Fear the Walking Dead
Season 6 / Episode 15 - "U.S.S. Pennsylvania"
Teddy / Riley / Dakota: In the opening, Teddy and Dakota sit in the darkened missile control room of the U.S.S. Pennsylvania; he questions the teen about her self-identity, and getting her to finally accepting herself for who she is, rather than what Virginia or Morgan allegedly) wanted her to be. Teddy makes it clear that only Alicia will survive to be a news beginning, and that all others--including Dakota--as part of a "conclusion" (the missile launch) will need to die. Teddy gives her his gun, and also explains how Riley--a former weapons officer of the submarine--had no family and was lost before being found by Teddy.
Team Two - Luciana / Sarah / Charlie / Rabbi Kessner / Wes / Daniel: Luciana and Company--in addition to providing information on the sub--stand ready to take on any of Teddy's group that are still headed toward the location.
Team One - Morgan / Grace / June / J.D. / Dwight / Sherry / Strand: This group stands near one of the sub's hatches; initially, Morgan wanted to go in alone, but is followed by Grace, who is worried about the levels that should be emitting from the reactor compartment--but are not registering on her Geiger counter. Before the others follow, Morgan tells Grace that the mission might lead to his death and she should not be there--that she should survive to build the dream-future Athena revealed to her. Grace sensed where Morgan's reasoning was going, and refuses to leave--not after what Teddy's group cost her. Despite the danger, she--and the rest of Team One--will share the risk.
Calling back to Luciana for intel on the sub, Team One learns the sub had a crew compliment of 150--which means that number in walkers standing between them and the missile silos. Once again, Morgan wants to enter this area alone, but the others are not having it, Strand in particular, who will not let anything stop him from finding Alicia.
Making their way into the walker-occupied silo (in the hope of deactivating the missiles), Morgan speaks to Grace (waiting outside the room) via one of the sub's emergency comms--a conversation interrupted by Teddy. Despite J.D. promising to put a bullet in Teddy's head, and Morgan demanding to know where Alicia is, Teddy mocks the group, telling them that they were wrong in thinking they would be safe from the missile strike being near the sub, as the target site is the submarine, where both groups will die. Grace to warn Team Two to flee the area to the assumed safety of a nearby Naval base's "basement" discovered by Charlie (some time ago), but the poor signal only sends garbled audio.
Morgan slips away, intending to carry out the mission as a solo act; Strand catches up to him, and the truth comes out: Morgan admits to promising some sort of home for the group over and over again, but it has always failed. This time, he needs to be sure they will have that chance at a life. Strand asks if Dakota's letter (left with Morgan after she saved his life last season) has anything to do with his decision, but he reminds Morgan that Dakota is a sociopath and the letter was her asking him to kill Virginia, nothing more. Morgan turns the Q&A session around, asking Strand why he's even there. Strand recalls Alicia asking him was he there (at Virginia's HQ) for himself, or the others. He assures Morgan that he is in the sub not for himself, but everyone else, keeping his promise to Alicia.
Encountering a boil-covered walker near anther room, and the counter registering at more than 40,000, Grace fears there may be some massive, undeniably lethal level of radiation behind the door. Morgan asks how long would someone survive if they were exposed for a few minutes, to which Grace replies a week. Feeling he has no choice (SEE NOTES), Morgan decides to enter the section, but the counter indicates a higher level is safe. Making their way up to crew quarters (and discovering a photo of Riley), they are cut off by more walkers. Morgan argues that if Strand had something to prove, he just did, but Strand--admitting that he would do things Morgan will not, fights Morgan, stealing his axe (or the head of it) and kicks Morgan into a group of attacking walkers....
Strand moves though the corridors, but is caught off guard by the armed Dakota, who orders him to drop the axe. On the comm system, Dakota rails against the others, explaining how she saved Morgan so he could kill Virginia, how she used June,etc. Unrelenting, she criticizes the group for trying to be what Morgan wanted them to be--living that way--which she concludes is the reason Teddy's doomsday plan is right. Dakota also accuses Strand of killing Morgan--leaving Grace gasping. Dakota blurts out that Alicia is not aboard the sub, and will be the only one left while people like her--and "assholes" like Strand will die. As she pulls the trigger, a flash of wood strikes her arm, the bullet hitting Strand's shoulder. Morgan enters the room, and swiftly knocks Dakota out, and reassures and elated Grace that he's alive and well. A dead serious Morgan tells a speechless Strand that he will deal with his treachery later. Handing Strand the axe, they head toward the missile control room, where Riley is finishing entering the codes for the launch sequence.
Teddy becomes suspicious when he radios Dakota and hears nothing, leading him to push Riley to finish his task. Outside of the room, the ever-resourceful Morgan swipes one key card (obtained them from the walkers Strand pushed him into) after another, in the hope that one will open the door. As Teddy and Riley use their keys to launch the missiles, Morgan and Strand race into the room--Morgan threatening to shove his part of the axe through the wild-eyed Teddy's mouth, while Strand holds Riley at gunpoint.
With the missiles readying to launch, the rumble alarms the others, sending them racing to escape the sub, but its too late: Riley manages to launch one missile, with Team Two--reserved to their fate--sadly watching in the distance. Inside, Teddy blabs on about endings and beginnings, but Morgan--feeling he's lost it all--allows them to leave. Morgan blames Strand--if he had not been betrayed, he would have reached the control room earlier; Strand claims he did that to save lives, but Morgan cuts him off, accusing him of only doing it for himself, so he could pretend to be the big hero to Alicia.
Morgan orders Strand from the room. Looking at the turned key, Morgan stands in silence...
NOTES:
Morgan wanted to risk his life entering the irradiated section of the sub, but what was he prepared to do, since he did not what was behind that door, and he's no technician, so he would not be able to stop the missile launch from any section of the sub.
Fantastic episode that kept viewers guessing from one scene to the next--especially the scene where Morgan was kicked into the walkers by Strand.
Next week: the season 6 finale. The previews run off a rapid clip of some of the heroes on the road, Morgan and Grace embracing in the control room, Daniel either reading or etching a series of numbers or letters in what looks to be the interior of the SWAT van, and Teddy with a revived Dakota watching the skies from hill overlooking a valley....
GRADE: A.
