Fear the Walking Dead

In order to capitalize on the very successful The Walking Dead, AMC produced a spin-off that premiered last summer, Fear the Walking Dead.

The original show is one of my absolute favorite shows of all time. I never read the comic book it's based on, so for me every episode, every storyline, every event, every death, and every arrival are all original and unexpected.

The news of an offshoot had me elated at the thought of more stories about an apocalyptic world I've come to love. The new show would also be far removed from the original both in time and space, so not a rehash of what we've already seen.

In fact, Fear the Walking Dead is physically located on the west coast, so any crisscrossing is highly unlikely, especially since it begins at a point in time when the virus has barely begun to spread.

While The Walking Dead threw us right into the action, so to speak, by starting out with Rick Grimes waking up from a coma in a world overtaken by zombies, Fear the Walking Dead starts out much more slowly and with a very familiar world the people of Los Angeles live in.

I think that's the primary reason the show wasn't very well received by the fans: there is very little zombie-related action. In fact, although we do get a glimpse of a zombie early on, it's only through the eyes of drug-addicted Nick, who is understandably puzzled by what he thinks he sees.

I also read comments of how the show is populated by the stupidest human beings on Earth because they don't seem to immediately "get" what we all already know. Well, to that I say, Bah humbug! Of course these people aren't immediately jumping to the conclusion that the zombie apocalypse has arrived! Who would? Sure, some people would throw it out there right away, but we're dealing with a teacher and a school counselor here, people trained to look for logic and reasonableness in daily occurrences.

Also, the first season was only comprised of 6 episodes, enough to establish the foundations of what's to come and to setup some necessary character development, but certainly not to jump weeks or months ahead into the epidemic aftermath.

I for one, was very happy with how the show was set up and I'm glad that we get to see what happens from a completely different perspective and point in time. I love that they decided to show us how the virus started to spread, how quickly the rules that keep a society humming along can break down, how ordinary lives can suddenly be turned upside down, and how one does or doesn't adapt.

Don't get me wrong, I love everything about The Walking Dead, I just like the fact that Fear the Walking Dead is now filling in gaps in the story that I had been wondering about.

Anyway, I'm sure the showrunners and writers have heard all the criticism and will tweak the show for season two (which should begin in April). I will definitely be back.

Grade - Season 1: 7