Things have certainly changed for the worse on Fear the Walking Dead.  There are two timelines going on.  The past at the Stadium.  The Vultures have just appeared and are making life difficult for the stadium residents.  Food is becoming scarce, but Madison (Kim Dickens) is determined to make it work without joining the Vultures. 

And the present, where Alicia (Alycia Debnam Carey), Nick (Frank Dillane), Strand (Colman Domingo) and Luciana (Danay Garcia) are learning to work with Al (Maggie Grace), John Dorie (Garret Dillahunt) and Morgan Jones (Lennie James).  Al is determined to get their story. So we will eventually find out what happened to them all.

Last week, Nick went rogue after seeing the Vultures in the area.  He was shot and killed by Vulture Kid, Charlie (Alexa Nisenson).  In “Buried,” Alicia, Luciana, and Strand try to pick up the pieces after a devastating turn of events. 

RELATED: Recap Last Week’s FEAR THE WALKING DEAD, “Good Out Here”

After Nick died, Al videotapes Luciana making sure Nick doesn’t reanimate.  Strand covers his body and Alicia kills Walker Ennis (Evan Gamble).  The group loaded Nick up in the van and are looking for a place to bury him. On the way, Strand tells Al to get it over with. At first, she thinks the timing is wrong, but Strand is ready to talk. Her first question: How did you get here?  The answer is a long story.  Luciana starts by saying there was a day when they could have stop all of this from happening.

FLASHBACK

The Vultures have been beating the stadium residents to all of the food and supplies in the area.  It’s gotten so bad that they have to mix their food with cattle feed to make it last.  Strand offers to give them syrup to make it taste better, but Luciana refuses. She says it’s the last of the syrup and they need it for when things get better.  Madison says she thought of places that the Vultures may not have checked. She sends everyone out on a food run.  In the present, Strand says that was their first misstep.

Fear the Walking Dead

Sebastian Sozzi as Cole, Colman Domingo as Victor Strand – Fear the Walking Dead _ Season 4, Episode 4 – Photo Credit: Richard Foreman, Jr/AMC

STRAND

Strand is sent out with Cole (Sebastian Sozzi).  Cole and Strand kind of have a thing…they at least like each other.  Cole tries his best to get to know Strand on this trip, but Victor isn’t saying much.  They find a greenhouse with some spikey walkers.  After fighting off the walkers, Cole comes away with some of the prickly objects sticking out of his shoulder.  Strand was genuinely concerned.  

Victor Strand has always been a man who looked out for himself.   After leaving LA, he did everything he could to survive, including betraying those who helped him escape.  He took a pebble (presumably from the dam) to remind himself to be a better man.  Strand tells Cole, this is why he keeps his distance.  He does like Cole. So much that he takes him to a secret hideout.  Strand has filled up a car with food and supplies.  He tells Cole, there’s room for one more.  

Cole is a little confused. He says the food could help the community.  Strand says he stockpiled the food because he could see things going south at the stadium. Cole says he can’t do that.  He leaves Strand to return to the stadium.  

LUCIANA

Nick and Luci went to the library.  Yep, there’s no food in there, but Nick has something else in mind. Nick takes a poster of a kitten that says “Hang In There.” Luci asks what his motivation is.  Nick says there more than just food to discover.  Luci knows he’s trying to find a way to reach Charlie.  In the present, Al asks if they were able to get through to Charlie.  Luci replies that it was Charlie who killed Nick.

They continue their search of the library and find a walker. He has cut his wrists and tied himself to a cart.  Nick takes care of him and then apologizes to Luci for bringing her there. Luci finds a map and tells Nick they can go anywhere and start over. She says the first page they come to, they will take everyone and run. Nick agrees.  Luciana opens the map, but Nick has a different way of looking at it. 

JOHN

John is driving the van while Al is getting their story about that one day. He tells Morgan that he used to be a police man.  Of course, that brings a smile to Morgan’s face.  John tells him a story about a man who used to drink a bottle of rye whiskey for dinner.  After one bad encounter with a suspect, the guy quit drinking for a week. He says it takes more than one bad day to turn someone around.  

John asks if Morgan is going to leave after they bury Nick.  He says he is going to continue his search for Laura. He is determined to find her.  John says he wants Morgan there with him when he finds her so Morgan can meet her.   Morgan answers that he intends to leave.  He says he’s better on his own. 

Fear the Walking Dead

Alycia Debnam-Carey as Alicia Clark, Jenna Elfman as Naomi – Fear the Walking Dead _ Season 4, Episode 4 – Photo Credit: Richard Foreman, Jr/AMC

ALICIA

Alicia and Naomi (Jenna Elfman) visit an amusement park.   Before heading in, Naomi checks on of the abandoned cars. She says they should take it back because it has good mileage.  They see lots of walkers in the waters, but the top of the water slide is barricaded in.  That’s where they will find anything of use.  They barely make their way through a pool of walkers and Alicia drops her knife. 

Once they get to the top, they find a sniper rifle with lots of ammo.   A couple of walkers surprise them and Naomi slips onto a platform, taking Alicia with her.  Alicia is able to grab the gun barrel and uses it to get out of their sticky situation.   

They go through all of the crates in the shooter’s nest. Naomi finds medical supplies to take back.  She hand Alicia a pair of binoculars and tells her to look for more place to search. While Alicia is scoping out the landscape, Naomi slips away.  She is in the abandoned car that she picked out, but it’s out of gas. Alicia catches up to her, telling her that they don’t need to know her past. But she is either with them or against them.  Naomi says she didn’t feel like she could be with another group, only to lose them.   Alicia helps her get gas for the car. 

RELATED: Catch up on Season 4 of FEAR THE WALKING DEAD Here

MADISON

Mel (Kevin Zegers) waves down Madison asking for condiments. She goes outside the stadium to talk to him.  Mel tries to tempt her with hot dogs, but Madison passes.  He asks why she is sending people out on runs. He tells her they may not come back, but Madison says she knows her people.  They will come back. 

Mel tells her that he was in a settlement before and there were some wildfires nearby.  Madison finishes his story for him saying he and his brother saw the danger and left.  Madison asks Mel to join her. If they work together, they can all survive.  Mel says that’s why the stadium will fall.  But his offer still stands as well.  Madison refuses to join him.

Mel tells her that her assumption of his story was wrong.  He saw the wildfires coming and convinced everyone in the community to stay.  The place burned and everyone with it.  He and his brother were the only two to get out alive.  

Fear the Walking Dead

Kim Dickens as Madison Clark, Frank Dillane as Nick Clark, Danay Garcia as Luciana – Fear the Walking Dead _ Season 4, Episode 4 – Photo Credit: Richard Foreman, Jr/AMC

CROSSROADS

Strand sits in his car, contemplating leaving.  He turns around and sees a bottle of syrup.  Alicia helps Naomi put gas in her car.  Naomi says she used to be a nurse and saw a lot of accidents.  She figured out how to tell when people would make it or not.  She tells Alicia that the stadium is doomed and she needs to talk to Madison. 

Madison sees Cole return to the stadium.  He gets out of the truck and she asks where Strand is.  Strand drives up behind Cole and opens the trunk of his car.  He reveals the food he stored, but never reveals that he was planning on leaving.

Nick and Luciana return with the map. Nick shows Madison the page saying they need to look further.  Madison says that’s too far, but Nick says it could be a better place to look. He says they can get seeds and fertilizer and start the garden over.  Madison likes the idea and goes to let the group know.

Alicia returns and wants to talk to Madison. She takes her to Naomi, who shows Madison the medical supplies. Naomi says things will get worse before they get better. She wants to start a triage and Alicia will help her. 

BURIED

Alicia says she should have talked to her mom, but she wanted to believe.  Luciana should have picked a different page, but she wanted to stay.  Strand should have trusted his gut, but he wanted to be a better person.  These are the reasons that Nick is dead now.

The van comes to the location that Alicia picked to bury Nick.  They start digging, but they aren’t digging a grave. They are digging up guns, ammo, gas, and other supplies.  Strand found a map on Ennis that tells where the Vultures are going to be next.  They are going to ambush them.  Al is upset. She feels like they used her to get to their supplies. She doesn’t trust that what they told her was the truth.  

Luciana says they told her the truth.  Strand says they don’t own her anything, but there is more story to tell.   Strand tempts Al with seeing how it all ends.  Al asks if they plan on carrying all of that stuff and walk to the Vultures’ destination.  Alicia suggest she drive them to the Vultures’ next meet up.  John tells her not to do it, but Al agrees and tells them to load up their gear.  

Morgan asks if they still plan on burying Nick.  He reminds them that Nick liked things that grow.  Alicia, Luciana, and Strand bury Nick next to a tree.  Morgan puts the blue bonnet on his grave. 

Fear the Walking Dead

Maggie Grace as Althea, Danay Garcia as Luciana, Alycia Debnam-Carey as Alicia Clark, Colman Domingo as Victor Strand – Fear the Walking Dead _ Season 4, Episode 4 – Photo Credit: Richard Foreman, Jr/AMC

As they are loading up their supplies, John sees a familiar backpack and asks to see it.  It was Laura’s backpack.  In the past, Naomi goes back to her room to unpack.  She has the same backpack and pulls out the six shooter that is identical to John’s.  Back to the present, John pulls out the gun confirming that the backpack belongs to his girl.  He asks Luciana what happened to her. He also reveals that Laura never gave him her real name.  Alicia reveals that Naomi is dead.  John gets very upset and asks to be left alone.  Al tells him that she will find out the story and come back for him.  Morgan says he will stay with John.  He apologizes to John for his loss.  John tells Morgan he was right.  They truly are alone. 

THOUGHTS

Don’t ask how, but I had a hunch that Naomi and Laura were the same person.    She so sketchy, that Naomi probably isn’t her real name either.   

It’s sad to see them all blame themselves for Nick’s death.  Until we get the whole story, it will be hard to tell who’s fault it really was, other than Nick’s.  If he hadn’t killed Ennis, would Charlie have shot him?  

There’s so much more to learn about Charlie and the Vultures.  And what happened at the stadium.

My main concern…where is Madison?

 

 

 

Noetta Harjo
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