Walking Dead is boring!

Started by Beorning, November 26, 2012, 05:38:38 AM

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Sabby

Ah, now you're making me think a TV series of Vampire Earth... now THAT would rock my world so much you'd need to replace your richtorscale.

Shjade

Chris, generally speaking the threat presented by zombies isn't the same as the threat presented by one zombie.

One zombie? Sure, anyone healthy of high school age or higher could probably deal with that. Maybe some would have more difficulty than others, but I think they could manage.

Ten zombies? Well if they aren't already surrounding you you can probably get away from that, no problem.

One hundred zombies? Now we're getting into iffier territory, especially if you're in an enclosed area.

One thousand zombies?

Ten thousand?

A million?

It's not that zombies are individually threatening, it's that in a scenario like this they're just fucking everywhere. It's hard to be vigilant 100% of the time. It's tiring. You get exhausted. You get slow. You don't notice things as quickly as you should. You make worse decisions, maybe more reckless or overly cautious. You take something for granted that you shouldn't have and sprain your ankle. Whatever. It's not fighting a zombie that's a problem. It's fighting the war of attrition with an enemy that doesn't give a shit if you need a break.

As for the initial outbreak? Eh. Bird flu. Whatever. People have demonstrated their ability to get screwed over by pathogens on a massive scale before despite our evolutionary advancements.
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Chris Brady

Shjade, the issue is getting past the 1,000 zombies at once point, that's where the issue with me lies.  Now, if the Zombies were more intelligent/cunning, then I can see the idea of having to keep moving, keep alert and keep a weapon handy.  Human's are despite the sheep like behaviour we see, are pretty smart once we get going, and Zombies as they are commonly depicted would never be that big a problem.  That's my issue.

The protagonists in the Walking Dead are utter and complete morons, and I cannot relate to anyone just that stupid.  I'm not a smart person, but I know enough of the world to realize that most militaries, especially when bored, have actually thought up of plans of how to deal with zombie infestations.
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Remiel

I'm always amazed at how fragile zombies are in movies and video games.  You can hit a person in the head with your fist, and all that it's likely to do is piss him off.  A few blows later, and maybe you've knocked him out or given him a concussion.   But punch a zombie in the head?  Either their skull collapses, or you knock its head clean off.

Also, my biggest problem with zombies is that they're mindless, thoughtless eating machines.  Basically the whole point of existence is to fill their stomachs, no?

...so what's to stop them from eating other zombies?  I mean, hey, free meat!

Sabby

To you're first sentence, I've actually never seen that xD It's always been 'they're too derp to take a punch and fall over'.

And to the second, they usually handwave that as a psychological thing.

KieraHaroden

Remiel,

I think zombies are so "fragile" because they're dead, their bodies are decomposing. But their brains are the only thing keeping them alive. If you break a zombies arm, it won't deter them because they shouldn't feel the pain. They'll keep coming because their brains are telling them to find food. Kill the brain, you kill the zombie. They can't function without the brain.

As for eating other zombies, I think they're "designed" to find fresh blood and flesh, rather than decomposed flesh. I think that's why in shows like The Walking Dead and some films, if the protagonists cover themselves with zombie flesh/guts/blood, they're more likely to get past a bunch of zombies because they smell dead.
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SinXAzgard21

Quote from: Chris Brady on February 15, 2013, 10:02:20 PM
I'm not a smart person, but I know enough of the world to realize that most militaries, especially when bored, have actually thought up of plans of how to deal with zombie infestations.

Proof?
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Chris Brady

Quote from: SinXAzgard21 on February 16, 2013, 01:45:38 AM
Proof?
Nothing substantial that I can find online, but I know a couple of soldiers online, and they've relayed a couple of stories that their bases or their allies (and this is in Germany and a couple in the U.S.) once planned out how they would deal with an 'invasion of zombies'.

And here's the other thing, no one centers of disease control, that would try and isolate how zombies come to be?
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Shjade

I'm sure they'd try. That's not a guarantee of success.
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Chris Brady

Perhaps, but you'd think that after a few hundred zombie sightings, people would learn to cremate their dear old dead aunts and uncles...

Either way, I've explained why I can't get into zombie programmes and movies, you guys keep enjoying this one.  I hope it has many more seasons ahead of it.
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So I make a A&A thread but do I put it here?  No.  Of course not.

Also, I now come with Kung-Fu Blog action.  Here:  Where I talk about comics and all sorts of gaming

Geeklet

Quote from: Chris Brady on February 15, 2013, 08:06:06 PM
Which makes me wonder how stupid the entire race of humans has to be if they can't clean up that mess in less than a week.

And here is the problem. A single person is smart. But groups of people are stupid, irrational, and prone to panic and frenzy, moreso the larger the group gets.

Rhapsody

Quote from: Geeklet on February 16, 2013, 05:35:23 PM
And here is the problem. A single person is smart. But groups of people are stupid, irrational, and prone to panic and frenzy, moreso the larger the group gets.

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Chris Brady

Quote from: Geeklet on February 16, 2013, 05:35:23 PM
And here is the problem. A single person is smart. But groups of people are stupid, irrational, and prone to panic and frenzy, moreso the larger the group gets.
Uh huhn.  I think there are quite a few soldiers in this very thread that could argue against that.  And that's something no one ever seems to take into account, the trained personnel we have on our various armed forces and emergency services.

But I'm going to bow out.  Sorry, peeps.
My O&Os Peruse at your doom.

So I make a A&A thread but do I put it here?  No.  Of course not.

Also, I now come with Kung-Fu Blog action.  Here:  Where I talk about comics and all sorts of gaming

SinXAzgard21

Quote from: Chris Brady on February 16, 2013, 04:01:40 AM
Nothing substantial that I can find online, but I know a couple of soldiers online, and they've relayed a couple of stories that their bases or their allies (and this is in Germany and a couple in the U.S.) once planned out how they would deal with an 'invasion of zombies'.

And here's the other thing, no one centers of disease control, that would try and isolate how zombies come to be?

... So its all hearsay.

Quote from: Chris Brady on February 16, 2013, 06:38:05 PM
Uh huhn.  I think there are quite a few soldiers in this very thread that could argue against that.  And that's something no one ever seems to take into account, the trained personnel we have on our various armed forces and emergency services.

But I'm going to bow out.  Sorry, peeps.

I don't think anything can train you for seeing a mass of undead people walking/running towards you. 
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MysticSparxman

Quote from: Remiel on February 16, 2013, 12:56:45 AM
I'm always amazed at how fragile zombies are in movies and video games.  You can hit a person in the head with your fist, and all that it's likely to do is piss him off.  A few blows later, and maybe you've knocked him out or given him a concussion.   But punch a zombie in the head?  Either their skull collapses, or you knock its head clean off.

Also, my biggest problem with zombies is that they're mindless, thoughtless eating machines.  Basically the whole point of existence is to fill their stomachs, no?

...so what's to stop them from eating other zombies?  I mean, hey, free meat!

That's actually a good point.

After all, when have you ever seen a zombie eating the brains of another zombie? I don't think I've ever seen it, but it sure would be interesting to see.
Maybe they just go after the humans because the humans are fresh meat and not......dead meat.  ;D

TheGlyphstone

I also know a good number of current and former servicepeople online who've said their units had written up Zombie Defense scenarios/plans in their spare time. It's hardly surprising that when you get a bunch of intelligent, well-trained combat-minded people with access to significant quantities of weaponry together for long periods of inactivity broken at irregular intervals by actual danger (if in a combat zone) or regular intervals of tedium (in a non-combat area), they'll end up with contingency plans for everything, up to and including zombies uprisings and alien invasions.

But more importantly, zombies are inherently problematic as a threat from another angle, which is competing against themselves. I think I originally got this from Cracked, but it's a salient point regardless - a zombie's sole food source (people) is also its primary means of reproduction (people), which is also its apex predator (people). It's like having to wrestle a lion into submission bare-handed any time you want to have sex or make a sandwich.

That said...any story featuring zombies, or a zombie apocalypse that succeeds in destroying society as opposed to simply crippling it, has to take all of that above and basically handwave it to get to the meat of the story, focusing on the survivors and how they make their way through a ruined world. The zombies are like the aforementioned volcano, just a backdrop element that occasionally tries to eat you. Similarly, enjoying a zombie story requires accepting that handwave into your suspension of disbelief, otherwise it'll just eat at you and ruin the fun.

NotoriusBEN

Quote from: SinXAzgard21 on February 16, 2013, 08:08:26 PM
... So its all hearsay.

I don't think anything can train you for seeing a mass of undead people walking/running towards you.

since it hasn't happened yet, no one is prepared to fight or give 1st hand knowledge in this event. You have to consider the type of zombie to arise. If it is like walking dead and world war z where they actually are dead and just virii controlling the brain, modern soldiers are not equipped to fight that. explosives and bombs are out, unless it is direct trauma to the brain. Their effectiveness is way down when the only way to stop a dead zed is an all or nothing hit. they literally walk off shrapnel.

even the training of the modern soldier is not up to snuff for dealing with zombies. they are trained to shoot center mass or inside the triangle (head and pecs). and to put as much ammunition down range as possible to win the fight... except zombies dont care about being suppressed or self preservation or fear. and again, a direct hit to the brain matter is the kill shot, anything else is waste.

Im drawing a lot from world war z, but I believe that is a fairly realistic assumption of what might go down (aside from the fantastical walking dead zeds)

as for service people planning for ''zombie pandemics''. This was actually a brilliant move by the Center for Disease Control to implement, because preparing for zombies also has surprising parallels to preparing for natural disasters and human made ones as well. If using the sensationalism of zombies got a few more people self reliant in a 'rather mediocre' crisis, its a good thing.

TheGlyphstone

WWZ is a great story, but don't take it as gospel - the military was handed a gigantic Idiot Ball at the Battle of Yonkers for the sake of advancing the plot. It's also hampered by the classic element of zombie fiction, that everyone is Genre Blind and refuses to even say the word 'zombie', let alone give any acknowledgement to the decades of zombie stories we've grown up with.

Shjade

Quote from: TheGlyphstone on February 18, 2013, 01:32:08 PM
WWZ is a great story, but don't take it as gospel - the military was handed a gigantic Idiot Ball at the Battle of Yonkers for the sake of advancing the plot.
While true, keep in mind that no amount of grunts making fantasy plans for how they'd defend against a zombie invasion has influence on what their commanding officers actually order them to do. I'm sure we're all aware how poorly the command structure can work at times depending on the competence and priorities of whomever happens to be in charge at the time.
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TheGlyphstone

Quote from: Shjade on February 18, 2013, 04:27:09 PM
While true, keep in mind that no amount of grunts making fantasy plans for how they'd defend against a zombie invasion has influence on what their commanding officers actually order them to do. I'm sure we're all aware how poorly the command structure can work at times depending on the competence and priorities of whomever happens to be in charge at the time.

Yeah, but the current generation of majors/colonels/1-stars are the ones who grew up with the first Romero zombie flicks. I don't exclude that there would be screwups initially, before it sunk it what was going on, but 'how to kill a zombie' is too deeply ingrained in our culture at this point, and barring story-enforced refusal to believe in zombies despite all the evidence matching up exactly to the stories we've been telling each other for decades, I would expect anti-zombie protocols to go into effect fairly quickly.

Sabby

Hmmm... a zombie virus could work if it had two things.

1. Was airborne.
2. Had a long incubation period.

That cuts out containment. By the time the outbreak is confirmed, it's already too spread out for containment.

TheGlyphstone

Quote from: Sabby on February 18, 2013, 04:48:32 PM
Hmmm... a zombie virus could work if it had two things.

1. Was airborne.
2. Had a long incubation period.

That cuts out containment. By the time the outbreak is confirmed, it's already too spread out for containment.

That's how the zombie virus works in the Newsflesh trilogy, which I find to be one of the better post-zombie-apocalypse stories out there, in part because it specifically avoids the genre-blindness trope, and humans being genre-savvy (plus social media) is responsible for our survival. Granted, the version of the zombie virus there is also not immediately lethal, dormant until the host dies of other causes or is exposed to the fluids of an active zombie, but it's an airborne long-incubation spread that infects the entire human race before anyone can do anything to stop it. Zombies never go away, but society adapts around them for the most part.

Sabby

Please tell me this exists in audiobook form.


Sabby