Zombie Cliche Lookout: Heavy is the Head
In my experience, anytime someone brings up voting on a leader, or making one person be in charge, they’re talking about themselves. It’s a sort of weak, passive-aggressive way of making a power grab, and few people fall for it. Generally speaking, it just comes across as self-serving in a pathetic way. Not exactly the impression most people are going for when they’re trying to seize control of a group.
If you want to be a leader of a fairly eclectic, completely ad hoc group in the middle of a zombie outbreak, you’re going to have to be either a lot more direct, or just one of those people who cause people to naturally gravitate toward them. Most of us aren’t the latter, so we’ll either have to go for the former, or hope the group remains a sort of loose democracy.
About this Episode:
I’m kind of playing around a bit with the lighting and exposure here, since I think the first episode with this set came out a tad over-bright. This is done with the exposure compensation turned down a touch, and the lights repositioned to be a bit more indirect. Does it look better to anyone? I think there’s an improvement, but the first and last frames are still a bit washed out.
Discussion Question: Want to Be in Charge?
It seems to me that a hell of a lot of people want to be in charge. To what end, it’s hard to imagine. Now when it comes to the zombie apocalypse, and being in charge means that you take complete responsibility for the life or death of the people in your party (at least as far as your decisions go, there’s no accounting for anyone being a dumbass and getting themselves killed), does it still sound like as much fun? Don’t get me wrong, bossing people around is awesome and all, but that comes with quite a bit of responsibility.
Well, since the leader will either get left behind at the back or stuck out in front where it’s dangerous, I vote for Stewart too! 😀
Let’s see how fast he can run when the going gets tough! 😉
Good point. A real leader leads from the front, doing everything he or she expects of the group, not insulated from the threat. I think that the next couple of episodes are going to be very interesting. In my experience, police officers are used to getting their way. This situation will tax that, because Murphy will quickly lose that air of authority as the party realizes that there is no more society, and hence, no more “thin blue line”. I will be curious to see how long that attitude lasts.
I dunno, Murphy seems to have done a fairly good job establishing personal authority rather than just relying on his positional authority.
Reminds me of The Walking Dead “This isn’t a democracy anymore.”
My thoughts on a leader would be that they have to be able to handle the current situation well. If things go terribly wrong, especially in the zombie apocalypse, leaders need to know what they’re doing, even if followers end up hating them for it.
Probably my favorite part of the second season was the finale when Rick brings up that point; is a group ever fit to lead itself? It’s human nature to want to be on top, so having someone already there seems to solve parts of that for me. Opinions?
You just don’t see any women lead in zombie projects unless someones clothes fall off. Or a d-star on scifi, either way perhaps you need to change the game. Cheryl should lead with Murphy as her sidearm. I feel Stewart is our Shane
I would not want to be in charge,but I would like to be inside the group that makes the decisions. That way at least I can have a say and try to fight for my ideas being implemented.
Agreed. If it were just me, second in command would be more my style. Final decisions would be on the shoulders of the leader, but having a direct line to the leaders ear, plus power to do almost whatever needs to be done.
On the other hand, between me and my wife we have 3 kids. I would not ultimately trust their survival to anyone but myself. If we need to accept the expertise /skills of others, I can do that, but in the end, I couldn’t allow anyone else to make life or death decisions regarding them.
Now I’m starting to picture a republic, where each family is treated as a state, with a designated “head of household” to represent them…. hmm…
Hey all. I won’t be around a commenting much today. Apologies.
No problem, boss. We will hold down the fort.
Dave not commenting? Oh noes whatever will we do? Get a life, of course! 😉 Don’t worry, Dave, we got this! 😀
A leader, huh? Well, in my experience many people want to be led. They don’t want to shoulder the responsibility of having to live with their own decisions. They’d rather have someone tell them what to do. Now, I do not want to be some Lone Ranger/Rick Grimes. I am the leader of my family, because I recognize my responsibility to my wife and kids. I have to take care of them. I have to make sure they survive. To that end, I recognize that in certain circumstances I am not the leader. If I am on a patrol with men that have more experience than me, I default to their experience. If I am with a medical provider (doc, APRN, or PA), I again listen close to what he or she has to say. Everyone needs to be a good follower and leader.
As for Stewart’s concerned, well, there’s always zombie bait. He reminds me of just another Call of Duty mall ninja. That he’s survived this long is a testament to Dave’s writing, because it sure as hell isn’t Stewart’s amazing skills, survival or people.
Yeah, a mall ninja.
I think the only reason he’s still alive is cause Murphy saved his butt a few times back at the “safe zone”.
He’s just flat-out too dumb to recognize that.
I like stewart, but hes probibly like most kid’s my age, CALL OF DUTY, this and HALO 4, that. kids just enjoy these things, and so do I.
When I was that age, I was on my school’s small-bore rifle team, shooting for about two hours a day, five days a week.
I hate 7th grade, but no, theres no gun classes, theres barley any clubs anyway. were lucky to have a chess team.
I think Stew is a valuable character tho. He is the perfect person to have in a group to help either propel the story/group forward or get them in some exciting trouble 😉
I think he needs to have more tactical gear to be a proper mall ninja.
This.
Hey Dave, do you still want those new Tan lego peices? ive still got all of them, and i can sand my little group over too, just remember to return them.
I don’t want to be in charge. I want to be a 2iC. I like to help people, and to be respected, but to make all the decisions, with everything riding on me all the time? No thanks.
Well im the Quartermaster in scouts, i tell people to clean up and stuff, i think that there should be more than 1 kind of leader, like a kid, to lead the other kids, a kid learns better by his own mouth. (whatever that means.)
Not everyone has what it takes to be a leader, and I admit I don’t think I do. However I am a lot better strategist than a leader. So I would be much better suited as the leader’s adviser.
I plan on being a leader of the kid’s, then there can be a food leader, and so many different things, so Z, I’d suggest doign 2 job’s.
Seems like most would rather have the leader’s ear, and be the “power behind the throne” than have the Sword of Damocles hanging directly over their own heads.
Is that about right?
maybe, just a little off subject here, does everyone agree that a farm is a good idea in the apocalypse? then you can have natural stuff, and save the other stuff for the winter. And i think that we’ll miss the protein, so chicken’s are a need. a cow can produce all of your milk/water, and a bunch of pig’s can lead to bacon… mmm…
A small family farm, plus chickens, rabbits, and goats for milk.
Of course it would have to be far enough of the beaten path that the refugees and looters would have a hard time finding it; and I would recommend starting how to work it now, because you don’t want a crash course in farming during a societal meltdown.
true, but i think that you can move most of the farm with you, and then you can plant things somewhere in the forest, different places, different foods, i’ve got some of the apocalypse under control.
Do some serious reading on guerrilla farming. There might be stuff on it on survivalblog, or maybe Paladin Press might have a book on the subject. Basically the idea is to learn what will grow in your climate with little to know care, and plant these things on public land, or on other peoples’ land, with no one knowing. Think of it as a living, prepositioned cache. Things like potatoes and onions will often grow with little maintenance, depending upon the climate.
Again, you have to get these things in the ground now, because there will be little time in the immediate aftermath of a WCS.
Damn kids thinking they can do everything better! I vote stew for zombie feast lol
2nd
Any opposed?
Motion carried…
I vote Stew should be cooked in a stew, and hey, there go the food problems!
Maybe the cameraman’s name should be Sweeney Todd?
I find I end up becoming the leader because no one want to bare the responsibility of others but still want be heard. In the event of a zombie uprising, it would never be a democracy until protection has been established and held for a comfortable amount of time. Sometimes the cheif just needs to make the call despite all the other “cheifs” lef in the group.
ugh, that faces
What face?
A leader huh? I’ve been told by many different people that I have the personality and the ability of a leader. I don’t quite see it.. I use great reasoning and I’m able to tell a factual lie, but that doesn’t make a person a leader. I’m better being the second hand man that helps the leader do what he needs done. I take half the weight on his shoulders and take it upon my own so that it makes the road easier.
I do like to get involved though, including my opinion both aloud and quietly.. As to help either clarify a situation or come to a better conclusion, but I’m no manipulative person.
Just like you said Bo, I also submit to the person with the most experience. Which I think has helped me a long way with learning most of what I do now. As well! Bo I’m jealous that you were in a small bore rifle team. These days fire arms are considered evil and usually you get in trouble for even mentioning them in a school system. Fear has taken over these dim witted people.
My high school still has an outdoor small-bore range, a quite nice one. You can see it from Google Earth. I don’t know how much use it gets these days. Back before my time the school used to host matches with other schools. We had to compete via postal matches. We would shoot, then submit the targets by mail to the judges. It was still fun; but not the same as open competition.
Yes, guns are evil. Just ask the folks at the UN…
i think you should really get a few more characters in this comic!!! 🙂 like maybe… idk an ice cream man or a butcher… oooo maybe the butcher went crazy and is killing ppl for meat?? and after they kill the butcher you save like a female school teacher??
also you should post a new comic every Saturday and Sunday!!!
well i dont mean a new comic… :/ u know what i mean.
Hey PJ, there is a “reply” button, that would help you to keep your comments more organized.
I Knew that… O_O
Ok, I just noticed you had 3 comments in a row that seemed to be adding to the first.
I’d just like to say… read this episode, then go back and read episode four…
Not the first time the young fulla has done the “take charge” approach 🙂
Nice ongoing occurance there Dave.
Of course I’m now going to have to read the whole comic again to see other neat things like this 🙂
wow i just realized my self LOL
Jus do it
I don’t really see Stew as being that good a leader, it takes more than just some good ideas for that.
Question:
As to why a lot of people seem to suggest themselves in a leadership role, I think a part of it is probably because we’re talking about what groups should do during and after the crisis, and it’s easiest to talk about that from the position of the one calling the shots.
I think I’ve mentioned this previously, but while I would go for the position if the group didn’t have a good leader – either having a bad leader or no real leader – if someone else stood up and did a good job, I’d prefer to aid them than challenge them. Challenge them for leader, that is – if I didn’t like their decision on something, I’d tell them, but not try to stir up shit with everyone else over something small.