“The Walking Dead: Dead City,” the new spinoff show in “The Walking Dead” universe, follows Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) as they venture through the ruins of apocalyptic Manhattan in search of Maggie’s son, Hershel (Logan Kim).

Since “The Walking Dead” season seven featured the death of one of the show’s most beloved characters, Glenn (Steven Yeun), it suffered a dip in ratings and views. After this sudden change, only die-hard fans continued to watch larger-scale stories with more characters and subplots than the show had ever encountered. The show continued until the series finale in season 11, which premiered around when AMC announced three spinoff shows, one being “Dead City.” “Dead City” aims to fix issues the main show encountered at the end of its undead life.

The story of “Dead City” benefits from a much tighter premise. After Maggie finds Negan, she enlists Negan to find Hershel despite his killing Glenn. The pair soon travel to Manhattan to escape some marshals. The premiere seemingly sets up the season to center around the search for Hershel, focusing solely on Maggie and Negan rather than jumping around numerous subplots every episode. This narrowed approach makes for a much more enticing and bite-sized series that may not attract new audiences but could potentially bring back old fans of the franchise.

Lauren Cohan and Jeffrey Dean Morgan give their usual outstanding performances. The pair always stood out in the original show, so their return will excite audiences. Maggie’s palpable hatred toward Negan for killing Glenn feels raw and exciting. Negan’s usual nihilistic charm and Maggie’s drive to save her son make for high stakes as Maggie confronts the moral complexities of killing others who may also have families to return to. While these two incredibly talented actors deserve big-budget roles, seeing them return to their beloved character portrayals will bring a smile to audiences’ faces.

As a setting, Manhattan works remarkably well. “The Walking Dead” occasionally explores Atlanta in season one and a few scenes in Washington, D.C., toward the show’s end, so having this series take place in Manhattan establishes an uneasy, mysterious tone as the characters learn to survive outside their element. The Walker encounters in episode one mark some of the most entertaining sequences in the series.

“The Walking Dead: Dead City’s” first episode is a promising start to the post-mainline era of the franchise. While it doesn’t offer much for new audiences, current and past “The Walking Dead” fans will find a lot to love in this premiere.