of her brother Nick, with whom she is at odds. For Nick, who is "a parent's worst nightmare", Kirkman said, "it's exacerbated [things] to be next to this perfect sister who seemingly doesn't have anything going on in her life that is negative. But that's not really the case, that's just his perception." Debnam-Carey said Alicia and her brother had a close connection as kids, but the loss of their father and their new situation "takes them on very different paths." Their relationship is "fractured" and "it's going to take time to rebuild", she noted. "Because Nick has gone off, she's had to be very self-sufficient ... and that goes against [her] in some way". Her brother "gets all the attention because he's the one that's screwing up", while she is also "saddled with caring for him". Alicia starts "in a difficult place" as well as "a much more hopeful place", Debnam-Carey said. She is "the only one who has ambitions and goals", and had to "compensate" for her brother. She felt emotionally "cut off" from her family, so she tried to protect herself from that and "decided to make a choice for herself". Maureen Ryan in HuffPost said Alicia's "dreams were her lifeline to get out of a difficult situation". Bridget Liszewski of The TV Junkies wrote, "Alicia lost a parent, had an addicted brother that monopolized much of her mother’s time and concern, and saw everything she had worked towards for her future being ripped away." When everything falls apart, she "has the most to lose, and she's roped back into this situation she's really trying to escape from." The character is initially very skeptical about the events occurring in the city. Debnam-Carey said most people in that situation would attempt to rationalize everything and make "logic out of something absurd". There is a lot of "uncertainty in the beginning. Anyone who's infected, in their heads, they think they're just sick". Alicia is "kept in the dark more than everyone else. ... They like the idea that maybe this is temporary or it can be fixed, we don't know that much yet", and the family "just wants to keep at least someone safe and innocent and protected." Erik Kain of Forbes called Alicia early on in the first season, "the optimist, the type of character who will go out of her way to help another, in spite of