Hello, kids.
After an okay first season, Fear The Walking Dead returns promising more action and adventure. Last season ended with the survivors taking refuge in Strand's mansion and the death of Liza. This episode was written by showrunner Dave Erickson and directed by Adam Davidson.
Now, this is my first time reviewing a premiere episode, and that's very exciting. I'm moving up in life. After last week's hilarious finale I didn't have high hopes for Fear, considering some of the producers from that series also work on this one, but it was a pleasant surprise. Let's get going.
The action starts a few days (or perhaps hours, judging by the state of Liza's body) after the finale. We open up with this really, really well done sequence of the group escaping the city, which is being targeted by the military and firebombed to oblivion. Operation Cobalt is in effect.
We see hundreds of people also escaping the city by boat, the group we're following weren't the only ones to have that idea. And Strand's pragmatism was just great, he and Nick stole the scene.
I'm not going to lie, this was the best opening scene in the whole franchise, it was so well done, the music, the effects. I felt like I was inside of a movie theater because of how cinematic it was. Amazing opening scene, it was a really great way to start the season.
Then we move on to our people settling on the yacht. It doesn't take long until another teleports a few meters away from them, packed with people screaming for help. Of course, Madison and Alicia want to help them, Travis seems torn and Strand outright says he filled his mercy quota and won't stop the boat. I like this.
Now Madison is annoying. She was saved. Twice. And still feels like she can boss people around, tell Strand what to do in his own boat! Seriously, she's annoying. And that's sad because Kim Dickens is a good actress (House of Cards anyone?) but sadly she doesn't have a say in how annoying (or not) her character is.
Inside the yacht, Alicia listens to channel despair through the radio and meets a new person. Madison continues being annoying.
I read somewhere that Daniel was acting like everybody's nicest grandpa in this episode, and I wholeheartedly agree. What happened to the ruthless and pragmatic man we see flaying someone last season? Now he's just fishing with the kids, laughing and all that?
While I understand Alicia being "naive" at this point because we're like, three or four weeks into this thing, but revealing your location to a stranger ON radio is just plain stupid. But I suppose that's a The Walking Dead, have characters make stupid decisions just to move the story forward, as annoying as it may be.
And why is everyone so suspicious of Strand? He hasn't lied, everything he said so far has been true, he had a place with supplies, he had a boat and took them with him even when he didn't need to. I suppose this is also something they're doing just to have some tension among the group, as if the family drama wasn't enough.
Chris is annoying. They're really trying to make him the angriest kid in town. Or sea. Whatever. That was lame. If my kid punched me, they'd probably get punched back. Or backhanded across the face. Anyway…
I love the relationship between Strand and Nick, it's like a much better and way less cheesy Palpatine and Anakin. Can't wait to see more of them.
The swimming sequence was trippy, I don't why they wanted to do it other than to have zombies there and some tension. It was alright, zombies in the water are surprisingly dangerous. I didn't expect them to move around much but they did.
Aaand now there's a ship coming after the Abigail, thanks to that stupid girl. Thanks a lot, Alicia.
It was a fine episode. The opening sequence was one of the best I've seen, the effects were really good, the setting was great and the music was outstanding, seeing them watching their whole lives, the city being destroyed right in front of them, it was really beautiful. One of the best scenes in the entire series.
While this episode didn't drag as much as a typical The Walking Dead episode, the early signs of TWDism were there, with characters being somewhat inconsistent compared to the previous season and being incredibly naive and/or reckless (Alicia, Chris) just to create some tension.
It's a bit annoying having characters like Madison and Travis who are completely sure of themselves and still haven't adapted to the new world, acting like their way is the right way and being so damn idealistic. This just makes me want to side with the Littlefinger of the group, which brings me to my next point…
I feel Strand and Nick were the standout characters. I just love Strand's ruthless pragmatism and cynicism, and Nick is a survivor with a good backstory, I can see both of them surviving for a long time and have some interesting storylines together. Strand in particular is, in my nothing humble opinion, the best character of Fear The Walking Dead and one of the best characters of the two shows.
The setting is unique and interesting, the idea of pirates is surprisingly good and unsettling, we have no idea what's going to happen next and that's very exciting, something that's rare with The Walking Dead nowadays.
Even though it has flaws, Fear has a lot of potential. If they manage to fix the inconsistencies and stop dragging, Fear has the potential to become the better show of the Walking Dead television franchise, seeing as how decadent the main series is.
The episode overall was an entertaining experience, the standout characters received a healthy amount of screentime. A solid premiere and a good way to start a season.
Too Trivial? Missed some points? Any violent reactions? Well, don't be discouraged and hesitant just write it up down in the comment section, but please practice a healthy discussion/debate.
Thank you all for reading this week's master blog, see you next time, kids.
| Master Blog Reviews (Fear) | |
|---|---|
| WalkerMaimer |
"Pilot" • "So Close, Yet So Far" |
| Pops Capo |
"Not Fade Away" • "Cobalt" "Monster" • "We All Fall Down" • "Ouroboros" • "Blood in the Streets" |