Shiva (Fear the Walking Dead)

"Shiva" is the seventh episode and mid-season finale of the second season, and the 13th episode overall of the post-apocalyptic horror television series Fear the Walking Dead, which aired on AMC on May 22, 2016.[1]

"Shiva"
Fear the Walking Dead episode
Episode no.	Season 2 Episode 7
Directed by	Andrew Bernstein
Written by	David Wiener
Original air date	May 22, 2016
Running time	43 minutes
Guest appearance(s)
Patricia Reyes Spíndola as Griselda Salazar Moisses Arath Leyva as Juan Sebastián Cano as Young Daniel Salazar Diana Lein as Sofia Renato Marin Alcalde as Ramon Ramón Medína as Jorge Fernando Rojasbarr as Wounded Man

This episode marks Rubén Blades' (Daniel Salazar) final appearance in season 2 as his character’s fate was left ambiguous.

Plot

After Strand killed Thomas, Celia is furious and demands that he and the group leave. Chris has run off and Travis goes off after him. Daniel begins to have nightmares and act strangely. When he attacks one of Celia's men, Celia has Daniel taken to the cellar. Nick brings Celia's walker son Luis to her and because of this, she lets the group stay, but Strand must leave. Madison talks to Nick about his fascination with the dead and is frustrated by his feelings for Celia. Nick goes to find Travis and Chris, but when he finds them, Travis says he and Chris aren't coming back and he needs to help Chris. He asks Nick to tell Madison he couldn't find them. Celia takes Madison to the cellar to show her the dead, but Madison locks her inside the cell. Daniel is able to attack one of the compound workers and escape. He then goes to where the dead are held and sets the place on fire after seeing visions of his wife and those he's killed. Daniel does not escape the burning building. Strand returns to the compound to help the rest of the group escape the fire, but when Madison sees Nick, he tells her that he couldn't find Travis and he isn't going with them because Celia was right about the group destroying everything in their path, and he no longer wants to be a part of it.

Reception

"Shiva" received positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it garnered a 71% rating, with an average score of 6.47/10 based on 14 reviews. The site consensus reads, "Mid-season finale "Shiva" shakes up Fear the Walking Dead, tossing relationships into a scary and unique new climate while setting the stage for a biting cliffhanger."[2]

Matt Fowler of IGN gave "Shiva" a 6.8/10.0 rating stating; ""Shiva" did well on the Travis/Chris front, and I liked how Madison dealt with Celia, but it seemed to want to serve the endpoint more than the characters. The fiery finish that worked to split everyone up. Because Daniel's insta-dementia felt hurried. And if that was the place this show wanted to take him, I wished they'd devoted more time to the build. Especially since Daniel was one of the few characters on the series that was easy(ish) to care about. Also, it's becoming harder and harder to get a handle on Nick and what he'll choose to do from week to week. It feels arbitrary at times."[3]

Ratings

"Shiva" was seen by 4.39 million viewers in the United States on its original air date, below the previous episodes rating of 4.49 million.[4][5]

References

1. Bryant, Jacob (2016-05-23). "'Fear the Walking Dead' Midseason Finale Recap: 'Shiva' Starts to Right the Ship". Variety. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
2. https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/fear_the_walking_dead/s02/e07
3. Fowler, Matt (2016-05-22). "Fear the Walking Dead: "Shiva" Review". IGN. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
4. Porter, Rick (May 17, 2016). "Sunday cable ratings: 'Game of Thrones' rises, 'Fear the Walking Dead' falls". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on May 18, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
5. Porter, Rick (May 24, 2016). "Sunday cable ratings: 'Preacher' has decent debut, 'Game of Thrones' ties season high". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on May 25, 2016. Retrieved May 24, 2016.