Relies On Fear To Keep Order
Negan rules through fear. He demands loyalty and will accept nothing less. Breaking his trust results in punishment, and it usually isn't as simple as a quick death. That just wouldn't make as much of an impression on the rest of his followers, and it would leave him one man short.
He prefers to keep order with the threat of pain, and his favorite method is the iron. He publicly burns the face of the offending member, then sends them off to be patched up by the doctor. It's an effective deterrent, but loyalty from fear doesn't work forever.
Better Leader: He Is Always Two Steps Ahead
It can't be argued that Negan isn't a very smart man. He always keeps himself two steps ahead of his opponents - if not a few more, just to be safe. He has proven himself as a great strategic thinker when it comes to leadership and all out war, and it's difficult to double cross him without him suspecting it first.
Negan is great at reading people, and has a poker face that puts professional players to shame. He knows when to explode with emotion, and when to keep his thoughts and suspicions under wraps. Rick isn't unintelligent, but he doesn't have quite the level of cunning that Negan does.
Terrible Leader: His "Harem" Causes Tension
No matter how much he brags that his "wives" are with him voluntarily, or how much emphasis he puts on the importance of consent, it doesn't change the fact that these women are only with him because they have been coerced.
They do what they do because they want safety for themselves and their loved ones. Negan takes joy in goading the "ex-husbands" of his partners, and regularly taunted Dwight about his sex life with Dwight's wife, Sherry. Essentially "stealing" wives and keeping their partners around is abusive, outright cocky, and a mutiny just waiting to happen.
Better Leader: He Is Extremely Charismatic
Leaders need to know how inspire their people and boost morale. Charisma and overconfidence is contagious, and Negan has both in spades. The man can give a rousing speech, and he knows it. He can turn off the "big, scary bully" persona, and flip the switch to a smiling, boisterous leader that knows just how to get the Saviors pumped up and feel pretty darn badass about themselves.
These traits are also highly valuable when it comes to negotiations with other groups. Negan is rarely in a situation where he doesn't get what he wants, or at least come out with a solid compromise.
Terrible Leader: His Rules Aren't Clear
Negan seems to have only one demand - complete and utter devotion without question, at any given moment. It's difficult to run a large group without an agreed upon way of life and goals to meet other than "do what I say, when I say it", and severe corporal punishment without a clear set of rules is just setting people up for failure.
Negan required that the Saviors work where they were told to work and contribute to the group, but the Sanctuary definitely could have used a proper rule book.
Better Leader: He Isn't Afraid To Let People Join Them
Safety comes in numbers, but many groups introduced throughout the series have been hesitant to let others join them - and rightfully so. The zombie apocalypse is a dangerous and untrustworthy world. That said, living in tiny groups isn't exactly safe either.
Negan, on the other hand, loved recruiting new members, and all he required was loyalty for those who wanted to join up. Negan viewed every able body as a resource, and with every new set of hands, there were more people working, building, and fighting for him. The more people, the stronger group, the better the life.
Terrible Leader: There Isn't Enough Reward For His Followers
The problem with the Sanctuary is the problem with any overpowered government - at some point, it's just not an equally beneficial relationship anymore. Negan is the king of the castle. He collects taxes, his word is law, and he demands respect without having to give it back.
His followers receive his protection, but oftentimes it's not through him, rather it's safety from him. They earn rewards for especially good behavior, but it feels more like prisoners earning meager privileges in a jail setting, than a functioning society. Loyalty without proper reward just begs for a revolt.
Better Leader: He Does The Dirty Work Himself
If nothing else, Negan has always led by example, and he never asks for anything that he isn't willing to do himself. He makes the tough choices that puts the average person's morals at risk, and he's the first in line to do the dirty work.
He is not a coward that sits back and lets his people fight for him without being willing to put himself into the mud himself. He will go toe to toe with anyone that threatens their way of life, and he will make an example of them by his own hand.
Terrible Leader: He Is Too Arrogant
Confidence is key, but arrogance has its limits, and Negan pushes it. He commands absolute devotion, and will do what he has to in order to keep it. Usually, this means regularly humiliating his biggest allies - such as Dwight, Simon, and Gregory - just to keep them in their place.
What he fails to realize is that there are times when that tactic has the opposite effect. He makes his closest followers feel used, shamed, and eager for the chance to fight back.