Roger — Killed Twice

Overview

Roger was a resident of the town whose corpse became horror twice over: he was killed by the straw dolls (S4E05), and then — with doll-like eyes and a doll's mouth — his body was reanimated by Sophia, the Man in Yellow in human form, as a creature (S4E07), before Elgin Williams destroyed it with a totem.

Biography

Roger was present in the town from Season 3, a background member of the community. He was an ordinary resident through the famines and attacks of Season 3 and the opening of Season 4 — until the lake gave up its horror. The foraging group retrieved enormous straw dolls from the lake and returned them as a precaution, but that night the dolls came alive and attacked, killing Roger (S4E05). Tabitha Matthews recalled how the dolls could be killed with a sharpened totem and saved Donna Raines, but Roger was already dead.

His story did not end there. In S4E06, Donna directed Boyd Stevens' and Kenny Liu's attention to Roger's corpse — which now had eyes and a mouth like the dolls, a sign that something was reworking the dead. The sign proved true in S4E07: Sophia reanimated Roger as a creature, and the reanimated Roger attacked Colony House before Elgin killed him with another totem — the same kind of weapon that had proved effective against the dolls.

Personality & Traits

Little of Roger's personality is shown; he is an ordinary resident whose two deaths mark the town's escalation — the dolls' attack and the Man in Yellow's power over the dead.

Relationships

• Sophia — reanimated his corpse as a creature (S4E07).
• Elgin Williams — destroyed the reanimated Roger with a totem (S4E07).
• Tabitha Matthews — destroyed the straw dolls that killed him (S4E05).
• Donna Raines — raised the alarm about his transformed corpse (S4E06).
• Boyd Stevens, Kenny Liu — investigated his corpse (S4E06).

Key Events

• Killed by the straw dolls (S4E05).
• His corpse is found with doll-like eyes and mouth (S4E06).
• Reanimated by Sophia; attacks Colony House; destroyed by Elgin with a totem (S4E07).

Status & Fate

Deceased — killed by the straw dolls (S4E05); his reanimated corpse was destroyed in S4E07.

Theories & Open Questions

• Whether Sophia reanimated him as a weapon, a message, or a test of the totems the townspeople had begun to rely on. (Not confirmed in-show.)
• Whether his reanimation implies the Man in Yellow can raise any of the town's dead. (Not confirmed in-show.)