The second part of Fear‘s two-part mid-season premiere opens with Nick in a metal box, being taunted by Troy. It isn’t until later that we learn it’s his punishment for the Troy situation, and Nick’s only imagining him due to his dehydration. Once he’s served his time, the ranch residents approach him about rebuilding the militia. He ends up making the (very stupid) decision to go along with it, thinking he can control them. He’s wrong, of course, but luckily he has a very smart sister who knows what she’s doing.
Madison reveals to Alicia (and Walker) that they now only have six weeks of water left. This is convenient, considering the season finale is about that far away at this point. Still, that shaves half off Jeremiah’s estimate from last episode, since Walker’s people are now occupying the land as well. Madison then leaves on a trip with Walker to find more water, which eventually leads them to a place called the bazaar. One of the coolest new places we’ve been introduced to in the entire series. The bazaar serves as a weapon-free marketplace that allows people to trade their goods.
That’s not the only surprise of the episode either, because Madison and Walker manage to run into none other than Strand. He causes some trouble, and Madison then causes more trouble trying to save him. It seems that Strand will be left chained to the outside fence to ‘settle the debt’ he owes to the bazaar, except Madison has other ideas. She chooses to save Strand and pay his debt instead of making a deal that would guarantee water for the entire ranch (including her own children). She chooses to take a gamble on the dam, which Strand tells her is a bad idea. It’s a bold move, and one that suddenly leaves her looking unfit to lead in comparison to other characters. However, what they don’t know is that Daniel and Lola are now leading the dam, not Dante.
Alicia is getting even craftier. It seems she’s trying to keep her mother away from the ranch as long as possible so she can keep the peace herself. We already know she’s questioning Madison’s methods, so it’s no surprise when she begins to take matters into her own hands. A powerful scene between Alicia and Nick proves that Alicia knew the truth about Jeremiah’s death all along. On top of that, it seems she’s done trying to please her mother. We’ve slowly seen her break away each season, but this could be Alicia finally turning on her mother for good.
While Alicia steps up with Madison gone, Ofelia steps up for Walker. There’s a reason Ofelia is one of the best characters this season, and it’s not just because she’s constantly calling people out. She truly is her father’s daughter, and she no longer backs down when someone confronts her. The woman who was shot by her boyfriend in Season 1 is long gone. Ofelia is even trusted to be one of the few carrying a gun on the ranch.
‘The Diviner’ is a strong episode overall, and it finally establishes who should be in control. Alicia and Ofelia work well together; they could lead effectively if given the chance. Not only that, but it appears Fear has learned from its mistake of going multiple episodes without checking in on certain characters. This episode also left me interested to know where each of the main characters will end up next, particularly with brief moment of peace offered up at the end: both sides come together to dig a new well, and therefore craft a new water supply.
THE REEL SCORE: 9/10
Next time…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mc8_M1r86HE
