Young survivors debut in Fear the Walking Dead season 5

The Season 5 Premiere of Fear the Walking Dead was exciting and intense. We got a chance to catch up with all of our main characters and were introduced to some new young survivors as well.

Some new characters that we meet in the first episode of Fear the Walking Dead season 5 include young siblings Max, Dylan and Annie. It’s implied that the kids are out in the world on their own. How have these youngsters been able to survive for so long without any adults protecting or guiding them?

In The Walking Dead Universe, children are some of the fiercest characters around. Carl was definitely an asset and stepped up as a leader for the group. Judith certainly can hold her own, but Carl and Judith had many strong adults around to guide and mentor them (think mini katana lessons for Judith and shooting lessons for Carl).

So what about these young survivors? Annie is the oldest. She can drive, although it’s unclear whether she is actually of driving age or not. Max seems to be a bit younger than Annie – perhaps about 14 or so. Dylan is definitely the youngest, maybe 12 at the most.

Given that’s it’s been approximately 2.5 years since the beginning of the apocalypse in the Fear Universe, these kids were quite young at the time the world as they knew it ended. They had to adjust accordingly and quite possibly without any adults from a young age.

Although the kids don’t share a lot about their background in this episode, we learn a great deal about them from their actions. Beginning with the plane crash, Dylan and Max run toward the crash instead of away from it. Their natural instinct is to help those in need. This is an instinct they haven’t lost being on their own.

Dylan then helps by applying pressure to Luciana’s wound to staunch the blood flow. Later, despite her reservations, Annie drives the survivors to the truck stop – again helping them, even while questioning why Morgan’s group would go to such lengths to help someone they don’t even know.

Just when it seems that the kids will return to the denim factory with the larger group (with promises of movies etc..), Annie can’t be convinced to stay. She doesn’t believe that places like the one John and Morgan describe actually exist. She senses that something is wrong while at the truck stop and she and her brothers leave as quickly as they came.

Turns out, she was right, as the truck stop was just a ruse while Logan was busy taking over the factory. Annie has good insight and she is probably the glue that kept the siblings together for all this time. Her cautiousness is what keeps them safe.

Recall Rick’s group when they were first approached by Aaron. It was too good to be true. Lydia couldn’t believe that Alexandria existed. Magna wanted to keep her weapons at Alexandria just in case. We applaud all these groups for a healthy dose of cynicism – same for these kiddos. It’s probably what’s kept them alive.

Annie, Max, and Dylan are hardened survivors now – they won’t simply accept Alicia and Morgan’s word because they are adults or because it means being part of a larger group. They may not have a large group but they do have each other. Whatever set up they have (which we will hopefully get to see) has worked for them this long.

If Morgan and his crew meet up with these new young survivors again – here’s to hoping he can gain their trust and eventually convince them to join his group. Right now, Morgan and his group could use some help of their own as season 5 of Fear the Walking Dead continues!