My thoughts on Zombies

Helen's thoughts

BECAUSE 2AM IS A GREAT TIME TO WRITE STUFF ABOUT ZOMBIES!!!
Nah, just that my insomnia is striking again, so I wanted to write something before going to bed. I used to really hate zombies as a kid because I thought they're really scary. Now I've really grown to love them, because they serve for great escapism daydreams and for blogging about.

Let's see, when I was younger, I hated zombies because the thought of being mobbed and then eaten alive is quite frightening. I tried playing Resident Evil 1 or 2 with a friend when it just came out for the PlayStation, and we'd die within minutes because we just started and had not a blinking idea of what we were doing, lol. So we had to watch in shame and horror as Leon was torn into pieces by the zombies again, and again.....and again. The frustration of losing constantly kinda made me feel like there's no way to win.

I think not being able to win in a zombie apocalypse is the scariest thing about it. I mean, look at all the zombie movies/games out there today: it's mostly just you (or the protagonist) trying to survive against hordes of zombies. Sure, there may be a few of your friends there, but usually by the end of the movie/game, there's just you and maybe 2-3 other people with you if you're lucky (and none of you were black, lol. I'm sorry black people, but the movie industry is just against you, man.) And it's never clear exactly how you survive--zombies just take over the world, and I guess you'd be lucky if you could keep breathing till you died of exhaustion. With no end in sight, zombie apocalypse is a scary thing.

Another scary thing about it is being alone, I think. I've always said that if the zombie apocalypse is real, there's no way I'm gonna even try and survive on my own. It'd be too exhausting and frustrating to live on my own against the zombie world. If I could have one or two people with me, then I can probably make it. But if I'm all alone, I'd end my own misery.

A positive aspect about the zombie apocalypse is that we won't have to worry about mundane day-to-day things like school or work or that annoying gossipy bitch who likes to talk shit behind your back anymore. It'll just come down to survival. When you've had to worry about daily things for a long time, just trying to survive is a nice change of pace. But of course, survival can get tiring and boring real fast too. But right now, I won't mind taking out some of my aggression on some zombies.

As a biologist, I also find the prospect of zombies as a result of bio experiments really interesting, because it's absolutely possible. However, RE's idea of a virus reanimating the dead is pretty redonkulous. The human body is, imo, too intricate to be able to be reanimated. Upon death, every single cell breaks down. Though I dunno the exact time every type of cell breaks down at, it's pretty fast. Once they're dead, there's no way to bring them back. Without nerve cells, a body cannot move. Even if we say people can come back to life after death and become zombies, without properly working nerve cells, they can't do anything.

Therefore, I think 28 Days Later's zombies are more likely. Think about it. What could happen is that an agent, some sort of virus or bacteria, could infect humans and eat away at their mind and heighten activity of the parts of the brain that controls anger, sending the infected into fits of uncontrollable rage. We actually know of a virus that does something like this: rabies. The rabies virus targets the brain, and they concentrate in the saliva of the infected, thus how rabies is spread. Sounds a little like the 28 Days Later zombies, no?
It's also a happier ending if zombies were more like 28 Days Later's zombies. For one, we have vaccines for rabies. For another, that means they can starve to death, as evident in the 1st movie. Zombies that are reanimated from death will never die.

Now, I do have a zombie survival plan in mind, but it'll totally depend on who's with me. Ideally, I'd like to be the medic of the group, since I'm studying to be a nurse (let's just hope the zombie apocalypse strikes after I become a well-trained nurse) My ideal team of zombie survivors will have no more than 6 people. One of those people will be the leader, and I pass because I know I'd make a terrible leader. I'm much better as an adviser. My ideal leader is strong in the sense that he/she is capable of quickly making the best decision under pressure, and that he/she can stand against pressure. Hopefully he/she is also compassionate towards his comrades and will not leave anyone behind if he/she can help it. He/she must also have a strong sense of direction and goals so he can unite us. Everyone else I just ask them to be cooperative and willing to work together.

In my arsenal I hope to have a number of things. I'd definitely like some sort of firearm to use for the zombie apocalypse. Although I do favor the shotgun, I'm afraid it might be too heavy for me to carry. So realistically, I'd probably opt for handguns or melee weapons. I'd like something sharp and easy to swing, so a machete is probably my best bet. And unlike the scantily-clad heroines of RE, I'd definitely cover up. I'd definitely look into getting shin and arm guards, as the limbs are at the most danger of exposure to zombie bites. I'd cover all my skin with the toughest kind of clothes I can find so that I can limit exposure but not bog down my speed too much. I'd definitely pull back my hair like Serena in 28 Days Later did too. There's just no way I'm letting hair get into my eyes as I try to slay zombies. I might have to invest into some sort of face protector too, since infection is possible through any membranous barriers, such as eyes and mouth, as seen in 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later.

If you can't tell already my favorite zombie movie is probably 28 Days Later, with Shawn of the Dead following closely behind. I hated George Romero's Diary of the Dead because I thought just about everyone in that movie deserved to die (except Samuel, the mute Amish guy who made bombs and killed himself with a scythe to get the zombie that was eating him. FUCKING HARDCORE). Same with the anime/manga High School of the Dead. I cannot fucking stand the anime of it. Rei and Saya needs to fucking drop dead, but Saya more so than Rei, because at least Rei is good for killing zombies. Saya is not good for anything except maybe zombie bait and mule. If it were up to me, every time Saya annoyed me I'd cut off a piece of her body (starting small with things like her fingers, hands, and arms) and feed it to the zombies, and make her carry ammo. And if I run out of parts to cut off and she's still being an annoying bitch, I'd just say fuck this shit and let the zombies have her. She's fucking whinny as hell with her "I'M A GENIUS YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME!" bitching. Fuck you, Saya, you can be a genius without being a fucking annoying twat. She gives geniuses everywhere a bad name. Also, L4D and L4D2 > RE. That is all.

Alex 

I love zombies.  I really believe that you don't really feel alive unless something is trying to kill you.  I love the whole idea of survival horror.  I even have a real life zombie apocalypes kit.  I got rope, glowsticks, fire starters, medical supplies ect...  I still need more things for it but its a start.  And this kit can be used for any real disaster too.  The one thing that I really need however is a riot shotgun.  Every good zonbie hunter uses one.  I mean sure in a pinch you can use a handgun or a combat knife but nothing beats that safe feeling and weight of a shotgun.  Maybe an exception for a flamethrower or a minigun, but seriously who has those just sitting around.