Daniel Salazar is the best-written character on TV.

He’s been around since Fear the Walking Dead Season 1 and has managed to survive the mass cast exodus in the seasons since.

Reuben Blades brings a certain vitality to the character, and it was obvious he loved the hard left turn for Daniel on Fear the Walking Dead Season 6 Episode 10.

For a show about survival, an examination of mental health is needed, and while the show has definitely had some missteps throughout its lifetime, every single beat of Daniel’s struggle was flawlessly executed.

From him locking the weapons up in the shack that he and Morgan called an Armory to pointing the finger at Strand for stealing them, it was brilliant.

Watching this side of Daniel, someone who is usually pulling strings behind the scenes, left me a sobbing mess.

Daniel and Strand have had their problems in the past, and I wouldn’t have put it past Strand to have swindled his former allies.

If there’s one character that will pull the wool over your eyes and stick the knife in your back when you least expect it, it’s Victor Strand.

The paranoia introduced to the narrative as the different factions met and contemplated working together, coupled with the scenes of things blowing up, elevated the drama and the episode as a whole.

The truth is, this new deadly group could be causing problems from the inside of these factions, but the way the show managed to pull the rug from under the audience to show that this was all Daniel was a major moment that showed this show is on the road to recovery.

All Daniel has known is running, and when he finally gets the chance to have some happiness, his mind doesn’t allow him.

It’s distressing knowing that everything he’s fought for might be for nothing, but when people are fighting for survival, the world affects them in different ways.

At one point, I thought Grace was going to be revealed as this master manipulator and plant from the doomsday group.

Her entrance into the narrative was too smooth for someone who blossomed into a good character. Could you imagine the ramifications if it emerged that Grace was, god forbid, a villain?

That would have worked purely for shock value, but there’s still a part of me that questions her motives.

June returning to help diagnose Daniel’s condition, even after everything that happened, helped show how much she’s become the show’s latest iteration of Madison.

Fans have long clamored for a surprise return for Kim Dickens’ alter ego, but I’m afraid June is probably the closest we’re going to get to a character like Madison again.

What worked about June’s return was that she rushed off after murdering Ginny, only to return when her old friends were in dire need of assistance.

Wait, maybe she’s like a mashup of Madison and Carol, and I’m not sure that mix would be a good thing in the long run. Time will tell.

Daniel felt like a liability after realizing what he did was similarly difficult to watch, but I hope that he will return when we least expect it.

Then again, with the End is the Beginning group seemingly starting to close in, he could help open the world up to that storyline.

Dakota should have probably been banished the moment Ginny was killed. She’s a liability, and I wouldn’t be surprised if she killed some more people along the way.

The character knows how to get under the others' skin to build connections before striking. It’s pretty scary, and there will be uproar if she gets any of the other characters killed with her supposed truth bombs about the new group.

Luciana and Wes joining Alicia and Al for a mission is the type of content we need. Luciana and Wes have largely been on the periphery during Fear the Walking Dead Season 6.

Alicia remains one of my favorite characters, but I can’t wait to see how these four navigate investigating this new group.

We still don’t know much about the new group, beyond the fact that they appear to be a group of Doomsdayers that want the world to crumble before starting anew.

It’s a bizarre concept, but I’m intrigued enough to be open to the thought of meeting them. Ginny was obviously scared about the big war between them, leading me to believe they have many weapons at their disposal.

It’s always interesting when a new group is introduced in this franchise because it can send the shows in new and exciting directions.

But we also need some development on the CRM front. Althea now has a connection to them in Isabelle, and there must be some payoff on that front in the back half of the season.

The CRM is this force throughout the franchise, and only The Walking Dead: World Beyond has really shed light on them, but we know the CRM has been around the areas our characters have traversed recently.

Might the CRM help the gang in the war against The End is the Beginning group? It would be a bit too Hollywood for this universe, but stranger things have happened. OK, that’s all I got. What did you think of what happened to Daniel?

What do you think should happen to Dakota?

Are you onboard for the team-up of Al, Alicia, Wes, and Luciana?

Hit the comments below.

Remember, you can watch Fear the Walking Dead online right here via TV Fanatic.

Paul Dailly was an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic.Follow him on X.