Fear the Walking Dead returns with an episode that finally brings everything into focus. The bad news is that the characters, once again, act nonsensically and doom themselves. Bad television writing strikes as the plot arc with Nick's (Frank Dillane) death, the fall of the diamond, and the Vultures fizzle.

The Wrong Side of Where You Are Now opens with a flashback montage of John Dorie (Garret Dillahunt) and Naomi (Jenna Elfman). They are fishing, eating dinner, and canoeing back on the river. Cut to the present, John is shot and lying in Naomi's arms on the racetrack. The Vultures and Alicia's (Alicia Debnam-Carey) group are in a heated firefight. Morgan (Lennie James) helps Naomi move John to safety behind a car. He tells her that he is John's friend. Alicia is still targeting Naomi, but Victor (Colman Domingo) pulls her back.

Luciana (Danay Garcia) orders everyone to fire on Mel's (Kevin Zegger) position. He's misjudged their firepower. Mel tells the Vultures to retreat. Naomi runs toward the ambulance to get aid for John. Mel jumps in and drives away. She chases the ambulance before it explodes spectacularly. Alicia hit it with a grenade launcher. She turns her fury towards Naomi, who runs away from her bullet fire.

Althea (Maggie Grace) is recording the battle. Morgan grabs her camera. They need her help to save John. Alicia, Luciana, and Victor are decimating the Vultures. Luciana turns around. She has Charlie (Alexa Nisenson) in her sights, but hesitates and the girl flees. Al pulls up in the MRAV. She opens the latch and trains her rigged guns on Alicia, who halts her advance. Naomi takes John in the back. Morgan tells Charlie to come with him or she will die. The girl scrambles into the front. The MRAV drives away as Alicia's bullets ping off the metal armor. The Vultures have looted all of the surrounding supplies. Naomi instructs Al to drive to the diamond.

Flashback to the diamond. Madison (Kim Dickens) watches as the others prepare the soil for planting. Nick reminds her these crops won't be ready for months. Madison says the rations will get them through. The radio chirps, Charlie is at the gate. The girl begs for help. Mel is in trouble. Back in the MRAV, Charlie asks why Morgan saved her. He replies that this has to end. Al asks Naomi what happened. What did she do to Alicia's family? Charlie speaks up, it was her fault.

In the past at the diamond, Charlie tells Madison that Mel got hurt in a car accident. This was after an argument with his brother, Ennis (Evan Gamble). Nick is skeptical. They have been fooled by Charlie before. The girl swears she is telling the truth. In the present at the racetrack, Alicia and the others put down the Vulture walkers. They find a car and load it up with their supplies. Alicia walks towards the destroyed ambulance. Mel, severely burned, is trying to crawl for help. Alicia asks how long Naomi was with them. He reaches out his hand, but she drives her barrel knife through his skull.

In the past at the diamond, Mel has been taken to the infirmary and handcuffed to the bed. He warns Madison that his brother will be coming back for their supplies. Her people will repel any attack. Victor shows Madison the flags they found from the Vultures. They are collecting the herded walkers. Mel tries to escape by putting a knife to Naomi's throat. She grabs his broken ribs and reattaches the handcuffs. Mel tells her that they are doomed if they stay. He invites her to join him and Charlie.

Madison is in the field, taking down Naomi's room. She's collecting wood to reinforce the gate. Naomi joins her with Mel's warning. They need to leave. It's not worth staying to fight for the diamond. Madison responds that she built this place for her family. She will keep them safe.

Madison takes Mel out of the infirmary. No one has to stay if they don't want to. She orders the gate opened and the Land Rover brought filled with supplies. Madison throws Mel in the car and tells him to leave. He cannot take Charlie. Victor begs her to give Mel a chance to stay. Madison refuses; she draws her gun on Mel. He drives away and they close the gate behind him.

Madison works feverishly to finish tearing down the wood. Nick approaches her. He thanks her for rescuing him repeatedly, for keeping him safe, but doesn't think driving Mel away was the right thing to do. Madison disagrees, she's the boss. Back in his room, Alicia tells Charlie she put a radio in the car with Mel. He responds back, but is coughing and can barely talk. Charlie begs for them to help him. Alicia and Nick take a car out to rescue Mel. Victor let's them through, their mother did the same thing for him.

Ennis and the Vultures are loading walkers into the trucks. Their convoy drives off. Nick and Alicia find Mel's car. They get in the Land Rover, but see the convoy lights approaching. Nick kills their lights as the trucks drive by. At the diamond, Naomi tells Madison that she has prepared the infirmary. Whatever is going to happen will happen soon.

Alicia radios to Victor about the convoy. They take a side ride to beat the trucks to the diamond. Madison joins the others at the lookout. An ice cream truck drives around, laying down a trail of oil behind it. Alicia drives into the parking lot with the Land Rover. The Vultures release the walkers from the trucks. They are covered in oil. Ennis lights a fire on the trail. It flares a line that the walkers will walk through on their way to the diamond. Alicia, Nick, and Mel are trapped in the car by the herd. Madison tells the others to open the gate. She's going after her children. Luciana and Victor are right behind her.

In the present, the MRAV reaches the stadium. Al drives by a burnt ice cream truck. Naomi tells her not to stop. Ennis and the Vultures never went inside, just picked clean what they could from the front. As they drive through the gate, realization dawns on Morgan. He tells Althea that he knows who she is. They pull up unto the field. A sea of burnt walkers surrounds the vehicle.

Self preservation seems to be lost on our heroes. It boggles the mind that they would trust Charlie again, save Mel, and then inexplicably let him out; just to save him again. Meanwhile they know that Ennis is coming back with walkers to attack them. It's absolutely ridiculous. They played sitting ducks for target practice all season long. The big question is what happened to Madison? At this point I don't even care if her character survives. Her fate revealed next week on AMC.