'Fear the Walking Dead' Honors 'Breaking Bad'
by EG
Fear The Walking Dead came back from its mid-season break this week, and the drama wasted no time getting started. It was an eventful episode, and tucked away inside it was an homage to Breaking Bad, the AMC series that helped create the mold for blockbuster cable-TV series.
[Warning: This story contains spoilers for the midseason three premiere of AMC's Fear the Walking Dead.]
The story of Madison Clark (Kim Dickens) and her two children, Nick (Frank Dillane) and Alicia (Alycia Debnam-Carey), is about to come to an end.
At least, it's coming to an end for one pivotal Fear the Walking Dead figure: Dave Erickson, the man who co-created the Walking Dead spinoff and has served as showrunner from the outset. Season three marks Erickson's last dance with the Dead, as he hands the reins over to incoming showrunners Andrew Chambliss and Ian Goldberg (as well as the flagship Walking Dead's showrunner Scott M. Gimple) for season four. After Sunday's midseason premiere, there are still six episodes left before fans learn the full extent of Erickson's plans, but for the producer, the end of the line is well within sight.
"I ship the last episode on September 24th," he tells The Hollywood Reporter, "and then it's officially over."
Already, Erickson's vision for his final arc on Fear is well underway. The two-part midseason premiere, called "Minotaur" and "The Diviner," respectively, focus on the fallout of Nick shooting ranch ruler Jeremiah Otto (Dayton Callie) in cold blood, an act of violence meant to forge some semblance of peace with Qaletaqa Walker's (Michael Greyeyes) people. Jeremiah's death paves the way for Walker and his community to move onto the ranch, which does not sit well with Troy Otto (Daniel Sharman), who goes on a suicide mission to avenge his father. He only stops after Nick reveals that he was the one who killed Jeremiah, leading to Troy's exile, and almost his death at Madison's hands. She ultimately decides not to pull the trigger on the banished Troy, a choice that Erickson promises will haunt her for at least the remainder of the season.
Following Troy's exile, Madison and Walker encounter an even deadlier dilemma: the ranch is swiftly running out of water. They embark on a quest to find the most important resource in the apocalypse, which takes them to a trading outpost (as well as a clever Breaking Bad Easter egg; more on that in a moment), and a reunion with the conman Victor Strand (Colman Domingo). With Strand at their side, Madison and Walker are positioned to link up with Daniel Salazar (Ruben Blades) and the people at the dam, setting the stage for Erickson's final Fear The Walking Dead curtain call.
The outgoing showrunner spoke to THR about all those developments and more.
Read the rest of the story at The Hollywood Reporter.
What was your favorite development in this week's episode of FTWD? Let us know in the comment section below.