Rehashed ‘Fear’ in ‘Walking Dead’ spinoff

COLMAN Domingo as Victor Strand and Kim Dickens as Madison Clark

SEASON 2 of “Fear the Walking Dead,” the spinoff series inspired by the successful “The Walking Dead (TWD)” show created by Robert Kirkman, brings back the merged group of survivors from California—and its members have either snapped out of the shock, or grown unbelievably naive.

The first half of the new season, which aired Mondays on AMC, seems to be repeating some arcs and ideas from its predecessor.

This is also a prequel to “Walking Dead,” so it’s the start of humanity’s struggle with an unknown “plague” that brings back the deceased as hungry monsters.

And while they may not be fighting in a full-blown zombie apocalypse yet, the humans have begun banding together for survival.

“Fear’s” characters feel different from the survivors of the first series, but the mix of unexpected allies, and their transformation into hardened inheritors of the earth, are mirrored.

Storywise, however, there’s a jarring unevenness, unlike its first season. In a matter of episodes, the survivors’ hasty escape on a well-equipped boat brings them to places that often result in negative ramifications. It’s either too fast-paced, or crawling at a languid pace—and certain characters figure in dumb situations.

Alicia (Alycia Debnam-Carey), for instance, trustingly talks to a stranger on the radio—the man, of course, turns out to be part of a crew of pirates.

And her druggie brother Nick (Frank Dillane) easily gets brainwashed by a maternal villain, Celia (Marlene Forte), and chooses to lose himself in a swarm of zombies—during a critical time—at her Mexican haven for the living and the undead (which, by the way, is reminiscent of Hershel’s farm from TWD).

FRANK Dillane as Nick

Nick’s disguised in his recurring zombie blood-and-guts ensemble, so he should be safe until the season kicks off again in August.

He’s still an interesting character, nevertheless—his fearlessness has helped move the story forward on different occasions.

Two other characters stand out and give the show its different flavor: There’s Madison Clark (Kim Dickens), mom to Alicia and Nick, who’s become a lioness guarding her den.

The former high school guidance counselor has become bossy and decisive, a strong mother figure to some of the characters.

The other standout is Victor Strand (Colman Domingo), the initially shady but tough benefactor.

This season, he’s shown as a heartless survivalist when he refuses to help a plane crash survivor, Alex (Michelle Ang). But he’s also tender and caring—he’s revealed as gay, and has intimate scenes with his devoted lover, Thomas (Dougray Scott).

The series aptly shows the constant desperation and improvisation that the survivors of this monstrous end times are getting accustomed to.

It’s been done before in TWD, and the zombie-terminating sequences look similar—but the show still has to realize its potential by truly showing the unraveling of human society apart from this new group, and tread a path that’s uniquely its own.