Governor vs. Negan: Who Walking Dead's Most Powerful Villain Is
Being The Walking Dead’s two most memorable villains, there’s some debate over which one is more powerful or superior to the other: the Governor (David Morrissey) or Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan). Both were characters who kept Rick’s group busy for more than a single season.
The Governor antagonized Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and his people throughout season 3 and through part of season 4. After being pushed over the edge by an incident with Michonne (Danai Gurira) and his zombified daughter, a bitter conflict erupted between Woodbury and those at the prison. Even after Woodbury fell, the Governor remained a threat until his death in season 4. Rick’s people didn’t meet a character who could even compare to him until they crossed paths with Negan in the season 6 finale, who callously murdered both Glenn (Steven Yuen) and Abraham (Michael Cudlitz). After spending the bulk of the following season in servitude to Negan, a war broke out and raged across season 8 until Negan was ultimately defeated and incarcerated.
Both villains created long, violent arcs that brought numerous challenges to the main characters. The Governor, for instance, brought their way of life to an end when he unleashed a tank and brought down the prison walls. The prison, which seemed like the perfect shelter in a post-apocalyptic world filled with zombies, couldn’t keep Rick and the others safe from the Governor. It was because of him that they were forced to leave. But despite all the destruction and chaos the Governor caused, Negan was arguably the most dangerous and most powerful of the two.
The Governor showed that he’s cold-blooded enough to gun down dozens of people at once, but then, there’s no reason to think that Negan wouldn’t do the same. He may not have been willing to slaughter his own people as thoughtlessly as the Governor did, but he wouldn’t hesitate to eliminate an enemy. Negan was confident, brutal, calculating, and notably less reckless than the Governor. But the most important element of his character that puts him above the Governor is of course his numbers and resources.
To properly compare the two, it's important to take into consideration what would have happened if Rick’s group had encountered Negan and the Saviors in the place of Woodbury in season 3. Rick’s small group would have been wiped out with relative ease. The Governor was the leader of a community populated by ordinary people who had survived the apocalypse, whereas Negan was in charge of several outposts occupied by ruthless killers, thieves, and scavengers. Negan held a tremendous amount of power, and it was so much more than what the Governor had. After all, he was able to simultaneously go to war with Alexandria, the Hilltop, and the Kingdom. That’s why it seems fitting in the chronology of events for the Governor to be The Walking Dead's first big villain, and for Negan to come in years later. Rick’s group had to evolve and grow in numbers before they could have had the strength to match up with the Saviors.