Agreed. Buildup and characterization is all well and good, but the last episode was a complete time waste for setting up some very small developments. I also thought it was pretty lazy how they skipped 9 days and glossed over what could have effectively been the end of the world. Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't their first season going to be super short like The Walking Dead's was? The difference is that every episode of The Walking Dead's first season kept the pace moving along briskly with a good mix of action and character development. This last episode of FTWD was completely forgettable. In a shorter season, seems like a stupid idea. If the next episode doesn't get things moving, I'm probably done watching.
Hey @Barnstable i think we know where all the walkers in LA are now and why we haven't seen a whole lot of them.... One episode left, let's see how they handle it. Madison and Daniel has to be the most interesting characters if they develop them right.
This episode was a little better, but for some reason, I'm not feeling attached to this main mother character. She's begrudgingly annoying and stupid. I hope she dies. I like either one of the kids as the lead for this show. Their dynamic is so much better.
They should change the name of the show to Fear the US Army, because apparently they are the only danger.
FINALLY an interesting episode though. FINALLY some important character and plot development... Jeez. That episode was pretty stressful at times. Characters still do things that don't make sense, the plot still has holes, but I'm willing to forgive it if there's interesting stuff going on.
I like that new black guy in prison with the crack head son. He sounds like he's giving a speech every time he opens his mouth. He kind of reminds me of Lex Luthor manipulative, lol It's entertaining. I hope he's a continuing character.
He's certainly an intelligent manipulator. He definitely knows what he's doing. My take: He bartered for the information that they are going to kill everyone and move out the next day and the somehow, the key. He's planning to make his move to get out, but most likely needs a distraction. Hence, the saving of the druggie. Since he saved him he's bought himself a favor, which I think he'll try to use to distract the guards and use the key to sneak out. I'm drawn to the history of the barber. Yeah, he's a little twisted for the torture, but the guy knows what he's doing in a sense. Kinda reminds me of a Daryl type character with the no nonsense, do what's best mentality. As for the mother, she's like Andrea. Running around like a chicken without a head and missing everything going around her.
Black guy in the holding area is the first character I like. So there's a little hope there. The sports arena moment at the end was promising, but the set up was really lame. So the barber apparently decided to go check it out even though that is completely contrary to his cautious character development, and they simply skipped over how he got there, and no mention of how far he had to walk to get there. It's bad story telling. Do none of the people who work on TWD have anything to do with this show? Also I really don't like the cheap misdirection scenes. In this one the barber comes out of the room clearly implying with the bowl of blood, his daughter's reaction and the way they showed the mom reacting as she entered the room that he had just butchered the soldier to death. Next scene, the soldier is just fine with only a wounded arm. Cheap.
I wasn't misdirected by that, I just thought he chopped off his arm, but from the cuts on the arm he was making in the scene beforehand, I think the intent was to make him bleed out or some technique made to make him talk, because the soldier was not right. Both the mother and the Barber's daughter didn't want him to get harmed, so that's why they were distraught. The mother knew it was coming, but couldn't stop it.
I don't think it was misdirection as in they wanted to mislead you, I think it's just poor storytelling. The stadium bit to me was the worst. While I love the idea of a huge stadium full of zombies, I hate the way they showed us. Really? We wasted HOW MUCH TIME with character development that we don't care about and they skip right through important **** like how the dad even got there? Do I need to see some weird budding romance between step-siblings? They use the military as a cheap means to their end. Captain- Things are bad for moral if we're not patrolling and staying busy!. Five seconds later he pulls out a tissue and berates one of his soldiers? Then they just take a civilian along with them on a dangerous mission because why not? Then there's a crew pinned down in a building because who cares why? Why would that group of soldiers even enter that building? Why is "Cobalt" being executed now? No need to answer that question!
I do think it was intentional. In an earlier episode in the school there was a blatant misdirection scene. The black principle had not turned yet, but they had the mom walk into his office with his back to the camera. The way they shot it, it was clearly leading the viewer to expect him to have already turned. Instead at the right dramatic moment he turned around and was completely normal. It's a very cheap way to add tension to a show that is obviously lacking in any real tension.
I agree on the principal scene being forced tension, but I don't think the one with the tortured soldier was. I don't think they wanted to lead you to think he died because what's the payoff if he's alive? It's not like we were all sitting around hoping the Hispanic father was just a misguided hero... There was no payoff to leaving him alive. I think it was just poor writing.
Yeah I don't think the scene with Daniel and the soldier was a misdirect. I don't think it was a bowl of blood as well, more of like a bowl with water that he washed a bloody knife in. And why would he kill the soldier, he needed answers and torturing the guy was more practical and I don't think Daniel is crazy enough to outright kill the guy after getting said answers.
I certainly thought more would have been done to him and that he was possibly dead and the dad had extracted the info he needed. I just don't think they meant to trick us. I think it was bad writing and heck maybe even they were told that a scene where the dad tortured a guy to death was too dark by some executive somewhere. I have no idea. Good writing would have been: -dad tortures the info out of the kid -comes upstairs with the bowl -girl freaks out and runs -dad comes up, mom freaks out -dad says "we don't have time for you to freak out. here's what the guy said" -other dad comes back and sees daughter freaking out -other dad busts into the house to see the two of the parents packing the house up -other dad freaks out "tell me you didn't know what was happening!" , punches the hispanic dad -mom breaks them up, "stop listen! the army is about to Spoiler bounce, but first they're going to kill us all!!" -other dad "..." Right? Better.
