by Misc:
I added Google +1 buttons to the site, so vote up content you really like and we’ll see if that starts helping my out with search engine traffic.
Only a few more days to enter the Freeform Challenge, and some new prizes have been added (a BrickArm for first place and an additional Hazmat figure for second place) Get those entries in, folks!
Zombie Cliché Lookout:
Putting a bullet to a person before they die is generally seen as merciful, but that doesn’t make it any easier to do, especially when the deceased was close. Zombie stories usually play this up, often as an opportunity for someone to assert leadership of the group by assuming a horrible but necessary duty. The willingness to take action and do the right thing when it would be just as easy to walk away is generally a sign that a character is a morally upstanding person with a strong sense of duty.
Of course it could also mean they’re a psychopath that just enjoys shooting people in the head, but it’s generally the morally upstanding thing.
The catch 22 is of course that Murphy might one day be done for the “murder” of Shannon, but since she was going to turn into a zombie anyway, I doubt any knowledgeable judge would hold it against him.
Of course with the story being fictional, Dave might completely avoid going there – or maybe the judge will turn into a zombie! 😀
Wait what judge?
One who might or might not even make an appearance in a future episode. I was speculating, if you reread my comment.
Boy wouldn’t that be awful? Things get back to normal and you get charged for something like this?
Guilty in terms of: Killing a Dead Person.
Sentence? … Umm.. We don’t have a precedent so..
Umm..
Well we’re legos so.. INTO THE MIXED LEGOS BIN FOR YOU!
That’s a harsh sentence right there.
I didn’t think anyone could be that inhumane….
I concur, that’s a very harsh sentence, especially if my daughter’s the one mixing him into the loose bin and gets done with pulling him apart.
Luckily the worst Murphy could get in my collection would be “thrown into the giant drawer of unsorted plates”. Still a harsh sentence, but it could be much, much worse.
Thrown into the “save for kindergarteners” pile?
I have a box like that of chewed-upon bricks (from when my siblings were little) – some are in use as hidden foundation or for babygate shims, but the rest… well, I’ll be ready for when we graduate from Duplo.
And then they find a little LEGO policeman who’s been sent down for Coup de Grace Murder…
Wow, another torturous punishment!
On a related note, I should probably start setting some things aside for when my kid graduates from Duplo. The thought of him going through my nicely organized collection… egad.
Unsorted bricks by the pound on bricklink brutha. A nice oxyclean bath and rinse and they will be in perfect shape germ free. I do that before I even inspect my orders.
You’re not the first person I’ve heard talking about an Oxyclean bath for used LEGO. Does that do a better job that regular dish soap? I may have to pick some up.
Oh….you use dishsoap?
Dave……
Dude……
*facepalm*
*shrugs off “Dave is my Lego Overlord” T-Shirt*
I’ll take that as a “Buy some Oxyclean, you rube”.
Ok kidding aside, yeah. Dish soap is no good. It’s too harsh and wears away the plastic a bit leaving somewhat of a fog over time. Computer nerds figured this out with ABS computer plastics that gets that yellow color.
What you do is you fill a bucket with hot water…not boiling and I typically use one two heaping tablespoons per gallon of hot water. Mix it all up and dump in the bricks and rub them a bit while submerged. Let’s them sit overnight and then rinse them in hot water (I use a plastic spaghetti strainer.)
For yellowed white bricks I add in Hydrogen Peroxide.
When done, scratches aside, if you can tell old from new bricks I would be stunned. It’s perfect. I cringe when I read about people putting these in mesh bags and running through a washer. A small tub of Oxy will last you a long time. I’ve run about 20 lbs through oxy and I still have my original small container.
Okay, I’m picking up a tub of Oxyclean the next time we go grocery shopping.
BricksoftheDead.com: Your LEGO cleaning solutions & entertainment depot.
In my house, they get sentenced to the bin that I let my numerous 3-5 year old cousins play with. About 75% of them want to just destroy things. I hate family parties.
Billy Mays would be proud of you zombiemutts. God rest his soul…
an even worse punishment than being thrown into the mixed lego box
BEING THROWN UNDER THE MIXED LEGO BOX!
laying there for all of eternity being crushed by 2 stone of plastic, hoping with all your LEGO heart that they will find you there, that they will lift the box and recue you from your eternal pain. but it never happens so you lie still until one day SNAP! the plastic breaks and you will never be put back together again……
sad story isn’t it?
Indeed Dude….God Bless his tortured undead soul and bottles of jet-black hair dye.
Great, now I want Oxyclean, too. I hope it does a good job on transparent bricks and windshields, too?
Lich….honestly I am not sure. Anything like that I have only bought new.
Great comic dave. * slips poison and a little nutmegg to cover over poison taste into food.* ” Dave I ‘ll cook for the awards show.” *Big smirk across face* ” Now that I have poisoned everyones food I will win. *Every one turns and looks at me. Me “Oh look a distraction.” Everyone looks. * I start to run. Zombies block exit. Dave arrives sees everyone dead takes rewards to make another great comic. Dave forgets I’m infected I bite him we start a zombie apocalypse.
Hah, wow.
Wow, six panels! That’s the longest episode of BotD there has ever been to date (isn’t it?)
(But of course, about 90% of my episodes of Zombie Outbrick are 6 panels long… 😉 )
I like how you handled this episode, especially the last panel. I appreciate horror movies, or any type of movie really, that gets things across creatively. (I.e. when someone gets shot, they don’t show the actual event, but perhaps a flash on the opposite wall, coupled with an abrupt scream… Or, even less subtle, blood sprays across the walls/floor,etc.)
One of my personal favorites is using shadows on the wall.
Of course, a cut-to-black with an exaggerated gunshot works well also. Nicely done. (Although I personally would’ve chosen one of the other methods… But this is why Zombie Outbrick is not Bricks of the Dead. 😉 )
Good episode, Dave.
(And I’ll have to hurry up on my contest entry! It’s still in its conceptual phase…)
Yes indeed, this is the longest BotD so far. I usually stick to four but I thought this needed the extra couple of panels.
There’s definitely a lot of different ways to close out this episode, but I thought the sound-only option worked best for the situation. Out of curiosity, how would you have done it?
Yes, you definitely need to get crackin’ on that entry.
For the last panel, I think I would’ve done a shot with Cheryl looking very worried (perhaps with Shannon and Murphy in the background out-of-focus behind her) with a “Bang!” sound effect across it.
I think the sound-only panel worked very well anyway, it’s just a matter of personal preference.
Hmm, I like that approach as well.
I would probably have gone for a shot of Murphy’s face with a muzzle flash from off-panel maybe.
Ditto on the layout construction. Funny how much more “weight” the storyline gets when it exceeds the expected length… but I enjoy the meta.
Much appreciated, sir.
By the way Dave, by some incredible miracle today, my contest entry is no longer in conceptual phases… but is well on its way to becoming a reality!
I really did get crackin’ today. Fingers crossed it turns out well.
Outstanding! Getting crackin’ is a hell of a thing.
Can I get a link?
The Zombie Outbrick? Just click his name.
Yes guy, please do! 😉
Looooooool I couldn’t help but laugh at that face..
Murhpy’s in the forth panel? Yeah, that’s the best yelling face I have.
You have so many different “emotional” LEGO faces that it’s ridiculous. Even using different faces at all is fantastic, when so many other brick comics (mine included) use the same static face over and over again.
Personally, I think Murphy’s panel 4 face looks fine.
Thanks, it’s just not quite what I was going for. I wanted angry shouting, when this looking more like excited/happy shouting. Ah well, limitations of the medium, I suppose.
Wow that was clever, just create the only sound in your possesion that is much louder than the boombox >.>
Couldn’t he have staved her head in with the but of his rifle? Plus Doubletapping was used in Zombieland but is also and anti-terrorist precaution. People can survive close up headshots with very little injury.
Lol Murphy’s face at the prospect of shooting somone in panel 4
I know, not a great face. Unfortunately it’s the best yelling-but-not-afraid face I’ve got.
He probably could have stoven her head in or something like that. Psychologically speaking, I think that would be really difficult to do to someone you know, even if they are coming back as a zombie. The gunshot is unfortunate, but they’re also leaving. Hopefully quick enough to avoid the horde.
The thing you’re forgetting here is that Murphy’s a trained police officer, they rarely put bullets in non-fatal parts of suspects they’re aiming at, they’re trained to aim for the kill zones.
So if anyone would know how to kill Shannon before she comes back as a zombie, it’s good that it’s Murphy and not Stewart! 😉
That training might kick in during a panic situation, but here he’s collected and calm. Or as calm as possible given the circumstances.
Most people think guns are a point and click interface. They learn the hard way how much recoil there is! 😉
I’ll bet that surprises a lot of people, especially those who primarily know guns from movies and video games.
Actually, I’m fairly certain that as a police officer trained to protect the welfare of civilians, Murphy would most likely be trained to aim for non-lethal places when guns get involved.
But I’m sure he’s had enough training to handle a gun.
And I did once fire a hunting rifle, at a friend’s ranch, and it hurt my arm. Granted I wasn’t holding the stock against my arm as I should have been, but I have no doubt that anyone else like me who’s never used a real gun before might make the same mistake.
And I don’t know if I could ever hit anything with a handgun… Judging from what little experience with rifles I’ve had, it seems like a handgun would be much harder to keep steady and aim properly.
I’m sure that’s not a problem at close range with a stationary target!
I’ve taken a couple firearms courses, and you are never taught to aim for non-lethal shots. If you’re using a gun, you’re shooting to kill. Shooting a dude in the leg is total Hollywood crap.
Hitting things with a handgun is definitely more difficult than it appears. I shot this weekend for the first time in probably eight months. I did terribly. I need to practice more, but since I don’t own a gun that’s hard to do.
I don’t think there is such a thing as training for non-lethal shots for the police. All non lethal techniques are in the form of pepper spray, baton’s etc…
Training for “center mass” shots is hard enough. That’s even what the military trains for with rifles.
Talking about training., A man came to our school a few months back talking about his self defence class. In short he prepares you for mental and physical attacks. Lets say your a black belt in Karate. Some guys backs you into a dead end with a knife and what the brain does is forget all that training and let the legs or fists do the talking. He mentally trained students how to overcome this.
Executing Shannon so you don’t have to change the arms, torso, and head? Good work. Also, Murphy’s face in panel 4. It’s… creepy.
I actually have a zombified version of Shannon that I put together, but I like this route better.
Why don’t you use it anyway? The gang could always learn later that Murphy succeeded! 😉
Besides, since you went to the trouble of making it why not use it anyway? 😉
That’d be pretty weird.
Weird, perhaps, but natural, even if you only use certain angles of it! 😉
After all, waste not want not, as the saying goes! 😉
Hah, I think I’ll keep poor Shannon dead. She’s suffered enough.
You’ll probably find a use for her somewhere! 😉 And probably when everyone’s all but forgotten about Shannon! 😀
Perhaps, perhaps.
I see the bad moon arising.
I see trouble on the way.
I see earthquakes and lightnin’.
I see bad times today.
Don’t go around tonight,
Well, it’s bound to take your life,
There’s a bad moon on the rise.
I hear hurricanes ablowing.
I know the end is coming soon.
I fear rivers over flowing.
I hear the voice of rage and ruin.
Outstanding!
For some reason I feel like Sam would be against executing Shannon.
Yeah, I think you’re right. I’m looking forward to seeing what he thinks of all this when everyone is reunited. You know, in another hundred episodes or so.
Hah, it does seem to be taking forever for anything to happen!
But that’s fine by me, as long as each individual episode is interesting or advances the plot in some way. As long as you’re still moving forward, it’s probably smart to draw things out a little bit. (Obviously that way, you can get more episodes from the same set of ideas. More bang for your… erm.. thought, I guess you might say!)
Oh yeah, BotD is a slow burn, but that’s by design. I want to take my time with the story rather than running from set piece to set piece.
Of course I don’t want it to feel padded either. I did one episode of padding, and everyone (rightly) called me out on it. So far I’ve not heard a lot of complaints about pacing, but I’m all ears if you guys think it’s a problem.
Which episode was that?
That was the one where they were all in the hall and Shannon suggested moving into one of the apartments.
hmm…lemme see if I can find it..
*toodles off*
Well I can’t find it…I will just have faith that you felt the proper level of shame.
Episode 124 is the culprit.
oh yeah….
*raises eyebrow*
*shakes head*
Hah, I know. I had to get them out of that damn hard-to-light hallway.
Not that I am an expert but yellow plates seem like impossible to win battle with lighting.
Especially with tan walls. I have an upcoming set with a yellow floor, but the walls are white and greet and that seems to help tremendously.
Yep, for NOB, I usually just crop out the background and put it in afterwards. No real indoor shots, yet.
Cropping out the background on every shot seems like a ton of work. I guess in a lightbox it wouldn’t be so bad, but still, extra steps.
Yeah, it is very time consuming, but it sure looks better then a yellow foam background!
Yeah, I’ll bet.
And the gun shots draw yet more hordes of zombies to them….
These characters need some motivation to get moving. Otherwise they’re just going to stand around and gab.
Then afterwards, they’re just going to shamble around and moan.
Hah, good point.
I like the BLAM pannel
Thank you.
MAN i just saw this nice dave i like the faces. man i never thought that cheryl will even think of shooting her but i would have done the same thing man sam must be slow. nice job.
Thanks BrickZedHunter!
I wonder if this “Website” thing will work…
Ha ha! Yes!
Oh yeah, if you’ve got a site you should definitely link it in your comments like that. They’re nofollow links, but it’ll still let people click through.
R.I.P. Shannon *moment of silence*….Would anyone like to say a few words in her memory?
(NOTE this is an interactive mermorial say whatever you want.)
I’d just like to say goodbye. GOOD-BYE!!!
WHOOO got my modem set up and i can see the comics!i’m gonna go to photobuckeet for the pics.Be Right Back.
By the way, Dave, where are the aforementioned “Google +1” buttons? I can’t see them. (although I had a peek, and found ’em in your source code… 😉 )
Do I have to be a “Google +1” member or something? I have a Google account for Gmail and YouTube… you’d think that’d be enough… Or is it just not out yet?
I’m confused.
They should show right underneath the Zombie Cliche Lookout, but above the comments. Tried it signed in and out of Google and I’m seeing it either way. Do you have ABP running or something like that?
No, I’m not seeing it… I looked it up and everything, so I know what it’s supposed to look like… but it’s not there for me.
I don’t have any ad-blocker programs running or anything, so I don’t understand why it wouldn’t show up. It’s very strange…
Oh, nevermind.
Apparently, the jerks over at Google decided not to make it compatible for Internet Explorer users who don’t have IE 8, or something like that…
I can see them with Safari, though.
Ah, that makes sense. Damn old IE
Hey Dave, are you aware that if you search “lego zombie MOC” on google images, your picture on this site is the first picture on the second page? Just sayin…
Hah, well that’s awesome.
Wow, good job Dave 🙂
I like the last panel 😀 Sure, it’s only a huge BLAM on black background, but damn it looks good!
Also, “Guilty in terms of: Killing a Dead Person.” is pretty funny 😀
Thanks. I was going for muted but over the top 😉