Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.5

Fear the Walking Dead: The Complete Fourth Season Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman March 3, 2019

The zombie-infested, stench-of-death world of The Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead has not quite eradicated humanity, but it has all but eradicated hope. Each series has spent considerable screen time capital on the push-and-pull struggle between those who fight to hold tightly to hope and those who would capitalize on the larger hopelessness around them, or on those who suffer horrific fates within the haunting hopelessness of a failed world. Many have perished in those battles, often as part of a larger, much more universally vicious cycle in the new normal where fighting for hope necessarily means losing so much of it along the way. In Fear the Walking Dead's fourth season, the pursuit of hope remains a central theme, but along with it comes the realization that hope isn't enough. The world also needs help. Help, in this season, comes in the form of roadside boxes filled with post-apocalyptic luxuries: bottled water, canned food, a pocket knife, maybe something to read to pass the time. "Take what you need, leave what you don't," the boxes read. It's a small gesture but a critical first step in, just maybe, redirecting humanity back to what it once was and towards what it could be, a world where a helping hand offers a path towards healing, and not just from the immediate physical concerns of a world gone dangerously mad.

Official synopsis: In season 4 of 'Fear the Walking Dead,' we will see the world of Madison Clark (Kim Dickens) and her family through new eyes -- the eyes of Morgan Jones (Lennie James), who is joining the story from the world of 'The Walking Dead.' The characters' immediate pasts mix with an uncertain present of struggle and discovery as they meet new friends, foes, and threats. They fight for each other, against each other, and against a legion of the dead, and work to build an existence strong enough to resist the crushing pressure of lives coming apart. There will be darkness and light; terror and grace; and the heroic, mercenary, and craven, all crashing together toward a new reality for 'Fear the Walking Dead.'

For season four, Andrew Chambliss and Ian B. Goldberg take the reigns as Showrunners from Dave Erickson, and it takes little time to realize that there's a radical new direction for the series in store. The first eight episodes serve as both a culling and a curating for the show as it slowly builds towards a near-total transformation. Season four's eighth episode stands as a very clear demarcation point that practically signals the beginning of a major overhaul for the show, a process that was put into motion from the start -- right off the bat when The Walking Dead's fan favorite pacifist Morgan Jones makes his Fear debut (and goes on to play the season's lead character) -- and completed by the end of its first half. Gone, at this point, are several recognizable faces, replaced by a new cast of characters. Growing pains are in evidence throughout the first half, as the new and old characters feel one another out but also as the show tells their stories through an increasingly convoluted shift in timelines that interferes with story building -- all the more critical in this season with a drastic roster turnover and influx of new characters -- but doesn't completely stymie basic character development along the way. The show capably, but not often compellingly, builds towards its second half, which turns out to be a much more rewarding eight-episode run that seems to thrive on the opportunity to run free from prior constraints and character commitments, bearing the fruit of a new and improved mix-and-match cast and the pleasantly deep chemistry and camaraderie that comes to define the group and its mission.

The second half's story is fairly limited in length and scope, following the survivors attempting to escape Texas and return with Morgan to Alexandria, but as their efforts are routinely stymied they find that there's more work to be done in the Lone Star State when a new villain -- a wonderful Tonya Pinkins playing an otherwise everyday person whose perception of the new world, and humanity, changes when nobody stops to help her in a desperate time of need -- prompts them to realize that there's a destiny for them in this world that's greater than themselves. It's a refreshing change of pace from the much more grim outlook that has defined most every other corner of the Walking Dead universe, and it will be interesting to see if season five can allow the survivors to build momentum towards hope and help or if the world will throw a wrench in the works, as it always seems to do.

Fear the Walking Dead: The Complete Fourth Season Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Fear the Walking Dead: The Complete Fourth Season's 1080p Blu-ray presentation appears faithful to the source. The show is gritty and grimy, with season four particularly noteworthy for its frequent color desaturation that tones everything down towards a grayscale where excess color is nonexistent and even the most vibrant shades are reduced to curiosities amongst a horrifically bleak and bland landscape. Various scenes in the first eight episodes do offer more color saturation, a more flush and full palette that delivers a forgiving reprieve from the doom and gloom, but expect primarily -- and entirely through the final eight episodes -- to see and all but feel the downtrodden world of post-apocalyptic Texas where even red blood appears dull and devoid of color. Skin tones favor that grayscale push and black levels are fairly deep with only modest appearances of raising above true black. The image is texturally sound, with abundant detail evident in close-up, revealing complex facial features, high yield clothing definition (not limited to fabric details and garment frays but also caked-on dirt and grime), and wonderful environmental visuals including complex natural terrain and rough and tactile pavement. The picture is grainy and naturally sharp; the textures and limited colors both equally contribute to a gritty, downtrodden image that is spectacular through-and-through. No significant source or encode anomalies are apparent, either. A job well done from Lionsgate.

Fear the Walking Dead: The Complete Fourth Season Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Fear the Walking Dead: The Complete Fourth Season's Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack plays large and as a perfect compliment to the show's intense action scenes and more simple world details alike. Musical delivery is a highlight, featuring impressive front-end stretch, a healthy surround integration, and hearty low end accompaniment. The deeper and more intense the music, the better the track seems to get. There is no shortage of first-rate opportunities for the track to demonstrate its command of the material during zombie attack scenes and sequences, such as when a character finds herself alone against a horde of zombies partway through episode six inside a FEMA center. The scene delivers a well balanced attack of intense music, skin-crawling zombie moans and groans, and support details, all of which present all over the stage but converge into a sonically adept sequence. A raging storm in episode 10 is another of the season's sonic highlights, with sharp cracks, deep booms, and saturating rain falling all over the stage. Gunfire is a strength, whether considering pops from John's dual single action revolvers two the pair of heavy machine guns Al has mounted in her SWAT vehicle. There's a healthy boom and depth to most every shot. One of the most interesting sounds comes in episode 13 when a car horn is operated by connecting it to an external car battery; the effect is quite prolific and stage filling. Blowing winds and buzzing insects seamlessly shape the world in downtime. Dialogue is clear and well prioritized with firm front-center placement.

Fear the Walking Dead: The Complete Fourth Season Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Fear the Walking Dead: The Complete Fourth Season contains a few commentary tracks scattered throughout the set. A digital copy voucher is included with purchase. This release ships with a non-embossed slipcover.

Disc One:

• Audio Commentary: For "What's Your Story" with Executive Producer Scott Gimple and Showrunners Andrew Chambliss and Ian Goldberg.

Disc Two:

• Audio Commentary: For "Laura" with Director Michael Satrazemis and Actors Jenna Elfman and Garret Dillahunt.

Disc Three:

• Audio Commentary: For "Close Your Eyes" with Director Michael Satrazemis and Actress Alycia Debnam-Carey.

Disc Four:

• Audio Commentary: For "...I Lose Myself" with Showrunners Andrew Chambliss and Ian Goldberg.

Fear the Walking Dead: The Complete Fourth Season Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Fear's fourth season first half is not particularly great, structurally or thematically, but it's also a purposeful purging that sets the show on a very different course with a blended cast: some old, some new, one crossing over from The Walking Dead. The second half if not compelling, either, but it's well done within a fairly familiar structure that is much more The Walking Dead -- particularly early series The Walking Dead -- than it is Fear. There's talk of a third spinoff show in the works, but at this point Fear comes fairly close to being a whole new creature as it is. And the show seems better off for it. Fear the Walking Dead: The Complete Fourth Season delivers high end picture and sound along with a handful of commentary tracks. Recommended.