Zombie Cliche Lookout: Quid Pro Quo
Should the zombie holocaust ever hit, it’s a sure bet that the retail infrastructure we count on as a society is going to be one of the first casualties. Modern stores do not keep a great deal of inventory on hand, and instead rely on a complicated system of warehouses and logistics, with products coming from as near as the local farm to as far away as a factory on the other side of the planet. Suffice it to say, in the early hours of the zombie uprising, people are going to be more worried about survival than ensuring that stock is kept up and deliveries are completed on schedule. This will, in turn, create shortages that will only fuel the panic among consumers, exacerbating the situation for everyone involved.
When the initial chaos dies down, the remaining survivors will be left in much the same circumstances, with the minor exception of having substantially less competition for remaining resources. They will, of course, be able to salvage many of the items they need, at least for a while. Eventually, however, the leftover supplies will begin to dwindle, and people will be left to improvise, do without, or reinstating an ancient form of commerce: bartering.
About this Episode:
I was really hoping I’d be able to pull off Cheryl’s body language in the second panel. I had a very distinct picture in my head of her pushing back Russell gently with the bat and interjecting in the conversation. From my perspective, it came out pretty well.
Other News:
I’ve finally finished updating the Characters Bios. Hopefully I got everything, but if anyone notices anything missing or wrong, please let me know.
Discussion Question: Non-Violent Zombies?
Zombies, like many classical monsters, have gone through countless different rules-sets and character changes over the years. Some zombies are fast, some are slow. There are zombies who can talk, while most simply groan. A few zombies can climb ladders and open doors, while their brethren are less dexterous. I can accept all of this, but one thing that always gives me pause in zombie fiction is coming across a zombie who isn’t hostile toward the living. For instance, in the terrible remake of Day of the Dead, a vegetarian reanimates as a zombie, and yet still refuses to eat meat.
My question is, can you think of any way that this could work within the greater zombie mythology, or perhaps within a specific story’s framework? There have been successful attempts in the past, such as Michonne’s limbless, toothless zombies, although you could argue that they were only non-hostile because they didn’t have the means to attack.
Typo alert, Zombie Cliche Lookout, first sentence, after the comma: “infrastructure we could on” could–>count 😀
Same section, second sentence, after the second comma: “products come from” come–>coming
About This Episode, first sentence: of–>off
Not too bad, Dave, there were some minor things I thought could have been specific to your location in the U.S., so I just ignored those for now, the above are really typos! 😀
Al fixed, BV. Thanks.
I also sincerely hope you get the chance to put an extra comic up either Tuesday or Thursday, don’t let the ISP connectivity issues get you down! 😉
If it doesn’t happen because of time constraints I vote you keep the new six panel format instead! 😀
Actually, I was planning on taking this Friday off since I’m heading out of town, so I’m just going to shift the extra episode in there.
As far as the body language is concerned, it’s a good thing they’re all hardened plastic minifigs otherwise that baseball bat might actually hurt someone! 😀
Hah, yes indeed.
Zombies are a touchy subject, as anyone can put there own spin on them. I could come up with a book right now where they eat only human hair. It really depends on the author/director. PS: Im glad to see my characters in the bios! I did not expect to see them until their intentions are shown.
Hah, I tweaked the bios slightly so they were a bit more open ended.
Nice work on the character bios, nice to see them get a good update.
And a zombie that doesn’t eat humans/meat? loses the main reason they are a threat, they just become like humans that are shuffling down the street looking at their smart phones and bumping into you.
Although trying to defend your vege garden/sustenance crop against a bunch of angry vegetarian zombies would definitely bring plants vs zombies to life 🙂
PS: Next set review is being typed up.
Awesome! Looking forward to your review!
when will you be releasing info on the contest? My building skills eagerly await this challenge that you have presented
Next week; just have to finish my write-ups.
What was the Question? OK what a zombie is is a dead body come back to life to hurt the living. Beyond that you make rules to suit your story. Sticking to your rules is important.
28 Days Later had zombies that weren’t really dead but close enough. The fact they would all die soon was important to the story. Return of the Living Dead the zombies were smart and organized and sought out the one thing they wanted “Brains”. Warm Bodies had two types of zombies. This allowed for an epic final battle with those who could not be redeemed and those who could.
Ah, it’s great to see those Character Bios updated. Sometimes I need to keep myself up to date since this story goes back and forth with groups and locations. Anyway, good job on this episode, but I still don’t trust Michael or Joy. For all we know, they could be earning their trust only to stab them in the back!