The Strain, TV Shows

Was The Strain’s Zach the Most-Hated Post-Apocalyptic Character Ever? Yes

the strain zach
FX

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The Strain is over. 🙁 It was a pretty intense post-apocalyptic series that we didn’t get to cover here nearly as much as I wish I had. But I can’t let the series end without honoring the most hated character in post-apocalyptic fandom: Zach. Not only did Zach likely singlehandedly create the most destruction of any one person in post-apocalyptic history, but he also may be the most hated.

You think Wesley Crusher was hated on Star Trek? Or Carl back when he was younger? Or heck, even Joffrey on Game of Thrones?

Well, you don’t know Zach.

Think Joffrey was hated? You don't know Zach. Share on X

Here are the results of a recent quiz:

Why do people hate Zach? Better question: Why would they NOT hate Zach? #TheStrain Share on X

Why do people hate Zach? More accurately, why would they not hate Zach.

Here are some reasons:

  • He caused Nora’s death because he couldn’t accept that his mom was now a strygoi.
  • He started a nuclear war after he NUKED NEW YORK CITY because he was mad that his dad killed Zombie Mom.
  • He served the Master.
  • When the girl he had a crush on didn’t like him back, he just zombiefied her.

Fans are angry about the series finale because the writers tried to do the unthinkable: they attempted to redeem Zach. Somehow, someway, Zach realized that Zombie Dad wasn’t really his dad and they were better off dead with the Master also dead, so he set off the nuke. This was NOT true to Zach’s character. He refused to ever believe his mom was an Evil Zombie, but always thought she was a Good Zombie. He nuked a city for her. Why would he not feel the same way about his Zombie Dad?

The best part about the finale is that everyone thinks Eph saved the day and Zach was still evil and a traitor to the very end. As they should.

The best part of #TheStrain finale is everyone still thinks Zach was a traitor to the end. Share on X

That’s a happy ending.

Here are some memes about Zach, in case you think we’re alone in our opinion:

https://twitter.com/quinlaninvictus/status/908701586167357440

If you want to be amused, here’s an essay by a viewer, shared at r/TheStrain, sharing how much they hate Zach and what they didn’t like about the finale. Here it is in part:

F**ing Zach having a change of heart at the end and blowing up the nuke ffs. Who the f* thought that was a good idea????? It had to be Eph and Zach was supposed to be the one turning into the Master. I really wanted to see his stupid little sh** face cry when he realizes his dad will blow him the f* up. Stupid f* writers. What was the f*ing point of Zach’s redemption????? They made us hate him more than any child on TV, why not go all the … way and have him be the little sh** he is until the very end????? After ruining the … show they could’ve at least given us a satisfying disposal of that genocidal little bastard…

This was funny though:

Aside from Zach, it was a pretty entertaining finale. I mean, sure, we focused the entire series on the Lumen, which ended up being worthless when all we needed was a nuke. Setrakian had a breakthrough but died before he could truly share it and it really didn’t end up meaning anything. Nobody got to use the recipe for the White that Setrakian found either.

But hey, there may still be at least one Ancient out there, buried at sea, so maybe thousands of years from now that Lumen will come into play after all.

At least then we won’t have Zach anymore.

And by the way: none of this was the actor’s fault: he did the best he could. Hopefully he’ll get a better opportunity with a more-loved character next time.

What did you think of Zach and The Strain finale? Let us know in the comments below.

Like what you read? Join our email list to stay updated by clicking here and be sure to follow us on Twitter. If you need more of The Strain, have you read the books yet? You can get them here. 

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    1 Comment

    1. I totally agree! Zach was such an infuriating character, and every decision he made seemed to make the situation worse. It’s crazy how he could evoke so much frustration in viewers. I think he really took the title of the most-hated character to a whole new level!