Zombie Survival Crew

Escape from Altura:
Review for Z Nation 503
by A. Zombie

Before you jump into the chaos, just be aware there’s episode spoilers below.

Our harbingers of doom have done it yet again. The moment they mosey into a functioning slice of civilization, it eventually implodes around them. Yet in this case, they’re not the actual cause; they’re just in the wrong place at the wrong time. The bombing, the tensions in the camp, they were already in motion when Doc, 10k, and Sarge arrived. Someone else intentionally sabotaged Altura’s safety net and subsequently the vote to bring all humans, alive or undead, together as a nation again. That someone must have known true equality was coming and cut it off at the pass the hard way.

Getting to the root of who planted the bomb has to take a backseat for a while. Fallout from the bombing leaves a drastic shift in the living/dead ratio. Massive trauma compounded with awakening hungers makes the new Talkers rise ravenous. And who’s there calmly talking the freshly turned down from the ledge like a pro? George handles everyone with genuine concern in her eyes, diffusing the first of many problems to arise after the bomb with hardly a tremble in her voice. Citizen Z and the others help as much as they can given the bizkit shortage and their own superficial injuries. What else can they do? Not much, but Citizen Z does provide possible footage of the bomber . . . only it’s confiscated by Estes before they rewind to the right moment.

I’m going to tip-toe out on the ledge and guess that Estes is a Talker. All of the bombing and blaming Dante is a ploy to keep humans separate from the undead so at some point it’ll be easier to create a zombie-driven society with enslaved humans. The only reason to segregate is to eventually use ones power over the others; since humans are mortal and therefore seen as inferior by some Talkers, they embrace the idea that natural progression put them at the top of the food chain, so they should be the only leaders. It makes sense if one realizes Estes’ entourage are all undead. Yes, he does lock up Altura’s Talkers, but the everyday person in the colony is poor, a person of color, etc. Only the “useful” or rich Talkers are allowed freedom. This whole plot is white nationalism painted with zombie colors.

With Altura compromised and Dante on the run from Estes, the gang takes their leave from their new home. Again. Unfortunately, not everyone makes it out the fence before the starved Talkers turn. It was only a matter of time before our next hard goodbye, and that time has come. During the final push to make it through the damaged fence, 10k, Red, and Sarge are cornered. There’s too many for them to fight and nowhere to run. 10k is bit, but before the zombies drag him down, Red cuts off his injured hand and Sarge charges in to knock the undead back. This is not like any of her fights before. There’s no escape. Sarge goes out on her own terms, though, using a grenade to clear the horde so the others can survive.

On the road to the most likely refuge for Dante, Roberta and the others find evidence of a larger plot in the form of tortured, burned Talkers bound and left for dead. Also on the road is a lone Murphy, who ran when lockdown was called. I shouldn’t say alone, he has a follower. A helpful follower, at that. The blend army still lives! In a much, much smaller form. But they seem to be well organized and overjoyed to have their leader back. At least someone’s day wasn’t completely awful from dawn to dusk. Maybe they can even help the gang with their newfound Estes problem.