"Fear The Walking Dead," the companion series to AMC's smash hit "The Walking Dead," will air its second season premiere this Sunday at 9 pm ET, the same timeslot "The Walking Dead" just freed up after its divisive season six finale. "Fear," unlike its big brother, takes place in Los Angeles and explores the beginning of the zombie virus outbreak as society slowly crumbles around one extended family.
When last we saw our main characters (the Clark-Manawa-Salazar crew), they were prepping to flee to the sea on the mysterious Victor Strand's (Colman Domingo) yacht. Before that, though, Travis Manawa (Cliff Curtis) was forced to kill his ex-wife Liza (Elizabeth Rodriguez) after she had been bitten by a walker. That won't score him any points with his son Chris (Lorenzo James Henrie), who already had a grudge against his old man. Meanwhile, Travis' girlfriend Madison Clark (Kim Dickens) is trying to deal with her heroin-addicted son Nick (Frank Dillane) and her daughter Alicia (Alycia Debnam-Carey).
Season two will pick up a mere couple hours after the end of season one with our heroes out at sea and Los Angeles being overrun by walkers. The show will continue to emphasize characterization and family drama, according to executive producer and showrunner Dave Erickson.
"Most of the narrative turns stem more from the interpersonal relationships we've established, and they're just amplified by the presence of the infected and the end of the world," Erickson said in a recent interview.
"One of the big challenges for our characters is deciding at what point do those we love compromise the greater good," he continued. "And at that point, what do we do about it?"
The other obstacle the character will have to overcome is coming to terms with the new way of life. Where the main characters of "The Walking Dead" have grown accustomed to the end of the world, the characters in "Fear" do not yet realize that killing will become a necessary part of survival.
Some cast members are looking to other AMC leading men such as Rick Grimes or Walter White when it comes to the escalation of force needed to survive. Travis struggled with this idea throughout the first season, prompting actor Cliff Curtis to even say of him, "You're a goner, mate."
"Walter White had genius in him," Curtis said. "Travis wasn't even going to be the principal. He's a good English teacher and a nice bloke, but he's just an average guy."
He may be an average guy, but he's stuck in one exceptional situation. Hopefully, he and the rest of the characters learn their lesson soon.
"Fear The Walking Dead" season 2 premieres Sunday at 9 pm ET on AMC.
Follow Brandon Katz at @Great_Katzby
