After three-consecutive strong episodes of Fear the Walking Dead, the series took a step back this week with “Captive.” It wasn’t a bad episode; in fact, the storyline was engaging. We saw the return of Alex; we saw Alicia hoodwink Jack and escape from Connor along with Travis; and we saw a fairly clever attempt at a prisoner exchange. Unfortunately, the episode was poorly executed, riddled with bad decisions, and frustratingly lacking in logic.
I suspect, however, that the series had to pull some punches in the episode, so to speak, to keep the Connor storyline alive until the midseason finale. Here were the highlights and the lowlights of last night’s episode.
Where have we seen Connor before?
Connor is played by Mark Kelly, who — believe it or not — played Dale, this guy on Mad Men. A good beard changes everything.
Line of the Night
“In my time, I’ve known men who inspire fear. Do you know what they have in common? They never say how frightening they are.” Ruben Blades — eight-time Grammy winning Panamanian singer — as Daniel Salazar delivering a truth bomb to Reed, who didn’t have a shot in hell of surviving that crowbar in his gut. Way to take the sting out of a three-minute monologue and put that dying dude in his place.
Bizarre Directing Choice of the Night
Did Luis not think that the guy named Daniel Salazar with the Spanish accent wouldn’t understand Spanish? What is even going on here?! What was the thought process in writing this scene? The side-eye that Salazar gave the camera suggested to the audience that Luis wasn’t pulling a fast one over on Salazar because he understood the language, but it’s absurd to think that Luis didn’t know that Salazar understood the language in the first place.
The Inexplicable Story Point of the Night
What is Luis’ obsession with money? He’s worried, because he only brought enough money for two people to sneak into Mexico with him. First of all, doesn’t his boss, Thomas Abigail, have millions of dollars? Why couldn’t he have brought a few extra hundred dollar bills just in case? Second, and most importantly, is there any country that gives a damn about currency? There’s a global zombie epidemic. They’re in an apocalypse. What good does money possibly do anyone? If Mexico is still using money, that must mean they still have a functioning economy, and if they have a functioning economy, then the virus must not have yet spread widely into Mexico, which I find to be hard to imagine if San Diego has been overrun.
I’m willing to suspend my disbelief enough to believe in zombies, but not to believe in a functioning economic system in a zombie apocalypse that relies on pesos.
The Lizzie Move of the Week
Remember Lizzie from The Walking Dead? The girl Carol shot (“Look at the flowers”) because she went crazy and killed her sister? That’s where Christopher is going. No one thinks he was actually afraid that Reed would turn. I don’t even think Christopher killed Reed because Reed was smack talking him. I think Christopher killed Reed because there wasn’t anyone else around to kill at the moment, and Christopher is super into killing right now. He’s about two episodes away from Madison asking him to look at the flowers.
Bad Decision of the Night
First off, why not send the sharpshooter Luis to the prisoner exchange? Or Nick, who we know has mad killing skills? Second, why — when Madison had Chris’ gun with her — did she not use the damn thing when confronted with men trying to kill her and Travis at the end of the episode? That gun is just sitting there in her back pocket burning a hole? Meanwhile, she lets the guy with his hands tied behind his back headbutt the henchman, which would’ve been a boss move if Travis’ head had actually got anywhere near the henchman’s.
Chekhov Would Be So Mad
Not only did Madison take a gun from Chris and not use it when given the opportunity, but Alicia also pulled a pocket knife off of Jack and never used it, either. The writers just can’t keep going around and loading these Chekhov’s guns and never firing them.
R.I.P. of the Week
Poor Jake: He managed to survive the trip on Flight 462, the crash landing, and being burnt to a crisp. He came so far, only to have Alex choke him to death off-screen so that he wouldn’t die of dehydration. Choking is not enough to prevent him from returning as a zombie, either, so poor Jake is probably shuffling around the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. What a shame.
Alex’s return, however, does continue to give some legitimacy to the theory going around that Travis, Madison, Strand, et. al, are the real villains of Fear the Walking Dead.
Zombie of the Week
Another week that was light on zombies, but Reed mostly made up for it, as the zombie with a crowbar in his stomach and a bullet hole in his face.
Have we seen the end of Connor?
Connor got bit in the arm by his brother at the end of the episode, but we didn’t see him actually die. Apparently, his In Memoriam received a question mark on The Talking Dead. It’s theoretically possible that he survived the zombie bite, cut off his arm, and will regroup with Jack and Alex and go after Travis and Alicia. Connor is a pirate, after all, and there are probably a few hooks lying around he can stick in his arm nub. Connor is the biggest villain of the series, so far, and his death in that particular manner would be hugely anti-climactic. Why else keep Alex and Jack alive, if not to form a team with Connor?
Adapted Storyline
(SPOILERS FOR The Walking Dead: Michonne video game)
Though Fear the Walking Dead is not based on Robert Kirkman’s source material, apparently they are using other The Walking Dead properties as inspiration. The entire prisoner exchange was straight out of The Walking Dead: Michonne video game.
