On last week’s episode of “Fear the Walking Dead” Team Travis visited a wildlife preserve, a young child snacked on her mom and, Chris got even with the beach walkers. This week we ask, “What is Strand’s secret agenda?”
Mexico
And, so it begins… the struggle to survive other people. Luckily Jake and Alex along with two other survivors from Flight 462 are in the lifeboat, but only the unbitten are allowed to stay. For those of you who don’t know who Jake and Alex are, they are the stars of the miniseries that was the introduction to season two.
Jake is severely burnt, but Alex won’t allow anyone to kill him. During the apocalypse, it’s a short jump from viewing an injured person as someone we must help to, them becoming someone we view as a liability.
When the engines stop working, Travis is pulled away from some romantic one on one with Maddy to clear the intake valve of sea walkers. It’s the guy from the lifeboat. While Travis if forced to go skin-diving, we see the normally cool, calm, collected Strand stressing over his failure to make contact with his mysterious friend.
Daniel is such a control freak and yet he hesitates to question Strand about his plans to go to Mexico. Does he tell Travis? Nope! He tells the only person that has some clout with Strand; Maddy. So does Strand really have a villa in Baja that is safe and well stocked, or is he lying? I am dying to learn more about Daniel’s past. When he realizes that Ophelia’s wound is infected and there are no antibiotics left, he tells her to keep it to herself.
One of the major things I’ve learned from being a member of the Zombie Squad is this: Have enough supplies to last for several weeks. Now, we automatically think of water and food, but what about medication. Do you have enough of your heart, diabetic, and allergy pills to last over the long haul? Don’t count on the local Walgreens being open. Make sure you have a working medical kit ready to go. Your life depends on it and, make sure you remember your pet’s needs.
Field Trip
When Alicia spots the debris on the beach, we see the crash site of 462. Daniel offers to take the kids on a field trip to look for food and supplies. I am one of those people who fly and is also afraid of heights… don’t ask me to explain. I refuse to take a nap while flying because it’s my job to make sure the pilot keeps that plane from crashing.
So any scene that features the horrors of a crash really does a head job on me. Things go wrong as soon as Daniel and the kids set foot on land. If you think airline passengers are fed up with the poor service offered by the major airlines, imagine how the passengers on Flight 462 feel… if they could feel… if they weren’t walkers.
Conclusion
This episode was so pivotal in displaying how each character is growing in their roles during the apocalypse. The three characters that stood out were Nick, Travis and Chris. Travis (Cliff Curtis) is still taking orders from Maddy and Strand for now, but I see this laid back type of character reaching a breaking point where he will begin to follow his own path. Travis could have refused to clear out the ship’s intake valve. He didn’t. In fact, even after his run in with the passenger from the plane, he went back a second time. He may be laid back, but he’s not a coward.
His relationship with Maddy might suffer because she seems to be the more aggressive personality. She’s not afraid to stand toe to toe with Strand. And, even though she assures Travis that they are a team even if they have different points of views, I think she’s capable of cutting ties if her children’s lives are at risk.
Chris (Lorenzo James Henrie), up to now, seemed confused and unprepared for the new world order, but on this episode he was perfectly fine with killing the walkers, who were still strapped into their seats and wearing their oxygen masks. He wasn’t as smug about the mercy killing on the living survivor, but maybe now he’ll give his dad some slack.
We have to keep reminding ourselves that the apocalypse has only just begun. People really don’t understand what’s happening. The walkers aren’t rotted walking stiffs yet and, people will make the mistake of tying to help them. Nick (Frank Dillane) is perfect for this new world. He understands the walkers… when you’re a drug addict, you are a walker. Nick went through life hungry for the elusive high he got from heroin… sort of like a walker’s craving for brains. This is why Nick will survive. He not only knows everything there is to know about drugs, he’s a walking PDR. Nick has also learned that walkers can be tricked. Nick is a keeper.
Strand
We always come back to Strand. Does he have a fortress in Baja, or is this a story he uses to keep Team Travis, hopeful and helpful? After Alex (Michelle Ang) meets up with Daniel and the kids, they do one hell of a beach battle with the passengers of Flight 462.
I was really pissed that Strand wouldn’t allow Alex and Jake on board his ship. I was angrier still when he cut the rope to the lifeboat and left Alex and Jake to die at sea… but then I remembered that Strand was using the new rulebook of the apocalypse. When civilization is circling the drain, people become feral.
Will we see Alex and Jake again? Will Team Travis make it to Baja? Will there be a mutiny on the Abigail? We’ll have to wait until episode four to find out.
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