Fear the Walking Dead Brings a Villain Back From the Dead Sort Of

Fear the Walking Dead's third Season 7 episode sees John Dorie Sr. face off against an old enemy from beyond the grave.

WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Fear the Walking Dead Season 7, Episode 3, "Cindy Hawkins," which aired Sunday on AMC.

Since John Dorie Sr.'s (Keith Carradine) introduction in Fear the Walking Dead's sixth season, his primary arc has involved Teddy (John Glover), a mortician turned deranged serial killer. In the Season 6 finale, John finally came face to face with his archnemesis and put a stop to his reign of terror by revealing the truth to Dakota (Zoe Margaret Colletti). And while the finale saw Teddy killed-off, Season 7, Episode 3, "Cindy Hawkins," brings him back to terrorize John once more.

The episode picks up with June (Jenna Elfman) and John's life in Teddy's bunker. With plenty of supplies, they have a good thing going. However, it all threatens to fall apart when the booze supply is destroyed, and John Dorie Sr. begins experiencing alcohol withdrawal. As part of the delirium tremens, John suffers from shaking hands and fevers, but his most severe symptom is hallucinations.

After discovering Teddy's terrifying pre-apocalypse murder room in the bunker, John begins hallucinating Cindy Hawkins, one of Teddy's victims. With her body never discovered, the ghost-like Cindy pressures John into locating it. So instead of lying in bed resting, he spends the majority of his time obsessively searching for clues among old newspaper clippings and rambling to the hallucinated Cindy. June starts to worry about John and their safety. However, Cindy only turns John against June, causing him to leave the bunker and have a close-call encounter with a walker.

Despite June's warnings, John insists he has to find Cindy's body and put her to rest. However, June responds that it's not Cindy who needs to be put to rest but John. It's a powerful statement that carries a crucial message. Teddy might be dead, but his hold over John isn't. So much of John's character arc has involved Teddy -- both pre and post-apocalypse. Now, he must learn to live without him.

In many ways, John's detox from alcohol acts as a metaphor for his relationship with Teddy. It might be toxic, but it keeps John motivated. However, when the alcohol is destroyed, John must deal with the aftermath of not having it around, much as he must deal with Teddy's absence. As Fear the Walking Dead previously revealed, John dedicated his life to solving Teddy's crimes, even sacrificing his family in the process. As such, Teddy was like an addictive drug.

Ultimately, things work out, with John returning to save June and also finding Cindy Hawkin's body buried within the bunker's walls. While Teddy didn't literally return from the dead, the trauma from his crimes continued to haunt John. Thanks to June's support and John's own persistence, John manages to find some peace by the episode's conclusion. Although it may not be the last time Fear the Walking Dead alludes to Teddy, it seems John has finally taken back his life and, in the process, opened his character arc up for more development outside of being just the tortured ex-cop.

To see John Dorie Sr. face off against Teddy from beyond the grave, Fear the Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on AMC. All episodes will be available one week early on AMC+.