Zombie Cliche Lookout: Red Flag
As I’ve mentioned a time or two, being alert and ready for danger is a key element of zombie survival. This becomes all the more important once the human factor becomes evident. When you’re dealing with other people who have the ability to be tricky, you’ve really got to be on your toes and looking out for things that just don’t quite fit. Case in point: Russell’s story about Gus. The second Gus hears it, he knows that something is amiss and they need to take immediate and decisive action.
About this Episode:
I kind of experimented a bit with the background on this set. Rather than building it out more, I’m simply using a green baseplate with various leaves on it to break up the texture. I also tried to vary the leaf color as much as possible with the parts I had. The idea is that it looks like a slightly overgrown area of forest behind him, at least when the aperture is nice and wide and the depth of field is shallow, thus blurring everything outside of the characters I’m focusing on. I saw that trick somewhere and have been wanting to try it out for a while now.
Discussion Question: Physical Training
Here in the northern hemisphere (sorry BrickVoid), it’s finally spring. That means summer is right around the corner and we’re going to have to be outside in shorts and t-shirts very soon. If you’re anything like me, you could probably stand to lose a few pounds before then. But this is a zombie comic, so let’s use that as the lens through which to address fitness and weight loss. So how would you train when your ultimate goal is zombie survival? Do you take the Zombieland approach and focus on cardio? Strength training? Just simply eat less and move more?
Typo alerts: “As I’m mentioned a time or two” I’m–>I’ve 😀
Mouseover text: “point at your” your–>you 😀
Fixed both.
I like the dramatic pause Murphy uses in the first panel, with before being used twice and with the … in the middle of them. It gives it a dramatic effect, as if Murphy is trying to find words to make some sense of all this. 😀 It works for me, does it work for anyone else, too?
Thanks!
As for the background, it works well while it doesn’t get focused on. But is that a tree or part of the background on the right side of the third panel there? 😀 It looks like typical shrubbery you’d expect to find, anyway, so it’s all good for me! 😀
It’s a little tree/sapling just behind our characters and a couple of inches in front of the background.
From the way Murphy and Gus suddenly acted as if they know each other like best buddies, I’m betting there’s a story behind all this, somewhere. I wonder if Dave can find time to expose the backstory a bit, in the next few strips? Anyway, looking good, Dave! 😀 Let’s see what the showdown with this group is all about! 😉
Here in the US, charity groups often work with local police and fire departments to raise money/gifts for underprivileged children. This is how they knew each other, although they could certainly have more history beyond that.
Still waiting for the other shoe to drop, maybe the instigator pops out and cliches about how the strongest are out of their way and then the rest could be robbed, used for the suicide (sp) with extreme pay off tropes.
This has got “Episode before Gene got shot” written all over it.
There will be blood on Monday. 🙁
But who is gonna get it? Russ? Gus? Murph?
I’d say Russell is in the best (or worst 😉 ) position to be shot.
Also, gus was right in the open. If they wanted him dead. It wouldn’t be very hard. Lol. Unless this is hidden away in his base. But how would russ and murph get there? So…yeah.
The discussion question for this episode actually reminds me of a survival based YouTube essay that addressed the survivalist mistake of focusing on weightlifting and heavy weapons training- which will result in an increase in metabolism, meaning more calories are burned in a shorter timespan, thus reducing the time to starvation.
Alternatively, just 5lbs of fat is equivalent to around 17,500 calories, which is enough to sustain an adult for about 8 days without eating any food!
Well, I’m good for 7 years, then. 🙂 😀
Gus seems to know exactly who the mystery group is and what sort of trouble they can cause. Not his first encounter with them?