After spending the last three episodes sending the narrative in circles, Fear the Walking Dead Season 8 Episode 6 quite literally turned the show on its head, preparing us for a very different final six episodes.
In recent years, cast departures haven’t been as secretive in TWD Universe, and it’s shocking that Morgan’s arc is wrapped up, seemingly for good, by the end of “All I See is Red.”
Morgan has spoken countless times about seeing red after the deaths of his wife and son, and truthfully, I didn’t think the showrunners of Fear the Walking Dead could craft a compelling farewell for such an iconic character.
Thankfully, Morgan reached a state of resolution with his past actions and is ready to embrace a new chapter that involves some of his old friends.
This message is for Rick Grimes. It’s Morgan Jones. Man, I’m gonna come and look for you, whether you’re at Alexandria or not. I will leave this message every morning at dawn, and I’ll leave the walkie on for a few minutes after. Who knows? Maybe you might even be listening.
Morgan
We saw the full range of Morgan’s emotions as he tried to make sense of his memory lapses while viewers tried to piece together what happened as well.
It’s a shame the action was reserved for “All I See is Red” because it felt like multiple episodes crammed into one, as many storylines needed resolution.
Madison helping Morgan find peace wasn’t on my bingo card, but it was a satisfying way to send Morgan off into the great unknown as he tries to find the man he started this journey with on The Walking Dead Season 1 Episode 1: Rick Grimes.
With Andrew Lincoln set to co-lead a six-part spinoff, there’s a good chance Morgan will cross paths with Rick.
Morgan: It’s like I see red. It’s all I see, and all I do is kill. Again and again. Until I’ve cleared.
Madison: Cleared who?
Morgan: Walkers, people… I don’t see no difference. All I see is red, so you are not safe with me.
Madson: I don’t believe that.
Morgan: That’s ’cause you weren’t there. You’re not seeing how many I killed. And it’s like a… it’s like a-a cycle, and it’s starting all over again.
Madison: Then we’re gonna break it.
Morgan: I swung my axe at you! I swung it, and I don’t even remember!
Morgan has proven resourceful, so I don’t think he’d head off on this mission with Mo by his side if he didn’t think there was a plausible way of it happening.
Morgan burying Grace next to Eastman, the man who changed his life on The Walking Dead Season 6 Episode 4, made for an emotionally charged scene that showcased another acting powerhouse from Lennie James.
Losing Grace on Fear the Walking Dead Season 8 Episode 5 was always going to inform Morgan’s next steps. He wanted to break this cycle of seeing red every time he lost someone.
It’s scary to think what could have happened to him if Madison wasn’t there to help in his time of need.
Their final scene on the beach was infused with hope from both parties, but it felt like a final goodbye. Morgan was leaving Daniel and everyone else in good hands with Madison.
There was a clear divide amongst the fans when Morgan took over the show on Fear the Walking Dead Season 4 Episode 1, but it seems the series will end with Madison back at the wheel.
It’s surprising, especially considering how Madison’s presence was minimized before she was written out.
Dickens will always be a reminder of when the show was at its best. If you watch Fear the Walking Dead online, you know the series was initially about a mother trying to ensure the safety of her children as the world came crashing down.
I can’t say I’m fond of Madison leading the charge to reunite all of the kidnapped children with their parents because, quite frankly, hearing PADRE every episode makes me think of the possibilities with such a group.
Like everything else following Fear the Walking Dead Season 3, PADRE will go down as a missed opportunity. The ingredients were there to craft a compelling group of villains, but the writing for them wasn’t strong enough.
Terrible motivations aside, it was hard to get on board with a group stealing children and being perceived to be thriving when its operatives were being killed left, right, and center.
For that reason alone, Shrike’s death didn’t resonate with me. She was a makeshift villain that could have been powerful but chose to sashay into scenes of conflict and let the people who opposed her survive.
If you watch Teen Wolf online, you know Maya Eshet is a talented actress, but the issue with her character was that the writing was inconsistent with laughable dialogue.
Eshet deserves better, and I’m looking forward to her next role.
Finch’s death was the gut punch I never expected, but it made sense, narratively speaking.
Dwight and Sherry lost so much time with their son because of PADRE, so it’s infuriating that he died just when it seemed like the radiation was actually preventing the spread of the zombie virus.
Finch didn’t get nearly enough development before his death, but electing not to have Shrike die in pain, despite her being the reason for his death sentence, was courageous.
It’s rare that Fear the Walking Dead hits me in the feels, but there were so many well-written moments in an otherwise overstuffed episode.
Dwight splitting up with Sherry was shocking. If you watch The Walking Dead online, you know they’ve been through so much.
Dwight: I think this has got to be the end of it.
Sherry: Of what?
Dwight: Of us. I mean, I-I don’t know. No matter where we go, what we do, it just stays the same.
Sherry: Yeah.
Dwight: Right. It never stops. Never stops. Just seems to get worse. You know, maybe it’s not because of assholes like Negan or Shrike, you know? Maybe we’re just not meant to be together.
Sherry: Where would you go?
Dwight: Back home. You know? Start over.
Their reunion on Fear the Walking Dead Season 6 was welcome, but sadly, the showrunners haven’t found a way to keep them together without giving them the most miserable storylines.
I doubt Dwight and Sherry are truly gone, so I hope there’s a more definite resolution for them in the back half of Fear the Walking Dead Season 8.
The scene of the mysterious individual listening to Madison’s call on the radio would have been much more worthwhile had we seen the person.
At this stage in the series, we don’t have time for ambiguity. The series has six episodes left, so there’s no point in concealing things from the audience.
It has to be someone we’ve seen before, right? They had Alicia’s mechanical arm, Strand’s sunglasses, and possibly the hammer Madison used to kill Troy.
There has been an uprising of rumors that Troy is back in the final episodes, but that wouldn’t be possible unless the series does some retconning.
If anything, the scene will probably serve as a tease for the final villain, but knowing that the person has Alicia’s arm might confirm that she definitely died on the beach on Fear the Walking Dead Season 7 Episode 15 — unless the Clarks play a bigger role in a cure for the virus than we’re being led to believe.
Despite some clear issues in the storytelling, “All I See is Red” successfully changed the trajectory of the final season and gave the sense that everything would be coming full circle before the end of the series.
What are your thoughts on Morgan’s departure? Do you think it worked?
What’s your take on Madison reclaiming her status as the show’s lead?
Who do you think was in the epilogue scene?
Hit the comments below.
Fear the Walking Dead returns in the summer with its last-ever episodes.
Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.