Fear The Walking Dead review: Daniel returns and a new threat appears

On Fear The Walking Dead this week, Daniel Salazar returned and a new character revealed a new danger.

One of the ongoing themes of Fear The Walking Dead is redemption and the main characters trying to  make up for the things they’ve done in the past.

In tonight’s episode, “The Hurt That Will Happen”, Victor Strand had to come face to face with the results of his actions when he asked Daniel Salazar (yes, Daniel is back!) for a plane, all to rescue his friends.

Last we saw Daniel, he had been shot at by Strand while they and others were standing on a dam that would soon be blown to bits. Of course, that wasn’t their first conflict. Thus, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Daniel killed Strand, but that also wouldn’t have been in Daniel’s character. He doesn’t kill unless he has to, even people he really doesn’t like.

I have to say it’s refreshing to see Daniel back on the show, as Reuben Blades is fantastic in this role and brings a lot of depth to the character. Daniel Salazar is also one of the very few original characters from season 1 left on Fear.

Now, there was no real backstory given about how Salazar got to Texas or how he “inherited” the warehouse full of stuff and his feline companion, Skidmark. But we’re sure that will come in time.

It’s also great that Victor will have a chance to face his past and try to take responsibility for his actions. These two have a connection because they survived the initial fall of society together and Victor needs to make amends what he’s done. There was a genuine moment between the two when Strand told Salazar about Madison where that survivor bond was stronger than their mutual dislike and it was a powerful moment.

A new danger

“The Hurt That Will Happen” also introduced a new character. While searching for Althea, Morgan and Alicia came upon even more of those radiation warning signs and more of the walker heads and bound together walkers. After Morgan became entangled in a trap, he met Grace, played by new series regular Karen David.

Grace is a scientist who is tracking down walkers that have been exposed to lethal levels of radiation. She aims to kill and dispose of them before they expose the living to dangerous levels of radiation. The irradiated walker that nearly gets Morgan as he struggles in the trap is pretty gnarly looking and since Morgan was in close contact with it, he’ll need to be decontaminated.

Grace is prepared for that, and she tells them that the contaminated walkers are people who worked in the reactor facility before the reactor melted down. She’s trying to put down the irradiated walkers before she gets sick, because she was also exposed.

John and June find the camp where the kids had been staying, and they also find the charred remains of some bodies along with a lot of ammunition shells. Grace, Morgan, and Alicia discover these bodies to be more of the irradiated people Grace was looking for.

The kids and their families had been staying at the camp and killed the irradiated walkers and burned the bodies hoping to protect themselves but it didn’t work. The kids barred their parents and the other adults in an office after they died and turned and took the camp van and left.

No plane for Strand

Back on the other side of the mountain, Daniel allows Strand to come into the warehouse and make his case. Strand even manages to get Luciana on the radio to prove to Daniel that he’s telling the truth. Just after sundown, Salazar kicks Strand out and tells him he won’t give him the plane.

Daniel tells Victor that Alicia is resourceful like Madison and Althea is a survivor and they will find a way to make it but that Victor will screw everything up for them because that’s what he always does. Daniel has a well-honed ability to read people and he’s always been able to see through Strand’s schemes. However, with the safety of his friends on the line, Strand is probably not going to take no for an answer so this isn’t the end of the plane discussion.

The mystery about those ominous walker heads is building and so is the intensity of this season of Fear The Walking Dead. What surprises will next week’s episode “Humbug Gulch” have in store?

We’ll have a preview of Fear The Walking Dead episode 503 “Humbug Gulch” for you later in the week and you can follow us on Twitter @SonyaIryna and @CulturessFS for the latest news, trailers, and more.