"Pretend a Little Longer . . ." Fear the Walking Dead, S1 E4

The key scene in my opinion to which the series has heading is between Dr Exner and Liza, shown to the right.

It's also shows the source of fan frustration. The tempo of the plot, the decisions of the characters, the absurdity of the situation now begin to make sense. 

 The characters are acting as if everyone and everything have not changed. Each character has a role in the facade [POTENTIAL SPOILERS}:

• Lt. Moyers does not have the authority upon which he is acting
• Travis jogs in the morning
• Chris the teenage son makes Youtube videos
• Nick the addict relaxes in an uncared-for swimmingpool--still present but no longer pristine
• The neighbor that might not be crazy just afraid
• Ofelia acts interested in the soldier that has access to medicine for her injured mother
• Liza pretends to be a nurse practitioner in caring for sick neighbors
• Dr. Exner who maybe is not really a doctor or with the government?
• Alicia begins to realize the lost world they inhabit--the earbuds have come out, and she covers her head with a sheet to shut out the reality.
• Daniel Salazar is the only one that has fully accepted that things have changed.

The expansive urban landscape has receded into a single neighborhood.

The ruse is beginning to fade.

"Maybe you'd be willing to pretend a little longer," asked Dr. Exner, who is "from the government."

Liza, acting the role of nurse practitioner with the certification, responded, "Excuse me?"

The use of lighting is important in the series. The first three episodes depicted light as the glimmer of hope. The light coming through the windows of the addict's church building in the very first scene, the lamps of the Clark household on the first night, the flicker of life in the eyes of the living. Wherever the source of light emanates from, there is life, and there is still hope.

The blue glaze over the eyes of the walkers no longer projects the glow of life within. As the "walkers" depict the pretense of life, so the world, the city, the neighborhood has become the pretense of civilization. Who will continue pretending? 

[SPOILERS]
Now, the electricity is fading, and the flashes of light seen from Chris's rooftop perch are not survivors seeking help, but muzzle flashes of warning. Everything has truly changed.  The survivors, I predict, will be the ones who stop pretending that everything's still normal. Who will make the change before they also "turn"?

Side note: We are spellbound by the series Fear the Walking Dead but oblivious to the plight of hundreds of thousands of refugees pouring out of Syria into an overwhelmed European community. The irony is not lost here. When will Americans stop pretending it's okay as long as it's someone else's problem? That, in fact, it's everyone's problem in a globally connected world.