'Water Keepers' saw Doc, Warren, 10K, and George head to a First Nations community by a dam to get water flowing to New America.
The episode was a filler episode, but one that was done exceptionally well.
Over the past couple of episodes, Z Nation went way too over the top with its cornball humor, as they often do. 'Water Keepers,' by contrast, was relatively tame and it was refreshing to get humor that did not feel forced.
Both Ayalla (Tinsel Korey) and Kuruk (Tonantzin Carmelo), returning side characters from Season 2's 'We Were Nowhere Near the Grand Canyon,' really elevated the episode. Both played well off 10K and Doc, respectively. Ayalla, especially, with her quirky humor as she constantly teased 10K was delightful.
The main conflict involving a talker sabotaging the dam adds another mystery to the show in terms of who hired him, though I suspect it will end being Pandora. By the way, Georgie's fight scene with the saboteur was choreographed really well. It was great to see the fearless leader getting physical - the show has done a good job adding some emotional depth to her character and now we are also seeing her bad ass side.
The crux of this episode though was the spirit walk after Doc had successfully done it three seasons ago. This part of the episode was...weird, something we would only see on Z Nation. It was hilarious when Doc possessed the unconscious body of 10K followed by 10K's reaction to the whole experience.
The best part of the episode though was how wonderfully they portrayed the Indigenous people. Much credit needs to be given to the writers for depicting their culture tastefully and with respect. When I read the synopsis that they would be doing a spirit walk with Doc, I groaned, but it turned out to be quite entertaining while never going overboard.
Overall, this was a strong episode, albeit a filler one. Many commenters have been complaining about how there is a lack of Murphy, which is so very true, he does add a lot to this show. However, Doc has done well, as he always has, in the humor department, while both Warren and George have provided some stellar dramatic moments as well. It is a loss not to have Murphy around, but episodes without him are still very much watchable, especially a stronger episode like 'Water Keepers.' Hopefully though we don't go Murphy-less for too long.
8/10
