"Things Bad Begun" is the fifteenth and penultimate episode of the third season of the

post-apocalyptic Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction are genres of speculative fiction in which the Earth's (or another planet's) civilization is collapsing or has collapsed. The apocalypse event may be climatic, such as runaway climate change; astronom ...

horror Horror may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Genres *Horror fiction, a genre of fiction **Psychological horror, a subgenre of horror fiction **Christmas horror, a subgenre of horror fiction **Analog horror, a subgenre of horror fiction * ...

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

Fear the Walking Dead ''Fear the Walking Dead'' is an American post-apocalyptic horror drama television series created by Robert Kirkman and Dave Erickson for AMC. It is a spin-off to '' The Walking Dead'', which is based on the comic book series of the same na ...

'', which aired on

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on October 15, 2017 along with the season finale; "

Sleigh Ride "Sleigh Ride" is a Light music, light orchestra Standard (music), standard composed by Leroy Anderson. He formed the idea for the piece during a heat wave in July 1946, and finished it in February 1948. Its first performance was by the Boston Po ...

". This episode features the apparent death of Troy Otto (

Daniel Sharman Daniel Andrew Sharman (born 25 April 1986) is an English actor. He is known for his roles as Isaac Lahey on the television series ''Teen Wolf'' (2012–2014), Kaleb Westphall / Kol Mikaelson on '' The Originals'' (2014–2015), Troy Otto on '' ...

) as he's killed by

Madison Clark Madison Clark is a fictional character and the protagonist for the first four and eighth seasons of the AMC television series ''Fear the Walking Dead.'' She is portrayed by Kim Dickens, and created by Robert Kirkman and former showrunner Dave Eric ...

(

Kim Dickens Kim Dickens is an American actress. She is known for starring as Madison Clark in the AMC (TV channel), AMC horror drama series ''Fear the Walking Dead'' (2015–2018; 2022–2023), Joanie Stubbs in HBO's ''Deadwood (TV series), Deadwood'' (2004 ...

Plot

Alicia brings Diana to the bazaar for treatment and is enlisted to assist a life-saving operation. The patient is John, the President of the Proctors, an outlaw motorcycle gang which is opening a trade route from the Texas gulf coast to San Diego. Troy learns that the Proctors intend to attack the dam and rushes with Nick to warn them. The staff at the dam decide to hold out but if defeat is certain to blow the dam with explosives to deny the Proctors a water monopoly. Walker and Crazy Dog leave to search for survivors from their nation. Strand tells Nick to get his family out, having made a deal with the Proctors and no longer being able to guarantee anyone's safety. Nick is questioned by Daniel about the herd, giving Nick another reason to get them out. When Madison learns that Troy led the herd, she seemingly murders him in front of Nick. Strand opens a gate for the Proctors and in a struggle shoots Daniel in the face. As the Proctors overrun the dam, Strand takes the detonator and hides Madison and Nick.

Production

Casting

This episode marks the final regular appearance of Troy Otto (

) following his apparent death at Madison's hands, although his body is briefly shown in the next episode. The character would later make a surprise return in the eighth season, having secretly survived the events of "Things Bad Begun."

Reception

In a joint review along with the season finale episode, "Sleigh Ride", Matt Fowler of

IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...

gave "Things Bad Begun" an 8/10 rating, stating; "Some of the interpersonal moments didn't quite feel right in Fear the Walking Dead's Season 3 close-out, but using the dam as the centerpiece for the endgame, while also introducing a new villain into the mix, made for an exciting finale - even if Madison's haunting dreams were the only thing that resonated emotionally." Conversely, David S.E Zapanta of Den of Geek gave "Things Bad Begun" a more negative review, with a 2.5/5 rating, stating; "As dynamic and engaging as Ray McKinnon is, he and his underdeveloped proctors felt shoehorned into the end of the season."

Ratings

"Things Bad Begun" was seen by 2.23 million viewers in the United States on its original air date, the same amount of ratings as the previous episodes.

References

{{Fear the Walking Dead 2017 American television episodes Fear the Walking Dead season 3 episodes Television episodes directed by Andrew Bernstein (director)