Fear the Walking Dead: Our hopes and dreams for the Series. (Now Spoiler Friendly).

[Corvinus85]

Not bad, not bad at all. I will continue watching. It does look like they are doing a steady break down of society, not a massive wave of zombies bringing everything down.

Though it is kinda sad when the junkie seems to be the smartest, quickest thinker in town.

[CyanidePie]

I've finally come to the conclusion that I just don't understand zombies. The cultural zeitgeist behind them makes zero sense to me, and this will probably be a one and done for me.

[Commodore]

the acting is much better than TWD (Kim Dickens ftw)

setting up the family dynamics was boring but necessary, should get better

glad to see Randy Wagstaff made it out of that foster home on The Wire

[Alia of the knife]

I've finally come to the conclusion that I just don't understand zombies. The cultural zeitgeist behind them makes zero sense to me, and this will probably be a one and done for me.

George Romero claims it's the closest we get to death in a day and age where the notion of death is treated like a disease with a cure.
Modern people are not used to death the way people were just seventy five years ago.

Infant mortality was high and wakes were held in peoples dining rooms. They probably died more often than not in the same bedroom they were born in.

[Howdyphillip]

Overall, I enjoyed the episode quite a bit and will be watching this show from week to week. However, having said that, I really hate these characters and can't wait to see them eaten by zombies one by one.

[Alia of the knife]

Strain is the same way.

[The Mance]

Overall, I enjoyed the episode quite a bit and will be watching this show from week to week. However, having said that, I really hate these characters and can't wait to see them eaten by zombies one by one.

:lol:  yeah.  I've had a bit of a crush on Kim Dickins for a while now so she gets a pass.  But everyone else was sort of grating to some extent.  Not the acting, really, just the characters.  

 

The stepdad jumped right to the top of the "just die already" list when he decided to go creeping around a possible murder scene/drug den at night, by himself, without telling anyone especially not the Po-po.  I mean i get that he dismissed the cannibal junkie girlfriend story as most likely a heroin induced halucination, but still, its a flop house for junkies where some sort of murder may have taken place.  At least go in the day time and/or bring someone along to wait int he car.

 

Also [spoiler]I kept thinking there ought to be a lot more walkers given the nature of the virus (everybody has it!) but I realized that we are still in the early stages of the actual spread of the virus so, no, not everybody has it.[/spoiler]

[kairparavel]

I thought Stannis' son was great as Nick. It's slow, but of course it is because we have all this knowledge from the parent show. I'm willing to give it a few more episodes to see how it develops.

One thing I liked: [spoiler] You learn that simply dying is enough, which is something that took an entire+ season of TWD to establish [/spoiler]

[-Ghost-]

I love Kim Dickins. I liked Stannis' son too. It was a little slow, but that was expected.

[Myrddin]

It was a slow burner but good. It both benefited from being a Walking Dead spin off and was hindered. It benefited because I'm probably more willing to watch the characters develop outside the zombie threat. But then again, it was hindered because I did spend much of the 1.5 hours waiting fro them to "catch up" so to speak. Not a completely fair criticism, perhaps, but I'll still throw it out there.

 

One question about the end:

[spoiler]When Cal attacked them in the tunnel, both my wife and I thought Kim Dickens got bit. But after the confrontation, she wasn't holding her arm or anything. Did anyone else think this?[/spoiler]

 

Best fake out of the episode:

[spoiler]Old Man in the Next Bed. He kept coughing and they kept the curtain partially closed the whole time. I was sure he was going to die and rise while Nick was strapped to the bed. I liked that they built that up only to sidestep it. A good way to build tension for the knowing audience while the characters are still learning what's going on.[/spoiler] 

[Kindly Old Man]

Overall, I enjoyed the episode quite a bit and will be watching this show from week to week. However, having said that, I really hate these characters and can't wait to see them eaten by zombies one by one.

 

I agree with this, but where I used to attribute the latter part of your statement to poor characterization by the writers, I now think it is deliberate and quite a smart strategy. In some ways if TWD were a "better show" it would probably have much worse ratings.

[The BlackBear]

I haven't warmed to any of the characters, but I'm hoping they shine under pressure. Not looking forward to the inevitable going cold turkey episode/s.

 

I thought Stannis' son was great as Nick. It's slow, but of course it is because we have all this knowledge from the parent show. I'm willing to give it a few more episodes to see how it develops.

One thing I liked: [spoiler] You learn that simply dying is enough, which is something that took an entire+ season of TWD to establish [/spoiler]

[Spoiler]

That confused me, I thought that early on you did have to get bit, it took a while for everyone to become carriers of the infection.

[/Spoiler]

[MisterOJ]

So... this isn't a spoiler thread? Do we need a separate spoiler thread to discuss the actual show, like we do with the regular TWD thread(s)?

[The BlackBear]

It could become one. No need for a spoiler free thread, but until the title is changed we should keep using spoiler tags.

[awesome possum]

I told myself I was going to wait and binge watch a few episodes because of the slow burn, but I watched it anyway.  Aside from Cliff Curtis going by himself into a drug den where supposed cannibal murders just took place, I liked it.  And even with that one complaint, well, it's a horror story.  The characters are almost required to act dumb for the sake of moving the plot forward. 

 

It was a slow burner but good. It both benefited from being a Walking Dead spin off and was hindered. It benefited because I'm probably more willing to watch the characters develop outside the zombie threat. But then again, it was hindered because I did spend much of the 1.5 hours waiting fro them to "catch up" so to speak. Not a completely fair criticism, perhaps, but I'll still throw it out there.

 

One question about the end:

[spoiler]When Cal attacked them in the tunnel, both my wife and I thought Kim Dickens got bit. But after the confrontation, she wasn't holding her arm or anything. Did anyone else think this?[/spoiler]

 

 

[spoiler]

She did get bit but it looked like her jacket (leather?) took the brunt of it and zombie-Cal was pulled away before he could really sink his teeth in

[/spoiler]

[Commodore]

lot of paint by numbers tropes with the child plotlines

 

I like to imagine the Justified characters in The Walking Dead universe, something like that would be more interesting. 

[Kelli Fury]

I thought it was pretty bad, honestly. The characters were all annoying and the only actor who wasn't bad in it was that chick from Deadwood. Especially the junkie kid, who went in and out of his Johnny Depp impression. If this were made by the scifi channel I'd be impressed but AMC, you can do better

[Alia of the knife]

I thought it was good, and I think they are very smart to not try and have a carbon copy of WD, but to keep it its own entity.

 

As far at the characters go? :dunno:

 

Meh, I work with people with very similar personalities, especially one young employee that can go from hot to cold, laughter to tears in 60 seconds, so in terms of diversity of assholishness or instability, I think its pretty realisitic.

 

The only thing I think is unrealistic is the artificial nature of building a "group" as in Alexandria when you deliberately pick people based upon different attributes, talents and personalities rather than when you get "thrown" into it and then cope with what you have.

 

(My husband and I have a goofy game we sometimes play to pass the time, (a day at the MVA for example), where we look around at the people who surround us, realizing this would be "our group," and decide who we would want, :thumbsup:  who we would ditch :thumbsdown: , or if we need to go it alone). :P

 

But, there is also some lack of reality with Ricks group in terms of all the right people being in the right places, and who also happen to have just the right personalites to live together who "just" come together.

 

- Two cops, educated and offensive/defensive training.

- T-Dawg, educated, almost went pro football, so smart and athletic.

- Two lawyers, (Andrea and Michonne), so educated.

- Glen, likely educated but a slacker who delivered pizza so he is smart and fast.

- Dale and Hershel, educated and in Hershels case, has some medical background.

- Daryl, a low life on his own, but who is the man to have in an apocolypse who can hunt, track and fight.

 

Then later, you get a military guy and then another guy that does seem to have some scientific training, even if he's a high school chemistry teacher.

 

 

And then later, the Governer who deliberately chooses men who won't become all "alpha" on him, but strong enough to be henchman.

 

Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't change the dynamics for a minute, and I'm not saying its not impossible, but I'm just saying that it was a stroke of luck they all fell into together like that.

 

 

Lastly,  I'm not sure how urban populations would know how to survive once that city is gone if that is all they have ever known. Everything from food, shelter, work, and help is all centralized.

[Wise Fool]

I was surprised to like it. Not great, but not bad.

[Ferrum Aeternum]

Slow burn was the right term to use last night. The setup was necessary to some extent, and I like where the last half hour or so took us in terms of the first stages of apocalypse beginning to take hold.

 

The characters aren't that interesting yet, but I rarely see a pilot episode where characterization really shines through so I'm giving them a pass for now.

 

 

Lastly,  I'm not sure how urban populations would know how to survive once that city is gone if that is all they have ever known. Everything from food, shelter, work, and help is all centralized.

 

 Humans will adapt to survive, particularly when given no choice in the matter. And even in a "sheltered" urban population there will always be a few with the skills/training to help that process along.