The Walking Dead: World Beyond 102 – The Blaze of Glory
The Blaze of Glory resumes the world building of World Beyond delving into the past of several characters including Felix. As Hope, Iris, Elton and Silas continue to make their way to New York state in search of the girl’s father, Felix and Huck follow the quartet to try and keep them out of harm’s way.
The Blaze of Glory refers to a never-ending fire. No one is quite certain of its origin or what fuels it but its presence has been drawing empties, what characters in the World Beyond call walkers, to it for some time. Standing in the way of the kids’ path to New York, the enormous blaze presents them with the first true test in their journey.
The majority of The Blaze of Glory’s runtime focuses on the foursome bonding through their journey to New York. Snippets of their personalities, talents and weaknesses emerge providing insight into what makes them tick. Their journey through the smoke laden Blaze of Glory is a metaphor for growing up. Unable to see only what is before them, they come to realize that there is more to the world than they could have anticipated.
Felix has his own past to reckon with. Cast out by his parents he’s now come full circle while on Iris and Hope’s trail. Felix’s return to his family home is poignant more so when the fate of his parents, and the real reason he snuck away from a sleeping Huck is revealed.
There are echoes of established characters in The Walking Dead universe in World Beyond. Retooled and wearing fresh faces, the main players in the series build upon those archetypes and due to their ages will allow the audience to bond with them as they grow throughout the series. This rejuvenates the franchise for longtime fans and also opens the doors to new ones not willing to be burdened with 10 years of backstory and episodes to catch up on.
Two episodes in, World Beyond is off to a promising start. The central foursome are engaging actors with characters that all have something interesting in their past. The supporting cast is excellent and there are enough plot threads and a new kind of big bad to make for some intriguing and entertaining storylines. One hope for the series as it progresses is that it succeeds where Fear the Walking Dead failed and further explains just how society crumbled and began to restore itself during the apocalypse.
