Carl McKenzie (Remake)

***"It's coming along, but it'll still be a while till it's done."***
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## Carl McKenzie

* Human
* Darkdweller

## Biographical Information

### Occupation

Medical student *(Pre-apocalypse)*
Former doctor for Sanctuary, Drew's group and Greencole *(Post-apocalypse)*

### Family

Mother - mate
Alpha, Beta & Gamma - offspring

### Residence

Hometown *(formerly)*
Sanctuary *(formerly)*

## Appearances

### Death Episode

"Nightmares" *(alive)*

"*If everything was still normal, I'd be a **mad scientist**,*"
—Carl's comment on his eccentricities[src]

**Carl McKenzie** is a main character and a survivor of the outbreak in *Strain Zero*. A former medical student with high-functioning autism and an incredible memory, Carl serves as the doctor for Drew's group and later Henry's group. Despite his poor social skills, Carl integrates well into the group, who appreciate his medical talent despite his many eccentricities.

After escaping the Black Building, Carl was captured during an Innocent ambush alongside Mike Trapp and taken to the Fargo Depot to serve as little else than pawns in Bart Rhodes' schemes. Upon his rescue he became the doctor for the Pioneers convoy and later the doctor for Greencole. Five years later, succumbing to cancer, Carl wished for his body to be studied; to everyone's horror, however, he became a darkdweller and the source of a zombie outbreak within Greencole. Despite his death and transformation, the "**Carldweller**" retained a fraction of Carl's intelligence, allowing Henry to seek the aid of both it and the Mother during the final battle with the Frontiersmen.

## Overview

### Personality & Traits

Carl is aloof, eccentric, and highly intelligent. He displays typical symptoms of Asperger Syndrome: poor social skills, peculiar habits of speech, and difficulty in reading body language. He very rarely smiles and speaks in a long-winded, pedantic, flat and clinical fashion. He is also known for several bizarre habits, such as insisting on wearing his dirty white lab coat at all times and obsessively cleaning his nails.

While a detriment to the group while on the road due to his cowardice and clumsiness, being neither combat ready nor combat inclined, Carl's value is evident in his ability to perform medical procedures in high-stress situations, diagnose ailments with few details provided, effectively treat infections with minimal resources, and set broken bones. When working with others such as Ben, he is able to lend his knowledge of chemistry to building useful devices such as water filters.

Carl's advanced knowledge comes from years of abuse at the hands of his father, who forced his young son to study to the point of sleep deprivation and other adverse mental health effects. In addition, despite the respect he gains from his group due to his medical knowledge and surgery skills, Carl has been heavily affected by the apocalypse, often turning to drink and drugs to help solve his personal problems and block out traumatic memories. Carl's personal issues, drug abuse and Asperges have all combined to make him nervous and jittery.

### Skills & Abilities

Compared to others with ASD, Carl has excellent body coordination, having hands that remain still no matter the level of pressure on his shoulders. His skills in surgery are second to none; he is even able to perform surgery on himself.

## Pre-Apocalypse

Nothing is yet known about Carl's life before the outbreak.

## Death

### Killed by:

* Cancer *(alive)*

During the five years following the establishment of Greencole, Carl developed an aggressive cancer that eventually left him bedbound with no treatment possible. He decided to have his reanimated body examined so that his friends could better understand the zombie infection. In 2011, he succumbs to his cancer but almost immediately returns to life as a darkdweller.

## Killed Victims

* Theo *(caused)* - bitten by a proto-dweller
* Two unnamed assistants *(alive)* - bitten and reanimated
* At least 15 unnamed Greencole residents *(caused)* - bitten by proto-dwellers created by Carl
* Numerous counts of zombies

## Relationships

### Henry Ward

"*I **know** that you know me. I'm not here to **hurt you...Carl**. [...] We need your help. **Bad people** are coming. They're gonna **kill us**. And when they're done with us...they're gonna come for **you**. They're gonna **burn** your woods...take her away from you...chain you...**hurt** you...if you're in there...and I **know** you are...**we need you**,*"
—Henry appeals to the "Carldweller"[src]

## Appearances

### The Walking Dead: Strain Zero

#### Season 2: Remake

* "An Iron Fist"
* "In Harm's Way"
* "What We Deserve"

#### Season 3: Remake

* "No Time Left"
* "Monsters"
* "Consequences"
* "One Way Out"
* "Fools and Dead Men"
* "Hopes and Fears"
* "Same Stitch"

#### Season 4: Remake

* "Miles"
* "Hellfire"
* "Divide"
* "Nightmares"
* "Rescue"
* "Fears"
* "Conquer"

#### Season 6: Remake

* "March to War"
* "All Out War"

## Trivia

* Carl has a distinctive and deeply southern American accent.
* Carl is the first named darkdweller to appear in *Strain Zero*.
	+ As a darkdweller, Carl can be considered the tertiary main antagonist of *Season 4: Remake Part II*

## References

1. ↑ *Season 2* is set two years into the zombie apocalypse