In stark contrast to the already ruined world of AMC’s The Walking Dead,  Fear The Walking Dead starts off with a scene that would fit perfectly into that world, but then it ends on a busy, populated street with cell phones, cars, and electricity, making it immediately apparent that this show will take a very different tone than its progenitor show.
There has been lots of speculation and buzz about the general quality of this show or perhaps the over-saturation of the zombie-genre. That fear isn’t totally unfounded because right after Fear The Walking Dead is over, The Walking Dead will pick right up so AMC’s coveted 9 o clock Sunday slot will be crawling with undead for quite some time. Do I mind? Not really! I love The Walking Dead and this show breathes some fresh air into the series.
If anything, the only real major qualm is that this show has an exceptionally long burn, so if you’re hankering for non-stop zombie smashing you may have to wait for the next episode or so. The Walking Dead was known for this and it appears that the same will occur in this show, but then again, it is the first episode and we shouldn’t judge it too harshly. The scenes where the undead appear do command a bit of authority and general panic; the people do not quite understand how to react which is a far-cry from our honed group of survivors from The Walking Dead. You would think that everybody in any world would understand that one can only kill zombies by crushing the skull, but I guess that’s asking too much for a show to be self-aware of its own material. Although…let’s be honest…who doesn’t know a thing about zombies? They are all over the place these days…even your grandparents probably get the concept. A minor complaint, but one that bugs me just a wee bit!
The show does…um…show promise, though. The actors do a fine job with special note being played to the one son; you’ll know which one I’m talking about it if you’ve seen it, although some of the characters are a bit cliched. Again, there hasn’t been enough time elapsed to really see these characters come into their own but there will be -plenty- of drama down the line, that’s for sure.
At an hour and a half long, Fear The Walking Dead’s Pilot spent most of its time establishing characters, background, and the scene while making slight nods to the future. At one point, one of the characters says, “‘It isn’t like it could get any worse.” Well, we all know it does and that’s why we’ve tuned in. Free from the already established characters of  The Walking Dead, Fear the Walking Dead has some free reign in direction and not even the comic fans know what will happen and who will survive. This could be a potential boon or a curse for this fledgling series; hopefully the pace picks up (which for all intents and purposes should) and we see some original and organic character development!
