Zombie Cliche Lookout: The Value of Diversion
One of the most terrifying things about a zombie as a monster can also be exploited as a weakness: it’s utter single-mindedness. Sure, when that incredible focus in used on hunting you down and eating your flesh, it’s unsettling, but you can also use that to make the zombie work against its own interests. For instance, if your safehouse is besieged by an army of zeds, you can have one or two people inside make a bunch of noise to draw them to one side while you sneak out the other. Or, if you’re feeling a little more like a bad guy, you might try luring a sizable mob of zombies into a position occupied by people you’re trying to take out for one reason or another.
Naturally, this tactic can be expanded beyond zombies. Sure the zombie is an ideal target because, let’s be honest here, they’re just not very smart. But with a little work and ingenuity, this same sort of diversionary tactic can by used on living people as well.
About this Episode:
Russell, while he still seemed to go along with the plan, seems to be a little salty about things. Part of this might be his normal personality, but there’s also a part of him that’s just not meshing with this new group that he knows very little about.
Discussion Question: Weaponizing the Zombie Horde
I may have used this question before (and I’m sure one of my eagle-eyed readers will point to exactly where), but that’s okay because it has, hopefully, been a while. Intro aside, how would you turn your friendly neighborhood zombies into a weapon to use against your enemies? And to differentiate things a bit, how could you use that same horde defensively? Surely there are some interesting ways to put the zeds on guard duty.
Typo alert: “Russell, while still seemed to go along” this seems to be missing “he” between “while” and “still” 😀
That seems to be the only typo for today. 😀
Fixed, thanks.
Wow this is all very sudden, almost like a webcomic author rushed through a scrip and decided to throw his main cast up against someone they know very little about. What would this other group do if they arrive at this trailer park, only to find Gus is a zombie, if he’s even around, still? I mean, a lot can happen really fast in a zombie apocalypse, one minute you’ve got enemies, the next minute they’re zombies. How exactly does one deal with the reality that your next foe could be turned into your next zombie horde bearing down on you? 😀
I know you’re critical of this, but it is according to plan. I think it will make sense in the coming episodes.
Yes, it’s a plan, but remember Ted’s reaction to them; he called them “those things”. I don’t think Gus’s reaction to having one of his followers turned into a zombie would be any different, and would throw an unexpected twist into the storyline. 😀
These last several episodes are reminding me strongly of The Walking Dead.
Zombie as weapon? Plant speakers around your intended target, play loud noises. The zombies would make their way there and feed on who they found. This is not a practical weapon for everyday encounters, but would be useful in siege situations. Day by Day Armageddon (great book series) featured these air-dropped sonic beacons to attract zombies to a location.
Zombie as defense? Back to The Walking Dead here with zombies chained to the ground like watch dogs, providing a hungry moat.
That would be pretty easy to combat, just make the walls around the area into zombie death traps. The only problem would be occasionally having to remove the piled up corpses. If someone is seriously defending a location sending zombies their way isn’t something they’re going to worry about that much, because they might wind up at their location anyway.