Fear the Walking Dead: The Best of “Things Bad Begun / Sleigh Ride” (Season 3 Episodes 15 and 16)

Fear the Walking Dead wraps up its third season on a high note with two strong, action-packed episodes in an overall spectacular season.

On Fear the Walking Dead Season 3 Episodes 15 and 16, “Things Begun Bad” and “Sleigh Ride,” we’re introduced to new characters, old ones are killed off, there’s a bizarre Christmas dinner party, and we are left asking who survives the season after many characters’ fates are up in the air.

Let’s break down the season finale with the best of the two episodes and what questions linger going into Season 4.

Action, Action, Action

Not many will describe “Things Bad Begun/ Sleigh Ride” as boring. There are very few zombies on the episodes, but the human on human fighting heightens the tension throughout and gives off the feeling that anyone can die at any time.

And they do.

The episodes move quickly. There isn’t running around in circles like there was at the ranch between the Ottos and the Nation. Proctor John’s crew is coming and that’s it.

Defend or die.

Deaths

Ofelia’s death on the previous episode was a hard one to digest and we go into the finale knowing that other characters will die. Troy, Lola, and Efrain are goners along with a few other randoms.

As I watched “Things Begun Bad,” I was glad that Troy was still around. He’s a complete psycho, but entertaining and unpredictable. I loved that Nick and Troy were practically BFFs.

I knew that something was going to happen in the dam when Troy and Madison were setting up the dynamite. I practically couldn’t handle the awkwardness as he put his hand on Madison’s. They have such a weird relationship.

I wasn’t sure how long Troy was going to stick around, so it certainly was surprising when Madison whacked him in the head. She didn’t do it for all the terrible stuff he did, but for all the terrible stuff he did to her, like destroying the ranch.

Lola’s death is sad, but not unexpected. Idealistic people don’t last on shows like Fear the Walking Dead. I am happy though that she went out in a blaze of glory.

Proctor John

Disclaimer: I love anything to do with Ray McKinnon, from his role on Sons of Anarchy to his creation of one of the best dramas of all time, Rectify. Proctor John is soft-spoken and suffering from a tumor on his spine, but still a huge danger to our survivors.

I’m sure he has survived and we’ll be seeing more of him in Season Four. I already find him more interesting than Negan, mostly because he doesn’t monologue as much.

Proctor John doesn’t look like a physical threat, but he has a crazy glint to his eye and an appetite for violence which makes him formidable.

The Clark Kids

Alicia has fallen into Proctor John’s crew as a pseudo-nurse and Nick confronts Madison about how far she’s willing to go “because she has to.”

Alicia has had one of the biggest transformations over the past three seasons. She has become smarter and capable of surviving and fighting, but she still holds onto her humanity.

Nick is dabbling in drugs again and chasing higher-than-high highs, but he also calls out Madison for her willingness to kill people for what she considers the greater good. Will she one day kill him because she must?

I love it that Nick doesn’t lie for Madison and that he realizes that she was always the same person, but now has an excuse to kill.

I do believe that Madison does everything for her kids, but what Nick says is also true. She’d certainly agonize over killing one of her own, but no doubt that she would do it.

Madison’s Dream

I normally don’t like dream sequences and I don’t particularly like the one throughout “Sleigh Ride.” Dream sequences can seem like lazy writing because we think something insane is happening and then a character wakes up.

As “Sleigh Ride” opens, Madison is making a Christmas roast and we immediately know that this is a dream.

There are certainly disturbing images around the dinner table, especially Jeremiah’s head as the main course and Madison walking amongst headstones of people she has killed or possibly gotten killed because of her actions.

At Alicia’s grave, Nick is there with Luciana and a baby. Is this foreshadowing?

The dream sequence is a little jarring because it doesn’t quite fit into the episode, however, it’s the perfect excuse for us to see Travis again as he helps pull Madison to safety in her dream. Because of him, she wakes up under water and drags herself out.

I didn’t realize how much I missed Travis until I saw him again.

Maybe the dream is Madison coming to term with all the deaths she has directly or indirectly caused. Will she become less ruthless? I doubt it. As she tells Victor, killing only gets easier.

Cliff-hangers

The only people we know to have survived the season finale is Madison, Taqa, and Crazy Dog. Daniel, Proctor John, and Nick are last seen on the dam as it is crumbling. Alicia and Victor are probably likely in the dam’s waters.

It’s likely that they will all survive, but who knows when they will all connect together. The best part of Fear the Walking Dead is that I have no idea in which direction it will go next season.

It would be cool if they head North like Taqa and Crazy Dog. We should see some snow zombies. Or, maybe they will head east to Texas which would be interesting as well. Although the world is gone, there are still plenty of survivors and so much more to see.

So, where do we go from here? Who survives? Where do they go next? Which character will cross over with The Walking Dead?

What did you think of the season finale of Fear the Walking Dead? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

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Fear the Walking Dead returns in 2018 for Season Four on AMC.

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