Fear the Walking Dead (2015–…): Season 7, Episode 1 - The Beacon - full transcript
While most of the landscape is destroyed by nuclear warheads, Strand thrives in one of the few inhabitable places left; Strand's search for survivors uncovers a stranger with an unexpected connection to his past.
Don't you ever forget.
You locked me in here!
I'm not gonna make the world
the way you want it to be!
Shit on a stick. Let's get out of here!
[Explosion]
[Grunts]
[Screaming]
Go! Go! Go!
[Explosion]
Victor: We have a...
great future behind us.
It feels like the dawning
of a new day to me.
[Wind blowing]
[Footsteps approach]
[Walker growling]
[Rat squeaking]
[Footsteps approach]
[Growling stops]
[Geiger counter clicking]
[Walker growling]
[Breathing heavily]
[Sighs]
[Wind whistling]
[Walker growling]
[Walkers growling]
[Gun cocks]
[Fabric tearing in distance]
Man: [In distance]
Come on. Let's go. Hurry up.
[Growling continues]
[Wind whistling]
[Pounding on door]
[Walker growling]
[Growling stops]
[Breathing heavily]
[Wind whistling]
[Crying]
[Footsteps approach]
[Walker growling]
[Gunshot]
[Horse neighs]
Who the hell are you?
[Camera shutter clicks]
You the ones who've been
stripping the dead?
Let's go.
Hey, stop!
[Grunts]
[Scissors scraping,
fabric tearing]
What is this?
Where am I?
[Panting]
♪
♪
[Sighs]
What the hell is going on?
Where are you taking me?
[Elevator bell dings]
[Grunts]
♪
Hey!
Open the gate!
Get back here!
♪
You're making a big mistake!
♪
[Gun cocks]
Strand: Magnificent,
isn't it?
Belonged to George Hockley,
friend to Sam Houston,
commander of the Twin Sisters.
The sword dates back
to the War of 1812.
I don't want any trouble.
[Laughs]
♪
Turn around.
♪
Slowly.
♪
♪
Who the hell are you?
My name is Victor Strand.
♪
And, uh, who might you be?
♪
♪
Is this some kind of trick?
You've been bathed,
given a meal and a drink.
What trick?
What's in this for you?
A few questions.
That's it?
That's it.
What's your name?
Will.
What did you do before, Will?
Before the dead started walking,
or before someone decided
to blow it up?
Both.
I was a senator's aide.
Something close to it.
Which senator?
Elias Vazquez.
A Democrat.
What did you do for him, Will?
PR.
Campaign strategy.
Where did you come from?
Will:
Originally Oklahoma.
Most recently,
we were at a settlement
that protected us
from the blast.
Who's "us"?
Me, Senator Vazquez, um,
a few other aides.
Why aren't you there
with them now?
Things went bad.
I wound up on the outside.
And Senator Vazquez?
He didn't make it.
How long have you been
out there?
[Chuckles, scoffs]
50 days.
Give or take.
What have you seen?
Whohave you seen?
Not much.
Not many.
My scouts said you mentioned
people stripping the dead.
Stalkers.
Least, that's what I call them.
Couple of times
I caught sight of them,
they were sneaking up
on the dead.
Why are they doing that?
I haven't figured
that part out yet.
Who are they?
There's no faces
out there anymore.
It's just masks.
When was the last time
you were outside?
Why should I leave,
when I have
everything I need right here?
Come.
Let me show you.
[Woman singing opera]
Nice putt, Toby.
Right this way.
Where did all this come from?
Department stores,
homes, museums.
My rangers scoured the landscape
for anything of value.
Anything worth preserving
is here.
[Indistinct conversations]
And them?
They with you before?
We brought them in.
Just like you.
You let them stay.
If they're of value.
What does that mean?
He's the one
asking the questions.
♪
And over here?
Photos of every walker
my rangers encounter.
Even the ones no longer walking.
You looking for someone
in particular?
Some of my denizens still have
loved ones out in the world.
I believe
in giving them closure.
I meant you.
Anyone you're hoping to find?
♪
I have everything I need
right here.
♪
Everything you see,
everything we've cultivated,
came together
after the great destruction.
The world saw fire,
ash, devastation.
We were gifted with growth,
vitality, a new dawn.
This place was empty
when I first arrived.
Ha.
Well, except for Howard.
[Laughs]
We looked out
on the horizon together
and watched as the world
was destroyed before our eyes.
We thought it was the end.
But when the dust settled,
we were still standing.
As well as this place.
The weather patterns took
the fallout away from us.
This tower is the only
inhabitable place for miles,
but I don't
have to tell youthat.
What we're doing is nothing less
than laying the foundations
of a new civilization.
We're making history.
You did all of this
since the bombs went off?
How?
Same way I ended up here.
My instincts.
You sound pretty sure
of yourself.
If you'd seen
your instincts bear out
the way I have, you would, too.
Which is why I'm gonna
have to bid you adieu.
Can someone please bring
his belongings up to the roof?
He's gonna be
leaving us soon.Wait.
You're... You're kicking me out?
Bring up his things. I'm afraid so.
I answered
all your questions. You did.
You're just not quite
what I'm looking for.
Oh, because I didn't give you
the answers you wanted?
Nothing personal, Will.
Just an instinct.
Take care.
Good luck out there.
Will: Please.
Don't do this.
I-I-I won't make it out there.
I'm sorry.
I'm notsorry.
If you didn't want me to stay,
why would you give me the tour?
I mean, why go
to all the trouble?
I had to see
if you shared my vision.
You don't.
Oh.
Fresh.
I, uh...
found this out there.
Once read, it's...
It's meant to help people
carry heavy burdens.
[Gun cocks]
I think you're gonna need this
more than I do.
Alright, come on.
Let's go.
♪
Stop.
Where'd you find this?
I told you.
Out there.
Where?
I'm gonna ask you one more time.
I found it on one of the dead.
Don't lie.
I'm not.
I thought it might
bring me good luck.
So much for that.
Could you take me there?
To where you found it?
I don't know.
Maybe.
I'm gonna make you a deal, Will.
Take me to where you found this,
help me find the owner
of this necklace, and I'll...
I'll spare you the horrors
of a life out there
and let you move in
to our humble abode.
Do we have a deal?
♪
Good.
Get me my sword.
♪
[Hooves clomping]
Levels are low here.
We can take the masks off.
You don't have to worry
about the ones
that were killed by the blast.
It's the ones that died
from radiation are dangerous.
This isn't my first rodeo.
Thought you said you hadn't been
out in this nightmare before.
Not thisone.
How much further?
It's about a mile or so.
I can see why you were resistant
to coming back out here.
It ain't exactly spaghetti
and scotch.
This settlement
where you came from...
Why not try to return?
Your tower's not the only place
I'm not welcome.
Why not?
Let's just say
my exit wasn't by choice.
I've been trying to find a way
to make it up
to those people ever since.
Success is the best revenge,
Will.
Come again?
Don't spend a moment
trying to make things right.
Focus on showing them
that they were wrong.
Why would I want to do that?
Because that's how you win.
If you procure a place
at the tower,
you'll see that you don't need
to remember
anyone from your past.
History is written
by the victors.
I'm gonna ensure that's us.
[Thunder rumbles]
Now, where exactly did you
find this medallion?
We need to mask up!
Take cover!
Now!
The water pulls contaminates
out of the air.
Back to the tower! No!
It's too far!
We won't make it!
What do you suggest, then?
Follow me!
[Horse neighs]
♪
♪
It should be safe enough
under here.
♪
♪
What is this place?
The last 50 days?
Home.
Cozy.
Hey! Stop!
That's mine.
[Camera shutter clicks]
Yo, Vic!
[Thunder rumbles]
The handiwork of those people
you were telling me about?
Stalkers.
What are we really
doing out here?
I'm sorry?
Whoever that medallion
belongs to,
you must know them, right?
What difference does it make?
Just funny.
I don't quite see the humor.
You said you had everything
you needed in your tower.
I do.
How come you're out here
looking for her?
I never told you
I was looking for a woman.
♪
Gentlemen, gentlemen,
I believe
that we have been lured here
under false pretenses.
I suggest you start talking.
Where is she?
Who?
Alicia.
[Scoffs]
Answer me.
[Gunfire]Stalkers!
[Horses neigh]
[Gunfire continues]
[Grunts]
♪
[Groans]
They clipped my leg!
[Walkers growling]
♪
[Groans]
♪
We need to get out of here.
Not until you answer
my question.
I already did.
The truth!
Where is Alicia?
I told you, I don't know.
[Groans]
Where's Alicia?
I don't know who that is!
The Franklin...
That's where Teddy took her.
I was right the first time.
I don't need you.
I'll make the journey myself.
Wait.
Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.
She'll never forgive you
if you do this.
What makes you think
that's what I want?
Because I know who you are,
Victor. She told me.
And I think you want to make
things right with her. Nice try. But no.
Then why did you risk
all of this just to find her?
I want to show her
how wrong she was...
About everything.
That's how I win.
Wait. Wait. Wait.
[Groans]
♪
Will: Victor!
♪
[Walkers growling]
♪
[Horse whinnies]
♪
♪
♪
♪
♪
♪
♪
Ah.
♪
Bingo.
♪
[Footsteps approach]
Will:
Hold it!
[Gun cocks]
How'd you find me?
There's only so many places
to hole up around here.
I know.
Now, how about you start
answering some of my questions?
Alright. [Chuckles]
Sit!
Whoa, whoa, whoa,
whoa, whoa, whoa.
[Laughs]
You tried to kill me
twice today.
[Chuckles]
You left the comforts
of your humble abode.
You sacrificed every single one
of your guards,
all so you could find Alicia
and tell her how great you are?
I don't know.
I just don't buy it, Victor.
You knew who I was
the minute you saw me,
and yet, you lied anyway.
You're damn right
I did. Why?
Because Alicia said
you weren't exactly trustworthy.
Ah.
So, you were biding your time.
No.
I was testing you.
For what?
To see if you were worth saving.
Ah.
What makes you think
showing her that tower's
gonna change her opinion of you?
That tower succeeds
because of me.
[Sighs] Okay.
My choices.
My instincts.
Succeeds?
All those people
you got living there...
You think they actually
give a damn about you?
They're just afraid
of what you might do
if they step out of line.
You say that
like it's a bad thing.
It's not leadership.
You think you're an authority
on the subject
because you worked
for a Senator?
[Laughs]
I learned about it from him.
I learned more about it
from her.
Alicia... she didn't wanna be
in that bunker.
She was locked up by that psycho
who dropped the bombs on us.
She was locked up
with his followers,
and she could have become
a cynical asshole like you,
but no.
And you know why?
Because she knew
what Vazquez knew.
You cannot lead alone.
If you want people
to believe in you,
you have to believe in them.
You think she's so wonderful,
why aren't you there with her?
Still got the medallion?
Truth is, I needed this
just as much as you.
She asked me to do something,
and I couldn't do it.
What did she ask you to do?
It doesn't matter.
Why didn't you do it?
It would have protected
everyone there,
except for her.
It must have been pretty bad
if she cast you out.
I've been looking for a way back
every day since.
I didn't think I'd find it.
Then I woke up in your tower.
I thought, maybe...
Maybe if I brought you to her,
maybe that would do it.
But after what I've seen today,
I doubt she would even
recognize you.
♪
No.
I don't think she would.
♪
I don't know
if she told you, but...
I was the one
that gave that to her.
She did.
I knew it would
get your attention.
I gave it to her
so she could remember
who she was
because I feared
I wouldn't be able
to do the same for myself.
♪
Hmm.
[Sighs]
I guess we both held up
our end of the bargain.
♪
May I?
♪
♪
[Grunts]
♪
[Grunts]
♪
[Gun cocks]
♪
That's three times now, Victor.
What are you doing?
I thought if I took you there,
it might have
brought us together,
but she's better off
without you.
Everyone is.
[Walkers growling]
♪
♪
♪
Will.
Get inside.
♪
[Breathing heavily]
What the hell was that?
I know them.
From the bunker.
Something bad must've happened.
♪
Alicia.
[Walkers growling]
That's not possible.
We were underground.
We had enough food
to last 10 years.
Air and water was filtered.
That place was built
to outlast all of us.
Did you see her?
Was she...
No, no, no.
But I-I didn't see all of them.
Well, then, let's find out.
Wait, wait, wait, wait.
You can't see more than
two feet in front of you.
But I think I can help.
[Growling continues]
That's never gonna work.
The odds that diesel even burns
are one in a million.
That's better than we'd do
out there.
[Sputtering]
[Rumbling]
♪
♪
Go!
♪
♪
That's it!
Follow the light!
♪
♪
[Sputtering]
Shit.
♪
Strand: Will?
[Walkers growling]
♪
Come on!
Victor!
♪
Victor!
♪
♪
Victor!
♪
♪
♪
Strand:
Get down!
♪
♪
[Gunshot]
♪
Was she...?
♪
I didn't see her.
We need to get to the hotel.
Wait.
Why did you save me?
You could have just walked away,
but you stayed.
You still care about her.
You don't run
into the fog like that
because you want to prove
a point to someone.
You do it
'cause you want to save them.
Then let's go do that.
♪
♪
So, this is the fabled Franklin?
Yeah.
What's left of it.
[Grunts]
♪
♪
[Electricity buzzing]
♪
♪
♪
♪
♪
♪
♪
It's a ghost town.
Whatever happened
happened a while ago.
How many people lived here?
128.
It was me, Senator Vazquez,
a few other staff
before Teddy's scouts
found the place.
What happened to them?
Scouts killed everyone
while I was doing maintenance
in the air filter.
I stayed up
in the service corridors
until we all got locked in here.
Hmm.
Alicia!
♪
This wasn't Stalkers.
Nothing was taken.
I don't think
they were attacked.
Then what the hell happened?
This wasn't here before.
She paint it?
♪
♪
Yeah.
I think she did.
♪
What is Padre?
It doesn't matter.
Why not?
Because it's probably
gonna get her killed.
Is it a person?
Place?
I don't know.
I don't know.
Nobody knows.
It might not even exist.
"It"?
Something better.
At least the possibility of it.
I thought maybe
if I found it first,
she wouldn't have to, but...
[Sighs]
If anything happens to them...
to her...
that's on me.
[Scoffs]
You don't know that.
I should have been here.
I should have found a way
to make things up to her.
You loved her.
[Scoffs]
Doesn't matter.
[Sniffles]
It's all for nothing anyway.
It wasn't all for nothing.
[Scoffs]
You were right.
This wasn't about
proving something to her.
It was about
proving something to myself.
What?
That I didn't need her.
But I do.
As do you.
Maybe that's the point
of all of this.
Maybe we're
supposed to find her.
Together.
♪
Hmm.
♪
Or perhaps she'll find us.
♪
♪
[Walkers growling]
♪
♪
[Electricity buzzing]
♪
[Walker growling]
♪
♪
♪
How far will it reach?
15 miles, maybe.
It appears our flame
has already drawn a few moths.
She'll see it.
She'll follow it.
She'll find this place.
Alicia is the closest thing
I have left to family, Will.
You're not the only one
who loves her.
I never had the chance
to tell her,
but I-I would've.
If we found her.
And perhaps she would have, uh,
reminded me of the man
I once tried to be.
She still can.
She can help you be him.
I never should have
left this place.
It almost got me killed.
I had a feeling
that it would, but I...
I didn't trust my instincts.
I can't let that happen again.
It could destroy
everything I've built here.
That's not true.
Hey.
You will make this place
even better.
You both will.
Together.
You said you can't lead alone.
You're wrong.
It's the only way.
That's not true.
It is.
I've watched as others tried
to build a place like this,
and each of them came close,
but they all fell short
for the same reason.
What?
Love.
Attachments don't
make you strong, Will.
They destroy you.
That light's
not to draw Alicia here?
No.
It's to keep her
and everyone else
as far away as possible.
It won't work.
She'll find this place.[Chuckles]
She'll get through to you.
Aah!
[Screaming]
No, she won't!
She won't have anything
to do with me after this.
[Walkers growling]
You want me
to send somebody down
to get a picture for the wall?
No one in here's
looking for him.
Someone out there might be.
That's gonna draw
more than the dead.
Maybe even some of those people
you were with before.
People like Morgan Jones.
I'm not worried about him.
♪
Or anyone else.
Why not?
Anyone who tries to get to me...
♪
Is gonna have to
get through them.
[Walkers growling]
♪
♪
Morgan: We can build something
someplace else
that would actually last.
[Walkers growling]
[Baby crying]
♪
[Grunts]
Take another step, I'll shoot.
[Gunshot]
Morgan! Ah!
[Gun cocks]
Mommy's here.
Mommy's here.
You know why I have to do this!
You can take everything from me!
♪
[Suspenseful music plays]
[Groaning]
♪
The end of Season 6,
the world changed
in a drastic way,
with the detonation
of the warheads
that Teddy launched
from the sub.
It completely ravaged
the landscape
and redefined the apocalypse
as we know it.
We knew that things were going
to be different,
but we wanted to come
into the season
showing just how dire and scary
this landscape was,
as a result of those bombs.
Chambliss:
We wanted to see that firsthand
through a new character's
point of view,
someone who the audience could
experience this new world with,
and that's
the character of Will.
And the opening, really,
is all about establishing
just how punishing
the environment is out there.
It's not just about walkers.
It's about all the things
that our characters
would've taken for granted prior
to the detonations...
Shelter that safe
from the radioactive fallout,
water that's clean to drink,
food that's safe to eat.
Even the Walkers
take on new danger
because you don't know
if they're contaminated
or they're not.
[Growling]
On the other hand, we also see
how someone who is lucky enough
to be in an area
that the fallout missed,
like Strand,
could create a world to live in
that is actually pretty good,
when you compare it
to the way things are out there.
We knew that a new Victor Strand
was going to emerge
out of the ashes
of the nuclear apocalypse.
This was a man who was
no longer apologizing
for the things he'd done.
This was a self-possessed,
reinvented Victor Strand
and we see that, in the months
in between that episode
and Season 6
and where we find him now,
that reinvention has continued.
He is sporting
a whole new wardrobe,
this historic-looking tunic
that he's wearing.
He has a sword that he carries,
that goes back
to 19th-century Texas history.
I think it speaks to
how Strand feels about himself,
how he is really the king
of the castle, here.
As we learn in this episode,
he's actually finding that
to not quite be enough.
He actually needs something more
and, ultimately,
we find out what he needs
is Alicia.
But I think,
in terms of kind of bragging
about everything he's built,
getting great pleasure
in showing Will around,
it's trying to fill that hole
that he has kind of in himself,
that he's not getting from any
of the people around him.
And then, ultimately,
that ends up
kind of being hollow to him
and that's what sends him out
on the journey he takes
with Will.
Alicia and Strand have
a long and complex history
and, through everything
they've been through,
there's a deep amount of emotion
and care for each other
that underlies all of it.
Now, saying that,
Strand and Alicia did not end
in a particularly good place
at the end of Season 6.
Hello?
Strand:
Alicia?
Victor?
Yes, it's Victor.
Are you okay?
Can I trust you?
Of course.
What's wrong?
[Speaking indistinctly]
You need to get to Morgan.
Tell him I know
where the keys are,
what they're for.
He needs to find
a beached submarine
near Galveston.
♪
Ultimately, Strand
did not prove trustworthy
and he was not able to stop it
and there's been
no communication
between them since.
So, there's an unresolved part
of Strand
that is still harboring
some guilt for that.
And there's also
a part of him...
And this is the surface level...
Where he says, you know,
he wants to find Alicia,
to prove to her
that he was right
about everything.
He has done something
that no one else has done.
Creating a settlement
where everyone could be safe
is something that Morgan
attempted to do in Season 6
when he set up the community
behind the dam wall
and, ultimately, it failed.
You know, and if you look
around the landscape,
it failed in a really big way
because Teddy detonated
those warheads,
kind of destroyed everything.
So the fact that Strand is able
to do, at least in his mind,
what Morgan wasn't able to do,
in many ways,
is proof that he is the person
who should be in charge,
who should've always been
in charge.
And, ultimately, it's really
about proving to Alicia,
way back when,
at the beginning of Season 6,
when he said he had
to kind of push her away
so he could do the things
he needed to do,
it's his way of saying,
"I was right to do that."
The only difference is, now,
Alicia's nowhere to be found,
so he has no one
he can actually say that to.
Or, at least,
he doesn't have the one person
he wants to be able
to say that to.
I was the one
who gave that to her,
so she could remember
who she was.
Because I figured
I wouldn't be able
to do the same for myself.
Victor has some interesting
and, in some ways,
misguided ideas
of what makes a good leader.
He talks about it with Will.
That tower succeeds
because of me.
[Sigh] Okay.
My choices.
My instincts.
"Succeeds"?
Will really doesn't subscribe
to the way Strand
is doing things
and, ultimately,
that all comes down
to the things that Alicia
must have told him about Strand.
From Strand's point of view,
I think he's wondering
what it is that Alicia told him
because I think, in many ways,
that will signal
how Alicia feels about him
when he finally does meet her.
And, when he thinks
that Alicia might be in danger,
when all the walkers show up
at the lighthouse, you know,
he steps out into the fog
to fight the walkers.
He risks his own life
and that's ultimately the thing
that makes him realize
just how much he actually cares
about Alicia
and just how much
her validation means to him.
Ultimately, that's why he
makes the decision
not to bring Alicia to the tower
and, in fact, to do something,
to take this terrible action,
of killing Will,
that will ensure that Alicia
wants nothing to do with him.
And that's sort of Strand's
Darth Vader moment,
where he chooses to cut off
this connection in his heart
for the sake of his power
and for the sake of protecting
what he's built.
Aah! Aah!
Aah aah aah!
♪
[Growling]
It's a pretty dark turn
for Strand to take
at the end of the episode
and, yes, he's kind of become
what he always wanted to be,
but he's really left
on the roof of that tower,
I think, wondering
just what it cost him.
It may, in fact, have cost him
the person he cared about most
and, you know, as we see him
standing up there,
kind of having all the dead
walkers come towards the tower,
it's kind of a metaphor
for, you know, who he is...
Someone who's driven all the
living people away from him
and is now just
kind of surrounded
by death and destruction.
Anyone who tries to get to me
is going to have
to get through them.
♪
♪
♪
You locked me in here!
I'm not gonna make the world
the way you want it to be!
Shit on a stick. Let's get out of here!
[Explosion]
[Grunts]
[Screaming]
Go! Go! Go!
[Explosion]
Victor: We have a...
great future behind us.
It feels like the dawning
of a new day to me.
[Wind blowing]
[Footsteps approach]
[Walker growling]
[Rat squeaking]
[Footsteps approach]
[Growling stops]
[Geiger counter clicking]
[Walker growling]
[Breathing heavily]
[Sighs]
[Wind whistling]
[Walker growling]
[Walkers growling]
[Gun cocks]
[Fabric tearing in distance]
Man: [In distance]
Come on. Let's go. Hurry up.
[Growling continues]
[Wind whistling]
[Pounding on door]
[Walker growling]
[Growling stops]
[Breathing heavily]
[Wind whistling]
[Crying]
[Footsteps approach]
[Walker growling]
[Gunshot]
[Horse neighs]
Who the hell are you?
[Camera shutter clicks]
You the ones who've been
stripping the dead?
Let's go.
Hey, stop!
[Grunts]
[Scissors scraping,
fabric tearing]
What is this?
Where am I?
[Panting]
♪
♪
[Sighs]
What the hell is going on?
Where are you taking me?
[Elevator bell dings]
[Grunts]
♪
Hey!
Open the gate!
Get back here!
♪
You're making a big mistake!
♪
[Gun cocks]
Strand: Magnificent,
isn't it?
Belonged to George Hockley,
friend to Sam Houston,
commander of the Twin Sisters.
The sword dates back
to the War of 1812.
I don't want any trouble.
[Laughs]
♪
Turn around.
♪
Slowly.
♪
♪
Who the hell are you?
My name is Victor Strand.
♪
And, uh, who might you be?
♪
♪
Is this some kind of trick?
You've been bathed,
given a meal and a drink.
What trick?
What's in this for you?
A few questions.
That's it?
That's it.
What's your name?
Will.
What did you do before, Will?
Before the dead started walking,
or before someone decided
to blow it up?
Both.
I was a senator's aide.
Something close to it.
Which senator?
Elias Vazquez.
A Democrat.
What did you do for him, Will?
PR.
Campaign strategy.
Where did you come from?
Will:
Originally Oklahoma.
Most recently,
we were at a settlement
that protected us
from the blast.
Who's "us"?
Me, Senator Vazquez, um,
a few other aides.
Why aren't you there
with them now?
Things went bad.
I wound up on the outside.
And Senator Vazquez?
He didn't make it.
How long have you been
out there?
[Chuckles, scoffs]
50 days.
Give or take.
What have you seen?
Whohave you seen?
Not much.
Not many.
My scouts said you mentioned
people stripping the dead.
Stalkers.
Least, that's what I call them.
Couple of times
I caught sight of them,
they were sneaking up
on the dead.
Why are they doing that?
I haven't figured
that part out yet.
Who are they?
There's no faces
out there anymore.
It's just masks.
When was the last time
you were outside?
Why should I leave,
when I have
everything I need right here?
Come.
Let me show you.
[Woman singing opera]
Nice putt, Toby.
Right this way.
Where did all this come from?
Department stores,
homes, museums.
My rangers scoured the landscape
for anything of value.
Anything worth preserving
is here.
[Indistinct conversations]
And them?
They with you before?
We brought them in.
Just like you.
You let them stay.
If they're of value.
What does that mean?
He's the one
asking the questions.
♪
And over here?
Photos of every walker
my rangers encounter.
Even the ones no longer walking.
You looking for someone
in particular?
Some of my denizens still have
loved ones out in the world.
I believe
in giving them closure.
I meant you.
Anyone you're hoping to find?
♪
I have everything I need
right here.
♪
Everything you see,
everything we've cultivated,
came together
after the great destruction.
The world saw fire,
ash, devastation.
We were gifted with growth,
vitality, a new dawn.
This place was empty
when I first arrived.
Ha.
Well, except for Howard.
[Laughs]
We looked out
on the horizon together
and watched as the world
was destroyed before our eyes.
We thought it was the end.
But when the dust settled,
we were still standing.
As well as this place.
The weather patterns took
the fallout away from us.
This tower is the only
inhabitable place for miles,
but I don't
have to tell youthat.
What we're doing is nothing less
than laying the foundations
of a new civilization.
We're making history.
You did all of this
since the bombs went off?
How?
Same way I ended up here.
My instincts.
You sound pretty sure
of yourself.
If you'd seen
your instincts bear out
the way I have, you would, too.
Which is why I'm gonna
have to bid you adieu.
Can someone please bring
his belongings up to the roof?
He's gonna be
leaving us soon.Wait.
You're... You're kicking me out?
Bring up his things. I'm afraid so.
I answered
all your questions. You did.
You're just not quite
what I'm looking for.
Oh, because I didn't give you
the answers you wanted?
Nothing personal, Will.
Just an instinct.
Take care.
Good luck out there.
Will: Please.
Don't do this.
I-I-I won't make it out there.
I'm sorry.
I'm notsorry.
If you didn't want me to stay,
why would you give me the tour?
I mean, why go
to all the trouble?
I had to see
if you shared my vision.
You don't.
Oh.
Fresh.
I, uh...
found this out there.
Once read, it's...
It's meant to help people
carry heavy burdens.
[Gun cocks]
I think you're gonna need this
more than I do.
Alright, come on.
Let's go.
♪
Stop.
Where'd you find this?
I told you.
Out there.
Where?
I'm gonna ask you one more time.
I found it on one of the dead.
Don't lie.
I'm not.
I thought it might
bring me good luck.
So much for that.
Could you take me there?
To where you found it?
I don't know.
Maybe.
I'm gonna make you a deal, Will.
Take me to where you found this,
help me find the owner
of this necklace, and I'll...
I'll spare you the horrors
of a life out there
and let you move in
to our humble abode.
Do we have a deal?
♪
Good.
Get me my sword.
♪
[Hooves clomping]
Levels are low here.
We can take the masks off.
You don't have to worry
about the ones
that were killed by the blast.
It's the ones that died
from radiation are dangerous.
This isn't my first rodeo.
Thought you said you hadn't been
out in this nightmare before.
Not thisone.
How much further?
It's about a mile or so.
I can see why you were resistant
to coming back out here.
It ain't exactly spaghetti
and scotch.
This settlement
where you came from...
Why not try to return?
Your tower's not the only place
I'm not welcome.
Why not?
Let's just say
my exit wasn't by choice.
I've been trying to find a way
to make it up
to those people ever since.
Success is the best revenge,
Will.
Come again?
Don't spend a moment
trying to make things right.
Focus on showing them
that they were wrong.
Why would I want to do that?
Because that's how you win.
If you procure a place
at the tower,
you'll see that you don't need
to remember
anyone from your past.
History is written
by the victors.
I'm gonna ensure that's us.
[Thunder rumbles]
Now, where exactly did you
find this medallion?
We need to mask up!
Take cover!
Now!
The water pulls contaminates
out of the air.
Back to the tower! No!
It's too far!
We won't make it!
What do you suggest, then?
Follow me!
[Horse neighs]
♪
♪
It should be safe enough
under here.
♪
♪
What is this place?
The last 50 days?
Home.
Cozy.
Hey! Stop!
That's mine.
[Camera shutter clicks]
Yo, Vic!
[Thunder rumbles]
The handiwork of those people
you were telling me about?
Stalkers.
What are we really
doing out here?
I'm sorry?
Whoever that medallion
belongs to,
you must know them, right?
What difference does it make?
Just funny.
I don't quite see the humor.
You said you had everything
you needed in your tower.
I do.
How come you're out here
looking for her?
I never told you
I was looking for a woman.
♪
Gentlemen, gentlemen,
I believe
that we have been lured here
under false pretenses.
I suggest you start talking.
Where is she?
Who?
Alicia.
[Scoffs]
Answer me.
[Gunfire]Stalkers!
[Horses neigh]
[Gunfire continues]
[Grunts]
♪
[Groans]
They clipped my leg!
[Walkers growling]
♪
[Groans]
♪
We need to get out of here.
Not until you answer
my question.
I already did.
The truth!
Where is Alicia?
I told you, I don't know.
[Groans]
Where's Alicia?
I don't know who that is!
The Franklin...
That's where Teddy took her.
I was right the first time.
I don't need you.
I'll make the journey myself.
Wait.
Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.
She'll never forgive you
if you do this.
What makes you think
that's what I want?
Because I know who you are,
Victor. She told me.
And I think you want to make
things right with her. Nice try. But no.
Then why did you risk
all of this just to find her?
I want to show her
how wrong she was...
About everything.
That's how I win.
Wait. Wait. Wait.
[Groans]
♪
Will: Victor!
♪
[Walkers growling]
♪
[Horse whinnies]
♪
♪
♪
♪
♪
♪
♪
Ah.
♪
Bingo.
♪
[Footsteps approach]
Will:
Hold it!
[Gun cocks]
How'd you find me?
There's only so many places
to hole up around here.
I know.
Now, how about you start
answering some of my questions?
Alright. [Chuckles]
Sit!
Whoa, whoa, whoa,
whoa, whoa, whoa.
[Laughs]
You tried to kill me
twice today.
[Chuckles]
You left the comforts
of your humble abode.
You sacrificed every single one
of your guards,
all so you could find Alicia
and tell her how great you are?
I don't know.
I just don't buy it, Victor.
You knew who I was
the minute you saw me,
and yet, you lied anyway.
You're damn right
I did. Why?
Because Alicia said
you weren't exactly trustworthy.
Ah.
So, you were biding your time.
No.
I was testing you.
For what?
To see if you were worth saving.
Ah.
What makes you think
showing her that tower's
gonna change her opinion of you?
That tower succeeds
because of me.
[Sighs] Okay.
My choices.
My instincts.
Succeeds?
All those people
you got living there...
You think they actually
give a damn about you?
They're just afraid
of what you might do
if they step out of line.
You say that
like it's a bad thing.
It's not leadership.
You think you're an authority
on the subject
because you worked
for a Senator?
[Laughs]
I learned about it from him.
I learned more about it
from her.
Alicia... she didn't wanna be
in that bunker.
She was locked up by that psycho
who dropped the bombs on us.
She was locked up
with his followers,
and she could have become
a cynical asshole like you,
but no.
And you know why?
Because she knew
what Vazquez knew.
You cannot lead alone.
If you want people
to believe in you,
you have to believe in them.
You think she's so wonderful,
why aren't you there with her?
Still got the medallion?
Truth is, I needed this
just as much as you.
She asked me to do something,
and I couldn't do it.
What did she ask you to do?
It doesn't matter.
Why didn't you do it?
It would have protected
everyone there,
except for her.
It must have been pretty bad
if she cast you out.
I've been looking for a way back
every day since.
I didn't think I'd find it.
Then I woke up in your tower.
I thought, maybe...
Maybe if I brought you to her,
maybe that would do it.
But after what I've seen today,
I doubt she would even
recognize you.
♪
No.
I don't think she would.
♪
I don't know
if she told you, but...
I was the one
that gave that to her.
She did.
I knew it would
get your attention.
I gave it to her
so she could remember
who she was
because I feared
I wouldn't be able
to do the same for myself.
♪
Hmm.
[Sighs]
I guess we both held up
our end of the bargain.
♪
May I?
♪
♪
[Grunts]
♪
[Grunts]
♪
[Gun cocks]
♪
That's three times now, Victor.
What are you doing?
I thought if I took you there,
it might have
brought us together,
but she's better off
without you.
Everyone is.
[Walkers growling]
♪
♪
♪
Will.
Get inside.
♪
[Breathing heavily]
What the hell was that?
I know them.
From the bunker.
Something bad must've happened.
♪
Alicia.
[Walkers growling]
That's not possible.
We were underground.
We had enough food
to last 10 years.
Air and water was filtered.
That place was built
to outlast all of us.
Did you see her?
Was she...
No, no, no.
But I-I didn't see all of them.
Well, then, let's find out.
Wait, wait, wait, wait.
You can't see more than
two feet in front of you.
But I think I can help.
[Growling continues]
That's never gonna work.
The odds that diesel even burns
are one in a million.
That's better than we'd do
out there.
[Sputtering]
[Rumbling]
♪
♪
Go!
♪
♪
That's it!
Follow the light!
♪
♪
[Sputtering]
Shit.
♪
Strand: Will?
[Walkers growling]
♪
Come on!
Victor!
♪
Victor!
♪
♪
Victor!
♪
♪
♪
Strand:
Get down!
♪
♪
[Gunshot]
♪
Was she...?
♪
I didn't see her.
We need to get to the hotel.
Wait.
Why did you save me?
You could have just walked away,
but you stayed.
You still care about her.
You don't run
into the fog like that
because you want to prove
a point to someone.
You do it
'cause you want to save them.
Then let's go do that.
♪
♪
So, this is the fabled Franklin?
Yeah.
What's left of it.
[Grunts]
♪
♪
[Electricity buzzing]
♪
♪
♪
♪
♪
♪
♪
It's a ghost town.
Whatever happened
happened a while ago.
How many people lived here?
128.
It was me, Senator Vazquez,
a few other staff
before Teddy's scouts
found the place.
What happened to them?
Scouts killed everyone
while I was doing maintenance
in the air filter.
I stayed up
in the service corridors
until we all got locked in here.
Hmm.
Alicia!
♪
This wasn't Stalkers.
Nothing was taken.
I don't think
they were attacked.
Then what the hell happened?
This wasn't here before.
She paint it?
♪
♪
Yeah.
I think she did.
♪
What is Padre?
It doesn't matter.
Why not?
Because it's probably
gonna get her killed.
Is it a person?
Place?
I don't know.
I don't know.
Nobody knows.
It might not even exist.
"It"?
Something better.
At least the possibility of it.
I thought maybe
if I found it first,
she wouldn't have to, but...
[Sighs]
If anything happens to them...
to her...
that's on me.
[Scoffs]
You don't know that.
I should have been here.
I should have found a way
to make things up to her.
You loved her.
[Scoffs]
Doesn't matter.
[Sniffles]
It's all for nothing anyway.
It wasn't all for nothing.
[Scoffs]
You were right.
This wasn't about
proving something to her.
It was about
proving something to myself.
What?
That I didn't need her.
But I do.
As do you.
Maybe that's the point
of all of this.
Maybe we're
supposed to find her.
Together.
♪
Hmm.
♪
Or perhaps she'll find us.
♪
♪
[Walkers growling]
♪
♪
[Electricity buzzing]
♪
[Walker growling]
♪
♪
♪
How far will it reach?
15 miles, maybe.
It appears our flame
has already drawn a few moths.
She'll see it.
She'll follow it.
She'll find this place.
Alicia is the closest thing
I have left to family, Will.
You're not the only one
who loves her.
I never had the chance
to tell her,
but I-I would've.
If we found her.
And perhaps she would have, uh,
reminded me of the man
I once tried to be.
She still can.
She can help you be him.
I never should have
left this place.
It almost got me killed.
I had a feeling
that it would, but I...
I didn't trust my instincts.
I can't let that happen again.
It could destroy
everything I've built here.
That's not true.
Hey.
You will make this place
even better.
You both will.
Together.
You said you can't lead alone.
You're wrong.
It's the only way.
That's not true.
It is.
I've watched as others tried
to build a place like this,
and each of them came close,
but they all fell short
for the same reason.
What?
Love.
Attachments don't
make you strong, Will.
They destroy you.
That light's
not to draw Alicia here?
No.
It's to keep her
and everyone else
as far away as possible.
It won't work.
She'll find this place.[Chuckles]
She'll get through to you.
Aah!
[Screaming]
No, she won't!
She won't have anything
to do with me after this.
[Walkers growling]
You want me
to send somebody down
to get a picture for the wall?
No one in here's
looking for him.
Someone out there might be.
That's gonna draw
more than the dead.
Maybe even some of those people
you were with before.
People like Morgan Jones.
I'm not worried about him.
♪
Or anyone else.
Why not?
Anyone who tries to get to me...
♪
Is gonna have to
get through them.
[Walkers growling]
♪
♪
Morgan: We can build something
someplace else
that would actually last.
[Walkers growling]
[Baby crying]
♪
[Grunts]
Take another step, I'll shoot.
[Gunshot]
Morgan! Ah!
[Gun cocks]
Mommy's here.
Mommy's here.
You know why I have to do this!
You can take everything from me!
♪
[Suspenseful music plays]
[Groaning]
♪
The end of Season 6,
the world changed
in a drastic way,
with the detonation
of the warheads
that Teddy launched
from the sub.
It completely ravaged
the landscape
and redefined the apocalypse
as we know it.
We knew that things were going
to be different,
but we wanted to come
into the season
showing just how dire and scary
this landscape was,
as a result of those bombs.
Chambliss:
We wanted to see that firsthand
through a new character's
point of view,
someone who the audience could
experience this new world with,
and that's
the character of Will.
And the opening, really,
is all about establishing
just how punishing
the environment is out there.
It's not just about walkers.
It's about all the things
that our characters
would've taken for granted prior
to the detonations...
Shelter that safe
from the radioactive fallout,
water that's clean to drink,
food that's safe to eat.
Even the Walkers
take on new danger
because you don't know
if they're contaminated
or they're not.
[Growling]
On the other hand, we also see
how someone who is lucky enough
to be in an area
that the fallout missed,
like Strand,
could create a world to live in
that is actually pretty good,
when you compare it
to the way things are out there.
We knew that a new Victor Strand
was going to emerge
out of the ashes
of the nuclear apocalypse.
This was a man who was
no longer apologizing
for the things he'd done.
This was a self-possessed,
reinvented Victor Strand
and we see that, in the months
in between that episode
and Season 6
and where we find him now,
that reinvention has continued.
He is sporting
a whole new wardrobe,
this historic-looking tunic
that he's wearing.
He has a sword that he carries,
that goes back
to 19th-century Texas history.
I think it speaks to
how Strand feels about himself,
how he is really the king
of the castle, here.
As we learn in this episode,
he's actually finding that
to not quite be enough.
He actually needs something more
and, ultimately,
we find out what he needs
is Alicia.
But I think,
in terms of kind of bragging
about everything he's built,
getting great pleasure
in showing Will around,
it's trying to fill that hole
that he has kind of in himself,
that he's not getting from any
of the people around him.
And then, ultimately,
that ends up
kind of being hollow to him
and that's what sends him out
on the journey he takes
with Will.
Alicia and Strand have
a long and complex history
and, through everything
they've been through,
there's a deep amount of emotion
and care for each other
that underlies all of it.
Now, saying that,
Strand and Alicia did not end
in a particularly good place
at the end of Season 6.
Hello?
Strand:
Alicia?
Victor?
Yes, it's Victor.
Are you okay?
Can I trust you?
Of course.
What's wrong?
[Speaking indistinctly]
You need to get to Morgan.
Tell him I know
where the keys are,
what they're for.
He needs to find
a beached submarine
near Galveston.
♪
Ultimately, Strand
did not prove trustworthy
and he was not able to stop it
and there's been
no communication
between them since.
So, there's an unresolved part
of Strand
that is still harboring
some guilt for that.
And there's also
a part of him...
And this is the surface level...
Where he says, you know,
he wants to find Alicia,
to prove to her
that he was right
about everything.
He has done something
that no one else has done.
Creating a settlement
where everyone could be safe
is something that Morgan
attempted to do in Season 6
when he set up the community
behind the dam wall
and, ultimately, it failed.
You know, and if you look
around the landscape,
it failed in a really big way
because Teddy detonated
those warheads,
kind of destroyed everything.
So the fact that Strand is able
to do, at least in his mind,
what Morgan wasn't able to do,
in many ways,
is proof that he is the person
who should be in charge,
who should've always been
in charge.
And, ultimately, it's really
about proving to Alicia,
way back when,
at the beginning of Season 6,
when he said he had
to kind of push her away
so he could do the things
he needed to do,
it's his way of saying,
"I was right to do that."
The only difference is, now,
Alicia's nowhere to be found,
so he has no one
he can actually say that to.
Or, at least,
he doesn't have the one person
he wants to be able
to say that to.
I was the one
who gave that to her,
so she could remember
who she was.
Because I figured
I wouldn't be able
to do the same for myself.
Victor has some interesting
and, in some ways,
misguided ideas
of what makes a good leader.
He talks about it with Will.
That tower succeeds
because of me.
[Sigh] Okay.
My choices.
My instincts.
"Succeeds"?
Will really doesn't subscribe
to the way Strand
is doing things
and, ultimately,
that all comes down
to the things that Alicia
must have told him about Strand.
From Strand's point of view,
I think he's wondering
what it is that Alicia told him
because I think, in many ways,
that will signal
how Alicia feels about him
when he finally does meet her.
And, when he thinks
that Alicia might be in danger,
when all the walkers show up
at the lighthouse, you know,
he steps out into the fog
to fight the walkers.
He risks his own life
and that's ultimately the thing
that makes him realize
just how much he actually cares
about Alicia
and just how much
her validation means to him.
Ultimately, that's why he
makes the decision
not to bring Alicia to the tower
and, in fact, to do something,
to take this terrible action,
of killing Will,
that will ensure that Alicia
wants nothing to do with him.
And that's sort of Strand's
Darth Vader moment,
where he chooses to cut off
this connection in his heart
for the sake of his power
and for the sake of protecting
what he's built.
Aah! Aah!
Aah aah aah!
♪
[Growling]
It's a pretty dark turn
for Strand to take
at the end of the episode
and, yes, he's kind of become
what he always wanted to be,
but he's really left
on the roof of that tower,
I think, wondering
just what it cost him.
It may, in fact, have cost him
the person he cared about most
and, you know, as we see him
standing up there,
kind of having all the dead
walkers come towards the tower,
it's kind of a metaphor
for, you know, who he is...
Someone who's driven all the
living people away from him
and is now just
kind of surrounded
by death and destruction.
Anyone who tries to get to me
is going to have
to get through them.
♪
♪
♪