Grade (C+)
A decent show, but definitely locked in the shadows of its older brother.
“FEAR THE WALKING DEAD” has concluded its sophomore season and I am still on the fence about whether or not I truly like this show. First I will say it isn’t a bad show by any means, it’s well acted, the writing is not as good as “The Walking Dead” but better than many shows, and the locations and effects are all well done. But there is something that is keeping me from fully investing in this show.
The problem for me mainly is I feel this show is simply not as riveting as the creators act like it is. This show never had to earn its own fan base yet it runs on a premise as if it did. This show is way to young for the ability to have a successful mid-season break, with the expectations people will be dying to come back. This show plays too much like “The Walking Dead” despite not having the years of a built up fan base.
“The Walking Dead” can play with its audience because it has had years of solid episodes with characters people have grown to connect with, much like audiences did with the cast members in the “Sopranos”. This show expects to do the same with its ‘fans’ yet hasn’t put in the number of episodes to make people vested.
The story-line in this series is interesting, the change up in locations and settings are a nice change of pace from what we are used to with “TWD” but a bulk of the substance stops there. This season had some episodes that easily entertained, but the pace was still very slow, and it felt like things were purposely being drawn out unnecessarily. The substance of the script this season followed didn’t warrant the number of episodes, and the result was some boring moments.
There is tons of potential to tell a compelling story here but instead it feels much too similar to scenarios we have already seen in “TWD” long ago. If the pacing of this series was much faster the entertainment value would be much higher, but instead we have gotten a show that is clearly soaking in money off “TWD” fan-base without putting the foot on the gas with their own story-line.
The casting is solid and the performances are very good. There is enough here to create some compelling characters and yet still none really pull me in. I don’t really care if any of them die because they were all sort of set up in the same ways we have already seen before. With the exception of a couple members of course.
This show just needs to go for it. It needs to tell its story and get things really going, then there will be plenty of moments for slower episodes with more exposition. But for now this series needs to be getting their story going much faster, leaving the mid-season break behind, and once there is a true “FTWD” fan-base, they can being teasing fans with things to come.
There were some highly intriguing dynamics unveiled late in the season, but even for a season finale, it was on the weak side. There is a lot of potential here but “FTWD” is looking much too comfortable as being the little brother, when it should be growing legs of its own to stand on. If this happens this show can be much more entertaining, instead of simply being something to pass the time.