Review Tuesday: Fear The Walking Dead, Season 2

The family tries to stay alive and together in Mexico after civilization falls due to a zombie pandemic.

There were so many odd things going on with this show this season. First, it ran 15 episodes, unlike the standard TWD sixteen-episode season.

This season started with Strand leading the family out of LA on his yacht, headed to a secret compound in Mexico. This was one of the first odd things to come up. Strand appeared to be prepared for some impending disaster and was ready for it. But, as I gather, he was more of a con-man who was set up to get out of town in a hurry when things would, certainly, go south fast.

They developed some story arc around a woman who survived a plane crash with a family member. It was both overdeveloped and vague at the same time, and a waste of a story-arc. The pirate story arc hinged on it, but didn't need it. But it did seem like it didn't take long for people to start preying on others out in the sea.

Once at the compound that belonged to Strand's lover, it was like a FUBAR fest. Everyone decided to go crack from the pressure of living in a world overrun by the undead. Madison continues being a bitch. Travis continues standing around looking clueless. Nick, aka Johnny Dope, decides to feel a kindred with the zombies. Chris decides all life has no value. And finally, Daniel, played by Ruben Blades, who also happens to be the best character on the show, loses his shit and sets the compound on fire, killing himself in the process. That was the mid-season finale. The family ended up scattering in all directions. 

When it picked up, Travis and Chris link up with a group of cut-throat slackers. Chris immediately identifies with their lack of value set on human life and leaves Travis behind to go off with them. Madison, Strand, Alicia, and Ofelia come across a hotel and decide to live there with the residents and clear out the resident zeds. Of course, Ofelia, like her dad, loses her shit and inexplicably steals Strand's pick-up and dashes off into the unknown, all alone. 

Nick finds himself in "La Colonia." A town of living people who managed to set up a dam to keep both the living and dead away from them. Of course, they get found out and forced to get packing. 

The season ended with everyone at or headed to the US border. Ofelia is captured by what seems like some border patrolman. Nick's group takes fire from a group of what appears to be border patrol. Madison and her group are headed that way too, as they were ejected from safety because Travis was an asshole. The good news was that he acted like an asshole because the guys Chris ran off with showed up at the hotel. They admitted that after a car accident they "put Chris down" because of his injuries. I hated that damned kid anyway, so I was happy to see his character meet his end. But back on the road, the family is not safe. 

In all, I still don't really like this show all that much. I think they need to kill off either Travis, Madison, or Nick, or any combination or even all of them for the show to get better for me. The only characters from season one that I like are Alicia and Strand, and it seems they might have written Strand off in the season finale. This show has descended into the pitfalls that the original TWD fell into and it's aggravating. I am not sure if I will tune in when it returns next year.  

You can watch episodes on AMAZON.