In AMC‘s Fear the Walking Dead Episode 211, we backtrack a little bit to see how Madison and Victor escaped the hotel bar. It was actually quite simple: They went into a tiny storage closet, killed a zombie, camouflaged themselves, and walked out. They took refuge in the connected spa next door, though they did notice that their car was gone. Victor thinks Alicia and Ofelia took off in it, but then Alicia shows up. I guess we are supposed to think Ofelia took off on her own. Madison wants to go after Ofelia, but Victor points out what a bad idea that is. They gather the supplies they can find, and it is slim pickings. The hotel has enough supplies to last months, but the remaining guests still want Elena dead.
Madison and Victor head out on a peace mission. Oscar’s brother is very protective of him, but Oscar lets them in and agrees to talk. She negotiates with him, telling him that this place could be a new home for all of them. She points out that they haven’t been beyond the walls; she has, and it is bad out there. Madison warns that the next group of people who come through might not ask; they may just come in and take. Oscar relents and gives them the hotel keys. Madison and Victor head out and start clearing out the dead.
It is slow going. Alicia doesn’t want to leave any locked in rooms. All it takes is one to get out, and ruin everything. They go room by room, killing zombies, loading them onto luggage carts, and delivering them to a pyre on the beach. Several of the other nameless guests have decided on their own to pitch in. They cleared one floor of one tower. It will take weeks to get the rest of them cleared out. While washing her hands in the ocean, Alicia sees a sign on the pier: riptides.
New plan: The group splits up and lures hordes of walkers through the halls, into one main room, which funnels out onto the pier. Once they get the zombies onto the pier, Madison leads them down the long dock while the rest of the group scrambles for a lifeguard dinghy. Alicia and Hector take the dinghy out, and when Madison gets to the end of the pier, she jumps into the ocean. Alicia and Hector scoop her up into the boat while the zombies lemming into the ocean and carry them out to sea.
That night, the hotel group sits down for a fancy dinner to celebrate. Oscar and his mother-in-law are noticeably absent. Victor knows where to find Oscar: the honeymoon suite. It turns out he has been keeping his zombie wife in the suite, hoping to find a cure. Victor commiserates with him, and eventually convinces Oscar to hand over the room key. Victor goes in and, presumably, kills zombie Jessica.
Meanwhile, at the Colonia, Nick has an idea: grind up the oxy they have and cut it with powdered milk. They can use it to trade for more supplies, and hopefully buy themselves some time to find a more sustainable option. Alejandro is doubtful at first, but he decides to give it a shot and helps Nick create new pills. They spend all day making new pills, and seem to bond. Nick asks about the bite on his shoulder, and Alejandro avoids the topic for a while. As they finish, he eventually tells Nick the story. There was an addict who lived in the neighborhood. He used to try to steal from Alejandro. After the world went to hell, the kid was on some drugs – he doesn’t know what, but it sounds like bath salts – and the kid was just bonkers. The humans mistook him for a zombie and tried to banish him out with the dead. Alejandro recognized that he was still human and tried to rescue him. As he was beaten by the living, he was bitten by the dead. Luciana found him and they waited for death – but death didn’t come.
As Nick is about to leave to deliver the oxy to the gang, he stops and plays soccer with Luciana and some kids. Francisco runs in, panicked, and whispers to Alejandro: Pablo is dead. Pablo was Luci’s brother. Despite this bombshell, she accompanies Nick on his errand. She admits she doesn’t know what to do without Pablo, and Nick hugs her comfortingly.
Back at Colonia, Alejandro moves Nick out of the infirmary and into his own tiny trailer. Nick insists he doesn’t need it but Alejandro affirms that he deserves it. That night, Luci visits Nick, finding him reading a Spanish-English dictionary. He’s gotta learn the language at some point. Luci can’t sleep, and they talk about their families. At some point, Luci does fall asleep for a bit. She wakes suddenly, Nick reading on the floor like a perfect gentleman. She insists she has to leave so people don’t talk. Before she goes, Nick asks if she is testing him, like Alejandro said. Her response: to kiss him. The two go to bed together.
You can watch a preview for the next episode, titled “Pillar of Salt” and airing on Sunday, September 18, in the player below:
