Fear the Walking Deads mid-season premiere exposes its credibility problem.

ThisFear the Walking Deadreview contains spoilers.

The open water was left behind as the action moved farther inland into the parched Mexi-Cali region.

For better or worse, the one constant throughout this sea change has been the Clark family.

Its interesting that Troy warns Nick that in supporting him, he may have backed the wrong horse.

The same could be said of anyone who considers themselves Team Clark.

Now, after the two-hour mid-season premiere, not so much.

As for Madison, she is averydifficult character to like, much less root for.

In short, shes a chronic meddler, constantly putting her own self-interests before that of the greater good.

The more this happens, the moreFearcontinues to strain its credibility.

As of now, with Minotaur and The Diviner, the show is already struggling mightily on both counts.

The undead continue to pose less of an immediate threat to the living.

The undead are less of a threatthanthe living, too.

This is not a new concept for either of AMCs zombie dramas.

Why does the world seemingly revolve around these people?

How are they able to bend others to their will with so little effort?

Again, this is a credibility problem.

With tensionsalreadyrunning so high between the ranchers and the Nation, theres no way this arrangement could ever work.

Or to borrow from Clark family parlance, theres no way this situation wouldnt go sideways.

And go sideways it does.

The same goes for the ranchers handing over their guns to their perceived enemies.

This essentially leaves Madison and Walker in charge of the ranch.

Which begs a question that came up last season: Why are newcomers/outsiders in positions of authority?

This kind of power structure is not only totally upside-down, its frustrating as hell to watch.

Its the same story with Nick.

Whats left of Troys militia turns over the ranchs one free gun over to Nick.

In their eyes, hes a hero, but this isnt the most convincing motivation.

Hes still an outsider.

I would think someone like Coop is more deserving of an undocumented firearm than Nick.

And why should they?

Theyve managed to survive the apocalypse this long despite (or because of) their moral blind spots.

Both are capable enough people, getting by on ruthlessness and street smarts.

Luck plays a big part of their survival.

Were it not for the kindness of strangers, these neer-do-wells might have perished long ago.

Through them, though, we are introduced to new communities, like the dam and the bazaar.

This is a problem, consideringFearis deep into its third season.

We have six episodes left, so theres still time for AMC to turn things around.

Until then, Im rooting for the zombies.

But mostly the undead.

I cant imagine civil discourse between these two, given that she nearly killed Nick with anthrax.

Sure, he poisoned himself with drugs prior to the apocalypse, but this is different.

This was attempted murder.

At least, it would have been in the old world.

Now, anthrax-laced coffee is just business as usual.

In a post-Jeremiah Otto world, Troy seems hell-bent on martyrdom.

And speaking of Madison, telling Alicia Youve always been the strong one is a backhanded compliment.

Alicia knows the score, though.

Growing up, she experienced more of the tough part of her mothers tough love.

The apocalypse has only turned Madisons parenting style into tougher love, widening the gulf between mother and daughter.

Strand has a few good lines, too.

Gods a feckless thug is a fair sentiment if youre caught in the middle of an apocalypse.

How capricious the whims of the universe must seem, if the dead are roaming the earth.

Later, he tells Madison the whole world is lost.

Rating:

2.5 out of 5