Alicia has come a long way on Fear the Walking Dead. Every since she and her family reached the ranch in season 3, Alicia has been forced to take a leadership role. And in “This Land is Your Land,” her leadership skills are put to the test as those left at the ranch take shelter in an underground bunker. Meanwhile, Nick and Troy try to figure out a way to rescue those at the ranch.
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Time is the New Enemy
Alicia and Ofelia try to figure out what to do once they and a bunch of the ranch are underground. As Ofelia and Crazy Dog figure out the air situation, they realize there is no air flowing through the one vent in the bunker. Alicia figures out that they have two hours left before everyone dies from carbon dioxide. As Ofelia and Crazy Dog decide they have to crawl through the vent to figure out what’s blocking the airflow, Alicia comes up with a plan to save some air.
Alicia’s plan to save air involves asking for people to reveal if they have been bitten so she can kill them before they turn. She feels this is a good option to save air for the healthy people. It seems like a good enough plan, but Alicia doesn’t really think it through as she begins to kill the volunteers one by one. After the first volunteer, she freaks out and a woman name Pat encourages her to stay strong because the group needs a leader.
Together with a man named Blake, who has also been bitten, Alicia kills all those who have been bitten, and then she has to kill Blake.
After everyone is taken care of, Alicia and Pat share memories of before the apocalypse. She shares a story about Nick and summer camp. But soon she realizes that everyone around her is passed out from lack of oxygen, which is not good as she starts to hallucinate.
Clearing the Vent
Meanwhile, Ofelia and Crazy Dog crawl through the vent to find the blockage. Crazy Dog has a bit of a panic attack, and Ofelia talks him down as they continue. They finally reach the source of the problem — a walker — but they are both weary from a lack of oxygen too. They climb up to kill the walker, and Crazy Dog passes out. Luckily, Ofelia kills the walker and the air starts flowing again.
A Rescue Mission
Outside the ranch, Nick and Troy come up with a plan to try and rescue everyone. They saw everyone run into the bunker, so they decide to create a distraction with an explosion. They create one explosion and drive onto the ranch, but it’s not enough. They run from their truck to the helicopter, but soon the walkers break through the glass.
Underground, the air flows through to Alicia just in time, as all the people that passed out have started to turn and she’s forced to battle walkers now. She grabs a passed-out Pat and locks herself in a section of the bunker to arm herself, and then she goes out to kill the walkers. As she arms herself, she hears a huge explosion above her. And just as she’s about to get surrounded by walkers, Madison, Nick and Troy barge in and save her.
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Moving On
The survivors, which is just Alicia, Ofelia and Crazy Dog, join up with Madison, Walker, Strand, Nick and Troy. They grab some supplies and get to a safe location. Madison tells Nick they will continue with her plan to get to the trading post and then head back to the dam for safety.
Madison and Walker tell Ofelia that her father is alive. And I’m not sure if she’s relieved or not. After Alicia wakes up from her nap, Nick tells her that Jake didn’t make it. Alicia then tells Madison that she’s tired of running. She says no place is safe, even though Strand tells her that the dam has running water and a wall (though any Walking Dead fan will tell you that doesn’t matter one bit). Alicia says she wants to find a way to live for herself, and she can’t do that by running in fear with her family.
As a happy medium, Alicia agrees to show Madison where she’s going to go, which is the place Jake and her were planning to run off to. After Alicia leaves, Nick offers to follow her, just to make sure she gets there safely. He promises Madison, who makes him take Troy with him, that he’ll head to the dam right after Alicia gets to her location.
Separated Again
It seems the Clarks just can’t stay in the same place together for too long. But if there wasn’t an apocalypse, Alicia and Nick would be off on their own anyway, so it’s only natural for them to still want to do that. Alicia has definitely proved that she can survive. Being forced to kill all those who were bitten had to have taken a toll on her, both physically and emotionally. “This Land is Your Land” is one of the darker Fear the Walking Dead episodes — or at least the darkest in season 3. Even though Alicia knew it is the right thing to do to save everyone, she still realizes that she’s killing innocent people. And in the end, everyone died anyway. So one could say she did it for nothing.
I have to wonder if the Clarks will ever stay together in one place. It seems everywhere they go somehow ends up not being safe. So it makes sense that Alicia would want to try things on her own for a while — perhaps make a nice, safe life for herself. But then again, Nick went off on his own, and now he’s back with Madison, though it’s clear he doesn’t really feel comfortable in one place for too long.
Do you think the Clarks should stay together? Do you think Alicia and Nick should be on their own? Is it possible the dam could be the safest place for the survivors of the ranch? Will Lola even let everyone stay at the dam? Where do you think they should go instead? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
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Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
