Everyone, whether fictional or flesh and blood, needs a person they can go to in times of emotional turmoil. That person holds up a mirror to reflect their true self. Without them, we are doomed to keep repeating mistakes, or worse, destroying who we really are by trying to pretend we’re someone different and going against our nature. Dale is that man. He speaks the truth, no matter how hard it is to hear.
If you aren’t watching the show you should be. From the moment the show begins viewers are taken on the undead ride of a lifetime, watching a cast of beleaguered humans fight not only to survive, but to retain that which makes us most human.
Dale is The Walking Dead’s yoda…or Gandalf, if you prefer. Wise and caring, Dale acts as an elder statesman within the group –tending to group members’ emotional wellbeing, settling disputes and providing a sense of stability and direction in a world gone mad. But as we’ve seen in season two Dale, played so beautifully by Jeffrey DeMunn, is only human. His wisdom is of great value, but—truthfully—is sometimes compromised by his own feelings.
[***WARNING: Spoilers ahead***]
He is a dying breed. More so than the others in the main survivors group Dale –an elder well-educated, worldly man who chooses to remain optimistic and forward thinking—may truly be the last of his kind in the post-zombiepocalyptic world. The group needs Dale, desperately, to keep them morally and ethically grounded. He may not be perfect, no one is, but Dale is the personification of those characteristics from the “old way of living” that must.be.protected. to truly maintain the humanity that binds us all.
Dale sees all. The other members of the main survivors group try repeatedly to get one over on him, to fly under the Dale radar so they don’t have to own up to their behavior. It rarely, if ever, works. T-Dog, for instance, tried desperately to hide how severe his injuries were in the first episodes of the season. In his infection-fueled fever T-Dog became uber paranoid about his place in the group. Who would want to rely on a crippled minority and an old fart, right? Dale set him straight, showing him exactly where he was needed, while also trying what he could to tend to the more pressing matter, the fever about to fry his friend’s brain. In that moment, Dale became like a father to T-Dog. Sometimes we need our parents, even when we don’t realize it.
Dale may not be able to pull the trigger…but is still susceptible to the horrors within. In Shane, Dale finally found the one soul he cannot follow down their chosen path. Shane’s methods in ensuring the people he cares for are shocking to some. He is the trigger man Dale could never be. At the same time, during their confrontations in season two, it is apparent Dale wants to reach that level of practicality Shane is at, the one where he could do to Shane what Shane did to Otis and be able to justify it by saying he did it to keep Andrea safe. But would it really be an effort to neutralize the competition? We still don’t know if Dale’s fatherly nature has given away to more when it comes to her…and how far it could take him.
There was a moment in the season one finale where I literally bit a hole in my index finger to keep from screaming. Dale did what I hope all of us would do in a difficult situation to protect our common humanity. He chose to make the ultimate sacrifice. Andrea later accused him of being selfish. I disagree. Dale’s decision to remain behind at the soon-to-explode CDC if Andrea was staying was a moment of true bravery—one we could all aspire to having (though maybe not in such dire circumstances).
As with many of The Walking Dead characters—and most people in the real world—Dale is defined by the choices he makes. That he consistently errs on the side of traditional morality makes him a force to be reckoned with. He is the group’s greatest defender…the protector of their collective soul.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock you know that a) the holidays are sneaking up on our collective tail and b) the Zombie Survival Crew’s resident movie reviewer isn’t actually alive. There’s a long story about how we came in possession of the cantankerous A. Zombie. One day we’ll all gather around a campfire and I’ll share the tale. Rest assured, he has been secured in a safe place within the ZSC compound. No accidental nibbles from our reviewer. Promise.
Traditionally, zombies don’t celebrate the holidays, but A. Zombie has been watching us decorate the Command Center and grew curious about all of the hustle and bustle. The other day he slipped a letter under his cell door.
Dear Man in the Red Suit,
I’ve been told you are the one to talk to about this present thing. This Christmas I would like the following items delivered to the fake, plastic tree-like monstrosity beside the furnace:
[…Content removed…]
Sincerely,
A. Zombie
We had to have a little fun with this. Your job, dear ZSC faithful, is to tell us three items from A. Zombie’s letter to Santa Claus. The crewmember that gets the most items correct will win something from our prize closet. Easy as that.
The contest will be open from December 16, 2011 (12-16-2011) until December 24, 2011 (12-24-2011).
Rules and Regulations:
One entry per person
Entries may be submitted in the comments below or emailed to command [at] zombiesurvivalcrew [dot] com with the subject line “A. Zombie’s Wish List”.
Entries submitted via Twitter or Facebook will be disqualified.
Entries must be received by December 23, 2011 (12-23-2011) at 11:59 PM PST.
Entrants must be registered members of zombiesurvivalcrew.com. (If you are not, registering is FREE and EASY. Sign up HERE.)
When submitting entries, you give Zombie Survival Crew permission to post your name and contest entry on zombiesurvivalcrew.com and its associated social media outlets.
Winners will be notified via email.
So, do you have any idea what a zombie would want as a present? Tell us what you think.
Four high-school friends have educated themselves on zombie lore by playing a RPG game they’ve invented. They never dreamed they’d have to put their skills developed in the game to use, but an outbreak of the zombie virus forces their hand. While the town runs amok, they decide to meet in one of their game’s locations and make a final stand. The creator of the rule book, Jimmy, goes to retrieve it, Danny is sent to buy weapons, items a teenager could legally buy, while the ringleader, Joey, and Travis, whose father has fallen victim, stay behind to plan their defense and eventual escape.
Crunch Time brings you into the world of RPG and twitter, something near and dear to the Zombie Survival Crew’s heart, and takes you through the chilling choices which have to be made during a zombie attack.
Please note because the characters are dealing with a zombie outbreak, this excerpt has some strong language.
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Crunch Time by Maria Kelly
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Joey Costello wiped the dust from the cheddar puffs onto his jeans and leaned forward to stare at the brightly lit computer monitor. It was his older brother David’s hand-me-down computer: the one that looked like some fucked-up futuristic space-lamp.
He waited for his tweeps to respond. He watched as line upon line in the stream scrolled past, none of them from his crew.
“C’mon, dudes, damn!” he yelled, banging his fist down on the desk.
He cursed again as a whole load of tweets went sailing by, and he had to scroll down to make sure he didn’t miss one from his friends.
“Oh, man, we SO need our own hashtag.” He made a mental note to spring this bit of brilliant wisdom on his tweeps when they got on line. Where the hell where they, anyway?
He was half-way through the tweets when the auto-refresh kicked in and zoomed a hundred more tweets past his eyes.
“Aw, goddammit!” He swore again, but not too loudly. His mom had begun tolerating him dropping the ‘F-bomb’ but she’d tear his ass up if she heard him using that word. Not that his mother was particularly religious, but Aunt Lois was, and Aunt Lois was always over at their place these days since Uncle Reggie passed.
Finally, his trembling finger stilled on the scroll button as he read the message:
2ndTimeDead: RT @ZombieHuntR666 holla back mah boyz when u online.|| I’m on, Z.
“Yes!” Joey whispered as he typed and waited for his message to appear onscreen:
ZombieHuntR666: @2ndTimeDead it is as we feared, brotha!!!
He waited for 2ndTimeDead’s reply:
2ndTimeDead: @ZombieHuntR666 I know that’s right, bro! Saw 2 on way home from Crosswalk. Scared the fuck outta me. What do we do?
ZombieHuntR666: @2ndTimeDead don’t fuckin panic. that’s the most important thing. don’t fuckin panic. u been readin these other tweets?
2ndTimeDead: @ZombieHuntR666 4realz! Both #zombieapocalypsenow and #realzombiegeddon are TT’ing! WTF? They’re all over the world! WTF? #whatthefuck
ZombieHuntR666: @2ndTimeDead i said don’t panic dude. oh shit! SHIT! brb…
2ndTimeDead: @ZombieHuntR666 Joey i’m fuckin comin over there in about 3 minutes if you don’t tweet me the fuck back!!!!
2ndTimeDead: @ZombieHuntR666 4realz mofo! I aint playin! Are you ok? Joey i swear to god you better not be playin!!!!!!!!!
ZombieHuntR666: @2ndTimeDead damn dude it was just my mom.
2ndTimeDead: @ZombieHuntR666 You scared the fuck outta me asshole!!! I thought one of them got you.
ZombieHuntR666: @2ndTimeDead LOL sorry dude 😛 dude, we need our own hashtag. going thru these tweets is bullshit.
2ndTimeDead: @ZombieHuntR666 Dude, how about #oakleafHSzombies?
Sometimes Danny surprised Joey with a flash of brilliance. Since the zombie virus outbreak in their town seemed to have started at their school, #oakleafHSzombies was the perfect hash.
ZombieHuntR666: @2ndTimeDead Danny Patton you’re a fuckin genius! that’s brilliant i swear to god.
At the thought of his school, Joey’s hands dropped off the keyboard. How many Oak Leaf High School students had already been turned?
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To read more, and find out what happens to Joey, Danny and the rest of their friends, check out Undead Is Not An Option.
Every time I see him I am reminded of why opening up your heart to anyone is at best a calculated risk, and at worst a fool’s errand. He is strong and capable, but simultaneously tormented and weak. He is—despite his claims to the contrary—too human for his own good.
The fact that he is not really real should keep me from feeling too sad, but it doesn’t…because I am in love with Shane Walsh.
Who is Shane Walsh? He is a character from The Walking Dead—a series of graphic novels by Robert Kirkman turned into one of the world’s hottest cable television shows by AMC and an insanely talented production crew.
If you aren’t watching the show you should be. From the moment the show begins viewers are taken on the undead ride of a lifetime, watching a cast of beleaguered humans fight not only to survive, but to retain that which makes us most human.
In that regard Shane is both succeeding and failing spectacularly.
And every time he makes the wrong decision for the right, or wrong, reason it both breaks my heart and makes me love the character even more.
Now I could probably write 50,000 words on this based on events in seasons one and two, thus far, in the show—but in the interest of finishing this before the end of the year I’m going to attempt to keep this brief.
When the zombieapocalypse began to unfold it presented an opportunity for an average guy like Shane to reach into his core and become something different, better…greater, than he had been previously. He could emerge from the shadow of a mediocre life to become a leader…to prove his worth to those he cares about, to what is left of the world.
Shane is capable of the more practical aspects of survival—handling firearms, securing a water supply or repairing a broken down car. He is able to pull the trigger when necessary (and, on occasion, when it might not be). He sees The Walking Dead’s zombie-infested world for what it really is and doesn’t shy away from the difficult decisions.
But his downfall is that he has convinced himself he can see survival in a zombified world in physical terms—claiming he can ‘flip an emotional switch’ and do what needs to be done no matter how horrific to survive. The truth is that he cannot.
He has hog-tied his emotional wellbeing to a relationship with a woman and child that cannot be, and does not have the emotional fortitude or maturity to find anything else good in this make-believe world worth holding on to. It colors his every decision, and eats away at him like an internal zombie virus—incurable, unstoppable. All around him the broader tragedies continue to unfold, and every.single.one leaves him less able than the one before to honestly cope with this terrifying new world.
Every time he stumbles Shane is propelled down a darker path, taken away from that which is good in himself—that to which he once aspired and what remains in his stress-twisted mind what he has become.
Yet at the same time…Shane is often right, even when his tactics make my stomach churn.
(**WARNING: Spoilers ahead**)
He was right to tell Lori Rick was dead. Shane did the best Shane could do in a life threatening situation and knew Lori would never leave if there was a chance Rick remained alive. That he did it, at least in part, motivated by selfish reasons makes me ill, …but he was right.
He was right about the mission to find Merle that split the group and left the camp less-defended. Was the search necessary? To maintain some semblance of humanity—yes, it was necessary. In terms of survival? Questionable at best. Over the long-term winning the loyalty of Daryl Dixon gives the group a powerful, very capable ally. But it also left the group smaller, with less people to defend the humanity they’re all clinging to.
He was right about Sophia. Standard operating procedure. After 72 hours, you’re looking for a body folks. He delivered the message like a bludgeon. It won him few friends, but he was right. And it was only when faced with the decision to destroy something so pure as the innocence of a child’s hope did he relent and be the man he could be in a different world.
He was right about the barn. Leave or clear out the walkers. Faced with the sight of Rick following the lead of a man completely deluding himself about the state of the word, Shane leapt into action. Survive or die. Make your choice. That Shane had to rip at the human fabric of every other survivor on the farm to drive home this point is despicable. It was a massacre—plain and simple. And none of them will ever be the same.
And then….there’s Otis. It was Shane’s defining moment. A decision made for a multitude of right and wrong reasons, mashed together in a stew of human suffering that left no doubt…Shane can never be the man he would like to think he has become. I would like nothing better than to condemn this moment with every derogatory word in the English language. Dale said in the mid-season finale that Shane belongs in this world. I believe it is destroying him and Otis’ death was his primal roar to the universe—an act of supreme suffering and animal rage to take the life of another to save his own…knowing, somewhere deep inside, that by doing so he was committing emotional suicide.
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Wanted to add this in as the discussion on FB was quite lively. Seems I am not the only one rooting for Shane.
With the holidays coming up, Undead Is Not An Option would make a nice gift for the zombie lover’s in your family.
What would you do if you were stuck in a tree house, with a complete stranger who is somewhat annoying but a bona fide optimist, a chest full of rocks, and a horde of zombies waiting below? Louie, the optimist, is certain the government is working on a cure for the zombies or a rescue plan, but Arnie keeps mulling over the question, what could be worse than zombies? The Changing by Jim Bronyaur answers the question, but leaves you with this one: will you draw blood gnawing on your knuckle by the time you reach the end?
Please note because the characters are dealing with a zombie outbreak, this excerpt has some strong language.
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The Changing by Jim Bronyaur
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After the rocks…
Without order, chaos would ensue. It was human nature, maybe instinct, maybe that extra little bit of work creation put into us, but give a man an inch and he’ll probably try to take more. Toss in the idea of the world ending and now you’ve got a whole new bag of shit to deal with.
Arnie noticed the beginning of the chaos after the second rock Louie threw at a zombie. Calm with the first throw, he pretended to be a baseball pitcher. Arnie didn’t like nor understand baseball but with the growing group of zombies below them, he’d take a long, hot day at a ballpark anytime.
Louie’s second throw was filled with rage. He barely took aim and cursed so much and so fast, the words mixed together. By the time he threw the rock, his body sweated and shook. The rock pegged a zombie in the shoulder and the thing fell over but climbed right back up.
“Three,” Arnie said. “Hey, we should consider the rules again. Is it just three? Or should you get three for knocking him over and then one for hitting them…” He tried to break the tension but Louie acted as if he lost his mind.
“Fuck the game,” Louie said. He picked up another rock. With his knuckles white from the grip on the rock, he pulled his arm back but only wept. As his head bobbed, Arnie watched as Louie’s body teetered on the edge.
Arnie knew that if the man kept it up they’d be out of rocks soon. And if he lost his mind, then maybe a push was in order. Sure, it was a sick thought to have—pushing an innocent, living man into a horde of zombies, but these weren’t normal times.
Trying to take the high road, Arnie wrapped his arms around Louie and pulled him back. The rock fell to the floor with a clunk.
“Louie, please. You’re losing it.”
Louie dropped to his ass and kept crying. Arnie always wondered what was worse than watching a woman cry when you had nothing to offer to make it stop. He found it, and it wasn’t the end of the world waiting outside, it was Louie babbling like a baby.
The crying lasted ten minutes or so until Louie sucked up all his snot and put out a shaky hand towards Arnie, offering a forgiveness handshake. “I’m sorry,” he said, “I haven’t had a smoke in a while. Withdrawal. And those things… I just think about all the people I know out there. Are they dead? Are they walking again, but as zombies?”
“You’re the one who told me we’d be saved soon. We had to just hang out here…”
“I know, I know. I’m sorry. I need a cigarette. And a shot of whiskey.”
“And a woman,” Arnie added with a smile.
“Amen to that. But enough talk about what we can’t have. You know what? I feel like something’s going to happen today. Something’s… changing.”
Changing.
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To read more, and find out what is changing and whether Louie and Arnie survive, check out Undead Is Not An Option.
Our captain of the Special Forces, Michael Rooker, stands out in a crowd and on the screen because he puts his all into what he does… whether it be acting, or interacting with crew members and fans alike, or giving shout outs to the crew. And we’re not the only ones who have noticed what a great guy Michael is.
Here’s what Fast Company had to say about Michael:
Michael Rooker only needed a handful of scenes to turn Merle Dixon into a fanboy favorite. But it was his real-world commitment to bringing the character to life that gave the AMC series its watercooler buzz.
And thanks to Fast Company for recognizing the ZSC efforts in the #MoMerle campaign.
It has to be said, Greg Nicotero and his crew really, really, really outdid themselves for this episode. If you haven’t watched yet, just be prepared for a scene worse than Rick taking an ax to a decomposing walker in season one’s “Guts” episode. Oh, and don’t even think about eating. I had to leave a bowl of ice cream to melt on my side table.
With the nod to outstanding and epic grossness out of the way, lets dig into the meat of the episode. (Did you just gag a little? So did I. Promise that’s the last intestinal pun in this review.)
Can we address the Shane problem? Last week’s review lit off a small debate in the ZSC command center about whether or not Shane acted within reason given the circumstances he was in. I was hoping this week he’d give us a clear direction his head is going, but it became impossible to tell if the guilt eating him alive stems from using a good man as zombie bait or because he feels that he failed Otis in some way by leaving him behind. Later in the episode he tells Andrea that in order to kill you basically have to turn off everything that makes you human and act on instinct. The need to survive is a strong instinct, I’ll give him that. But… wasn’t there another way? A humane way at least?
This episode brought our core group of survivors back together. Once they were all gathered two people stood out, T-Dog and Daryl. T-Dog had a bad patch in the last episode, meaning he lost his ever-loving mind while burning up with a fever. Some of what he told Dale made sense in a way and that is what haunts him. The idea that because the group may see him as weak, it could cost him his spot with them. How rough would things have to get for any of them to look at T-Dog and, essentially, vote him off the “island”? He could simply be paranoid with a bit of brain fry from the infection… or maybe he’s got every right to fear being left behind.
Then you’ve got Daryl who seems from the get-go to want nothing to do with anyone on the farm, whether they are original survivors or part of the new group living there. As soon as they parked he was off into the woods alone. All of that progress he made being a decent man around Andrea vanished. Only thing I can think of is he fears opening up, at least until the Cherokee Rose. Daryl gave Carol a deeper look into himself than he has with anyone. Again he knew exactly what she needed to hear and gave it to her in this wonderfully sad story about the flower. He knows that crying won’t bring him Merle back, but also understands that Carol needs the tears to voice her grief, worry, and the sliver of hope that Sophia will come back.
Seeing where everyone ended up this episode has me rethinking what I said about Glenn last week. I assumed that he would likely jump at the chance to ride at Rick’s side again when he resumes the hero role. Only… Glenn became his own hero this week. Sure there was a lot of awkward moments where he became really goofy and cute, however you’ve got to give the man a hand at lassoing a bloated zombie like that. We know he’s not exactly a smooth talker with the ladies, but Glenn is growing out of the sidekick role if he keeps this up. Go, Glenn, go!
I’ll wrap this up with a quick thought on something Hershel said to Rick. Faith seems to play a huge part in how Hershel approaches life. He sees God’s hand in everything around him. If a rainbow forms after a storm, God sent it. A car hits a man on his way to dinner with his wife; God decided it was his time to go “home”. But, you see, I cannot fathom how his faith holds up when faced with the animated corpse of someone he knew. Is Jesus cleverly disguised in the blood splatter and we just can’t see it because the need to survive has blinded us to faith? Or is Hershel clinging to the one thing he has left to give him hope for his family? That’s got to be it. Mankind will tell themselves anything to maintain hope, even if it means believing in a miracle cure that’ll never come, from God or mankind.
We love our commander of the Green Brigade, Iron E Singleton, and he shows us his love again in a fabulous shout out to the Zombie Survival Crew in his interview with CultureMob.
Here’s what Culture Mob had to say: Another character who has been there from day one (or in the real world, episode 2) is T-Dog. Best known in the show as the guy who drops the keys to the handcuffs that led to Merle Dixon cutting his hand off to escape the cuffs. I had a very cool opportunity to speak exclusively with T-Dog, actor IronE Singleton. Now that the show has been picked up again (there will be a season 3 already announced) the writers are going to have the time to explore and develop all of the main cast including T-Dog.
Need something spooky to get you in the mood for Halloween? The Zombie Survival Crew recommends, Undead Is Not An Option. It will give you chills and have you checking the locks and closets before going to bed.
The first entry in the anthology was a piece from one of our loyalists summarizing the situation in which we’d found ourselves, and helps us to understand how the Zombie Survival Crew came into being and some of the forces we are up against.
Classified Warning Order
by Kelene Toups
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CLASSIFIED MESSAGE
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TASK ORGANIZATION: Zombie Survival Crew (ZSC)
SITUATION: Several weeks ago, your organization was called upon to build a force and recruit for the imminent zombie apocalypse. Your orders are to serve as a front line force to protect the living, and annihilate the undead.
Enemy Forces
Recent reports indicate attacks and sightings in major cities in the United States and other countries around the globe. International recruiting has ensured our allies are well prepared for the attack. And these allies have pledged their full support to the ZSC. Intelligence obtained from our most recent reconnaissance mission suggests a large-scale attack is approaching. The Zombie Survival Crew is now, officially, on full alert. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.
The enemy, easily identified by their pale grey skin, unhealed wounds, shuffling gait and colorless eyes, travels in packs and is extremely dangerous. Use maximum caution when approaching large numbers; strive to isolate the enemy or reduce to small groups for ease of dispatch. Our research subject has shown the enemy possesses an excellent sense of smell and hearing, poor vision, nonexistent thought process and an insatiable appetite for human flesh. These vital bits of intelligence will aid you in combat against the enemy; use these weaknesses to your full advantage to neutralize the strength of the enemy and diminish the chance of increase in numbers. The most effective means of destruction is to discontinue the neurotransmission process, accomplished by destruction of the brain. I.e. axe blow, bullet, pick axe, crossbow etc…
Recent intelligence reports indicate enemy forces are increasing faster than originally anticipated, with the potential to reach epidemic proportions. The lethal virus is introduced to the host from the saliva of an infected enemy by means of a bite during an attack.
The Zombie Survival Crew issued a press release about their 2011 Halloween Zombie Apocaplypse virtual event on Twitter, coming October 29-31, 2011. From the press release:
If you’re wracking your brain trying to figure out a unique way to celebrate Halloween this year, but don’t want to leave the house, the Zombie Survival Crew has the answer for you. A 3-day, online Zombiepalooza.
Contest ninja: RC Murphy
