When "Fear The Walking Dead" was first announced, it was sold as a show exploring the beginning of the apocalypse and examining the slow crumble of society. In that sense, it was a prequel to AMC's "The Walking Dead." But where, exactly, does it fall on "The Walking Dead" timeline?
Showrunner Dave Erickson offered some helpful tips regarding the "when" of "Fear" shortly after the second season concluded its first half.
"If you marked off the days [that have passed on air since Fear The Walking Dead debuted], I think right now, by the end of the first half [of Season 2], we're getting very close to Rick waking up in Georgia," he said.
As devoted viewers already know, "The Walking Dead" kicked off with Rick awaking in the hospital from a coma back in 2010. That particular date will likely come and go during the second half of season two. Based on this, we can assume that season three will take place while Rick and company are at the CDC and then searching for Sophia.
But things likely won't play out for our heroes on "Fear" as they did for Rick. Our first protagonist had the benefit of being a battle-tested cop, whereas the characters on "Fear" have little in the way of survival skills.
That is by design, however, as Erickson explained that the slow pace of acclimation was a deliberate creative choice.
"That creates frustrations, to a certain degree, because in some instances, you want [the characters] to get it already," he said. "And in some circumstances, the things that they do that don't seem particularly zombie-savvy are, for me, moments where they aren't zombie-savvy."
The diverging timelines and physical distance between the two shows reinforce the network's claim that there will be no crossovers. The two stories may share one significant common factor, but they remain independent of one another. Barring massive time jumps and some geography hopping in "Fear," the characters of both shows will not interact with one another.
Sorry, fans, you won't be getting that Carl vs. Chris fistfight you've all been hoping for.
"Fear The Walking Dead" will return for the second half of its second season later this year.
