‘Fear the Walking Dead’ Recap: ‘Skidmark’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

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When we think about our respective careers, dream job, or really, any particular task we want to accomplish in life, the end game is the first thing that comes into our minds. We picture that penthouse style corner office, one that features a nameplate with our name and the title ‘CEO’ sitting atop a beautiful glass desktop. Or we imagine winning every award and accolade imaginable in our respective field, so we are regarded and remembered as the absolute best at what we do, and well, we ponder upon the ending of our journey or how well we can master it, simply because, it’s healthy to say the least. For, knowing where we want to be, gives us focus and drive and motivation to achieve that goal and well, when you reach it, there’s no greater feeling.
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But what we sometimes forget when it comes to our gleaming goals, is that the journey matters just as much as the ending. For in order to become that powerful and wise CEO, endless hours of grinding it out in middle management is part of the game, because hard work is what gets us where we want to go, and it is easy to lose sight of that, and the little victories that come our way as we walk toward our goals. If anything, those baby wins are what matter the most, simply because, they remind us that we are actually making progress toward our goal and well, this is on my mind today because little victories have been popping up everywhere as of late on Fear the Walking Dead, and last night’s episode of the show, ‘Skidmark’, provided the group with some of their most significant wins to date, when it comes to their quest to help others.

But at first glance, it sure didn’t seem like anything positive was going to happen in this tale. Because a fair chunk of this story revolved around another concerted push from Victor and his splinter group to get their hands, on Daniel’s prized plane, with mixed results. Because the always wily Daniel planned ahead, knowing full well that Strand would make another attempt to steal the bird, so he sabotaged it, and kept some critical parts on his person and well, that meant it was business as usual here. For Daniel was still unmoved and filled with disbelief when it comes to Strand’s claims about how he had changed, and the odds of him leaving that stance seemed slim, that is until Charlie came into the mix. For she was at Daniel’s side in this story and spending a little time with a young girl who sees the world in a purer light, is what took this tale into positive territory.

Because she came to learn, that Daniel and her team have actually been working to accomplish the same goal after all, since Mister Salazar has spent his days disabling booby traps in places where vast stores of supplies await and seeing a young girl treat her elders with such respect, and learning that Strand has surrounded himself with others who were dedicated to doing great things, seemingly began to shatter the walls he was surrounding himself with. But the instant trouble arrived, and there was a chance that others could be hurt by a direct course of action, Daniel retreated to his anger and his disdain once again, and made himself the hero to make a point to Strand that sacrifice and danger is sometimes necessary when doing the right thing, and well…it’s a lesson that Victor was able to prove he has indeed learned, since he sacrificed the plane’s engines to save everyone from a tiny herd and that act, seemingly put to bed the bad blood between two old friends and more importantly, this half of the group, helped someone in need. 

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Yet, while that alone would have been enough to hammer home the wonder of making progress toward a greater goal, the series had more feel-good moments waiting for us, ones that involved Morgan and the other half of the group. Because as John and June continued to shower Dwight with kindness and care by helping him search further for Sherry, Morgan and Alicia were hard at work trying to find Al, and they enlisted Dylan’s help in the hunt since he admitted to them that he and his brother and sister had spotted those mysterious, raven clad soldiers moving about the countryside. But it didn’t take long for Morgan and Alicia to realize that Dylan was up to no good and leading them on a wild goose chase and when confronted with that, surprisingly the young boy actually bothered to tell the truth, for unexpected reasons.
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One reason he finally lowered his guard, was due to the fact that Luciana was supremely supportive of him during their time together and she made him feel at home for a change, and seeing how much effort she put into his mental and physical health was enough for him to finally drop his guard and admit to Morgan and Alicia that they were in fact, being played, and that the time had come to end this little game, because Max and Annie were in serious trouble. Which brings us to the joyous part of this segment, since our warrior duo saw a grand opportunity to prove to these kids at last, that they meant them no harm and that they truly did wish to help everyone and well, Dylan’s request for an assist could not have come at a better time, because Annie was wounded and the dead were near and while the day was saved, the situation was still tenuous.

Because the kids still didn’t trust Morgan and his group in the slightest, and they revealed that they have strength in numbers. But thankfully, some pleading and prodding from Dylan finally allowed for a moment of peace between the two groups and while Morgan and Alicia didn’t exactly get these kids to join the cause, because they refuse to leave their dead parents behind, they did at least prove their worth to them, and that not everyone they encounter is evil, and that’s helpful in its own right. But, all feel-good stuff aside, Al is still out there, and likely still a prisoner of these well-armed mystery forces and her fate remains even more uncertain, now that everyone bore witness to one of their familiar helicopters taking to the sky and at this point, who the heck knows how they find her and save her if she’s aboard that chopper…

When all is said and done however, I really cannot get over how lovely this episode turned out to be. Because the group is hitting a hot streak in their goal to make the world a better place, and now they’ve helped a great many people in a short period of time, and that’s just incredibly uplifting. If anything, I’m truly impressed with how this series is suddenly surging into positive territory, because it’s really something you just don’t see in the zombie genre, and what’s more impressive is that…it works! I’ve really found myself invested in this new storyline and I really want to see the group succeed in their quest. But, all feel-good moments aside, the mysteries that come with the end of the world weren’t fully removed in this tale, because we still haven’t a clue if Al is okay or not, and is Daniel coming back from his little quest? Or is he going to abandon his new friends to keep his personal penance going? I’m sure all these questions will be answered in time, so for now, I’ll just sit here and bask in the wonder of a hopeful and inspiring story, set in a world, where the dead walk the earth. Until next time.   

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