Fear the Walking Dead: “Cobalt” Review

By Matt Fowler

Warning: Full spoilers for the episode follow…

Okay, there were certainly parts of “Cobalt” – Fear the Walking Dead’s penultimate Season 1 episode – that I liked. Namely, Daniel’s decision to gruesomely torture Shawn Hatosy’s soldier character (House Bolton style!) and the subsequent reveal that Daniel, in his past, had joined the ranks of the his oppressors and acted as their soulless interrogator. It’s something that he’d kept from Ofelia her whole life, but that Griselda had been an active party to. And it helped color and texture the Salazar family in very interesting ways. It also explained why Daniel, out of everyone, was able to instantly act so coldly when all the chaos began. And Girselda’s final moments, which she deliriously treated like a confession/confrontation with the Devil, were great.

But so much of “Cobalt” (Fear the Walking Dead’s original working title, by the way) felt incongruous. Not only did it deliver this show’s second walker-free episode in a row, but it felt very jumbled while doing so. And right when things felt like they were leading toward a confrontation between Travis and Lt. Moyers, everything stopped and that story went nowhere. Travis, for the first time on this show, seemed to step up a bit. He put his foot down and made that one minor threat about a possible community uprising (where was everyone else in the community this week, by the way?) and that got him taken out on that odd ride-along that never made it to the medical station.

And in the middle, Moyers wanted Travis to shoot down a walker. And he couldn’t. Still. And then they all got that call to action and Travis stayed in the back seat. So again, he remained mostly passive this week while craziness ensued around him. More bystander action. Then abruptly, Moyers was gone (left to die by his own disgruntled men?) and so was Travis’ trip to see Nick and Liza. And nothing was accomplished. Except that the trip was the first time we fuzzily heard the term “Cobalt Initiative” mentioned on the radio.

Maybe the idea was that since Moyers never got a proper introduction, there was no need to give him proper send off. I’m not sure. But this episode, which had some great single moment scenes, felt oddly messy. Rarely did people say or react to things in a way that felt right for the moment.

And what was so big about “Cobalt?” Well, it turned out to be an evacuation plan that was set to hatch in less than 24 hours. One that none of those soldiers with Travis seemed to know about because they, apparently, couldn’t wait until the next morning to leave. But one that Hatosy’s Reynolds knew all about. So why did he know and they didn’t? And why, if he liked Ofelia, did he keep it a secret from her? Not only that he’d be leaving her in less than a day, but that her mom might be euthanized? Or something. I mean, that’s what we assume right? That the infirm would be killed? He never actually said the line out loud, so it’s just speculation. Why would this information need to be tortured out of him when, given his character, he shouldn’t have been on board with it.

And were we to assume, at the end, that Daniel had plans to release all two thousand of those Dodger Stadium walkers? Just to f*** up the army’s plans? Yes, that would quickly solve the show’s walker drought, but it also seems like a very dangerous idea. One that runs the risk of killing everyone, including those he wants to protect.

And who’s the villain now that Moyers is gone? Dr. Exner? Is she calling the shots? Or is it that one guard who tried to take Nick away? Who’s giving the “Cobalt” command? Why does the medical center feel like two different places (a place where they heal, a place where evil guards drag crying men off to be killed?) And what are our heroes trying to do in the upcoming finale? Save their loved ones? Escape their town? Stop the army from leaving? Keep in mind, most of the main characters still don’t even know the full story about the zombies. Liza, who’s been dealing with the sick and wounded, finally was told about how everyone comes back and that it takes a headshot to end them. A lot of information has been happening off screen and away from our main players to the extent that they’re all but incapable of making non-frustrating decisions.

And now was a hell of a time to introduce a monologuing quasi-villain like Strand (Colman Domingo) – a weird, suited “Randall Flagg” type character who can’t wait to flex his immoral muscles in this new world of violence and madness. A guy who instantly felt like he existed outside of the reality of the show. Ol’ pimply Tobias almost crossed this line, with his speeches/warnings about what’s to come, but Strand really pushed the limits of this concept.

Side note here for those who’ve read the comics: I’m not sure why, but part of me keeps searching for “seeds of Negan” on this show. Like, for example, perhaps Nick will leave this show and pop up on TWD, years later for him, as Negan. Having been tutored by Strand and his crazy affinity for the “new rules” of the zompocalypse. Strand even mentioned, at one point, a “wolf at the door.” That’s a very specific hypothetical, yes, but I do find myself searching for things on FTWD that might pay off on the other show. Maybe because nothing’s paying off here.

In closing, I will say, for what it’s worth, that I liked Alicia’s teasing, flirting “time out” with Chris. It felt like something that these two, who are both angry for various reasons (Really, Travis. Chris has to apologize to Madison?), would do. And it addressed that semi-sexual tension that was present a few episodes back when he rushed to save her and she bashed his face in. A moment that made me wonder if something had once happened between them. Or if they both had buried feelings for each other.