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Overall I really enjoyed the first season of ‘Fear the Walking Dead.’ When it opens with Brandon Lee look-a-like Frank Dillane doing his best Eric Draven imitation in the abandoned church I knew the series had potential.
I found the first half of the season to be a more realistic portrayal of a growing disaster then is normally seen in horror and science fiction. Being from Staten Island I clearly remember both Trade Center attacks. In the ’93 bombing it was reported for quite some time that a transformer had exploded. It wasn’t until after the area was evacuated that an attack was first mentioned in the media. While the ’01 attack was more obvious, the roll out and reaction to the news was just as spotty and unpredictable as in ‘Fear.’ I remember racing to pick up my daughter from preschool only to discover that no one at the school was aware of what was going on, they were conducting business as usual. When I reached my step-sons Junior High though, it was a virtual riot. The school had corralled all of the students into the auditorium and refused to tell any of them what had happened. The few students who had cell phones back then were able to get just enough information to create a total panic. The breakdown of the schools authority and organization felt just like a page ripped from a disaster film and ‘Fear’ captured that quite well. I definitely would’ve liked to have seen more episodes focused on society’s realization of this growing pandemic disaster.
As for the second half of the season while I did enjoy it overall I did not like the portrayal of the military. As a vet myself and having friends whose unit were first into Manhattan during the ’01 attack I can attest that it would take a lot more time than just the few weeks or months implied on ‘Fear.’ It felt more like the writers were trying to make some type of political comparison to the extended occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan. Now I know Sci-Fi has always been a means by which to address political and ethical issues but that only works if the physics of the fantasy are sound and our military would not disintegrate over such a short period of time while defending their own. I did enjoy the character development though; being part of a dysfunctional family that has been through natural disasters like hurricane Sandy I totally get the Manawa-Clark family. I really feel for Travis as a step dad and having to manage a family that never quite works well with one another, even if they do love one another. Daniel Salazar seems likes a prototype Governor with a bit of Shane thrown in. His, my family is the only one of consequence attitude could easily drive him mad if he loses his daughter in addition to losing his wife (spoilers). It’ll be interesting to see how his character and Travis evolve (or de-evolve) together throughout series. Will one humanize or dehumanize the other. By the end of the last episode though I found myself wanting more episodes right now, I think that good sign for the future of the series.
My only true disappointment about the series was that in its early development there was the mention that it was going to take place in Europe. Ever since the’ Walking Dead’ episode ‘TS-19’ when Dr Edwin Jenner first uttered that it was the French who held out until the end. I have dreamt of John Christopher’s trilogy ‘The Tripods’ being reimagined as a zombie apocalypse instead of an alien one. I can picture our hero’s trekking across a post apocalyptic Europe infested by Walkers as they make their way to safety of the White Mountains where humanities last hope lies. Alas that was not to happen as producers decided to keep ‘Fear’ made in America so to speak. I have no fear though that the Walking Dead’s franchise will live on for years to come refusing to die and offering up even more meatier adventures to come.
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Knowing is half the battle......!!!
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