Fear The Walking Dead just highlighted a major character problem seen across both iterations of AMC’s zombie apocalypse franchise. The Walking Dead has earned its reputation as one of TV’s most bloodthirsty shows, with major characters dying on an alarmingly regular basis. Often overlooked is how The Walking Dead replaces those lost characters with fresh blood just as frequently. Each new community encountered brings around 5 or 6 main newbies to the table; throw in a few stragglers found along the way, and cast lists soon fill out – even with the steady stream of constant bloodshed.

The same goes for Fear The Walking Dead, but with over-sized ensembles comes over-sized problems, and in the zombie apocalypse that typically means characters who go AWOL for long periods at a time. The Walking Dead season 11’s Commonwealth arc finds its focus thinly-spread through sheer volume of folks involved. Mysteries (such as Connie’s list) went undeveloped for several episodes at a time, while vital characters (Yumiko and Magna the most obvious examples) weirdly fell off the radar. With only 8 episodes remaining, questions over whether The Walking Dead can resolve every loose end and do every protagonist justice will grow louder.

Fear The Walking Dead season 7’s “Divine Providence” just highlighted that issue perfectly. Because Morgan Jones’ submarine suddenly started leaking, every character based there makes the trek to Victor Strand’s Tower, guns in hands. Rather than assault the settlement, they employ the cunning strategy of waiting outside and looking tough while Alicia and Daniel go in alone. As Alicia’s allies literally wait by the phone, the usual suspects line up – Dwight, Sherry, Sarah… hang on, is that the rabbi?! Played by Peter Jacobson, Jacob Kessner joined the zombie apocalypse in Fear The Walking Dead season 5, and while always a peripheral figure, the rabbi has remained among the spinoff’s main survivors throughout. Having said that, “Divine Providence” marks Jacob’s very first appearance in Fear The Walking Dead season 7 – a whole 14 episodes down the track.

Jacob has been bubbling away in Fear The Walking Dead‘s background, but hasn’t actually materialized onscreen since last season’s helicopter trip. Suddenly popping up for the Tower battle serves as a jarring, unexpected reminder he’s still around. Maybe Peter Jacobson had real world circumstances that prevented him filming season 7 scenes before “Divine Providence,” but Jacob’s abrupt Fear The Walking Dead comeback is more indicative of a wider franchise problem where characters are abandoned for extended periods, then reintegrated without fanfare or explanation. Alicia has featured in only a handful of season 7 scenes, while Morgan Jones skipped the final battle he worked so hard to reach. The likes of Sarah and Grace have barely appeared beyond cameos, and Althea remains, er… lost. Fear The Walking Dead‘s character problem is a mirror of what’s happening in The Walking Dead.

Could the root cause be both Fear The Walking Dead and The Walking Dead‘s lack of central protagonist? Since the disappearances of Madison Clark and Rick Grimes, respectively, the zombie apocalypse has adopted an ensemble format across the board. Having that core focal point for other characters to orbit might’ve been key to maintaining a better screen time balance among survivors all along. We’ll soon see, as Kim Dickens’ Fear The Walking Dead return is imminent. With Madison back on board, will the rest of the gang fall in line around her?