‘Fear The Walking Dead’ Season 3, Episode 4 Recap: Danny Salazar Rises In The Ranks

Fear the Walking Dead turned its attention to Danny Salazar this week, who showed up at the end of the previous episode.

FEAR THE WALKING DEAD RECAP

A drunk named Efrain found Danny, injured from the explosion in season 2, and offers him water. He helps him to safety from surrounding walkers and leads him to Lola, a doctor, who cleans his leg wounds.

After getting cleaned up, Danny leaves on his own, but is almost immediately circled by walkers. He kills one with his cane, but is overtaken by a big guy, and can do nothing but pray. Fortunately for him, someone was listening, and the walker was struck by lightning and killed. Unfortunately for him, so was Danny.

He is found by a dam by a group who cleans the dead walkers out of the area. They save him and bring him to Lola again. She fixes him up and then takes him aside, telling him the men who found him are bad. He must lie and pretend he’s never met Lola before, and beg for a job.

Later, when the gang is eating and Danny, the new janitor, is set up with some food at a table, the big boss walks in. His name is Dante, and while everyone else stands in respect, Danny remains seated. The men start yelling for him to stand, and one even tries to physically make him, but Danny won’t have that. A fight ensues, and Dante is the one to break it up. He asks Danny’s name. “Sergeant Salazar? NCO Salazar? Lieutenant Salazar?” Dante asks. He knows Danny as a ruthless CIA-trained killer from the El Salvadorian civil war. Dante is impressed and makes Danny a security guard.

Later, on duty, Danny and the other guards are sent to find out who has been stealing water from them. Danny already knows that Efrain and Lola are behind this, but he plays along. They make their way to an abandoned mall, the same place Efrain first found Danny, and find Efrain. Danny rats him out, and explains to Lola that they would have discovered the truth regardless of his help. Victor Strand is also implicated and caught.

Danny finds Strand later and asks if his daughter Ofelia made it out of the fire. “She’s waiting for you,” Strand says, telling that Ofelia is in a hotel about a day’s walk away. “You’d say anything to save your life,” Danny responds, unbelieving. “This place is perfect for you. You will rot here, like the dead.”

“Ofelia is dead. Her father is dead. And so are you,” Strand says back. Dante and Danny beat him later.

Danny helps Dante question Efrain, and they beat him with weapons as torture. It tops when Lola admits she is involved as well. Dante decides to teach everyone a lesson, and brings them to the top of the dam to make an example out of them.

One by one Dante tosses the accused off the dam to their deaths. When it’s Lola’s turn, Danny steps in and shoves Dante away. Danny quickly steals another guard’s gun and shoots a few more. He hands the gun to Lola, and kneels before her in forgiveness, giving her the option to kill him for his sins. Instead, she extends her hand to help him up.