‘Fear the Walking Dead’: Episode 2 Review
By John Gove
After the series premiere of AMC’s Fear the Walking Dead last Sunday, I was full of mixed emotions towards the show. On the one hand, the first episode did a very nice job building up the story, which is essential in an series or season premiere. But on the other hand, it was quite the snoozer. Episode two, which aired last night, picked up the action but still left me somewhat displeased.
The blended Clark/Manawa family is now quite certain that there’s something terrible going on in the city of Los Angeles; and Madison and Travis are taking the necessary steps to get their family as far away from the chaos as possible. Unfortunately, they’re faced with a few obstacles throughout the episode that cause a slight delay in their plans. I have to admit that I really don’t sense any sort of panic or urgency among the characters considering they’re witnessing the beginning of the zombie apocalypse. I think by zombie number two, I would grab whichever family members were close by, cut my losses, and get out of dodge while I still could. These people rarely project a scream in the presence of zombies and it’s just not realistic. How can you be an actor in a zombie series and not possess the ability to act terrified?
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There are a few reasons that I can’t take Fear the Walking Dead out of the snoozer category quite yet. As I mentioned before, the acting doesn’t really match what’s taking place on the show. I mean, we’ve got the zombie apocalypse going on and everybody is just farting around like they’ve watched The Walking Dead before. Tobias is at risk of being eaten by his zombie principal and isn’t even screaming at the top of his lungs. It just doesn’t make any sense to me! Another reason I may be bored with this show could also be because the appeal of zombies is gone. The Walking Dead really captured its audience because it was something that wasn’t seen on television beforehand. Fear the Walking Dead lacks originality and doesn’t bring anything new or better to the table.
After watching last night’s episode, I have one more thing I must get off my chest and it has to do with Alicia. Alicia is Madison Clark’s daughter and an overachieving senior at her high school. At first, Alicia might look like she’s still in high school, but as the show goes on, it becomes more unbelievable. The young girl is played by actress Alycia Debnam-Carey, who happens to be 22-years-old. It drives me completely nuts when shows cast people that are too old to play a role of a teenager. At the age of 22, Alicia should be graduating college, not high school! This might be a very minor detail when thinking about the show, but it still boils my blood enough to bring it up.
Overall, episode two of Fear the Walking Dead had its moments but still left me wanting more. I have no idea what can be done, but action must be taken in order to make the show feel less dull. Whether it be added background music or more emotion from the characters, something has got to happen! I know we’ve only witnessed two episodes to this point but Fear the Walking Dead has to pick up the pace or it’s going to begin to lose viewers, including me!