Fear The Walking Dead 501: Panel reactions to ‘Here To Help’

The Fear The Walking Dead season 5 premiere was quite an episode and our panelists had a lot to say about the episode and what’s coming up this season.

Fear The Walking Dead’s season 5 premiere episode “Here To Help” kicked off what looks like a very promising season for the show. Following a soft reboot in season 4 that introduced some new characters and said goodbye to series originals Nick Clark and Madison Clark fans were anxious to see if the changes that were started last season would carry over to season 5.

If “Here To Help” is indicative of the rest of the episodes coming up season 5 is going to build on the changes that came in season 4 to finally creative a sense of cohesion and loyalty among the survivors.

While they endured some terrible losses in season 4 that season also brought them a lot closer together and cemented some relationships that earlier had seems tenuous.

Overall it seems that fans like the episode. There was a lot of great action and story development and it was great to see the group really working as a unit.

One of the high points of the episode was the realization that the people who took Al are the same people that took Rick Grimes on The Walking Dead. Does that indicate more crossover between Fear The Walking Dead and The Walking Dead? Our panelists talk about that and about the episode in general:

Fear The Walking Dead Season 5 Premiere

What were your reactions to the season 5 premiere?

Sonya says:

"I really enjoyed the premiere. I love the direction that they’re taking the story in and I really like the changes they made last season. I can’t believe I almost gave up on this show in season 2 and now it’s so good, it’s like a totally different show. I’m very glad Daniel Salazar is back and I can’t wait to see what the group thinks of Dwight. And now we have this big mystery that could tie Fear to Rick Grimes and that’s very exciting. It’s going to be a fantastic season."

Sara says:

"I loved the season 5 premiere! It was such a massive and intense start and it is exactly what we needed going into season 5! I was so excited getting to see Alicia really taking a lead role, and I can’t wait to see where her story goes this season as well as the other characters!"

Jeffrey says:

"I was so blown away by how action packed the first episode is. The opening plane crash scene really is such a thrilling way to kick things off and fling the characters and viewers right back into the chaos of the walker apocalypse. In addition to the action, I really enjoyed all of the mysteries that were teased, including the radiation threat, the group that took Althea and Rick, and Logan’s crew. In just one episode, my interest in Fear has been completely rejuvenated and I seriously can’t wait to see how everything plays out."

Renee says:

"I thought it was a bit flat. But, reading reactions online this puts me in the minority. I don’t know what else I was hoping to see but it just seemed to be lacking overall. I enjoyed seeing Alicia kick some butt and always love any John/June interactions. I do think the best part was seeing Daniel again with the hopes to see more of him!"

Ethan says:

"My reactions to the Season 5 premiere weren’t as hyped as Season 3 and 4’s premieres. The hype of the crossover last year was insane and Season 3 was my favourite Fear premiere. I did like the Season 5 premiere but i find it hard to connect with characters other than Morgan and Alicia, as Madison was my favourite."

Timothy says:

"Pretty good episode overall, but the “should we help people or not?” theme has been beaten to death by both shows. Still, I think meeting some new people helped. The rest of the season is set up nicely."

Sarabeth says:

"I loved it. I’ve been a vocal fan of the changes to season 4 and I definitely see that the show has a direction in mind in season 5 that builds off of season 4. I’m excited to see where the foundation that 501 builds leads after this point."

Follow the Undead Walking panelists on Twitter to add your thoughts to the conversation:

@UndeadWalkingFS, @SonyaIryna, @WrittenBySara, @TWalkingDWorld, @Iowamamaof3, @EthanCorby, and @SarabethPollock